If you have no idea about that rule, that means you have missed out on one of Michiana's best new attractions this Spooktacular Season!
Dave and I had the chance to go to Fear Park with some friends last Friday night. It had rained pretty hard all day, so we were disappointed to find out the bloody bayou swamp was "swamped out." Also, the circus had not been given the go ahead green light from the state, so we weren't able to go there either.
We did get to go through the 4-D Amazement which is amazing. We also went through the Cookoo's Nest which was more funny than scary.
We went back last night for the two missing attractions we weren't able to see on Friday. Just when we thought things couldn't get better, the circus was AMAZING. We went there first. The money, graphics, time and energy they have put into this attraction is mind blowing. Not only were we scared and we laughed, but where else do we get to go to see Dave run smack dab into a mirror at full speed!?!?!?!?! That could have been the best! We were in the hall of mirrors, with our hands on our heads (picture what someone looks like when they are getting arrested) and I was following along. He ran smack dab into the mirror...good thing his elbows were up, otherwise we might be just how much plastic surgery is covered by insurance.
The bloody bayou which was said to be the scariest was okay, and it did get a couple of yelps from me, but hands down, the Circus was the best.
Be sure to check it out if you have time. I can't wait to see what else this attraction park has in store for us in the upcoming years, it sounds awesome!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
It's Only 2:24 pm
What a day! It's only 2:24 pm and here is everything I have created in the kitchen thus far...
7 loaves of pumpkin bread
4 hillybilly hot dogs
1 pan of chewy caramel pumpkin bars
1 crock pot of homemade macaroni and cheese
Hmm..wonder what else I can create before bedtime?!?!?! I'm on a roll!
7 loaves of pumpkin bread
4 hillybilly hot dogs
1 pan of chewy caramel pumpkin bars
1 crock pot of homemade macaroni and cheese
Hmm..wonder what else I can create before bedtime?!?!?! I'm on a roll!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Putting It Into Writing (Warning-This is going to be graphic!)
I've debated putting this into words for a week now. I'm really struggling with it. I've decided that it might be good for me to write about it in hopes of finding some kind of closure. I'm going to warn you however, I plan to go into detail so that I can try to find peace, don't continue reading if you are weak stomached.
Last Sunday, the weather was beautiful, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, although there was a breeze and cool temps, it was a fantastic fall day. I went out to the Osceola Dragway about 11:00 because my brother in law was competing in his final race of the season. I got there in time to see him do one more pass for time trials and then we sat down for lunch.
Shortly after 1 the racing started. We had a mad game of baseball going on back in the "pits." The B-man was in the truck bed as full time batter, G was the pitcher, K was playing outfield and I was catcher. That little man is amazing at baseball, we were having a great time. G said that he was going to go up to the bleachers to watch for a bit before he had to get ready to race. B wanted no part of that, so K and I stayed back and played ball a bit longer. Finally, we were getting a bit bored with it, so we headed up to the bleachers to find G. We hardly ever go up there, as in years past, we've always had the motor home so we hung out there. This year they don't have the motor home, so there's really nothing else to do. We were sitting up there on the 2nd set of bleachers when everything happened.
G was sitting to the right of me, B was on the other side standing, we were second row from the top I think. Kim was sitting with her back to the track, facing us, about 2 or 3 rows down. The motorcycles were racing. Quite a few had gone and we were half watching, half playing. I don't even recall hearing the next racers names as they were in the staging lanes doing their burn outs. I do remember the tragedy of what happened next though.
I remember clearly the motorcycles taking off and looking up when I heard a rumble from the others sitting there in the bleachers before us and ours. I remember clearly thinking that the motorcycle was coming straight at our set of bleachers. I also remember seeing that man hit the guard rail and flipping off his bike. It was a split second (that seemed like it was forever) watching him fly off the bike, glide across the guard rail and flip then fall on our side of the rail in a bloody pile. I remember clearly the blood spurting up onto the rail and flying to the grass not 7 feet from us on the other side. I heard the gasps and the chatter, the crying and the yelling. I heard the announcer say that they needed to get down the lane fast. I grabbed B and we raced down to the fence where he lay across from us, motionless. Other people came running. I will never get rid of the vision of seeing his intestines and the fear that he had been decapitated right in front of me. The track personnel came running and the ambulance was there in a second. I remember them yelling for gloves and a bag.
