September 2011: Rehearsal Dinner

 The night before the BIG DAY!

Hanging out with our wedding party and our nephew Aiden.

Front to back: Jared, Aiden, Erin, Jesse, David

We had a simple rehearsal at the church and then hosted a bbq cook out at our house. Big thanks to everyone who helped out with food and set up. It was a nice night and it was great to get to see everyone before the big day.

September 2011: Ideal Father's Last Show/EP Release

 The merch box that Dave helped me make for Ideal Father's other EP release made a come back.

A quick mock up poster advertising the show with Jesse's art work on it.

The show went great. Jesse might say differently though. He never seems to be satisfied when it comes to his performances. The crowd danced around and enjoyed themselves for sure. Jesse made all the art work for the EP and the shirts. I wish I had more picture of them close up, but I can't seem to find any. I'll try to post some later.

August 2011: Science Center Snapshots

 The quote wall.

We have this board that we update regularly when we say or we hear someone say something we find amusing. It changes often, but the best ones are written down in a book for safe keeping. Most of them won't make sense unless you teach programs at the Science Center, but I thought you all might enjoy some of them none the less.

The Box Office, obviously.

 Dressed in black for our special event. 

I got to blow up a hydrogen balloon to get people's attention for a live auction. It was pretty cool.

 The custom designed shirt for our fundraiser.

The dance floor at the end of the night.

I need to get more pictures of the every day goings on here. We have an awesome planetarium that I get to run the shows in and we get to do live shows with reptiles and amphibians (which I never thought about doing and now I love). It's a fun place and I especially love getting to be in charge of Pint Size Science a preschool specific program that I get to develop all on my own. It's great for a creative outlet and bringing more variety to my days. I'll try to take more pictures and post them soon.

August 2011: Iowa State Fair!

 Gina & Joey by the petting zoo. Joey especially loved getting to ride the camel.

My mom got us some tickets to the Iowa State Fair. I haven't been in years and Jesse's never been, so we decided to tag along with my cousin Gina, her sister Mandy, and my cousin Scott's daughter Olyvia when they took Joey, my other cousin Scott's grandson, to the fair. 

 Comparing our height to the tallest horse. We're short and we know it.

 Pork Chop on a stick and a Giant Turkey Leg, Yum!

 

Joey Showing off his tattoos!

 Joey and Jesse quickly became best buds as you can see in the video.

 Jesse and Joey holding hands as we walked around. 
It was so sweet. Joey just reached up and grabbed Jesse hand. They held hands like this for a most of the rest of the day.

 The Red Velvet Funnel Cake that the 6 of us shared.

 Joey zonked out.

Jesse all tuckered out. 

It was a long day for the boys.

We saw some awesome sewing work, the classic butter cow on it's 100th anniversary, the biggest animals (cows, horses, and pigs), we also saw some bizarre miniature animals, sampled delicious dishes, watched some performances on the free stage, and of course scored Joey as many temporary tattoos as humanly possible. It was a good day.

July 2011: Colorado Bound again!

 Chelsey & David. Mt Evans, Colorado

In July Jesse and I took a trip back to Colorado with my brother and his then girlfriend Chelsey. Dave had been planning to pop the question and wanted to do it somewhere special. I suggested Mt Evans for it's beauty and relative closeness to Denver. I think this picture speaks for itself. Besides being windy it was a beautiful day and of course she said Yes. They're planning their nuptials for sometime next August.

 Front Row: Tenille, Me, Michon, Myrna, Tana

Second Row: Monique, Chelsey, Mary, and Amanda

My 2nd Bridal Shower of sorts was held in Colorado that same weekend as well. I invited several girl friends out to a spa day at one of my favorite places Moonedance Botanicals. We had a foot spa party, with champagne spritzers, fancy cheese & crackers, and delicious gourmet cupcakes (courtesy of a groupon I purchased months earlier). It was a good day and it was great to see all the ladies who could actually make it.

 The big reason for the trip to Colorado was a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater. One of David's favorite bands, The Avett Brothers, were preforming so we had to be there. When I had originally told David about this we thought we would still be living in Denver, but things change so it became a weekend retreat for all of us and we stayed in hotels rather than our old apartment. Jesse spent the night out with his old band mates while Dave, Chels, and I checked out the show. If you've never heard of The Avett Brothers you should definitely follow the link and check them out. They put on a great show.

 Denton and Fiona enjoying their treats!

Of course a trip to Colorado isn't complete with out a trip to the Jeong's house. Denton and Fiona have now met my parents and my brother. They were pretty excited to see us. They were even more excited by the treats we brought them. Their first Rock Candies ever! It was so nice of their parents to have us over for a delicious breakfast before we hit the road again back to Iowa, especially because it was Denton's birthday weekend and they were busy enough with out entertaining us. Thanks guys!

Dave and Chels catching some Zzzz'z on the trip home.

It was a whirlwind of a trip, but I'm so glad we did it. It was great getting to see everyone again, celebrating an engagement, celebrating a birthday, and seeing an awesome concert in the beautiful Red Rocks Amphitheater.

June 2011: Jeremiah & Lesley's Wedding

Since I moved back to Iowa, so quickly I was fortunate enough to be able to take the weekend and attend my cousin Jeremiah's wedding. I took a road trip adventure to Illinois with my cousin Melissa, her husband Ken, their daughter Sydney, My cousin Adam's son Jasper, my Aunt Debbie, and my Uncle Paul. Thanks for letting me tag along guys! It was a fun weekend with lots of dancing and singing most of that coming from Jasper.

 The lovely bride and groom cutting their cake.

Jasper getting down... way down.

 Nice splits! Jasper certainly had some sweet moves.

Father daughter dance. Jeremiah and Emma.

Mother son dance. Mom and David.

Congratulations Jeremiah & Lesley!

More May 2011 : Jared & Jesse

Jesse's brother Jared came to visit us in Iowa in May. Jared lives only a few hours away in Kansas. I know Jesse is glad we are now closer to Jared, so the boys can visit more often. Although, they talk on the phone quite a bit and they play video games online together whenever they get a chance. I think their favorite is spending time together in person though. They love to go fishing and the 2 ponds my parents have were the perfect spot for the boys. I was glad Jared was able to come up and hang out with Jesse while I had my girl's day at the Bridal Shower.