An UN-wedding update! (mostly...)

So, I have had a request from the Scheel family to give an update. I haven't updated in awhile because I feel like we haven't been up to anything exciting. We have spent a lot of time on wedding stuff, but I would hate to bore you with the details. SO...here is what ELSE we have been doing!

I am finishing up my last week at the Westonka Pool where I have supervised their swimming lessons this summer. After that, I will start getting my office ready at Wayzata West Middle School and I have a few days of training before the wedding. I am really looking forward to going back to Wayzata. I have packed up all my office stuff and have it all ready to go!

Nick has been busy with work. He has not had to travel too much this summer which I have appreciated. Last week, he had to go to Chicago for a few days, but I don't think he travels again until after the big day, so that's GREAT for me! :)

Tonight, one of my Michigan friends, Sam Thorpe drove through on her way back to MI from her internship on the West coast. She couldn't stay long, but it was SO FUN to have dinner with her! It made me miss all my Michigan friends. So, Michigan friends, if you are reading this, I love you and miss you!!!

Our summer softball season is coming to a close. This Friday is our last game. We have done okay this season and had a lot of fun with our friends! Fall ball starts August 19 so we don't get any time off in between. It's a great excuse to get together with our friends every Friday so I can't complain too much!!!

We have also made time to go out to Lake Waconia near our house for a few fishing trips. We haven't had much luck, but it has been nice to get out of the house and enjoy some time together. Last time we went, I had my nose stuck in a book most of the time, but I did manage to catch one [little teeny] sunfish.

Oh yeah - I did something exciting! This is somewhat wedding related, though...My bff Sheila and my sister LeeAnn threw me an AWESOME bachelorette party!!! We did a pedal pub in downtown Minneapolis and then went out dancing until the wee hours. It was SO much fun! The pedal pub is basically a bar on wheels and you have to pedal the thing around. Of course you have a driver that steers you around, and you bring your own beverages or food or whatever. It was a BLAST! Here are a few photos (courtesy of Kelsey Sparks)...

before we pedaled

At the bar with my girls! :) Aren't our shirts ADORABLE?! Thanks Sheila! I think LeeAnn and I look alike in this picture, too. Funny how that happens sometimes.

Pedaling!!!

Warrior Dash 2011

All the Cambridge-Isanti girls

Today, I survived Warrior Dash 2011 with my besties Kelsey and Diana and some other fantastic Cambridge and UW-RF friends! It was a 3.2 mile "run" at Afton Alps (ski/snowboard hill). Our "obstacles" were:

• Junkyard cars (had to climb over)
• Typhoon (big water jets)
• Over and under barricades 4' (with barbed wire)
• Across a cargo net
• Over a cargo net
• Through a dark tunnel
• Over a vertical wall
• Over up and down planks
• Down a massive slip and slide
• Through fire
• And through a mud pit, under barbed wire

The hills were honestly worse than the obstacles! You should have seen them! But it was a GREAT time! Don't we look like we're having fun!?!

Kelsey and I after we crossed the finish line

"I'm so muddy." "Me too." "No way!"

Nick finally kissed me when I was a little cleaned off...

But this is as close as he would get!

Journal of the last 10 days

Tuesday, July 5: I learn that there is a 1.0 counseling position open at my previous school (Wayzata West Middle School-WWMS) due to an unexpected resignation.

Thursday, July 7: WWMS position posted. I apply immediately.

Still July 7: I am offered a .8 position at another school. I tell them I need to think about it because I may have the opportunity to go back to WWMS at 1.0.

Still July 7, an hour later: They counter offer with a 1.0 position. I say I still need to think about it because they don't know what the other .2 will be and can't define it until the state is up and running.

Monday, July 11: I call WWMS and tell them my dilema. I am offered an interview on Thursday, July 14 at 8 am.

Tuesday, July 12: Principal from other school calls. I call back. We never connect.

Wednesday, July 13, 9:15 am: Principal from other school calls. I answer. She needs to know an answer by 10 am. I call WWMS. They say nice things to me and encourage me to interview Thursday. I feel stuck. I verbally accept .8 at other school but cannot accept .2 until it is more clearly defined.

