Tomorrow Is a Good Day

I spent a few hours this morning to create a little homage to Hubs.  Tomorrow is his birthday!!  And he likes golf, SO I made this cake to reflect his hobbies and interests.  It'll do.

(I didn't really make that cake, but I did make my own regular two layered cake, and tomorrow really is Hubs' birthday, AND he does really like golf....maybe one day I will make that cake.)

~Wifey

Word on the street is that wifey finally got me that tricked out golf cart that I've always wanted. Look out neighborhood...I'm taking over.

- the Hubs

Someday We'll Have Kids Reason #37

It will be fun to raise children who think that choreography in the dining room and guitar playing on the couch are the things of home life...

~The Wifey

Our First Anniversary; The Longest Date Ever

I am the wifey to an excellent man, and this fact becomes acutely highlighted when we have a day like yesterday.  Yesterday was the Oros One Year Anniversary.  After weeks of secrecy and knowing looks, my dear hubs was able to unfold a day catered just for us.  He made me cry tears of joy three times throughout the afternoon; it was that great. 

A little play by play for any hubs out there who need some inspiration and for our families who like lots of details in story telling:

After a great morning at church, hubs took us to the one of our favorite fall lunch spots Pho Long.  Big, warming bowls of Vietnamese soup.  We're fans of P3, noodle soup with thin sliced round steak and meatballs.  So good.  This was our time to talk over the morning, wind down from the areas we had served in, and fuel up for the afternoon. 

Lunch was yummy, but I could tell Steve was on a schedule, so we didn't linger, and were soon off to the next destination.  But where were we going???  I hadn't been given any details about the day, and the suspense had me smiling like a lunatic.   Inside the car, I received my first clue to the day.  A carefully designed card, crafted by Hubs, about us, that said:

Anniversary One, The Longest Date Ever
First Thing First: Time to Just Relax
Onto the Next Thing: To Take a Step Back
And Then: Discover New Places
Finally, My Dear: One of Our Favorite Things

Okay so imagine this looking very cool and clever, because I can't describe the card to do justice to his work.  It caused tears of joy number one.

The first thing still had me stumped all the way to the parking lot of our fist destination.  Probably because I would never have guessed that we were going for couples massages!!!!!  I think I screamed at hubs in the car as we pulled into our parking spot.  Massage Luxe felt classy but not stuffy, and we both thought it was one of the best massage experiences we've had.

Onto the next thing, which he let me guess once we were back in the car...completely relaxed.  I guessed correctly, and hubs said some things (that are just for this wifey to hear) that brought on tears of joy number two. 

Our step back was to the visit the Art Museum in Forest Park.  Those who know us, know that this is a particularly special spot in our relationship.  It's the site of our first date, the place Steve proposed (Art Hill to be more specific), and one of the places we took pictures on our wedding day.  We did a little reenacting of our first date because sometimes we're a little nerdy, but at least we're in it together.

The rest of our marathon date centered around one of our favorite things: food.  We discovered The Bridge.  A gorgeous spot, with tons of personality and great wine.  During our wine and appetizer snack, I was able to guess the final step to our big date.  Dinner at Harvest!  Harvest is the restaurant we ate at the night Steve proposed to me.  Sigh, my romantic hubs...

Back at our home, feeling full, blessed, and so so happy, I gave hubs my gifts.  I have kept a journal since our engagement and through this first year to give to him as my 'paper' gift for the one year mark; hubs had a tear in his eye over this one...tears of joy number three for wifey.  I'm so glad he like it : )  A few weeks ago our dear friend Nikki, at Purple Lemon Photography, updated my headshots and dance pictures.  Steve loved them, so I worked with Nikki to create a collage of images to give to him for our anniversary.  I want him to be able to see his tiny dancer as he knew her even when she's too old to do those things anymore.  More happy hubs tears.

God blessed me with Steven, and even when he's not creating one of the most memorable days of our lives, I realize how amazing my dear husband is.  I thank God for him and anticipate many more years of this kind of joy and love.

Hooray It's Marriage!

~the Wifey

Developments in the Oros Household

Change is afoot for this old married couple.  A little bit of change at least.