People immediately started crying and yelling. I remember my sister yelling that she knew CPR. I remember Dave, the county sheriff who K and G are good friends with (who works at the track) saying that someone needed to call 911. I remember passing B to G and dialing. The 911 operator answered and asked where my emergency was. I (pretty calmly I think) gave her the information that there had been a very bad motorcycle accident at the Osceola Drag strip. At that point, Dave, the County Sheriff, was saying to tell her that we needed the Medi-Vac Helicopter. I relayed that information. She immediately told me that I could not make that medical call as I was not a licensed medical professional. I was trying to explain that we had County Sheriff who was there and I was just passing along information, she then said she had to speak to him personally. I was livid. He was practically standing inside a man's chest and she was really questioning it?!?!? We started yelling for him, he began to walk over. He never made it as something else caught his attention. The operator then had the nerve to tell me that I could have legal ramifications if I was prank calling. Are you kidding me?
Someone else at this point had called 911 as well, someone that worked at the track and was with the man. She was nasty so I hung up. At this point, it was clear that he had not survived. They started calling for tarps and blankets. They sectioned off the area in which he lay and asked everyone to back away from the fence and give the emergency medical people do their jobs. He had been cut open nose to navel by the guard rail, with most of his intestines no longer in his chest cavity. The very first responders to the body watched his heart beat (the actual heart) for the last few rhythms. I remember seeing his buddy who had just gotten to the track run down the track to get his bike and then come back over the fence to see his friend one last time. We went back to the pits, mournful, sick to our stomachs, fighting tears for the man, the stranger. I remember seeing the man's wife sit on the bleachers after she had arrived at the track to find out her husband was dead, sitting there surrounded by people, rocking back and forth crying for her loss.
I watched a man die. I watched the most horrific death that I hope to ever see or hear about. I was there. I'm really having a lot of trouble going to sleep at night and not allowing my mind to rerun that over and over. I've not been eating much. I'm trying to figure out my purpose there. I found it interesting that when I was at church on Wednesday, Dr. Bob said said something about the fact that God doesn't give us pain for no reason. My prayer all week has been that soon the purpose of my witnessing that accident is clear and that I may find peace in it.
I'm praying for the family who lost that man on Sunday. I'm praying for the track personnel who were there and did everything they could in the face of that tragedy. I'm praying for the people who were yelling at them because they weren't administering CPR, as they knew it was to late. (It was later confirmed by the Coroner that his neck had been broken and he would have not survived with any sort of life saving measure...) I'm praying for the mean people who have been saying slanderous things towards the Drag Strip and workers on the Internet. I'm praying.
Last Sunday, the weather was beautiful, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, although there was a breeze and cool temps, it was a fantastic fall day. I went out to the Osceola Dragway about 11:00 because my brother in law was competing in his final race of the season. I got there in time to see him do one more pass for time trials and then we sat down for lunch.
Shortly after 1 the racing started. We had a mad game of baseball going on back in the "pits." The B-man was in the truck bed as full time batter, G was the pitcher, K was playing outfield and I was catcher. That little man is amazing at baseball, we were having a great time. G said that he was going to go up to the bleachers to watch for a bit before he had to get ready to race. B wanted no part of that, so K and I stayed back and played ball a bit longer. Finally, we were getting a bit bored with it, so we headed up to the bleachers to find G. We hardly ever go up there, as in years past, we've always had the motor home so we hung out there. This year they don't have the motor home, so there's really nothing else to do. We were sitting up there on the 2nd set of bleachers when everything happened.
G was sitting to the right of me, B was on the other side standing, we were second row from the top I think. Kim was sitting with her back to the track, facing us, about 2 or 3 rows down. The motorcycles were racing. Quite a few had gone and we were half watching, half playing. I don't even recall hearing the next racers names as they were in the staging lanes doing their burn outs. I do remember the tragedy of what happened next though.
