Avondale Brewery put on a fun event last week.  It was to support the Greater Birmingham Humane Society.  It was a fun party where you could bring your pets and enjoy some beer and some music.  

They took our picture immediately when we walked in.  Lo from work came with us; Dusty showed up later.   And there were all sorts of cute pups in costumes with their owners. 

These guys at Avondale Brewery are trying to revive the Avondale area in Birmingham.  They have bought up more space down there to do more great things.  The brewery has become a place to not only enjoy a brew after work, but to actually go and spend a Saturday.

Ray Johnston Band from TX was there.  They were good; I wish they would have played more original stuff instead of covers.  Although they played “Wagon Wheel,” and that is mine and B’s song.  We had lots of good beer (try the Miss Fancy!), and got to hang out at a bar with the Stell Dog.  

We are a boat loving family.  We decided to take a little river tour (again) on the Mississippi River.  Apparently this river separates Missouri and Illinois.  Had no idea.  It wasn’t as cold as being on Lake Michigan.  We were on the front of the boat, so we couldn’t really hear the tour guide, but it was better than being on the top of the boat with all the people and nowhere to sit.

They were building another bridge across the river.    My dad likes to take pictures, and I like to ruin them.  Nothing new around here.  I’m pretty sure one of these days, I will own a boat.  Probably not a Riverboat, but there will definitely be popcorn involved.  And probably Miller Lite instead of Bud Lite.

I love Halloween.  

It is certainly one of my favorite holidays.  I love getting dressed up; and of course, eating candy.  My favorite costume of all time was when I was in fifth grade; my mom turned me into a bag of Jelly Belly, and she turned my sister into a picnic table.  I was wearing bright pink tights, and a clear trash bag filled with tiny different colored balloons, topped with a baggie tied to a headband on top of my head.  For my sister, she cut a hole in a tablecloth and glued all sorts of plastic food and utensils to it.  And she carried around a picnic basket.

It was awesome.

Nowadays, I like to cuddle up on the couch with B, eat some junk food and watch scary movies.  Gone are the days of dressing all skanky and going out.  Plus having to go to work the next morning is never fun.  Ahhh, the perils of being a grown up.

A pic of me and Lindsey from the last time we went “out” on Halloween.  Like three years ago.  I was so young.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Let me pose a question.  A girl that is terrified of flying couldn’t possibly be okay with riding in an elevator 600 feet up to the top of the Gateway Arch, could she?  

Absolutely not . 

I was terrified of doing this.  Let me show you what we got to ride up in.

Oh yes.  A pod.  That fits only five people.  On a cable that has a clear see-through window/door.  And ifyou’re taller than about 5’4″, you’re going to be sitting the exact way B and I are sitting.  In case you can’t tell by the look on my face, I was only slightly terrified.  

 

 Door of doom.  There are 8 of these things.  It looks like a door out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  They open up, and it seriously looks like a spaceship.   

So then after about a four and a half minute ride up, you are up in the Arch.  And since you know, the arch, is well, arch-shaped, you can feel the pod as it zig zags to the top.  

And then you step out, walk up some more stairs…and see this.

Dad and Carla.

Carla had promised that if I was good, I would get a candy bar when (if) we got back down.  So this is how I was on the way down…

Happy trip to the top of the Arch; something I’ll never have to do again in my life.

I got a Milky Way in case you were curious.

Before going any further, please be forewarned that there will probably be more pictures than you want to see of the Gateway Arch in this post.  

I can’t help it.  The weather was perfect.  And it was so beautiful with the bright blue sky as the back drop.

Maybe too many pictures?  Nope, I don’t think so.

This past weekend was a pretty interesting one.  We had B’s ten year high school reunion.  Yes, ten years since graduation.  Completely crazy.  I was pretty nervous about this thing; I have my reasons, being a very self conscious girl, and amongst other things I don’t want to get into.  Luckily for us, some friends of ours that we hang out with in Birmingham were there, and it made for a much better evening.  

This “reunion” was full of people who already hang out with each other.  It was, obviously, put on by the popular kids who regularly hang out with each other anyway.  There was one girl there that no one talked to, and pictures on the table of only a few people.  Over and over and over again.

It made me really rethink my decision to go to mine, because I’m pretty sure it’s going to be the same way.