Thursday, July 14, 8 am: Interview at Wayzata. Goes well. Feeling stressed to the max.

Still July 14, 8 pm: Text from friend on interview committee which seems like a good sign, but still very nervous. Can't read into these things too much.

Friday, July 15, 8:30 am: Call from Wayzata West Middle School. Offered the job! YAYAYAYAY! Accept the job! YAYAYAYAY! Call Nick. Proceed to make very uncomfortable phone calls to other school district to apologize profusely and rescind my verbal acceptance and resign from coaching position in other district. Experience feelings of guilt.

Still July 15, 9:30 am: Make celebratory calls to Lewis parents and Sykora parents.

Still July 15, 10:40 am: Writing blog post. Still in emotional fog. Potentially need a counselor to digest what has happened over the last 10 days. :)

In summary: I will be a full time (1.0) counselor at Wayzata West Middle School for the 2011-2012 academic year (and hopefully many more). I have resigned from coaching high school swimming so I can focus solely on my counseling career. I will continue to swim and coach as recreational activities only and very much look forward to working with my West kids and returning to an AMAZING staff! I will be ready to celebrate in a few hours! Until then, I will be relaxing and doing wedding things for the remainder of the day!

Shower Fun :)

Yesterday, my dear sister and my wingman (LeeAnn and Sheila) threw me a really fun shower at my mom's house. It was SO fun to have so many of the women I love (and little Alex) all together and all to myself for a couple hours!

The card I got from Kelsey was a really GREAT reminder of what all this "fuss" is about. And it nearly made me cry because I really do think that Nick is my perfect fit, and I am SO SO SO lucky to have him. Sheila made me the most beautiful and special scrapbook with our story in it, and LeeAnn got me a bridal handkerchief that I almost needed to use when looking through the scrap book. :) I am so grateful for friends and family and all that I have been blessed with. So thank you to everyone who came and thank you for all of your generous gifts, friendship, support and love.

Kelsey's card:

Somewhere between fittings, flowers, phone calls, and all of this wedding-planning craziness -- there are two people who are in love. And that love is the most important thing...

Because when your wedding finally comes, the most beautiful bouquet in the world (and it will be beautiful) won't compare to how you two look at each other when you say "I do."

There are so many details that go into planning your wedding (and I promise to notice them all!) but you can rest assured that it will be perfect. Because the two of you are perfect for each other.

 
Here are a few photos (Thank you Dad and Sherry) from the day:

Lea, Alex, Kelsey, Jana, Sheila, LeeAnn, Diana, Aubrey

Kristin, LeeAnn, Lori, Cathy, Diana & Aubrey, Jana, Kelsey, Lea & Alex, Sheila, Sherry

 

 

 The banner in the background says "Future Mrs. Sykora." 

Now it's hanging in my living room at home. 

I LOVE it, and I'm going to keep the Mrs. Sykora part for my office at school.

Alex is giving Aubrey the kissy face

Alex hugging Aubrey. He liked her fluffy dress. Aubrey thinks he will want to wear it when he is 4.

Alex just chillin'. So cute!!!

Update from New Orleans

Nick had to travel to New Orleans for a tradeshow this week, and I was lucky enough to get to come along for once! It has been a nice vacation from wedding planning and job searching although I haven't really done much sight-seeing. Just relaxing. Yesterday, I walked down to the French Quarter and went to some of the shops and lingered through all the street vendors before caving in and taking a nap by the pool. We enjoyed a really nice dinner with some of Nick's customers last night at Brennan's and I had my first-ever Banana's Foster. And it was A. M. A. Z. I. N. G. We took a stroll down Bourbon Street after dinner for some exciting people watching. Of course, I forgot my camera so I don't have any fun pictures to post.

Today, Nick is working again at the tradeshow, and I am planning another day at the pool since it will be 93 and sunny. We will go out again for dinner and tomorrow Nick will be able to spend a little more time with me. Yay for vacations! Even though we flew back and forth to see each other during our 9 month long-distance relationship, this was the first time we have ever flown together somewhere. Crazy.

