Long Overdue!

Whew! Time has flown by...probably because it's been a hectic and fun couple of weeks! I'm back to writing a lot for work, and mix that with a ton of activities and Ms. A doesn't get into blogger mode when life is like that. Which is unfortunate, because there's been a lot to write about--very fun visits, celebrations, repairs and trips up north. Since I tend to write way too much detail half of the time, I'll try to condense the past couple of weeks the best I can:

Thursday Oct. 4th: My mom had her second Hip resurfacing surgery, which went extremely well. You could certainly see a lot of relief within her that all of the surgeries are done and now it's just about recovery. Crazy thing is that she's already moving better than she has in the past couple of years, so give her a few more weeks and she'll be ready for Dancing With The Stars.

Weekend of October 5-7: This awesome weekend started off with a bang. My dear friend, Michelle, came into town for a girl's night out. Of course, at this point in our lives, this term has new meaning. We opened and closed The Bayport Cookery (www.bayportcookery.com), and enjoyed 5 courses of an amazing Autumn menu & lots of wine. I swear I haven't laughed so hard in a long time--we had great conversations and connected over shared life experiences (running, anyone?).
Michelle headed back to Mad-town on Saturday, and then it was all about reconnecting with our "RA" friends (as many of you know them as). Everyone but Cheryl was there, and we made the most of seeing Becky & Brian's new house, walks to area playgrounds and ice cream shops, dinner back at Julie & Marks, cosmos, interesting police stories and then breakfast and fun on Sunday before Mike & Kelly headed back home. ribB and I are looking forward to the future when little B (who's the youngest kid in the group) is able to be self sufficient and all the adults can just hang out and chat without constant interruption. That will be the day!

Week of October 8-14: Well, here is was...the b-day week. Birthdays are good fun--I don't care what the age! (Although ribB reminded me that I'm now old like him...but let's remember that he's 10 months older than me, so he's always older). I was spoiled this year with all of the celebration. I honestly have to say that this was probably the best birthday I've had in recent memory. At work, I was treated to awesome decorations, fun presents (including a batton and recorder to enhance my secret talents), treats galore and overall merriment. Then I went home for K's parent-teacher conference (which was our best one yet) and then out for dinner and home for more gifts and ice cream cake. I felt like a queen! On Wednesday, ribB arranged a date night out for us (thanks, Ann!)and we enjoyed dinner and a movie (a perfect night in my book!). On Thursday, I joined my first small group at our Church--I love it. We are reviewing "God is Closer Than You Think" by John Ortberg. I'm reading another book by him, and I love his perspective on Faith--very down to earth, realistic, humorous, inspiring and easy to understand. (You can find his books on Amazon.) It's been such a joy to meet other folks in my Church, from all backgrounds and ages...it's pretty cool to see how sharing beliefs/Faith/life experiences can make life even more rich. I never cease to be blown away.
Our weekend was busy and slow--up north. We're in hunting season you know, so the kids & I tagged along with ribB and enjoyed these last "warm" days of autumn. For some reason, the kids were really into wearing headbands--I promise I didn't instigate this trend. The pictures speak for themselves. We spent lots of time with Uncle Bart, which is always a good thing (despite his knack for choosing eating establishments that aren't serving food). On our way home Sunday, we stopped to see my grandma and then later my mom/Paul, which was really nice.

Week of October 15-21: This has been a week marked by illness at the ribclan household. Is it ironic that after he sat out in the cold morning air, at crazy hours of the day, that ribB got way sick? Hmmm. He claims not, I claim it's possible. Anyway, he was basically out of commission for 4 days...just in time to go hunting again. And, just in time for little B to get sick. So, it's been a lot of sleepless nights and running to urgent care Saturday afternoon to make sure little B is alright. (This highly concerned Kdee, who thought her impending sleepover with Ally at our house was going to be canceled...insert crying, despondant daughter here.)Lucky for us, it's just a cold, all is well and the fun could continue as planned. Kdee BEAMED with happiness, and let's just say that she and Ally had a ton of fun. During the weekend we also went to the big playground to revel in the warm weather--and you just have to check out Kdee's happenin' outfit that she wore there. I too often say that I need to take pictures of her eclectic outfits that she puts together (the shirt skit is still the one to beat--see February post) and I was glad to capture this one. She's definitely taking notice of the fashion world around her. I think it's just great--her creativity overflows! Oh--and before all of this craziness went down, I enjoyed a fun dinner out on Monday with Mrs. Angie Grohl (ha!) at the always awesome "Winzer Stube" restaurant...omm pah pah! You can't beat a good girl's night out...

Pictures: Kids & their headbands, autumn morning sunrise at the cabin and a birthday dance (I include this picture, even with the shame of silliness attached to it--I swear, I can explain...) **check back soon for pictures of Kdee's playground outfit and her makeover pics with Ally**