Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I think it's because everyone seems to forget about it. Christmas season begins the day after Halloween, which drives me insane. I have a strict rule that I don't listen to Christmas music or do anything related to Christmas until after Thanksgiving. It gets harder and harder each year. I'm pretty sure all the stores have been playing Christmas carols since Halloween.
While I don't recall doing it every year, I have recited this prayer (from Dear Abby) for several Thanksgivings and wanted to share it with everyone ...

Oh, Heavenly Father,
We thank thee for food and remember the hungry.
We thank thee for health and remember the sick.
We thank thee for friends and remember the friendless.
We thank thee for freedom and remember the enslaved.
May these remembrances stir us to service,
That thy gifts to us may be used for others. Amen.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! And don't worry, you can start celebrating Christmas tomorrow!

On the mend

After a reaction to my antibiotics last week (which left me itchy from head to toe), I think I'm finally on the mend. I'm back at work and things seem to be going well. Although I miss my afternoon naps, I'm glad to finally be out and about. My leg is not completely healed yet, but I would imagine that it will be 100% sometime this week. More like I'm hoping it will be 100%. I'm ready to be done with this whole ordeal.
My reaction cleared up just in time for me to attend, and play piano for, my friend Kirby's wedding. There were several moments when I wondered if I would be able to make it at all and I really did not want to have Kirby scrambling to find a pianist the week of her wedding. But the universe decided it didn't hate me that much after all and I was able to make it. The music went off without a hitch and her wedding was beautiful. I think I may be able to retire from playing at weddings now!

At least I avoided the hospital ...

As most of you already know, I've been out of commission for the last few days. Since Thursday to be exact. I had a minor, irritating bump on my leg that turned out to be a staph infection. It hurt ... a lot! Anyway, I've been laid up since then doing my best to recover. I've been in to see the doctor a few times (redressing the wound and stuff ... don't worry, I'll spare everyone the details. It's bad enough that I had to go through it). I go to the doctor again tomorrow and hopefully they have good news for me. At least we know it's not MRSA!! As much as I'm enjoying this lovely vacation, I'm getting a little bored and stir crazy. Daytime tv is great (note the sarcasm).

Anyway, my grandparents had a lovely bouquet of flowers delivered, as did my parents (pictured). Rachel and Lisa also stopped by over a lunch hour to visit and bring me some flowers. I have a regular floral shop in my living room! I have also had tons of calls from Dustin's parents and grandparents. His Grandma Trego even stayed with us this weekend, which was a huge blessing.

Rachel also made supper for me and Dustin last night, which was so greatly appreciated ... and really delicious!

We're both pretty tired of this whole thing and ready for it to be over. Dustin has definitely earned himself the husband of the year award. He has been so great through this whole thing, driving me to the doctor, not passing out during the procedures!!

So, a big thank you to everyone that has called or stopped by to check on me. I'm cautiously optomistic that all will be well very soon. I'll be sure to keep you posted.

Cutest Pumpkin Ever!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Happy Halloween!

Allie's Birthday Party

I'm pretty sure Allie had no idea that it was her birthday, but I think she had a blast!

Happy 1^st Birthday Allie Jean!

Time for a change

I cut my hair. And I didn't even cry. The last time I cut my hair, I donated it to Locks of Love. And I cried like a baby. This time around I only cut 8 inches (yeah, only), so I wasn't able to donate it. I absolutely love it! I'm not quite sure if I'll end up growing it out again (which is what I usually do when I get an urge to cut it off), but for now I'm loving it like this and it just might stick. The gal that cuts my hair was none too pleased with me. She has always loved my hair and wished that she had it. She made it a point to sweep all the hair in a pile on the floor so I could see what I had done, but she also knew that it would look great which is why she agreed to do it. She flat out told me she will never cut my hair if she doesn't like the way I want to cut it. That's probably why I love going to her so much. I never have to worry about her getting "scissor happy"!

Congratulations Rachel & Brian Fritz!

Courtesy of Rachel and Brian's photographer

Rachel and Brian were united in marriage on October 13, 2007. It was a beautiful ceremony and the reception and dance was a blast. Rachel asked me to play piano for the ceremony and everything went quite well (after a minor hitch with the piano at the Old Sanctuary ... I ended up having to bring my own!).

26.2

They did it! My parents (along with some of their friends) finished the Twin Cities Marathon!! They all did such an amazing job too. We had a great time cheering them on, along with all the other marathoners. They truly are an inspiration! You can check out my parents times here (just type in Bjerke and select SD; you'll have to select Medtronics Twin Cities Marathon to see the full results!).

The marathoners before the start

10,000 runners!

Mile 7.5

Mile 13

Mile 17

Mile 19

Mile 23

The final .2 miles!!

THE FINISHERS!!

Our Crew

I think what truly amazed me was how great they looked the whole time. It almost seemed like running 26.2 miles didn't even phase them. I'm so proud of my parents and this incredible accomplishment. They still aren't sure if this will be their one and only marathon, but if they ever decide to run one again you can bet that we'll all be there cheering them on again.

Ugh

That's the only way to describe the last two days. Dustin and I were both home sick Monday and Tuesday with the flu. Not fun. Today we both felt better and made it through a whole day of work. However, I am now ready for bed. I'm still very tired and weak. It's shocking how laying around for two days can be so exhausting.

