Western Kansas Wheat Harvest

I haven't been home during wheat harvest in years, but this past weekend and late last week, I was back in western KS right at its peak. I have missed seeing those combines out cutting that wheat! Unfortunately, my trip home wasn't under the most pleasant circumstances, but it was still great to be back in the area and around family. My grandpa passed away last week at the ripe old age of 99. It was quite fitting that he left us at harvest, so the timing couldn't have been better.

If you recall from my last post, my mom and aunt spent several days visiting us in Chicago two weekends ago. It was fun spending time with them and having a girls weekend. We went to IKEA (it was not as bad as I was anticipating), had a delicious brunch at the Southern, went wholesale shopping, and just had a great time. Christian also happened to be running a race in Indianapolis that Saturday, so we took a quick trip down to see him race. I haven't seen him run in a long time, so it was great to be there. Plus, my cousin lives in Indy, so she came by the track and watched too! It was a small meet, so Christian's fans made up for a decent percentage of the entire crowd :)

Also worth noting in this blog is that I'm employed! Well, kind of employed anyway. I started Monday working at an agency part-time in the account service department. I'm working Monday through Wednesday initially with the hopes that I'll "wow" them and they'll hire me full-time. That's the plan, anyway! I'm really excited to be there and everyone I've met so far has been awesome, so I'm really looking forward to this opportunity.

Check out some of these photos from the girls weekend in Chicago as well as photos from good, ol' western Kansas.

Courtney and I talk a lot about tattoos... A lot. So at the "Taste of Randolph" street festival, Courtney got a fake one.

Also, we kiss our muscles... A lot. Whadya think?  Tough, right?

Christian getting ready to start his race (he is wearing the white jersey). He ran very well, better than he expected to since he's been struggling with some recent injuries. Way to go, man!

Brunch - Spring veggie gumbo, coffee, mimosa and a delicious cucumber-infused vodka bloody mary. 

My favorite purchase from IKEA! Shelves for our spices! We have been talking about doing this since we moved in and I am so happy with how it turned out! I'm considering getting another shelf - how do we have so many spices? Also worth noting are our extensive booze collection and the adorable dog and cat treat jars.

My mom and aunt picking wheat stalks for my grandpa's funeral.

In case you don't know what wheat looks like :)

A photo of my grandma and grandpa on a wedding anniversary.

View from my parents' deck. We spent a lot of time out there just relaxing.

Christian thought it would be hilarious to shave a "monkey tail" on his face. If you look closely, you can see that the hair loops around the side of his face, up and around his mouth and then stops. Classy.

Dirty Miles. Christian brought Olive out to the farm and those two pups had a great time playing! I was sad that I had to leave Walter in Chicago because he would have loved it!

That's it for me. I hope you enjoy the photos from the past few weeks. Happy 4th of July everyone!

Love,
H&W

Sometimes You Just Have to Laugh....

Chicago has seen a fair amount of rain this spring. And while I'm usually pretty prepared with an umbrella or rain boots, in the past couple of weeks, I've been caught outside in a downpour twice, completely unprepared. As I walked home from the train station yesterday in the pouring rain, no umbrella or boots, I just couldn't help but smile and giggle at how ridiculous I looked. I'm sure it made me look even more silly to the people I was meeting on the sidewalk, but at that point, what was there to upset about? I was already soaked and not going anywhere important, so I just embraced the rain and smiled!

Walter and me after getting caught outside in the rain. I stood under a tree and just hoped and hoped he would finish his business as quickly as possible! He also looks a little scary in this picture...

This is how I looked after walking home in the rain. Fortunately, I happened to wear a jacket to work, even though it was warm enough to go without. I'm so glad I wore it anyway!

I feel like that has kind of been my attitude lately. I haven't found that permanent job yet and as scary as that is, I can't help but love the fact that I finally made the plunge and moved to a city that I'm so excited to be living in. In all ways (except the job one), I feel absolutely at home here and I'm just hoping that the job thing works out soon! Fingers crossed!

