Moments 08 26 :: Week 04

This guy loves the van so much. Anytime the door opens, this is his spot. 

Friday night Brian and I went downtown to the riverwalk for Afterlight. 

It was a bunch of pop-up installations, dance parties, and so on. Kind of fun!

These ladybugs have been on the side of the building for as long as I can remember. 

Sunday morning we drove to Appleton for brunch with Leif + Mel ... and Hudson! He's been having a few layovers there, and this one happened to be a longer one. They completely spoiled him with a nice dinner, comfortable bed and relaxing night. Brunch was pretty awesome too. 

Friends that treat your kids like their own are the best. Hudson had been looking forward to this for awhile. 

Brian and I drove Hudson to the airport to catch his next flight. It's just so fun seeing him do his thing. 

On Monday, I took Sir Pierre out on a field trip. He's been there awhile and keeps getting overlooked. I have a feeling his doesn't present himself well in his kennel because he does have some barrier reactivity. But this guy was pretty awesome. 

Our friends Jim and Jennie were visiting Milwaukee as a little getaway, and we were so glad to be able to meet them out for dinner. It's been a couple years since we've seen them and was so great. 

Another hawk. This one probably young.

Sleepy Gretel.

Van and I went to visit the goats again. This time a bunch were out in the field but came to greet us. Van is not sure what to think of them. 

Sleepy Van. So glad we bought a king size bed for him!

Moments 08 26 :: Week 03

Fish fry culture is a real thing in Wisconsin. I'm not sure why we don't take advantage of it more. Last Friday Brian and I went to Hubbard Park Lodge. So good. 

On Saturday, we met up with our friend Greg (blue shirt) who is moving to Colorado! Excited for him. Sad for anyone who knows him. 

Nina and Papa came over for dinner on Sunday. We made pizzas and enjoyed the beautiful late summer night. This is a terrible photo but all I've got. It was a really nice night. 

This week's field trip was with Buddy! I've had my eye on this guy for awhile, but he has a messed up front paw that he was born with and I wasn't sure how he'd handle my signature long walks. I'm happy to report, he did great. He's also a huge snuggle bug, which I have a weakness for. Adore this guy.

We realized our angel dog Van really isn't socialized as well as we'd like him to be, so he goes on group adventure walks once a week. I'm not sure if you can tell, but he seems to really be liking it. Look at that smile!

Bayside has hired the goats to clean out the brush again. Van and I of course needed to walk by and check it out. They are the cutest.

Van loves to grab with his paws. At least what I've read, it's a sign of affection. And probably a little attention. It always cracks me up when Gretel is his target. These two are the best. 

Brian and Van took a trip for a night to Door County! Gretel and I stayed behind. I also already had a haircut appointment that I desperately needed. They had a great time. 

Hard to see, but a huge hawk is in the tree. We have so many of them around here, but no matter how often you see them, they are so impressive. 

Moments 08 26 :: Week 02

After Cole moved out of his place last, he took a week off to come visit Wisconsin. It's been a weird summer without him around, and we were so excited to get to see him. On Friday, his friend came over and we made paella. 

Saturday we went to the Farmers Market. Some friends of ours has a crepe stand, and they put Cole to work. So cute. 

Later in the day, we went to the Third Ward to meet up with Leif + Mel. It was fun seeing the mural project in development. Mel worked hard fundraising for this, and it's going to be amazing. 

We enjoyed a little dinner at their place. 

The Moon Festival was going on just down the street.

We walked down to check it out. 

We didn't stay too long, but it was fun to see. It's been a few years since the moon has been in Milwaukee. 

Cole was supposed to leave on Sunday to meet up in Asheville with Zoe and her family. Unfortunately, the flight situation did not work, and he ended up staying home with us. I was bummed for him, but also so excited for the extra time. Unfortunately, Brian had a work trip in NYC, so he missed some of the days I got to spend with him. I sure did enjoy it though. Anyhow, it meant he also got to join us for ramen in West Bend with our friends. 

That night, we tried to go to Zocalo, but all the food stands closed really early. We ended up grabbing sushi to go. While we waited, we walked through Black Cat Alley. 

I can't remember the last time we were there, but it was really fun to see. 

On Monday. Cole and I walked Skoob, who is officially a favorite. He was a benchwarmer, but was adopted the next day. Skoob was under 30# and kind of perfect. We ran into a friend with his dog and Skoob did great with him. Lucky he was adopted so quickly because he's one I would have taken in a heart beat. 

A brave turkey who decided to hang out in our yard for awhile. 

Cole has never met the twins yet, so we made a trip to Racine so he could do so. Maeve is the first baby he's every held!

Evie wondering who this guy is!

It's been a few months since I've seen them. They are so adorable. 

Just trying to get through summer. My shoulder is sore, my movement is slower. Need to keep this reminder in mind. Fortunately, I ended the week on a high note too. A PR for my 3 rep sumo deadlift and RXing a workout that had toes-to-bar in it.

Wednesday we met Nina and Papa at Chenequa. We had lunch, then Cole & Papa went golfing while Nina and I had a beach day. Can't believe this is the first one of the year! It was such a great day. Brian couldn't join us unfortunately. He had a travel day from hell the day before. Ended up needing to fly into O'Hare instead of Milwaukee and didn't get in until 1:30am. Couldn't find transportation back, so rented a car and got home at 5:00am in the morning. Poor guy. It was the worst. 

He rallied and got to spend Cole's last night with him. We started at Vanguard for dinner. 

And ended at Tin Widow. They sure do make a mean drink here. 

Finished another book. This might be a record. I was really into the beginning and end of this one but the middle was kind of snoozy. Overall it was good though. 

Moments 08 26 :: Week 01

Last weekend was so fun hanging out with friends. So fun that I didn't even take any photos. Friday night was dinner with my college roommate, Irma, and her husband Greg. We went to Wonderland and it was so good. Emma introduced me to one of my favorite cocktails last summer, a New York Sour. I tend to forget about them, but whenever I see them on a menu, it's what I'm having. 

Afterwards, we went to Art Bar, where I may have had another. Sunday we had some friends over for an early dinner. It was a perfect end to the weekend.

Meanwhile, Hudson and Natalie were in Croatia. Their friend and her family have apartments there. They had the best time. 

Oh Gretel. We basically let her do whatever she wants at this point. She's the sweetest.

Brian traveled to Nashville for work and ran into the twins. I guess it's a thing because he saw them last time too. 

Took Hank out on a field trip on Monday. Unfortunately, he can be listed for adoption for a few days. He's only 1-year-old and has lots of puppy energy in a big boy body. After 45 field trips, he's the first to have chewed through my car harness. He had a blast getting out and splashing in the water. Such a handsome guy.

We got a call last Friday from a panicked Cole. Long story short, he had asked for an extension on his lease and thought it went through, but it hadn't. He was supposed to be out of his apartment in 1.5 hours. The lucky guy got an extension of a few days, but had to hustle to pack and move. He already had a planned trip to Wisconsin and got home today. Now he'll need to figure out where he's going to live for a few weeks. Soccer season starts soon. Crazy. It was a lot to do, but he did it! This place was amazing for him and worked out so well for his first year. He'll be moving in with 7 other soccer players soon. Definitely will be a change of pace, but thankful for all of the great memories this year.

If I had to pick one word to describe this guy, it would be joyful. He just wants to have fun and please his people. Such a goof.

Brian and I went to South Shore Park for Art Blaze. John Kowalczyk is the artist of this installation. 

We also saw "The Moving City" which is an art car that was commissioned by the city and created by Sarah Davitt. We also saw it recently at the Night Market. It's supposed to raise awareness about reckless driving.