It's been how many weeks?

Twelve.  It's been a dozen weeks since my last post. Three months is quite a long hiatus considering my goal was once a week. Maybe I should consider writing once a quarter.

So what have I been doing during this time? Obviously nothing too exciting to write about. I'll give you the quick rundown with a few photos, of course.

I'll skip February. It was cold. Enough said.

March 8:   I ran a beer mile! This was a fun event. Four laps, one beer per lap, try not to fall down or puke. Check, check aaaand.... CHECK! I did not fall down or puke! In fact I had a victory beer after the race. My race time was terrible, but that wasn't the point! I would totally do this again.

March 25:  We went to Branson for part of Spring Break! We received season tickets to Silver Dollar City as a Christmas gift (really great idea), so we decided to take a long weekend. However, the weather was kind of crappy. It rained really hard on our way down. It was sunny the next day but really windy and chilly. We went to SDC anyway, and it was super crowded. We waited in line for over an hour for our favorite rides. It rained the next day, so we found other things to do like Ripley's Believe It and hiked along Table Rock Lake. And on the way home, we stopped at the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and Bass Pro. All together, it was nice to get away for a few days as a family.

April 18:  Missouri Beer Fest! Always a fun time. Breweries from across the state meet in Columbia to share their craft. We had special shirts printed up for Broadway Brewery which I was geeking out over! Don't you just love them?

Welcome to the Craft Side!

So that should catch you up to the present day. I promise I won't be as much of a stranger on here.

More posts to come!!!

The Obligatory End of Year Summary

It's that time of year when we look back, tie up loose ends, and reflect on the year gone by.  Social media and the countless number of apps available allow us to do this with incredible ease. I'm a nostalgic person anyway, so I really eat this stuff up.

Here's my end of year summary from 2014 made with Flipagram.

Hope you had some wonderful moments and made great memories this year. 

See you in 2015.

Where has the time gone?

So, it appears I'm a little behind on my blog posts. I can't believe tomorrow is February. However, the part of me that doesn't like winter very much is really happy about that. Did I mention snow is on its way to Missouri? Sigh...

You know, snow is a funny thing to me. In December, I love snow. I wish for snow. I want a white Christmas! So I embrace the cold with the holidays. I don't mind wearing fleece and fuzzy socks if I can watch the snow fall while staring at my Christmas tree. Thinking about that whole scene makes me warm inside. But soon after the New Year, I'm counting the days until Spring. Winter around here is just dark, dreary and grey. The Christmas lights are put away and the kids are back in school, so at that point the snow can STOP! But this year, my friends, it hasn't been the snow of my gripes and complains... it has been stupidly and ridiculously cold. I don't ever remember having negative temperatures like this growing up. And we've had weeks of below freezing weather this winter. Schools have been closed simply because of the wind chill. That's crazy! And I'm starting to get cabin fever.

Thankfully I was able to escape for a while this month and spend some time in Puerto Rico. I went there for a work conference which I must say was almost cruel. Yes, cruel. It was difficult to concentrate on my work when there were sunny skies and a beach right outside my door. Another sigh... I received little to no sympathy from my co-workers back home however. It really was beautiful there, and I had a lot of fun. I brought my husband along, so we stayed an extra day to see the sights. I would love to go back when I have more time to explore.

I'm also pleased to report that my 365 photo project is going well. Despite the cold and nasty weather, I haven't missed a day. OK, Puerto Rico helped (that was 6 of the photos), but I'm still proud of myself for sticking with it. You know why I'm sticking with it? Because it's FUN and makes me HAPPY! That really is the key to sticking with any project that you start. You have to love what you're doing or you just won't continue. I find the time to take my photos because I love it.

Here's a quick video recap of my January photos that I made with Flipagram. This is a really cool app that is FREE, and it's SO easy to use. I recommend you check it out.

Next month I will focus on black and white images with a flash of red on February 14 for Valentine's Day. Should be an interesting month, and I think it will produce a cool video. Until then, I'll close with this final thought about the seasons:

Spring is about renewal and rebirth. Summer represents exuberance and excitement. Autumn reminds us that change can be good. And the winter??? Winter is all about perseverance. Hang in there, kids....

Our Trip to Disney

We've been talking about it for years. We should take the kids to Disney World! It's every kids dream vacation, right? Well, we wanted to go at "the right time." You know, when the kids are the right age and during the right time of year. But is there ever a right time? Maybe. We decided to go this fall. We found a time where the kids aren't real busy with sports, they had a day off from school, and it worked with our work schedules. So off we went on Saturday, September 28th.

