Luke & Val

Luke squealed and laughed while being around Val a few weeks ago. He couldn't get enough of her! Val loves our nieces and nephews.

Sentimental Journey

"Gonna take a sentimental journey, gonna set my heart at ease, gonna make a sentimental journey, to renew old memories....I never thought my heart could be so yearny, why did I decide to roam, gotta take a sentimental journey, sentimental journey home." Frank Sinatra

This weekend was very sentimental for me as you probably already recognized from my last post. I figured I might as well make it a true sentimental journey and go to visit my Gram & Gramps' old house over the PSU mountain. On my way to the house, I called the new owner to see if I could visit and take some pictures for our family. The new owner wasn't home, but was happy to allow me to scope out the place. The drive over was beautiful and I could have done it with my eyes closed. I will admit that I got a little choked up as I rounded the windy roads leading up the mountain - feeling this burst of closeness to my Grandpa. This house was such a special place filled with so many memories with my family.

I was happy to see that the new owners have kept it up so nicely. They made improvements to the house (from what I could see spying into the windows) and I was really happy with how the house and surrounding land looked. The only disappointment was that the garden was more like a weed/wild flower fest, but that is to be expected since no one has a green thumb like my Grams.

The best part of the visit was that the fresh country air smell, the birds chirping, the rattles, the crackling of the leaves in the woods were just how I remembered. And as I drove up the gravel driveway - listening to the sound of the rocks crushing under my tires, I couldn't help but feel blessed I have such incredible memories from my childhood and adulthood. I was glad I went because I felt at peace knowing that the new owners are getting to create memories with their friends and family and enjoy this magical spot that will always hold a special place in my heart.

Pictures are below for family to see.

Kappa Reunion 2009

Above: Aimee, Jada, and Devon attempting KKG in front of Old Main

Below: Me, Jessie, Kim, Aimee, Beth, Jada, Devon, Kristen at the Nittany Lion

My sorority sisters have made a decision that we have to find ways to get together each year. Since we are past the wedding whirlwind, we are finding it more and more difficult to get together unless we commit to something. This year we decided to head to PSU to relive our college lives (or at least try to) for the weekend. It was such an incredible weekend filled with so many memories! We headed to our favorite bar hot spots like the Cafe and the G-Man - but also hit some other places that have popped up since we left - Pickles, Zola, and the Inferno. We stocked up on PSU gear, bought gear for our now husbands, children, or dogs. We walked all over campus checking out what we remembered and then being amazed by all the improvements. Surrounded by my dear sorority sisters and walking by buildings I spent many a class in, it felt like it was just yesterday I had graduated. I now know the true feeling of "time flies." Waves of emotion came over me - it was just awesome to be back after 9 years. Below are pictures from the weekend - out at the bars (and I'm proud to say we were able to close the bars down each night), chug off between Devon, Marlena, & Kristen, stuck in a rainstorm, 2am pokey sticks, and our crew outside of the Penn State Book Store.

Gavin's Baptism

Gavin's Baptism is what brought us to Pittsburgh. We didn't want to miss our 5 month old nephew's big day being initiated in to Christ's holy church. Mat Klody (David's friend since grade school) & his wife Kristy were the Godparents. Couldn't have asked for two nicer people to be the spiritual guides for young Gavin. The service was held outside and Gavin was such a good boy.

David and Ellen's church - a Methodist church - has an awesome minister. Really powerful sermon with a positive message. The message was, "You can change the evidence if you have hope." Happy Baptism Day, Gavin!

Alana & Val

Alana loves Val or "Val-e" as she calls her. This visit, Alana ran in my parent's house saying "puppy dog" over and over. Val then proceeded to lick her face and Alana just giggled hoping for more. Alana followed Val around, hugging her whenever she could. But my favorite part was when Val jumped up on the bench to look outside and Alana hopped up next to her - notice Alana holding Val's paw. So special!

A Walk in the Park

A visit to the Burgh is not a visit to the Burgh without a walk in South Park with the family. Alana enjoyed the playground excitement of swings and slides, and Val enjoyed the cool air on this unseasonably cool July day. Pictured above is David and Alana.

A Birthday Surprise - Or Whatever You Want To Call It

Let me just begin by saying that I am not the best surprise keeper. Once I know about a surprise - it is agony keeping it inside so no one else knows. I have tried just saying it out loud when I am by myself to try to get it out of my system, but that hasn't seemed to work. So when my mom and I decided to surprise Brian with a birthday dinner at one of his favorite restaurants in Pittsburgh (Lidia's), it took everything in my power to try not to tell him.

We decided on Monday that we would invite some of our family/friends in Pittsburgh to Lidia's to celebrate his special day. I came home on Monday and without telling Brian, I tried to get him excited by telling him we had a surprise for him. Like I mentioned - I am a horrible surprise keeper so this is my way of telling him by not telling him. It got him pretty excited and little did I know that I would be hit with the question, "If I guess it, will you tell me?" Now I was even more excited - now the surprise became a game for me. But I tried to keep my cool and I held off until Tuesday. By Tuesday, I had rationalized that if he guesses it, the responsibility will then fall on him and I would be off the hook from keeping the surprise from him. So I gave him 10 questions - thinking there was no way he would guess it. We had only been to Lidia's once before and there could be so many things it could have been. What I forgot was to turn off our ability to read each other's minds before we started, because the first question out of the gate was, "Are we going to Lidias?"

So Brian knew where we were going and it wasn't a surprise, but he did get to be excited from Tuesday until he tasted his first bite of pasta on Friday. We had a great time with everyone and loved the pasta. If you ever go to Lidia's you have to get their pasta tasting - nothing else on the menu comes close.