update/ restart

Ok.. so I have not been doing too well on keeping up with this thing. I don't know why- I don't really have a lot to do- I think I was just sick of it, and I do not feel like catching up the past few weeks. So, I will start anew today.

Here is a very condensed version of the last few weeks.
I went to Pensacola and stayed with my brother-in-law. My goal was to help out with oil spill, however the oil did not get there as quickly as I thought. It's actually still 10 miles from the Pensacola coast as we speak. I wanted to volunteer but there was and still is a lot of bureaucratic BS going on which seems like it would have kept me from helping. Also, you cannot help directly with the wildlife unless you are part of an organization. I had fun with kevin and jeremy in Pensacola.
We went to the beach a lot, found a lot of shells, and watched a lot of movies. They have an extensive collection of movies which I have never seen. Their dog had puppies which were 6 weeks old or so. They are chiweenies (chihuahua and dauschound mix). There were 5 of them and they were very cute. Last week, they all found homes. Yay! One went to one of my old Memorial co-workers who now lives and works in Atlanta.
I came back to St. Louis. For Kraig's birthday weekend we did what he wanted to do (it was his birthday after all). We went mall hopping, window shopping, and mall walking to 3 different malls in the St. Louis area. Afterwards, we ate at the St. Louis Bread Co. (which is actually Panera bread). Panera Bread originated in St. Louis as the St. Louis Bread Co. The two have all of the same food, colors, and decorations except that outside of the St. Louis Metro area.. the name is changed to Panera. Interesting huh?
The next weekend we went back to Michigan. On Saturday, Kraig and I met up with our friend Amy for lunch in Detroit. Afterwards, we went to my old college teammate Lindsay's wedding. It was very pretty and her color was lavendar. It was fun seeing a bunch of people that I have not seen in a long time.
On Sunday, I met up with Rachelle for a "gas station date" along the highway in Saugatuck. I am going to be a bridesmaid in her wedding in September and I was picking up my dress. It is very pretty. We talked and hung out for awhile while we ate some ice cream outside of the gas station. It was actually a lot of fun.
The next day we drove back to St. Louis only to turn around a few days later and come back to MI again.
This time, we came back for Kraig's little brother, Daniel's high school graduation. He graduated on May 29 from Eau Claire High School. The graduation was fun, and it was good to see him. He will be going to college for welding, just like Kraig did, later in August.
After the graduation, we hung out with his dad for awhile. On Sunday, we went to kraig's mom's house to visit with his Aunt Mary Ann and Uncle Ivan who are in town from Florida. Later that evening, we went to the movies in Niles with our friends Justin and Teresa to see the Prince of Persia. We liked the movie and then went out to dinner at the Golden Nugget in downtown Niles.
For Memorial Day, our friends from Chicago (and traveling buddies) Emilie and Andy came down to visit. We all went to my Uncle Greg's house on the lake for the day. We ate tons of food, played bean bags, and gambled. Kraig also went out with my dad on the lake in the kayak. It was a really fun day, and it was nice getting to see everyone. We even had a beer keg which was made out of a dead deer's butt. It was very interesting and slightly gross. I did try it out though. It was definitely an experience for my Chicago friends. I think they had fun mingling and hanging out with my family too.
Later that night, we did a quick visit to my friend Val's house to see her baby and then bothered my mom and dad a little more while watching their tv. We do not have a tv in St. Louis so we like watching other people's.
On Tuesday we drove back to St. Louis. One major update that I forgot to mention is that I got a job. I start work on June 7 on the Chest Pain Unit at St. Anthony's Medical Center. I was unable to get a traveling job for some reason- so I just applied to a job on my own. It is part time and seems like it will be a good job. Once I am through orientation I will probably look for another part time job. Since I got this job- and since Kraig likes his job (minus the dumb people that he works with)- we will probably stay here until next next May.. and then who knows.
I am still swimming at the YMCA and now going to aerobics classes. They have a summer program where if you go to 50 group exercise classes, you get a free t-shirt, water bottle, and can win prizes. That is just the kid of motivation that I need. I think I touched upon most everything, and if I forgot something- oh well!
I will try and keep this blog updated more frequently, like I did in the good old days!