I remember clearly the motorcycles taking off and looking up when I heard a rumble from the others sitting there in the bleachers before us and ours. I remember clearly thinking that the motorcycle was coming straight at our set of bleachers. I also remember seeing that man hit the guard rail and flipping off his bike. It was a split second (that seemed like it was forever) watching him fly off the bike, glide across the guard rail and flip then fall on our side of the rail in a bloody pile. I remember clearly the blood spurting up onto the rail and flying to the grass not 7 feet from us on the other side. I heard the gasps and the chatter, the crying and the yelling. I heard the announcer say that they needed to get down the lane fast. I grabbed B and we raced down to the fence where he lay across from us, motionless. Other people came running. I will never get rid of the vision of seeing his intestines and the fear that he had been decapitated right in front of me. The track personnel came running and the ambulance was there in a second. I remember them yelling for gloves and a bag.
People immediately started crying and yelling. I remember my sister yelling that she knew CPR. I remember Dave, the county sheriff who K and G are good friends with (who works at the track) saying that someone needed to call 911. I remember passing B to G and dialing. The 911 operator answered and asked where my emergency was. I (pretty calmly I think) gave her the information that there had been a very bad motorcycle accident at the Osceola Drag strip. At that point, Dave, the County Sheriff, was saying to tell her that we needed the Medi-Vac Helicopter. I relayed that information. She immediately told me that I could not make that medical call as I was not a licensed medical professional. I was trying to explain that we had County Sheriff who was there and I was just passing along information, she then said she had to speak to him personally. I was livid. He was practically standing inside a man's chest and she was really questioning it?!?!? We started yelling for him, he began to walk over. He never made it as something else caught his attention. The operator then had the nerve to tell me that I could have legal ramifications if I was prank calling. Are you kidding me?
Someone else at this point had called 911 as well, someone that worked at the track and was with the man. She was nasty so I hung up. At this point, it was clear that he had not survived. They started calling for tarps and blankets. They sectioned off the area in which he lay and asked everyone to back away from the fence and give the emergency medical people do their jobs. He had been cut open nose to navel by the guard rail, with most of his intestines no longer in his chest cavity. The very first responders to the body watched his heart beat (the actual heart) for the last few rhythms. I remember seeing his buddy who had just gotten to the track run down the track to get his bike and then come back over the fence to see his friend one last time. We went back to the pits, mournful, sick to our stomachs, fighting tears for the man, the stranger. I remember seeing the man's wife sit on the bleachers after she had arrived at the track to find out her husband was dead, sitting there surrounded by people, rocking back and forth crying for her loss.
I watched a man die. I watched the most horrific death that I hope to ever see or hear about. I was there. I'm really having a lot of trouble going to sleep at night and not allowing my mind to rerun that over and over. I've not been eating much. I'm trying to figure out my purpose there. I found it interesting that when I was at church on Wednesday, Dr. Bob said said something about the fact that God doesn't give us pain for no reason. My prayer all week has been that soon the purpose of my witnessing that accident is clear and that I may find peace in it.
I'm praying for the family who lost that man on Sunday. I'm praying for the track personnel who were there and did everything they could in the face of that tragedy. I'm praying for the people who were yelling at them because they weren't administering CPR, as they knew it was to late. (It was later confirmed by the Coroner that his neck had been broken and he would have not survived with any sort of life saving measure...) I'm praying for the mean people who have been saying slanderous things towards the Drag Strip and workers on the Internet. I'm praying.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Day # 2 And The Frustration Is High!
Last night was class #2 of Painting. Lisa and I once again hit the road on our way to Akron, Indiana for painting class. We didn't take any wrong turns and we got there in record time. We were feeling pretty good about ourselves.
