Baby Jake Hosts a Twins Outing

This is Baby Jake.
In a roundabout way, Jake got me my current consulting gig. His mom, Laura N. (aka "L1" because we have quite a few Lauras in the office -- I'm L2), is a dear friend I've known from work for years. She works for the business line I'm now contracting for (let's call it "BCS") and hired me back in January to cover for her maternity leave. We shared her office for about two weeks right before Jake was born to get me up to speed on projects for her BCS clients , so I feel like I've known him for a while. :)

Flashforward a couple of months: L1's getting ready to come back to work, and my now-boss (best boss ever!) gives me a call to ask whether I was interested in renewing my contract in a different capacity: BCS communications, training and support stuff related to our upcoming merger with another division of our parent company. I was reluctant at first (I really am trying to move away from doing Corp Comm stuff), but I wanted another gig and loved the BCS folks that I got to know while covering for L1. Ultimately, I decided that sometimes what you do at work is sometimes less important that who you're working with, so I accepted and have been really happy that I did. (Granted, it's been a bit of a bumpy ride, but that's what happens pre-merger, right?)

Flashforward a few more months: L1 was the recipient of the veryveryvery good BCS Twins tickets (second row behind the dugout!) for a Labor Day weekend game and invited M and I to join her, her husband and Baby Jake. It was Jake's first time to the Dome and he did great.

In contrast to the Twins' recent lackluster performances, it was a great game. Honestly, though, from these seats, a monster truck rally would probably be interesting. :) Here's Mr. Silva, who did not disgrace himself on the mound that day.
Ladies and gentlemen: my boyfriend!

DJ Cuddles steps up to the plate. I'm wishing I had a photo of the diving catch (he truly went ass over teakettle and came up with the ball) from later in the game -- it was great!

Final score: 6-4 Twins!

Sweetcheeks shares a laugh with manager Gardy. (Can you tell how awesome these seats were? Hint: There's no zoom on that photo.)

Immediately following the game, the grounds crew started the tear-down in advance of a Gopher (that's the U of M, for all y'all non-MNers) football game that night. It was kind of strange to watch them rip up the mound dirt, given that it's piled on top of astroturf.

Thanks a bunch, Jake and L1! :)

An Addie Animal Adventure

A few years back, everyone we knew was getting married. (One summer in the late 90s, we were invited to eleven weddings.) Now, most everyone we know seems to be having kids, and that's great fun for us. It's such a kick to hang out with the Little Cowboy, the Wests' kids (how could I not adore three-year-old Jacob, who shows me where the bunnies hide in his backyard and tells me my shoes are pretty?), and the soon-to-appear-here Baby Jake -- not only because other people's kids are lots of fun, but it's also really nice to get practice being "cool Aunt Laura" since I don't see Addie very often. And, as it turns out, while we were zoo-ing it up over the weekend, Addie was having her own animal encounter. :) Thanks for posting, Mike!

Butterflies at the Zoo

As much as I loved seeing Emmet and the prairie dogs during our recent zoo excursion, my favorite exhibit was the butterfly garden. It's only open for a few months out of the year, and this was the first time I'd been there. I think I could have stayed all day!

Not only were there a ton of butterflies, but the colors in the garden were stunning.

The Zoo with the Little Cowboy

What a great Labor Day weekend! It was the perfect mix of fun activities, chilling out, and being productive. Among the highlights was hitting the Minnesota Zoo with our friends Mel and Bry, and their son, Wyatt -- aka (as far as I'm concerned) the Little Cowboy.

Mel is a dear friend of M's from his Woodbury High days, and she and I began our friendship a over a lunch-hour jaunt to Marshall Field's in search of dresses to wear to another high school friend's wedding. We've become really close with Bry as well, who was finishing law school around the time that M was starting it. They've got a really cool and laid-back parenting style, and the Cowboy's just a ton of fun. Here he is with Mel as we're heading into the zoo.


Of course, hitting the zoo means visiting Emmet, who was curled up like a cat for a snooze in a sunny spot.

The gibbons were awake, though ...

... as were the pumas ...

... and the red pandas.

The newly remodeled Minnesota Trail now features lots more space for birds, including bald eagles.

We got a great up-close look at a mama moose with her young 'un.

And the prairie dogs were having a ball! They came right up to the edge of their habitat to greet us.

Here's the Cowboy enjoying some "guck," which is any liquid -- milk, juice, water, you name it.

Oops -- spilled the guck.

His favorite part of the zoo didn't seem to be the animals, but the water misters -- a brilliant idea, especially on a hot day.

All wet!

Lighting Up the Night

Lately, we've been able to enjoy the patio much later into the evenings, thanks both the fire pit (a terrific Christmas gift from Mom and Bill last year) and the new chandelier.