Caribbean Cruise: Part 1

All three of the boys had different spring breaks this year, so for this trip it was just Pete, Drew and I. It was a fun trip but I know we all missed having Tyler and Jake part of the fun.

Before leaving for the airport we dropped Bella off at the kennel- a place she is always very excited to go to.

Then it was off to the airport for our flight to Houston.

From the Houston International airport we hired a driver to take us the hour drive to the port at Seabrook where we would stay for the night. We have never sailed out from this port before so we were not sure what to expect but it turned out to be a nice area to spend the evening. After settling into our hotel we hopped on a shuttle to the Kemah Boardwalk. This boardwalk are has a bunch of waterfront restaurants, amusement rides and shops.

We walked around for a bit and decided on dinner at Landry's Seafood. It was fabulous!

After dinner we walked the boardwalk area some more and rode the ferris wheel to see the views of the area.

Saturday morning, Pete and Drew headed over to the Houston Space Center (while I got a work out in at the hotel fitness center.)

They had fun at the Space Center but wished they would have had a bit more time to explore. 

We needed to catch our shuttle to the ship. :)

Our room was a mini-suite with a balcony which worked perfect for the three of us.

After unloading our bags in our room we headed out to explore the ship, with a stop for drinks

and pizza. :)

It was a beautiful night for sail-away.

{More to come soon.}

he passed

So proud of my boy! Tyler passed his first Actuarial Exam!!

He has been busy preparing and studying for this very difficult test for the past 8 months and all of his hard work paid off! The pass rate is about 30-40%... and he did it on his first attempt! So proud!
Pete and I met him for a celebratory lunch after his 3 hour long test and I can't remember the last time I have seem him that happy and excited. :)

And because most people don't seem to know what an actuary is; here is a quick explanation:

An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty.     Actuaries provide assessments of financial security systems, with a focus on their complexity, their   mathematics, and their mechanisms.

Actuaries mathematically evaluate the probability of events and quantify the contingent outcomes in order to minimize the impacts of financial losses associated with uncertain events.

Now Tyler is looking forward to graduation (with a degree in mathematics) in about a month 

and to find employment. :)

{lately}

competing at DECA State for 3 days in downtown Minneapolis

studying hard for an upcoming big exam

anticipating and planning for a Spring Break trip

participating in a school wide Nerf war

cheering on our hockey team at the Minnesota State Hockey Tournament with a 2nd place finish

reading some great books since the beginning of the year

loving that all three of my boys were home--overlapping for just 15 hours, but I will I can get :)

snow day #6

This winter has been crazy with all of the extreme cold temperatures and the abundance of snow. So much so that today we had another 'snow day' (no school). This is the 6th 'snow day' of the winter, which is absolutely crazy!

Yesterday afternoon the rain turned over to snow and then the blizzard winds picked up. This morning we woke to a day off of school for Drew and over 9 inches of fresh blowing snow. This is the view out our front window.

And out the front door there was a 3 foot snow drift.

I received a text from Jake.... who did not have a snow day at his college. :)

And also a text from Tyler at his college. :)

At least all of this snow makes for a beautiful scenic day!

On top of not having school today, Drew was very happy to be able to watch the USA vs Canada Hockey Olympic game. This tweet from the MN Wild made me smile.

Which is exactly what Drew did this morning. :)

And now I think I am ready for Spring!!

before the next storm

Drew shoveled off the deck before the next big storm is scheduled to hit tomorrow. 

A true Minnesota boy- warm in 40 degree weather.

{lately}

The month of February is always a fun month for us and with a birthday, an anniversary & Valentine's Day we have much to celebrate.

Lately we have enjoyed-

:: The Winter Olympics started and we have been enjoying watching everything from the Opening Ceremonies, figure skating, snowboarding, bobsledding... This always brings back such good memories of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City that we were able to attend! So much fun then and we just love to watch on TV now!

:: I finished this book; "The Fault in Our Stars" in one day. It is technically a teen book but I had heard such great things about and I couldn't put the book down.

:: I kidnapped Pete and took him to see the movie 'Frozen' that I have been wanting to see. :) Yes, this is an animated, children's movie-- and we both loved it!

:: We celebrated Pete's birthday. He wanted to try a restaurant that he had seen on Guy Fieri's 'Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives' Food Network TV show called 'Smalley's Caribbean BBQ' in Stillwater, MN. It was a little drive for us, but very worth it.

It was a great new find for us and we absolutely loved all the food and drinks we ordered.  All of the food that we tried was great and highly recommended: conch fritters, the jerk pork tacos, mac 'n cheddar with chili's and bacon, braised brisket and the Dark and Stormy Ginger beer.... so good!

:: February 10th was our 24th anniversary! We were going to go out and celebrate on Saturday, so we kept this day simple but special- flowers, drinks at our local wine bar & fondue dinner at home.

:: Drew had his last JV hockey game of the season. I can't believe it is over already!!

:: Valentine's Day brought us to the Gopher Hockey game. Some friends offered us tickets for this game and I jumped at the chance because I haven't been to a Gopher Hockey game forever and it is always a fun time at Mariucci!

We took the shuttle bus to and from the game from Blarney Pub and Grill and enjoyed some great country music after the game.

:: Saturday Pete and I headed to St. Paul for a little getaway for our anniversary. We stayed at the gorgeous St. Paul Hotel.

:: And enjoyed an amazing dinner at Kincaid's-- which has always been a favorite of mine!

:: Sunday morning, we had a leisurely breakfast in our room before checking out from our little getaway.

It has been an awesome February so far!

Super Bowl {cupcakes}

I have been making these cupcakes every Super Bowl for years and years. For whatever reason, I tend to make them only this one time of year and this must be the reason that my family calls them 'Super Bowl cupcakes.' :)

This has always been one of Jake's favorite treats and so this year I thought I would make a batch a few days early and mail him a little care package filled with these cupcakes to enjoy on Super Bowl Sunday.

Jake texted me this morning: "The cupcakes have arrived!! Ohhhh. Thank you!!!!!"

Priceless!

Click {here} for the simple but so delicious recipe.

'snow' days

Today was our 5th snow 'polar vortex no school day'... in just 3 weeks!! This weather has been crazy, even for Minnesota and we very rarely get days off from school for snow let alone cold weather.

These are a few screenshots I took of some of the temps the past few weeks. So, yes with -23 temp and -49 windchill it has been pretty cold around here!

proud

Congratulations!

Over a 4.0!! So proud of you DrewDrew!!