Swing Batter Batter, Swing!

This post is about baseball. You've probably read some other posts from this summer that have been about the same thing. Yes, we got to baseball games pretty often, but I promise this post is different. WHY?

Well, we weren't planning on going to a game Wednesday night. Adam had a test on Thursday so our Wednesday night plan involved him studying and me being bored out of my mind and probably watching one too many episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond. Well, that morning I was offered free tickets to the nights baseball game...not just any tickets, but CLUB tickets. I honestly didn't know all that it involved, but I did know the seats would be better than any of the seats Adam and I could afford on our student budget. So, the conflict...do I accept the tickets even though Adam really needs to study tonight or do I reject them and forever be shunned by my husband who loves baseball almost (possibly more at times) as much as he loves me? Okay, dumb question...so I accepted. I called Adam up immediatly and told him that he better study is booty off because I just got us tickets to the game tonight...club seats!

Let me just say, sitting in club seats makes you never look at a baseball game the same way. To give you an idea of how great it is, Adam told me "This is what I imagaine heaven to be like."

Here are some reasons watching baseball games will never be the same:

1. GREAT seats. We usually have to sit so stinking far away from the field that I can see the players, but not the ball. I get bored because to me it just looks like a bunch of guys standing on the field. We were a little to the right of home plate. I couldn't even fit the entire diamond in my camera view from our seats.

2. The seats are PADDED! Do you know what kind of wonders that does for a pregnant woman?

3. The food was FREE. So you're probably thinking...great, all the hotdogs and nachos one could desire. Did you know they serve turkey roast, fajitas, pasta, vegetables and pizza at baseball games? They do! And it's the best turkey roast Adam and I have EVER had...Thanksgiving will be a disappointment from here on out. Notice the food on this next picture...not me all hot and humid and wilted. Which reminds me...we got to eat inside...in the air conditioning. 4. The bathrooms are so nice and clean. I didn't take any pictures, but it was definitly an upgrade from past ones I've used at Progressive Field.

Well, the Indians lost, but we were okay with that. Adam has decided that one day we'll always sit in club seats (as wonderful as that would be, we'll see if that really happens or not). We're so grateful that we got to have this experience and be spoiled for a night! Most of all though, I just loved watching Adam enjoy his little piece of "heaven" for the night. Oh, and for the record, he did great on his test!

The Cleveland Zoo

I finally have some pictures to put up! Yesterday Adam and I went to the zoo with our friends Amber and Dan Patty. Amber, Grace and me with the Ostriches.Adam and me in front of the elephant.This is a capybara. Adam would always tell me about these huge rodents he would see in Brazil. It just so happened that they had some at the zoo. I made sure I got a picture so that one day we can show our children what he's talking about. I think they look like ROUSes from The Princess Bride without the long snout and tail. They can weight up to 175lbs!!!Amber, Grace and Dan in front of the flamingos.

New to Ohio?

A co-worker of mine sent me this email today:

Cleveland Plus is looking for friends, family members or colleagues who have relocated to the Northeast Ohio region in the past six months to a year to do a quick survey either late Wednesday or early Thursday of this week (by e-mail).

If you know someone who recently came to Cleveland (or this describes you), and if they’re willing to do a quick survey, then let me know.

Please let me know if you would be interested in doing this and if I can give her your email. For those of you who don't know, Cleveland Plus is an organization that works to promote the growth and improvement of Northeast Ohio. You can find more information about what they do here. I know a lot of you just moved here recently and your opinion would be a big help to make Cleveland better!

Niagara Falls

Yesterday, Adam and I took a nice day trip to Niagara Falls. It was a wonderful day to go because the temperature was nice and the sky was sunny. We enjoyed the drive up there and began our adventures on the American side. Here are a few pics: On the American side, there is this elevator that takes you down 18 stories toa lower area of the falls. Anyways, there was tons of seagulls all over the place down there. I definitly got pooped on...a lot! My entire left leg was covered in bird poop! Adam, only got one little drop on his shirt sleeve. I was not very happy about it, and I have not idea how Adam managed to escape getting pooped on more. Look at all the birds!!!

The American side was nice, but they view on the Canadian side was much better! We were debating about crossing the border because we were getting low on cash (there are a lot of toll roads), and Adam didn't want to spend any more money. So, we decided to go, but we parked FOREVER away so that we wouldn't have to pay for parking. I personally, would have paid for parking because my feet were so sore. We had already been walking all morning on the American side and we had to go uphill on the Canadian side to get back to our car. I definitly gave myself a foot soak when I got home! :)

Indians Game

Last night Adam and I went to an Indians game. I'll have to say that it wasn't the most exciting game ever. The Indians were doing horrible, but it was still fun to spend the evening with Adam. I am so happy that the weather is getting nice enough to start doing outside activities!

