Adventures of Janet

2021-2022

Thanks to my friend Gloria for the picture and epic party she threw. She even had a piano player that was just amazing and we had a great night of singing and just being with close friends ringing in the new year.

What a year! I am terrible with words at times but I had a good year. I made new friends that as cheesy as it may sound hope last forever. They came at just the right time as fate has a way of doing that and I thankful for them. My immediate family is the same and the only thing I have to complain is how time goes by too fast. Kids are borrowed and they will form their own lives and families and I get so sad thinking that I won’t have them in my house forever. I am enjoying them and set aside a lot of one on one time. Taking them all out at the same time gets me no where since they all just fight with each other but I have formed a good groove to try to make each one feel special.

I don’t really like making resolutions so I will make goals for 2022 (Dan says it is the same thing but resolution makes it sound so permanent while a goal sounds more optimistic in case I fail)

-Read more books, I hope to start low and read one book a month. I used to read so much when I was younger and I miss carrying around a book in my bag to always distract myself. I have become addicted to my dramas and pay no attention to all of my books that I hope to get lost in them again. I am joining a book club so I wish myself luck that I can keep it up and enjoy the company and discussions with new people. I have a hard time opening up to new people so I hope I clique well in this group.

-Learn a new language. This one will be tough, but I am going to try to learn French. We want to go to Paris again for our 10 year, next year, and I want to be able to somewhat communicate with the people. I can say simple phrases but it would be nice to actually speak with people and connect. How I am going to achieve this is still something I am trying to figure out but I have faith in myself I will find something.

-Craft more. I used to make so many things in my younger years and now nothing except for the occasional scrapbook I want to actually create again. Maybe start small like paint again or learn to sew. Something!

-Write more to my friends. I have so many friends that are scattered everywhere around the world I feel like I should reach out more. I video call them a lot but a postcard once a month or every other month would be easy to start. I have so many postcards from all of my travels I have done I might as well use them right?

-Watch all of my favorite tv shows again. I Love Lucy, Three’s Company, Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Seinfeld, The Office, Duck Tales, The Simpsons, Batman the Animated Series, Rescue Rangers, etc they all have been neglected for too long and I need to re watch them again and bring those memories back again.

-Listen to music again. I used to love finding random artists and lately I have not. My record player has been left to get dusty and I need to bring out all of my records out and have everyone listen to them. Maybe dedicate an hour at home to listen to a record and just relax while old favorites pop up again. Music and books were such a big part of my childhood and I have severely lacked both for too long.

-Go to the art museum again. I grew up going to the Chicago Art Institute on a whim at least weekly and now I hope to go to the Minneapolis Art Institute at least once a month. I used to love getting lost in all the beauty that surrounded me and it always cleared my thoughts and made me more creative and more at ease. I always left happy and relaxed and I feel like I should go back to that because it really is a favorite thing of mine to do.

-Go into the cities more. I rarely leave my suburb, especially in the winter, but I hope to explore St Paul and Minneapolis more. They have so many good eats and good unknown places I have yet to see and explore that I should really make more of an effort to go out.

Ok, that is it. I would be lying if I said I will exercise more and eat better because I know myself and as much as I would love to lose weight I am not at the point where I don’t like looking at myself in the mirror (yet.) When and if that time comes I will just start making an effort to do it.

*I didn’t realize I have over 20 drafts saved and so I will be posting them as soon as I can

Merry Christmas!

Can’t believe how fast the time flew and it is now Christmas!! Hope everyone is having a great day. I used to dread Christmas so much fully knowing I would not get anything and yet hoping I would. Thankfully, as my brothers got older and they started to work they would buy me things even if I was a teenager they would still buy me the toys I dreamed of as a little girl like Barbie’s and nice clothes and now I always look forward to it.

My kids were very spoiled even though I specifically asked everyone to just put money in their college funds. Toys, clothes, and experiences were given and I am thankful they didn’t listen because all the kids loved everything. As I sit to type, baby is napping, oldest is playing downstairs with my brother on a video game, and my middle is building a Lego next to me listening to Christmas music. What a great Christmas!

I especially loved everything Dan got for me. My beloved new Tata travel buddy to accompany my Hello Kitty on all of my travels. A Lego of Andy Warhol’s pop art one of my favorites, Marilyn Monroe, and a Fuji Instax Mini 9. It was all perfect and I have already used up one of the film packs which isn’t a lot only 10 pictures and the film is expensive but well worth it!!!

I hope everyone is having a good holiday. My mom and brother surprised me this week by telling me they were going to come in and it was such a special treat. I love having my mom here and this brother I don’t mind too much. So far it has been a lot of fun and we all love them here!

Monica #1

******A short story about one of my characters in my head

It started Junior Year of high school, Monica was getting antsy that out of her closest friends she was left behind and still hadn’t had her first kiss. She had befriended a boy named Preston and he quickly became her guy best friend (these never work out.) They had one class together and would talk on Instant Messenger, AIM, every night. They got to know each other more and even though Monica had her crushes she enjoyed talking to Preston and not feeling the pressure of acting cool. I guess this was her mistake, she never told Preston of all of her crushes but especially her main two and how heart broken she was when they both discarded her feelings and left her.

Call it perfect timing, but when Preston asked Monica on AIM if she liked anyone and at that moment in time she didn’t and when she asked him, he said yes, her name started with a M. Monica panicked and logged off and when she asked him the next day in person if it was her he denied it and she felt a sense of relief because even though he was a great guy and some would call him good looking she did not find him attractive. He was nice enough but she was still pining for her other 2 lost likes and enjoyed being alone and sad about them.

