Ten on Tuesday

Hi, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! We tried to go boating yesterday but it was way too windy. :( Instead we sat in the boat at the marina for a few hours along with all the other disappointed boaters. It was so packed! So many people tried to do the same thing!

Today's Ten on Tuesday is making me very excited for this summer! There's lots of fun stuff going on and I cannot wait! :)

Thank you, Chelsea for hosting Ten on Tuesday!

1. From your childhood, what do you miss most about summer vacation?
From my childhood I miss the family vacations that we would go on. Most of the time they were family road trips but I remember having so much fun on those trips!

2. Are you going anywhere on vacation this summer?
We have one trip to Chicago planned and a couple trips to the lake, but it looks like for the most part I'm sticking around home!

3. What foods do you like to barbecue?
I love bbq'ing kabobs! You can put whatever want on them! My favorite is chicken, mushrooms, peppers, and tomatoes.

4. How do you celebrate the fourth of July?
Usually with a bbq, and a good friend of mine usually goes to the Missouri border and buys a ton of fireworks and has people over to shoot them off. ;)

5. What’s your favorite beverage to drink in the summertime?
Adult - beer. Non adult - lemonade

6. What movie are you looking forward to seeing this summer?
I cannot wait to see The Help! I loved the book and I think it looks like they did a great job with the movie.

7. In the car: windows down or AC?
Usually both, is that weird?

8. Have you ever had a summer fling?
For sure! ;)

9. Do you wear sunscreen?
Yep. Although, yesterday I did not have enough on. I'm sunburned today!

10. Do you have any favorite summertime activities?
Boating!

What are YOU most looking forward to this summer?

When you were mine by Elizabeth Noble

I have a confession to make. I judge books by their covers and titles. I can't help it. If I see a book with an interesting cover and/or title I instantly want to read it. Don't we all? I mean, isn't that what catchy titles and eye catching covers are for?

When I first saw When you were mine, I knew I wanted to read it. Then I noticed it was by Elizabeth Noble, and she's been an author in TBR pile for quite a while.

I received this book from Crazy Book Tours the week before finals. I was worried I wouldn't have time to finish it before having to mail it to the next person because of studying, but I was able to!

Not without a teensy, tiny bit of struggle though.

There were moments in the book that seemed to drag on and on for me. The plots been done. Many, many times, so what really kept me going was what Elizabeth Noble was going to do with the end.

The book is about a girl and a boy who were childhood sweethearts and also about the girls best friend. What's a women's modern literature book without a significant best friend?

Like most couples like this, they had an intense first love, but the relationship didn't survive the tumultuous college years. For years they thought about each other, and even many years after breaking up they still thought of each other. When they're both around age 40, they see each other at a wedding. Of course they still have feelings for each other and begin to wonder what if. Despite being in relationships with other people, they forge forward...

If you want to know what they forge forward with, you're going to have to pick up the book. This book is realistic and extremely logical. As much as you hurt for the protagonist and want this person to be happy, you know deep down things happen the way they would have happened in real life.

This was the first book I have read by Elizabeth Noble, and I don't think it will be the last.

Canada, eh?

There were lots of "ehhhhhs!" on this trip! So, here we go, eh?

We decided to leave late, late, late Wednesday evening in order to drive through the familiar places in the dark. I'm extremely glad we did, but it resulted in me not sleeping at all. The route to Canada took us North of Lake Erie, towards Detroit, MI and up into Canada. This route wasn't bad at all and I'm really glad we chose to take it. Wish I would have slept though. One of the pictures below is us pulling into Detroit, it was obvious it was Detroit by the big blow up tire!


We got across the Canadian Border around 1pm, and boy oh boy was it intense. The woman at Border Patrol took all of our passports and grilled us about why we were there, what we were going to do there and what we had with us.

At one point she asks if we have any weapons. We all shake our heads and say no, we don't have any weapons on us. Then she asks, "do you have any bats? As in baseball bats?" We looked at her like she's crazy and say no... no baseball bats. Then she explains that she understands that over there (as she points south) these things are in abundance and it's ok, but over here things are peaceful (oh, yes she did). I think we were all in a little shock and a little scared!

We thought we were cleared to drive on.

Then she asks if we have mace.

Oops.

Yes, one of us had mace.

Of course we tell her the truth, not planning on lying. We wanted to be respectful of the country we were entering. She tells us we need to put the weapon on the dashboard and pull over.

As I look back on it now, I laugh. I mean, we're all heading to see a huge waterfall. Not to disrupt the peace!

