Midwest Trifecta- Wisco, Michigan, and Illinois

My boyfriend is finally back from his trip home to Wisconsin. It made me think of our trip there last summer, and so for this weeks Thoughtless Thusday I will share my pictures from my first Midwest vacation. We were able to see his family in Wisconsin and Michigan and to do some sight-seeing in Chicago, IL. We packed A LOT into a relatively short trip. The first day we walked around Lake Geneva with Dave's parents. It was beautiful! The next day Dave's parents rented a pontoon boat and we all went out on Twin Lakes. I tried to water ski but it was so hard! I have done it before in Maine, but this time I couldn't get the hang of it. The water was freezing so I didn't want to be in there too long. That night we went to Friday fish fry at the country club. It was so tasty! Then we headed to Champs bar to meet Dave's friends. They were so nice and we had an awesome night! We stayed up all night hanging out by the bonfire at Tyler's and ended the night with breakfast at Manny's. Needless to say we were a little tired for 4th of July. Dave's mom's family came over for a family get together. Dave's uncle and his family were really nice. That night we watched fireworks at the lake and then the guys lit off some fireworks at Tyler's houseThe next day,on the 5th of July, we drove up the U.P. of Michigan to visit Dave's Dad's side of the family. It was a long drive but it was nice to get to know Dave's sis and her bf. We went to a mine tour in Iron Mountain before we got to Ishpaming. While we were in the Upper Peninsula, we saw Lake Superior:
Pictured Rock: Lakenland Junkyard Art:and the Yooper Touirist Trap:Our next destination was the Wisconsin Dells. It was such a fun place! We camped in a little cabin at Sherwood Forest with Andy and Jenn:The first night we were there we went to Marley's for dinner and drinks:and then to the Tommy Barttlet water skiing show. The next day we went to Mount Olypmus. We went on the rollercoasters, the go-karts, the ducks tour, and of course all the water slides:We also had a lot of fun goofy golfing at Pirate's Cove and playing Catch-Phrase around the campfire at night. We also went out for a nice steak dinner at some place in the middle of no-where! Andy and Jenn told us about it and it was worth the drive! Before we headed back to Dave's house we had some burgers and cheese curds at Monk's
Our last destination before heading back to the Southwest was a day in Chicago:We took the train into the city and headed straight to Shedd's Aquarium. It was so much fun! We saw the show before we left, but it was weird- none of the animals did their tricks except for the dolphins!We spent most of the day in the aquarium, but it was a good way to spend the day. Then we walked down to Navy Pier and looked around for a while before we had to catch the train back. I wish we had more time in Chicago, but I guess that gives me something to look forward to next time we visit! I am already making a list of things to do and see (and take pictures of) next time we are able to go together...Sears Tower, Hancock Observatory, Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor (aka- the mirrored bean thingy), Buckingham Fountain, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Magnificent Mile (for shopping fun), Taste of Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, Union Station, Harold Washington Library, Lincoln Park Zoo, Wrigley Field, and maybe a Chicago Bulls game... Just to name a few ( :

To link up and play along, head on over to Life In The Fulmer Lane!

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Just Another Wacky, Wonderful Wednesday

1. Have you ever been so lost that you were really afraid? YES! I was once lost in Tucson after leaving my friend Candice's house. Trust me, being lost in the desert is scary!
I am a big scaredy cat though, so anytime I am lost and it is dark or desolate I am usually sacred!

2. Have you ever been to an island? Yep. I went to Catalina Island in California in sixth grade for a field trip. We went snorkeling which was so fun! It was a beautiful place.

3. Are you more of a thinker or feeler? Thinker. I am very analytical especially with the big decisions in my life. I think feelings are fickle and untrustworthy! Think about it- when you are mad or hurt about something that happened, do you really want to just go automatically with what you feel like you want to do? You should instead do what you KNOW to be the right thing to do!

4. Do you tend to see issues or situations in life as black and white or shades of gray? Gray. Life is more complex than just two options. If we see the world in black and white we are also more likely to fall into the trap of pride and think our own way it the right way and everyone else is wrong. It makes us closed off to the beautiful discoveries of life.

5. If you were stuck on an island, what book would you hope to have with you (Let's pretend the Bible is already there, so you can't say that.) I am glad the Bible would be there! I guess I would hope to have Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. That is one of those books that I love to re-read every so often.

6. What are you most afraid of? Physically- spiders and scorpions. Even the tiny ones make me shudder! This is my bf and friend. Dave always finds spider stuff to try to scare me, haha. Emotionally, I would have to say losing the people I love or seeing them hurting and not being able to do anything about it.

7. Would you rather lose all of your old memories or never be able to make new ones? Wow! This is a tough one! I would hope to always have both, but I would rather lose all of my old memories. I think there are a lot of us out there who have trouble letting go of the past, including me. I don't want to live in the past. I would rather live for today and look forward to making my life richer and fuller everyday!

8. Pretend I'm looking at a scrapbook page about you. There are three spaces for you to drop in individual pictures. What are those pictures of, and why did you select them? Since I am a scrapbooker (check my stuff out here) this is another hard question! I would have a lot of difficulty choosing only three pictures to represent who I am. I think my three would be a pic of me and my dad at one of my many softball games growing up. That was a huge part of my life growing up and my dad coached my for many years! I would also pick a group family picture, because they are so important to me. I would also pick one of Dave and I because he is the other major piece of my life. The people in my life are what is important to me!