Summer came and Preston made a bet with Monica, if she fell asleep on the car ride home from the amusement park, they would kiss. Monica said that wasn’t fair because as everyone knows she is known for falling asleep everywhere and she didn’t feel like giving up her first kiss to him, but he brought up again that she was the only one left in the group without kissing anyone and lucky for her Preston had plenty of experience and it would mean nothing. So she agreed because she just wanted to get it over with and sure enough she fell asleep with a Hershey bar in hand and when she woke up he was ready to claim his prize. She panicked and stuffed the chocolate bar in her mouth and when he would taste her he would call their kisses Hersey kisses forever after that night.

One kiss led to more kisses and more hangouts. Preston assured her it was nothing serious, they were going into Senior Year and no point in being tied down. Monica agreed, Preston didn’t know Monica found it really hard to connect with people so not to say she didn’t care if things led to something but the odds were unlikely she would get attached or want more.

Preston on the other hand, got very attached. Monica had a lot of mental disorders going on so she couldn’t handle all the pressure Preston was giving to her about making it official to be a real couple after a couple of months of fooling around. She felt bad hurting him since she was only used to hurting herself so she caved. The only time she ever caved to pressure was this point, she agreed and Preston was delighted. He told everyone, he invited her to everything, he treated her like a Queen that she felt she didn’t deserve, and bought her everything she wanted. It was a weird feeling and the more he gave her whether attention or gifts the more she felt bad about the whole thing since her heart wasn’t in it. She tried to bring it up but he wouldn’t listen and assured her it would take some time for her feelings to catch up to his but it would happen eventually and he went on to plan their whole future together. He even had kids’ names picked out and it was then that Monica knew she had to break up. She couldn’t handle being attached forever so young and expressed these concerns to Preston but he wouldn’t listen. “No it is fine,” he would say, he would be “patient” and wait for however long.

Monica was a coward though and couldn’t just have a clean breakup. She was always one for drama though so she got with not one guy but three! She didn’t sleep with them but just held their hands and a couple of harmless pecks on the mouth, no tongue, but enough to damage Monica’s reputation forever in high school. Once Preston found out, he was furious of course and called her every evil name in the book. Called her crazy, told her she was unlovable, and a fool for giving him up and she would never find anyone like him again. Monica to one up what he said overdosed on pills and was take to the mental hospital after getting her stomach pumped. She was there for a month and lost crucial senior year moments, some that still haunt her to this day, but she had to accept what she did so no regrets.

How Monica walked into school when she was finally released is beyond anyone. Everyone she passed knew her as the “suicide girl,” “the cheater,” “the slut,” “the crazy girl.” None of that mattered to Monica though because she still had her core group of friends that called her while in the mental hospital, some even visited, and the only thing that mattered to Monica was finishing up high school and doing all the Senior year events that were coming up. What did matter to Monica was when seeing one of the two boys she actually liked throughout high school and cared for, gave her a hug and held her for awhile even though he had a girlfriend and told her he didn’t believe Preston. He knew her since she was 14, knew her feelings ran deep, knew that she just needed help, and most of all that she was one of the most beautiful people he would ever meet inside and out. It still sticks to Monica now how wonderful his words were and what an amazing person he was and how she chose right to like him since she was 15. He would always have a part of her heart.

Monica enjoyed Senior Week, Senior Prom, Senior ditch day and even though she still had to see Preston at school and had many mutual friends she forgot about him. She moved on and enjoyed her time in high school. This drove Preston crazy as Monica would later find out, he spoke about her to everyone and every chance he got. “How could she do this to me,” “You never really know someone,” “She is the worst and just crazy, needs to stay longer in the mental hospital.” Monica never confronted him about it though, she understood he needed to be this way to move on, to forget about her. But he never did, even after 20+ years he still talks about her and asks about her. See, he blocked her on every social media and can’t see her but their mutual friends still tell her about it and while Monica is now happily married with kids she hopes Preston will move on and also find his happiness that wasn’t with her.

*****I will write more stories about Monica but I am not sure how often. She is a fun character I dreamed up of and when she haunts my dreams too much she will get a post

A Brief Trip Back to Chicago

I feel like my weekend happened way too fast and I didn’t get to do anything I wanted lolol

I flew in Friday, my friend Camille picked me and Dylan up from the airport and we headed to my friend Michelle’s house. I am so happy I was able to go over and meet her new baby Livvy. She was so cute! We ordered takeout and got caught up in life.

On Saturday, it was my brother’s wedding and boy was it a hot mess but we made the best of it and enjoyed it. I especially liked that the venue had a fooseball table and I got to show Dylan my skills. Random people kept telling my brothers how good I was and I laughed, little do they know I used to play kids for money and have even won some championships! I taught Dylan some tricks and he loved that we beat everyone to the point that no one wanted to play against us because we just kept winning. I forgot how much I loved to play and hope to convince Dan to buy us a table. Dylan absolutely loved it and I could see the same gleam in his eye that is in mine when I play. My mom of course talked smack about the whole thing and later found out my brother that was getting married had a lot of bad things happen to him before the wedding. It was like the world was saying don’t get married but knowing my stubborn brother he of course did not listen and the wedding took place. Oh well, I wish him and his wife well and hope to not see them for awhile. I sometimes wonder if I will regret not being closer to my brothers but no matter how much time passes we each act exactly like when we were kids so I don’t think any of us will ever change. I do talk to 2 out of my 3 brothers often and I feel that is enough.

My mom loves IHOP and it is the only time I can get it since Dan hates it

On the way to the wedding with lipstick on my teeth lololol

While the main food was mediocre, these tacos and elotes were pretty decent as a midnight snack.

