Fall Fun Continued

Apple orchard fun and now pumpkin fun. Micah had never carved a pumpkin before so we decided to break him in and have a carving party. Pat and Adonia joined in on the fun.

I believe he was say "Gross, this is worse that i though it would be. I don't know if it is worth it."

Pat's finished project. He's kinda cute

Adonia made an awesome "Trick Or Treat"

My Owl. For those of you who do not know me....I have a serious Owl Obsession. Blame it on Chi Omega as it was our little mascot, but now they are an important part of my life. Micah even finds owls everywhere for me, so it was no surprise i needed to carve on into our pumpkin.

For a Pumpkin Carving Virgin I'd say he did awesome! It took him twice as long as the rest of us, but it is probably the coolest pumpkin i have ever seen. Way to go Hubby.

All of our beautiful pumpkins. We still have two to carve....not sure what they will be.

Once we finished carving, Adonia and I sorted the 'guts' to save seeds. We then baked some pumpkin seeds to enjoy together. Thanks so much for making memories with us Pat and Adonia!!!

San Antonio

Weddings weddings weddings....

There have been so many weddings lately, and this weekend we were off to Texas for Micah's cousin's wedding. Much to my dismay the battery in my camera was DEAD as soon as i turned it on at the wedding, sooo no pics for me, But i stole a few from facebook.

We drove to Texas, trying to save money...16 hours there and 16 hours back. Drove through IL, MO, OK, and TX. I loved every minute of it because i was not the one behind the wheel. We left Tuesday evening at 4:30, stopped over night in OK, and then arrived at our hotel in San Antonio around 3:30 on Wednesday. We had a wonderful dinner with some of Micah's cousins. Never a dull moment with 3 of the 4 brothers :o) Thanks for the entertainment Eric, Michael and Jon.

Thursday we entertained ourselves after visiting the cousins again. We helped uncle dave deliver stuff to the wedding house and got ourselves a little tour. Basically it is a couple's house that we would consider a mansion. They are friends of the family and let people get married there all the time. Lets just say, yikes. They have a beautiful stream running through the back yard, 12000 sq ft of pure beauty in their house of 7 bedrooms, A pool to die for, and a work out house (literally bigger than a 'normal' house). They are wonderful hosts. They left for the weekend and stayed in another house of theirs so that the wedding party from out of town could live in their house until the wedding. They are Christians and just love helping others out they say. When it was pouring 2 days before the wedding (luckily it stopped) they actually considered moving all of their furniture out of the house so Kelly could get married inside rather than out in the horrible weather. After seeing all their furniture, if it had been me, the thought would never have crossed my mind. So thank you Wedding House owners for placing others needs/wants before your own we could all take lessons. We are so glad the weather was beautiful the whole weekend so everything could go as planned.

From the pool looking onto the back corner of the house. (stolen from facebook)

No, not the front of the house, this is the workout house :o) Haha yes i would be willing to live in this.

That afternoon we went went to the Riverwalk. For those of you who have not been there...it is basically a man made river running through the city with sidewalks. It is pretty but something i would only do once. There are restaurants along the river so that was kinda nice because you could sit and have a nice dinner in a pretty place....but if they want me to recommend it i would say put shops along the whole thing instead of food and i would be there every day :o). You can get into the mall from the riverwalk but that's not the same as walking from store to store along the river. But we did it and it was enjoyable. You can also take a little boat cruise (with or without dinner) which is kinda neat. I didn't take pics, so i stole them from the website so you have an idea of what it is.

Restaurant along river.

Pretty waterfall they built along the river.

The little boats you can ride around...I think dinner on one would be fun but a plain 'ole ride would be quite boring!!

Friday we ran some errands for the family (wedding stuff!!) and then had lunch with the rest of the cousins that were arriving by plane. I think there were 13 of us at lunch...yummy mexican. Then that evening we were off to the rehearsal dinner. Where it was more fun time visiting with cousins. And we got to see sonograms of the newest little cousin to be arriving in February....Congrats Michael and Amy!!!