One of my good friends from college is currently undergoing treatment for leukemia and her battle helps put things in perspective for me. My woes seem pretty insignificant when compared to what she's going through. If anyone is interested about following her fight or making a donation, visit her site by clicking here.

Okay, okay, enough babble about struggles, here's what's happening in my life!

My mom and aunt are driving up today to spend a long weekend in Chicago. I can't wait to spend some quality time with my mom. This time is best spent shopping, I believe :) Also, Christian is hoping to run this Saturday in Indianapolis, so we might make the drive there to watch! I hope it works out because I haven't seen him in forever and would love to see him run! We are also planning a trip to IKEA (which I'm dreading), but I am looking forward to some new stuff :) I hope to have a lot to report next week about what we do!

In past posts, you've seen pictures and videos with Courtney's cat, Ruby, in them. I haven't shown much of Ciaran because he doesn't come out much in the main area. However, suddenly, he has become my little buddy! Check out these pictures that I've taken of him recently. What a snuggler!

Hello! Up in my face one evening.

He LOVES just laying on your chest

Snuggled up in my arm pit one morning. He also licked my face this day! 

I was sleeping this morning and he thought it would be a great idea to sleep on my butt!

Well, that's all for now! I'm hoping to have lots of good stuff to report next week!

Love, H&W

I Am Officially a 26-year-old. Woah.

So sorry for the delayed blog post! Things have been busy (and so hot!) here in Chicago! I've been meaning to write, but haven't had a chance to sit down and do it. So here you go!

First, I want to thank all of the absolutely wonderful people that I have in my life who reached out to me on my birthday last week. I had so many facebook posts, texts and calls that just made my day. To be honest, I had been boo-hooing a little bit and feeling sorry for myself because I was beginning to realize how hard it is to be in a new city and not know very many people. I kept thinking about my last birthday and all of the fun things I did with my friends and I was starting to get a little down because this birthday was going to be different. It was different, but it also made me realize that even though I may not be in the same city as some of my favorite people, thanks to the Internet and social media, they'll always be close by! A huge thank you to everyone who made my day!

Courtney and I enjoyed a yummy lunch at Julius Meinl. I had a slice of quiche which was tasty, but she had Spätzle and hers was SO delicious!! And we got dessert treats, of course. Check out our lunch spread below!

I had to get the lemon tart again. I hate getting the same thing twice in a row when there are so many goodies to choose from, but I couldn't resist! A perfect summer treat! 

Courtney had to work that evening, so Audrey and her law school buddies Erin, Sean and Dan (side note: Erin and Sean are Mabel's owners) celebrated my birthday with me at a Thai place I had been wanting to try. The food was tasty and the company was great, so while my birthday was a little more low-key than it has been in years past, it was still a good one!


Courtney also threw a little party earlier in the week as a sort of birthday/Memorial day celebration. We had a TON of delicious food, so I've included a couple of photos that I took of the spread. It was fun hanging out and having a good time with a big group of people.

Easiest party dessert ever. And people go bananas for them!

Nice, little cheese spread.

Chips, guac, hummus, veggie tray - what more does a party need?

Andrew's homemade bruschetta. Yum!

On a Walter update, it's been pretty toasty warm here and he's been slightly miserable in the heat. But he loves playing outside, so it's a bit of a Catch22 for him. I've begun to notice that he goes directly to the shaded part of the dog park every morning and evening that we go there. Here are a few videos and a photo to illustrate how much he loves his shade!

I'll stay over here, thank you very much.

Walter will now crawl under the fence to go get a ball. I have to lift it up for him though... he's not daring enough to go alone yet. 

Waiting patiently at the door for our walk!

A rare moment at our house! Ciaran and Walter on the couch together! This was big news!

Again, thanks to everyone for the kind words on my birthday. I felt so special! Twenty-six will be a big year for me - new city, new job (let's hope!), new beginnings! It's exciting!

Stay cool! 

H&W