2 year anniversary road trip

TWO YEAR ROAD TRIP!!

Kor's Bday party in DC :)

This year's anniversary road trip extravaganza started with a surprise birthday visit to Kor in DC. After hanging out and celebrating the 5th anniversary of her 21st birthday, Ben and I rented a car and started wandering southward down the east coast.






There was plenty of car concert singing before we pulled into the Embassy Suites in Hampton, VA late Sunday afternoon. One fancy Taco Bell drive thru dinner and approximately 23 minutes later, and we were both dead to the world.

road trips & complimentary drinks at the hotel every night

road trippin'

Monday we drove to Virginia Beach. It was HOT. 107 degrees. It was HUMID. It was GREAT. Ben wanted to go into the ocean... but I had just finished watching every episode of Shark Week on Netflix a week or so before. Pair this with the fact that I had scrapped my food while in DC and that I'm not too keen on the idea of being mauled by a shark (who can smell blood up to 1 mile away, thank you Discovery Channel), I politely declined his invitation.


After an hour or so of baking in the sun, we found ourselves some air conditioning and a cold beer. While sipping our suds, Ben struck up a conversation with the bartender about how I wouldn't go swimming in the ocean because of sharks. The bartender, in turn, told us about how there was a great white spotted the week before.... about two miles offshore... for about 4 days in a row.... and that authorities were tracking it because it seemed to be hunting..... told ya so.

Monday night we got a couple complimentary drinks in the hotel lobby, then went for some fresh seafood dinner on the James River. So good!


Tuesday was AUGUST 13th!!! Our two year anniversary!! We had breakfast at the hotel and then drove back over to Virginia Beach. This time, I was feeling feisty and ready to cross off another bucket list item: swim in the ocean.

swimming at Virginia Beach

Here's where it gets tricky.
1- My swim skills start and end with the doggy paddle. 2- I don't do sharks. 3- The ocean is the final frontier. Who knows what type of tentacle-clad gooey monster is lurking beneath the waves thinking about taking a nibble of me. Creepy. Long story short, it took me awhile to wade out and do my anxious doggy paddling like no body's business.... but it happened.


After swimming, we watched some air force jets take off and land right across the street from where we were parked. Feeling the air force fever, we then decided to go to an air museum. There were a ton of really awesome planes.

air museum

For our anniversary dinner, we had decided that we should do fresh seafood (again). So we found a restaurant with an all you can eat seafood buffet. We practically gorged ourselves on fresh king crab meat, oysters, flounder, salmon, clams, blue crab, and shrimp. Ben asked a waiter to take our photo with our "2" sign. Ten minutes later, we had a champagne glasses and a cupcake with a candle delivered to our table.

2 year dinner :)

Wednesday we traveled back to DC for our afternoon flight back to MKE.  But that wasn't before my first trip to Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery

Then there was a quick flight, and bada bing bada boom we were home.

xoxo, b

I went skydiving

Brianna & I in our harnesses

Yesterday, I took a perfectly good plane to 14,000 feet and jumped out.

I went skydiving. 

Our group was the first group of the day, so after our 20 minute "this is what to expect" class it was immediately time to suit up. I was so, so excited. Jumping around like a damn fool excited.

ready to board the plane

There were a few more photos and then we loaded into the plane, and I got very close to a strange man. Once it was time to jump......it was time to jump. No dilly dallying, no time to rethink anything. Let's do this thing.

Brianna was the first to go. It was definitely odd to watch your sister disappear from a plane at 14,000 feet. 

When it was my turn to waddle to the door and stand on the edge of the plane and absolutely nothing else, I honestly can't say that I was scared. It was surreal. It was just what was going to happen. Besides, the 007 theme song was playing full blast in my head. And it's hard to be afraid when your brain is playing James Bond music and you are about to do something totally awesome.

standing on the edge

Just like that, the plane was a thing of the past and we were doing a nose dive back to earth at roughly 120mph. The one thing I wasn't expecting was how hard it was to breath regularly when air is rushing by at those speeds. So I was smiling and laughing and gulping for air and yeah, being awkward. I didn't know what to do with my hands. I put them out, but that's not terribly comfortable at high speed. I waved to the camera. I let them dangle like the noodle-y arms that they are. At one point I was doggy paddling through the air. What the heck?

In the majority of the photos and video, my face and arms and any inch of my body with exposed skin resembles a wrinkly puppy.

parachute time

 Soon it was all over and we were landing...

that's wassup.

Same time next week?


