Drive-Thru Confusion.

I have had quite the relaxing day! Last night we had people over at our house after my dad's softball game. We sat in the garage and drank and talked. It was fun! I ended up staying awake until 6 in the morning because of very interesting circumstances...and I'll just leave it at that!

Well today I was super tired so I slept until 2. I was quite lazy. I got up and my mom and I went to church at 4:30. After church my mom and I were looking for what to eat and I decided I wanted McDonald's and my mom wanted Taco John's. We went and got my MacDon's and then went to TJ's to get Mom's food. That's where it gets, um, typical we'll say. We are waiting for our turn in the drive-thru when we see this:

This is what the picture is...a guy trying to order food. Shouldn't be too difficult, should it? Well it must have been because we waited behind this guy for 10 minutes while he tried to explain to the worker what he wanted. He was using hand gestures and had his WHOLE head sticking out the window! OH! And his blinker was on. I mean, really? How much more stereotypical can this get?! I had quite the laugh.

I didn't really think ordering from the drive-thru was this difficult. This is one thing that really should NOT be able to be screwed up, but lo and behold...a guy can always make things difficult and not understand something so simple as a drive-thru! Well, that's a typical guy I guess!

Any interesting stories from your weekend so far?

With love,
Ali

Confessions.

I've seen many bloggers that do an "I Confess" post started by Rissy from Carissa Explains It All and I thought it was super cool and so I wanted to also be super cool and start doing it. I'll link up soon but tonight I'm just starting it for the first time!

I Confess.....I still love to have sleepovers with my best friend like we used to in middle school. #havingonetonight...rightnow

Google

I Confess.....When I say I go out running I sometimes walk. #hugedisappointmentinmyself

I Confess.....I am moving out in 13 days and still have not packed one thing.

I Confess.....I wish I had more followers!

I Confess.....I honestly, really, extremely hate dislike being single.

Good thing college starts SOON!

What are your confessions?

With love,
Ali



Finally x2!

Yesterday I went to the Albertville Outlet Mall to see if the Nike store had the shoes I want. Nike Free running shoes. Like walking on clouds. Well...they didn't have ANY. Like, really? I was pretty disappointed. However, I did score some other great deals on the clearance rack! Love me some clearance.

SO...

Ya know the shoes I was complaining about in my last post? I finally buckled down and bought them...online! Woo! I am so excited to get them in the mail but I'll probably already be moved in at school and I'll have to drive back up here to get them of have my mom mail them to me. Boo on that.

I am so, so excited about them though. I designed about 4359487362059 pairs on Nike.com and finally found a color combination that I liked. They are mainly black with some pink and white accents. Gotta love that pink! You can also personalize the logo on the top of the tongue so on the right foot I put "Carpe" and on the left foot I put "Viam" meaning "Seize The Road." Counting down the days until they arrive!

So that's "finally #1."

On to number two.

Now please don't judge. I absofreakinglutely love getting my hair cut. The massaging my scalp is the BEST part ever. The last time I got my hair cut was back in February. Yep...that was almost 6 count 'em SIX months ago! Gross, I know, but my hair grows so slowly and right now it's so long and I love it! Well I finally gave in and got it cut. I blow dry and straighten/curl my hair almost every day. Not getting my ends chopped off for six months really does something to them. It wasn't pretty. But NOW...lovely straight, not split, ends. Ahhhhhhh. The choirs of angels are singing.

Looking forward to a somewhat relaxing weekend as it will only be me and Mama in the house! Floating on the lake all day Friday. Nothing could get better.

I think I'm thinking too far ahead to this weekend thing but it's definitely appropriate. It's not like I have a countdown going for the days until I move in to my apartment. coughfourteencough.

What are all you lovelies doing this weekend?

With love,
Ali

NEW SHOES.

I really, really, really, really, really need new running shoes. I love the ones I have, but for the past few months I've had super bad shin splints and feet pain. So the only thing I have concluded is that I need new shoes because these ones just aren't doing the job.

I used to have Under Armour tennis shoes...loved them. However, they were cross trainer shoes so they weren't the greatest for running. Then I got on the bandwagon (if there really even was one) with Vibram Five Fingers shoes. Don't know what they are? Here you go...