That was...right up until we walked in and the instructor, Marilyn, handed us the directions for the night. Goodbye confidence, hello frustration. We had to mix a total of 9 colors. Nearly an impossible task for the novices like us. To top it off, Marilyn was not so magnificant...she just wasn't friendly. Not real helpful. Not real patient. Just not magnificant. ( I probably wouldn't be either after that many women were chasing me around the basement of a church saying, "Is this it? Am I close? What do I need to add?"
That was...right up until we walked in and the instructor, Marilyn, handed us the directions for the night. Goodbye confidence, hello frustration. We had to mix a total of 9 colors. Nearly an impossible task for the novices like us. To top it off, Marilyn was not so magnificant...she just wasn't friendly. Not real helpful. Not real patient. Just not magnificant. ( I probably wouldn't be either after that many women were chasing me around the basement of a church saying, "Is this it? Am I close? What do I need to add?"After about an hour, we successfully (ok, successfully is stretching it) had our paint mixed and were waiting patiently (ok, maybe patiently is pushing it too) for Marilyn to begin teaching. Well, we waited all night. There was no instruction and hardly any help. It was frustrating! Argh! To top it off...we had to do trees. Trees and Kori do NOT get along. At all. I had blobs. Just green and brown blobs. There were almost tears. We made it out alive...barely. I can't say after night #2 that I'm in love with my painting. Here it is. Just in case you can't tell...so far it's fields with a small barn. This picture...creating this much stress. Ugh.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
It's Easy to Forget About The Beauty In Our Own Backyards...
Life. Busy. That about sums up where I'm at. I'm doing my best to live the best life that I can. Unfortunatly, sometimes my life gets way to busy and I start to dread it, rather than enjoy every moment that I'm blessed with. I forget where I am. I forget to look around and be thankful for what I have, where I live, my health, my house, my family..everything. I am in survival mode.Today was an amazingly georgeous day in the South Bend/Mishawaka area. It's in the 80's. It's October. That just doesn't happen. Dave and I decided to put life on hold and enjoy the day. I'm really grateful that we made the decision to do that. Everything that I should/could/would have been doing was put on the waiting list. That's usually where my enjoyment goes...to the waiting list. Today, we were able to step back, and enjoy the day.
We went down to the East Race to walk around. We enjoyed the sound of the flowing river, we got to sit and watch a turtle for a few minutes, we quickly moved out of the way of passing bicyclists, we chatted with other walkers, we just enjoyed the day. Here are a few pictures of our walk.
Ok, so I admit...this last sign kind of was a smack of reality in the face, but it also made me laugh!
aMonday, October 6, 2008
1 Year Ago Today...
One year ago today, I married my best friend. It's been a weekend of reflections, of giving thanks, of taking trips down memory lane. There has been so much that Dave and I have been faced with this year, and we are so much stronger for it. If given the chance, there are very few things that I would go back and change from our first year together.
Before we married, many people warned us that marriage wasn't easy. Boy, were they right. I have learned more patience and compromise over the past 12 months that I have learned in 29 years. I have also learned so many, many valuable lessons.
Here is just a few of the things I've learned this first year of marriage:
*It feels good to stand in the shadows and let someone else shine
*Being loved unconditionally is the best feeling in the world
*Compromise is hard
*Love is sometimes painful
*Kids are challenging, yet beautiful
*Sleeping with someone isn't always a peaceful night's sleep--especially when they have a small bladder
*All those amazing friends that you pledge you won't stop doing things with, get harder and harder to see
*Sometimes it's best if I'm put in my place and don't get my way-no matter the fit I throw
*Coming home and getting to share my school stories feels good
*Making dinner isn't easy...or always good
*Letting boys have their play dates is sometimes good for me, too
*Doing things alone are sometimes just what I need
*Spending time watching TV with Dave is usually my favorite part of the day
*Being in love is the hardest and most wonderful thing I've ever done
*You have to put 110% effort into your marriage in order for it to be successful
I'm so blessed that Dave is in my life. I thank God everyday for for bringing Dave to me. This first year has been filled with the best times and some of the worst moments of my life. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm a better person for loving my big silly.
Happy Anniversary Dave. I love you forever.
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