Milwakee Here We Come!

This weekend Joe and I are headed to what he calls "God's Country" - Wisconsin. We go to a Brewers game every year with his family, and this year we are taking in two games in one weekend. We are able to get in two games because we are actually flying instead of driving due to the great airfares right now. I am excited to not waste 11 hours of the nice weekend in a car!!! (Not that I don't enjoy our car time Joe- I just get antsy after like 3 hours.)
It will be fun to hang out w/ the Hammonds this weekend - get away, do something different, and relax at two ball games in the nice Miller Park.
Joe is the BIGGEST Brewers fan I know, so I know this weekend is like his ideal weekend: being in WI, hanging w/ family and taking in two Brewers games! He already warned me that our child will become a WI sports fan whether I like it or not. I guess that is one struggle I don't feel the urge to take on because I know I can't do anything about it! :)

Welcome to the World- Tyler John Tuttle

My cousin Heather had an adorable baby boy last week. It sure was a stressful week for the Hogan family with everything going on, but finally this bundle of joy came into the world. He is so cute, and Heather and Ryan will be wonderful parents. They live in California, so we may not get to see Tyler until he's a little bit older and bigger, but for now we will adore him via these pictures. I love the pic of him stretching out- he looks soooooo tall/long!

So I guess we are next- just three more months to go....crazy! :)

Cousin Nick's Wedding

This weekend my cousin Nick (the former Olympic Luger) got married. Rachel and Nick had a gorgeous day- 80 and sunny! The day was filled with watching a beautiful ceromony, quality family time, catching up with relatives we haven't seen for a while, laughs, great food and dancing. Congrats to Nick and Rachel, your wedding was gorgeous and so much fun!

Sweet Home Chicago

Well Chicago is not home to me, but it's a place I have been over a dozen times. I went to visit my good friend Maggie who lives there. I hadn't seen her for about a year! We had a great weekend. I got to spend time with her two little girls- we all took walks, went to the park, went to dinner, and played around the house. Maggie and I also got out to do some stuff on our own- shop, walk up/down Michigan Avenue, get pedicures, go to dinner, and just catch up. It was a great mix of fun stuff to do, and a little relaxation. Thanks to Maggie for being such a great hostess (and to Danny too) and it was wonderful to see and hang out with you and your family!
I am horrible- I forgot to bring my camera with me to Chicago so I have no pics to share!
My cousin Nick is getting married this weekend, so I do promise pictures for that!

Long week...turns into weekend of fun soon!

This week has been really long! I think it's because I had an all day work trip to Iowa on Tuesday and it was a thirteen hour day. We left at 7 a.m. sharp and got home around 8 p.m. We only spent about five hours in Iowa touring distribution centers, but it was a total of 8 hours in the car!

The funny part of the trip was after our tours and before we hit the road to come back, we stopped at a nearby SuperTarget. Everyone stocked up on wine cubes, and I just drooled. Oh how I miss wine!

Anyway- I haven't slept good this week so that trip on top of a lack of sleep has done a number on me. Tonight I am heading to Stillwater for a party at the Water Street Inn- our friend Todd Fultz who got into a bad car accident exactly one year ago is having a party in honor of his one year milestone, and it's also a walking party. He wants to show everyone that he is walking after a long time of physical therapy and many surgeries! You are an inspiration to us all Todd and I can't wait to celebrate with you tonight!

Then I'm off to the airport tomorrow morning to catch an early flight to Chicago. I am going to visit my friend Maggie who I haven't seen in about a year. We are going to hang out with her two adorable girls, and then have a day to ourselves for shopping, getting pedicures and dinner.

I will take some pics of the weekend and post them next week. Have a great weekend!

Kettlebell training

As most of you know, I work part time at the YMCA as a Fitness Instructor. It has been a lifetime goal of mine, and after I lost 30 lbs about 5 years ago - I decided it was time to look into it. Before I knew it, the Director at the Y at the time had me all signed up for training when all I did was ask "what if someone wanted to look into being an Instructor."

So, here I am almost five years later. I teach BodyPump, and BootCamp. I used to teach Cardio Kick as well. Now, my schedule is going to two BodyPump classes instead of one BP and one Bootcamp. Recently, I took Kettlebell training. This is more of a personal training type of class- and kettlebells are a great workout. I got into them when Joe's mom bought me one for Christmas, and it came with a DVD. I loved that it gave you strength training, while keeping your heart rate up, and also some agility, endurance and balance. It only takes a half hour too, so anyone can do it.

I think they sell kettlebells even at Target, so here's my little plug for kettlebells. I can even show you some moves! :)

I am not scheduled to teach Kettlebells on a regular basis yet, right now I just sub- but perhaps in the future I will be a Kettlebell instructor. I really enjoy my time being a Fitness Instructor and helping people feel good about fitness, have fun, and achieve their goals!!