Saturday the boys went golfing and i snuck away to some outlets :o) I stuck to my budget and was very proud of my 'winnings.' Lets just say I got lots and lots of winter clothes for about 1/3 of the actual price, the only way i shop. When Micah saw it all on the bed his face kinda dropped as he asked how much i spent. And when i told him the total price should have been $350 but I only spent was $100 he was like...WOW, and he got 2 dress shirts out of the deal so it was an easy sell. And everything bought is actually needed seeing as neither of us have bought clothing since be have been married, and living in CA didn't allow for the need of winter clothes. but we should be set for winter now.

In the afternoon we were off to the wedding. BEAUTIFUL. That's really the only way to describe it. Congrats Michael and Kelly Gundersen.

Stating their personal vows...(stolen from facebook)

Sunday was spent celebrating Grandpa's birthday (early) while having lunch at the Hermann's (cousins). We then snuck off to the Alamo before driving back to IL.

(photos coming soon)

It was 85 degrees and sunny when we headed off on our 16 hour drive home. We slept at the border of OK and MO and finished the drive monday. And when I awoke from my slumber in the car it was a horrific sight....Rain, clouds, and 40 degree weather. I believe that is when i began to cry :o)

Haha, welcome home to Midwest fall/winter.

But it was a wonderful trip! Thanks to the Hermann's for entertaining us the whole time we were in town :o) And CONGRATS to a beautiful new couple.

Fall Fun.

The weather had been rather crappy over the first few weeks of fall, so we took advantage of the first beautiful day. Pat and Adonia are from South Carolina (here with CAT). They don't know many people in the area, if anyone :o) so we have adopted them into our family. Well....Micah has made Pat his new BFF, and Adonia and I get brought along so they don't look like lovers. Haha Good thing I like you Miss Adonia!!!

We have enjoyed the Pumpkin Festival together, movies, dinner, and last weekend we went bowling together. The boys showed up wearing the same thing...no joke it is a strage stange bond they have. And although we had fun bowling, I wanted to be outside. (I am absolutely horrible at bowling and a poor sport to top it off) So This weekend we decided to go to Apple Blossom Farm and enjoy the fun Orchard events.

We went through the corn maze and had a blast. Although there is no end to the corn maze, as you exit the entrance, they do have 32 trivia questions you have to find in the maze. We found all of them but it took 2 hours. Not that we got lost, Adonia and I are quite the navigators, but teeny boppers found it fun to move the questions or simple throw them into the corn so they could not be found. But our boys ventured through the corn to find the hidden questions and put them back where they belong. And when they left the side of their wives they would simply yell Marco Polo and hope we responded so they could find their way back to us. It was quite eventful.

We also played with the goats, sheep, Donkey, and bunnies...and Pat played on the swings. Then we made sure to have some hot apple cider and apples before we headed home. It was such a beautiful Fall day. Thanks for sharing your happy souls with us :o)

*Someone needs to pop out a baby so we can fill the piggy face next year when we go back :o) Hint Hint it's NOT gonna be us so Pat and Adonia better get working :o) You have 3 months to accomplish this.

Weddings...Oct 10th

There have been so many weddings this year Micah and I have had to draw straws to pick which ones we attend. Since the last 3 weddings we attended were Micah's Friends, it was finally my turn. So Off to Bloomington we went for an evening full of Chi Omega Love :o) Congrats Meg and Jeremy.

So last year it was 70 degrees on this date, so Meg thought there would be no problem having an outside wedding this year. Little did she know it was going to be 40 degree outside. But it was a beautiful ceremony in the middle of the woods, despite the shivering.

Everyone sat on logs covered in tarps. I noticed people sitting much closer than 'comfort level' Body heat is a wonderful thing when you are outside in 'wintery fall' weather.

Micah and I warming up at the reception. Not gonna lie, the open bar offered some wonderful wine to warm the soul :o)

My favorite XO GTB...aka my little Vice President who took over after my term was up. I love you Miss Heather Croix. For those of you at our wedding last year, you may recognize this beautiful face that was behind the flute in our ceremony.