• Recently our household acquired the Internet.  Yes, we are now proud users of the world wide web and can 'surf' to our hearts content in our pajamas. 
• In two days we'll celebrate the big ONE YEAR mark.  This means the 'honeymoon' is officially over, and we have to start getting crabby.  I think that's how that all works, right?
• Hubs is working on buying us an electric car.  He doesn't know it yet, but I think he'll be happy with this particular development.  
• In October I will begin work on my dance concert (un)Bridled.  More to come on this later.

And the most vital and important development to note for you, faithful reader:

• Hubs and Wifey will be working on rejuvenating our blog!  Due to our recent dive into the world of home based internet service, we plan to become blogging fools.   (we'll see how that goes over the next few months...)

~Wifey

Get Skills

Bearded Boy and I thought it necessary to share my mad golf skills and tips with the Earth (by Earth I mean the 9 people that read this blog). 

To watch, please input password: michigan. Bearded Boy likes to make things secret.



Steve's Golf School from Chase O. on Vimeo.

You're welcome, Earth.

-the Hubs

Someday We'll Have Kids - Reason #468

We saw this kid in the news Monday night, have you heard about him?

His name is Kieron Williamson...read about him here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100813/ap_on_en_ot/eu_britain_painting_prodigy_2

He paints...he paints pretty well...and because of those painting skills the kid is bringin' home the BACON to his parents! I mean...dang!

The little goober (who by the way is only 8 years old) turns out paintings like this:

Which is like...freakin' unbelievable.

But it also leads me to this...that people are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for his paintings...because he is 8. Am I right? Yes...I am right. If a painting like this were hanging in a gallery, with a forty year old's signature on the bottom....would it make as much? I'm afraid not. People would look at it and hope the dude has a day job...'cause he ain't makin' money at painting. In fact, I do believe that if an adult painted this, it would be a part of one of those 'starving artist' sales...those fire sales in hotel lobbies where artists are just trying to sell their stuff to ANYONE who has spare change. The public, with money to spare, are buying this little guy's stuff because he's a little guy. And little guys shouldn't have skills like this. So the public is paying for the awe factor...not for the art itself. Maybe. Most of the time. But that's not important here.

What IS important is that with the right training and skills...your kids can make you some serious BANK! If they have even the slightest of adult skills...they should be selling those skills to the public, for sure. Is your 5 year old an amazing craftsman? Call Bob Villa...stat...there's a TV show waiting to happen. Say your toddler has an uncanny ability to count to 20 without using their fingers or toes...NASA needs them. Does your newborn cry on key? America's Got Talent...here we come.

I'm just sayin'...if your kid's got it, flaunt it. The public will pay big money for kids doing adult things...and so just one more reason for having kids. Let it be known, if our kid(s) are not twirling batons or juggling fire rings by age 3, we may have to reconsider whether or not we keep them through college.

-the Hubs

View From the Backseat...

     In the middle of about the 6th or 7th hour of a stupidly long 12 hour drive to Michigan last week, I had some thoughts. These thoughts came while my wife was napping in the back seat and the Bearded Boy was yelling at passing cars in the passenger seat...how I was able to even generate coherent thoughts, I have no idea.
     I was thinking back about 15 or 16 years (my timing is probably way off actually, I always recall things as if I was 11 or 12...it was a busy year apparently). Around that time, again not exactly sure of the year, my parents, brother, and I took our first trip along Lake Michigan...which subsequently was the trip that started a trend of so many trips to Lake Michigan after that. This first trip was special though and it sticks in my mind to this day.  We started way up north near Mackinaw City and made our way down the west coast of Michigan, all the way down to just about Indiana...all the while catching glimpses of the Lake as we drove and stopping in tiny lakeside cities to enjoy fudge, pasties, and rocks (Michigan stuff). There were good memories to be had on that trip, but I think what resonates with me (and what I was thinking about on OUR drive up to Michigan) is the backseat of the car. Stick with me here. Those memories from the backseat are so special to me...the view is different from the back. The feelings of being safe, with Dad driving and Mom navigating...they knew where we were headed, I didn't have to worry about that. Feelings of discovery, every mile or so being able to see something new from our back windows...the Lake, towns, cows, more rocks...everything was exciting from the backseat. The backseat was my bro and I's home for a week, it was our place... it was safe, it was comfortable, it was my youth. Which brings me to the present...
     So, here I am, driving my newly formed family (my wife and I...and brother) up to the place where years ago, my family drove me. I got to thinking about how I was driving my family 12 hours north to go on vacation...and how I had never done that before. I was always the one in the backseat, enjoying the view...being the kid. I got to thinking about how I will rarely, probably never, be the backseat dweller again. For the rest of my life, I'll be the driver...I'll be the man...and eventually the dad, driving my wife and kids to...wherever.
     It made me a little sad at first, to be honest. I mean, it was one of those thoughts that lets you know that you'll never be a kid again. I'll never again get to experience the feeling of just hopping into the backseat without really caring what highway we're taking or how we're getting there, but rather being more worried with where lunch will be or if Mom packed my drawing pencils. I'll never again be able to fall asleep while the car is in motion, hearing my parent's whispers in the front seat...waking up at the next stop to get lunch (that I don't have to pay for). So yeah, it made me a little sad...it's always a little sobering when you realize that you can't go back.