Call me crazy but I absolutely LOVED them. As a beginning runner I could crank out 5-6 miles EASILY daily. Why I stopped using them I'm not exactly sure. Probably because my podiatrist told me they are quite bad for my feet unless I'm training for a barefoot marathon...which is what they are supposed to be used for mostly. They have other purposes such as swimming and stuff but since I just used them to run they weren't the best choice.

I also have to mention that I have extremely flat feet and have to wear orthodics for my feet to sit properly. With the Vibrams I could not wear my orthodics...so that wasn't good. I was also a fan of the Vibrams because I could tell my calves were getting bigger! If you don't already know...I have calves the size a 12 year old girl would have. Honestly, I hate them. I try everything with working out to get them bigger but it's genetics. Yuck.

Anyway...so then I got another pair of Under Armour shoes--the ones spoken of above that just aren't doing the trick. I really love the Nike Free running shoes but I have yet to find a pair with the color that I like. I've tried designing them online but I just can't commit to spending that money without seeing them in person! Such a dilemma...any suggestions? I really want to get the Nike Free 3.0 because they are lower to the ground and lighter weight for more of a barefoot feel (like the Vibrams). But I've only tried on the Nike Free 2.0 because that is all that is in stores. Does anyone have the 3.0 or any other running shoe they would recommend? I'm headed to Albertville Outlet Mall tomorrow to check out the Nike store. Maybe they'll have something for me.

I apologize for the long (and maybe boring) post and thank you so much if you've stuck with me!

With love,

Ali

Birthday Present Shopping.

It was my best friend, Brianna's, birthday on July 6th. Since I was in Illinois and then in the cities over the course of the 2-3 weeks around her birthday, I kind of kept putting off getting her a birthday present. Well, since Friday (yesterday) wasn't so busy, I finally got to go to a cute little boutique store in my town and pick something out. The store is called Ambiance and has so many cute things! Well I ended up picking out a necklace that I got to make myself. A charm necklace, if you will. The chain already had a little bead on it and then I added another charm that says "Celebrate Friends" and then another charm that is a ring. Since I got one for myself, too, it is the same as hers. Kind of brings be back to elementary school with the best friend bracelets or necklaces!

We also established some ground rules for these necklaces...

1. You cannot just go out and buy a charm. It has to be on an occasion and for the other person.
2. You can never take any charms off.
3. No gawdy charms allowed.

The last one cracks me up. This was just a fun little thing I thought of and I can't wait to buy/get more charms!

This is her necklace. Her ring has a purple stone in it.

Don't be fooled though, it was only $2.

This one's mine. Blue is more of my color so that's the one I chose for myself.

Us together with our necklaces.

Happy belated birthday, Nan!

With love,

Ali

Chaperoning 101

Have you ever been a chaperone for a group activity? Whether you answered yes or no the that question, I've got quite the story for you.

DISCLAIMER: If you are going to be a chaperone in the near future, you may not want to read this post. However, I do still get a little bit of a laugh out of it. Just don't say I didn't warn you!

Background: For about three summers now I have been working for a company/organization called Little Falls Community Services. It is a program that offers activities mostly for the summer but also throughout the school year for kids to participate in activities such as sports. So this year I have been coaching Monday through Thursday mornings. I coach girls softball and then an activity called Diamond Giants. The Diamond Giants is just boys baseball for 2nd and 3rd graders. About twice a year Community Services also schedules group activities such as going to a Minnesota Twins baseball game and later in the summer a trip to Valleyfair. If you work at Community Services you have a chance to sign up and chaperone one or both of the activities. The deal? You chaperone for, say, 10 hours, get paid for those 10 hours, and also get to go on the trip for FREE. Pretty good, right?

Well...

Here's the story. I was never going to sign up to chaperone the Twins game. I thought they had the fill of chaperones and so I wasn't even going to bother. Well one of the coaches that I coach with in the morning always chaperones the Twins game and asked if I wanted to chaperone with him because they needed one more. Immediately I said yes because who wouldn't want to go to a Twins game not just for free, but to get PAID to watch outdoor baseball? This girl would love it. So the only logical answer is to agree.

