Congrats to the Newlyweds

Once again, Kyle made the 10 hour drive North on Highway 35 ... picked me up in Minneapolis, and we headed to Appleton, Wisconsin to celebrate Brent and Christine's wedding. Adorable couple, beautiful ceremony, good food, great music, and my husband in a tux ... fabulous! I took almost 200 pictures, but picked a few favorites.

Here are the boys before the weekend began. Aren't they cute?!?!

Probably would have been more cost effective if Kyle would have bought a tux years ago after all the rentals he's worn, but he does clean up nice, huh?!?

Here we are with the newlyweds. Congrats, Brent and Christine!

I Miss My Minneapolis

This past week, I got back to Mpls for the first time since the move to Arkansas. And, boy, did it feel good! Yes, I am enjoying this new experience ... and yes, I think it has brought Kyle and I closer together ... but seeing all my friends, new additions to their families, past coworkers, our old house ... I didn't realize how much I loved Minneapolis until I moved. I had been there 4 years and it really grew on me. Looking forward to rejoining my Minneapolis family in 1.5 years!

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Me and my good friend Drew

Two of my favorite Mpls girls ... Rebekah and Lora

New Mama Lindsay and her beautiful daughter, Lillia!

Adrian and her new baby, Austin!

I miss you all and had a great time seeing everyone this week! Can't wait to get back!

Happy 28th, Kyle!!

Mr. Petersen spent his 28th birthday fishing in Wisconsin with the Repka's. Thanks for taking care of him, Mike and Bob!

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Consequently, we celebrated a couple days late this year. I baked him a German Chocolate Cake (his new favorite, ever since I made one for my Dad's bday earlier this year) and bought his favorite ice cream, Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

We had a potato and broccoli au gratin casserole (also Kyle's new favorite) for dinner and opened presents. Here are a couple favorites ...

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Bose Noise-Cancelling Headphones from the Mulhausen's

Rockband 2 for XBox from Tracie ... he's still a kid at heart!

We'll be working hard on our performance skills for our next visitors, I'm sure! Happy Birthday, Kyle!

Our Great Lakes

While Kyle headed North to enjoy the lakes of Wisconsin for a few days, I seized the opportunity to get out and enjoy the lakes of Arkansas, right here at home! Last Saturday, my friend from Walmart, Rob, invited me to join him and some friends on the boat he rented for the summer. We headed out to Beaver Lake and enjoyed wakeboarding and floating with some tasty beverages. (I chose the latter! They were pro's on the wakeboard and I was not in the mood to star in amateur hour.)

Check out these pics of my friends Rob and Andrea catching some air on the wakeboard!

You thought Minnetonka was a big lake?!?!? I'd confidently wager that Beaver Lake is at least 10x the size. The lakes down here are also more rustic looking. While there may be huge houses along the banks, they are tucked behind lush trees. There are no roads or restaurants along the waters edge, just a sea of green. Gorgeous! Although, I was craving a cocktail on the deck at Fletchers! We found the next best thing ... what's known as the "Party Cove." Tons of boats pull in here, hook up to each other, drop anchor, blare music and drink the day away.

We didn't stay long enough to see all the craziness that typically ensues (thank God) but we did enjoy floating around in the crystal clear water.

When in Arkansas ...

Kyle and I were recently joined by our second crew of visitors … Emily (Kyle’s Sis) - Maria (Kyle’s cousin) – Tasha (Emily’s roommate.) The girls were road tripping for some super-sized Texas fun and added Arkansas to their route on the way home. That’s right, we were an afterthought. Then again, we do live in Arkansas now. :)

After they arrived at 2am last Thursday … we spent Friday afternoon shopping (yes, they do have nice stores you would recognize down here) and caught Will Farrell’s new flick. Not my favorite, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. It sure was no Elf, which I could (and often do) watch daily.

On the last day of their visit, we figured we needed to step it up a bit and give them some Arkansas flavor. So … we went to the Monster Truck Show! While it sounds like a southern hick type of activity, let it be known that 2 of the 6 drivers were Wisconsin-bred. We had no trouble fitting in with the crowd!

It was quite the exciting show and louder than we ever expected.

The trucks were cool, but I think our mullet sighting takes the cake.

Thanks for coming to see us Em, Maria and Tasha! We had a blast!

Our Rendezvous in Chi-Town

Kyle's 2 week tour of the North was supposed to end with his friend Brent's bachelor party in the Wisconsin Dells (no pictures posted for a reason) ... but he made a last minute decision to cruise to Chicago, where I had just flown in for work. Quite the hubby I have! I spent Sunday at the Cubs game with my good friend, Dave, while Kyle nursed a hangover at his aunt and uncle's place.

We spent 3 days in downtown Chicago together, enjoying the swankiness of the Park Hyatt hotel and all that Michigan Avenue has to offer. Here we are enjoying a brew at the top of the John Hancock Building. I could really get used to these Sales trips - General Mills sure takes care of these guys more than all us bums in supply chain. Might have to consider a career change.

There's gotta be a night at a dueling piano bar on every good trip so we dragged the crew to Howl at the Moon. Classic photo as we rock out to Journey.

And ... every good trip ends with an 11 hour drive home (actually not, only Kyle and I have to do crazy stuff like that) but here is our view of St. Louis as we passed by.