Matt Costa LIVE!

Last week Derek and I enjoyed a night out with friends to see Matt Costa. Matt was playing at the quaint Varsity Theater in Minneapolis (actually it's in 'Dinkytown' near the U of MN). What a fun night! Delta Spirit opened the show and they were great as well. There's just something about live music in a small setting that's real a treat.

Derek and me at Dinner before the show

Matt Costa

Delta Spirit opening the show

Here we are before the show

More before the show fun

Erin turns 18 :)

We celebrated Erin's 18th birthday at one of her favorite Uptown restaurants 'Chino Latino'. Good food, a good time!! Erin came straight from her performance at the Chehkov Festival....hence the black wig.

Connor, Nick and Erin

Erin, Sarah, Danielle and Jenny

Look at that Banana Split we ordered to share.....it was HUGE!!

Nick about to eat from the big dessert serving spoon

Erin and Sarah

Bad truck....

This weekend the truck stalled on I-94 as Erin and Nick were coming home from her Tech rehearsal for her upcoming play. Bad enough that it stalled but it was -7. Derek and I headed over to find them and it was a good thing since AAA auto said it would be 3 hours before they could be there. Erin had gloves on her feet trying to keep them warm....poor thing. Nick was a little more stoic. Here's Derek braving the traffic and the cold to see if he can get the truck started again:

Erin not looking real happy about her ordeal:

A little happier after warming up at Applebees on the way home:

Actually the best way to get Erin to smile for the camera is to tell her to say 'Nick' instead of saying 'cheese'.....works everytime :)

Th'ar she blows

It's soooo windy and cold tonight. The temp has been dropping all day........brrr!!! Derek and I went over to Outback to eat and then to get some running shoes for him. My girlfriend Shelley who's a runner, has motivated us to do the Get into Gear 5K in the Spring. All the girlfriends and spouses gearing up for it. I'm even back doing Jazzercise (which I love) trying to be a healthier me. Derek's hitting the treadmill, because with weather like this only the die hard Minnesotans (and probably Shelley) will be running outdoors.

Weather for Saint Paul, MN 55129

Current Temp: -2°F Haze

Wind: NW at 20 mph

Sat 23°F -12°F
Sun -3°F -8°F
Mon 15°F 4°F
Tue 19°F 7°F

...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT... .

..WIND CHILL WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 12 PM CST SUNDAY...
A WIND CHILL WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 12 PM CST SUNDAY. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT. STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS OF 20 TO 35 MPH WILL CONTINUE TO BRING ARCTIC AIR INTO THE REGION THIS EVENING. WIND CHILL VALUES WILL DROP TO THE 20 TO 25 BELOW RANGE THIS EVENING ALONG WITH AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW IN OPEN COUNTRY. EXPECT EVEN COLDER WIND CHILL VALUES OF 35 TO 45 BELOW OVERNIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING...AS TEMPERATURES DROP BELOW ZERO WITH NORTHWEST WINDS OF 20 TO 25 MPH.

A WIND CHILL WARNING MEANS THE COMBINATION OF VERY COLD AIR AND STRONG WINDS WILL CREATE DANGEROUSLY LOW WIND CHILL VALUES. THIS WILL RESULT IN FROST BITE AND LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA OR DEATH IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN.

Worst blogger ever

I am just the worst blogger ever......Erin went to the Valentine's Dance at school with Nick tonight and I didn't get a single picture. How sad is that? They looked so cute together. Oh well...guess I'll try to get some pictures of them together tomorrow. In the meantime, this is when they went to Homecoming together. My mom made Erin's dress and she looked so pretty! I just love this photo.

Our Irish Lass

How cute is this? Erin modeling the kilt she bought this summer while she was in Ireland with her friend Sarah. I just had to take some pictures :)

A new voter in the house

Saturday Erin and Derek were lucky to get tickets to the sold out Obama Barack rally at the Target Center in Minneapolis. She's growing up and will be able to vote in the next Presidential election. It was packed, so I can see why he won Minnesota votes in yesterday's Super Tuesday.

A Night in Uptown

Last Friday, I had great fun going out with my girlfriends to see a movie, then we hopped over to Chino Latino for great food and laughs. We saw 'Persepolis'. Who knew I would enjoy a black and white, animated, subtitled (yes, subtitled) coming of age story of an Iranian girl in her war torn country? It was tremendous! I laughed, cried and even learned to appreciate growing up without the freedoms that we enjoy.

Allison making Kris & me laugh

S'mores yummy!

Shelley & Jody

Bravo!

Last night we went to see Erin in her J-term performance. Every January, students from her school are assigned a special project that they have to learn and perform from start to finish in about 2 weeks. This year Erin was cast as the 'mayor' in a version of Anton Chekhov's 'A Dopey Fairytale'. She did a fantastic job! The play will also be performed two more times as part of the Twin Cities Chekhov Festival later this month on Feb 16th and Feb 23rd.

Rockband anyone?

Since Christmas we have been rocking out with 'Rockband' on Connor's PS3. It's so much fun! Instant karoke with points :) Erin is great on singing & guitar, Connor's an expert on drums, Derek's our star bassist and I'm okay on the guitar, not so good on the drums and I love to sing (although I think it's pretty forgiving until you get into the hard or expert range).

Earlier this week, Connor was playing around and put it on 'expert level' and sang Dani California. He got a 92%, then he threw the mic at me and said 'Here mom, I'm going upstairs'. Then Brass in Pocket started. I proceed to sing and fail......o dear still in expert mode! Derek saved me with his Bass skills and boom.......failed again with a 52% But it did classify me as 'the most strong-willed survivor'. Guess I better stick to medium level :)

Connor's got skills: