4th of July....Canadian style

Gary and I took a little trip to Niagara Falls over July 4th, alone. We thought it would be good to get away (alone) and it came with a bonus photo op for me. Thanks to our moms who watched our kids while we were out playing, alone.

Here are some of the pics from our trip. View from Skylon Tower of the American and Canadian Falls.

The weather was a perfect 76 degrees and mostly sunny...which, combined with the mist of the falls, made some cool rainbows.

So, I'm leaning over the edge of this wall taking a picture of the daisies above and Gary says, look down.....yikes, little black snakes slithering around!

The brink of the falls...Canadian Horseshoe Falls. We also did the "Journey Behind the Falls" on the Canadian side, which was pretty neat and very misty.
We managed to get a pretty good spot for the fireworks. Of course, after seeing the snakes, this girl wasn't going to be sitting in the grass. So I thought we had great seats on a concrete wall next to a walking path. Which turned out to be a good thing because it got so crowded I would not have been able to see over everyone.

We could see most of Buffalo's fireworks and they were great! We wished we would've been at their fireworks instead! They lasted a good 30 minutes or so.
The Niagara fireworks, weren't bad. They just didn't last as long (maybe 10 minutes) nor did they have a grand finale. M-ville's are better. Turns out, Canada just isn't into July 4th and Independence Day like us Americans are... go figure!!

All in all, it was a very nice getaway. We even stopped at a winery on the way home and did some tasting and purchasing...for G's mom's favorite vino...which was a real chore tasting all the different wines. She's so lucky she has us to do this awful favor for her. :)

I hope you had a nice 4th too. Thanks to all the servicemen and women and veterans that make July 4th, our Independence Day, so meaningful.

Does anyone have any special 4th of July traditions or did anyone do anything different this year?

fork in the road

Let me preface this post by saying that I haven't NOT worked since I was 15....but here's what I am working on this week.



Don't worry though, I think I hear opportunity knocking. I just have to open the right door. :)

comfort food

I had a few requests for some easy crockpot meals and this is one of my favorites from my best buddy, Emily. This chicken and noodles dish is all about comforting yumminess.

EMILY'S CHICKEN ‘N NOODLES[ingredients]

4 chicken breasts (approx 1-2 lbs.)
2 cans chicken broth
1/2 stick butter or margarine
4 c. water
1 can cream of chicken soup
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 16 oz. bag of egg noodles (Mrs. Klesky’s is best, but generic is good too)
mashed potatoes (store bought mashed potatoes makes it even easier if you're pressed for time)

[directions]

Combine all ingredients except noodles in crockpot. Cook on low for 10-12 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. Take a fork and break apart chicken into smaller pieces (either take out and shred or fork into almost bite-size pieces). Add noodles and cook for 30 more minutes. (You might have to add a little more water.) We like to serve ours over the mashed potatoes. Or you could try over biscuits.

Hope you like it!

girls' night out

What a night I had Saturday! G's mom, my bestest friend Kathie, and I went to Zoofari. It is one of the Columbus Zoo's biggest fundraisers and is an adults only party featuring tons of yummy foods to sample from local restaurants, refreshing adult beverages and foamy pops, and lots of musicians and bands throughout the zoo grounds.

Here are some of our highlights:

Carole, me and Kathie waiting for the festivities to begin.

First stop....City BBQ goodness....our FAVORITE of the night! The shrimp wasn't bad either.

The tickets for admission came with 3 drink tickets, which we didn't want to go to waste.

We even saw a few animals while we were walking around, although not many were out.

After everyone is fed and feeling fine, the concerts begin. The Menus from Cincinnati rocked the Pavilion with their fun music and crazy antics. Yes, that is a skirt and strappy tank top he's wearing (later on, he changes into a woman's bathing suit with a tutu, then changes again into a pink teddy).

While The Menus were at the Pavilion, Phil Dirt and the Dozers were at the WatersEdge taking us on a trip in the time machine playing a lot of Beach Boys and Jan & Dean songs, even sneaking in some Doobie Brothers and Eagles (their Hotel California cover was awesome).

Drum solo...followed by a flute and guitar battle. Surprisingly, the flute gave the guitar a pretty good battle too. We even met Phil after the show....

This picture is a special one just for Kathie. :) Mmmmm-mmmm goodness!

It's been a long time since Kath and I have gone out and had such a blast....but we were both so tired the next day, that just goes to show we're getting old. Maybe we're just tired from having so much goodness going on in our lives. After all, we stayed at the par-tay until closing time!

Oh, and Kathie....you were still cute, even without your Vegas outfit!!

Carole, thanks for another wonderful time. We always have so much fun together!

wonderful weekend

For Father's Day, Gary played golf in the morning (nothing new there), BUT he had a fantabulous round of golf and shot a 73! woo-hoo!!! YEA!!

In the afternoon, we had a little cookout with G's parents and our nephew Dillon. Dillon brought his Corn Hole boards and an impromptu Corn Hole Tournament took place (all the while trying hard to ignore the fact that the boards were decorated with Michigan paraphernalia).

Gary and Dillon...

Gary's parents...

Taking a break between rounds...

Michael telling grandpa (the Corn Hole Champion) "I love you"...
I hope everyone else had a great Father's Day weekend too! Here's looking forward to this coming weekend as well. After having 3 weeks of 90 degree weather, it's nice to have a few surprising days in the high 70's....time to get things done outside before it's roasting again.

PS: K&J, be safe and have a GREAT trip! Can't wait to hear all about it!

happy Father's day

I must be the luckiest girl in the world to have a husband that has such a great relationship with his child. Michael adores Gary. And as my own mom has pointed out: I mean nothing to Michael when Daddy walks into the room. Michael gives Gary the most excited and happiest greetings. It's really such a heart-warming thing to witness.

Thank you for being such a cool and loving dad. :) Michael thanks you for all the love and adventures too.

Happy Father's Day to G's dad: the fisherman, golfer and bowler.

Happy Father's Day to my dad: the hiker, stock analyst and comedian.

We love you guys!

school's out

Yea for Michael! School's out for summer!

Michael is usually pretty sleepy in the mornings before school, but when I told him it was his last day of school (last Thursday), he popped his little head up right out of bed and had the biggest smile. Hmmm, do you think he understood what I said?!? I think he did!

Thursday was also the start of our heat wave of 90 degree temps. So I promised Michael we would have his pool and sand table ready when he came home.

And this is where you will find Michael almost every nice day throughout the summer....going back and forth between sand and water.

Yesterday morning, he was holding on to the back door signing "mommy daddy please go" out before he even had breakfast. "Please, please, please." :)

I can't help but think of Alice Cooper's "School's Out" song every June. Does anyone else get that song stuck in their head this time of year too? If not, you probably do now. Glad I could help.