Sunday, I got my favorite, Dim Sum with my best friends that I have known since I was 14 years old! We tend to always get dim sum or Korean BBQ when we are together. After Dim Sum, we again went over to Michelle’s house and played board games while I snuggled little Livvy. After games we went to my favorite, Joy Yee, to get my very favorite bubble tea. Going to Joy Yee’s takes me back to cutting class in high school and going to Chinatown to Joy Yee and fun, carefree days sipping on bubble tea and hanging out with friends. I always get nostalgic going there. After that I went to my mom’s house and she said she missed me so I stayed the rest of the night and cancelled my plans to go downtown the next day because she wanted to talk and hangout.

My middle oldest brother always brings me donuts or danishes when I am in town

Ugh, just looking at this makes my mouth drool. So many amazing dishes and happy I got to eat it while in town.

Our big group of friends with spouses and kids. Can you believe we are still friends after all these years?

No matter how many bubble teas I have tried nothing beats my beloved Joy Yees

I always crack up that my mom still uses a “Club” at night to park the car

Monday comes and my mom and brother drop me off at the airport at 12pm to make our 2pm flight and there went my trip! It was fun and I hope to make it out there again soon.

I rarely fly out of United since Delta is headquartered in MN they are typically cheaper, but this time United was cheaper and I always love this light show they have going on at O’Hare.

Random Thoughts #3

Sometimes I feel bad lying to my kid about things like Santa and the Tooth Fairy. Thank goodness he realized the whole Santa thing on his own at 4 years old because I didn’t like giving credit to some unknown person for the gifts I thoughtfully picked out and thought of him. I do say we give presents and gifts in honor of the original St Nicholas and keep his spirit alive so we also celebrate St Nick Day December 6, but now he has lost a tooth. Dan says I should be quiet about the tooth fairy but I don’t like this, I never got money for my teeth and I later realized it was because my parents didn’t have money to give and while at first I was sad when I realized later in life that the Tooth Fairy wasn’t even real I didn’t harbor any resentment towards my parents nor did I feel sad the Tooth Fairy wasn’t real. For Christmas only 1 kid got a special big present and the rest of us got a little gift and I can’t even remember if it was from Santa but maybe because I had way older brothers I think they told me pretty young Santa wasn’t real so I knew my parents bought us everything and we never argued who got chosen for the big gift because I knew my mom would make it up to us throughout the year differently. Anyways, the Tooth Fairy has arrived and it gave my son $1 and a toy!!! He woke up so excited and while it was cute I could see my oldest question why did brother get a toy when he only got money. Ughh, then comes the dreaded well, “I am going to tell him the Tooth Fairy isn’t real” and while it is nice to keep the magic alive I am sure my middle will hear it from someone at school. Ahhh dang made up things, why or who invented them?
As I get older I really understand my dad a lot more and miss him. I think of him often and laugh hysterically out loud thinking of his sayings or what he would think of certain scenarios. I hope to visit his grave when I visit soon and say sorry for not getting him more when we were so alike. My mom always says I look exactly like her but act exactly like my dad and when I was younger I took big offense because I despised him but I get it now and don’t mind the comparison so much
I’m heading to my brother’s wedding in a few days and I have no idea what to expect. I feel like I’m walking into the lion’s den but I am happy that my other 2 brothers are equally lost and confused what to do and what is expected. I find it so odd that even though the 3 of them live in the same city how if blood didn’t tie them together they wouldn’t be in each other’s lives. Somehow, I call and speak to them weekly so I always know what’s going on but I don’t know if I would if I didn’t have kids. I’m not close with my brothers because they are so much older and were never home when I was growing up. I was like the only child and rarely saw them in grade school, high school, and definitely not in college but these 3 are only a year apart, how can they be so distant? This wedding should be really interesting and I am here to listen to my mom talking smack about everyone lolol. Don’t worry, only the grandkids are exempted from her bashing so I am just waiting to hear what she will say about me. I think in that way, in a sense, we are very alike, she is very open and honest and if she doesn’t like you she will just say it. It is nice not having to guess what she is thinking and what she feels. Anyways, I am sure my brother and his fiancee have said a lot of negative things about me because I am not bringing my whole family in so I can only imagine what her family thinks of me. I will be sure to put on my best performance and make my mom proud that I can be so civil and sweet lololol
Recently, one of my MOMS Club members had a baby and she took my baby name! We hung out a week before and we all asked her what she was naming her child and she was lost except for the middle name so we all gave her our baby names. I am not too upset about it though because I am not having any more kids and it is my fault for sharing, but dang after she said she didn’t like my name she took it! Oh well, if I had another boy I would still name them my baby name because it goes well with my other boys’ name and it is one I still love and adore.
As winter comes I am starting to panic about the snow, I love the cold weather but hate snow and the bad driving conditions it brings. I grew up taking the bus and train everywhere so I am not trained to drive in the snow or ice. I hope it holds off for awhile and winter just brings the bitter cold. Nothing beats waiting for the train/bus on a cold early morning and the lakefront chill hits your bones in Chicago so whenever I am standing outside in MN for awhile I just always think about how much colder the wind was in Chicago and remember it could be colder.
I am so so so so excited to see my friends in a couple of days. Three of them had babies and I cannot wait to meet them, cuddle up on them, and smother them with Auntie Janet love. I will be sure to be taking lots of pictures with them and happy Dylan will be with me for this special moment. AHHHHH!!!

October and lots of Pictures

Life has been so busy lately especially with Halloween and Fall events, I can only assume it is like this for everyone.

