Chicago Trip!

My girls and I returned from our trip to Chicago for Sunshine's 14th birthday a little over a week ago. We had way too much fun. We had been looking forward to this trip for quite a while and I can't believe that it has already come and gone.



We took the train.

It was our first time on an Amtrak train and we actually enjoyed the 5.5 hour ride from St. Louis.



The train station in St. Louis was VERY tiny, but Union Station in Chicago was huge and beautiful!! One thing that surprised me.....nothing, no luggage, no person NOTHING was scanned thru any kind of security.

There was a snack car on board, where you could get drinks, snacks even a sandwich or pizza. The snack car has tables, so occasionally we would sit in there and play cards.

Each seat on the train had a power outlet, that was nice for plugging in a computer, DVD player, or even charging your phone.

Like airline travel, purchasing your train tickets in advance is cheaper, and train tickets are much cheaper than airfare. An adult ticket round trip from St. Louis to Chicago was only $56!

We shopped the Magnificent Mile



Enjoyed GREAT food!!




Our favorites were Ed Debevics, Carson's Ribs and Bubba Gumps. Fantastic food and service at all of them!

Carson's Ribs is where we ate for Sunshine's birthday dinner, and she said it was her favorite part of the whole trip!!! The girls both had ribs and I had chicken.....all of it was incredible!

Shedd Aquarium did not disappoint!



Lot's of photo ops



We went up in the Sears/Willis Tower and Sky Deck, we took a Fireworks/Architectural cruise and we went to Navy Pier and took the water taxi over to Shedd Aquarium.
We LOVED Chicago



And I think the girls had a fabulous time!!



I can't believe it is over.

If you want to see all of the pictures I took (most have not been edited) but they're all in a flickr album here



Back to reality and house work!.........because

BRIDGET is coming to visit on Thursday!!!

pop over and read this NEW article about Bridget here!


Photo by David Hopper

Baking by Blog in Bridget's Kitchen (by Kim Morgan)

SOOOO......How about you?
Have you taken a vacation this summer?
Any fun visitors?
What has been the best part of your summer?

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Winners, June round up and blog news

First, I have a few winners to announce........

Button of Hope Giveaway

Congrats to :

16. Kayla said...

"I made a tweet! Also, Cancer has hit home twice in my immediate family which is why I now am a nurse!"

Send me an email Kay with your information and I will pass it on to Cindy so she can get you a pair of earrings, a set of hair pins and a necklace, of your choice

Flirty Apron Giveaway

Congrats goes out to:

74. Tracy said...

"I love the Sweet Sunshine one...so cute!!"

Tracy, I've already sent your information to Flirty Aprons.

***********

A Big *gushy* thanks to the top referrers to TidyMom in June....

Bake at 350

Reluctant Entertainer

University of Cookie

Hoosier Homemade

How Does She

We Are That Family

Food Gawker

Tastespotting

320 Sycamore

i heart faces

***********

Have you seen the Broadway show Wicked?
Hollywood, my mom and I saw it here in St. Louis in 2007. We LOVED it!! Sunshine has been anxiously waiting for it to come back so she could go.

Her 6 month count down (she literally told me how many more days for nearly 6 months lol) finally ended last Sunday night, when we went to the Fabulous Fox Theater, which is a treat it's self.

I love this picture I shot of the two of them outside the theater before the show.



If you have not seen the show, I HIGHLY recommend it!!


REMINDER
This discount ends tonight at midnight EST

Want to know more about Clickin Mom's read my post here


*HURRY------Now thru midnight EST on Friday July 2, 2010 you can
use the discount code FRIEND at checkout, you will get 10% off any subscription,
or coupon code LOVECM for 20% off a lifetime subscription.

and last but not least........

I'm still keeping up with my 365 project!!

Remember, you can start your own 365 project at any time! It's a GREAT way to learn your camera and improve your photography!!
I PROMISE, if you sign up at Clickin Mom's and try a 365 project, by this time next year you will be AMAZED at the improvement in your photography!