There was just a small group of Chi Omega's representing, but it was definitely a wonderful group. I had a fabulous time with all of you :o) Clockwise starting with the bride: Meg Brewer (Bride), Justine Petras (Maid of Honor), Heather Croix, Amanda Croix, Jes Beach, Michele Pharr (bridesmaid).

I cannot think of a better way to spend time at a wedding than with my lovely sisters. It makes everywhere you go feel like home. Congrats Meg and Jeremy.

And since this was the wedding we were able to attend this weekend (can't be 4 places at once) I must Give a shout out to those we missed:

*Congrats to another XO Sister from Carthage...Mr. and Mrs. Sean (Christina) Highsmith, married in Indiana.

*Congrats to Micah's friends from Bradley Mr. and Mrs. Drew (Amanda) Heisel, married in Peoria.

*And another congrats to my lifelong friends Mr. and Mrs. Jeffery (Heather) O'Toole, married in South Carolina. I grew up considering Jeff and Ryan (brothers) my 'cousins' since they considered my Aunt G their Aunt G. We used to play together whenever they would visit, and it never got old. I have taken many trips to Athens, IL with Aunt G for different events (she uses me for my driving skills since she is getting old). We have had the pleasure of attending Ryan and Maggie's wedding in May '08, Bridal showers for both Maggie and Heather, Birthdays, Graduations, and even a wedding in Ohio for their cousin's weddings....and so on. We have had many playdates and sleepovers. Even in our adult years we have spent the night at Aunt G's ...well she throught we were there but we were really playing tennis at 3 AM and having a bonfire in the back yard in the middle of January....I had a s'more craving. And she was rather confused when we didn't fund all of us on the living room floor as we somehow fit 3 of us in a double bed....the only extra bed in the house. haha. She doesn't even ask anymore... So they are lovely friends and Life would never be the same without them. We wish we could have celebrated with you all in South Carolina!!! Congrats, We Love you.

Me and Heather at her Shower in July...Love You!

Saving Lives....

My professions for the moment involved saving lives. For those of you who have no idea what I have been doing since February, I am working in the ER at Proctor and OSF, our local hospitals. This often involved taking care of people who are barely ill and just don't understand the definition of EMERGENCY, and many times it involved using the skills we have learned to save the lives of our patients. Heart attacks, Strokes, Car Accidents, Shootings, Stabbings, beatings, poisonings, Respiratory problems.....we see it all. Literally...

We often say "ER....you watch it, We LIVE it." The job gets downright nasty at times, but someone has to do it or many lives would be cut short. And somehow God has granted me the ability to stare at people's insides, blood, mangled body parts etc. and not get queasy. (for those of you who just passed out after simply reading the words, just breathe and continue as I will refrain from describing anything in detail :o)

Part of our job is to be prepared for any large emergency. Most of the time we see people patient by patient. There are occasionally accidents that bring us 4 or 5 patients at a time. The stress of mass casualty incidents is much greater than taking patients by patients. So to deal with the increased stress levels, we are trained time and time again in different situations so that it is instinct when we treat patients and we really don't have to 'stress to think'. One type of situation we have been trained on recently is the exposure of hazardous material. This would come into play if there was a large chemical spill, terrorist attacked using biological warfare...or anything of this type. Although it is a serious situation, we had a lot of fun training so I thought I would share some pictures from our 2 days with you.

So, we had to wear these goofy suits. And I kid you not when I say they are HIGH TECH. Basically Tarps...But when they could save your life, you are grateful. These are also one size fits all = they are all 5X, use duct tape to fit them to your body. HUGE is an understatement. This is us halfway dressed, with our 'angels'. because of the Situations we would be preparing for, you cannot dress yourself. The suits get incredibly hot inside and you actually lose a few pounds in a few hours just from sweating. So the deal is, you have an 'angel' who dresses you to save your energy, and you drink water to hydrate and rest.

Since chemicals can he harmful to touch OR breathe, we wear special 'contraptions' to filter the air reaching the inside of our suits. The goal in to have the suit properly places so that you puff up upon circulation of air inside your suit. So when you put little people in 5X suits and fill them with air, you get bubble people. Walking in the suits is quite entertaining.