    But then I had another thought...and it made me happy and excited. It was a small thought, but it went something like this...'Your backseat days are over, yes, but your kids will one day be grateful that YOU are in the front seat, leading them on.' Such a great thought. What a great thing it will be when one day Janele and I can give our kids memories like the ones that I have today. When I can drive our family to Michigan, or Florida, or Oregon, or wherever we decide to go. My job now is to let OUR kids have the backseat, to let THEM have memories and feel safe and be excited (though I still get REALLY excited when we're leaving for vacation, don't get me wrong). What a privilage it is to be handed the responsibility of building memories for your family. It makes me look forward to one day being a dad and being able to take my family on adventures. Janele and I will get to give our children a really special thing in that we'll be able to give them amazing memories, just as we've been given from our parents.

      Maybe our kids will have memories when they're adults of seeing the world's largest cherry pie, or of dad screaming from the front seat because a bee has stung his face, or of mom whispering little things like, "Honey...what mile marker do you want to drop the kids off at?" It's all up to us, the memories that we provide our children are in our hands...and it's an immense responsibility and privilage, but one that I am extremely happy to take on and look forward to doing well.

- the Hubs

C'mon kids...hop in!!

Michigan. Sublime.

Hubs is back!  I'm so glad; he keeps things funny on here.  

Okay, first real MI experience for the wifey, and I can't say enough great things about it.  Beautiful weather, something St. Louis could learn a thing or two about, amazing views, rugged coasts, but soft sandy beaches.  Do I sound like their tourism department yet?  You know, your trip starts in Michigan...

Let's do a highlights reel.  Here goes:

1. The Beach!  Check it out-

Oh, and in the distance, see that big tan hill?  That's the dune we climbed.  Oh Dune.  How horribly deceptive you are.  You look so close, but you are so far away.  You look like such a gentle slope, but you had us on our hands and knees climbing to the top.  Dune is a liar.  There was a great sense of accomplishment in defeating the Dune.

2. Family fun times!  We enjoy one another.

3. Hubs and wifey times!  We were a pleasant drive away from many little beach towns.  Each one equipped with the best ice cream shop in the state...apparently.

Like Hubs said, I could go on and on explaining in great detail the soft breezes, the amazing sky full of stars, and the gentle lull of Michigan lake waves buffeting on the shore.  It would be better if you just went to experience it yourself, though.

The trip came to a well rounded finish in Chicago.  Our big city neighbors to the north....or something like that.

Vacation!  Indeed.

~the wifey

Michigan. Pure.

     Ahhhhh...the wifey and I are now rested, peaceful, and ready to act like normal people. We've returned from a lovely one week vacation in Northwestern Michigan...it was cool, crisp, and much needed. You may be saying, "Ummm...Northern Michigan?? What the heck is in Michigan? What do you do up there...isn't that where Detroit is? Are you in a GANG??!!" To that I would say...stop it right now, and look at where we were:

     There's about 450 more pictures where that came from, so I'll spare you the 'come over to my house and watch this hour and a half slide-show' experience. What I will do though is give you some highlights of our trip.
     One highlight for me is the rest stop on the way to the destination. That sounds really bizarre, I know, but hear me out. Rest stops are only stopped at on road trips, so to me a rest stop is exciting and means that I'm on vacation. For me, it's the starting point of a trip and the time when your brain says, "Rest stop??!! Are we going on VACATION!!!?? WHOO!" So...I get excited...