The Fountains Resort

We bought a three day park hopper with two days free from the internet. We also decided to fly from our small local airport. Time was crucial as we didn't have much of it. It did cost a little more, but it was worth it! And we had an extra bonus with lodging. My parents own a timeshare. The kids had their own room and bathroom, and we had a kitchen so we could cook some of our meals. Publix was right around the corner.

We arrived in the afternoon and after the grocery shopping, decided to hit the pool. We grabbed some lunch and walked around the grounds. The Fountains is a great place. We really enjoyed it.

That evening we decided to go to The Magic Kingdom! I never saw so many strollers in all my life. Tip #1. No matter what time of year, Saturdays are BUSY!!! Be prepared to fight the crowd. We rode a few rides (Space Mountain was shut down!) and mostly just walked around. We only made it halfway around the park when we decided it was time to go. It had been a long day and we were getting hungry. We caught a glimpse of the Electric Parade. Yes, it's still happening! And on the way to the car, we saw the fireworks go up. I knew right then that we had to come back in the evening to see the show. The kids agreed. In fact, we found out that every park puts on some kind of firework show in the evenings.

Day two was at Epcot. It's Sunday and the park isn't that crowded. Lucky for us, a food and wine festival was happening! I saw the schedule on a Disney blog. Tip #2. Follow the Disney blogs so you know if any special events are happening at the parks. Pat and I certainly took advantage of that. I think this was the least favorite for the kids, but we kind of knew that was going to happen. We warned them ahead of time. We ate a late lunch at one of the restaurants which is something we had planned to do. The food was fantastic.

Day three was at Hollywood Studios. The kids are happy again! The wait time was only 10-15 minutes on even the most popular rides. So we got to ride everything and see everything we wanted fairly quickly. We headed back to the hotel for some swim time because it was a hot and humid day! That evening we went to Downtown Disney for dinner. Again, this was a planned splurge and really enjoyed our meal. Tip #3. We heard there are new plans in store for Pleasure Island. So look for that if you are planning a trip soon.

Day four we decided to sleep-in and head back to The Magic Kingdom in the afternoon. We spent the morning at the pool, went through a drive-through for lunch, and got to the park at around 2:00. Tip #4. The Wishes Nighttime Spectacular is a MUST SEE! The park gets busier and busier as the day goes on because everyone wants to see the show. I would try to get a table at Tomorrowland Terrace Restaurant if you can. We had an excellent view of the show. It was the perfect way to wrap up our vacation.

Some more tips... wear your walking shoes. We wore athletic shoes every day and were thankful for it. The fall is a great time to visit. Main Street was decorated for fall and Halloween. Try to visit the parks during the week. We NEVER used the fast pass. The wait time was minimal, so it was never needed. There is a Disney App called My Disney Experience that was very helpful. It contains maps, wait times, and descriptions of the restaurants. We used it a lot.

I think we did find the right time to go! The kids are 12 and 9. My oldest missed two days of school, and the youngest missed three. The weather was great, and the atmosphere was wonderful. Hope these tips are helpful when you plan your own trip to the happiest place on Earth!

My Travels of July

I predicted a very busy July and well.... I was correct! It's been a very busy few weeks, and it isn't over yet.

But will you look at all the fun I had?!?

First there was the July 4th holiday. Aren't you glad our founding father's declared our Independence in July and not February?!? I mean, nothing says America like blowing stuff up and kicking back with a cold one. The holiday would take on a whole new meaning if it were celebrated in the winter months.

And then I spent a long week in Washington, D.C. Longest week of meetings that I've had in a while, but the food.... oh my, the food!!!

I ate at some wonderful restaurants. That totally made up for it. The above picture is a Scallop Margarita from Ris - lime marinated scallops with tequila ice. It's one of their signature dishes, and it was delicious!

And then Vegas, baby! I had a couple of presentations to do at a national conference, and my husband went along with me. We played, I worked, and then we played some more. We had a blast. We stayed at the very nice ARIA hotel which was right on the strip. My favorite part was watching the fountains at the Bellagio.

We also went through Red Rock Canyon. It was beautiful!!! Very hot - over 100 degrees hot - but well worth it. Look at that view....

I have to say I'm ready to sloooooow down. I'm totally off my exercise routine (not good) and in fact, I'm not in any kind of routine at all. Priority one! Must have a routine. The kids are away with their grandparents this week, so that's what I'll be concentrating on. Relaxing and getting back into a routine. Time to get focused.

