Just Married

The secret is out! Perry and I got married at Niagara Falls, NY last week. We had an awesome time, but we’re also glad to be back home. We drove up last Sunday, hammered out the details on Monday, and got hitched Tuesday evening. And of course, we did plenty of sightseeing here, there, and in between.

There was no music playing. No bridal party to keep in line. No throwing of the bouquet. No guests to gawk at me. No aisle to walk down or place for me to hide until the big moment. We had no choice but to ride together to the ceremony site. So, instead, Perry got ready before me and went down to the hotel lobby. I came down by myself in the elevator later. And his reaction was everything I hoped it would be. I had been nervous that he was expecting a white gown and other fanciness. But he was grinning ear to ear and lavished me with compliments.

We picked a site by the upper rapids because it was more private than other locations near the falls. The ceremony was about 15 minutes long and that was it: we were husband and wife! Afterwards, we took more pictures and headed to Terrapin Point, the closest site to the Horseshoe Falls from the American side, for some more shots. Luckily, we also had the photographer take some pictures with our camera so we can print copies. I ordered our official album this morning.

After the ceremony, we had some time before our dinner reservation so we went back to the hotel and opened our bottle of Niagara wine from Huber Winery we brought with us. Can you believe we couldn't find a single solitary wine glass in any gift shop in Niagara Falls? Plenty of mugs and shot glasses, but no wine glasses. We ended up borrowing a couple from the hotel bar. We also had our first dance at this point, thanks to the mp3 player on my phone: "Love Song” by Tesla.

Pretty soon, it was time to eat, so we headed over to the Red Coach Inn where we had delicious entrees, more wine, and dessert. A couple even bought us a round of drinks to celebrate the occasion. After dinner, we headed back to the upper rapids one more time and enjoyed the sunset. My original plan was to go back to the falls but by this time, my shoes were killing me. But damn, they looked good!

Let's see, what else happened? We visited several more attractions: Old Fort Niagara, Cuyahoga Falls, Ferrante Winery, Debonne Winery, Eddie Bauer outlets, and the Cincinnati Zoo. We headed back to southern Indiana Friday evening and found out Hank, Mom and Dad's pony, had died. Literally, just before we got there. We also came home to storm damage from the high winds on Monday. We lost part of a tree, again, our yard swing was in a different position, and several more limbs and branches had fallen in the yard. So it was back to reality in a hurry for us on Saturday, but at least we had two days to sort everything out. Sunday was definitely the nicer day. It was so flippin' hot Friday and Saturday.

I hope that's enough details for everyone. We just thought keeping the date and location a secret would make the moment that much more special and memorable. And it did.

"Love is all around you. Love is knockin' outside your door. Waitin' for you is this love made just for two. Keep an open heart and you'll find love again, I know." --Love Song by Tesla

Ooh La La

This past weekend, we headed up to Richmond for my friend Fish's wedding. I got to catch up with some old friends, drink some beer (thanks Jen!) and eat hot dogs. Afterward, we played Putt Putt and ate a late night breakfast at IHOP. It was a long day for us since we got up at 6am, spent a lot of time on the road, and crashed around midnight.

On the way home Sunday, we had three goals in mind: Eddie Bauer, Huber Winery, and Indian-Celina Lakes. Two out of three ain't bad! We got some snazzy clothes from the outlet and bought some good wine in Starlight. But by the time we got into Perry County, we were too tired to explore the lakes so we picked up the dogs from Mom's and headed home.

That's all I have for now. We're heading to another wedding this weekend but this time it's local. I will say that I've had a few meltdowns lately and been stressed out. But I'm coming out of it and fully looking forward to the week ahead. Even though I haven't made it through this one yet. A girl can dream about Friday, can't she?

Better Late Than Never

I've been keeping busy but haven't found time to blog about it. I can't remember what I did the weekend before last, but they're all about the same nowadays. A lot of work and and a little bit of play. Saturday, Mom and Dad came over to help us with a house project. While we were on the back patio, I looked through the garage, which was open, and this man was walking toward me. I thought, who the hell is that and why is he walking through my garage? Is he a neighbor I don't know? He peeked his head out on the patio and asked where Martin was. Then it dawned on me. He's looking for the old owners. So we explain that we've lived there almost a year and he was shocked that Martin had been gone that long. He wanted to show him his new car. Mom goes, "Well, we'll look at it!" We talked to him for about 15 minutes. Turns out his daughter has a campsite at Rocky Point. Small world, huh?

Pmo and I treated ourselves to dinner and a movie Saturday night. Olive Garden and "Night at the Museum 2." We tried some really good wine at OG called Moscato. We thought about buying some but it's not like the cheap wine we tend to purchase! I liked the movie but I thought the first one was better. I enjoyed the new characters and revisiting the old ones though. Sunday, I read my newspaper and began mulching in the afternoon. We grilled out for dinner then just relaxed until the weekend came to a close.

The week before, I did get two very important things done. I caught up with some friends I hadn't really talked to in awhile. One on the phone and one in person at lunch. It's amazing how much better you feel once you've done that. And it doesn't take long to do. You just gotta make time.

This weekend, my friend Fish is getting married so we're traveling to Centreville, IN for the big bash. Pmo's co-worker gets married the weekend after that. Lots of loose ends to tie up before vacation. Time is flying by.

Memorial Weekend Memories

I took advantage of the 3 day holiday weekend. I tend to work the summer holidays to earn extra cash, but I decided to go for the free time this year. Saturday, I headed home for my cousin's graduation party. I rode the motorcycle and by the time I got home late that afternoon, it was pouring rain. I got the bike in the garage right before it hit. The rest of the night was spent relaxing and watching ConAir.