     But enough about the stupidly long drive up to Michigan...how about a dune climb?? Sleeping Bear dunes, a National Park, is a crazy high pile of sand. I didn't know sand can be piled that high...but God is powerful and He builds cool things. This is one of them. It's 500 feet...and as my trivia freak of a dad put it, is a 'traveling dune' meaning that it moves multiple feet each year. It will be miles inland in another 200-600 years!! CRAZY! So...what better way to enjoy a giant, traveling pile of sand than to get really stupid and climb that thing, right??

     To get a good idea of what you are looking at, check out those little dots at the top of the hill...those are people. Those people are 500 feet in the air...and you are looking up at about a 60 degree angle. There...that's better.



One really slow, really dumb hour later...we made it! The best part? All of the little jerk kids RUNNING up the hill by us...oh wait, no, that wasn't that great at all. Just wait 10 years kids...just wait.

Janele got so tired...she just feel asleep standing up. Smiling. Weird.

So...what to do after climbing the world's largest litter box? Go find giant pie...of course!!

    Yeah...that's right, the WORLD'S LARGEST. Good game Charlevoix! You did it! You sure know how to build...giant ovens! And...make...big pans? And...you have...a large supply of butter. Ok...I'm done.

     There were more highlights of course...but I'm tired. So, I'll let wifey chime in. In summary though...my favorite things: bathrooms by a highway, moving sand piles, and giant fruit pie. I'm easily satisfied.

-the Hubs

Someday We'll Have Kids Reason #12

(Happy Disciples Who Love God More than Cheese)

At our church, City Lights, I have the great privilege of serving in the kid's program.  They say fun stuff, those little disciples.  Sometimes it's even quotable...it'll be nice to have such quotable wee ones in our own home.

Me, in the context of our lesson about the ten commandments: So, what are some things in your life that could become more important than God if we're not careful?

Kiddo #1:  Television.
Kiddo #2:  Yeah!  That's number two on my list.  Video games are number one.
Kiddo #1:  My brother needs to be careful about that...he plays alot of video games.
Kiddo#3: Eating.  I sure do like to eat.
Kiddo #2: I really love playing video games...maybe my parents too?
Kiddo #3: Especially cheese, cheese is so good.  
Me, shaking my head in all seriousness: Yep, those are all things that shouldn't become more important than God.  Good work guys.

Conclusion, kids have their priorities figured out:
Cheese, television, video games < God

~the wifey

Dating in Marriage

If you are married, and have the flexibility of either no children or very small children who can easily be packed up and forced to go with you wherever you go, then may I propose one of the many gifts of marriage: The Impromptu Date Night.  

Many a weekday night, Hubs and I will find ourselves, done with dinner, and alert enough to carry on plenty of conversation, only to be sitting in front of the television.  "Boo!" I'll think to myself, "don't waste your lives away with another two hour block of shows!  Just don't do it!"  But, it usually takes the initiation of Hubs (who is great at initiating things) to get us off that couch, away from yet another CBS sitcom (which are pretty good these days), and out of the house.  

What?  A weeknight date?  You may be asking yourself right now.  I have to assume I'm not the only one who poses questions to herself on a regular basis.  But doesn't date night take planning and purpose?  Like, 'oh, we haven't had a date in two months, guess we better do that.'  NO!  It doesn't.  Take back the date night, married people!  Get off the couch!  Finish dinner at home and there are worlds of fun, free things waiting for you out there.  This is one of the reasons to get married after all, isn't it?  Constant contact with one another.  Availability to live together, by which I mean much, much more than just co-habitation.  

Last night we took a long meandering walk through our neighborhood.  Trekked down streets we've driven past day after day but have never actually seen.  It was hot, so we were sweaty, and I had opened at the coffee shop that morning so some of my conversation was a little loopy, but we were together, doing an intentional activity, outside of the house.  Date!  

(This type of date is also an excellent opportunity to compose songs about one another's most outstanding features.   Take that however you may...)