Summer is almost over. Better squeeze in some last minute fun while it lasts! I hope it's been a good one for you.

Cheri

06.06.13 Transport

So many modes of transportation that you could photograph with this topic.... air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and even space! Makes me think of the movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles (funny stuff).

But I chose an old photo for today... one of my favorites taken in November while visiting San Francisco.

I captured this while traveling over the Golden Gate Bridge. I was coming back from visiting a few wineries with a new friend that I met through Photo a Day. Yes! I have met - in person - some wonderful people though this photo challenge. And I hope to meet more.

We had an amazing time. This photo is a great memory from that day.

04.10.13 A Place

This place is Alley A in Columbia, Missouri.

A sushi restaurant, Kampai, is on the left and Good Nature is on the right. There are a few apartments here also. I always thought it would be really cool to live downtown in The District.

Neat place.

More Photo a Day Catch Up

I have been crazy, insanely BUSY! Just got back from an overnight trip to Washington, DC. So it's time for another photo a day catch up...

January 23. "Electric" - the first thing that came to mind (besides all of my electronic equipment) was this guitar. And The Electric Company. I could have posted a picture of Morgan Freeman, but I went for this...

January 24. "Stripes" - my Mizzou scarf with black and gold stripes. What else?

And a bonus photo for you... I went looking for that crappy coffee maker in my hotel room and found THIS!

That was a nice surprise! It makes total sense though, doesn't it? All hotels should move to the pod machines for coffee. Less mess and much easier. I never make a comment to the hotel staff, but I did on this. Well done!!

I think my life will get back to the normal routine for a while. I shall enjoy it while it lasts.

Photo a Day Catch Up

I was in Phoenix, Arizona this week on a business trip and extremely busy! And it's not easy to blog on my tablet. In fact, I found out it was darn near impossible.... So this post is full of catch-up moments with Photo a Day.

January 16. Two Things - grilled cheese and tomato soup - favorite lunch evah! We ate at Del Frisco's Grill which was right next door to my hotel. It was fabulous! I ate there more than once.

January 17. Ready - at the end of the long day... I was READY for dinner and this yummy Dogfish Head IPA. First time trying their beer. It was DEELISH!

January 18. Shadow - I literally did not have time to snap a photo today. It was non-stop all day long, so this is a filler shot of the Old Barn and a pretty darn cool shadow.

January 19. Delicious - I found a nice Deli at the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. I had a veggie sandwich, which was surprisingly very good, and this delicious chocolate chip cookie. I remembered to take a photo of it before it was all gone.

Now I'm happy to be home with two days to relax before back to work on Tuesday!

Something That Made You Smile This Year

This....

Scuba Toast 3. Destination... Further!

Pat and I have the best time with our friends, so we were super excited to plan a week long beach trip with them this February.

Cozumel? With the craziest people we know? Awesome!

The day this photo was taken, we rented two Jeeps and drove to the other side of the island. We packed it full and planned to be gone the whole day. As the sun was beginning to set, we arrived at a dead end at the end of the road. We could turn left, which was the way back home, or park it for a while. 

Since we were not even ready to call it a night, we turned up the music and had a little dance party. Right. On. The. Jeep. Cars were honking and waving at us as they drove by (even a bus full of tourists). 

Clearly we make fun happen no matter where we are. 

I wonder what adventures await us in 2013???

Cozumel, February 2012

Peace

"Cause I've got one hand in my pocket and the other is giving the peace sign..."
-Alanis Morissette

I always think of the song "Hand in my Pocket" when I see someone giving the peace sign. 

What you see here is a wax mold of daughter's hand giving the peace sign. She made it this summer when my parents took her to Silver Dollar City. I had to ask her how it was made. She said she alternated dipping her hand in warm wax and cold water until the mold was formed. Then they asked her what colors she would like. She said rainbow, of course. And add some glitter please. Pretty cool, huh?

The final product provided a very unique memento of her trip.

San Francisco

I had a wonderful week in San Francisco. The work conference was great. I learned a lot, met some great people, reconnected with friends, and started my term as a national chair. Whew! Jammed packed week.

But I also had some time for fun... the weather was so perfect! I took a long walk up to Coit Tower. The views from there are just magnificent!

My photo a day pal, Nina, and her friend, Cathy, took me to the dry creek valley for some wine tasting. We visited two wineries... Amista and Murphy-Goode tasting room in Healdsburg. Lovely scenery and even better wine.

And then I took some photos while crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. Look at that blue sky!! It really was a fantastic week.