Dear Diary,

I had the best vacation ever! There was so much to do, and the time passed really quickly. Here are a few things we did.

There are many, many reasons why Emily is just about the coolest person ever to vacation with. But, among the top of those reasons is her love of cheese curds. Every where there were cheese curds on the menu, we ate and enjoyed cheese curds. The Angry Minnow brew pub was no exception.



On Monday we visited Al Capone's Hideout. We learned all kinds of random things. . . he actually built the hide-out as a place for planes filled with Canadian whiskey to land. He died of a "social disease." Of course, when the tour guide announced this, I had to immediately burst into giggles because Al Capone died of "the Syph."



Tuesday was the laziest day ever! I wore my pajamas all day and didn't even take a shower. Good thing the Northwoods aren't crawling with really cute guys because I looked (and smelled) pretty disguisting.

We had a super-hero movie double-header on Tuesday. Spiderman and Batman Begins



And, Em and I scrapped a ton on Tuesday.



Oops. How did that picture of Michael Phelps on the television slip into my vacation photos? Fine. I'll admit it. I developed a monster crush on MP (I'm a Phelps Phan!) as a side-effect of the vacation. And, tonight I saw him on television with his mom. Turns out Mama Phelps is a middle school principal. That pretty much sealed the deal for me. I love Michael Phelps. Shhhs. Don't tell Brad.



On Wednesday we went to the Giant Fish Museum. It was way boring (lots of taxidermy and motors and fishing baits), but there were lots and lots of great photo opps.


Here's me kissing a fish.



And look! Here's Em and I in the big fish.



And look! Brad really loves me. He crawled inside this fish just for this cute picture.



And the Giant Fish wasn't the only cool thing we did on Wednesday. We went go-carting, too.



And we ate candy.


And we had dinner (and drinks) at THE Famous Dave's.


And we went mini golfing.


And we went to a lumberjack show.





I bet you're thinking there's no way we could have possibly done more than this on vacation. Well! You're thinking wrong! We did do more than this. Stay tuned for our Northwoods spa adventure and Three Dog Night concert and some detail shots of our deluxe accommodations.

Blogging from a Top Bunk

I've been MIA because I'm on vacation (with the fabulous Emily and her husband, Justin).

We are staying at a cabin in The Middle Of Nowhere. Said cabin advertised that it has wireless Internet access in the lodge. Well, the lodge turned out to be a 4 x 4 foot square of our cabin where there is decidedly NOT Internet access.

There is, however, a faint signal in what we have fondly dubbed our "AV Room," a small, wood-paneled bedroom with two sets of bunk beds and bald eagle curtains.

Here's a little vaca run-down so far:

Saturday: Pack and Travel
Sunday: Travel and Arrive
Monday: Tour Al Capone's Hideout
Tuesday: Wear pajamas and scrapbook all day
Wednesday: TBD

Will be back sometime next week with photos and more stories of our Northwoods adventures. For now, I'll leave you with a little peek at the decor of our cabin.



I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "Wow! Is that a light-up mirror with a deer and a real, moving waterfall? And, is it making waterfall and bird noises?! That's amazing!"

Confessions

1. Brad has developed a new love for Project Runway. I am seriously worried that he will soon not only be thinner than me but also more fashion conscious. Seriously. I am afraid that we are becoming that couple that people look at and wonder, "Hmmmmm. He's so cute. How did he ever end up with her?

2. I sat on my butt on the couch while Brad washed, dried, and put away the dishes tonight. I am a bad wife.

3. I went to Dairy Queen last night. Sorry, Stephanie. I had to do it. But, I did ride my bike there and go for a 38 minute bike ride after wards. And - here's the best part - I ordered a small Blizzard and insisted that the DQ boy only make me half of a small.

4. I don't care if Brett Favre comes back to the Packers. And, please. Stop reporting about it on television. Especially do not do a report about it with Celine Dion playing in the background. I think the only thing that annoys me more than Brett Favre is Brett Favre throwing a series of passes choreographed to "My Heart Will Go On." Seriously. Make. It. Stop.

Movies I Hate

We are about to watch a movie. As we were trying to make a choice, it occurred to me that there are many, many movies I hate.

Here are a few:

1. Castaway.
Way too much Tom Hanks for this girl. And, I hate that he talks to that stupid volleyball.

2. Titanic.
I loved it the first time I saw it. Then, that ridiculous Celine Dion song was played at both of my grandparents' funerals. Now, I hate it.

3. Braveheart.
I kind of have a thing about historical movies in general - it's hard for me to tell the difference between the characters. I get all confused and then bored and then annoyed.

4. Lord of the Rings. (the entire trilogy)
See description of Braveheart. I do realize that Lord of the Rings isn't a historical movie, but I get all confused about which character is which.

August @ Scrap-Tastic

Here are my August creations for Scrap-tastic.

A few lay-outs using the August kit.










And (my favorite part), fun mini-album using the August project kit (featuring products selected by yours truly).

I had too many pictures to choose from. If you look carefully you'll notice that the center picture in each two-page spread flips over to reveal another picture.

12:28 P.M.

The time is 12:28 P.M..

I am still in my pajamas and, basically, haven't left the couch all day.

You might think this means I haven't accomplished anything today, but that simply isn't true.