After Mid-terms Celebration!

Last night Adam and I went out to dinner with a bunch for friends we have out here who are going to the podiatry school. It was a celebration dinner at Nuevo Acapulco - a yummy Mexican restaurant. We were celebrating the end of mid-terms and the beginning of a much needed spring break!

The Holloway Family

The Patty FamilyThe Fiala Family (minus their little girl)

Adam and me (with the Fiala's little girl)

Fun Friday, Sunny Saturday, and Simple Sunday

I decided I've give a quick recap of this weekend. All in all, it was one of the best weekends I have had in a long time.

On Friday evening Adam and I went to dinner at The Cheesecake Factory with some of our friends. I ordered ONE burrito...it turned out to be so big that I ate it for dinner that night, lunch the next day, AND it was Adam's lunch too on Saturday. Honestly, it had to be the size of four burritos in one. I don't think this picture even does it justice. It was delicious though!

After dinner Adam and I went and saw Wicked!!! It was just as good as I expected it to be. I was very much amused at Adam's comment after the show (which he enjoyed by the way). He said, "There were a lot of young people there. Mostly everyone there was around our age." I replied, "Yeah, why did you say that?" He responded, "Well, I just thought that only old people went to musicals..." WHAT?!?!? I honestly don't know where he came up with that crazy idea! I love that silly guy.

Saturday was great because the sun was shining from the moment I awoke and the sky was blue. This wonderful phenomenon, that rarely happens during Cleveland winters, lasted all day!!!! Adam and I took a walk at one of the metro parks and it felt great to breath the fresh air.

Sunday, I made biscuits and gravy for breakfast and roast for dinner. This is amazing because I don't cook too often now that I'm working. We're lucky if I make one meal a day, but two?!?!?! Church was really nice, and I got a lot out of the talks. I also got to teach my wonderful CTR 8 class! They make me so happy every Sunday because they are so willing to learn and share about the gospel.

Kirtland

While my family was visiting for Thanksgiving, we took a drive to Kirtland, Ohio. It was the first time my family had been together to visit a church history site (excluding Temple Square in Salt Lake City). We started our tour at the Kirtland Temple and then went over to the LDS visitor's center and N.K. Whitney Store. We had a nice little surprise at the visitor center because the video they were showing was different than the one they usually show. Instead of one about old Kirtland, they showed the new Joseph Smith movie that originally played in the theatre at temple square. Adam and I had already seen the video in Rexburg, Idaho, but my family hadn't seen it and wouldn't get the opportunity in Georgia. My mom was so excited when she found out what video she was about to see. The movie is so good and always helps me appreciate the wonderful blessings that the gospel brings to my life. I am grateful that I know that Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three seperate beings. Because of this, I am able to have a personal relationship with each one and understand the important role of each in my life. I hope that I will be stong enough to make the sacrifices needed in my life to instill a love and understanding of the gospel in my future children.

I love this picture because of Dallen. It had been a really long day for the little four-year-old who had to watch historical movies he didn't understand. He fell asleep, and we woke him up for a picture. You can tell he wasn't too happy about it!

Brasa Grill

Last night Adam and I went with a bunch of our friends to eat at Brasa Grill. It was so much fun going downtown and having dinner with our friends. We have been blessed with fun people to hang out with here in Cleveland. The restaurant has more meat than anyone could ever really want.

As you can see from the picture, they come around with big skewers that have meat on them. It's cooked over and open flame in is so delicious. You definitly have to pace yourself because there are serious consequences for eating too much (Adam is still getting over it). I always like going to these kinds of restaurants with Adam because he feels like he's on his mission again. It's so much fun to see him talk to the waitors in Portugese. There was a Russian waitor there and Adam said the only thing he knows how to say in Russian, "Don't touch my butt." It took the waitor of guard. I just about died, but I must say I am getting more used to Adam's occasional outbursts! The service wasn't the greatest...we were there for almost three hours. It was fun being with a big group though. We've been so blessed in having wonderful friends here in Cleveland. We all come from such different background and places, but it brings so much color and personality into our get togethers!

Cleveland Rocks!!!