In terms of wedding planning, things are going very well. We had most of our final meetings with vendors Friday before we flew out. We also got our marriage license (Yay!). We only ran into one complication. Our fabulous cupcake lady does not have the baker's license required for our reception site, so we are starting over on cake/cupcakes. Other than that, things are going smoothly and I am so excited that we are getting married in two months and one day! :) It's so exciting to see the RSVP's coming in already. Every time we get one, I get more and more excited not only to get married, but to see everyone! I'm especially looking forward to seeing some of my MI "family" and my out-of-state Lewis family that I haven't seen in YEARS!

The job search on the other hand has been somewhat disappointing. I did not get the job that I thought was absolutely perfect for me. They made an offer to another candidate. I wasn't as crushed as I thought I would be but I am starting to get slightly frustrated. Fortunately, there are still counselor jobs in the area to apply for and I have been getting interviews. I have interviewed with four districts now...I ended up turning down a third interview from one district after experiencing the hour and a half commute for the first two interviews. Wayzata ended up re-hiring the person that was already in the position which I completely understand and honestly makes the most sense. Orono hired someone else (I'm still convinced they passed up an excellent candidate...), and I haven't heard back from the school I interviewed with last Thursday. My interview Thursday was actually for a school social worker position, so I'm not anticipating being offered the position, but we'll see. I know people in the district and sometimes that makes all the difference.

Other than that, this summer I am the Mound-Westonka Aquatics Supervisor working closely with their summer red cross swimming program, and I am also lifeguarding and teaching some swimming lessons at Safari Island. This fall, I will be the head coach for the Mound-Westonka/Holy Family Girls Swim & Dive team, so I am starting to get more and more excited for that! I get to meet my team and parents Wednesday night - wish me luck! I would like to give a quick shout-out and thank you to my father for getting me so involved in swimming as a kid and teaching me how to teach swimming lessons and coach. If not for that, I would be completely unemployed. :)

That's all for now...hopefully I'll have better job-search news next time. :)

Job search update

Now that my applications and resumes have generated some interested and landed me a few interviews, I am starting to feel pretty good about the job search.

I interviewed with a really cool elementary school on Monday. There are students from 25 countries and 15 languages spoken in the school. They currently do not have a guidance counselor, so I would have the opportunity to build a program from the ground up. PROS: Amazingly interesting population, get to start my own program, really nice principal CONS: 45 miles away, probably 1:15 driving.

Today, I interviewed for a high school girls swim coach position. It sounds like it might be a really good fit (on my end at least), but they don't have a counselor position open in the district so I'm a little worried about that piece. They are hiring a social worker (which I applied for just in case...), but I'm not sure they are open to a counselor given the licensing differences. I also talked to a gentlemen in their community ed department who is hoping to hire the swim coach to manage swimming lessons and take over the swim club. Even all three of those positions wouldn't add up to full time, so I'm a little uncertain about it. Of course I WANT to do it. I love swimming and I know I would have a blast. However, I just worry about the full time employment part. I guess we will just have to see what happens... PROS: FUN FUN FUN. Love swimming, love team building, only 15-20 minutes from home  CONS: lots of nights and weekends, not really "steady" employment, not full time

HOWEVER, I am still really hopeful I will be able to find a school counseling position. Not only is it fairly early in the hiring season, I have a few good options. There is one high school position I am especially interested in (due to location and the high academic standards of the curriculum) and another district that currently has EIGHT open counseling positions. I called HR and they really do have eight positions - 7 retirements and one long term sub position. All of the schools in that district are about an hour away, but you better believe I will still apply. While we aren't ready to move any time REAL soon, I could survive commuting for at least a year. I did the Minneapolis thing, right?!

That's all for tonight! Just wanted to give a quick update!

Nick is "CUT OUT" to be a great husband...

Pun intended. You'll see.