Or, one for beating this summer heat, cart yourselves over to the 'ol Barnes and Noble or Borders or even the public library, as long as it's cool and there's plenty of reading material, oh, and a comfy place to sit.  Free Date!  Plus, this usually gives us lots of new and interesting thing to say to one another.  Our last bookstore date resulted in Hubs' new passion for local produce.  

Long ago, before Hubs even asked me to be wifey, he said something very sweet to me.  It went something like this: "I'm excited to be with you, as a married couple, one day.  We'll get to do stuff like buy nuts at Trader Joe's because we just feel like it."  This was in the context of a conversation about the joys of having your love with you, at home, available almost all the time. 

Fellow Hubs and wifeys!  Get together and make the Impromptu Date Night happen.  It makes marriages happy.  

~the wifey

Deer like married people

Today, Hubs and I went for a four mile hike at Rockwood Reservation.  Great trail, great day, great deer!  We were within fifteen feet of this wee one.  Conclusion.  Deer like married people.

Hooray Marriage! Hooray Freedom!

Happy Fourth of July (yesterday), everyone!  Here are the highlights of our weekend.

Saturday fun....

This bunch is from Sunday...

PAST (Pernod Avenue Standard Time)...

From National Geographic Magazine - July 2nd, 2010:

Story by Colin McFarner
Photos by Cindy Wampler

The Stretch of Pernod Ave. from Hampton to Kingshighway is in a different time zone. More specifically, it is exactly 72 hours ahead of everyone else in the world. How did this happen? How was such a small stretch of road catipulted three days into the future? Most scientists believe this was caused by a seismic shift in the earth's plates just below the street, around 1600 A.D. The plates shifted so rapidly, that the street was actually moving on its own, rotating and circumventing the earth at such a rapid pace, that it actually forgoed any time laws and jumped 72 hours ahead of everyone else on earth (approx. 3 days).

Illustration courtesy Wikipedia

For a better illustration, picture this stretch of road as half of a hamster wheel. As the earth's crust shifted below the expanse, this 'hamster wheel' began rotating over the earth, bypassing everything in its path and traveling at an extrememly high Rate of Inertia (ROI). This, of course, was many years ago...but the confusion and struggle of the neighborhood's inhabitants still remains. Case in point could be witnessed just last night...July 1st. As the rest of St. Louis and the country was enjoying their Thursday evening, settling in for the night to prepare for the following work day, this stretch of bewildered houses was freaking out. Due to unfortunate scientific circumstances, the inhabitants of Pernod Ave. were forced to celebrate Independence Day 3 days earlier than the rest of America. Bottle rockets soared and popped, fire crackers exploded, and beer after beer was emptied. Struggling to find a way in their time jerked world, the people of Pernod were only doing what time and space was forcing them to. Unfortuntely for the surrounding area, who were still in current time and not at all ready to celebrate, this was a bit of a hindrance...

      Fireworks light up the sky above the Pernod neighborhood on July 1st

Police Chief Roger Borrelli:

"We're in kind of a pickle, ya know? I mean, part of me wants to arrest these folks...but gosh darn it, it's just not their fault, ya know? I mean, what are they is supposed to do? It wouldn't be fair to make them celebrate on Sunday, 'cause for them that would be the 7th! Whoever heard of the 7th of July being a holiday? I sure as heck have not...that's just not patriotic. That's just not what Jefferson had in mind when he crossed the Pacific and discovered New Jersey all those years ago."

So with that, the party continued, late into the night. Law enforcement was rendered useless and the ever continuing struggle of the neighborhood of the PAST (Pernod Avenue Standard Time) continues. Maybe one day scientists will uncover the solution that will eventually return this confused neighborhood to a more sustainable time zone, or at least get them to be on the same day as everyone else.

That's so wierd that this was in National Geographic today, because Janele and I live in this same neighborhood and were up all night wondering what the crap was going on?? Glad we got an explanation...I can't believe I hadn't known this until just today. Wow.

- the Hubs

Sometimes a husband will...

Call the police department because the neighbors, who decided to celebrate the 4th three days early, are shooting off numerous fire crackers late into the night (well, late for me who had to get up at 4:30am). 

When it was all said and done, the neighbors stopped before Hubs could get the St. Louis City department number, and eventually I fell asleep to the sound of our fan and air conditioner instead of crack, pop, bang etc.   Really, though, it's the gesture that counts. 

he's like my knight...