Me in my suit ready to save lives....

We then had to practice washing patients. Decontaminating is the most important part of the 'saving' process or you will infect anyone attempted to attend to the patients wounds (if there are any). So we practice in our special showers that we set up outside. I really hope....and pray, that if we ever have a biohazard situation of any magnitude, the people will be able to assist a bit better than these mannequins.

And then you have different types of people who are not mobile. These also will need DECONed...so we practiced. And yes...real people will weigh much more, but it was just practice. Had it not been 50 degrees outside we would have put our bathing suits on and been the 'subjects'....but this was not happening.

All I can say is....Bring it Terrorists....and God Help us because it will be absolute chaos if anything happens...

But we will do what we do....Save Lives.

Homecoming Weekend at Carthage

I was really missing my Sisters and Friends from Carthage, so what better way to reconnect that heading to Homecoming. We had a Chi Omega Reunion on Friday night which was wonderful (Thanks Amy A for hosting it) It was amazing catching up with sisters from my pledge class, those older, younger, and even some I had never met before. Different sisters were in and out throughout the evening but it was definitely too much fun for all of us! Can't wait til the Next reunion. Miss all those who could not join us. And for the two sisters we lost this year, you were there in our hearts for sure. Love you Katie and Angie.

The ladies who were there during picture time. Some had scattered by this point and others were just arriving. LOVE YOU ALL. And a special thank you to all the dates who, after dating Chi Omega's for many years, have learned that picture time is their time to shine as well. They grab the cameras and start clicking. Cracks me up because we don't even ask anymore, they just follow and click.

Nikki, Me, Laura, and Liz. Laura and Liz were bridesmaids in my wedding...and best friends...and roommates...and neighbors... And Nikki is one of my favorite little XO....we have a special bond, right Nik. You all saved my life in college. Sometimes literally

This was right after Laura got down on one knee asking me to be her bridesmaid in her wedding next august. Of course she already asked me before this night, but wanted to make sure I was not gonna back out...haha Love you Future Mrs. Leys

My favorite Heather and my favorite Liz....in the Micah Photo shoot. You really should see the 15 pictures he took of us.

We spent saturday morning at the parade. Although there were not hundreds of people there like usually, it was wonderful to remember the good times when i was actually a student. Chi Omega's were shining brighter than all the others in the parade that is for sure. We love you girls, Keep Carrying on the XO Love.

The ladies were pirates. Had absolutely nothing to do with the theme but they couldn't think of anything so they decided this would be fun. ... And that is one more reason i love Chi Omega. And i must they are the best looking pirates i have Ever seen.

Immediately following the parade it is tradition for different organization to set up booths and sell food!! So we wandered over that way to see what there was yummy to eat. And in the process I was able to get an update on CAC (Colleges Against Cancer)...The organization I started in my 4 years at Carthage (through American Cancer Society). So thanks to everyone who prayed for me while we were in the process of getting it started, and thanks to those who

celebrated with me when we had our first Relay For Life at Carthage....and many many many Thanks to those who have continued to carry on CAC after i left. It is so wonderful to see how it has grown in the 2 years since i have been gone...it is in Good Hands!!! I was also able to catch up with some of my favorite professors during this time (Love you Dr. Blaine (AKA MOM)...and many of my friends. I love the warmth of reuniting with the people who shared my life for 4 years. The connection never seems to fade no matter how many miles we are apart. Thanks for the memories.

And as we were leaving we decided to spend a little bit of time on 'our rock' by the Lake.

When Micah came with me on move in day at carthage, this is where we said our goodbye's, and where we spent many many many many many moments just sitting throughout the 4 years. I often went there when I was missin home, or stressed, or just wanted to look at the beautiful Lake. It was great to enjoy the beautiful weather together.

My home for 4 years.....and outside of winter it is the most wonderful place in .....WI. So it doesn't measure up to many places i have been, but for a college home it was perfect. Lake Michigan is big enough you can imagine you are walking along the ocean on your way to class every morning....