We started out Halloween stuff in the first weekend of October with my MOMS Club Halloween party. It was a lot of fun and I am happy I organized it. I can’t post pictures because I forgot to take some before the kids came but we rented out a community center, had cookie decorating, face painting, crafts, and a trick or treat trail. The kids had a blast!!! I was sad none of my kids could come but I am happy that the other kids had a ton of fun. My kids both had soccer games and the baby wasn’t feeling the best so Dan being amazing did soccer drop off and had the baby with him all morning. I forget how busy schedules get when 2 out of the 3 kids have stuff going on. I often wonder how other parents do it when they have more than one kid and similar age in activities.

The next day on Saturday, my friend, Gloria, hosted a murder mystery party. That was a lot of fun and the first me and Dan have been to, our characters were Cindy Lou and Dick Dragster. We didn’t win on solving the mystery but I did win Mrs. Money Bucks of the night because I had the most money at the end of the night and my prize was a bottle of wine!

This week I took Scott apple picking, this was already our third time going so he was a pro at it. It is so nice to be able to stay at home and do these activities with him. I went a couple of times with my oldest 2 in September but I took advantage of the one on one time with Scott to just watch him do his thing and play with new friends.

Made himself real comfortable and just sat there for awhile eating his apple

The following weekend we went to the Minnesota Zoo for their Jack O Lantern event. It is a trail all lit up with Jack O Lanterns and it is so beautiful! We have been past years and the kids always love going so we got the earliest time 7pm and got there around 6:50pm and walked right in and no waiting in line. It was amazing, with the theme being A-Z. I know some people complain about the price and the long wait times but I didn’t mind the cost because once you get in there is literally a pumpkin in every corner. If you have younger kids it of course it makes sense to get the earliest time for bed time and enjoy it while you can aka before a fight or meltdown comes up. Surprisingly the 5 year old behaved and it was only Scott who was starting to get antsy around the letter V but by then we were near the end so it was ok. We also bought popcorn from the snack stand and that helped to keep them busy. We will definitely be going again next year and buying tickets as soon as they go on sale for the earliest time.

This big inflatable world was really cool too

The following day on Saturday was super busy with pumpkin picking in the morning, family pictures in the afternoon, and at night I went on a Haunted Trolley Tour in Hudson, WI with my friend Anna. It was really good and I will definitely be going back. I love trolley tours and this one you stayed mostly in the trolley and only got out twice, once to walk a cemetery and the other to see a beautiful view of Hudson. We got to bring our own drinks and so me and my friend shared some wine. Afterwards, we went to get a late dinner and drinks.

We always go to the pumpkin patch off the road, they have ones you can cut yourself but we prefer to just search for the “perfect pumpkin”

Also Dan hates getting his hands dirty lol so picking a pumpkin like this makes most sense for our family

I love this Trolley Company! The owners are so nice and they always have fun events going on

Loved the spooky decorations inside the Trolley

Beautiful and spooky night view of the city of Hudson

On Sunday, went to the Stillwater Harvest Fest and that was so much fun! They had food trucks, a costume parade with trick or treating, and then lots of inflatables the kids got to enjoy.

This pumpkin costume we got for Scott on a whim was the favorite and he loved wearing it. I had lots of costumes from prior years for him but he always gravitated to this one and even wears it around the house. It was a pricey costume from the Disney Store but money well spent!

That week I went to Purse bingo fundraiser with some friends. I spent $35 and lost lololol but it was a lot of fun just talking and being out with friends.

I love playing Bingo but this was the real treat of the fundraiser event, all this food was included in the $25 buy in. AMAZING!

I liked 2 of the purses but wasn’t heartbroken I didn’t win.

That weekend, I went to the Van Gogh Immersive again but this time in Minneapolis. We ate at a yummy restaurant called Young Joni and then headed to exhibit. It was still so beautiful but only 2 rooms compared to the 4 I think Chicago had.

Such a tasty salad, I forgot to take a picture of the pizza but all the food was delicious!

This was a really neat display and huge! I remember painting and getting my case all filled with paint spots and would often consider it daily artwork and I loved displaying it.

On Saturday, Dylan, had his first Homecoming Dance. He was dressed so handsome and ate out with friends and took pictures. I swear time flies, I can still remember my Freshmen Year Homecoming Dance and going by myself and sitting on the bleachers just watching until a group adopted me into their group so I was ecstatic when Dylan had plans. It is everything I prayed and hoped for him but never said it out loud. I love how much he is enjoying high school, making friends, and really getting involved. Now that Soccer is over he has joined clubs and recently had his interview for the Police Explorer program in our suburb. He comes home everyday telling me every minute of his day and I love it! I know there will be a time he doesn’t tell me stuff so I make it a point to talk to him every night about life. It is seriously my favorite past time.

The following day I took Dylan to another Country Fest in a nearby suburb with my friend Gloria and her kids, they loved it! The had a small corn maze, corn pit, silly string fight, and live animals to pet and feed if you wanted.

This haunted house was neat, but you couldn’t go inside of it. Instead, you would put a quarter in and the door would fly open and you could see inside

With my friend Gloria in the corn pit, *photo credit to her daughter Gisele, Dylan for throwing the corn, and editing and phone credit to Gloria

That week was also our MEA break so a mini fall break where the kids get Thursday and Friday off. We normally would take a trip and I had one planned but Dan told me to hold off to next year. Sometimes I like to play devil’s advocate and ask why do we need to hold off our travels with the kids because of the virus. We can’t just keep hoping it will get better because this could be how life is for awhile. The kids want to go to places to and I feel bad not taking them. Dan always reminds me to just wait, our 5 year old has asthma and needs his nebulizer at least once or twice a week so I then remember why we can’t. We did schedule him to get his vaccine for the coming weeks and while I am still iffy about it, I know it would probably be best for him. He already has bad coughing fits and if he did get the virus I know he would need to be taken to the hospital where beds are few for kids right now. Ugh sometimes it is so hard to be a parent and make these life decisions. I don’t know how any parent does it, I know I get too wrapped up in my head and play both sides that I cause myself stress for over thinking on everything.