I have accomplished the following (all from the comfort of my couch):

laughed quite hard about a little incident my dear friend, Josie, had

chatted with Stephanie

ordered some shoes

watched two discs of Grey's Season 2

thought about doing some work for grad school (thought being the key word)

sent some important emails for work

did some laundry

printed some photos for this

P.S. Can someone please tell me where the bullets and numbered list functions went on Blogger? Is this a Mac-related problem? I also can't change the color of my font. Or the size or the type. HELP!

Escaping Me

Somehow the summer seems to be escaping me. Don't get me wrong. . . I'm having a great summer, a really great summer. I just cannot understand how summer seems to go so much faster than any other time of year.

I think it's time for a to-do list.

Here's what I want/need to do before summer is over:
1. Get ready for grad school in fall
2. Clean the basement
3. Vacation with Emily and Justin
4. Finish the Twilight series
5. Watch at least one season of Beverly Hills 90210
6. Organize the scraproom
7. Use at least two months worth of Studio Calico kits
8. Play with the AE kit from Cocoa Daisy
9. Start Weight Watchers
10. Enjoy a few more FSWs with Stephanie

Really. I could go on forever.

Babs Does Boston

Can I just point out that my name does not sound good in Boston?

Seriously.

I cannot even tell when people are talking to me because "Barb" sounds just like "Bob" here.

Anyway.

Here's dinner tonight. . . and dessert.





Today we took a haunted trolley tour. The cheese factor was high - very high, but we did get to go in some graveyards we wouldn't have seen otherwise.

Here's me and our tour guide (and his Jack Daniels).



And, no trip is complete without a little jumping.
Come on. You had to know this was coming.

Boston

Hi! from Boston.

Where I. . .

. . . made way for ducklings.


. . . picked a million places I'd love to live on Beacon Street.

. . . walked the Freedom Trail.


. . . watched three different couples make out on the subway for an entire line.

Don't worry. I didn't take a picture of any of the couples.

Adios

I'm out.

Boston until Wednesday.

Madison on Thursday and Friday.

Chicago on Friday PM, Saturday, and Sunday.

I'm hoping to check-in while I'm on the road.

Summer Fun

Went to the drive-in to see Wall-E and Indiana Jones on Thursday night. Wall-E was cute - we've been talking like robots since we saw it. (I guess it goes without saying that we are total nerds!) We actually left before the end of Indiana Jones because it was just that lame. Aliens? Seriously. How ridiculous.




The Fourth was fun-filled. Went to a little festival with the B.'s. (Natalie and I traded sunglasses and shared hot dogs.)

After that we went to a party with Brad's co-workers. No comment about that.

Then, Brad had his annual fireworks display for Natalie. (Only very special girls get their own fireworks show.) Despite the oooh and ahhh worthy goodies that Brad selected (including The Countdown and the Night Treasure), Natalie loved the sparklers the best.


Tonight we are headed to the Timber Rattlers game (followed by fireworks) with the ultra-fabulous Stephanie and Karl.

I have lots of scrappy projects I've been working on that I'm excited to share with you sometime soon. . . . the August Scrap-tastic project kit (totally fab for a summer mini), my July daily-album from the Ali Edwards class, and gathering supplies for Shimelle's latest class. . . to name a few.

Anticipation

There are a lot of things that I could be anticipating. . . fireworks, parades, BBQs, lazy days.

But, what am I anticipating?

Cavities.

I went to the dentist today. They have this new magic device. It looks like a pen and it shoots out some kind of wavelengths that magically detect cavities as they form.

Sounds good, right?

Wrong.

What it actually does is tell you that you have a cavity far before you actually do have a cavity. So, you can wait and wait and wait for the cavity to get serious enough to necessitate filling.

30 is the magic number. When a spot gets to 30 it must be filled.

I have three spots that are at 29.

I've only had two cavities in my entire life, and now I have three spots that are at 29.

Now, I can sit in anticipation waiting for my next dentist appointment (in January) when I will inevitably have three cavities.

My new boyfriend

Spent yesterday with my new boyfriend. He can bat his eyes and make kissy faces. Plus, it turns out he's a rockstar.

ETA: Had to add another picture. I didn't realize that you couldn't tell that the blanket says, "I'm a rock star." The flamed onesie was custom made for Luke by Angie's brother. It's the blanket and the onesie that make him a rockstar. He's still working in the rockstar attitude.


Yesterday wasn't quite enough; I visited him again today. I swear that he is bigger and more alert and more amazing today than he was yesterday.

Stephanie did a photo shoot (Luke is definitely a model in training). . . I cannot wait to see what she got! Meanwhile, here are mine. I am rockin' my camera (if I do say so myself).




Knowing that he changes so much every single day, I am not quite sure how I will stay away.

1/2 of 2008

Six months of 2008 are completely finished. Hard to believe, huh?
What is even more depressing is that one month of summer is already finished!

Before I share some scrapping I have to brag. . .
I scored some quality cuddle time with Mr. Luke this morning. What a total honey! Turns out I can't get enough and am going back tomorrow. I'm afraid that the proud parents are either going to give me a bedroom at their place or kick me out for good!

Now for scrapping news. . .

July's kit at Scrap-tastic is filled with Pink Paislee goodies.
Here's a look at what I made with it.


There is also a project kit filled with colors perfect for summer to make a fun 4.5 x 4.5" mini-album.