Our big goal for the past month has been to work on our invitations. We are making them ourselves, but until yesterday, I was feeling alone in the task and communicating this semi-regularly with Nick. I'm sure he would use the word "nagging" to refer to my comments regarding invitation making. Anyway, he assured me repeatedly that he would help, and last night he followed through in a big way.

Not only did he design stellar maps, but he printed out ALL 166 sheets of paper necessary for our invitations. Then, he went above and beyond by cutting out every piece. You may not realize what a HUGE job it was so let me break it down for you...

Invitation (55 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 165 cuts
RSVP (28 sheets of paper, 3 cuts/sheet) = 84 cuts
Map/Directions (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Reception info: (37 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 148 cuts
Other (9 sheets of paper, 4 cuts/sheet) = 36 cuts

Nick made a grand total of 581 cuts on that paper cutter last night. WHAT. A. GUY. So when you get your invitation in the mail, take time to appreciate him because I seriously don't think I can express my gratitude enough. And Nick, this is my public apology for "nagging." I love you!

Oh, did I tell you he also bought me Qdoba for dinner? Mmmmmm-yum.

Rainy Day update...

I am currently sitting outside in the garage at our garage sale, and it's POURING outside. Needless to say, I haven't sold anything. Fortunately, Nick had better luck earlier today and we still got rid of a lot of stuff.

Things have been pretty busy around our house lately. I found out officially that my position is not being renewed for next year, so I have been really busy job searching. I have one school counseling preliminary interview next week, and I also have some leads on some swimming-related jobs which would be pretty fun as well. Keep your fingers crossed for me as I continue to apply and interview! Fortunately, my principals have been extremely helpful and encouraging in the process, so I can't complain too much.

We have also attempted to get some yard work done. I am going to plant a vegetable garden this year if there's ever a weekend with sun instead of rain, and Nick has been moving around hostas and bushes and making some nice improvements. I am SO glad that winter is over!

Last weekend, Nick's aunt Mary and cousins Brittany and Karissa threw a shower for me. It was so much fun, and everyone was so generous. I was lucky enough to have my mom, sister and BFF Sheila come to the shower, and several of Nick's family members came. My dad actually came down too and helped the Sykora men on a backyard project. So, it was a fun family weekend. :) Here are a few pictures that Nick's mom, Sherry, took.



Lewis ladies. My sister will be my maid of honor.



Sheila, me and LeeAnn. Sheila will be my matron of honor. SO GLAD she made the drive down. :)



Nick's niece and goddaughter, Hailey, was very helpful with gifts. Isn't she cute?! Love her.

Wedding planning is going well. We are working on invitations big time this weekend. It'll be a big project, but I'm sort of looking forward to working on it. I think that's about all for now. I'm being called to help with dinner before our softball game tonight...although I'm thinking it might be cancelled given this weather-YUCK!

Slowing down is good...job searching is nerve-wracking...

I can't believe I am sitting down to update again after less than a week! Obviously, life is slowing down a little bit.

Last week, I finished up both of my sessions of swimming lessons. For a few weeks there, I was teaching swimming lessons Tuesday and Thursday nights AND Saturday mornings. I was also doing a few private lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays before coaching Monday and Wednesday nights. Now, thank goodness, I have a swimming lessons break until June! My poor chlorine-hair needs to recover! :)

Coaching is still going really well, and that will go until mid-June, then all my coachees will be in the middle of their triathlon season and off doing their own thing. They are so much fun to work with, and I'm looking forward to finishing the next month off strong!

Now that work-life is slowing down, other aspects of life will be picking up to fill in my free time. Wedding planning will be kicking in HIGH GEAR since we are making our own invitations and are still in the beginning stages. Last weekend, we checked "pre-marital counseling" off our list. We practiced conflict management, evaluated our budget and finances, and had some really productive conversations. We have already been using our conflict management strategies.

For example, "Jana, it really bothers me when you leave the milk out on the table while we are eating breakfast because I feel like it gets bad faster. Instead, will you please put the milk away as soon as you have poured it on your cereal? In return, I will try to be more helpful in the morning so you aren't in such a hurry.