I got this bubble wand on a whim at Target and Scott loves it! It doesn’t play the music anymore but I consider that a blessing lolol because I just like the bubbles like him.

Another rare outing of the 5 of us out getting a meal out. It can be hard with Logan and Scott but we made it work and everyone enjoyed their meal.

Anyways, those days off we hung out with one of my good friends and went to Severs Fall Festival. The kids loved it! And it was a lot of fun for them. We went with one of Logan’s oldest friend, he has been good friends with my friend’s son since they were 1.5 years old! Even though they are only in kindergarten I have a feeling they will be friends for a long time.

The day started out cold but warmed up later on.

These hay bales were neat and the kids had a lot of fun playing on them

Dylan, worn out from the two littles in the corn pit lolol

OBSESSED with this picture! My oldest and youngest looking so happy and I love how Dylan is always game for anything that has to do with Scott. He will carry him forever and follow him and watch him like a hawk. I honestly could not have asked for a better big brother than Dylan. Dylan is looking forward to all of our Santa events this year just to be able to hold Scott and “protect” him from Santa lolololol

Besties for life! Logan and Connor marking the letters they have found in the corn maze

This weekend consisted of so many Halloween events. This was the weekend before Halloween and we went to 5 Trunk or Treats and various store events like Cub Food and HyVee.

We also celebrated another friend’s birthday and went to her get together. She lives like 40 min away and I have an even greater appreciation to how often I see her in my city now knowing how far she exactly drives. She had an awesome party filled with squid games and lots of karaoke.

Can you believe we only paid for 3 of these pumpkins and the rest were all free!!! I love living in this city!

At the Landmark Center for their Halloween Event

New to us this year a drive through Trunk or Treat

On Monday, Logan had the day off so we went with my friend Gloria and her son to the Minnesota Zoo. Logan, in true form wanted to wear a costume so he chose a Fighter Pilot to wear.

At Mall of America they have something called Toddler Tuesdays every Tuesday. You get discounted or free meals for your kid but the best part is that Nickelodean Universe offers $15 wristbands for toddlers to ride the rides from 11am-4pm. It is 1/3 of the price of the full price wristband so an amazing deal!! They also have a theme every week and this was their Trick or Treat event. I went with my MOMS Club friends this day and we stayed for 4 hours. The kids all had a blast and Scott behaved so well! We had a late lunch and then headed home for nap.

Later during the week I met up with another friend for brunch at Stella Belle, this restaurant is located inside one of my favorite restaurants Cafe Astoria and we loved it!

There were so many events in the city this week that we tried to do as many as the kids wanted. These awesome bags are from one of the grocery stores here, how awesome they gave a out a stuffed animal and $2 bills!

We also celebrated Scott’s 1.5 birthday and seeing as he is the baby and our last baby we spoil him in various ways.

On Friday, we took the boys out to dinner and then me and Dan had a Halloween party to go to. After we put Logan and Scott down we headed to our friend’s Bobbie’s house. To say she went all out is an understatement, guys it was AMAZING!!! They had fish boil for dinner, a great charcuterie board, and an even better selection of drinks. It was EPIC and me and Dan stayed out into the very late hours and had such a great time with friends. I am so thankful I met this group of friends. They remind me a lot of my high school group that I am also very close with and it has been very hard to find something like that here and for that I thank God everyday I have both groups in my life.

It was going to be in the 50s and temps dropping so I opted for warmth over cute lolol I love my Mickey Mouse pumpkin costume since it is very warm and super easy to take on and off. Dan wore his Spiderman onsie and was also very warm and cozy.

Pictures do not do this fish boil justice. I love food and as soon as the first batch came out I power walked my way to it and was the first one that got a helping and it was so so so good. Bobbie’s husband is an awesome cook and I had 3 servings more as the night progressed lolol

How amazing were these decorations I love popcorn and so cool they had a popcorn maker!

OMG this corner in her barn was decorated so perfect and creepy. This patient breathes and the nurse’s head spins, it was so cool!

To say she knocked it out of the park with all her amazing attention to details is another understatement!

OMG this woman with the umbrella was definitely creepy and if you waited long enough the umbrella turns to reveal a skeleton head and bright red eyes, LOVED IT!!!

We got home pretty late but that didn’t stop us from waking up early with the kids and doing their events they wanted. We went to 2 grocery stores and our small mall nearby to trick or treat.

This Scarecrow was terrifying and I would have cried like Scott too to get away lolol.. Logan kills me with the space between him and the scarecrow and when I asked him about it later he said to run away easily if he tried to grab him.

In the daytime, we went with a group of friends to Stillwater and got lunch and did the trick or treat on Main Street there. The kids had a blast and after the busy morning and afternoon were exhausted by night. Later at night both me and Dan met up with friends again and we went to Stillwater for dinner and to enjoy Halloween Eve.

This sign is so cute and I went as a Pink Lady and Dan went in his skeleton pajamas

The next day was Halloween and I made the kids their favorite Halloween brunch and we carved pumpkins. We have been so busy and haven’t had time this past week to carve that I am happy we were able to do it the day of and get it done before night.

There is a neighborhood nearby that goes all out so Dan took the kids to trick or treat there and to look at the awesome decorated houses. They had a blast!

I am always impressed at how great of an artist Dylan is, he carved this all free hand! He has recently become obsessed with The Simpsons and while Dan hates that show, I quote it daily. I am only too excited to share my love of the Simpsons with someone.

Logan’s pumpkin fits his personality perfectly

I was extremely lazy this year and just carved a basic pumpkin

My Halloween earrings I got in early October and enjoyed wearing all month. My mom sent me some and some I found at the local Target.

