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By kilax, July 2, 2016 10:11 am

It’s hard to believe it’s already been a week since we were in Sterling, Alaska for Nick and Alyssa’s wedding! And we’re actually off to another wedding today!

A few people have been asking me if I was going to post some wedding pics, so here ya go!!!

Remember the story of when we went shopping for Alyssa’s wedding dress?

I don’t recall if I’ve told the story of how Nick and Alyssa met. They were both working at places that sold Michelin tires and were sent to South Carolina for Michelin training (in fall of 2013). They connected at training, but Nick didn’t get her number or anything. So when he got back to Iowa and couldn’t stop thinking about her, he emailed the places in Wasilla, AK (her home town) that sold Michelin tires and said “If a girl named Alyssa lastname works there, will you have her call this number?” And he only knew her last name because he saw it on her certificate of completion for training. Creeper! Ha!

And she obviously responded to him! I saw Nick quite a bit during this time when he was first texting and calling Alyssa, then taking trips to Alaska to see her (he’d fly through Chicago) and I had never seen him so happy. Aww.

Alyssa moved to Iowa to be with Nick in May 2014. And the rest is history! They’ll continue to live in Iowa (they actually closed on a new house right before their wedding – exciting!).

Back to that Michelin training though. Some of Alyssa’s coworkers from the shop in Wasilla were at the wedding and had some funny things to say about training – “We don’t let women go anymore!” (jokingly) and they wrote in their wedding card “that damn Michelin training.” Ha ha. I can see why a shop wouldn’t want Alyssa to go – she is a hard worker but also a lot of fun to be around!

On to the wedding! The wedding was held at a place owned by a guy Alyssa’s dad works for. I think the guy uses the places for retreats, etc., and Alyssa’s dad has helped build some of the cabins/buildings there. Alyssa’s family let ALL of my family stay in these cabins, giving us a place to stay for a few nights, for free. They also rented us a huge 15-passenger van to get around, and hauled all our luggage, separately, for us. Very, very generous. We’re so thankful to them for making things easier for us (especially when there was so many of us!).

So they gave us the cabins… and they all used campers. As did many of the other guests. Some camped in tents, too!

The ceremony was at 2:00 pm. There had been a chance of rain but there was an indoor backup plan for it. It looked like it was going to be clear so the ceremony was set up for outside, then as we sat there waiting for the start, a few drops came down… but that was it! Phew!

The ceremony was held in the space behind the cabin we stayed in (which is also where Alyssa prepped!), and overlooked the Funny River.

The ceremony was short and sweet. Alyssa was crying when she walked down the aisle, so that made me cry a bit. Ha ha.

Me and Stefano at the ceremony

They did photos after the ceremony. I am excited to see how they turn out! We’ve gotten a photo of me and my three siblings at all our weddings, and I’d like to do something with all of them. Fun fact: all four of us have had outdoor weddings!

Mom, Alyssa, Nick and Dad

Alyssa and her mom and dad

The Bridal party – Jacob (Nick’s best friend), Anthony (our brother), Nick, Alyssa, Kathi (Alyssa’s best friend) and Brittany (Alyssa’s best friend). Nick’s boys walked Chevy (Alyssa’s dog down the aisle).

View of the back of Alyssa’s dress

Alyssa’s mom’s dad is very in to cooking, so he prepped all of the wedding food, with a bit of help. Starting around 4:00 pm, trays of foods were brought out – salads and a variety of local meats (I think caught/hunted by the family) – salmon, caribou, moose, etc. It was amusing for me to see which of my family members would try the local stuff, and which passed.

The whole wedding vibe was very casual, which was fun. It was like we were all hanging out having a huge fancy picnic together… and with some adorable puppies!

Chevy, Autumn, Hooch & Moose

Main building where the food was, and tent over the dance floor.

Me, our nephew James, and Christina

They did the traditional cutting of the cake,

bouquet toss,

garter toss,

and first dance together, and groom/mother dance, and bride/father dance.

An eagle showed up at some point during the reception, which is a common sight for Alaskans, but we all gawked and thought it was cool. Must be some sort of wedding blessing, right?

The DJ played a few songs after the first dance, then I plugged my phone in (eek – there is some nutso stuff on there) for music. And there was a bit of drinking, games, and s’mores around the fire. And I think some people were even fishing? It was fun – there were lots of options for what to do!

