Things that are but shouldn't be

More than half of the pan of oatmeal brownie cookie bars shouldn't be gone, but they are. They especially shouldn't be gone because I just made them yesterday afternoon and only two people live in this house and we didn't give any away and... one of those two people is a dietitian.

No, more than half of the pan really shouldn't be gone...but it is and it was delicious!

American Idol Summer Tour 2009

My friend Amy got four tickets to the American Idol concert for her birthday, with which she was kind enough to create a fabulous girls night out.

Here are the concert goers all ready for the night!
Jessica, Camille, Amy, and me

Unfortunately I didn't watch any of the 2009 American Idol season so I was a little clueless about the performers. Luckily, Jess and Amy watched the season religiously and so I sat right between them so they could fill me in on all the gossip, life stories, etc. of the performers.

The concert was full of a very diverse audience -- everyone from 12 year old screaming girls to older "parent" aged people. We sang and screamed the night away and loved every minute of it.

Berkshires

Jeremy and I went to the Berkshires last weekend (Western Massachusetts). While we were there we climbed the highest mountain in Massachusetts, Mt. Greylock. Pretty impressive right? I won't mention that the entire mountain is only 3,492 feet high. I realize the entire city of Denver is at a higher elevation than this, but it sounds impressive to say we hiked the highest mountain in the state so while we live in "hilly" Massachusetts we will take whatever titles we can get.

I was really excited about the "waterfalls" that we were supposed to be able to see on the way up. I put "waterfalls" in quotes because this little stream it the biggest waterfall we came across.

We made it to the top and took this picture standing in front of the monument to prove it!

That night we babysat my sister's kids so she and her husband to go to a Boston Pops concert at Tanglewood. Here is Jeremy with Oakley and Tessa fishing.

We built a fire and had s'mores.

and we can't forget about fun times hanging out with tiny Hathaway (this is the only picture we took with her in it)

Come to Marblehead

If you ever come visit us in Boston, remind us to take you to Marblehead...it is gorgeous! Jeremy and I made our first adventure there last weekend and I definitely don't think it will be our last.

Marblehead is a quaint city along the coast with great parks to relax in and millions of dollars worth of sail boats in the water to admire. We spent our day having a picnic in the park, getting ice cream, laying on the grass reading books, soaking up the sun, and visiting the nearby lighthouse. The perfect, relaxing day!

The Smith's

Yep, here is my family -- the Barrie and Jan Smith's. When we all get together there is quite a lot of craziness and the noise level keeps rising, but we always have a great time and love being together.

This year we finally found a place was the big enough for kids to run around and for adults to have a little quite time when needed. We went to West Virginia and stayed in this amazing -- 5 story, 10 bedroom, 14 bathroom, indoor pool, 2 kitchens, outdoor hot tub, (the list could go on) -- house! It was the perfect place for us and I wish we could take the house with us wherever we want to vacation next.

There was some great scenery nearby.

Plenty of time for makeup and jewelry.

A few glamor shots with some of the sisters.

We stayed up way too late every night, ate more junk food than I would like to admit, and left with some unforgettable memories with family.

Could it get any better?