I never knew it bothered him that I left the milk out for a few minutes here or there. Now I know. And I think our marriage will be stronger because you can take out the blue words and insert any other complaint, solution, compromise. :) I say that somewhat lightly, but I really do think that the day was helpful, and it was a really good bonding experience.

In addition to wedding planning and communicating in much longer, more detailed sentences, I will also be starting a new job search. My one-year temporary position at Wayzata did not turn into anything more, so I am looking for school counseling positions near Mayer. I really enjoy the middle level and I think I do pretty well with those kiddos, but I also know I would love high school with all my college transition experience. I think I could bring a lot to high school students and families. Similarly, I've had really good feedback on my swimming lessons lately. Many parents have had very high compliments about my ability to work with preschool and elementary age kids. SO, I have decided to apply for all levels. If anyone knows of any openings, please let me know. I will (of course) be doing tons of research myself, but connections definitely help.

And last but not least, it's summer sports season! Softball started last week. I have to say that although I didn't catch a single one of the 23 balls (give or take a few) hit right to me in the outfield, I did make some good bat to ball contact. Nick pitched and did really well until the ump lost his eyesight near the end of the second game. He also had some amazing hits but unfortunately the other team had better outfielders than myself and several were caught. Oh well. There's always next week. Sunday, I also ran my first 5K of the year. I was happy with my time of 34 minutes and some seconds. It was 32 degrees and VERY windy and the trail was very hilly. I'm looking forward to doing a few more this summer and improving my time.


That's all for now! Maybe I'll post some pictures next time, but my camera is still being dumb...please continue to pray for Aunt Lori as her recovery continues!

"What's the point of having a blog if you never update it?" (Uncle Joe Quote)

So, I have been horrible at this blog updating thing, and I'm going to use the SAME excuse. I've been busy. Seriously busy. I am now full time at the school (yay!) because our social worker is out on paternity leave, and I'm his long term sub on my usual off days. Unfortunately, I'm also working about 15-20 hours per week at the pool because the baby came two and a half weeks early, and I hadn't really planned for that. SO, busy. And now sick. Which is why I have time to blog.

Last weekend was very eventful. Saturday, our family and some of friends came over to celebrate Nick turning 30. We did make-your-own kabobs which was fun, but not nearly as fun as it could have been if the weather would have cooperated. It wasn't quite nice enough out for yard games and a cook out, but I enjoyed seeing everyone and hosting. We didn't take nearly enough photos (we always forget), but Sherry took a great picture of me and LeeAnn. I'm hoping Sherry will send some of the other pictures she took as well. *hint hint*

 

Unfortunately, my parents were unable to stay for the whole party. We had a family scare Saturday when my mom's sister, Lori, had a heart attack. I'm so glad my parents made it to Duluth to be with her and my uncle and cousins. Lori is doing well and is actually back home now, but for those of you that accept prayer requests, please keep my Aunt Lori's health in your prayers.

LeeAnn stayed over Saturday night after the party (her job is fairly cose to Mayer) so she came to Easter service with Nick and I. It was really nice to do that together, and I am so thankful for any time I get to spend with LeeAnn since she is so busy with grad school!

LeeAnn left for work after church, and Nick and I headed down to St. Peter for a fabulous Easter dinner/birthday dinner with Nick's family. (Nick's actual birthday was Sunday) We had a really good time hanging out with Sharon and Brad and Justin, Bri and Hailey. Nick's niece, Hailey, is so much fun. I especially enjoyed blowing bubbles with her in the sunshine Sunday afternoon. What a beautiful day! And what a weekend.

Well, I was hoping to post a few more pictures, but for some reason, my camera will not connect to my computer so I will have to do that another time. Take care!

Milo's surgery

Milo was neutered on March 10...poor guy. Not only that, he also had his dew claws removed. Apparently, the breeder tried to remove them when he was a pup but one "grew back" and the other wasn't removed very well. As much as it wasn't funny how sad and miserable he was, we had to chuckle over how pathetic he looked. And we had to take pictures...here are a few...

Here he is...poor guy. The blue bandage is from his IV.

I love that the vet used camo vet wrap for his dew claw wounds. So Milo appropriate...

