Shoo Flu...

Monday morning I got my flu shot.

And then I felt like I got hit by a train and came straight home after work and never got back up. But I woke up this morning feeling great so all is good.

Every year I get a flu shot, and every year I get the flu.

But I seriously can't imagine how bad it would be each year if I didn't get the flu shot. I know some people don't believe in the flu shot, but anyone that knows me well, knows when I get sick...I get sick in a big way.

Last February I got really sick with the flu. And then I gave it to Steve. He is the best sick person ever. Or not.

And a year or so before that in February I ended up on the floor of the waiting room in the emergency room at St. Luke's as my husband, in his suit, begged me to get up. That was gross. We also had to cancel our vacation to Philadelphia. And then my mom (stupidly, sorry but it's true, Mom) came and took care of me (and Nate who was an infant at the time and was also sick; that part of my mom taking care of him wasn't stupid) and then both my Dad and her got sick the following week on their cruise.

Right now I have a work conference in a warm destination in February. I'm glad I'm not a betting person...

Engagement!

One of my BFF's, Michelle, is engaged!

Michelle and David (I call him the Dr. - not because he is a doctor but because those are his initials) got engaged on Michelle's birthday!

Michelle and David live in Napa Valley but ironically are both from Missouri. Thank god for that bar in San Mateo, CA playing that Mizzou basketball game.

Not only is Michelle one of my closest friends but is also a sorority sister (although she went to Mizzou as you can guess from the paragraph above).

When the bomb squad met about 9-years ago at Ad Club, Allison, Michelle and I were swinging single in a big way. We've been through a lot, we have too many hilarious stories and we have all come a long ways together!

Boo at the Zoo

Ann, Nate (aka Superman) and I enjoyed a beautiful fall Saturday morning at Boo at the Zoo.

Nate and I climbed to the top of the big tree at zoo. Nate told me about his good balance all the way up and down. The stairs were amazingly steep and narrow for a children's tree house. Clark's Tower is next on his list.

This kid loves all animals (and super heros). Additionally we were very close to rats which I chose not to include out of respect for his grandma.

Nate walked right up and held this huge snake. No fear.

Nate chose one of favorite animals at the zoo to ride - the Sea Lion.

Nate threw his hands up every time we saw his mom!

And then we came home and Uncle Steve grilled us burgers. A lot of burgers.

Lion King Bound

Ann and I recently got tickets to the broadway production of The Lion King. We are going in early November.

We are both very excited! Unlike when we went to Wicked with the boys, this time it's going to be just the two of us. And by the location of our tickets, I think our seats reflect the benefit of it being a girls' night.

The last time I saw The Lion King was probably eight years ago. It was in Hollywood and I sat directly behind Vanessa Willams and Rick Fox. Being a midwest girl, that alone was very exciting and I took every opportunity to touch their coats, make contact with them, etc. It was an excellent night.

And the show was excellent, too. Extremely excellent.

Allison and Kevin's wedding reception was wonderful.

The bride and groom danced...

Steve went to the men's room...

Steve and David (Michelle's boyfriend) spent way too much time looking through the inside window...

Steve actually looked at the camera while smiling...

I danced with the bride. Then I danced with the groom to Journey like we were on Dancing With The Stars....

We reverted back to our natural sorority sister poses (amazing even though we all went to different colleges)...


I ended up with a cigar that I smoked like it was a straw...


Then I learned that a couple that smokes cigars together after very special occasions (even if one member has no idea how to do it and apparently chooses a cigar that is heavier than her mouth), stays together.

Ceremony & Trolley Festivities

After a very meaningful ceremony with the longest wedding kiss EVER, the wedding party was off for some beer, pictures, tandem bike surprises and trolley fun...

Beautiful Bride

Saturday morning came bright and early and the wedding festivities began!

I got to play make-up artist and do the bride's make-up. I've done plenty of other people's make-up, including Allison's, but we weren't exactly going for the "club" look so I was a little on the nervous side considering the occassion.

But both the bride and her mom gave me two-thumbs up, so off we were to put her in her dress.

Beyond beautiful...

The Bomb Squad Personal Attendants. Jen, Allison, Michelle and me.

The Pierce/Pinkowski Rehearsal Dinner

Friday night we celebrated Kevin & Allison's upcoming wedding with their friends and family at their rehearsal dinner.

It was at The Cashew which is where they met (all classy couples meet at bars; and I encourage all friends to follow Steve and my path of us meeting at a bar even though he was talking to some "not so classy girls") so that alone made it a special night.

I had the honor of giving an impromptu speech/toast. I think I had one too many glasses of wine beforehand, but it was memorable if nothing else! And thankfully people were complimenting me afterwards. I clearly remember now why I didn't drink until after I gave my maid-of-honor speech at Jacque & Jason's wedding...

Allison, Jen and me. Michelle was still en route from Napa around this time.

Allison's dad's family is ironically from Storm Lake. For years I have wanted to meet her grandma Jenny because she was good friends with Mary Jane who is Cynthia Robinson's mom and Jen/Wendy's grandma. She was as amazing as I have always heard and I really enjoyed talking to her. Steve spent lots of time talking to Allison's grandpa throughout the weekend and also to her cousin and her husband who graduated with his siblings so he talked about SL probably more in 24-hours than he has his first 35-years on this earth!

Right before this picture we were talking about our "porn names" (first street/first pet) that we used in Chicago during Allison's bachelorette party.

He is almost looking at the camera. If I knew photo shop, his pupils would be looking at the camera.

