sugar high

MOA-

out-of-towners might call you by your given name: the mall of america.
we minnesotans like to think we're on friendlier terms.
you're MOA to us.

you're an old friend to me. when you first opened your doors moms everywhere were excusing their kids from school to go see the 'biggest mall in america'. it was so very exciting. but then you kind of became boring and run-of-the-mill. sorry, no offense but i got bored with you. too big, too much, too overwhelming for a normal shopping trip. i stopped visiting you and our friendship died.

but today i apologized for my rudeness and you accepted my apology and all was right in my world.
everyone needs a good friend and today i had you.

with cloudy skies and the threat of rain our plans for the como zoo were dashed. so we packed up and headed to see you. (after a 2.5 hour nap for katers. seriously why on days when we need to get going she naps for soooo long. but on days when i NEED her to sleep, she only naps for 30 min. screw you universe) anyway, off we went to the other side of the twin cities.

oh wait...
first there was a trip to see 91 year old grannie.
that was fun.
fun chasing a toddler around an apartment filled with picture frames and crystal dishes.
geez that kid can destroy when she wants to!

katers blurry due to toddler-like activity

but then (finally!) we arrived. the first store we hit contained my shoes for the wedding. perfect timing MOA- i didn't have to wander all day looking for gray heels. jank REALLY appreciated your consideration.


your amusement park had a major facelift awhile ago. i was unaware of such changes and was taken by pleasant surprise to see all your new rides. jank, kerrianne and i decided to give a few a try. i haven't screamed like that in a looooooong time. thanks for the good times. i needed to let loose like a kid again.

mom tracked down your mini donut stand and bought us 2 bags. isn't she awesome?

there was no way to contain my excitement.

i have been craving mini donuts for about a year now and was so excited to finally get some.  i'm not ashamed to say i stuffed my face. like, inhaled and almost didn't share. (i think i might be addicted to sugar)

thanks again MOA. i love you and hope we can continue this glorious friendship for many years to come.

this pic reminds me of 'harold and the purple crayon'

so stinking cute, if i do say so myself!

with adoration,

kayla

ps. can you come visit me in UT? i think it'll be awhile before i see you again and i don't do well with long waits.

youcan'tmakemeleave!

no letter. just thoughts.

tomorrow is our last full day in MN and i'm depressed about it.

and i hit my head on the edge of a door and it really hurt. 

double depression. 

i really shouldn't be feeling so blue. today was a great day- kate didn't wake up until 0820, we played tennis and wiffle ball, swam in the pool and went to olive garden for dinner. 

(we also got to see kerrianne in her wedding dress.

but i'm not allowed to talk about that article of clothing for 2.5 more weeks. 

i'll just say it's beautiful and leave it at that)

the last few nights i've blogged from the front bedroom. it's so relaxing to lay on the bed with the window thrown open and listen to the neighborhood noises and crickets. we're staying in what i refer to as the 'cloud room' because bb painted clouds all over it when she was younger. it's now painted a tan color but i still call it the 'cloud room'. funny how certain things never change. the room overlooks the cul-du-sac and during the day i love to sit on the bed and watch the neighborhood. yesterday the ice cream truck drove by blaring christmas music. it made me so happy to see the neighbor boy (sam?) race to the truck in a dripping swimsuit. i thought he wouldn't make it but the ice cream man waited patiently for him. it reminded me of my youth and all the great times i had in this house. there was plenty of rough times too (my mom deserves a medal and a halo and a mansion in heaven). i love this home and it makes me sad to think that my parents will move in a few years. no more summer trips to MN. i know i need to accept this and move on but i think i will be a grown-up in the morning. tonight i want to pout about it. 

maybe a few pictures of a great day will cheer me:

every time katers put a ball in the bucket papa would cheer. she was pretty proud of herself.

wiffle ball was played. check out my awesome pitching form.

(and yes mr red, my dad did beat us. but jank didn't break the bat. good thing because mom and i just bought it this morning.)

what else is there to do when you're waiting for your future sister to get her wedding dress on?

wait patiently like an adult (please note my mom in the corner) or pose like a mannequin?

date night

Dear mother and father:

thanks for taking care of the kid tonight so we could go out.
it sure was nice to go over to stillwater and eat overlooking the st. croix.
we love any excuse to get (somewhat) snazzed up and pig out!

many thanks to kerrianne, our photographer

mom, we got onion straws like you told us to.
we might have eaten the entire basket by ourselves..... whoops.
and i used your scarf because, like you predicted, it was cool on the river.
that's one of the million things i love about minnesota summers-
nice and hot during the day but by evening you need a sweater.

dad, thanks for answering on the first ring and for looking up movie showtimes for us.
in case your wondering, we went to 'eat, pray, love' not 'the other guys'
it came down to a game of paper, rock, scissors and i was victorious.
(i love winning)

can't wait to spend the day with both of you tomorrow.
do you think we can play wiffle ball in the yard?
hope so.

photo overload

BB-

miss you.

a lot.

especially tonight while playing hand and foot.

and eating angel food cake w/ cherry frosting.

don't you worry, i'm eating nonstop for the both of us.

i'm so glad that lizard went to bed early tonight (i hope that means you get some good sleep).

but i really wish we could've skyped.

i wanted to see your face and liz's and t george's.

maybe tomorrow? please??

blogging while on vacation is hard.

i'm the type of person who makes a mental list (another list! i know) of all i want to do and see.

then i become stressed when the vacation goes too fast and i'm not crossing things off my list.

sigh.

i need to slow down and enjoy.

so that's what i did yesterday.

there was no new post for you because kerrianne, dad, jank and i played cards.

