Gershwin Drive

Warrior Dash

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 22:15:00 +0000

We ran the Warrior Dash today and it was fun!

Because...

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 00:48:00 +0000

...I really needed to laugh today when I realized just how much work I have to do over the next couple of weeks. Days off always come back to haunt me. Do they haunt you? In any case, I love this commercial and it always makes me laugh. Tom and I get a kick out of how the little girl says "baby" and find ourselves telling the other they "[fill in the blank] like a baby".

Do You Insta?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:21:00 +0000

One of my favorite apps on my iphone is Instagram. This free app allows you to edit your photos into really cool pictures. Below are a few of my favorite edits, just because.

Going on an adventure.

Terminal E at Boston's Logan Airport.

Navy Pier in Chicago.

The Kauffman's at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

Miami Beach from the Eden Roc Hotel.

Miss Shea.

Hibiscus.

Miss Bailey.

Bailey again.

Flowers at City Market in Kansas City.

Milwaukee Art Museum.

Boston Harbor.

Birthday Boy's Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 18:00:00 +0000

Interior of the American Restaurant. Three-story windows overlook KC. {image via}

For Tom's birthday he wanted to eat at the American Restaurant here in town. Consistently voted one of the Best in KC he was eager to go. Also, his favorite blend of The Roasterie coffee (a local roastery) is the American Restaurant blend. So, in honor of his birth, we made reservations for dinner.

Oh. My. It was wonderful. We all chose our own five-course menu and everything was fantastic. It was fresh and interesting and delicious. The service was fantastic and the view unbeatable. They knew it was Tom's birthday so they printed "Happy 28th Birthday Tom" on the top of our menus and then sent us home with copies signed by the chef, as well as the label from our bottle of wine.

Here we are at the end of our meal, full and happy.

Birthday Boy!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Tom turned 28 last week. He had a wonderful birthday, I think. Lots of good gifts, good food, good company, and plentiful Facebook wishes. What more could a guy want, right?

The Cubs were in Kansas City so we attended the game. Prior to the game we put together a great tailgate with his parents who flew in for the weekend. We had grilled Italian sausages, peppers and onions. Italian Beef. Apparently putting that all together makes a great sandwich at Portillo's in Chicago, which is Tom's favorite. I also made Greek Pasta Salad, Cucumber Pickles and Apple Snicker Salad for dessert. Yes, a lot of food. But soooo good.

Tom and his mom having a very good time at the tailgate.

Tom of course had to take a turn in the batting cage. I think he hit 3/5 pitches. But the other two almost hit his ankles so we aren't counting those. And yes, he was the oldest batter by about 15 years.

What a good-looking boy.

Group photo by the fountain.

Every Friday night the Royals have fireworks after the game. Last Friday's show was particularly great.

Trip to Chicago!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 18:00:00 +0000

A few weeks ago we took a trip to Chicago to visit friends. We had a great time. We saw a Cubs game at Wrigley, ate Nigerian food, swam in Lake Michigan (just the boys), spent time at Navy Pier, took an architectural boat tour on the Chicago River, ate great Mexican and attended a hilarious comedy show, Bye Bye Liver - two parts comedy, one part drinking game. All in all, it was a super trip.

At Wrigley - my first time. I also ate a true Chicago-style hot dog (minus the onions, tomatoes and relish, plus ketchup - so kind of real). The Cubs wons so I got the pleasure of hearing "Go Cubs Go" which was very fun.

Post-game beers in Wrigleyville.

Along Lake Michigan after the boys took the plunge into the lake.

At Navy Pier.

On the boat tour. This was very cool. It's a fun way to see the city and learn some Chicago history. Plus, it was a gorgeous day so that made it even better.

Dinner at Mercadito. Awesome food. If you're going to Chicago, make a reservation. They are especially great for groups.

Nummies!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 23:59:00 +0000

Do you have a special name for dog treats at your house? We call them nummies. The girls have been spoiled lately with some fancy nummies from the refrigerated cooler at Three Dog Bakery. Here are a few pictures of them enjoying their baseball cupcakes.

Aren't these cute?

It was tough, but Shea did it. She sat patiently next to her cupcake so I could take a photo and then she chowed down. Like all things Shea eats, the cupcake did not last long.

Bailey daintly licked the frosting off before chowing down on the cupcake.

Finishing it off. She also made sure she licked every last morsel from the deck.

It's Done!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 23:54:00 +0000

We even decorated - Go Hawks!

Tom spent a loooong time organizing the garage this spring. We finally finished the project a couple of weeks ago and it looks really good. He was able to get rid of a lot of unused things and now everything has a place. So far we've kept it organized...we'll see how it goes as the summer continues.

A Couple of Animals

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 12:23:00 +0000

The company I work for believes in supporting the Kansas City as much as possible. We help sponsor and market several big Kansas City fundraisers. The most recent event was Jazzoo benefiting, guess what?, the Kansas City Zoo. We went and had a good time. It was a very hot evening, but it was really fun. It was the night before Tom's half-marathon so we didn't stay too long, but are looking forward to staying longer next year.