October was jam packed with so much and I loved it! After missing out last year I am happy the kids were able to enjoy everything and more this year. I am very lucky I live in my area where so much was offered and FREE!! November is here and I have a lot of stuff already planned for the kids. Santa events start next week for us, it’s my birthday month, and my brother is getting married!

*I don’t like posting too many pictures of my kids but with my oldest’s consent he chose a couple of pictures he was ok with posting of him and his brothers. It is hard not to post them since everything I do revolves around them but I do want to respect their privacy. I also got my friends’ permission to post their pictures since I do also want to respect their boundaries and privacy

Rome Day 9 and 10

I forgot to mention on Day 8 we got our Covid test that we needed to fly back into the States and it was super easy. Our hotel was by the train station so when I went to the local pharmacies nearby they were packed with a long list for appointments, but thankfully when we were randomly walking by the Trevi fountain I remembered seeing one of the white testing tents. We went to that pharmacy and there was no wait and it was super easy. A quick swab and literally 10 min later we had our results. The pharmacist filled out the paperwork and it was a relief to get that done and only cost 20 Euros. I am not sure how accurate those are because we don’t have anything like that near me and we always have to wait at least a day for results so if they are reliable I wish we had those tests everywhere.

At the Pharmacy getting antibiotic drops put in

Anyways, Day 9 started off kind of rough. Dan said he had a terrible earache and couldn’t hear so we had to go to another pharmacy and get drops for it. They helped a little but he was pretty miserable. We later realized it was the shower head that gave him that earache and I am just so grateful this happened at the end of the trip.

After Dan got his drops we continued on with our plans for the day. We love learning about WWII and we always try to plan a tour or find a museum to go to when we go to Europe. This time Dan found the Liberation Museum in Rome and it was fascinating! This was an apartment building that was occupied by the Germans during the war and they integrated people from the Italian Resistance and tortured them.

The ground floor was a library and where you get your headphones and audio tour. The first floor had a handful of cells and some were even used for executions! Second floor had more cells and you could see the scratched messages from prisoners. The third floor had cell number 12 and it was an isolation cell and it had some graffiti on the walls. This museum blew us away with all the information that I had no idea existed. We really enjoyed it and spent about 3 hours in there reading everything and listening to the audio guide. My only complaint was I wish they had benches or chairs in all the rooms. The audio guides were so long but so informative that a lot of times I just sat on the floor to listen and look at what they were speaking about because it was so hot and I got tired. We were the only people in the museum the whole time which was a shame because even though they only had simple displays the information we learned was so detailed and so new to us that I am very happy Dan asked to put this on our agenda.

We picked up a quick lunch and then Dan mentioned he wanted to see the European Championship Trophy so we went to the Italian Futbol Federation Headquarters. They sadly didn’t have the trophy but they did have the World Cup so that was pretty neat.

Afterwards we walked around some more, went by the Trevi Fountain and saw the Big 3 one last time and picked up dinner in that area. By then my phone died so we ended up renting scooters using Dan’s phone and riding to the Colosseum and taking in all of our favorite sights. It was a really nice peaceful night and it a great way to end our trip. Once we got back to the hotel we packed up everything and went to bed.

By morning (Day 10,) we just ate breakfast and got ready to leave. Once we got to the airport, they quickly checked our COVID papers to check for the negative result and we were on our way. All really fast and easy which surprised me because I was getting worried thinking about long lines and not knowing what to expect.

Once on the plane, the flight felt fast and we had one meal and a snack.

I used to love airline food and this trip I really hated it. They gave a lot less and it was probably to save time and waste less but ugh I hated it and next time will be packing a sandwich or something else to eat on the plane.

Once we landed at JFK, we went through customs and then walked over to our gate to get to Minneapolis/St Paul Airport. It all went really smoothly with all the workers directing everyone where to go so no one could get lost.

Final thoughts, I absolutely loved this trip and I know I will sound super cheesy saying this but I felt like I fell more in love with Dan on this trip. We got lucky and almost everything went as we planned and we had no big travel woes. My typical crazy self stayed in check and I was just able to relax. I know I laughed a lot and we had so many talks about everything. Sometimes, I am amazed at myself that I still learn new things about Dan and him about me. It almost felt like our honeymoon with lots of cheesy pictures and lots of sweet kisses everywhere. We were both so excited to be traveling again and in one of our favorites cities that we made the best of everything. We are already planning next summer’s trip and I cannot wait!!

Rome Day 8

I am almost done with my Rome posts and that makes me sad. I love reliving my time there, but I have been enjoying life in MN so I do want to update on that too.

On this Sunday I had bought tickets to visit the Villa Borghese Gallery. This was one of the things we didn’t go to last time because I didn’t know about it and tickets sold out so I didn’t want that to happen again. I was on a mission to go there after hearing everyone talk about how wonderful it was so I needed to see it with my own eyes.

I don’t think I will ever get tired of ceiling art

Once we got there, there were workers everywhere guiding us on what to do and where to form lines. We had to check in our bag so while I checked that in, Dan waited in the line for the museum. I always love to split up to save time. As I was waiting to check in our bag I noticed the ticket booth had a big sign that the Gallery was sold out for a WEEK!!! Ahhhh, that is crazy and so happy I purchased tickets way in advance but I did feel sorry for the people that had to be turned away. This was the only thing we noticed that was “sold out” and I don’t think it was because of COVID because again when we came here 7 years ago it was sold out for days and we weren’t able to go. I feel that should be on some travel site, if you want to go to the Gallery made sure you buy tickets in advance because no matter what during the summer it will be sold out! Anyways, when you enter to scan your tickets you then walk up the staircase and enter the gallery. Dan was super excited to see all the Bernini and it didn’t disappoint. I won’t lie, when we first walked in they had a bunch of modern art and I failed to read the huge sign that said Damien Hirst was the current exhibit and while at first I got annoyed because I do prefer things to be separate (modern art and older art) in their own galleries, I felt like a hypocrite after I criticized that one Vatican tour guide so I first viewed all the older art in its own. I was happy I thought to do this because when I went back to the very beginning again I slowly appreciated all the Damien Hirst in its own and also how thoughtfully curated the whole exhibit was and how they placed all the pieces to go along with what was already there. I found that very clever and saw the bigger picture and thought what an amazing way to bring both modern and older art together to display them to the world.

