A Dog & Her Ball

Dogs Do Smile!

This picture just makes me smile every time I look at it. Probably because SHE is smiling. She's such a good dog!

I hope Gypsy put a smile on your face too!

Sugarleaf Retreat

This past weekend was my (3rd) annual scrapbooking retreat in Cross Lake, MN. I brought along my friend & coworker Theresa. This was her first scrapbooking event of any kind, and her excitement was contagious.




On Friday afternoon we took advantage of the gorgeous sunshine and we took a little nature walk. We came upon this draft horse all alone in a pasture...we didn't want to trespass and barge right up to say hello, so we kept our distance and appreciated his beauty from afar. Honestly I do think he liked the attention...he seemed so lonely and bored. And this picture does not do him justice...he was HUGE and BEAUTIFUL!



An old plow thingy I thought was cool...



Theresa:

Me:

Most of these pictures were taken with Theresa's new Nikon point-&-shoot camera. She had forgotten her SD card, so I loaned her mine and we used her camera for the majority of the weekend.

DadandDog

The title is a bit of an inside joke. Dad often will sign his emails 'DadandDog'. He and Gretchen are very much connected to eachother. They both need the other, and hate being apart from one another. Probably Gretchen more-so than Dad, but you get the idea.

As of late, Gretchen seems to be aging at a rapid pace. She moves much slower than she used to. It's difficult for her to get up on the couch, or in the truck. It even takes her longer to get up off the floor, and it breaks my heart. She's been SUCH a good dog, and it is hard to see her go from a springy pup to a creaky old dog seemingly overnight.

I just love the relationship these 2 have. They know eachother SO well. I swear they can read eachother's minds. It's cool and creepy at the same time. I love that they have eachother though. We all call Gretchen 'our' dog, but really she is Dad's, no doubt about it.

Love you both so much!

Easter Trampoline Session

Had an impromptu trampoline photo shoot yesterday while we were at Kelly & John's for Easter dinner. The kids had a blast. Josie was having fun as long as Jason wasn't jumping, as he 'made her nervous'. Can't wait to doctor these up a bit once I learn PhotoShop.

Jodi Tuns 40

Jason's cousin Jodi turned 40 last week, so on Sunday we had a get-together to celebrate the big day. A few of us met at Aunt Barb's beforehand for cocktails, and then we met the rest of the group at Mama Maria's in Hudson. Boy, that food was GOOD! If you've never been there, you must go. Soon!

I wasn't going to bring my camera, but at the last minute I decided I'd bring it just in case. Well wouldn't ya know, once I took it out I couldn't put it down. I'm so predictable that way. Got some nice pictures though!

The birthday girl and her sweetie, Rob:


Uncle Bob (Jodi's dad) and Aunt Barbara:


Jodi and Amy -- they both hit the big 4-0 this year


My favorite of the whole evening:

Amy

Mark, Denise and Jodi (siblings):

Group photo:

The (elder) sisters:

Amy, Mark, Denise, Aunt Mary, and Jordan:

Happy Birthday to Jodi!