A Memorial Day to Forget!

This weekend Charles mom decided to come down because she's getting ready to sell the house. I was really excited! This was going to be a weekend of firsts for me!!! So I spent a lot of time ( I should say WE spent a lot of time because he did help a little) cleaning the house and getting everything all set up so that it looked nice when she came. We also tried to get a few things done before she came because we knew she would want them done.

She got here Friday, late some time I didn't see her that night. I worked and then came home and wasn't feeling well and was really sick so I guess I fell asleep. I didn't really know I had, but she said when she got here I was sleeping. So, Saturday morning she got up and got stuff done. About 2PM my alarm went off to get ready for work. She came in and was mad that we had slept so long when she had so much stuff to get done. First of all she could have came in and woke us up or told us that she wanted help. Plus she had 3 friends over here helping her. So anyway, she asked what I was doing that night and I was like well I have to work. She instantly was like upset and got an attitude. I was like well, I have to go to work so I'll see you later. I ended up getting cut at 6PM, so I called and asked if she wanted to do some yardwork and then head to dinner. She was too tired from everything she had done (which was some stuff, but she had SO much more to do!) so we were just going to go eat. Once we finished eating, we ran to Wal Mart for some stuff she needed and then back to the house. Once back at the house I asked if she wanted to pack some stuff up or do some stuff outside before it got too dark. She was still too tired and just wanted to watch movies. So we watched two movies and she went to sleep.

Sunday she said she was going to have us get up before Noon to help. We were fine with that because we'd both taken the day off work to help around here to get stuff done. We set an alarm for Noon and when we got up she wasn't here. We hung out, played XBOX and just hung out. Finally at 3:30 she came back. Apparently she went to some church thing with her friends. Well, we had plans to go to my house and then to a movie for something to do rather than just pack. She decided she didn't want to go to my house to meet my family. Ugh that's so frustrating. Like I think she is afraid what people might think, but seriously my family doesn't care about petty things like that. I realize that she doesn't know that but she is not going to know until she gives it a try. Plus Charles and I were both going to be there. So whatever, we left for my parents house and she was like well I have a lot of packing to do, so I'll need your help when you get back. We had a great time with my family, talking and having a grill out! At about 6:30 we decided to head back to try and help before the movie. We called her because we decided to pick up some boxes for her -- the phone was off. So then after going to get boxes she calls and asks where we are. Told her on our way home and she said well I'm not there I decided to go out with some friends. So then we were like well you're coming to the movie right and she was like no, I don't think so. It was a free freakin' movie that SHE wanted to go to. Like seriously? You drive to freakin' Sioux Falls and you can't spend time with your son. Ugh! That makes me so angry. And then she's mad because we didn't do stuff around the house. Well why should we do anything around the house when you won't make time for us. When we got back I couldn't even talk with her because I was pretty certain it wouldn't be something nice being said.

Finally Monday morning she woke Charles up at 9:30 to go help with stuff. Well they went to Mendards to buy fencing to put up against this other fencing in the backyard. It looks awful. It's really cheap wood and it's just screwed to the other fence. It doesn't even touch. I know words can't explain it, but it's bad. Then her car didn't work so these friends she spent all weekend with came to fix it. That turned out to be a four hour deal. So within that time, my parents called and asked to use the Bravada because they had bought new furniture for the patio. we headed out to help them and she got mad we were going to help them. Well , she didn't have any specific things she wanted help with so we left. She left finally... it was a long weekend!

Don't get me wrong -- she's a real nice lady and if she becomes the "in-law" at some point, I would be fine with that. And I also realize essentially this is HER house HOWEVER!!!!! We have a dog -- who eats EVERYTHING in sight, hence why we leave him outside most of the time with the door shut. No No -- she feels the need to put food things on the floor, leave the door open, put food right on the edge of the counter. Um...HELLO! Close the freakin' door and put stuff away! Honestly -- not difficult. She also thinks she knows EVERYTHING! And as I have realized over the past few years -- mothers usually know best -- however not in this case. Ugh!! It was just one of the worst weekends ever. It was SO stressful. Words don't even explain it.

Well...I now feel better and need to get some sleep!

Enjoy!

*~*Aubrey*~*

St. Katherine

So, while we were in the cities we visited St. Katherine (St. Kates) the school I am looking into. It's a very beautiful campus. I absolutely loved traveling to see it!!
Over all it's a very beautiful campus and I loved it. The people are very nice and it's a very small campus. There are approximately 5000 students and it's an all girl school. I am still waiting to hear if I have been accepted, so I'll let you know when I do.

After we walked around the campus for a while, we decided to relax the rest of the day and hang out with our friends. We really didn't do much other than play some video games and have a wonderful steak dinner prepared by our friend Kyle. It was a fabulous steak!

