Weekend Recap: October 10-12

It's Monday...and I'm sick.  :(  I think I wore myself out this weekend!  Check out all of the fun I had:

Friday Highlights

• Field Trip on my sub day with 7th graders
• Lindsey came over after school for a catch up session
• My sis, bro, and I got some chinese for dinner
• I met Ali for a drink and then a Haunted House

Saturday Highlights

• Hugging Brooke over and over and over
• A wonderful turn out for B's baby shower
• Staying after the shower ended to catch up with B
• A great night at Aubry's wedding reception
• LOWLIGHT: Quickly losing $40 at Jumer's, ha!

Sunday Highlights

• Bears Win!
• Put my new bedding on my bed
• RELAXING

I need to try to relax a bit this week before another crazy weekend!  But as I've said in the past, all of this is worth it.  My friends and family mean the world to me so I want to celebrate with them as much as possible.  Next weekend, I'm looking forward to going to Jess' brother's wedding as her date!  It'll be a crazy time and I can't wait!  Just need to get healthy before then. :) Happy Monday!

Up, Up and Away...

The Quad Cities Hot Air Balloon Fest took place last weekend and my mom and I decided to go check it out.  We got to the fairground before 7:00 in the morning only to find out that the wind wasn't cooperating and they would be taking off from somewhere northeast of Colona.  OK...how the heck do we find that?  We ended up getting in our car, driving towards Colona and just happened to see a trailer with a basket (for the balloon) on it!  "Follow that balloon!"  We weaved around some country roads and ended up at this farm.  Not all of the balloons could take off at this location, but we were up close and personal for 5 of them.  It was loads of fun, totally random, and I'd definitely do it again! :)

July Wedding Fun (Recap)

Right in the middle of the summer, we had an awesome opportunity to reunite with many of our good friends for Kyle and Kerri's wedding.  It was a beautiful weekend, and we all had a good time.  On Friday night, some people came to our house for some drinks and hang-out time.  We took advantage of our sun room and had a great time.

On Saturday, Ashley, Andy, Emily, Nick, and I brought some breakfast to Steve and Amber so we could hang out with them and meet baby Kingsley.  She was so adorable, and it was wonderful to see their cute little family!

Later that afternoon, we headed out to the Rehn wedding.  It was a little hot, but absolutely gorgeous.  We went to the Broken Saddle Saloon before and after the wedding.  We had a great time catching up with friends at the reception and then Ashley and I line danced the night away at Broken Saddle.  It was hilarious, very fun, and we must go back someday! :)

I have two more weddings to look forward to in October and I'm looking forward to more dancing! :)  Happy Thursday!

Follow Your Dreams

I quit my job!  It was a very scary decision to make...and I'm still wondering how things will turn out for our budget, because taking on more debt will NOT be an option!  However, I have been BEYOND happy to start my "Back-To-School" career substitute teaching in two school districts.  I have been in the elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools!  I am soaking it all in and trying to decide where my heart lies for future career choices.

Jobs I am Currently Qualified For:
*5th-12th grade language arts/English teacher
*Reading Interventionist
*Paraeducator
*Private Preschool Teacher

Jobs I'm Debating Further Education For:
*Elementary Teacher
*Special Education Teacher
*Middle School Teacher w/ Social Studies Endorsement

Ultimate Dream Job Someday:
*Speech Language Pathologist

Unless I get a full-time teaching job with my current license, I will probably continue subbing until I am able to start taking classes towards one of the other endorsements.  With my ultimate goal of someday (many years from now) becoming a Speech Language Pathologist, I'm leaning toward the special education endorsement.  I have been picking up a lot of special ed jobs in the schools, and I am loving it!

More to come I'm sure, but know that I am so crazy happy with my recent career change...it feels so good to follow your heart! :)

KC Trip

Ryan and I went to Kansas City over Labor Day weekend to visit my aunt!  Ryan had never been before and we had a great time!  When we first arrived, Tonja took us to this really famous BBQ place called Oklahoma Joe's (changing it's name soon to Joe's BBQ).  It was attached to a gas station and we had to wait for almost an hour, but it was AWESOME!

We spent the rest of the afternoon/evening exploring a cute little neighborhood and then relaxing at home to gear up for our fun Saturday!

On Saturday morning, we had a great breakfast in preparation for a marathon drinking day.  Then we headed to Boulevard Brewery for a tour and some drinks! :)

Favorite beers this time include the Ginger-Lemon Radler, Hibiscus Gose, and of course, the 80-acre Hoppy Wheat.  We followed up the brewery tour with more beer!  We went to Westport to the oldest building in Kansas City, which house Kelly's Irish Pub!  We watched the Cyclones lose and I drank a really big beer.

Later on, Ryan and I spent a little time together exploring.  We checked out a bomb ice cream shop and then we explored the WWI monument, with great views of the city.

Saturday evening, we enjoyed some local Mexican and a bar called Side Pocket which housed what seemed like 1,000 pool tables, dart boards, shuffle board...really cool place to end our trip in KC.

I took Tonja to Raygun for the first time. :)

All in all, we had an awesome time!  I love visiting family and I love visiting cool cities and I love getting away with my husband...so it was a win, win, win for me!  I hope you all had great Labor Day weekends as well!

Spring/Summer Family Fun

We've had a few graduation parties, family reunions, birthdays, etc. the past few months and I figured I'd throw a few pictures together.  I love my family so much.  The older I get, the more I wish I had more time in a week to visit them all more often.  Not just my immediate family (luckily, they live close!), but my extended family as well.  They are all wonderful and so full of love. 

As always, I wish I had more pictures from all of the events this summer!  I also do have some pics to post from Kansas City, visiting my aunt, but that will be a separate post!

Happy Wednesday!

Live Music is the Best Music (Recap)

I really REALLY appreciate a good live show, and I've been trying to soak up a bunch of them this summer!  From local bands, to fair week, to a music fest, and a concert on vacation...I've enjoyed every minute, though my ear drums could probably use a rest.  Here's a quick recap of my favorite shows so far this summer:

Manchester Orchestra

The Zach Harris Band

Lady Antebellum

Craig Morgan

Jerrod Niemann

Minus Six

ZZ Ward

Los Lonely Boys

I can't wait for more...nothing beats live music!  What shows have you seen recently?