~The Wifey

Speaking of Music...

I would just like to say that I for one am extremely excited for what's ahead on the concert horizon. In the span of about 2 months, wifey and I will be seeing (hopefully) 3 of my most favorite bands (soon to be her favorite as well, she just hasn't 'seen the light' yet). Punch Brothers, Broken Social Scene, and Phoenix...again, all in the span of about 2 months. Oh...YES. A quick synopsis...we'll call this 'Hub's Summer/Fall Preview of Bands that He Really Hopes He Sees and Why He Likes Them':

Punch Brothers: I've mentioned them before in this blog. Chris Thile (of Nickel Creek fame) heads up this band of bluegrass genius. They are virtuostic (is that a word?) in everything they play. Compositionally, conceptually, and just plain playabilitally (definitely not a word), they are leaps and bounds above a lot of music being made out there. We'll be (hopefully) seeing them in Lawrence, KS come October...also doubling as a visit to our good friend Megan!

Broken Social Scene: These guys are from Canada, isn't that a good enough explanation? I mean, a TON of great stuff has come out of Canada. Hockey, mounties, Michael J. Fox (seriously, there would be no 'Back to the Future' without MJF, and a world without BTTF is a world that I don't want to be a part of), the list really goes on and on. Add to that list this band. They have about 600 members or something...ok, not really, but there's a lot of people that get credit in the liner notes for this group. Just awesomely creative rock. I love stuff with a beat, with a rhythm, with something that grabs you by the throat and doesnt' let go...and they do it beautifully. We will (hopefully) be going to see them in August at LouFest...along with some other groovy bands.

Phoenix: They're pretty popular by now so I probably don't have to say much, but let me just say that the first time I saw them (on Saturday Night Live), I was overcome with poop-yourself excitement. They are that good. ***This is a big 'wish' of a concert. Tickets are like $45 a pop...which means that we are not going most likely...unless someone out there in blog land is just really really really nice and really giving. Just saying. ***



So there it is...a potential summer of music lovin'. Here's to hoping it all works out and that my lovely and I will be basking in these musician's sweet sweet melodies.

What's everyone else looking forward to this summer? Eh?

- The Hubs

The CWE and Humans With Cat Heads...

     We love summer in St. Louis. We love the culture, the festivities, the food...it's just a great town to be in this time of the year (minus the holy hell hotness). With all of our St. Louis love in tow, we were excited this past weekend to go out and experience one of the town's many fine events, as we FINALLY had a free weekend. We decided on the CWE Art Fair and Taste. I'll admit, I'm a hit or miss fan of the Central West End...I think it depends on what time of the day I'm there, meaning that I prefer the daytime version better than the nighttime version.

     Our main reason for hitting up the fair was to see a great local band, The Northwoods...it's Simon and Garfunkle meets Nickel Creek with a dash of Cake (I say that because he played a Cake cover). This time around, The Northwoods consisted of just their front man, but he brought it. Armed with a loop pedal, the guy was a one man wrecking crew of beats. I was especially impressed because he was playing to a crowd of about 8 (as the fair had just opened at 11) and it was already butt crazy hot...but he handled it like a champ.

     Having seen what we really came for, I was satisfied, but you can't go to an art fair without looking at art...so off we went. And the art...was...ummm...I'm trying to say this nicely...it was not...that...good. Whew, there...was that ok? I'm not sure the reason for this, though it was later brought to my attention that this was not a juried event, so the competition factor was not there and it also seemed that they kind of just let anyone display their stuff as long as they had the fee paid. Cheap jewelry, paintings of hearts, many an oil painted landscape (like...total Bob Ross style)...it was all accounted for. Except..."Whoa, honey...what do you see in that tent over there? Are those pictures of humans doing random things, except instead of their usual human head, they have the head of a cat???" Oh...freak yes it is.

That would be Cleo'cat'ra, dancin' her way to the CWE. It was pretty much the greatest use of cat heads on human bodies that I had ever seen. But wait...there's more!!

Mr. Licks a Lot and Tootie Poopers, taking in a day at the Creepy Old Man Museum.