My June 2010



**NOTE**

Recently I mentioned I was working on a blog makeover......well, I'm actually taking the plunge and moving to WordPress!! {squeal}. My site will still be TidyMom.net, but if you follow my blog in Google Friends Connect, you may have to resubscribe.

So hang tight........hopefully August will bring great things! A new blog home and look, as well as my 2 year blogiversary! We may have to "party it up" a bit!.....

I'm working on lining up some great giveaways for August, so if you have a site and want to participate in all the excitement, just shoot me an email tidymom{at}charter{dot}net and we can talk about getting you on the list!!
~Please put "Aug giveaway" in the subject line. ~


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Father's Day Cookies & 24 years ♥

My husband doesn't eat many of the "treats" that I make.
But he LOVES my butter cookies......

and I'm getting better with royal icing, thanks to some of the fantastic how-to video's over at University of Cookie! Bridget's "Making Royal Icing- video tutorial" was SO helpful!

So we decided for Father's Day, we'd make him some cookies.



Sunshine has been dying to learn how to decorate with rolled fondant.

So we picked up a few supplies
and some ready made fondant
and made little hearts for our I ♥ Dad t-shirt cookies



We are going to sign up for some classes at Michaels, but check out the flower she made all on her own with out an instruction!



What plans do you have for Father's Day?
are you baking anything special?

Sunday is also our 24th Wedding Anniversary!♥

This is part of what I wrote last year.........

I know that I love waking up next to you every morning. I love knowing that you’ll make me laugh out loud every day. I love talking to you and sharing everything with you. I love that you put up with me and all my flaws. I love that you are THE best Dad and provider for our family! I love that you NEVER let us down. I love that your family ALWAYS comes first. I love that you tell me I look fabulous when I feel fat. I love that you hug me when I cry. I love that you will go to the store when I don't feel like going. I love that you will pick up pizza when I don't feel like cooking. I love that you know me. I LOVE that you LOVE me. I love that it’s painfully obvious that our 2 kids are our 2 kids and they have good and bad features/traits/habits from each of us. I hope we have managed to set an example for our girls as to what a happy, successful marriage is.

~Love you honey!!!

You can read more about why I love this man here!

Hope you all have a WONDERFUL father's day!

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St. Louis Komen Race for the Cure- signed up!

Every year, on a Saturday in mid June the streets of downtown St. Louis are painted pink.

(there are people as far as the eye can see ahead of us and behind us)

I just registered my family for this year's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on June 12, 2010.

Each year since 2000 our family and extended family has participated in the St. Louis Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, it's one of the biggest in the country.

In 1999 my wonderful, funny, sweet, loving sister-in-law, Bobbie Brennan, was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. We all walked as a family to support her fight in June 2000. It was an AWESOME event! By March 2001 at 49 years old, Bobbie lost her battle with breast cancer. She left behind a loving husband, 3 children and missed out on seeing her daughter give birth to triplets, her first grand children(pictured here with The Bug Man). Bobbie's family and friends all still gathered in June that year to walk in Bobbie's memory, and we have continued the tradition every year since then!






The picture to the left is one of Hollywood's favorite pictures of her and Aunt Bobbie! ♥ It just show's how much she enjoyed and loved her!


Our team, Brennan-Nickel Brigade now walks every year in Bobbie's memory and in support of Teri Nickel, Bobbie's niece who fought breast cancer shortly after and has been in remission for several years now!

Our family has grown, Bobbie now has 7 grandchildren, and our team has grown! This picture was taken last year of part of our team along with our team banner.

It's such an overwhelming event to participate in. The SEA of people and pink walking thru the streets of downtown St. Louis is UNBELIEVABLE.

Even though most of us only participate in the 1 mile walk........we still get our picture at the finish line.

* Yes - Sunshine colored part of her hair pink last year *

After the walk, we all usually gather for a fun day at the park, a restaurant or someone's house. What ever we do, it's a fun day and awesome way to celebrate Bobbie's life!