After 10:00 pm, I took my nephews to our cabin to try to get them to sleep. Ha! Fat chance when it’s still light out until past midnight and they can hear people outside having fun. Poor guys. They tried the best they could!

I really enjoyed spending time with Alyssa’s family and getting to know them (it helps to put faces to names)! I had met her mom twice before, but felt like I really got a chance to talk to her on this trip (well, when she wasn’t running around being the wedding coordinator). I hope I’ll get more chances to see her when she visits Iowa… and I hope we’ll be back to Alaska!

And I’m so happy to officially call Alyssa my sister now! It was exciting when I tagged her in a picture on Facebook earlier this week and her last name was changed! We’ve loved her since we first met her and are thrilled to have her be part of our family.

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By kilax, June 18, 2016 2:27 pm

Aww, I wish there really WAS three Datas.

Yep, Data is still staring out the bedroom windows at night. The bugs are attracted to the light in our bedroom and spend all of the time the bedroom lights are on banging against the window. Some of them are big and loud, so it’s very entertaining for Data!

Seeing all these bugs reminds me of being at my Grandma’s place on the Mississippi River in Guttenberg, IA. She also has a lot of glass in her house and the bugs swarm the windows at night when it gets dark and the lights are on.

When the bugs are really bad – like during mayfly time –  her community will turn off the (very few) street lights on her street, as to not attract them.

Do you guys know about mayflies? Their eggs are laid in water, then they sink to the bottom and stick to plants and stones. They take a few days to a couple of weeks to hatch and will spend up to two years in the water before emerging as an adult fly.

Christina showing off her mayfly friend

And that is when shiz gets cray. They all seem to emerge at once, resulting in swarms of mayfly blackouts. One time, Steven and I were driving to Guttenberg and we thought the lights were out on a bridge – nope, they were just completely covered in mayflies.

Luckily, the mayflies only come out in this big batch once a year, and they only live a few days! And apparently, 18 trillion (?!?!!?) of them hatch along the Mississippi River each year. They’re actually good for the ecosystem, but ew, ha ha. They don’t creep me out too much, but one time, my dad and I were going along the river (me running, him biking) and we came across a swarm of them and they were all over us! That definitely inspired us to get moving faster!

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By kilax, June 17, 2016 3:07 pm

… but the commute sure does! And being around so many people.

Where we live now is such a stark contrast to the city. Very, very, VERY quiet, peaceful and calm. The opposite of a city. We have to leave our property to see or hear anyone.

Which makes going to the city a day (or sometimes, two) a week a nice change of pace.

But it’s the consecutive days of commuting and being around so many people that does me in (especially in a training environment). I’m not sure if I was this introverted before, or if living in the (essentially) country for four months has done it to me*, but I feel completely drained/exhausted after several days of interacting with people all day long. Which is where I am now, after completing a final round of training. I just need some quiet and alone time!

And I bet some people would visit an area similar to where I live and say “get me back to the city!” Ha!

The good news is, I am done with all that crazy work training and have some days off work coming up. Yay!

(The bad news is my boss just mentioned an assignment to me that will require a lot of travel, but hopefully it will be spread out!)

*Gradually working from home more and more days a week probably has done it. Now I can’t imagine commuting every day full time anymore. My quality of life wasn’t the same when I was doing that. 

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By kilax, June 16, 2016 6:08 am

• My day job is in the design (interior architecture) industry. That means going to NeoCon, a several day design exposition and conference for commercial interiors at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago (I only went one day this year). All that intro is to tell you I saw this office jungle gym yesterday at NeoCon and ME LIKEY!!!! It’s called the BuzziJungle, by BuzziSpace. You basically climb in, and sit wherever! Don’t you think your office needs this?! Mine sure does!

• I ended up completely starting over with the dishcloth I started Tuesday (I was only 14 rows in, so, no biggie d) so it would be more tightly knit. I thought I was going to finish it last night but I had to do work when I got home. Maybe I’ll finish it on this morning’s train ride! Or maybe I’ll nap. Ha.