(kerrianne was taught the ways of haskins' card playing.... oh we are an anal bunch)

but then i felt bad because i promised you i would blog every night so you wouldn't miss out.

oops.

mcdonald's to make up for my blunder??

so here is a whole slew of pictures for you viewing pleasure:

corn on the cob @ wilson tool picnic. sooo good

jancer stuffing his face. we did this all day- except they didn't have snow cones. pout.

a new activity this year...

kerrianne injured her leg on. mom FLEW (far!) off the bucking cow and i bailed right after this pic.

it got a little too crazy for this momma

remember when we had to wear our name badges on our backs so we wouldn't tear them off?

the petting zoo returned.... katers was terrified of course

they even had a kangaroo you could pet and feed grapes. katers wouldn't touch it of course but she barked at it. just like she did with EVERY animal there. apparently they were all doggies to her. 

(she's hoo-hoo'ing at the kangaroo)

jancers has a hidden talent... horseshoes. just check out that form.

he took third in men's.

i took third in women's.... only 3 women signed up. 

mom won a dirt devil kone for 2nd place. (which i will be stealing).

do we even need to explain?

i love sugar. and i was not about to share!

it was so hot and humid at the picnic all we could talk about was getting in the pool.

kate fell asleep on the ride home and slept for 2 hours.

we took full advantage of nap time and played in the pool.

jank kept threatening to dump me off my floatie and i told him if he did i wouldn't talk to him for the night.

kerrianne thinks we bicker all the time, i told her that's just how we express our love to each other.

jank had to play ball by himself b/c t george isn't here.

he's really bummed about that.

mom leaving for her 35 yr high school reunion. (she didn't get home til 1 am!)

mom's hair finally passed the awkward growing-out stage.

FINALLY. she looked like one hot nana!

nana decided to put pollen in her eye (she claims accidental but i think she was trying to ditch church). we headed to the ER to get it flushed out. it didn't stop swelling for a couple hours. the sclera was almost bulging out of her eye- jank and i loved it!

guess my prediction for this visit didn't come true... at least no one is locked up at the moment!

please ignore the hideous lighting- fluorescent lights do nothing for us.

the whole mullin clan was there for their fam reunion so that means attendance was doubled!

don't the babies look ecstatic to be missing naps and lunch?

well, that's it little sister.

i hope you feel caught up.

sorry blogger was being dumb earlier and you have to wait til morning to read this.

everyone at church says hi and they can't wait to see you in a few weeks.

sione wants me to give you a kiss from him. 

ps: i was only called 'brittany' 3 times today.

that's pretty good compared to normal!

time for bed yet?

longest day ever
ok, probably not ever. but seriously a reeeeaaallllyyy long day.
it's only 9:30 pm and i'm exhausted.
that's quite an accomplishment for a night-shifter.

it started with mom waiting outside kater's for the tiniest peep.
as soon as she heard that tiny peep she swept in and hauled her downstairs to change, feed and play with her.
we slept until 9 and it was awesome.


breakfast, wedding errands and the farmer's market:

only $5 for fresh flowers!

lunch and wedding shopping at the mall:

jank entertaining miss kate. (they both bore easily)

and then a game of kickball for papa's work:

double rainbow!?!?! what does this mean?!?!

brandon impersonation of the double rainbow guy

MN weather is so crazy. 

muggy and overcast. thunderstorm. hot and sunny. cold. 

all in a matter of 1 hour.

now it's movie time for the jancers.

big jank owes me a 31 minute massage. 

i love winning bets!

living the dream

fellow passengers of delta flight 2085 (part II)-

a big thank you to you all for not glaring at us the entire time.

kate did surprisingly well. there were only a couple of moments when i thought one of you might throw something at us. i think it helped that there was a rather loud 2 yr old sitting in the row behind us- she monopolized your irritated looks so very few were sent our way. (thanks addie! who's name i know because the mom kept scolding her very loudly)

this gloriousness lasted for about 5 minutes:

katers couldn't nap w/o her room darkening shade, her ocean waves and her 4 blankies (we're raising a picky child), so we played and ate and played and drank and played and ate........ until we landed 2 hours later. 

good bye mountains, hello lakes!

let the fun begin.

and by fun i mean swimming in the pool, basking in the sun, eating, listening to REAL thunderstorms, eating, shopping, movies, eating, and wedding preparations. oh and eating.

i already weighed in to see how much i can gain in 1 week.

thanks mom for buying hostess cupcakes.

kate post-swim. cruising around the yard like she's never seen open space before. 

(apartment living sucks)

here goes nothing...

fellow passengers of delta flight 2085:

tomorrow we leave for a week in minnesota. 

i'm so excited to go home..... but right now all i feel is dread. 

because tomorrow we fly with a toddler for 2.5 hours.

she may nap the entire time and we will do jigs in the aisle

or

she may scream bloody murder and all of you may yell at me "you're a terrible person"

fingers crossed......

liz and kate watching 'madagascar'