WINNER WINNER

The Dakota's Personalized Gifts contest has ended.
I'd like to give a super big thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway!
Here is the result:

And the winning comment is:
Molly said...
The Engraved Key To My Heart Necklace

winning things is cool!
Congrats, Molly.
xoxoxo

FOREVER

I went to a John Michael Montgomery concert at the Scera Shell with my friend Joe Saturday night and, first, I want to say it was fantastic! Mr. JMM has 20 number 1 hits that I personally LOVE to sing along with and he seemed so humble about it on stage. If you haven't heard his new song Forever, you need to.



During the first song, I did notice that his voice might not be able to hit all of the ranges it used to and this made me sad. I think sometimes I imagine super stars are supposed to stay young and awesome forever. I mean Dick Clark will never look a day over 35 and Betty White will always stay golden in my mind. It shocks me to see men turning gray and chubby with age or movie screen beauties get wrinkles. But it happens...as strange as it seems to me.

I PROMISE

You'll want to try these. I promise.


No, I did NOT eat the whole bag by myself!

WORTH IT?

7:30pm launch time.


Used 20 minutes trying to jump-start a boat stranded in the water.

Barely enough sun for 3 runs each.


Choppy water.

Arm already sore from donating blood earlier in the day.

Dent in forehead from face plant and board flying up and hitting me.

Towing stranded boat back to harbor.


1,749 mosquito bites while trying to dock the boat.


WAS IT WORTH IT??
You betcha!

EYE THANK YOU

Today, I had my 1 year follow up appointment from my LASIK procedure (happy anniversary). The doctor told me I am still seeing 20/15 which is a major improvement from my 20/400 vision before the LASIK. Yeah, I used to say, "I think that's an E" up on the wall and now I can almost read the very bottom line. They promise if at any time during the rest of my life, my vision drops below 20/40, they will do a retouch. INCREDIBLE!

I went to Hoopes Vision and for any of you who are considering LASIK, I say DO IT. It was THE best money/investment I have ever spent/made. If I had to do it again, I would-no questions asked.

It is SO fantastic to not have to worry about falling asleep with contacts in, be able to swim without hesitation, or even to wake up and be able to see the alarm clock. Eye thank you with all my heart, everyone at Hoopes.

CHIROPRACTOR

PS It's not covered by insurance so...anyone know a cute, chiropractor looking for a girlfriend??
...Just an idea.

BIRTHDAY BASH

I just got back from Europe.
Michelle, well, she's just got back.
We both have a birthday in August.
So we decided to celebrate with a birthday bash.

If you didn't come, you pretty much missed out.

I'M BACK...EAST

I returned to America and my family for a couple hours and then headed east to visit New England and Canada. Why? Because I wanted to. Here's a recap of the week:

NEW HAMPSHIRE

spent some quality time with family in Hampton, ate lots of ice cream in Dover, and experienced my first frappe in Portsmouth (in most normal areas of America, we call them milkshakes).

MAINE

touched a light house and ate lobster...what else would I do there?!

VERMONT

Ben & Jerry's ice cream factory tour
lots of bridges, syrup, and trees

MONTREAL, QUEBEC CANADA:

This place is gorgeous. I think I said that about 1748 times. It's true. It's not like the "eh, hoser" Canada you think of most of the time. No, it's french Canadian and I LOVED it. oui oui.


MASSACHUSETTS

two words--(cream filled) Dunkin' Donuts.
We spent a day in Cape Cod. It was a little boring for me. I'm sure it would have been more fun if I was around 60 and liked to sit in the car, go for long drives, and look at trinkets in boutiques (not that there is anything wrong with that...there just wasn't enough action for me). But we did find a cool look-out spot and another light house.

RHODE ISLAND
Providence, RI, to more exact. I think my favorite night of the trip was spent in this little town with a man we met washing his clothes in the water who befriended us and acted as our personal tour guide. He told us the best restaurants to stop at, showed us the best views in town, and explained how to catch crabs in the poopy sea water. Thank you, Frankie Bones!


I barely survived the jet lag, pretty much falling asleep hard by 9:30pm every night and waking up at 6am (7pm and 4am MST back home...ugh).

DAKOTA GIFTS GIVEAWAY

I went to visit my aunt, uncle, and cousins in New Hampshire last week, I decided to take a present for them to say thanks for letting me stay. I really enjoy personalized keepsakes, so when Dakota's Personalized Gifts asked me to do a review for them, I found the perfect thing...this engraved photo marble keepsake. I put a photo of me with them and my parents from our trip to Disney World earlier this year. It turned out fantastic.