Nothing else too exciting about the trip. We did go to the Minnesota Zoo which was amazing. We saw lots of animals, which is expected at the zoo! :) Charles and I with the ducks in the background -- which you can't see haha! And there was a place to dig up old bones...so I found this dinosaur head!




I absolutely loved the trip and had a great time meeting Kyle and his girlfriend Brittany. Charles and I had a wonderful time, but hated the drive home! It was a very long drive back for some reason -- however not a long drive up there.

Better head out!

Enjoy!!

*~*Aubrey*~*

We Built This City. . .

So we had day two which was really the first full day in the cities and we had a blast!! We slept in a bit in the morning because Kyle had to fix his girlfriends car, but that was okay because there wasn't much we wanted to do. When we finally got rolling, we went to a place called Genghis Grill. It was really delicious. It was kind of like HuHot in Sioux Falls. I really enjoyed it, as did everyone else! After that we headed to the Zoo. When we got there we saw that it closed at 4PM and just a hour and a half is nowhere enough time to get through the Minnesota Zoo. We decided to then go to the Mall of America.

I loved the Mall of America. We didn't really do a lot of shopping or anything. We went through Underwater Adventure which is always cool because the animals are so happy and peaceful. We were able to pet starfish and sea anemone. We also watched a bit of Finding Nemo since it was playing as we walked by. After we walked through Underwater Adventure we headed to the Nickelodeon Theme Park. Charles and I went on every roller coaster in the place. He also walked up this path that has like tightroping skills needed. It was intense! I could not do it because I wore flip flops, but it was still fun to watch. After an intense time of rides at the amusement park, Brittany (Kyle's GF) and I decided to go shopping. Next thing we knew 2 hours had passed! We found a lot of cute clothes and a lot of fun things to try on!!

After the mall, everyone was a bit tired so we came back to the apartment and hung out. I showered and got ready and Charles and I headed back to the Casino. We figured we never get to do stuff like that in Sioux Falls and when we actually move here we won't go ever because things like that are really only fun when you're visiting. We played Black Jack again, but didn't do as well. We only lost 30 dollars between the two of us though. Then we played Roulette. That was fun. Charles won $30 dollars there so it was nice. I think in the end we were down $7, but we had fun so that's all that matters.

Once home he started playing video games and I relaxed. It was a great day.

Today we are headed to St. Katherines. I am planning on attending school there next fall so it will be nice to tour the campus! Charles, Kyle and I plan on going back to the mall after the tour so that Charles can go shopping! I'm excited for a fun day ahead. I will upload pictures of everything tomorrow or later tonight!

Enjoy!

*~*Aubrey*~*

New City?

Yesterday the big excursion happened! We finally headed to the Cities for a few days to visit where we are going to be living and see some friends. We were supposed to leave around midnight, but to our surprise we both got cut from work early and were able to leave around 8:30PM. We started out and followed MapQuests directions and found that they somehow got us here about 30 minutes shorter than the road we knew. It was a nice drive and we arrived here about midnight. Once here, we unloaded some stuff from the car and decided to go out and see what the night would bring.

We found ourselves headed to the Casino!! It was my first experience at a Casino and it was amazing!! We played at Mystic Lake. Apparently it's very popular!! Kyle - Charles friends that we came to visit - wanted to play Black Jack so we headed over to the tables. Charles and Kyle played for a while before I decided to sit down! We played $5 minimum. I put $15 down to begin and next thing I knew I was up $75. At that point I called it quits and cashed it. We walked around a bit and played 2 cent slots! No one won anything on the slots, but we decided to sit back down at the Black Jack table. We both put in $20 and ended up only winning $32.50, but we didn't lose much! It was a great time and we all came out ahead!! It was a lot of fun!!

Hope tomorrow is as much fun!! Will write more later!! Mall of America tomorrow!!! :) Can't wait!!

Enjoy!!

*~*Aubrey*~*

And then there was Aubrey. . .

Every time that I think I'm going to get better about updating my blog...I think that I get worse!

There have been so many things changing in my life it's like a whole new chapter.

First of all, I am doing great at Augustana. I have maintained a 4.0 GPA which is awesome! I absolutely love my classes and my teachers!! The small school is something I enjoy more than I thought I would. I also do enjoy not being over involved in everything. I loved my activities while attending SDSU, but while at Augustana I decided to focus on school and that really is nice.

Grandma has been doing well. She is living at SouthRidge now and seems to enjoy it most days. Up until about a week ago she was doing great. She was sociable, happy, smiling and just having a good time. About a week before Mother's Day she became a bit sad and uninterested in things going on around her. Hopefully after she sees the doctor she will be back to normal and will be happy and fun again.