9. If you were re-doing your wedding, what would you do differently? (If you're single, tell me one thing you would do if you were planning a wedding OR huge party.) I have been thinking about my wedding A LOT lately and one thing I would like to have is a candy buffet. I have a major sweet tooth and I think they look so great in all those pretty glass containers. I also would love a chocolate fountain. Yummy!

10. Tell me one thing you know/believe about forgiveness. It is the only way to find inner peace and let go of all the hurt we experience in life.

11. You're waiting in a doctor's office. What is your favorite way to pass that time? Magazines or cell phone games. The doctor's office is the only time I read magazines anymore!

12. If there were a clone of you in a parallel universe what is one way you hope she/he would be the same as you and one way you hope she/he would be better? I hope that she would be just like me but more confident and social. Those are things I wish I could be better about!

Another week of great questions over at 2nd Cup of Coffee! To play along with The Random Dozen, head on over and link up!

I also love Kelsey's question for Wishful Wednesday this week.
'I wish' .... I could go back and spend one day working at a job from my youth, and it would be ______!
I loved all my jobs growing up! I would love to go back and relive all the fun memories at each one. My first was at a smoothie shop when I was 15 and my two BFFs worked there with me! I still LOVE smoothies and memorized a lot of the recipes and make them at home and I still see my two BFFs all the time, so there is not much there to go back and relive that I don't have in my life now! I also loved my job at a movie theatre in town. I got to see free movies, give out free passes, and I loved the people I worked with. I don't keep in touch with any of them so I think that is the one I would love to go back to just for one day!

To play along head on over to The Seattle Smith's:

On an unrelated note, I am super excited to go to Pappadeaux's with Dave for some crawfish tonight! We went a few weeks ago (which was my 1st time eating crawfish) and I am hooked! Yum Yum!! Hope everyone has a great Wednesday!

I Heart Faces

This is my first entry into I Heart faces. I did this self portrait with the self timer function on my Canon PowerShot, and edited the colors with photo editing software. Thanks for looking ( :

Summer Luvin'

I love the topic this week at Taylor's Top 2 Tuesday! I love summers! There are so many things to love about the summer months, but I would have to say my top two favorites are...

1. THE LAKE
I live less than twenty minutes from a beautiful lake and it is a summer treat to take Dave's boat out or just hang out on the waters edge with my friends. With a few wine coolers and snacks, we manage to have a pretty amazing time! This is one of our many adventures at the lake...

2. VACATIONS
I know that summer is not the only time for vacations, but I think it is the best time! I guess it goes back to school days when summer break left us with three months to fill with fun. My parents would always plan a great trip for us during the summer. I also love summer vacations because AZ can get HOT in the summer. Don't get me wrong- I actually LOVE the heat, but on those 115 degree days, it is nice to get away to the cooler weather of places like Maine!

Join the linky fun at The Undomestic Momma!

I am also going to play along with Miss Kriss for Temptation Tuesday for the first time! I have been a good girl and not gone too crazy when I shop lately, but this little beauty caught my eye:

It is from Target and I love it! I love the starfish and the bright red color! I picture this with a cute black summery dress- what else could I wear it with? Only neutrals? I am not sure I can justify a $40 necklace right now. Oh well... A girl can dream! Head on over and play along!

Happy 21st To My "Maine"-iac Brother

This week my brother turned 21! I cannot believe how time flies! I made him some Oreo cake balls (which are his favorites) and I am hoping to take him out for a beer or two soon!This week for Thoughtless Thursday I am posting some pics of when my brother and I went back to Maine to visit my family. These pictures are from Arcadia National Park, which is one of the most beautiful places I ever been! Notice me and my cousin in front of the cool sand castle...Here is my brother...Front-flip! And yes... he landed on his feet.So destructive- lol. I guess it would have been washed away by the tide anyways. I love that mid air shot. As you can see my brother is pretty athletic. He is also crazy smart. He just told me he is getting a 97% in one of his electrical engineering classes! (Sorry- gotta brag on him a little!) Anyways, I love going on family trips with him and this was one of those great trips... I hope my brother has fun while he is 21, but not too much fun...(hah- this is not him, I just think this pic is hilarious!) Head on over to Life in the Fulmer lane and share your own random pictures:



I am also going to link up for Thursday 5 at Mannland5. I have seen a few people post this meme on their blogs and have been wanting to play along. The challenge is to list 5 things that make you happy. I am a firm believer in counting your blessings so here goes...
1. I am happy to be able to do my laundry today! Our washing machine broke almost two weeks ago and we FINALLY got our new washer and dryer installed last night! Yay! (Although those weeks challenged me to wear some of my clothes that I don't normally wear!)
2. I am happy that my brother had a good birthday!
3. I am happy my brother's girlfriend made a giant cheesecake for him and that he is happy to share it! Yum!
4. I am happy that my bf Dave is with his family right now in the U.P. of Michigan. I know its not going to be an easy day (it is his grandma's funeral today) but I think he is where he needs to be. I am happy that he has a loving family that will be there to comfort each other.
5. And last but not least... I am thankful for the natural beauty that is all around us on earth.

Have a happy and green Earth Day!