Halloween in Iowa

Craig and I went to Iowa with his friend Chris and his wife Karla for the Iowa-Michigan St game. I have only been to one big 10 football game (U of I) so it was quite an experience. People in Iowa live and die for the football games. It was such a crazy experience. We went to several bars on Friday night and stayed out until about 1am. It was weird being out with a bunch of college kids dressed up for Halloween. We had fun hanging out. The next day we stopped by the Black & Gold store and bought our Iowa gear. I bought a shirt, huggies and beads and Craig bought a shirt as well. We went tailgating at 11am and met up with Dave's family (he works with Craig). Then we went to the game and watched Iowa beat the heck out of Michigan State. It was such a fun experience. That night we dressed up for Halloween as Austin Powers and the British Girl in the movie (played by Heather Graham). Chris was a vampire and Karla was Flo the Progressive Girl (hilarious!!). We went to at least 4 bars and partied like college kids (ha!). I hope everyone had a great Halloween!

Ethan's 13th Birthday

We celebrated Ethan's 13th birthday a little late this year. His birthday was Oct 13th. Ethan had a football game Saturday and it was freezing outside because of the wind. His team lost, but it was a great game. Ethan plays defensive end and really likes it this year. Last year was his first year and he was a little hesitant, but this year he's definitely more confident. After the game we came home and I cooked pork tenderloin, new potatoes and cheesy cauliflower. Craig and Ethan went to see the movie The Town. Julia and I stayed home and made a cake for Ethan. We made a chocolate devils food cake with vanilla frosting. Once the boys came home we sang happy birthday and ate cake. We bought a guitar and amp for Ethan's birthday and he loves it!

Halloween Decorating

We FINALLY got our Halloween decorations so Craig and the kids put them up. It looks like its really dark outside, but it was still light out. Weird. We got cobwebs and big ugly spiders. We also bought pumpkins, but decided not to decorate them this year. Julia went trick-or-treating in Chicago yesterday (part of the city does it the Sun before). She went with a bunch of her friends from her new school. Her and Ethan are going next week in the burbs at their mom's. Craig and I will be in Iowa for the football game. We still have not picked out our costumes, but hopefully we will do that soon. Only a few more days. I hope everyone has a great Halloween!

Bears Game

Craig and Ethan went to a Bears game and went tailgating at 10:30am. They had a great time!

BOJ Show with Mom & Dad

My Mom & Dad were in town for a long fun weekend. We went to Julia's volleyball game on Wed and Thurs and she played really well. Friday Craig, my Dad and brother Bryan went to the Bulls game. Julia stayed at her friend's house. Ethan had football so he did not come down until Sat. My Mom and I went to Hugo's for dinner and then we met up with everyone at Double Door to watch Bottle of Justus play. It was a fun night. My parents and brother stayed out until 2:30am! Wow! What a crazy night.

Ang, Chris & Tia

Ang, Chris & Tia were in town visiting family in the suburbs this weekend. Craig and I were in Kohler, WI for his work Thurs-Sat so I was only able to hang out with them Sat night. Craig wasn't feeling well so he stayed home. I drove to the burbs and met Ang and everyone for dinner. Tia is such a sweet, beautiful little girl! She is such a flirt! After dinner we went over to Chris' aunt's house and hung out. Tia was so cute with the soccer ball. I'm sure she will be a soccer star like her parents. It was so much fun hanging out with them, but I wish we had more time to see each other. We are definitely planning another visit soon. Thanks for hanging out Ang, Chris and Tia! Such a beautiful family. Love you guys.

Julia's volleyball game

Monday Julia had her first volleyball game at her new school. She is the best player on her team (and I'm not saying that because she is my stepdaughter:)! She is such a solid player. They won one game and lost the other one. She will also be playing club volleyball starting in Nov. She made the team!!! They have 4 or 5 teams, but we won't find out which team until Nov. We are so proud of Julia and have so much fun watching her games.