Being sick has not helped with the practicing for the wedding that I have to play for next weekend. So, tonight I sat down for an hour and practiced all my songs that I will play (prelude, ceremony and postlude). I've done the prelude, processional, recessional and postlude before. This does not worry me. For the first time, I will be playing during the lighting of the unity candle. I've accompanied singers before ... twice. Never has it just been me. I'm a little nervous and am having flashbacks to my recital days. Yikes!

Riddle me this ... I struggled through a few songs (I know it's only because I'm tired; I've played these songs millions of times before) however, when I broke out some Chopin Nocturnes, I played them flawlessly. I haven't played Chopin in ages. Interesting.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Best Anniversary Ever!

Happy Anniversary!

Dustin and me with Don and Shelly

Now that's how you pack and haul your coolers (if you don't mind the horrible scraping noise when you bottom out)!

Our tailgating crew

Pretty sure Dustin was in heaven at this point!

Arrowhead baby!

Okay, so it was our first anniversary. But still. It was awesome! We headed down to Kansas City Saturday morning and stayed with Don and Shelly (my uncle and aunt). We went to a fun Mexican restaurant/bar Saturday night and Sunday we went to Arrowhead. The Chiefs beat the Vikings (it was there home opener to boot) and we had such a great time. A bunch of Don and Shelly's friends came out too ... I've met some before, but it was Dustin's first time meeting most everyone. You know how people say that Disneyland is the happiest place on earth (or something like that)? Well, they're wrong. Or they have never been to Arrowhead.

Our First Anniversary

Courtesy of Wisconnygirl Designs

Must ... finish ... book ...

I've been frantically trying to finish reading The Time Traveler's Wife. I was under the impression that book group was next week. It was tonight. I didn't get the book finished and I ended up having to work late, so I didn't make it. I was really looking forward to it too. Oh well. I will have the next book finished in time! I did finish The Memory Keeper's Daughter and it was excellent. I highly recommend it. I have a long trip ahead of me this weekend, so I know I will finish my other book and then I'll have to decide what I'll read next. I seem to be devouring books lately. I love it!

I'm in awe ...

My parents are going to run the Twin Cities Marathon the first weekend of October. We're all heading up there to cheer them on. Today, they ran 18 miles. I got up at 6 this morning and headed out with my mom's friend Kristen and her daughter Sheena (who's a good friend of mine). We followed them along the Brookings Marathon route and cheered them on and provided drinks and power bars too.
I am so proud of my parents right now. They keep saying that never in their lives did they think they would run 18 miles, but they did it. And they did an excellent job to boot!
They are going to run the Jackrabbit 15 next weekend, which should be no problem for them now! Unfortunately, I won't be here next weekend to cheer them on, but I'm sure they'll do a great job!
Now there's talk that Kristen, Sheena and I will train to run the Breast Cancer 5k in Sioux Falls next year ... I haven't run since I was in the National Guard and I never ran before that either. It should be interesting. But I can't help but be inspired by my parents. You guys are awesome!

Another end to a chapter in my fascinating book of life

Today I decided that I will no longer be instructing my lone student in piano. Most of you know that I have been considering this for quite some time. I have been instructing him for three or four years now and it has become increasingly apparent that he is no longer interested. Of course there are several other mitigating circumstances that have led me to this decision. Next Tuesday will be our final lesson. I'm still not quite sure how I feel about this. Several people have told me that I should not feel bad about this. While I agree with them completely, it's difficult to not feel bad. I think it has something to do with the fact that piano is such a passion of mine and I was hoping that maybe my student would feel the same way. Now I have the opportunity to find another student that has that same passion and will enjoy learning. Or as my mother put it to me today ... "Even if you never teach again, you can always include that in your autobiography"!

Disappointing

Maybe painful is a better word. Today marked the kick-off to the NFL season and my Chiefs were down in Houston to take on the Texans. A game they should have won. A game they could have won ... if they didn't suck. Missed field goals. Turnovers. Final score: 20-3. Are you kidding me?!?! I realize that this is the first game of the season and that there are plenty of opportunities ahead to turn this around ... It was not a great start.

Ah, to be young again!

Dustin and I went out to Jessica's last night. She had a birthday party for Camden (still can't believe he's two already) and we caught the tail-end of the party. However, we made it just in time for the adult party. Camden got this motorized tractor and while it was quite amusing watching him and his cousin zip around the yard, it was much more fun watching Jessica ride around on it! After all that excitement we decided to play some cards. For whatever reason, we played P&A and then Ring of Fire. It brought me right back to my drinking days in high school. Although we were all ready for bed at 12:30 and I don't remember turning in quite that early in high school. I guess that's what happens when you get older.

The Labor Day Weekend

Dustin and I headed to Pierre Friday after work. As most of you know, Dustin's parents are moving to Washington, D.C. Pretty exciting, huh?! We are so thrilled for them and can't wait until our first visit out there. I've been there a couple times, but I'm anxious to see the non-tourist things.

Dustin and I assumed that the weekend would be spent helping them pack. Turns out, they have people that are going to do that for them. Sweet! So, we packed up some of Dustin's things that his parents will no longer store (I had to do that a couple years ago and my parents aren't even moving anywhere!). We also packed up a few things that we are going to keep for them while they are gone. We scored a ladder, a snow-blower, a poker table, a book shelf (cause I really need another one!) and a bunch of other stuff. The best though ... we're keeping their boat for them while they're gone! We took it out for one last hurrah on the river yesterday. Even though I managed to get a sunburn (I know, I know, very surprising) it was still a great time.

We're keeping our fingers crossed that it's nice out next weekend, I've been hearing talk of rain, because we really want to take this out one last time. After next weekend, my schedule is jam-packed again!