Look at those sad eyes?! Poor guy.

He has to wear the cone until the stitches come out of his paws because he has a tendency to want to lick the stitches. That will be soon - THANK GOODNESS!

March Update- with photos :)

Well, it hasn't QUITE been a month since we updated the blog, but almost. Sorry about that! We have been SO busy. Today, I am home not feeling well, so I have a little extra down time on my hands. I suppose I should update you all a bit on what I wrote about last, so here's a quick little summary:

My car has been fixed and GM covered it under my expired warranty. What a blessing!

We found bridesmaid dresses (orange!) and they look stunning on the girls - not to my surprise! I would post pictures, but I am purposely keeping wedding stuff sort of secret so our guests get to be surprised. I also got to try on a sample of my dress at the dress store, and I am still in love with it! Mine will be in May 9, and I can't wait!

SkyZone with the girls was amazing. I have since been back with Lea and I'm going again tomorrow night! I'm becoming a SkyRobics addict! But it is so fun!

Kelsey, Diana, Lea and Me

I have been to TWO Wild games since I wrote - one with Nick and one with Sheila. I can't believe Sheila and I didn't take a picture but I love this one of Nick and I.

And while snowboarding season is over, we were able to get out one more time together and Nick also braved the slopes on his own while I was working last weekend...so...we have been busy!

I think we are also done with our registries at Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. I don't think Nick enjoyed those stores as much as Menards, but we still had fun. We have also found our wedding bands. I will be getting a different setting for my engagement ring as well, and I can't wait until everyone sees it. It's beautiful.

This weekend, we are going to Mankato to meet with a potential florist and to look at tuxes. We will stay the weekend at Nick's parents house to help with some home projects. Sherry and Brad will be hosting the groom's dinner at their house, and we have offered to help with anything between now and then. It should be a fun (and busy) weekend again! I will keep you posted! :)

Rollercoaster (ooh--ooh--ooh--ooh)

By now, I have learned in my 29 years that life is full of ups and downs. Unfortunately, this week the downs have really gotten to me (even though they are minor in the grand scheme of things). The biggest down by far is that my car is broken. I love my little car, but it started driving funny last week. It turns out that it needs a new transmission at only 74K miles. Even worse news was that my 5-year, 100K mile warranty expired i August. Big, huge, $3000 bummer. Nick and I have been down to one car this week which isn't very fun either. I was late to work yesterday which made me feel rushed all day. You know how that goes? Then while I was making dinner, I cut my finger. I know, I sound a little whiney. SO thanks for listening to my little rant.

What I really wanted to share is that there are lots of ups right now as well. First of all, I have submitted a request for my warranty to be extended and cover this repair. I didn't know this was an option, so keep your fingers crossed for me! :)

I am also really excited that my adult swim team is growing. I coach "Masters Swim" at Safari Island, and I have gone from 4 swimmers to 6 in the last week. It's so much fun working with this group!

Next, I get to go to Sky Zone (an indoor trampoline park) with three of my favorite ladies TONIGHT. Kelsey, Diana, Lea, and I will be participating in SkyRobics if all goes according to plan. Aerobics on trampolines?! Sounds crazy fun to me!!! I will be sure to bring my camera.

Friday night, Nick and I are going to a Wild Game! Finally! We went to three last year and haven't even been to one yet this season. So, I am really excited! GO WILD!

Saturday is the big bridesmaid dress shopping day. I'm a little nervous about this because I really don't know what I want, so I'm relying on Kelsey, Diana, Sheila and LeeAnn to help me out. My mom and dad are also going to be joining us. Maybe my mom will find her dress, too!

Sunday will be Nick's second attempt at snowboarding! After how stiff and sore we were all week, I couldn't believe he wants to go again right away. I'm so glad he's into it!!! Anyway, I feel fortunate to have so many fun things going on in my life. And the car thing will get resolved...even if it costs a small fortune.

Our Valentine's Date

For Valentine's Day, Nick took me snowboarding! I have been bugging him all winter about wanting to go, and we FINALLY made time and went. I'm not a great snowboarder, but I really enjoy going. Nick had never been before, so I think he was a little nervous.