The Susan G. Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure hit the ground running in 1999 - the first St. Louis race immediately earned the distinction of being the largest road race ever held in the city. The 10,257 St. Louis Race participants set and still hold a Komen record as the largest first-year event of any race around the globe. Today, the Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure is one of the largest in the Komen Race for the Cure Series and one of the top five largest 5K races in the world!


Over 66,000 people gathered for the 11th Annual Race downtown St. Louis in June 2009. The event raised over 3.2 million dollars in the fight against breast cancer, with 75% of those funds staying in St. Louis to help organizations provide breast cancer education, screening and treatment programs.

June 12 2010 is sure to be even bigger!

If you live in or near St. Louis, and have never participated, I highly encourage you to help make the St. Louis Race for the Cure another huge success!
If you can't be at the race, it's easy to make a donation.

"Imagine life without breast cancer"

This post sponsored by:

want to see your ad here? contact me

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I'm Lovin' It! - 1st School Dance

Welcome to the Party!!
*********************

Last weekend was Sunshine's 8th grade dance. Her first school dance!
As a mom, this is a bitter sweet moment we go through, allowing our babies to venture out to real life events, and allow them to feel more grown up for a night.

We shopped until we found just the right dress and shoes, her sister did her hair, and she had her nails painted the perfect color! All in preparation for the big night.

They all went as a big group of friends!



Best Friend Beauties!
I can't get over how grown up they look!


(Sunshine is on the left)

The girls all showed up first to take pictures....the boys arrived shortly after.
I got this shot of the girls as the boys showed up!
Don't you just love the looks on the girls faces as they see the boys all dressed up!♥

Of course, just because I’m the mother of a 14-year-old (which, by definition, makes me an embarrassment), I don’t intend to stop following her around with my camera! lol

As I watched my (not so) little girl and her friends dance, share and laugh with excitement thru out the evening,

I realized that the eight years since she had been a kindergartner went by SO quickly and deposited her on the other side of childhood.......the side that leans much too much towards adulthood.



As I watched her first dance with a boy!
{sniff sniff........where's my tissue?}



The night was a huge success!
Fun was had by all!

I can't stand it!

It seems like just yesterday we took this picture!

So this week..........I'm loving my baby girl and watching her grow up{all too fast}!

You can see all of the pictures I took that night by clicking here.

This post sponsored by:

want to see your ad here? contact me

****************************

I'm Lovin' It is a party I host at the end of each week to celebrate things that makes us happy....things we are loving! Please share anything from a new(or old) product, to a recipe, a picture you took, a project, or even your children or family.....really anything that you would like to share that you are loving right now!!

Now it’s your turn, let us know what you’re lovin' this week! If you have something to share with us on your blog, add your link below. Just please be sure to:

1. Add the permalink to the specific blog post, not your general blog address in the MckLinky form below (need help with finding the permalink? click here to see a great post Darcy wrote on this!)
   
2. Include in your blog entry a link back to this post so that your readers can come and see what everyone else is loving today and have an opportunity to contribute! You can use the code below to add the banner to your posts or blog if you'd like.
   
3. Visit as many of the other participants as possible and leave comments! That’s what makes a party fun!! You don't want to come to a party and have no one talk to you!!
   
4. Let me know if you have any questions, problems or need help!
   

The party will stay open until May 23, 2010 11pm CST.

If you want to play along don't forget to grab a button to place at the top or bottom of your post to show you are participating in I'm Lovin' It Fridays!
Simply copy the code below in the box and paste where you can edit the html in your blog post.

<a href="http://www.tidymom.net"><img border="0" src="http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/tidymom/my%20blog%20stuff/layout%20stuff/Imlovinit_button.png" /></a>





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I'm Lovin' It - My Mom

Welcome to the Party!! I'm Lovin' It is a party I host at the end of each week to celebrate things that makes us happy....things we are loving! Please share anything from a new(or old) product, to a recipe, a picture you took, a project, or even your children or family.....really anything that you would like to share that you are loving right now!!