We did lots of the touristy stuff, but I will admit something. We all drank a little too much. One night my friend and I had a little too many beers (which have more alcohol content than in the States btw) and got a little out of control. We met some super friendly Canadians and were out until 5am... yeah, we act our age. It was fun though. As my friend put it the next day, she checked her body for tattoos that she may have gotten while under the influence. Luckily, no ink was tattooed on our bodies. I giggle at what we would have gotten though... a maple leaf?! heeheee....

One of the most touristy things we did do though, was ride the Skywheel. I knew as soon as I saw this enormous ferris wheel that I would have to ride it. I'm really glad we did! The view was spectactular!

We also did some gift shop shopping! I got some magnets and t-shirts for myself and parents and some... syrup?

I'm not going to lie... I didn't buy the syrup... merely took a picture of it, because I totally believed Kara when she told me I couldn't take it with me back to the States! After our interrogation getting over the border I would've believed anything.... lol

All that talk about syrup did stir up a craving for pancakes... We made it up in time for breakfast (ok, it was noon) and headed to Ihop. I was appalled at the prices. $15 for pancakes? You've got to be kidding me!


The day my friend and I were fighting off our wicked hangovers, my sister and her friend rode the Maid of the Mist. I am so mad at myself that I missed that, but something tells me I might get another chance... I guess my parents want to go and they want to take my Grandma and my mom... wants me to go too. (not going to lie, I kinda want to. I love my grandma, she's hilarious!)

While in Niagara Falls we stayed at the hotel closest to the Falls, The Oakes Hotel. It was nice, but our rooms were not convenient to the stairwells or elevator. Going in and out of our room was a pain. Plus, the hotel was being remodeled, so it was just weird. I would recommend a chain hotel if you're staying in Niagara Falls. The proximity to the falls was nice though, it was literally a two minute walk to one of the viewing areas. We didn't have a room with a view though. :(

After two days in Niagara Falls we were ready to move on. So, we drove an hour to Toronto. I was a hungover and it was a horrible drive, so I have decided to skip over that portion of the trip. You're welcome.

Oh, and it's not Tor- ont- o, apparently it's Tor-on-o. You don't pronounce the "t"? I compared it to Atlanta and the "t" is supposed to be pronounced like a "d."(Ehhh, it made sense to me! lol)

We loved the people in Toronto! Loved them! Everyone was so friendly, much friendlier than the touristy Niagara Falls. In Toronto we pretty much just walked around, did a little shopping and a little more eating and drinking. We had some delicious Thai food in downtown Toronto and some "gourmet" pizza sent to our room one night. Across the street from our hotel was the cutest pub, called the Spotted Dick (yeah, the name wasn't the cutest) and the bartender there was so sweet! She took so many pictures for us and was so excited to talk to us. She even gave us our mugs as souvenirs! It was the sweetest thing!


We had one night in Toronto where we hit the bars on College St. and we had such a good time! We made it to about three bars (one was not a bar, but more of a... lounge for getting high? We had no idea... really). I got to try poutine for the first time (delicious!) and we had plenty of laughs!



That was pretty much our trip! We had a great time in Canada, and the people definitely lived up to their reputation... FRIENDLY! I enjoyed spending my loonies and toonies and even brought some home to give my parents for when they make the trip up there. I can't wait to make it back some day. :)


What is a place on your bucket list of places that you have to see? Niagara Falls was on mine, and I'm glad I can check it off the list now!

NIagara Falls or bust!

Today's the big day! We're leaving very late tonight, probably around 11pm. The reason for that is I did not want to get to our destination in the dark and I didn't want to stop halfway there to sleep. My sister and her friend offered to drive the first shift, and I took them up on that offer!

We're taking my car because it gets the best gas mileage. It usually gets around 28 miles per gallon on the highway, which should equal to about $75 per person in gas... Pretty cheap trip!

These maps ended up being so small, but you get the gist! On the way there I think we are going to drive north of Lake Erie and go through Detroit. I have never been there and neither has my sister and her friend. Pretty sure my friend has...
PS: It totally feels like I'm going on a family vacation where we get to bring a friend! I have never done a trip like this with my sister and we each have a respective 'friend'.

On the way back we will drive south of the lake and go through Cleveland possibly down to Akron? Just depends. I feel like I have been to Cleveland before.... but, I'm not sure. With my old job I was in so many cities but really didn't see much more than the airport and the mall where the store I was working at was located.
It's still kind of shocking to me that it's less than 900 miles away! It feels so far away. We haven't booked our hotel, because we want to play it by ear which is making me a little nervous... but at the same time, I'm excited! It was so easy to get a hotel booked through Priceline on my phone, I'm figuring I can just do that again.

We're also planning on spending one night in Toronto, since it's so close. I hear Toronto is expensive, but I think we can handle it for one night!