• Work has been frying my brain something serious lately. Pair that with days in training where I am trying to get my regular work done and pay attention to class, and I am SO brain dead. Blah. I can’t wait for vacation! I really need a reset.
• It’s too hot out (for me) to wear pants or jeans to work (and not suffer from my sweatiness). Time to bust out some of the last few boxes I haven’t unpacked since February – summer skirts and dresses! Woo hoo! Let the legs breeeeeeeeeeeathe!

• Ugh. The bugs out here. Those are NOT moles on my neck in my post run picture below. It’s not so much that the bugs gross me out, just that I wish they’d stay off my body/stop flying around my head. And summer hasn’t even started yet… muah ha ha.

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 102

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By kilax, June 13, 2016 6:23 am

We went to our first (and hopefully not only!) baseball game of the year yesterday.

We missed the Royals when they were in Chicago in May to play the White Sox and this was our last chance to see them here this year (during the regular season, anyway…). Steven’s brother, Andrew, hooked us up with four tickets (we went with Bobbi and John!) as an early birthday present for me. Thanks, Andrew!

Our seats were in row 2, along the middle of left field. It was awesome to sit right by the field and see so many plays up close! It was hard to tell what was going on with the pitching (and funny to hear people around us saying things like “that was totally a strike!” – how could you possibly see it?!) but I would trade being in a more central seat, to being so close to the action, again. And Andrew even found us on the broadcast of the game:

Did you find us? Look for Steven’s beard.

Thankfully, it was mostly overcast yesterday, and only in the high 60s. It was in the 90s on Saturday, and all day Saturday (as we worked in our hot attic, ha!) I was thinking about how happy I was that Andrew picked Sunday’s (and not Saturday’s) game for us to attend. I have sat in a ballpark, drenched in my own sweat before and… eh. It’s no bueno.

All week I kept telling Steven how excited I was to get a vegan hot dog at the game. It got to the point that he asked me if I was more excited about that, than the game. Ha! No…

The hot dog totally lived up to my expectations. I love that ballparks have vegan options!

And I love that the Royals won yesterday – yay!

Having an interest in professional sports is new to me. It’s not something I was raised to do or ever understood. I wondered, “Why do people care so much?” To try to understand it, I just compared it to the way we all have hobbies we’re extremely passionate about that other people just will never get – but can definitely respect and still show interest in!

Then, I read this paragraph from an excerpt from Shoe Dog (a memoir from the Nike creator, Phil Knight) in the June issue of Runner’s World, and it explained it to me in a different way that makes more sense. Knight is talking about watching Steve Prefontaine race:

Knight was there to watch the game – not race, yet he felt like he was racing – he even felt sore afterward!

For many people, watching sports is more than a hobby. It’s living another life, like you do when you read a book. It’s a chance to get a taste of an existence that will never be your reality. Maybe it’s even a bit of an escape at times… with a definite guarantee that there will be times of highs and lows.

And that’s not where I am, but reading this really helped me understand sports culture a lot better!

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By kilax, June 10, 2016 6:56 am

Data and Steven wore their matching ties for Data’s vet appointment yesterday and the ladies in the office loved it!

When we came in, they asked to see his bowtie (he’s been wearing one to his appointments for years, that is why they ask), so I pointed out he was wearing a tie that matched his papa’s and they just gushed and gushed over him. And asked right away if they could take a picture for Facebook. Of course! They also insisted that I knit a matching headband for myself!

Our male veterinarian and his male assistant? No comment on the matching ties. Ha!

This visit was a bit different – it seems they’ve started doing some new stuff to try to make your pet more comfortable – they were playing calming music for Data, and the vet said he was wearing lavender and another scent to soothe Data. Interesting! Not sure it worked, but it’s cool they’re making an effort. I wonder if that’s a trend at veterinarian offices right meow?

Data had a good checkup. He’s down a pound and a few ounces from last year, and is in good shape. Everything looks good except a small part of his top gums on one side of his mouth. It’s probably time for his every-two-year teeth cleaning. I need to find another cute tie for that appointment!

And since I am already gushing about my cat, here’s a cute picture I grabbed of him yesterday on our bedroom balcony. He’s arguing that we should turn it in to a full catio.

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By kilax, June 9, 2016 6:07 am

• My chest and arm muscles have been so sore lately. But not from anything I am doing on purpose. It’s all from functional training – yard work!