Quick bit of blog news:

~ EDITED - VOTING IS OVER AND I WON!!! ~
I have been nominated over at i am mommy for "Best Overall Blog"
**The winner of each category will receive a $50 cash prize.......If I win I plan to spend a day using the $50 to perform Random Acts of Kindness. (inspired by this post)

Thanks so much for voting! It's a tight race right now, so every single vote counts!
Voting ends on Monday May 10 - one vote per computer

Click here to vote at i am mommy

Since Mother's Day is this weekend.........

I thought it would share how much I love my MOM!♥



My mom has been thru a lot in the last several years since we lost my dad, but thru it all she has remained strong! She has over come all of the obstacles life has thrown at her, and she never lets them get her down for long.



Each spring we like to go out and buy plants together. We made an unplanned stop at a wonderful nursery last weekend.
She made fun of me for taking so many pictures......
I told her it's the only way I can have plants and not kill them! lol



I want to share my favorite Mom poem:
~Author Unknown

Thank you God....

For pretending not to notice that one of your angels is missing and for lending her to me. You must have known how much I would need her, so you turned your head for a minute and allowed her to slip away to me.

Sometimes I wonder what special name you had for her. I call her "Mother." To think of not having her with me is unbearable. I don't know what I would have done without her all these years. She has loved me without reservation, whether I deserved to be loved or not. Willingly and happily, she has fed me, clothed me, taught me, encouraged me, inspired me, and with her own special brand of gentleness reprimanded me.

A bit of Heaven's own blue, her eyes reflect hope and love for you and her family. She has tried to instill that love in us. She's not the least bit afraid of work. With her constant scrubbing, polishing, painting, and fixing, she has made the house we lived in a beautiful home. When I'm confused, she sets me straight. She knows what matters and what doesn't... what to hold onto and what to let go of.

You have given her an endless supply of love. She gives it away freely but never seems to run low. Even before I am aware I have a need, she is making plans and working to supply it. You gave her great patience. She is the best listener I have met. With understanding and determination she always seems to turn a calamity into some kind of success. She urges me to carry my own load in life but is always close by when I stumble and fall.

She hurts when I hurt. She cries when I cry. And she will not be happy until she has seen a smile on my face once more. God, please thank the other angels for filling in for her while she is away. I know it hasn't been easy. Her shoes would be hard to fill. She has to be one of your GREATEST MIRACLES God, and I want to thank you for lending my Mother to me.

I love my Mom so much and I don't know what I would do without her and I want to thank her for everything that she has done for me ♥

I LOVE you Mom!

I've linked this post to The Inspired Room's Inspiring Finds
******************
Now it’s your turn, let us know what you’re lovin' this week! If you have something to share with us on your blog, add your link below. Just please be sure to:

1. Add the permalink to the specific blog post, not your general blog address in the MckLinky form below (need help with finding the permalink? click here to see a great post Darcy wrote on this!)
   
2. Include in your blog entry a link back to this post so that your readers can come and see what everyone else is loving today and have an opportunity to contribute! You can use the code below to add the banner to your posts or blog if you'd like.
   
3. Visit as many of the other participants as possible and leave comments! That’s what makes a party fun!! You don't want to come to a party and have no one talk to you!!
   
4. Let me know if you have any questions, problems or need help!
   

The party will stay open until May 9, 2010 11pm CST.

If you want to play along don't forget to grab a button to place at the top or bottom of your post to show you are participating in I'm Lovin' It Fridays!
Simply copy the code below in the box and paste where you can edit the html in your blog post.

<a href="http://www.tidymom.net"><img border="0" src="http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/tidymom/my%20blog%20stuff/layout%20stuff/Imlovinit_button.png" /></a>

I'm going to try something new this week....... the thumbnail links instead of text links. If anyone has any problems or needs any help just let me know, you can leave a comment or email me tidymom{at}charter{dot}net




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