9:00 AM rolled around and we left for the cities. It's about a 2 hour drive so I brought my Kindle and a magazine and I also slept a bit. We go to the game and have a grand ol' time! We were in the shade on the very, very hot day and the Twins won! Could it get any better? Anyway, I'm bringing people back to the bus (most of the people who go on the Twins trip are older folks) and get on myself and sit in the air conditioned bus while we wait for other people and for my co-chaperone (Mike). Mike calls me and asks me to do a head count so I do. I thought I counted 31 people so I told him that and he said "Okay, I'll just wait outside for the few others to show up." 15 minutes goes by and Mike finally gets back on the bus and says "He's missing." I try to remember that I'm getting PAID to watch a Twins game.

BACKTRACK...
When we had gotten on the bus, Mike had pointed out a man who was on the bus (Mike is a bit older than I am and he also has been doing this for quite some time) and said that a couple years ago he went on the Valleyfair trip and didn't show up to the bus until an HOUR after they were supposed to leave the park. The chaperones on that trip were in the middle of filling out paperwork for a missing person's report, etc, etc. Finally he showed up and they left. Well, once Mike told me that, I knew we were cursed. So now you know who I'm talking about when I say "He's missing."

Back to my story...
Mike says "well, let's go for a walk!" And I'm thinking 'oh great...' Mind you, it's 100 degrees outside with 80% humidity. No joke. But I'm getting PAID to watch a Twins game. We walk the block back over to the stadium and begin our search. We had told security officers, gave his descriptions of what he was wearing, etc., and walked around the WHOLE stadium. I don't know if you all know how large a major league stadium is, but trust me when I tell you that it is really big. After an hour (literally) of searching and Mike talking to the Community Services director asking what to do, we concluded that we were just to call the police and do a missing person report. Mike calls 911 (no joke about that either) and told them we were in a group and now he's gone. He gave the description, where we last saw him, and all that great stuff when all of the sudden I say "oh my God, there he is!" Mike gets off the phone with the police and walks over to go get the guy while I go tell the security officers at the stadium that we had found the person we were missing. Did I mention the missing guy was in the total OPPOSITE direction of where the bus was? Yep. But hey, I'm getting PAID to watch a Twins game. We walk back to the bus (me with my straight-face, no bullshit face on) and as we step on the bus we get a round of applause. Talk about embarrassing. We finally continue on our merry way home...an HOUR after we were supposed to leave. We got home and Steve, the director from Community Services had a few select words to say to the missing man. Let's just say that he won't be going on anymore group trips. Even the Valleyfair trip coming up in August that he was already signed up for. Did I mention I'm chaperoning that one, too? Thank the Lord Jesus that he won't be there!

Just a little chaperoning advice to you...don't chaperone. Okay, maybe that's not the moral of the story. Actually, there is no moral of the story...but hey, I got PAID to watch a Twins game!

Target Field. I love this place.

Love me some Joe Mauer.

You guessed it, that's my hottie, Joe.

Look at that booty! :)

Sexy.

With love,
Ali

Babysitting Nightmare

I want to start by telling you that in my nine years of babysitting (I started babysitting when I was very young) I have never babysat for such awful kids in my life. I know that sounds absolutely horrible, but it's the truth.

I am babysitting right now as I type this. We have finally settled down and are watching a movie. The kids I am babysitting are 3, 5, 7, and 11. So there are four of them. We played outside for a little bit and then played inside and are now FINALLY watching a movie. Let me tell you, I was counting down the hours until movie time.

A few things I must mention:

• They do NOT listen.
• They are SO wild.
• They don't take no for an answer.
• They try to get away with everything.
• They tell me I'm not as fun as their other babysitter.
-I'm assuming this one happens so they think I will give in.

I am so frustrated. In no way am I a pushover whatsoever. So don't think I just can't handle them. It's just so difficult. I don't know if it's the parenting of the kids that makes them this way, but I must say that if my kids EVER acted remotely close to how these kids are, there would be extreme repercussions.

I'm a good babysitter. Really, I am. All the children I babysit love me and I love them! These ones are a different story though.

Please pray that I make it out of this house alive tonight!

With love,
Ali


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

iPhone App!

Hey all!

I found out how to blog a MUCH easier way on my iPhone than just going through the internet. BlogPress, you are my hero!!! If anyone blogs from an iPhone, iPad, etc. sometimes, buy this app for $2.99 and you won't be disappointed.