Oh...so pretty...so graceful...so...hold the phone, is that a 'Mona Kitty Lisa' in the background?? Scandalous.

And there's really nothing like heading to the beach with a giant cat helmet to watch the transluscent ships come in from sea.  

     I'm going to be honest here, at first sight on Saturday my immediate thought was to make fun of Catworks, but after reading some of the website, all I can do is give props. Big, furry, paw-shaped props. The 'artist' sticks with the story that he is merely the curator of this collection of early 20th century paintings. The claim is that these pieces were found in a basement or something in around 1902 and that the origin is unknown. The great thing is that he sticks to this claim in every aspect of the website, not once slipping out of this story. Smart play, Catworks Master...make crazy awesome pictures of freakish cat-head humans but take none of the credit while claiming they are from 100 years ago, thus negating any opportunity the paparazzi may have of capturing candid photos of these celebrity cats or their creator. Cat Master wins...Cat Master always wins.  

- the Hubs

Blessings

We have been a busy married duo.  Two weeks of exciting things have happened!!!  So, I think it's best to pace ourselves and give a little bit at a time.  Don't want to overwhelm in one big post, right? 

Here's something I've been meaning to blog since May 26th.

On May 26th, Hubs and I celebrated eight months of marital bliss and blessings.  Praise the Lord!  He is good! 

AND the coolest things happened!  We got a double rainbow for our 'anniversary'!!! 

(picture courtesy of Nikki W. from Steve's work)

Why is this so exciting?  Well, on our wedding day waaaaaaaaaay back in September, we were given a double rainbow blessing, so now they're something extra special to the hubs and I. Check ours out!

There are more blessing moments to share, so stay tuned for updates!
~the Wifey

Those boys can play!

I have three brothers.  Three amazingly intelligent, incredibly gifted, and supremely artistic brothers whom I love and don't get to see enough.  They're great.  They have names that start with the letter "B" and sometimes they have facial hair, but sometimes they don't.  

My brothers play music like it's in extension of living.  They have to make music.  At night, in the morning, on the weekends, in the car, at the dinner table, they make music.  And it is beautiful.  

I have never been able to maintain the patience it takes to play a musical instrument.  They all taught themselves to play guitar, drums, keyboard, bass, ukulele, synth, you name it, they probably have had a hand at trying to play it.  I guess, as a dancer, I use my body as an instrument...but we all know that's not really the same as actually playing an instrument. 

Here are the brothers:

  Brother Eldest, Ben

 Brother Middlest, Bryan

 Brother Youngest, BJay (who will only be seen wearing black suites in honor of Johnny Cash)












All the brother's bands are great, and you dear blog reader, faithful follower and enjoyer of our earth saving marriage, should listen to and love their music, just like Hubs and I do!
Check out the following:
Brother Eldest Main Project
Brother Eldest Second Project, these guys tour the STL!
Brother Middlest Project, touring this summer! 
Brother Middlest Other Band, he's so prolific 
Youngest Brother... 
Okay, youngest brother is still in school, bummer, but SOON he'll be making waves on the music scene, once the days of cafeteria french fries are over. 

Rock on Brothers Thrice.  Rock on.


~the wifey

What Dreams May Come

Before I married Hubs, I never woke up angry at someone from a dream I'd had.  I heard of people who had experienced this phenomenon, but I was never one of them.  

Until now.

Last night was not the first of married dreams involving me and the hubs, that had me waking up deeply annoyed or resentful, but last night was a set of very vivid ones that I thought I could share here for everyone's enjoyment.  

Let's call these dreams, My Hunky Hubs.  

Hunky Hubs Dream #1:  Steve is playing a live concert on SNL!  How exciting!  Except for the fact that he's doing an acoustic duet with Uncle Kracker (gross).  He had to wear a disguise too; bushy Amish beard (think Bearded Boy), and dark Emo glasses, the disguise was hiding the fact that as a worship leader he couldn't be seen playing a performance not related to God.  
(Okay, all of that is pretty run of the mill dream land, this next part is why wifey got a little angry in her sleep.)
Women were throwing their panties at my hubs!!!  YES.  Lots of them.  

I was livid, dream livid and then real life livid when I woke up around five...this was before the shouting match in our awesome back alley.