A goofy pose.

Here we are in all our sweaty, pretty glory.

We Rock

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 12:45:00 +0000

When we moved into our house, we inherited a backyard with lots of trees and lots of mulch. In fact, we have always said we have a mulch island in our backyard. Last summer we took care of the trees and ended up with a lot more sunlight in our backyard.

But we were still stuck with the ugly mulch island that had tons and tons of weeds in it. So, this year we decided to tackle that project. We bid it out to a few landscaping companies because we just didn't know what to do with all that mulch and all of those rocks that surround it. But, there price was not what we were willing to spend to get the project done. So, we are tackling the project ourselves.

So far we've moved all of the rocks. We've used most of them around the tree in the front, along the back fence line and then along the house to prevent erosion from the hose fixtures. The rest are sitting in the sandbox that is never used.

This weekend we are tackling the weeds and the black netted lining under all the mulch. Wish us luck. Here's a peek at our starting point.

While We Rock, They Roll

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 12:44:00 +0000

While Tom and I are dealing with rocks and weeds, this is how Bailey and Shea will be spending their day. Hanging out in the shade, watching us work.

How Does Your Garden Grow

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 15:35:00 +0000

This ones for the family far away who can't make it to KC this summer. I hope your gardens start going crazy like ours has. I think I'm going to have tomatoes and zucchini coming out of my ears this summer. I took these photos on Saturday and I've seen tons of growth since then in the 90 degree, humid heat.

This is the big tree out front of our house. We built up the rock cirlce and planted petunias.

Here's the front flower bed. My daffodils and tulips rotted out last year, so I'll have to try again this fall. In the back are two lilac bushes and a hydrangea. In the front are some impatiens; they did wonderfully there last year so I'm hoping for similar results this year.

Our tomatoes. That's a cherry tomato on the left and then two Better Boys. Lots of little flowers have come in this week!

Our garden. Starting in the back left corner: cucumber, pepper and raspberry. Middle row has two zucchini and a red pepper. Front row is green beens and the front right corner has some basil and rosemary that I transplanted from pots.

We're going to have lots of raspberries this summer!

Our first pepper. These are supposed to turn red.

I planted this lily in the back of the hous last year. I got one flower out of it and then it died off, so I didn't have high hopes for it this year. In fact, I might have pulled it out last year. In any case, it survived and is coming in great this year. Makes me very happy. In the top left corner of the picture you can see some lilac bush leaves. We planted one back in this corner and when the windows are open in the kitchen you can smell the lilac blooms in the spring.

Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 00:16:00 +0000

Recently, Tom and I have been talking about places we'd love to travel. Sort of a bucket list of travel destinations that we'd like to hit up sometime. These places have included:

Ireland {via}

Italy {via}

Mexico {via}

South Africa {via}

Paris {via}

Imagine my excitement when Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day announced that she was giving away a trip for two to Paris. Yeah, I was pretty much ecstatic. So, I'm posting this in hopes that it will help me win a dream trip for two. You can enter here: http://ohhappyday.com/2011/06/goes-to-paris/. But really, if you win and I sent you to the link, can you take me? Because I'll be really sad if I don't win because I sent you there. Not really, I'll be very happy for you. But probably a little sad for me too.

The Half-Marathoner

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 23:33:00 +0000

Just thought I'd post a few photos from recent times... Tom ran his first half-marathon last weekend! He'd been training hard and was very excited to start his race.

He ran the Hospital Hill Run, which is one of the hardest half-marathons in the country. The organizers purposedly have the runners run up all of the crazy hills here in Kansas City. I think mile 12 was entirely uphill. Here he is at mile 8, tossing me his sweaty shirt which was immediately thrown away. I surprised him at mile 8 and he was really happy to see me. That's when he was hitting a low spot so I helped give him the motivation to continue.

And here he is at the finish line.

And he's done! He finished in 2:00:12, which is a very good time for this race. He was in the top 28% of all finishers. I'm very proud of him.

It's Been a Long, Long Time

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 02:07:00 +0000

It's been a long time since I wrote anything. We've been having a really good time enjoying life and doing a little redecorating. When we moved into our house almost two years ago (wow!) we did quite a few things to make it feel like home. Since then we've been living with the house and plotting our next moves. For our fourth wedding anniversary this spring we splurged on some bedroom furniture and that has prompted a bedroom makeover. We've also setup a bar in our kitchen and have begun the process of turning our "bonus room" in the basement into a hang-out room with a Hawkeye motif. And in between all that we've been working, Tom's been studying and we've been traveling. Fun stuff. So, to recap it all...here are a few photos.

We had our new fireplace installed, following our flue fire over Halloween. Over course, it took place over two of the very coldest days of the winter. I was in Miami; Tom and the dogs snuggled together over those two days.