Sunday, Pmo and I had breakfast, read the newspaper ads, and got ready for Holiday World. It was media day so we got in free and had a luncheon. The Voyage kicked our butts and the Pilgrim's Plunge soaked us. We hit the highlights throughout the rest of the park and headed home. After a yummy dinner at Pizza Chef, we were wiped out and pretty much turned in for the night.

Monday was a mix of yard work, shopping, and dog adventure. We checked out the trails near Angel Mounds and found quite a little maze. Jack was very excited about newfound territory and Bug did a good job of keeping up. He also panted a lot. They were wiped out when we got home. See picture below. Jack is the smart one on the cool tile by the front door.

I have many things to look foward to this weekend and beyond. The debut of the farmer's market in Newburgh, a friend's birthday party, more yard work, and a little bit of relaxation. We also have two weddings to attend next month, another one in July, and we're also tying up a few loose ends on our own ceremony. Ready or not, summer, and all it brings with it, is upon us!

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May Madness

Friday was sleep deprived. I stayed up until 1:30am that night, thinking that would help me fall asleep, but I ended up wide awake for another hour. Then the storms hit which makes Jack cry so I got up to go sleep with him. I turned the ceiling fan on, forgot there was a balloon in the room which drifted toward the center and wrapped itself around the fan making all kinds of noise. I was mad by this point but I finally went to sleep about 3am.

Saturday was full of wine. It was drizzling as we walked up to the tent and by the time we got there, the back of my hair was soaked. I had an umbrella with me but I didn't think it was raining that hard at the time. We bought our tasting tickets and worked our way down one side of the tent. We each tried a different wine then switched glasses. By the time we were ready for the next side, I suggested we go check out some the food at Englebrecht's booth because we were tipsy. We ended up buying 3 bottles from Buck Creek Winery in Indianapolis. We liked some others but knew that either a local store carried it or it was within driving distance. We're not likely to go to Indy anytime soon.

Sunday was yard work day. In the afternoon, I mulched around the front of the house while Pmo set up a bird house in the backyard. I got so into mulching that I went back and bought 4 more bags, on top of the 4 bags I had already used. Mulching is addictive once you see how good it looks. But it's also very tiring. We ended up having cereal for dinner and watching the movie Hancock.

Monday was Bug's day. He really had trouble moving around over the weekend so I bit the bullet and took him to a new vet. I was worried about the price tag, what they would say was wrong with him, and how he would act. But it was a pleasant experience. The staff was really nice. The doctor answered all of my questions. And I got free meds for Bug because they had a sample on hand so the whole thing cost about $40. Bug acted a fool like usual but not too bad. Hopefully he'll get better and x-rays won't be necessary.

This week, I'm tackling computer storage and cookout invitations. I've decided the tons and tons of pictures and music are making my laptop slower than dirt. So I've bought a few USB drives to free up the memory. Then I'll try the library again to download some new songs. We bought decorative paper and envelopes over the weekend so I'm hoping to get invitations for our summer "reception" sent out this week. Washing and vacuuming my car would be a good idea, too, while it's stopped raining.

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Wasting Time

I was in the library today for about an hour and got absolutely nothing done. My laptop must be overloaded in the memory department because it just would not cooperate and by the time I actually got to do what I wanted, my battery died and I wasn't near a plug-in. So I had to start over again. And I'm not sure the program downloaded. I guess I'm going to have to transfer pictures onto a zip drive or something. Or maybe it's the monumental amount of music I have on there. Whatever the case, it must be fixed because I couldn't download any new music today like I had planned. I simply ran out of time. No Lady Gaga and Pop Evil for me.

I could have done something with this wasted time and not have been rushed to get back home, eat lunch, fix dinner, walk dogs, and get ready. Not to mention I was up at 5:30am with Jack because of the thunder. And when I went in the other room to sleep with him, he was all excited like it was time to play! I had to convince him it was still night night time. Bug was like, whatever, put me in the bed and I'll go back to sleep.

Tomorrow is dog grooming day and I think I might take it easy after that. If I get done early enough, I can enjoy some "What Not to Wear" and pick out my outfit for the work day and Saturday's wine tasting. The weekend's almost here!

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Mid-Week Review

The weekend is kind of a blur by now but I thought I would try to catch up. Saturday was my cousin Hannah's birthday party so we trekked over to Perry County. We had good barbecue, watched Hannah open presents, and played bubbles with my cousin Lauren, a.k.a. Lolo. After we got home and spruced up a bit, we headed to Nick's Pizza for a graduation party for Pmo's friend. Good pizza, good beer, and I even got a giant margarita glass out of the deal. Then we headed to the riverboat for a little gambling. This is not something Pmo and I normally like to do but we thought, what the hell? Pmo spent a few bucks and won $25. I spent 5 bucks and got nothing. So I told him to cash out and let's hit the road!

We weren't feeling too good Sunday morning, but we were up and moving by afternoon. We planted some flowers that we bought the weekend before. We took a break for a trip to the Dollar General and Wesselman's for what I called the "bare essentials" but of course I ended up getting a bit more. Then we headed back to the house for a mid-afternoon lunch and finished our flower planting outside. For dinner, I fixed pork chops, baked beans, and macaroni and cheese. Then it was time for the final Apprentice. Joan won and it was over for good.

I've been spreading out the to-do list over the week so I can get things done but still get to work on time. That's my new daily aim. Today's task was groceries, tomorrow the library, and Friday is dog day. Baths, nails, teeth, pill, the works. Saturday is the Newburgh Wine Festival which we are super excited to attend and probably bring home more bottles of wine. Sunday is up in the air. Probably knock some more items off the neverending to-do list.