And since I promised I would not bore Micah with a weekend of all MY friends, we headed out early Saturday afternoon to go visit Micah's old roommate and his family. It was wonderful visiting with you Raz and Autumn come see us soon! And Welcome little baby Carter....he is too cute for words, what a blessing.

Remember

Over the years we meet so many people. Some of those people we forget almost immediately, others we remember for a while but over the years they seem to fade from our memory, and then there are those who leave such an impact on us that their memories will last for a lifetime.

There are a lot of people I have met who I would consider 'lifers': a term I use to describe the people who will never leave my memory even if it is years between each visit. Most of my 'lifers' I would expect to be here my whole lifetime. Although I know God has other plans sometimes, I really never plan on losing a 'lifer'. God has taken a few of my 'lifers' much earlier than I had hoped for...and most recently Katie has joined the others in heaven. I'm sure this will end up being longer than planned so read if you like but this is more for my own soul...

Katie is a friend of mine from College. We met my freshman year as I pledged Chi Omega. I was definitely blessed with the most amazing 'family away from home' in Chi Omega. I hold the memories of each of my sisters dear although some were there for more experiences than others. Katie and I were more acquaintances until we embarked on a journey that would forever change our lives and be embedded in our memories. January of 2006 we spent a month living together in Nicaragua with a group from school. It was a medical mission where we worked in clinics treating patients with the local doctors and had some days off to tour paradise. For those of you who are not aware, Nicaragua is a country between Honduras and Costa Rica in Central America. We traveled the main land for a few days but spent most of our time on a very remote island made up of 2 volcanoes.Our group contained a wide variety of students so some of us stuck a little closer together for our own sanity :o) Tagged ourselves as the A team. 'A' standing for many things on the trip but quite frankly we were stinkers and competitive in every form so we felt we were A quality....we also enjoyed adventures that were not necessarily in the 'teachers agenda.' But that's beside the point...

Memories were made around every corner. Katie and I found humor is just about anything and were sure to document the whole trip. We knew this was not an event we should take for granted. Above you see us enjoying the 'Bearded Monkey' which was one of the many many many hotels/pubs located in Nicaragua on the Main land. We also felt we deserved a vacation away from the rest of the group. They tended to 'suck up' every now and then and we didn't want to do what they were doing, so we ventured off. Now Nicaragua is a very.....Macho country. And i say this because women are more objects than anything. Because of this and the lack of stupidity we brought our body guard (assigned to our group for the trip) with us on our adventure. So Katie, Lisa (not pictured) and myself set out on a boat trip around the island with some of the local fisherman. They owned a tilapia farm close by our station and we had toured their facility earlier in the week. The professors were less than thrilled but Saul( Body guard) reminded them that we were stubborn women and they might as well let us enjoy our time without a fuss. So we were off. And the trip was great until the boat broke down in the middle of Lake Nicaragua (surrounding the island and comparable to Lake Michigan in size). We are pictured below laughing at the fact that there was no doubt we were in for a lecture when we returned seeing as it was after dark and curfew. Just another memory I will cherish for a lifetime. Clearly we got back safely and there was a bit of a ruckus on our return as everyone else was upset they didn't get to go....Again...A Team privileges.

This is a model of the island we lived on. It is the best way to show the two volcanoes and the lake. Below is a picture of one volcano 'Maderas' being overtaken by a cloud. This is the smaller of the two volcanoes and has been dormant for a while it is often climbed by tourists (with a guide). It is now covered by vegetation in rain forest form. The larger volcano is still active but can also be climbed to an extent...this was not in the agenda as it is quite dangerous and special equipment is needed.