• Our kitchen hood is completely installed now! It turned out to be a lot more work than expected – Steven and Will had figure out how to make all the equipment fit in a shorter than designed space, then Steven had to cut the metal enclosure. But it’s up, and working! It’s really nice to have the extra light above the stove.

• Steven has been wanting to try Red Robin takeout, and I kept telling him that defeats the point of their bottomless fry offer – you can’t ask for more once you get home! Ha ha. We ordered it once in April and didn’t get many fries (NOT the end of the world – we were plenty full), but Steven ordered it this week and told them he didn’t get many fries last time, so they sent him home with all this awesomeness. Ha. We had LOTS of extra fries. Fries for days.

• My dad heard through the grapevine that there was an accident on the bike trail where we wiped out – a friend of his mom’s saw an ambulance and gurney there! And now they’ve put up cones and signs. I hope no one else wipes out there!
• My website is running really slow and I don’t know how to fix it. Eek! Sorry if you’re dealing with it on your end! I always assume it my pos host messing things up, but maybe it’s actually on the wordpress side this time. Which means I probably won’t take the time to figure it out. Which means bye bye blog. Update: the tech guy I talked to today actually told me the truth – there is a slowness issue on the host’s end. 
• I am not a yoga person, but I would definitely try this kind of  yoga – kitten yoga (pdf here)! Aww! I saw this on Facebook because a college friend of mine is actually in the article! I wonder if there is something like this in Chicago.
• Today is my mom’s birthday! I snuck a special surprise in her birthday gift. Muah ha ha. She found it right away.

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 101

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By kilax, June 8, 2016 6:23 am

My boss and I were in Indianapolis yesterday for a two hour meeting. Getting there involved my two hour train commute, then a three hour drive from Chicago, and the same on the way home. Which sounds horrible, but I was actually not dreading it, because I highly enjoy my boss’s company and was looking forward to all that time to chat (which was fun!).

But then it did get horrible on the way home, because I started to get a migraine. UGH. This happens often when I am in long work meetings, or traveling for work. I drink less water, because I don’t want to constantly be getting up from meetings to go to the bathroom and BOOM – headache. And we had a nicer, cooler, windy day, and the pressure change didn’t help my head either. Blah.

So we’re driving home and it hits me, bad. We pull over and get medicine and more fluids. I think I am feeling better, then all of a sudden, I get that feeling in my mouth like I am going to throw up. Awesome.

I tried to close my eyes and relax and will it to pass away, but I couldn’t get comfortable. I was constantly adjusting my seat, the AC, and taking my jacket on and off. Ugh.

Can you imagine doing all that in a car with your boss?

I’m not sure I would have mentioned it, or at least, showed my discomfort to the extent I did, with previous bosses, but my current boss is so kind, understanding, and relatable, I felt okay about it.

In fact, she is so kind, that she INSISTED on driving me the entire way home from Chicago, instead of having me get on the train home. So… she added an extra two hours to her commute, so that I would feel comfortable, and could sleep in the car.

How nice is that?

At first I didn’t want to inconvenience her, but I was getting so out of it with the headache that I went along with it. Ha. And I am happy I did – sleeping in the car while she drove really helped me feel better, quicker. I wouldn’t have been able to sleep like that on the train.

So, long story long, my boss rocks. I’ll be really sad whenever she leaves our group (maybe that will be what finally makes me leave my group for something else in the company).

Also, I never threw up. Yay! (But Data threw up when I got home, so I got to clean that up while feeling crummy, ha ha! (Steven was gone all day (and still gone when I got home) so Data was making himself all stressed and that is why he threw up – he’s been doing that every now and then, lately, ugh).)

I don’t have any photos for this story, but here’s one from yesterday, of Freddie and Bill being demanding:

We used to think Freddie (the white duck) was the ring leader, but nope, it’s definitely Bill (the brown duck).

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By kilax, June 3, 2016 12:13 pm

*and a few words

Ha!

How have I run by this sign so many times and never noticed it until today? (Well, that’s actually because I am never running toward it, on the same side of the road – not sure why I looked today.)

So… dictionary.com doesn’t know what fludge is. Urban dictionary says it’s the residue left on the screens of a cell phone after use. I kinda doubt that is what this place is processing… but I definitely learned a new word today. And definitely plan on using it. Ha.