We spent most of our time in the training zone while Nick learned the basics, but I was really impressed with how quickly he learned and got up on the chair lift for a few runs down "Big Foot." I was glad that it all came back to me after at least a year without boarding. We had lots of laughs and enjoyed a perfect Minnesota day. The sun was shining and it was about 35! It could not have been better!

Here are some pictures of our fun day!

From the peanut gallery...

I just want to add a few things...

• I only took Nick dress shopping because he had expressed a few opinions on length, style and color. I wanted to be sure we ended up with something that wasn't going to get vetoed by the groom.

• I don't even know what to say about going to Menards, but I wish you could have seen him with that scanner walking around the store...a kid in a candy store...

• And the Super Bowl party was super fun. I'm so glad our basement room is done so we can enjoy it, and it's always more fun when friends come over, too!

Update Courtesy of Nick

Well I am told it is my turn to post again so here are a few updates on some of the important things we have going on in our lives; our fur babies, our wedding and sports.


Update on Milo:

I took him down to my parents in St. Peter while Jana was getting her hair done so my dad and I could work with him and introduce the noise of a gun. We played fetch in the snow and shot the .22 a few times so he would get used to the noise. I'm happy to say it didn't bother him at all. He is getting so big, around 40lbs and he is barely over 5 months old.

More Wedding stuff:

Last weekend Jana and I went to the bridal shop where she ordered her dress so she could pick out potential bride's maid dresses. She got a few good ideas for when her and the girls go back to try things on. As anyone could imagine this was not the highlight of my weekend. We also stopped at Michael's to search for materials to make our center pieces. If anyone knows where to buy beaded garland in bulk, please let us know. We also stopped at Menard's to pick up a few household essentials, but decided we might as well register since we had time. Our plan is to register at Menard's, Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. I urge everyone to go to Menard's first as most of the registry is stuff I scanned.

The Super Bowl:

We hosted a Super Bowl party in our bar, thanks to everyone who was able to come! We had a great time entertaining. Special thanks to Mike Reed for bringing his home brew, it was excellent. Unfortunately we will now have to endure a full year of listening to our WI friends reminding us of the Packers victory and of Brett Favre's texting scandal. At least now with the football season over I can look forward to the upcoming baseball season and year 2 of outdoor baseball in MN.

We are getting married 7 months from today!!!

I am getting SO excited to marry Nick! We are starting to do more and more planning and organizing and it finally feels like the wedding is coming up rather than so far in the distant future. It's also really fun because my sister and her fiance, Bryce, are getting closer to setting a date and picking a venue also. EEEK--sister wedding planning! :) We've had some family members and out of town friends ask about hotel accommodations since we announced our date. SO, for those of you that want to get ahead, here is the information:

Mankato Country Inn and Suites Conference Center
1900 Premier Drive
Mankato, MN 56001 
(507) 388-8555
‎

We have a block of rooms (Sykora-Lewis Wedding) that are discounted, so be sure to call and tell them you're with us! The reception will be held in the conference center area of the hotel. There is also a free continental breakfast for Sunday morning. :)


The ceremony part will take place at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Peter. This is the church that Nick went to growing up, so it is special for us to get married there. Yay! The drive between the church and the hotel is about 20 minutes.

SO, those are the details for all you early planners...

Overdue update...

I was hoping that if I waited a month between blogs, maybe Nick would jump in again. I guess not. But, it's been awhile, so here I go...

2011 has been good to us so far. I have continued to enjoy my job as a middle school counselor more and more every day. I work with wonderful people, and the kids are...well...a little bit of everything. They are funny, caring, sensitive, full of emotions (and hormones) they can't describe, and a little bit of trouble. I love it! I am also settling into my other job at Safari Island in Waconia (about 5 miles from our house). I work in the aquatics program as a lifeguard, swimming teacher, and swim coach. I am there about 10-20 hours a week, and I am SO grateful that I have time to be so involved in the community doing something I absolutely love. Yesterday when we went to church, it was so fun to see one of my little swimming lesson girls up there in the kid's choir. Growing up in a small town where everyone knew everyone, I'm feeling so much more at home finding these little connections here in my new hometown.