Anyway, I have a million little things to do today (starting with a job interview! Fingers crossed!).

I will be blogging over the next few days (probably) and I promise I will be taking tons of pictures (and maybe videos...).

Are you a fan of road trips? What's your most memorable trip?

Ten on Tuesday!

Happy Tuesday you all! We leave tomorrow for Niagara Falls and I am getting so excited! We're taking two different routes for the round trip, because I have never been to this part of the country and would really like to drive through Detroit, Grand Rapids and Lansing... Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're from there, it's boring, don't bother, whatever! I don't really care. Don't rain on my parade, ok? I have fun wherever I go and love seeing new places. We WILL have fun! Plus, we're doing a complete trip around Lake Erie, what's not to love about that?! The weather is not going to be all that stellar, but it's spring. What did we expect? We're Iowans, we can handle just about anything.

So, we're leaving late tomorrow night, because my sister and her friend that's joining us, has to work. I figure we can leave late at night and once it starts to get light out (which will be just past Chicago) we will be in parts of the country most of us have never been.

Have I told you I love road trips? No? I do! I love them! It's the best way to see the U.S. I would drive just about anywhere. I've never been one to get carsick and I can read in the car for hours.

So, on with ToT! I'm really excited about this one! This is a photo edition of ToT. Thank you to Chelsea for hosting! :)

1. Your favorite piece of furniture in your home.
I don't really have furniture in my home that I just adore. The dogs have pretty much destroyed my living room furniture and when I get something new, it will be leather. They are messy little buggers... But, I do like this comfy chair quite a bit. Great for curling up and reading for a couple hours (like my running shoes pictured with it? They happened to be right there).

2. Your favorite thing on your wall.
I love this picture. My room is done in a fashion theme (I was a fashion/design major, after all) and I think I've done a decent job. The only thing missing that I have wanted for a long time is a dress form. They are expensive and I haven't found one that I am willing to shell out the dough for.

3. Your bed as it looks right now.
My bed does not match. Here's why. I found the bed set at Target for suuuuuuper cheap. Since my bed is a queen and is very tall, I use king sized bedding (so, not cheap) and when I found this and liked it, I snatched it up. It didn't come with sheets, so I'm still using my old red ones. This was months and months ago. I'm clearly not searching very hard.

Oh, and ISU Cyclones? Gotta represent! ;)

4. Your pantry.
Before and after of my pantry. We have way too much food, we could probably go for a month without grocery shopping. We won't though.

5. Your favorite piece of jewelry.
Here is a picture of my armoire that houses all my jewelry and hair accessories. I do not have a favorite piece of jewelry... I like them all :)

(Ignore that girl in the mirror...)

6. Your favorite book.
Harry Potter! :)

7. Your most comfortable shirt.
I'm actually wearing it right now! It's that uber soft cotton that is perfect for t-shirts. It's from a local store here in Des Moines called Raygun, and they specialize in funky t-shirts with funny sayings about local places. This is probably their most popular t-shirt and the shirt that made them more well known. It says, "Des Moines: Hell yes." You have to be from Des Moines to get it... or, maybe not. If you're proud of your city, you get it.

Don't mind that my bathroom counter is messy or my bedhead, that I think I have effectively hid from you all...

8. Your messiest room.
My room is a pit right now! I have to do laundry so bad, and it's a double whammy because I still have to put laundry away from the last time I did laundry. UUUGGGH! I stayed home today to get some stuff done before our trip. I hate coming home from vacation to a messy house.

9. Your house shoes.
I guess I have two. The moccasins (from Target!) are for if I'm running outside (usually with the dogs) and the slippers are for around the house... (obviously).

10. Yourself.
Here's a pic of my cousin and I, after I dropped him off at the airport yesterday! I'm so glad we got a chance to spend more time together! It was fun!

What a cute Ten on Tuesday! It took longer than I expected, but it was still fun and a nice change! Can't wait to see everyone's pictures!

Book signings, crazy family members and dating.

What a weekend. Omg, whataweekend!

Friday I headed three hours south to Kansas City with Lesli and her hubby to see Jen Lancaster speak about her new book, Wish You Were Here. It was so much fun, and Jen is just as funny in person! There were definitely plenty of laugh out loud moments. Although, I was feeling extremely guilty while she was speaking because I haven't read any of her books since Bright Lights, Big Ass. :/
Saturday during the day was spent with my mom checking out a couple houses that were available for rent. They were all a no go, though. :(

My sister and I have found one house that we absolutely love, but the price is a little too high so I am currently trying to get the owners to lower it a tad for us... I'm offering to take care of snow removal and lawncare! That's a compromise, right?? ;)

Saturday night was spent with my family, because my cousin is in town. He's in the Army and doesn't get home too often. He has been deployed three times to Iraq (and will probably go back again, this time to Afghanistan - which he wants to go to... badge of honor thing. Whatever. Letsnottalkaboutit). He's only 6 months older than me, so to say we were close growing up is an understatement. We were close. I miss him terribly!