One of the very few pictures I took which makes me sad I didn’t think to take more

When I went back the second time, Dan opted to stand by his favorite Bernini so I left my bag with him and didn’t have my phone so I didn’t take a lot of pictures of all the Damien Hirst art, which is sad in retrospect. Anyways, after we finished up with the gallery we walked around the whole park picked up a simple sandwich and drinks. It was nice to reminisce and we even took a cute little train ride around.

We then visited a Nespresso boutique which was inside a mall very much like how they have shopping malls in Paris with all the cute boutiques inside. I bought a mug for my friend that was sold out here in the US and we got free coffee. We also headed towards the Trevi Fountain area since we had tons of time to kill.

Later that night we had our food tour that was postponed and it was AMAZING!! I love food tours and this was one of my favorites. It was called the Jewish Ghetto food tour and we met up in the Jewish Quarter. It was only us, the tour guide, and one other lady. It was so intimate and we had so much fun walking and talking and sharing stories. I loved everything we ate and afterwards I invited the solo lady traveler to join me and Dan to a rooftop bar. She agreed and we had a blast talking even more and drinking. She was so nice and it was her first solo trip. She was a couple of years younger than us but had visited so many places so I loved hearing her talk about her adventures. She even loves Rick Steves as much as me and we bonded instantly. We are Instagram friends now and I love seeing her posts to all the cool places she goes to. It is funny how traveling just brings people together.

Stumbling Stones, this started in 1992 and it is a Holocaust Memorial and these are placed where the person either lived or worked before taken away to the concentration camp

I really liked that we went to a different style of pizza place than what we had eaten before

Honestly the whole city of Rome is very picturesque and just by looking up you get a beautiful view

This art piece was just put up the day before and even our food tour guide was impressed and we stayed awhile admiring it and taking tons of pictures

We went to this coffee shop last time we were in Rome and I loved being able to stop in again

The cat sanctuary was right by our last food stop

I swear I could visit the Big 3 everyday and happy we did because they never got old

Crazy how empty it was but the police were really on top of patrolling and you can see the guy in the yellow vest on the steps telling people to keep it moving

My absolute favorite fountain in all of Rome is this one, Fontana Del Tritone. I can’t really explain it but I just love this one. If I had a garden I would spend all of my money commissioning someone to make this exact replica so I could sit on a bench and admire it

This brings us to our last night staying out super late and soaking in all of my favorite spots. The following day would be our last full day in Rome and then back home. I will try to wrap us this series so I can write about all the fun happening in MN.

Rome Day 7

This was on a Saturday and we decided to start our day at the Vatican again and go up to the top of St Peter’s Cathedral Dome. The first time we went we walked the 551 steps but this time for 2 Euro more you could take an elevator and walk 320 steps instead. It was a no brainer to take the elevator after I nearly died last time going up it. For reference to walk up all the steps it cost 8 Euro and to take the elevator it cost 10 Euro. It is free to go inside the Cathedral but if you want to climb the steps this is the cost. I should add we didn’t buy tickets in advance and just walked through security and headed straight to the Dome first. My logic is always to get the hardest part over with so I can enjoy the rest of it and I dreaded these steps. There was hardly anyone in line so our total wait time for buying tickets and waiting for the elevator was around 15-20 min.

This fan was the real MVP of this trip and I will never take a trip without it

This was taken right after the elevator up and it dropped us close to the ceiling of the Cathedral

I still almost died going up lolol but I am so happy they added the elevator option. Dan found the walk up to be a breeze but he works out daily and I do not so I definitely needed him to push me up a couple of steps. Once at the top it was beautiful as I remembered it and we stayed up there for awhile. Afterwards we went down the steps which of course was easier but made me a little dizzy with all the circles and we went to the gift shop up there. I bought lots of gifts for my family and we picked out some stuff for ourselves and the kids.

I video taped us going down and this is a screenshot of the narrow and tight staircase from the Dome

Tight squeeze and we had to tilt to the left since we are literally walking inside the Dome

They added a snack shop up there so we got some drinks and split a sandwich and chips as a small snack.

We took the elevator down and I was again so happy they added it.

We then went to check out the Cathedral and it was just stunning inside! We were very fortunate to have seen the Pieta and in our excitement neither one of us took a picture lolol but it lives in our memory forever. In fact, I later realized I only took a handful of pictures inside the actual Cathedral but I think I was just so tired from all the steps that I just soaked everything in and enjoyed it.

Not my best picture but I was really happy we were able to make time to come again

Afterwards, Dan had bought tickets for Castel Sant’ Angelo the night before so we walked on over there and went inside. Last time we came to Rome we missed this so it was neat to go inside. I actually really enjoyed this and since I didn’t know what to expect I loved it even more!

Cute little replica of Castel Sant’Angelo

I nearly collapsed when I saw this walk way up. Dan mentioned how it was easier than stairs but I was so hot, sweaty, and exhausted and did not want to walk anymore but Dan pushed me up and we made it and I am so happy he did

I loved these sculptures of love and passion everywhere inside

To our surprise they added a cafe at the top and since Dan loves a good view we got some drinks and a small bite. It was nice and breezy up there so we stayed for awhile and enjoyed the amazing view.