One day of our trip was spent climbing the volcano. The professors informed us that it would be difficult, but I don't think people realized how insane this hike would be. There are no trails, and many sections are straight up (thus the reason for needing a guide who knows the area). Our class started out on the 5 hour hike to the top, and after about an hour only 4 remained. All members of the A Team I might add. The picture below shows those hiking in front of me about halfway up the volcano. In front is one of the guides then Mari, and Katie followed by Saul. As you can see it was a steep climb and this was not the worst area (i was hanging on so tight in the other spots i didn't get out my camera :o)

We took a few breaks and below I am pictured with Katie in a clearing. We are soaked and some of this is sweat however because the volcano is now a rain forest much of the water is rain and moisture from the trees. On a clear day you can see the lake from this clearing but it didn't turn out in the picture.

We finally reached the top after about 5 hours. And what a reward. At the top is a lake. This is inside the crater where the lava used to flow from. It is incredible and words cannot describe the beauty. And of course being adventurous we decided to swim in the lake. We didn't have suits sooo we kinda swam in our undergarments, thus the reason i didn't not post a picture of us swimming. The swim didn't last long as we we sinking in lava soot to about our knees and Mari was bit by something we could not see in the water. But it was such a memory. I could not have spent the time with anyone more wonderful either. Below is us after another 5 hour hike down the volcano. Clearly filthy and tired but going strong. I love you A Team!!

The adventures didn't stop on the volcano. We traveled to many local establishments to immerse ourselves in the culture. Above is part of the A Team being goofy. Nate, Myself, Katie, and Tim (aka Tiki). Nate made it to the top of the volcano also but on a different day than us, haha he would be mad if he didn't get this credit. Below Katie and I are kissing away our serious sunburns. Always an adventure.

Another trip we went on was a kayak trip around the island. There are two very small islands off the coast of where we stayed that are called Monkey Islands. These are places where people drop off their pet monkeys when they don't want them anymore. Sounds cruel but the main island is swarming with wild monkeys and people love to catch the cute things. But once they are pets they never leave and the only way to get rid of them is to put them on the island. People kayak past the island to see the monkeys and they will come out for food. Over the years they have become mean monkeys because people tease them and they have to fight for food (i know i know PETA would have a fit) BUT it was part of our adventure...visiting the monkeys. Katie and I were with Saul which was a blessing and a curse. We love the man but he is more daring than we are. And others captured his daring behavior as he bugged the monkeys and got a little closer than we would have liked. I wish we had a video so you could hear the two of us scream. One monkey actually grabbed Katie's foot and that would be about when we tipped the boat.

In the water we went...laughing and screaming praying the monkeys could not swim. Katie lost her beloved Green Bay Packers hat in this endeavor. *RIP Cute Pink Packers Hat* This is about when Saul is laughing his head off at the two of us as we tell him how he almost killed us and let the monkeys eat us. haha *forever embedded*

We teetered and we tottered on our beautiful Island. Climbed waterfalls. looked into a lava filled steaming volcano. Ventured through a bat filled cave. went on a 10 mile bike ride around the island. Played with school children. And served people in medical clinics.

Katie graduated a year before me and was dearly missed. Her love for life and consistent smile touched everyone she encountered. Her laugh was contagious and could be heard on the other side of campus if you really got her going. Katie continued to travel after graduation... adventurous remember. She also got engaged and was to be married to her college sweetheart Mark, this August 29th. But plans changed.

Katie was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia on December 13 of 2008. She underwent Chemo, a stem cell transplant, more chemo, isolation, and remission. The wedding was postponed to allow Katie to heal. But, remission only lasted for a short while as Katie relapsed July 8th. More Chemo and the remainder of her transplant were not enough to call off God's plan. She spent her 25th birthday in the Hospital not quite the party she would have requested. And she kicked that stupid Cancer's butt in the process, but the weakness from the fight was too much for her little body. On August 7th Katie was called home. No goodbye is easy, but a life cut short is a bit harder to grasp. And we cry but we are joyful that Katie's life is now beginning. So Rest Dear Katie....free of cancer, pain, annoying doctors, needles, beeping machines...you are loved.

We spent a month together in paradise and I will never forget it. I will never forget the other memories we made together in Chi Omega and at Carthage, but our adventure holds a special place in my heart. And now Katie is enjoying real paradise and someday I am sure we will find plenty of adventures there...on the real A Team.