what we've been up to

Eric

All motorcycles. All the time...

Hank

Rolling over, finding his feet, tons of drool...

Me

Taking the pictures...

and loving my boys ♥

Stauffachers :)

"C" is for...

I guess "kitty" doesn't really start with a C.

Been a busy week so far... Summer has a way of doing that, doesn't it? Sunday we went to a going-away party for Eric's sister Jenni. She's moving to Texas! Brave girl. I couldn't move out of state... Had a hard enough time with Milwaukee, obviously! We got to spend time with the whole Stauffacher family, and that's where we got to see the cutie above. Yesterday we drove to Milwaukee after work to catch the Brewers get beat by the Cubs. Nice. It was embarrassing. Then we got to finish cleaning our apartment there. Last time we ever have to worry about a security deposit! Yay! And tonight we're going to see the newest Stauffacher... He was born Monday, so he's still a brand new little one. Hopefully I'll have some pics later. He's a cutie from what I've seen so far.

And it's only Wednesday! This week seems like it's 2 weeks long!

clap on...

Are you jealous? Yeah, I thought so. Well, sorry your boyfriend's brother didn't get you one. Because mine did. He bought one for all the brothers and sisters (and their girlfriends!). Nice.

But that's just the least of the Christmas loveliness I got. Everyone was so generous this year. Thanks! It was a nice holiday, but the weather was rotten. Fog, rain, ice, snow... And then yesterday another 6 inches of snow here. Yuck. It was a lot of running around and then I worked Christmas day too. So I'm glad to have this weekend off. I'm going to do a lot of sleeping. And clapping.

I am a professional baker.

Yes, that's right. Professional.

It was an absolute baking spree this morning. I did a toffee bar for my dad's family's Christmas. It's one of about ten kinds of cookies my Grandma used to make every year. And they're good. I also did Millionaire's Shortbread via Bake and Shake's fantastic blog. They're cooling in the fridge as we speak. The chocolate on mine turned out not as shiny and gorgeous as hers, but I am quite hopeful that they will still taste as good as hers look. Cuz they're full of caramel. And there's a couple sticks of butter in there. So yeah. They should be alright. Seriously though, between the two baking feats I managed today, I went through 5, yes 5(!) sticks of butter. Nice. And I will have you know, I did it all with my $5.97 (gasp!) Wal-Mart hand mixer. So yes, I'll say it again. Professional. Watch out Martha, you have been warned...

Now bring on the stretchy pants!

baggedy-bag-bag-bag

Another bag... This one is from Amy Karol's book. I like the book well enough, but the patterns are meant to be copied and increased in size, which I didn't do. I just kind of eye-balled it and guessed what 129% would look like... Which translated to a rather shallow bag, but probably my fault not the actual pattern's. Anyways, I do like it, I just can't pack loads of stuff into it. I may also add some buttons or other trim to the stripe-y area. We shall see. (and the bottom doesn't actually look that crooked in real life)

My Grandma did pass on Friday. Very sad, but I hope that everyone can find some peace now. I know it was so hard on her and her daughters too. Tough time for everyone though.

zoo

Giraffes.








And an elephant's butt.








These are my favorite 2 pictures from today.
The zoo was nice. A bit overwhelming, but nice.

And look at the present we got!









How freaking adorable is this?? I mean seriously...
Could not be a bit cuter.

long drive...

Honestly, it felt like all we did this weekend was drive... We went 2 hours to Mineral Point Saturday morning, took a quick break, about 2 more hours to Elkader, IA, then 1 1/2 hours back to Mineral Point Saturday night. And 2 more hours back to Milwaukee today. OK, that's enough driving for a little while.
This is the pond at the park in Elkader (and one of the frogs from the pond). It was a really nice little park with a great shelter and even a fireplace. There was confetti all over the place from a wedding, so obviously we weren't the only ones who thought it was a nice place... And really Elkader was quite a nice town. It has some cute little shops and antique-y kind of places. I found a fantastic dining table and chairs set but alas, no place to put it.
Here's the lovely model with her new skirt. Such a cutie, I can't even stand it.
It was nice to spend time with people this weekend, but now I feel like I have zero time to pack or get my shit together to move. Jamie is coming Tuesday to go to the State Fair, so I am going to meet up with her sometime too. Hmmm.... Maybe the packing fairies will come while I'm sleeping?? Right, or I guess I could just suck it up. I do think I found a place that will pick up the entertainment center and baker's rack.

So at least it's 2 less things to move. But a million minus 2 is... Pretty much still a million.