The Big Move

I am so glad that I haven't had to move from place to place too often. Tuesday I moved out of my apartment with the help of my sister, her boyfriend, and my boyfriend. I had most everything packed up and ready to go so I was thinking it was going to be couple hours and we would be done by 8. Boy was I wrong!! We didn't even get home until midnight. The trailer was too small and didn't fit everything. It started not only raining, but hailing in the middle of the process. And I had to take two trips. I will be thankful when we finally have a house at the end of the summer and I never have to move again for a very long time!! Here are some photos of the process. 

It was so crazy trying to fit everything and finding a place to put it all until I move again. There were some bumps and bruises to go along with a little arguing but we survived. What an experience. I just can't believe how much STUFF I had for a tiny one bedroom apartment! I can't imagine how much stuff I need to fill a whole house! But I'm looking forward to finding out!

Until next time...

Another weekend Adventure

This weekend was another adventure for me and some of my family members. My parents recently bought a home that they will eventually retire to in Alexandria on lake Mina. This is the third weekend that they have been here since they moved in and this is my first weekend here! I'm so thankful for the weather that we have been having so far. Currently we are in the middle of the lake trolling for some fish. This is my view right this second! Absolutely beautiful. I wish I could stay up here all the time! 

Right after we got here at about 10:15 we got right to work putting the dock in the water. My dad didn't have to get in the water and Tyler had waiters on and lucky me had to get in the freezing water in my swim suit bottoms. And let me tell you... Even thought it was 81 degrees and sunny, water that is only 59 can feel like an ice bath. After a while I was surprised that I got used to it. The first part of the dock was easy to figure out but then we got stuck with the last parts because either pieces are missing or the past owners never set the dock up right either. We did the best we could with what we had. We also had to get my dads new boat lift in the lake after we got the dock in and that task was just as difficult as the first! But finally this is the finished product. 

I didn't get too fried today, but boy did I enjoy soaking up that sun! 

Just a half an hour ago this big guy was caught, but bass season isn't open yet so we had to throw him back. 

We are just heading into the dock and back to the house and I'm sure a campfire and s'mores will be on the agenda for this evening! 

Everyone enjoy this long weekend and this awesome weather we are finally having! 

Until next time... 

Spur of the Moment Adventures

This past weekend I traveled with Tyler to the great state of Missouri in a last minute decision, which is very unlike me, and totally like Tyler. I am a very type A person who has to have a plan all the time and not knowing drives me up a wall. Enough of myself and on to our trip!

We left Wednesday after Tyler's baseball game and made it to the great city of Cedar Rapids, IA. Good thing we were only there to sleep because that was one sketchy motel, but when you can get it for $46, why not!?

We packed a lot of activities into just a day and a half of being there!

We finally arrived in St. Louis around 1 pm and wasted no time finding something to do! We went to the city museum, which I didn't know much about except for what I had heard from other people. I don't have any photos from this adventure, but I thought it was an awesome place! Tyler described as a giant junk yard, which it kind of was, but in a really cool way. The city or whoever created this place just basically put a bunch of junk together to create one giant playground! It was in this really old shoe factory in what I believe was downtown St. Louis. This picture could give you a better idea of what I am talking about. 

 Just an idea of what it looked like. So much more inside the building too. I thought it was crazy! I would have enjoyed it more maybe if there weren't an outrageous amount of children running everywhere. Don't get me wrong, I love kids, but not when there are multiple field trips there on the same day.

We moved on to our next adventure pretty quick, which was the Anheuser-Busch Brewery! I have been to a few brewery's before, but this is certainly the biggest one that I have ever been to. It was interesting to see all the different types they make and how each one is made differently, yet the same exact recipe as when it first started. 

 The very large Clydesdale horses were just hanging out, but boy were they large!

 One of the wagons that they pull for different events and commercials. Those horses were very famous!

 My free sample was of the Shocktop Apple Wheat. It was delicious, but then again I'm a fan of the hard ciders in comparison to regular beer.

 The brewing process.

 The drums and containers that everything is made in. This place was huge!

The next day we got up bright and early so that we could head to THE ZOO!

The St. Louis Zoo is such an amazing place and the best part... IT'S FREE!
There are many different things that you need to pay for in the zoo, but the early birds get the worm because the first hour that the zoo is open the children's zoo, carousel, and petting the stingrays and sharks are all free too. So did we ever take advantage of those stingrays! I could have stayed at that pool all day! I pet so many stingrays and I even got up the courage to touch the shark as one swam by me. As for everything else, AMAZING. I love the zoo and am fascinated by all the different animals that are not around here. These pictures don't do justice and I wish I could post every single one!

 Giraffes

 Flamingos

 Like a kid in a candy store waiting for them to swim by!

 Big Stingray

 Zebras

 Toucan Sam

 Those rock looking things? Those are Hippos! These guys were huge and really didn't move a whole lot, but were so cool to see one up close.

 So many colorful fish!

 Daddy elephant.

 A momma and her baby!

 Sea Lions! These guys were fun to watch and there was an underground viewing tunnel that you could watch them from.

 The butterfly house was so pretty. There were just so many different kinds fluttering all over the place! Before you left, you had to make sure one didn't hitch a ride!

 

 After the zoo, which we were there for 6 hours, we had tickets to our favorite game, baseball. Tyler's favorite team, the Atlanta Braves were in town playing the Cardinals, which was the main reason that we went down there in the first place. I love going to different stadiums and I have been to a total of 6 different baseball stadiums. The Braves lost, but it was still fun to see another stadium! And here are some snaps from that evening.

Then we had our lovely 12 hour ride back home the next morning. It was a short, yet great trip! I love traveling and can't wait until my next adventure! 

Until next time...