Nick has done a lot of traveling so far this year. If you keep up with him on Facebook, he is having a lot of fun posting the temperature of his travel destinations. He was in Miami last week (82 and sunny) and New Orleans and San Diego the week before that. I am SO jealous! However, he is going back to New Orleans in June for a conference, and I am able to go with him! I have never been to New Orleans, so I am very excited to do some sightseeing!!!

Wedding planning has been going well. I ordered a dress (YAY!), and I am going bridesmaid dress shopping February 19 with my four closest and best friends who have agreed to stand up for me during our wedding. Want to know who's in the wedding?!

LeeAnn, Me

 LeeAnn Lewis (maid of honor, sister)

Sheila Buske (matron of honor, wing-man)

Diana Gagnon (HS/college friends forever)

Kelsey Sparks (HS/college friends forever)

Sheila, Me, Kelsey

Me, Kelsey, Diana

Todd, Mike, Nick

Justin Sykora (best man, Nick's brother)

Todd Willems (fraternity brother, college friend)

Mike Amundsen (fraternity brother, college friend)

Mike Reed (friend)

(Sorry, no pictures of Justin or Reed...)

Our furbabies are doing well. Milo had a booster shot this morning and weighed 37 pounds at the vet. We were expecting him to be in the 40's this time around...he just seems like he's getting so big! He's getting better about the potting training, but I think we are still a ways away from being able to trust him. Milo and Sera are getting along better and better every day. They get in to so much trouble together, but it is also so fun to watch them play together.

Hopes for 2011

We made a list of our hopes for 2011 together when we were doing our Christmas blog. Here are the big ones!

We are MOST EXCITED for our wedding August 27. We hope to be done planning by then!

We hope that Milo becomes potty trained. After the potty training, we will move onto training him to become a successful hunting dog for Nick.

We really hope Jana’s job is renewed at Wayzata West for next year. She accepted the position on a temporary basis originally. (Prayers are welcome on this one.)

We hope to fix our garage floor and get a new garage door. We know this won’t be as fun or rewarding as the bar project, but it's the next project on our list.

We hope LeeAnn and Bryce set a date and tie the knot so Bryce can officially be a brother-in-law!

We hope all our friends and family (and yours!) are happy and healthy now and throughout 2011.

Happy New Year!!!

Thank you to so many of our friends that came to Mayer to ring in the New Year with us in our newly remodeled rec room/bar. We have been working SO hard to get it finished, and it was awesome to finally get to use it! It was fun to see everyone in their red and black so thanks for getting into the theme with us!

Thanks especially to:

• Bryce for bartending and playing DJ. Can't wait till you're my B-in-law.
• Brent for being the best guitar hero partner and the constant laughs
• Kelsey for bringing the ice globes, and we LOVE the coasters!
• The Reeds for coming and surviving night #1 away from Alex. Come again soon!
• Buske for driving my "wing man" out to see me! :)
• Sheila for reminding/teaching us how to play P & A.
• LeeAnn for being a BLAST even though she had to get up & go to work. Love you sis!
• Amundsen for helping on the bar! Glad you were there to enjoy it with us!
• Kyle for driving the farthest! It was great to see you!

This might need to be a new annual tradition!

I love this guy! :)

Looking snazzy in our red & black!

Me and Kelsey: best in theme :)

Pictures of the finished bar...you'll notice the red & black decorations for the party and probably a few random cleaning supplies due to finishing sort of last minute.

I love this bar!

Best place in the house for TV and video games.

I used old cabinet doors to make the picture frame on the wall here.

Another homemade picture frame and our fish tank. We have 10 African Cichlids.

And just in case you are interested in a "before" picture, here is a picture from about the time I moved into the house in April. It's probably about halfway through the renovation considering Nick had already removed and redone the wood paneling, dry-walled the room and replaced the tile. This is the corner where we built the bar.