The marble piece is beautiful and the photo showed up nicely.
They have other cute items that I enjoyed like this love canvas that allows you to have initials carved in the stone (cool wedding present)
Things for the house like family wall signs, welcome mats, and sheetsand gifts for him like money clips, cuff links, and key chains.


NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY

Dakota's is offering one lucky person a $50 gift card for a personalized gift of your choice.

To enter, you MUST:
1. Tell me what item from dakotagifts.com you would choose if you win (you can change your mind later).
2. You can get a second entry if you are a Google Friend Connect follower of my blog.
Good luck.
The contest will run until Monday, August 30th. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on Tuesday, August 31st. Please include your email address in your comment so I can get a hold of you if you're the winner.

FLIGHT TIPS

I have made 5 flights in the last 2 days and I just want to give a few tips to help any readers to NOT be so annoying to fellow flyers.
1. Do NOT grab on to the headrest in front of you to help yourself stand up.
2. Do NOT move around in your seat so much in case the person behind you is trying to sleep on the tray table and you are causing your chair to whack them in the head every 10 seconds.
3. If everyone else on the plane (especially on long international flights) has their window shade down to block the sunshine from blaring in in order to sleep, please do NOT be the ONE person who keeps opening yours up (especially if you're sitting next me).
4. Do NOT keep your carry on items on the floor taking up all of your leg room causing you to put your bare feet near the person in the seat next to you.
5. Do NOT cross over the arm rest.
6. DO know how to use your own touch screen and seat belt and do NOT wake up the person next to you and ask them to do help you every 30 minutes.
7. Do NOT drink a gallon of water before the flight if you have a middle or aisle seat, causing you to stumble over everyone on your way to the toilet.
8. DO insist on taking a shower that day before heading to the airport, please.
9. Just because you have earphones on when you are watching an in flight movie, it does not mean that you can laugh so loud that travelers 5 rows behind can hear you.
10. Do NOT and do NOT let your children kick or put their knees on the seat in front of you.
11. If your child is crying and the plane has a lower level downstairs with bathrooms and where no passengers are sitting, please take them down instead of letting them scream at the top of their lungs.
12. Do NOT hit other people with your handbags/luggage as you get it from the overhead compartment.

I'm always surprised at how oblivious people can be.
Good thing I never wanted to be a flight attendant when I was little because I'm afraid I'd punch people.
Please and thank you.

This post just reminded me of this clip:



Does this count as annoying?

UTAHOVAT

It seems to me that you can take any word and add -ovat to it and it becomes a verb in the Czech language.
For example, emailovat and parkovat mean emailing and parking. Get it?
Well, I recently found this sign posted at a train station:


I don't know what it really translates as, but that's what I'm doing today. Utahovat-ing. See you after about 23 hours of traveling in God's country.

Side note:

this was a beautiful way to spend my last few nights in Plzeň.

TOUCHY

Three new modern art fountains were added to the city square in Plzen last week so I went to the celebration with my friend Martin. I sat at a bench nearby for a few minutes and watched the people's reactions to these additions (not in a creepy way). Almost EVERY person walked up and touched them. It was fascinating to me to watch this. I'd say 9/10 people walked up and touched the fountain or knocked on the marble base.
I was an art geek in college and I LOVE textures, but it seems to me that Czechs have a crazy phenomenon with touching things. There are many statues or plaques that have spots where the metal is worn away because it has been touched so many times...usually for luck. (Can you tell which angel head is the one you make a wish on in this photo?)


So why are they so touchy? I'm not sure. I wrote about the subject of touch once here. Archive it as you wish, because if you know me...you know I don't like repeating myself.

NO #2 ON THIS GRASS

I don't know what kind of dog is pictured, but that sure looks painful and I'd hate to have to clean up after him. Are those soda cans?


Of course, William loved the idea of posing next to the sign and pretending to go #2. (I recently taught him the terms #1 or #2 and he thinks it's so funny to say. He even tells me EVERY time he has go which number it is.) Brilliant!

MADE MY WEEKEND

Three things that really made my weekend:

#1 You know that photo of the guy in the cut off jean shorts that are just SO wrong that you've been sent from a uncle/friend who sends WAY TOO MANY FWD emails... yeah with the hairy cheeks, big stomach hanging out, and the little back pack...
well, I think I saw him in real life.


#2 Nothing says Czech like a dumpling eating contest. If only I spoke the language and knew how to sign up for this event at a carnival in the village, I would have wasted the locals! I love my knedlíky and goulash.


#3 Great Scott! I swear this guy was Doc Brown from the Back to the Future movies. You remember the flux capacitor?!


Yes, he is there trying to get a giant homemade airplane to get off the ground and yes he is wearing black socks and underwear in public. The plane took off and circled the crowd a couple times and then never came back. "Good night, Future Boy..."