Saturday night after the family time, my cousin, me and my aunt headed to the small bar in town (my grandma and aunt live in a tiny lake town) and had a few drinks. A few drinks quickly turned into four drinks and the conversation quickly grew heated. Remember awhile back I wrote about my aunt leaking some very private information to my sister? Well, that information ended up being completely FALSE (no, I do not have a half sister my parents never told us about) and I was completely PISSED. I have let it go and not said anything, but last night my aunt made a comment about the way my parents raised my sister and I, and I could no longer bite my tongue.

She found out what I had found out she said and it quickly got ugly. I kept my cool. My aunt, however, did not. In my opinion she made a complete fool of herself (in a small town bar! Idiot).

I honestly do not feel bad. Not one bit. I stood up for something that I believed in and held my ground. I don't think I will be spending much time with her in the near future, which is fine with me. The only reason I went the bar was because I wanted to hang out with my cousin. If I had it my way it would have been just him and I, but that would be extremely selfish of me.

I get to take him to the airport tomorrow in Kansas City, so I will have three hours of talking, just him and I. I'm very much looking forward to it. Hopefully we get a picture together, so I can post it on here! :)

Tonight I had a third date with a guy that seems promising so far. We had a good evening and some tasty Mexican food, although I did leave with a funny taste in my mouth. I offered to pay, and HE LET ME. I'm a little taken aback by that, but I'm not going to let it effect what I think of him. It is 2011 after all...

Anyway, that was my weekend. How was yours?

Wine and love

Today I am participating in Nora's weekly feature, Wine and Love! This is my first time participating, and I'm glad that I am able to! Nora is such a sweet blogger and someone you should definitely check out! :)


Wine

• I am currently blogging from the classroom, so my current wine is noisy 8th graders that are supposed to be working quietly so they can earn time to work in pairs... they're getting a rough start...
• Profs that grade harsh and take points off for silly, ridiculous things because (I think) they don't want to give out perfect scores.
  
• My practicum teacher gave me 50 points out of a possible 56 on my experience and performance. She didn't explain why. In the comments she said that with more experience in the room I will make a good teacher and am a very positive person. What about those 6 points though? How come I didn't earn those? I did 120% of my required hours and did everything she asked and even asked for more. I was flexible and pushed myself out of my comfort zone (yeah, I was a little upset). My grade is teetering between an A and a B. I have a 94% in the class and am waiting on my 100 point final to be graded. I'm almost positive I aced it, but there's still 5% of me that thinks, mayyyyybe I didn't. I need a 93% for an A. Fingers crossed for me?
• I'm also wining because, Hello! This was a Foundations of Education class and shouldn't I need more experience in the classroom? I would really like an explanation of those missed points and not just a "needs more experience in the classroom". Of course I need more experience in the classroom!
  
• I have some how developed allergies as an adult and my eyes are burning, my nose is stuffed up and my throat hurts. It sucks.
• My sister and I have been searching for a 2-3 bedroom house to rent and have been failing miserably. There's not much that we're interested in, and the market is competitive so they go quick!
  

Love ♥

• I'm loving that summer has seemed to arrive in Iowa for a couple days this week. Tuesday and Wednesday were downright HUMID. Two friends of mine even went to the "beach" (Big Creek) and laid out to catch some rays. I was so sad to not be able to join them.
  
• I love that a friend of a friend competed in the Adam Emmenecker challenge at Jethro's that has been featured on Man vs. Food and he WON! He was the 7th person to complete the challenge, which is 5 lbs of meat and a ton of fries eaten in under 15 minutes. I'm thinking about doing a post about later this week or next. The pictures are hilarious.
  
• I love that I can wear sandals now and show off my pink toenails! I will only wear sandals to some districts (and jeans), but still! It's sandal season! YES!
  
• I love book signings. There, I said it. (As if you all didn't already know that). I don't know why I like them so much. I guess it's because after reading a book I have fallen in love with, I want to meet the person that created it! I haven't been to a signing that I didn't love. Yes, I'm a nerd.
  
• I'm loving that I have found more Des Moines area bloggers! Like this one and this one. Can't wait to get to know them! I have also made my Twitter public now so I can connect with more local Iowans! And, if you're not an Iowan, that's ok! Follow me anyway!
• I love that I have more time to read. My stack of books is out of control!
• I love that in three of my four classes I have A's so far!
  

What are you "wining" and "loving" today?