We went to DC to celebrate our niece Luthien's first birthday. She wasn't quite sure of the cupcake, candle and Happy Birthday song.

She quickly found out that the cupcake was pretty good.

While in DC we visited the National Zoo. We had a great time seeing the Lions, Tigers, Elephants and Pandas. The National Zoo quickly became one of my favorite DC attractions.

I gave up highlighting my hair and told my stylist to give me my natural color. This the result. I love it.

Here's the new fireplace, fully installed with the decor added back to the built-ins. Isn't it a comfy place to hang out? We enjoy it a lot.

She was caught burrowing.

I presented at a conference in Austin, Texas in March. Tom sent me flowers at the hotel to wish me luck. I felt loved. My presentation went very well.

Tom ran his first 10K! He's now training for his frist half-marathon in June and full marathon in October. I'm quite proud of him.

We visited Milwaukee recently. Our friend Adam rode the train up from Chicago to go to the Cubs v. Brewers game. Adam wore a Twins jacket during the game. Tom wore his Cubs gear. I walked into the stadium in Cubs gear and immediately hit up a gift shop for a new Brewers shirt. My heart was with the Brewers, what can I say. Ater the game, we enjoyed all the fun that Water Street can offer in downtown Milwaukee.

The reason for the Milwaukee trip - Tom's grandpa turned 80!

I was home sick from work one day and discovered that this is how Bailey spends her days. Not a bad life, huh?

Today at 1:40 PM CST

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 05:30:00 +0000

What are you doing today, at 1:40 PM CST? I'll be presenting at the Coremetrics Marketing Summit on creating timely, personalized email campaigns using a data integration between Coremetrics data analytics and you email service provider. The presentation will be a case study I put together based on the success I've had with one of my clients. More info here.

Anyway - the point of the post is, if you read this, please send good thoughts my way that I speak coherently, clearly, and not too quickly.

Thanks!

Milestone Moment

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:34:00 +0000

Today we paid off our car. We have no car payments and own a car outright. I think that qualifies as a milestone, don't you? Also, I think that calls for a celebratory margarita while in Texas tonight, wouldn't you agree?

Shea Face

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 13:47:00 +0000

This is Shea's tired face. Maybe if she didn't wake up at 6:30 every morning she wouldn't be so tired.

Checking In

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 05:29:00 +0000

I'm happy. And really, that about sums up life right now.

Sorry Midwest

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 00:39:00 +0000

While the Midwest is getting hammered with snow, I am spending the next two days in Miami. This is the view from my hotel room. I am feeling lucky tonight!

Yay Packers!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 23:41:00 +0000

Can't wait to watch the Packers in the Super Bowl in two weeks!

via these lovely folks

Do You Like Shoes & Bags?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 16:52:00 +0000

If so, go to www.justfab.com. I found the site through a Pandora ad. How it works, I believe, is you take a quiz and then using your results they recommend shoes and handbags to fit your personality. You can then purchase the items for $39.95. They have some cute styles and I can't wait to shop!

Grateful

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 12:48:00 +0000

Today, I am grateful to work for a company that allows their employees to work from home rather than requiring us to battle the snow and crazy KC drivers during a blizzard.

P.S. KC is on pace to get 7 inches of snow today. I know for many of you that is nothing, but it is a major snowfall in KC. Everything is going to look so pretty!

A Photo

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 00:30:00 +0000

Despite a sinus cold from hell, Christmas was really fun. We had a bunch of fun in Minnesota and even got a glimpse of parenthood when we helped put together a Playmobil pirate ship and huge dollhouse for our nephew and niece. Sadly, I only have one photo from the whole weekend. Even though it looks like Tom has two black eyes (he didn't his hat gave him a shadow), I love this phone photo of him and the girls dressed in their holiday best.

Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Jenn) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 19:35:00 +0000

As I hinted at before, Tom and I went on a quick vacation before Christmas. We found a great deal on a weekend in Vegas, booked the weekend, and off we went. This was our first time vacationing just the two of us since our honeymoon. We've traveled plenty, but were always going to, or with, friends and family. The weekend was fantastic. We went right after Tom finished finals and the retail holiday craziness had peaked for my clients.

The Vegas Strip

I had never been to Vegas before so I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but it was great. We stayed at the MGM Grand Hotel; the room's were nice, the staff was friendly, and it was easily my favorite casino floor. We also took the time to tour several other casino's to gain an idea of where we wanted to stay on our next visit.

In the MGM lobby - this was our fancy night.

Some of the highlights were: the awesome Christmas decorations everywhere, the food - I had one of the best meals of my life at Craftsteak which is a Tom Colicchio restaurant, the fountain show at the Bellagio, finishing the weekend up on gambling, and the free cocktails while gambling. We scoped out the hotels pools and plan to go back this spring for pool season. We came back relaxed, but tired (I was amazed at how true it was that you have no concept of time in Vegas) and ready to enjoy Christmas weekend.

Caesar's Palace decorated for Christmas.