This is Adam, I've never done one of these blogging things before. On wednesday, we went to the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame with our friends the Mechams. This picture was taken outside and we didn't get much more than that because no pictures were allowed inside at all. It was really cool and there were a lot of neat things to see inside, but the overall feeling was that we are still too young to really appreciate most of the things that they had inside there. They had a lot of outfits that people like Jimmy Hindrix and The Rolling Stones wore on stage. They had a giant brick wall representing Pink Floyd, and a special presentation for The Doors. To bo honest, Laura and I didn't know too much about those guys, so it didn't really captivate us as much as it was supposed to. Our favorite part was listening to the "top 500 influencial songs" over the last 60-70 years. There were a lot of songs that we recognized and that we could sing along to, much to the dismise of those standing around us. One neat thing that they had was a giant Weezer light, and it was outside the admittance area, so we were able to get a picture of that. Weezer was one of my favorite bands growing up so I was pretty excited about that.

FHE Bowling Night

This past Monday Adam and I went bowling for family home evening. Our friends, Dan and Amber Patty invited us to go with them. It was a lot of fun playing with everyone, but not a whole lot of fun losing. I'm awful at bowling...although I did redeem myself on Wednesday when I beat them all at Wii bowling! Dan absolutly beat us all, and claimed "that's the best game he ever played and he's usually awful," but I'm a little skeptical. :) Adam has a nice spin he puts on

the ball and it was complimented with a nice side kick everytime that kept us all entertained. Amber pretty much rocked at bowling, and did a wonderful job of making it look effortless.

Amber and Dan have the cutest baby girl, Grace. After bowling we went to Friendly's for some food. Adam had fun giving Grace water from his straw. We're so grateful to be good friends with the Pattys!

1964 the Tribute

Yesterday I won tickets at work to go see 1964 the Tribute at the Palace Theatre downtown! It was late in the afternoon, and I quckly called Adam to tell him that we were going to the concert that night. I was SO excited. When I was 13/14 years-old I went through this complete Beatles phase and have loved them ever since. We had the best seats...they were loge seats, and we were smack-dab in the middle. We had a little table next to our seat and a menu to order appetizers and drinks from. Granted...everything was rediculously expensive so we passed on the eating at a theatre experience. Donna, a friend of mine from work, won tickets right next to us. Her and her husband came, and it was a fun night for all of us.
I know, I know..talk about the show right? Well, it was AMAZING!!! They sounded and looked just like the Beatles with their mop tops and black suits. They played Can't Buy Me Love, Nowhere Man, Yellow Submarine, 8 Days a Week, and pretty much all the great ones up to 1964. They had great energy and really reached the audience. Now I'll admit...Adam and I were probably some of the youngest people there. It was fun to watch the older generations step back in time and dance like they were in their teens because the band definitly got people up and out of their chairs. It was so fun singing along, clapping, and dancing to these classics. The night was great.
I'd also lilke to put in a little thank you to my husband who isn't really a Beatles fan. He was a good sport and enjoyable even though I know he would've rather gone to the Indians game! Speaking of...there was one guy at the theatre who must have been confused as to were he was spending the evening because he came to the show decked out in Indians gear from head to toe. Adam and I are betting the his wife told him they were going downtown for a "surprise," and he was expecting a night out to the game. He must have definitly been surprised when it wasn't the game! Teehee!

Johnny Appleseed Festival!

Adam and I decided to kick-off Autumn with a fun trip to a festival. Every year Mapleside Farm throws the Johnny Appleseed Festival to begin the season. I guess it's a pretty big deal around here that Johnny Appleseed brought apples to Ohio. Adam and I are still trying to figure out whether this guy really existed or if he's just a tall tale. Either way, we're really excited that they throw a festival every year in his honor because it is a great way to open up fall. We ate yummy apple butter BBQ pork sandwiches, apple fritters, and...nothing says fall like apple cider! There were a lot of booths with crafts and food. We also got to pet an alpaca...a cousin to the llama! Our favorite part had to be the wagon ride through the apple orchards. During a small pause on our ride we found out that although horses have no problem pooping when they walk...they find it impossible to walk and pee. It was so funny to see the reaction of all the kids on the wagon ride when this happened! Nevertheless, it was still romantic going for an autumn hay ride with the love of my life!

Every time the season changes I think, "This is my favorite season!" Honestly though...autumn has to be my favorite. The other seasons had to grow on my before I enjoyed them so much. There is something about autumn though that reminds me of home and warmth. I don't know if its the warm yet vibrant colors of the leaves or if its the smell of cinnamon and apple, but this time of year always helps me to refocus on creating a home full of warmth and love.