Todd had a birthday on Saturday! We celebrated by picnicking in the park. We brought blankets, toys and an ice cream cake so Todd could blow out some candles. Amanda had a birthday the next day so we decided to include her in the celebration. The cake said “Happy Birthday TNA”. We wanted it to say T and A (Todd and Amanda) but apparently Kat and I don’t speak clearly enough to order birthday cakes. Luckily, the cake was so delicious nobody thought twice about the strange inscription.

Dinosaurs in mirror are closer than they appear.

I came home one night to find the Little Red Ped sitting in front of the garage with her guts spilling out. She hadn’t been running all that well lately and Ryan was bound and determined to find out the cause. I insisted it was a minor issue that I could definitely live with and begged him to put it back together. Big mistake–about a week later I called him from work to tell him that the poor little ped was dead as could be and would be spending the night alone in the parking garage at the Prudential Center.

Next time, when he say’s it’s broken–it’s broken.

After spending this past weekend in Vermont visiting my brother these are a few of the things I came home with. The fruit came from a farmers market in Burlington and the plums were absolutely amazing. The watermelon is actually a yellow watermelon. I haven’t cut it open yet because it’s so tiny and cute but I’m excited to try it, I’ve never had a yellow one before. My brother bought me the dinosaur at a flea market we saw on the side of the road. I’m still trying to think of a name for him. Any suggestions?

I was 18 years old before my brother and I could be in a room together without me crying and him laughing. And that is absolutely, positively not an exaggeration. I remember one time in particular having a blanket wrapped around my head and screaming, “I can’t breathe!” to which he responded, “if you’re talking you can breathe!” Not that I didn’t deserve it, in fact…I probably started the whole thing.

My brother and I finally decided we were cool with each other when I left for college and he moved to Vermont. Unfortunately, since then we’ve never actually lived in the same place. He lived in Vermont and I lived in Michigan, he lived in Grand Rapids and I lived in Lansing, and now he lives in Grand Rapids and I live in Boston. Doesn’t make for a lot of quality time together.

I’m totally psyched to say that after 7 months I finally get to see my brother again! He’s flying into Vermont on Saturday and I’m going to spend the weekend with him. I’m fairly certain he could still beat me in a wrestling match and being so far away from home, it’s not going to do me any good to yell, Mooooooooom!!!!!!

The people in this picture are the people I spend most of my time with. I work, play and live with them in fact. Spending three entire days together made me appreciate them even more. I learned that Todd is not a strong roller coaster rider. Kat can keep me calm around a shark if I can keep her calm in a high place and Ryan is by far the best crab catcher of the group. We’re a pretty good crew…I’m already looking forward to our next adventure.

These two do not mess around when it comes to arcade games. Just look at the determination in Todd’s stance. They had a goal, a strategy and a signal made up before I could even get change for a dollar. Needless to say we came home with that giant yellow tennis ball.

I love rides. I love rides that go fast. I love rides that spin. I love rides that fling you into the air then plummet straight back down. I think that’s why it’s hard for me to believe that someone could not like rides. Todd had never been on a roller coaster–ever. That was completely mind blowing to me! So as soon as I saw the bright purple tracks that went out over the ocean I knew what had to be done.

I’m not sure if it was because the ride didn’t feel safe or because we had just gotten off a ride that so viciously squished Todd into the wall that I think we thinned him out a little  bit…but he really didn’t seem to enjoy the experience much. In fact, that was the last ride he went on. I also don’t think my chances of getting him to Six Flags are very good right now.

Just a quick panorama from my iPhone of the boardwalk. It’s amazing how all of this can be so close to such an amazing beach. It’s hard to decide what’s more fun–the coasters or the waves.

Finally made the trip to the Jersey Shore this weekend and it was such a great time. We had an awesome place to stay, lots of fun things to do and great food to eat. I think it’s pretty safe to say we did everything. We did the boardwalk in the light and the dark, hit the beach, went to a real Jersey Shore club, went out on the boat, went crabbing. Overall it was an amazing Jersey experience. I definitely plan on going back.