Hunky Hubs Dream #2:  We were at a Christmas party in our neighborhood, and everytime I looked for hubs, he was surrounded by women!  They were flirting with him and touching him and laughing at him.  Angry sleeping wifey take two!

Now, I have to say, that in all of this dream land debauchery, never once did my hubs do anything to reciprocate these hussies advances.  So, even in dream land he's my faithful Love.

: )

When I woke up to say 'bye' this morning, I needed to get a good hug and some reassurance about all this crazy dreaming.  I told Hubs about all the women who were throwing themselves at him all night, to which he replied, "It's because I'm so hunky."  

geeze.

~the Wifey

My Hunky Hubs, doing what he does best, hunking things up!  Take that Botanical Gardens, the Hunk is in the HOUSE!

We Live in An Apartment in the City...Which is Fun...Right? Isn't IT???!!

I roll over this morning to check the clock, see how much time I have before needing to wake for work. Nice...only 5:30, half hour more...I roll back over. 20 minutes later my alarm goes off. Wait, wha? My alarm is set for 6:00am, not 5:50...what gives??!! Oh wait, that's not my alarm at all...that's...people shouting??! Wha? Who is shouting and what are they shouting about??? Janele is right next to me and she's not shouting...plus she usually doesn't start her daily yell until around 9:15 regardless. Is something wrong?! Is someone being attacked? By an urban cougar??!!! Oh wait...nope...that's not it. It's just our neighbors...drinking Budweiser and listenting to mariachi music in the back alley at 5:50 in the morning. And yes, they are shouting...of course. Perfectly normal. Oh wait, no it's not.

I took this picture from our window...this is looking west down our alley. They got a little out of hand...

Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone! Be safe!

- the Hubs

What, Hubs?  You didn't like that early morning wake up call of "HEEEAYYYYAYAHAHAGFOISD!!!!!"  I thought it was kind of nice.  Blocked out all those stupid chirping birds.  I guess to each his own...
~the wifey 

Someday We'll Have Kids - Reason #189

I was made aware this past weekend that in children's brains lay all of the secrets to earth's mysteries. However, it must be so that somewhere between 3 year old innocence and 13 year old puberty, those secrets are turned to mush, thus rendering them useless to society. This is why I chalk up another reason to have a child...to get to that little guy or girl early on before all of that knowledge gets sucked away. Short version...children know how to save the world. They just don't know that they know and adults think they're just being darling but also dumb, so we pay no mind. I'm going to start taking these kids seriously...really listening to the knowledge they have to share.
     We took our nephew Lukas to the Magic House this past weekend...and that is when I realized that this kid and many others hold the key to the universe. He fell in love with the recycling exhibit (for some reason...I for one thought it was booooooring). There's a little game there that teaches kids how to recycle things...put the metal stuff in the right spot, plastic in the right spot, etc. That's when the kid has the audacity to start putting produce (fake produce) into the recycling bins, all the while exclaiming, "We don't need cabbage! We don't need lettuce!! We don't need tomatoes!!!" Whoa. Genius. Why in the name of burger meat haven't we thought of this sooner? We've been recycling the wrong things! Why CAN'T we 'recycle' our veggies into something else, say...pie??! Put in a celery stalk...out comes a rack of lamb. Don't want that eggplant? Give me that junk...here, now it's a chocolate mousse. The kid's right, recycle that crap! Down with the vegetables! Viva de revolution!

-the Hubs

Happy Birthday Sister!!!

This post is going to have nothing to do with marriage at all...instead it's a giant shout out to one of the coolest people we know..............JONATHON TAYLOR THOMAS!!!

Ok, not really...and no, we don't really know JTT (as Janele refers to him). This post is a giant shout out to the one and only...JESSIE OROS!!! (SOON TO BE STAROBA!)

She's pretty cool, huh?? Look how she plays that guitar! And look how she sits on porch swings! And wears red pants!! Awwwwwwwesome!!!

Well, tomorrow is Jessie's birthday...she's turning 24!!! Man, where has the time gone, eh sis?? To celebrate...we got you a gift. A HUSBAND!!! You may think he's pretty attractive...as he looks a little like Jesus. You can marry him in 16 days...not any sooner. Here you go:

See?? And he comes with some wierd kid too!! YAY!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

-the Hubs