IF Show 8/13/10...

This was a show Jesse played about a month ago right after we got back from Iowa, but I've been terrible about posting lately. Better late than never.

8/13/10 from Erin Wilson on Vimeo.

Manitou x2...

This last week I headed down to Manitou Springs, Colorado twice. Once with Kayden, the new little boy I'm nannying and once with Jesse & several friends both for fun days at the outdoor arcade that Cody and I discovered back in March of '09. Kayden and I did a drive through the Garden of the Gods and stopped to explore a little since he brought his binoculars before heading into the Springs. The gang and I went there to hang out as a group since it's been a while and since my friend Amanda & her husband Chris moved to the nearby Colorado Springs a year ago and we rarely get to see them. When we went there was also an art's and crafts festival going on in the town park. It was a perfect day. Here are some pictures of both trips.

I think it's a law in Manitou that you cannot leave the town with out buying and consuming ice cream and/or fudge. They sell the stuff in ever store and it's fabulous!

Jesse and Dmitri attempting to look at the old time dirty pictures for a nickel. Naughty Boys!

Proof that Jesse really is HOT STUFF. 

I was passionate.

This arcade has some seriously old school games. Some for a nickel, some for a dime, and some for even a penny, but the quarter still rains supreme of course.

Jesse attempting to have the best grip. I think he scored in the body builder section. Ha ha!

He was totally in his element. All the guys were really. The ladies enjoyed themselves too though. 

Amanda and Chris were quite competitive with each other. 

Tana and Dmitri playing Ms Pac-Man.

Everyone loved playing all the pinball games and the skee-ball too, but I missed taking pictures when we played. 

Creepy fortune teller machine. I know it's not the same, but it kind of reminds me of the movie BIG w/ Tom Hanks.

I had a great time both trips, though you wouldn't know it since I'm always the one taking photos never in them. Manitou Springs is an adorable town pretty close to the base of Pikes Peak and right around the corner from the Garden of the Gods. It's a wonderful place to spend a day trip or a vacation. Two thumbs up for sure.

The Book...

We're attempting to keep our wedding cost low, but I totally splurged on a guest book. Sounds like a silly thing to splurge on, but we have plans for a photo guest book. We'll have each family or group get their photo taken and then stick it on a page in the book where they can sign and write their well wishes around it. I heard of this idea somewhere and thought it was perfect for us. I love pictures and I'm not really a fan of the traditional guest book. Besides what better way to capture photos of everyone who attends our wedding. I'm not really a girlie girl, so I didn't want to go the white book with a ribbon on front route. Through some random searching on etsy.com I came across this woman who designs custom leather books. She goes by the name crearting on etsy (I recommend checking out her other work). I fell in love with them and with Jesse's approval made my first expensive purchase. It took some time for our book to arrive as it was being hand crafted and coming all the way from Latvia, but it arrived here today (5 days earlier than expected actually). Today exactly 364 days before our wedding, but who's counting right? I am so excited about how perfect it turned out. It's a combination of molded leather, hand painting, and branding work. It's a beautiful quality book and the pictures don't do it justice. Of course I couldn't wait to show it off to all of you though, so I snapped several photos to share. Enjoy!

I am so pleased with how this turned out that I will definitely purchase from her again. I'm thinking about buying one of her photo albums in a similar style to hold photos of our wedding as well. They're beautiful keepsakes that we will treasure forever, even more so when they are filled with pictures of our family and friends smiling faces as we celebrate our big day. It's beginning to feel really real now.