Mom doesn't know that Brianna and I did a little bit of skydiving yesterday. We emailed her video clips of our jumps, because apparently we are mean children and don't just call. Can't wait to hear from her!       * update: I'm supposed to work on "nicer" bucket list things....like making her a grand baby or finishing a patchwork quilt. Thanks mom. 

xoxo, b

the ugly cry

first business trip

 Ben departed for New York this morning sometime around 4am. I'm not 100% sure on the exact time because, hell, it was 4am and frankly, I was ugly crying. No single glistening tear on this cheek. No, no. More like a pitiful pajama-clad, bedhead me standing lost in the living room trying to keep it together. I don't know about the rest of the population, but when I'm tired and sad my ugly cry is straight out of an 80's horror film. To hold back tears I hold my breath, my stomach clenches up, and my face crinkles and conforms into ways previously unknown to mankind. The breath-holding causes red-eye bulging and a series of odd choking gasps, boogers, and tears.  To top it off, muttering things between gasps like "You look so handsome! I'm going to miss you so much! The cats are mean and punch me while I sleep!" and I've successfully brought a whole new level of sexy. 

Paris & Nicole helping Ben pack

So my husband's gone for Monday through Thursday night. Seriously, not that long at all. Especially since he rounded up some "brit-sitters" to keep me company this week. I have a busy week. And we are leaving for our two year anniversary road trip on Friday night. That's exciting.... I could totally Google things for us to do.... we have plane tickets and no plans. Just the way it should be!

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WI State Fair

Ben and I went to the Wisconsin State Fair on Saturday. It was glorious and sunny and warm and wonderful. We tried loaded potatoes, funnel cake, ice cream, craft beer, did a wine tasting, and rode the sky glider from one end of the park to the other. We also found the barn with the ducks, but the place was way too crowded for me to steal one. 

riding the sky glider

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And here is a photo of Paris wearing a bikini. 

She's trying to break into the cruel world of swimsuit modeling.

I think she looks fantastic.

Paris in a bikini

xoxo, b

While Ben's away the ladies play...

Imma be shaking my ass you gonna be licking your lips. Imma be Imma be Imma be going to New York for work! WHAT! :D That's right the Big City! HOLLLA! I leave Monday morning and come back Thursday night. I'm scared the 3 ladies of the house are going to get into all kinds of trouble without me here to keep them in line. I'll come home and hell will of been unleashed in all its fury on my nice little apartment. Just imagine coming home to a dead cat that choked on one of the fish and Brit sitting in the middle of the apartment brushing it saying play with me. :/ You think I'm joking but its a 50/50 chance it will happen.

King Of the Castle, Ben

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trophy wife

I'm under the impression that I should be a trophy wife.

I'll rock my hot pink heels and a dress and sashay around department stores and go out for lunch and wear too much perfume and develop a fake laugh so I can say things like "daaaaaarrrrling, this afternoon mojito is absolutely faaaaaabulous!" Then I'll twirl around and waltz home where I will pat my fluffy kitties on their fluffy heads and make a three course dinner. Soon, Ben will burst through the door, set down his briefcase and in a very deep voice exclaim, "Honey! I'm home!" He would then immediately pick me up, twirl me around, and give me a passionate kiss on the lips. Obviously, I would be drinking wine by this point in the evening. He would then compliment me until I beg him to stop because dinner is getting cold.

 

 

In immediate hindsight of the directly above mentioned story, there's no way in Hades that I could be a trophy wife:

 

 

- I can only wear my heels for short periods of time. If I sashay, my feet pay. Maybe I could be a barefoot/flip flop wearing trophy wife?

 

- I have not met a department store that I have not felt overwhelmed and/or lost in. Literally lost. It's like a black hole maze of different designers and there is no way to safely escape in a timely manner. It's like ADHD materialized.

 

- I could do lunch. I like lunch that other people make for me.

 

- Fake laughing makes me feel like I have internal bleeding. Super annoying, internal bleeding.

 

- Not a fan of mojitos. Do trophy wives drink beer and like to BBQ? Is that a thing?

 

- I do enjoy a good twirling about... especially in a sundress. That part can stay. I'd have to bring my A-game for leg shaving on a regular basis.

 

- Our fluffy kitties are experiencing their teenage angst years. They've really made a name for themselves as the apex predators of this apartment. They are spazzy, destructive monsters. Sitting pretty for a pat on the head is not something I imagine happening in the foreseeable future.

 

- When Ben comes home, he does give me a hug and kiss. There is no picking up and twirl around hug and kiss though. This must change immediately.

 

- I need more not-cheap wine. Or craft beer. Again, can a trophy wife drink beer right from the bottle? Or is it strictly a swirl your wine type deal?

 

-And the final reason, I require a variety of multiple activities to fill my day. Otherwise, I come up with "great ideas" that I try and execute myself. Past examples have included dying my hair dark brown, rearranging the entire apartment, ripping apart our closet and putting it back together, chopping some bangs, impromptu painting, highlighting my hair and the middle of the cat's forehead, cooking disasters, trying to give the cats a bath, organizing our storage locker, Pinterest DIY projects, and donating things before Ben finds out they're missing.

 

 

It's a work in progress. Time for some imitation crab and fruit juice.

 

Trophy wife out.

 

 

xoxo, b