Fair Fun & All By Myself

We went to the Minnesota Fair on opening day this past Thursday. I had to work that morning so we didn't get to the fair until around 5:30 or 6p.m. Normally we make a day of it, but between our work schedules and this darn RNC schedule Kevin has it was literally the only time we could make it there. We didn't see nearly enough but we did enjoy the food and Charlotte and I went on 2 rides together. Charlotte had a blast! We went on the corn slide 1st. I was more nervous than she was. It is really high up there at the top of the slide. When we went down though Charlotte thought it was the best thing she had ever experienced. She was laughing and happily screaming the whole way down. It was great. Then, at the end of the night we went on the Merry Go Round and Charlotte rode on the Horse that goes up and down. Her reaction was priceless. Kevin was watching us and, without prompting, every time we passed Kevin she would smile a huge smile and wave at him and say "Hi Dad!" In my mind it looked as if she was in a commercial for Valley Fair or something. I actually thought the Merry Go Round was too fast but Charlotte seemed to enjoy it just fine. She wanted to go again, but maybe we'll do that next week. Even though Kevin won't be able to come, I think Charlotte and I are going to go to the fair together one morning really early and get breakfast and look at the fun nerdy stuff.

This morning after Charlotte woke up she was playing in her room and in true Charlotte fashion her beautifully clean room became messy in about 10 seconds. She is again on the dressing yourself kick. So, the pictures are of course of Charlotte's morning adventure. She reminds me of myself. when it comes to trying on clothes, because I am often not satisfied, and can go from a wonderfully clean room to a clothing disaster in just a few minutes. (I stuck another fun picture of her in there too from earlier this week. She seems to have lots of fun in the high chair of hers).

I hope you all have enjoyed your weekend and the crisp clean weather. Yeah for Fall.....finally!

Where does the time go?

I cannot believe how fast time is flying by. Well, I have officially started my new job at Oak City in Bloomington. The training has been pretty intense and time consuming but certainly to my benefit. Tonight is our last night of our "Soft Opening." It is supposed to be the busiest night yet for all of our machs. I am looking forward to it. My parents are coming in as well, which should be pretty fun. And, since they have two daughters who are servers and another who is a host, they should be pretty set on feeling at home! So far it's been pretty fun working with my sisters. If you don't already know, my sister Sarah is also serving and my sister Katherine is a host. I would love it if you all came in to have some fun. The food is excellent and the entertainment is even better! I'm really looking forward to working in a fun atmosphere like this and plus, anyone who knows me, knows I will be right up there with the dueling pianos singing my favorites, like Proud Mary of course.

As for the rest of the family, Kevin is still gearing up for the RNC. He just got his schedule and it's rather overwhelming. He is working consistent 12 hour days for 8 days. At least he is working the 10am-10pm shift, so it won't screw with the sleep schedule too much. Also, I have to brag a little bit about Kevin as well. He has done such an incredible job with our yard this year. It is by far the best looking yard on the block. He has really put a lot of detail into the flowers and shrubs and has also added a plush vegetable garden. The numerous amounts of tomatoes are already ripening and we have some good sized cucumbers coming in as well. While we are also waiting for the squash to come up we are most excited about the pumpkins. We are looking forward to having our very own home grown pumpkins to carve. I just think all of his work in the yard has paid off and I never really realized how much hard work it is to keep a garden and the yard looking pristine.

Charlotte has become a chatter box to say the least. She is forming sentences and learning new words every day. It's so much fun to see her learn so quickly. She certainly is a sponge. However, with learning words also means learning how to verbalize her frustrations too. For instance, she and her cousin Sammy have had difficulty in the sharing department. Her and Sam were literally pulling back and forth, aggressively I might add, on a toy that I can't even remember, and Charlotte kept saying "No,No,No....Mine, Mine, Mine!" It's funny when you see the transformation from your sweet and kind little child to a misbehaving, naughty one. It's like you can't even believe it. Well, I'm sure I am in for a new chapter in Charlotte's development and I'll have to get used to the manic attitudes. Other than her episodes of defiance she has been a lot of fun lately. As you can see in the pictures she had on her Official Princess outfit, as I call it. She has a Cinderella nightgown and on top she where's a sheer princess "cape," if you will. I don't know the exact definition. Nonetheless, when she puts this outfit on, she just loves it. You can tell she actually feels like a genuine princess. She gets this proud smile on her face and then loves to touch the outfit to feel just how much of a princess she is.

You'll also notice there are some pictures of Charlotte at the Irish Fair. We were fortunate enough to have the day free last Sunday to head on out to Harriett Island in St. Paul. The Fair was a lot of fun. The people were great, the beer was great (according to Kevin that is) and the music was even better. This is our first year, but we are definitely going to make this an annual affair.

Well, I hope everyone enjoys the absolutely beautiful weekend. Take Care and be safe.

Another Wild Side of Charlotte

When were at the Twins game this passed Sunday a heavy metal song came on right before the game began. Kevin was being silling started to do a subtle head bang. Well, once Charlotte say this she totally got into it. I was laughing so hard...you can hear me on the video. We thought it was pretty funny so we thought we'de share the moment. Enjoy!

Summer Fun with Everyone

Now that I have started my new job, I am a bit short on time. I wish I could have updated this earlier because I have so many pictures and events to share. So, let's just start from this last weekend. On Friday it was my 27th birthday....I can no longer say I am in my mid-20s....Uh! Kevin and I actually got the opportunity to hang out a little bit by ourselves. We went to the movie Dark Knight. It was incredible. I have not seen a good movie like this in a long time. It certainly lives up to it's hype. Then we came back and put Charlotte to bed and watched another movie. It was really relaxing and fun. Then came busy Saturday. My family was very kind and had a birthday party for me at my sister Sarah's house, pretty much right up the street from us. The food was great and spending time with the grand kids and my siblings was really fun too. As you can see the kids really enjoyed the Slip and Slide. Even Charlotte got some opportunities to go down it, or at least run to it and fall. All the gifts were great and much appreciated and then we played a family game.....which I love to do. We played Trivial Pursuit and realized, just like every other time, after about 30 minutes it just gets to be too long.

After the birthday party we came back and got read for a wedding. We brought Charlotte with us to this one. It was at the St Paul Como Zoo Conservatory. It was beautiful to look at all of the plants and flowers. We had to cut out by 8:30p.m. (the earliest I think I have ever left a wedding) to get Miss Charlotte to bed and frankly I was tired too and we new we had a big day the next day.

Sunday we enjoyed a nice afternoon at the Twins game and watched them beat the Cleavland Indians. It was a huge crowd and although we got real nice seats originally we opted, after the second inning, to go ahead and move to the cheap seats in upper deck. Let's just say it was much more relaxing up there with her, and plus, she slept for an hour in my arms, which helped.

Then, we ended the afternoon by spending time with the Bellmont side of the family at Mike and Ryan's new home in Lakeville. The kids had sooooo much fun together. I'm pretty sure they ring-a-round-rosie-ed themselves out (I hope that made sense). There was lots of laughter and screaming and running going on, those sounds that just make you remember when you were a kid and wished the fun never ended. Heck, I still feel that way. I have some pictures from that event too.

So, suffice it to say.....I have so much more to say, but I'll wait a little bit to update you. I hope everyone has a great weekend and is enjoying the last bits of summer. Thank goodness Fall is coming...I just love it!

Silly Charlotte

I like the photos of Charlotte and I just had to post them. I especially like the one of her in her suit. What a silly lady she is!