Oh the BASIC Retreat, oh the BASIC retreat....

...why do I feel like I'm in Junior HIGH!

This past weekend was Junior High church camp at it's finest! Please allow me to take you back for a moment to those camp days of old...you arrive late at night and put your stuff on a bunk - girls run for the bottom bunk - oh that's different - I think we used to fight for the top! Perhaps it's that aching back and signs of old age that make the bottom so appealing! You stay up all night and rise early for a few of the following...

1) Jumping in the pool with your clothes on...this has happened every time I have ever gone to camp - and I wasn't going to stop this year, who cares if they just filled the pool and it's in the mid 60s...
2) Whenever water is around the boys must splash the girls - thanks Nick for that massively unexpected cannonball - again in all your clothes!
3) Horses - I love horses! And I always get the wacked out ones - As I'm sitting on the horse the wrangler says to me, "There are a few things to know about Sheik..." Oh geez!
4) Canoeing - always a plus! But you should probably take a watch if you have to be back at a specific time for dinner! That was some crazy intense paddling after a really long relaxing float!
5) And finally camp songs and bonfires, Oh the BASIC Retreat, Oh the BASIC retreat, why do I feel like I'm in Junior High!

There is always more randomness that actually takes place but those are the major camp staples - oh CAMP FOOD, how could I forget camp food - yummy in my tummy! Bleh!

Little Red Riding Hood

I feel like little red riding hood - or at least the feeling I had when I was reading that book and had the constant feeling - don't go into the woods something is going to happen!

I'm not sure where I got this sense to fear the woods, but it is pretty constant at night and that makes having them in the backyard kinda tricky. The dogs aren't really helping tonight either. It is a very dark night and I am sitting on the couch and looking out into a pitch black backyard that I know is full of woods, most likely critters and who knows what else.

The dogs are really having a blast barking as if someone is trying to break into the house every 5 minutes - and then they run into the kitchen and stand there listening for noise. If you have dogs you know the look - I can't explain it but it's not comforting - followed by at least one dog growling German Shepard style at the door. You would think these dogs were big and ferocious but really they are about 30 pounds each, white and fluffy.

Ok, I'm going to try to go to sleep now and forget about the woods - do you think that will work?

Who's Your Hero?

So there is this campaign called Tweet to Remind and the point is to tell everyone who your hero is and then ask them who theirs is...so I'm asking who's your hero? The goal of this campaign is to remember the heroes in our lives and to not forget the soldiers returning from the war - our country's heroes!

So my hero, which is probably no surprise is Matt. He has been for a very long time and will remain my hero all the days of my life! Matt was the kind of guy you could always rely on, he never made a promise that he didn't keep and he loved with all he had! He was strong and brave and always faithful. He fought and died protecting people he didn't even know, innocent Iraqi's and you and me. So for all of those reasons and many more Matty is my hero! I love him and I miss him and to put it simply, there is no one else like him!

2nd Lt. Matthew S. Coutu
KIA Baghdad, Iraq - June 27, 2005
Purple Heart - Bronze Star

So to all the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines - you are my heroes!

How do I participate?

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Mr. & Mrs. Z!!!

Last weekend was Jaime & Nick's wedding - and wow was it fun. I'm not sure that I actually took any pictures but I'll be sure to snag some and post them soon...in order to properly site my source the photos were taken by Colleen McManama - not to be confused with Colleen McNamara! We all had a blast getting ready for the wedding dancing around and enjoying the day...somehow Jaclyn and I were always just a few minutes behind. Friday night we knew we had about 45 minutes to get ready for the rehersal - but we'd already showered so no worries...or not - we were late...and again on Saturday we were on task and started getting ready way early and then all of a sudden the photographer was about to be there and Jac and I were without our make-up - - - how does this keep happening?

The wedding was gorgeous - my personal favorite was the fact that Jaime and Nick laughed throughout the entire thing - it was just so them to be completely enjoying eachother and not affraid to show it!

The reception was amazing, Jaime always said she wanted a fun reception, and mission accomplished! One of my favorite parts was probably the Ukrainian dancing, I learned to POLKA!!!