I'm so excited can't you tell?!?!

I also apologize that it is 1:30 in the morning and I just gave you a picture of myself. Wet hair, no makeup...yeesh.

With love,
Ali

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A whole lot of catching up to do.

CAUTION: LONG POST AHEAD!

I've been SOOO busy! 

So in my last post I told you guys that I was on my way to Illinois to see my NEW niece. And let me tell you...she's adorable!

Isn't she the cutest little nugget you've ever seen?!!? I think yes.

I love you so much already, little Tatum Alexis, and I can't wait to watch you grow into the little princess I know you're going to be. And since you're my godchild and niece--and not my baby--I'm going to spoil the heck out of you and give you everything your little heart desires. But don't tell your mommy and daddy that! Now hurry up and get your little tushy to Minnesota so I can see you more than once a month! #likeeveryday

Since we obviously couldn't spend every waking hour seeing the baby, we had to find things to occupy our time. One morning, my dad, older younger brother, and I went golfing! Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures. Let's just say it wasn't my best round of golf.

We also went to the Abraham Lincoln museum and his house that he raised his family in.  I am a huge history fan so being able to see all of this information was so cool! We made it a bit humerous too. Pictures explain :)

The Stracks and the Lincolns!

(Creeper to the left.)

We are both very deep in thought.

Honest Abe had something in his nose.

Dad is not really a huge fan of Mr. John Wilkes Booth.

The youngest brother and me!

According to the sign I read, this is the most photographed picture of the Lincoln house.

 So I just had to snap a shot, too!

The whole family (including the new dad who got to step away from the new babe to hang out

with us for a little while) in front of the Lincoln house.

After being in Springfield, Illinois we stopped in Chicago on our way back to Minnesota. We did no shopping (I almost cried) but we went to the Twins vs. White Sox game! It was SO much fun. I've never been cheering for the opposing team at a game so this was a first. Which made it even more fun. The whole fam dam was there and I even made a sign to try and get "circled" by Bert. Unfortunately, after I made the sign and after we brought it to the game and held it up for a few innings, we found out the game was on national television and so we had no opportunity to get "circled." #allmyhardworkwenttowaste.

This would be my hottie future boyfriend, Joe Mauer.

If only he knew I existed.

*Sigh*

I LOVE my family!

Chicago skyline.

After driving for what felt like FOREVER, we finally made it home last week Sunday at 4am. Time never stopped though. We all went right back to work on Monday. I worked Monday-Thursday where after working Thursday I packed up and my older younger brother and I drove to Apple Valley (cities area) where my other family members already were for my youngest brother's state baseball tournament. They ended up taking 3rd, which isn't bad out of 40-some teams, but first is always best! One cool thing was that after reading Molly's blog here, I realized she, too, was in MN to watch her fiance coach his baseball team in their state tournament! I thought, no waaaayyy! But, her fiance coaches 15 year olds and my brothers team is 10 year olds. So I never did see her but I just thought it was one cool coincidence since she's not even from MN. She's from Kansas in case "y'all" were wondering...I think they say "y'all" there, anyway.....awkward if not...

Trying to wrap this up...kudos to you if you've stuck with me for this REALLY long blog post. I worked my booty off from 9-3 today but made some good cash money!

I hope you all had a splendid weekend and stayed cool in the hot, hot, hot, and humid weather!

I have a pretty fun week coming up so stay tuned. :)

With love,

Ali



3 Very Important Things!

1. I had a GREAT 4th of July weekend with my two best friends ever that I will talk about in a later post!

2. It is my BEST friend's birthday today! Happy birthday to Brianna! The best friend a friend could EVER ask for. I love you, beautiful girl.

(Insert picture of said birthday girl here. The only problem is, I am using my iPhone and don't know how to upload a picture to blogger from it. Any tips?)

3. My niece is being born today! The family and I are on our way to Springfield, Illinois to go see my brother's new baby girl who is ALMOST here! And let me tell you...I'm so excited to be an auntie!

For those of you who don't know where I'm from, I live in a little town in Minnesota...about 10 hours from said brother and baby! Which means we have about 6-7 hours left. Yeesh.

I'll update once my niece, Tatum, is born!

With love,
Ali