After the bride-to-be headed home for her last night as a "Pierce", we hung out with Kevin and all of his Tennessee friends (which is where he is from) before calling it a night.

The New Book Baby is a...

BOY!

It's all very exciting. The baby is healthy. Ann is (finally) starting to feel better. And the doctor has moved up her due date to around March 4.

Yesterday, Nate told me his baby brother is going to be a Super Hero and arrive on the train.

Just based on that, this is going to be one exciting ride...

Pinky McGee

I have three cousins (all from the same family). Steve has what seems like 50 first cousins spread out over multiple aunts and uncles.

One of those cousins, David, was in KC for work from Boston so we spent Monday night with him. I had met him once seven-years ago at David's brother's wedding, but I didn't know him. All I remember about him was him jumping in the hotel pool in Boone in his tuxedo. I know it's shocking since he's a Seiler and all.

Well now I do know him, and I like what I know. We had a great time! He is really fun to be around, as is anyone with Seiler blood in them.

We had dinner at 1924 Main. We had a three-course dinner that had a wine flight that went along with it. Well Dave's food choices presented themselves with some girly pink wine. In a nutshell, he started talking about Pinky McGee. We don't know what that meant, but we liked it. And then we went to The Cashew for drinks and they had two-for-one martinis (duh) so next thing I know I have two very strong pink martinis. Lots o' Pinky McGee.

It was fun to get to know him and really funny to hear them talk about stories growing up. Why do the Seiler's have stories that no other family have? Other families don't even come close to what they've got. Not even close!

Apples & Cider

On Sunday, Steve and I drove up to Shenandoah, Iowa to visit my Grandma & Grandpa Book.

This wasn't a regular visit. This was an apple picking, cider making visit.

And apple picking and cider making is what Steve and I did, for more than six hours.

We picked thousands of apples (a variety of types I should add). And then using an apple cider maker that has to be close to 100-years old, we crushed the apples, pressed the juice into a container and then filled over 25-gallons of jugs with apple cider.

And then we picked even more apples and took home two large garbage sacks full back to KC.

It was OOC to say the least.

But at least many of Steve/Ann's neighbors and our neighbors are now set with both apples and cider for a lifetime. Or at least until it all goes bad in a couple of weeks.

To serve as a friendly reminder of our age, my back and legs are now extremely sore and stiff from this six-hours of goodness. And I don't think Steve is much better. But good times were had by all, so like many great things in life, it was well worth it.

Here is a photo of Nate with the apple cider maker a couple of weeks ago.

My Mom

Happy Birthday to my mom whose birthday was on Saturday!

She is here for a couple of days taking care of Nate, so I'm sure we'll celebrate by her cooking meals and taking care of all of us. Just like she has done her past 34 birthdays....

BBQ Bash

Friday night we headed down to the American Royal BBQ Bash at Kemper Arena with a group of friends.

We had a couple private parties to attend as well hitting up some public ones, too.

KC BBQ joints are solid but nothing compares to the BBQ that is cooked here. Unbelievable.

As soon as we arrived, we ran into AZ! So he joined us in Guy's tent (neighbors of Steve/Ann) for some BBQ, beer and a random margarita.


At the second party, Art Bentley was playing! I was extremely excited considering Ann, our friend Amber, and I had a mild obsession with him in our early-20's whenever he played at Harpos. It's been a while since I've been in my early 20's because I don't remember him looking like this at all. I guess we all grow up.

Yep, just kissing a pig bus with Kellie.

Our pink pig hats Steve purchased for us at the Meat Mitch party!

Barb's Brigade

On September 20, Steve's sister, Julie, organized a team for their mom, Barb, called "Barb's Brigade" for the Des Moines Walk for PDK.

Their grandma and now their mom have unfortunately both been afflicted with this disease.

Here is the information Julie posted for those who are not familiar with PDK:

For 25 years, the PKD Foundation has led the fight against Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) through vital research funding and patient education. Now, 16 clinical trials offer help and hope to the 12.5 million newborns, children and adults, worldwide, with PKD. As many of you know in the fall of 2003 my mom was diagnosed with PKD, the same disease my grandmother passed away from in 1997. Most people aren’t familiar with the disease unless they know someone who has lived with it, so I will give you a brief background on the disease and its effects with information I obtained from www.pkdcure.org.· PKD affects 1 in 500 people and comes in two forms ADPKD and ARPKD. · ADPKD is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases. ADPKD is not just a kidney disorder; other organs can be affected, including the liver, spleen, pancreas, and intestines.· ARPKD is a rare genetic disorder that affects approximately 1 in 20,000 individuals· A normal kidney is the size of a human fist and weighs about a third of a pound. However, with the presence of PKD, cysts develop in both kidneys. When many cysts develop, the kidneys can grow to be the size of a football or larger and weigh as much as 38 pounds each. There may be just a few cysts or many, and the cysts may range in size from a pinhead to the size of a grapefruit· There is currently no treatment or cure for PKD.

Talking the Talk and Walking the Walk

Steve is a popular guy. But I'll tell you since the news about the banking side of his company being sold came out and the market in general has happened, this guy is like the star quarterback of the high school team at homecoming. Everyone wants to talk with him.

I listen to him talk about it on the phone, I listen to him talk about it in person, I see him watching and reading about it.

This husband guy of mine is amazing. For almost eight-years I've tried to understand what he does for a living. I'm still not exactly sure but I do know he's an expert in his field. And, wow, when he talks, people listen.