I know we must have eaten dinner but for the life of me I cannot remember where and I think I was still recovering from the steps I just ate and didn’t take any pictures. I do remember it was somewhere in the Monti area and that it was delicious lolol

That night Dan had booked us an amazing night tour at the Coliseum! It was the first time in a long time they had opened up their Coliseum at night and we got to go in. To say this was amazing is an understatement, it was epic!!! We first met our tour guide a bit away from the Coliseum at 9pm and took a tour around the surrounding area. He then dropped us off at front and we met another tour guide that took over and took us underground. She mentioned they added a lot of stuff the past year including a lot of recreations of what things looked like back then and it was really cool to see it all. This was definitely one of my favorite tours and it was so well organized. We took a million pictures and at the end of the night we strolled back to the hotel and fell fast asleep. This day was super busy and we were exhausted.

It felt very surreal being inside the Coliseum at night! We were the last tour group so it was literally just us and history

It definitely feels very different inside at night

I think these were the elevators used to bring the Gladiators and animals up

I think these were their cells and somewhere in here was a bathroom. Sorry I am already forgetting!!!

So peaceful without the hustle and bustle of the daytime crowds

Rome Day 6

Sorry for delay again, I swear I thought I would be better about posting but kids again and all of their activities got the best of me. I need to hurry and post because I am already forgetting all the details of my trip so these posts will probably get shorter and shorter ha!

On this day it was Friday and I had bought tickets to the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, and the Coliseum. It is so nice they bundle everything for $18 but I did like how you used to be able to just walk up to the Roman Forum and get tickets without waiting. Whenever I buy tickets I go to Trip Advisor first to get the official link because I can’t even tell you how many times I have almost bought from a third party based on a google search but then reference Trip Advisor and find the direct link for cheaper tickets.

I wore this same shirt when I first went inside the Coliseum 7 years ago! I was very surprised it still fit and happy.

Always with our umbrella, I think next time I am going to get one of those UV ones that repel the sun on Amazon

Everything was as I remembered and better! During the closures of everything because of the virus they were able to uncover lots of new discoveries and ruins and even add stuff to the Coliseum. It was great to see how something terrible like the virus was a small blessing to discover so much!

I swear this fan was my best friend during the trip

It was so hot this day but we packed our umbrella, water, and fan and it was tolerable. I never really mind the heat in Europe and I knew I wanted to make the most of our day.

A quick bite for lunch at a tourist trap that I really enjoyed. It is crazy how fast they moved people and made you really appreciate the workers

After lunch we headed over to the Pantheon, we made frequent stops there during our stay since it was free and you didn’t need tickets during the week .

They took your temperature and made you use hand sanitizer as you walked in. The line moves very fast so even if it looks long you only wait for like 5-10 min

Later that night I had made reservations to a restaurant called Aroma. I saw their ad on Instagram and I am a great sucker for things so I booked a table to celebrate a belated birthday dinner for Dan.

When we first got to the restaurant we did have a minor hiccup. I told them my name and the hostess tried seating us at the bar and said my reservation was the first floor bar and not the rooftop. I am very meticulous and paranoid so I had already emailed and had my Italian friend call to confirm my reservations and she didn’t believe me! Thank God I screen shot and save every email for my trips and even had the printouts in my purse and she immediately got flustered and apologized. I wouldn’t have cared if she had tact and said it to me in private but she said it in front of 3 other couples and I got embarrassed. She later came to our table and apologized again and told us someone had put it in the notes to seat us at the bar for free drinks and appetizer as we waited for our table as a special treat for celebrating there but she got confused. Who knows if that was true and as soon as we sat at our table Dan loved the view so my embarrassment went away just seeing how happy he was with the table. We did get free drinks and appetizers at our table so that was very nice.

We did have amazing seats and the food was delicious!! It is a Michelin star restaurant so if you can afford it, it is worth the splurge but if you can’t no worries. There were plenty of restaurants with a similar view surrounding the Coliseum so just do your research. We always plan for a nice “fancy” dinner on all of our trips but we justify it with it only being one. We love to eat but wouldn’t consider ourselves foodies. Dan loves a good view and I just love seeing him love the view and food. He can be a picky eater so I always worry what he is going to eat, but to my surprise he ordered a steak! And to my even bigger shock he loved it!! He doesn’t like any red in his meat (I know a sin, but alas I can’t change his mind) so he rarely orders a steak because he feels embarrassed to order it well done but the waiter was so nice and friendly, Dan asked for a substitution and they happily said yes and made it to his liking. He is still raving about this steak and I am so so happy he loved it.

When it was time for dessert I had put it in the reservation we were celebrating his birthday and they brought out an additional dessert and played “Happy Birthday” on the speakers. It was so cute and amazing and even though he turned bright red, he loved it all! It was honestly such a memorable dinner. The ambiance, the service (minus the hiccup,) the food, and of course the company. We stayed for hours eating, drinking, and talking. We remembered why we loved Rome so much and planned future trips. We get so cheesy on these trips so we sat in the corner just talking, laughing, and holding hands.

Afterwards, we walked backed to our hotel and took our time walking by the Coliseum and enjoying the night with the other tourists.

Of course a blurry picture and a bonus couple in our picture taking cheesy pics like us lolol

The moon was just so beautiful that night

A hot and sweaty selfie but I just loved this night so much

The night was magical and I really loved walking back to our hotel that night. I am happy I wore comfortable heels because we kept getting side tracked with more and more ruins and our walk back took like an hour and half instead of 20 min it should have taken lolol.