This summer I decided to start softball again. I am playing on a brand new team that I have never played with before. I do have one girl on the team who is a mutual friend from the previous team, but everyone else is new. We played last week but due to me having class I was unable to attend. This week was canceled, so who knows when I will get to play! Hopefully soon though!! I have missed it a lot!

Mother's Day was a lot of fun. On Saturday morning we went to SouthRidge and celebrated with Grandma Jean. They had a brunch in the morning with all the people who live in the Memory Lane unit with her. It was nice to see other family members come out with their mothers. As previously mentioned, grandma was a little sad, but she also said multiple times that she really enjoyed that we were there to celebrate with her. Mom and I were able to meet a few of her friends family and she enjoyed introducing us and telling them about her family. It was good to see her remember so much! Sometimes I wonder who she is kidding with her "Alzheimer's". She frequently can remember everything -- but there are the moments where I see the Alzheimer's kick in. (She at one point asked how I was home because she thought I belonged to Paula...) It was a nice relaxing morning though and I really think she enjoyed it. On Sunday morning, we headed to Grandma Joyce's where the entire family met to celebrate. I hadn't seen the family for so long that it was great to see them!! Kyle and Lacey brought Charlie (obviously) and I was able to meet him for the first time! He's absolutely adorable!!! Peyton and Carson (similar in age) played together so nicely!! It was great to sit around and catch up and talk. Overall Mother's Day was a great day and I was so happy that I was able to see my mom multiple times and that I was able to celebrate with both grandmas!

There have been a few MAJOR changes in my life. . .

I met a boy (excuse me -- a MAN) who is absolutely amazing!! His name is Charles and he, well, words just don't describe how happy I am with him! We met in mid February while out to eat with Grandma Jean. (She denies this happened, but ask mom, dad or Charles and this is a true story.) We picked Grandma up one evening when she was feeling better and while we were sitting there she told me to stop flirting with the server because he could be a chicken farmer. She went on to tell this story about how she could have married a chicken farmer, but chose not to and blah blah blah (honestly had no idea what she was talking about) but in the end she told me to stop flirting with him! My face turned red instantly because it's very awkward when your grandma tells you to stop flirting. Our waiter came to the table and said "Whats wrong?? Why is your face red?" I couldn't stop laughing and blushing and then I said "She wants me to stop flirting with you." He said he liked it and that I shouldn't stop, which in turn made my face even more red. The rest of the evening was about the same excitement! The following day we found each other facebook and he asked me to go bowling with him. After that we dated for about a month before making it official. It has been wonderful! He has also asked me to move to Eagan, MN with him. I said yes, which my mom and dad were sad, but also very happy about! We will be moving to Eagan at the beginning of August. This is a very exciting change for me!! While I was nervous about the relationship lasting and us being able to work everything out, Charles reassured me that everything was going to be fine. To help show his commitment and to help reassure me, he took me out for a date and at the end of the night he said that he was so excited that I said yes to move with him he bought me a diamond ring. It's beautiful!!!! So...things are moving along well and I can't wait for you to meet him!!

Two pictures of my ring! They don't show it the best, but this gives an idea of what it looks like!! When he picked it out -- all he cared about was if it was sparkly and shiny! Ha!








I will be transferring schools and WILL continue my education to finish my degree in American Sign Language. I am looking to transfer to St. Catherine University in Minneapolis which is about 13 miles from where we will be living. (We're moving in with a friend.)

Lots of changes, but most definitely for the best!!

Other than those major updates, nothing too exciting is happening. I am done with classes this Friday. Seems like the semester just started! I will be going to Minneapolis next week to see the city and visit some friends. The first weekend of June a friend of mine is getting married in Milbank! I am the guest book attendant for this wedding! And finally the last weekend of July my bestfriend Coley will be getting married in Rockford, IL. I am the maid of honor in this wedding so that is very exciting! I am very excited for both weddings. A friend of Charles' is getting married the weekend before we go to IL so we have many weddings to attend this summer!!

Both grandmas will be turning major milestones this year!! Grandma Jean -- 80 years old -- June 27. Grandma Joyce -- 85 -- July 31. It's going to be lots of fun celebrating these exceptional ladies birthdays!! Neither has said what they want to do, but I know it will be tons of fun!!

Work is still going well!! I work at Fryn' Pan and am still loving it!! It definitely has it's drama and stuff, but where doesn't? It is good money and the people are really nice. I also still work at DakotAbilities. I haven't worked much with school and my job at Fryn' Pan, but hopefully that will change this summer!!

Anyway--this got to be a bit long and if I just posted better and more this wouldn't be such an issue. I will definitely do better once school is out!

Enjoy!

*~*Aubrey*~*