September was the start of the wedding season. I and the other bridesmaids threw a bridal shower for one of my best friends, Amanda, the first week of September. She had a great turnout and it just made us all even more excited for her and Brandon's upcoming nuptials. I have included a picture of the lovely bride and her bridesmaids from the shower. Since I was home, I got to snag some more pics of the nephews...which I try to do any chance I can get...even though it's not usually the easiest thing to get done. (Notice Ry's face...what a character!) Also that weekend we celebrated cousin Matt and Michelle's birthdays. All the Des Moines area cousins were able to get together and say a little toast to the birthday couple! The following weekend I attended my good friends, Ashley and Travis's, wedding. I had one weekend "off" and then most of the Skahill family was able to get together and honor my Grandpa in the Memory Walk for Alzheimer's. This was the first year our family had done this and we were able to raise over $3100! I was so very proud of everyone and we all know there are some bright blue Irish eyes smiling down on us. That same weekend we prepared Amanda for her "last night out" and had a very memorable night.
October seemed to go by just as fast as the prior months since there seemed to be something going on every weekend. Amanda and Brandon got married on the 11th and it was a beautiful day and ceremony. I was very honored to be a part of their special day and will always remember it. The next weekend, cousins Jeff and Jamie were in town for and I was able to meet up with them to watch the ISU vs. NE game. On the 25th, we celebrated the marriage of my cousin Chris and welcomed Trina into the family. We also had another addition to our family that week when my cousins Brian and Brenda added another boy, Teegan, to their clan. Here are are a few shots of all the weddings, receptions, gatherings, etc.
November started off preparing for the next wedding. Another one of my close friends, Erin, was getting married on Nov. 22 so we threw her bridal shower and bachelorette party the first weekend in November. It was a wonderful time and I'm pretty sure none of us have laughed so hard than we did playing the plunger/toilet paper game!! Good times...and it's really not as easy as it looks! :) I ha
d a couple weeks off before Erin's big day and it was here before I knew it. It was a very fun weekend...her and Clayton had a great group of friends and we've all decided to start getting together more often. I think a trip to Apple River this summer is in the works...which I'm already looking forward to! After Erin's wedding, I only had to go back to work for two days then Mom, Dad, and I left for our annual Thanksgiving trip to Milwaukee. We always leave Tuesday afternoon/evening and go to the Dubuque area and stay the night then get up and hit the awesome outlet mall between Madison and Milwaukee. And it never fails, we always find great deals there. By the end of that shopping excursion, we had Dad thinking they should have bought a new Explorer than Escape! My aunt and uncle, cousins and their twins, also made the trek up to Milwaukee Thanksgiving day. It was great to be abe to get together as we never can seem to be able to do it that enough. While in Milwaukee, Jackie and Mom convinced me I could get up early and go shopping on Black Friday. As shocking as it may seem, we did shop from 6 to noon that morning...and it wasn't that pretty towards the end! And the I saved the best news for last...Jackie and Mark finally announced to everyone that they were expecting their little baby Makinen in the end of May. I had known since the beginning of October...and it was killing me not to tell everyone!! I, and the rest of the family, are so excited for them and can't wait to meet the newest addition to our family. Reese and Ry are pretty excited to get a new baby cousin too. Reese's suggestions on names were Thelma, Shaggy, and Scooby...this of course came right after watching Scooby Doo! *So Jackie is probably going to kill me for putting the picture to the right on here! She wasn't in the picture taking mood so being the nice sis I am, I decided to be goofy with her. It makes me laugh every time!!
d a couple weeks off before Erin's big day and it was here before I knew it. It was a very fun weekend...her and Clayton had a great group of friends and we've all decided to start getting together more often. I think a trip to Apple River this summer is in the works...which I'm already looking forward to! After Erin's wedding, I only had to go back to work for two days then Mom, Dad, and I left for our annual Thanksgiving trip to Milwaukee. We always leave Tuesday afternoon/evening and go to the Dubuque area and stay the night then get up and hit the awesome outlet mall between Madison and Milwaukee. And it never fails, we always find great deals there. By the end of that shopping excursion, we had Dad thinking they should have bought a new Explorer than Escape! My aunt and uncle, cousins and their twins, also made the trek up to Milwaukee Thanksgiving day. It was great to be abe to get together as we never can seem to be able to do it that enough. While in Milwaukee, Jackie and Mom convinced me I could get up early and go shopping on Black Friday. As shocking as it may seem, we did shop from 6 to noon that morning...and it wasn't that pretty towards the end! And the I saved the best news for last...Jackie and Mark finally announced to everyone that they were expecting their little baby Makinen in the end of May. I had known since the beginning of October...and it was killing me not to tell everyone!! I, and the rest of the family, are so excited for them and can't wait to meet the newest addition to our family. Reese and Ry are pretty excited to get a new baby cousin too. Reese's suggestions on names were Thelma, Shaggy, and Scooby...this of course came right after watching Scooby Doo! *So Jackie is probably going to kill me for putting the picture to the right on here! She wasn't in the picture taking mood so being the nice sis I am, I decided to be goofy with her. It makes me laugh every time!!
So now here is the middle of December already, and I'm still not done Christmas shopping! I swear every year I won't put it off but yet I still do...you'd think I'd learn! Mark and Jackie will be home for over Christmas this year, so Angela, Steve, and the boys will all be at Mom and Dad's Christmas day and spend the day together. I'm looking forward to having us all home together as it only happens about twice a year. I hope you enjoyed (and I didn't bore you too much) my Christmas letter. I'm not sure how often I will keep up with the blog but you're welcome to check in anytime. And please let me know if you any of you have blogs as well.
I hope this finds you all healthy, warm, and enjoying the Christmas spirit. May you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I hope I'm blessed to see some of you over the Holidays as well.
God Bless,
Lisa
1 comment:
ggeeezz.... long xmas letter... but good idea to save on postage....
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