The Great Minnesota Get-Together

It's that time of the year here in Minnesota where they have what some people consider the best State Fair in the US. Since we live so close to the fairgrounds, things have been pretty busy in our neck of the Twin Cities. Traffic has definitely increased. The nose level has risen several decibels. Every night we've had a brilliant fireworks display to let us know we could go to bed. It's been pretty exciting. With all this we decided to check it out on Saturday.

Pretty quickly we ran into these guys. Emily was actually watching the sheep getting sheared. We had fun walking around together and looking at all the different animals and horticulture displays.
Ben really enjoyed looking at all the crops and seeing all the monster sized ones people grew. We checked out all the fruits and vegetables, saw some beautiful flowers and flower displays, saw all the art people did with their produce (clearly they don't realize that you are supposed to eat the vegetables, not make art with them). We even were able to browse through Christmas trees to get a head start on decideding what type we want in a few months!!!We took in the excitement of the Mighty Midway riding several rides and playing a game. Ben's favorite part was the all the food he could eat! There were corn dogs, sweet potato fries, cheese curds, ice cream, a turkey leg and pickle, a bucket of cookies, all you can drink milk, roasted corn, a sno cone and some cotton candy. Not very much came home with us, either.

We wanted to stick around to see the fireworks because we had been hearing them every night since the fair started, so we slowly made our way to the entrance. We still had time to kill so, we jumped on the sky glider and caught some of the Tim McGraw concert! It was great! We could hear the concert for most of the night, but it was fun to look out and actually see him on stage.

Sorry there are no more pictures, but blogger doesn't seem to want me to put them on. I'll add them later, if I can.

A Fresh New Coat of Paint . . . and Bondo!

First, I would just like to say that I am proud that my wife quoted Star Trek II, "The Wrath of Khan" in her previous posting:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iII5yNyP8Kc

:)

. . .  yes, I know that's originally from "A Tale of Two Cities" . . . .


Anyways, well, today I started my second year of law school! I have a ton of classes that Joanna finds super exciting!!!   . . . OK, maybe not. . . .anyway: Elder law, Intellectual Property, Modern Real Estate Transactions, Mediation Clinic, Accounting for Lawyers, and a 'Selected Topic' reading class. I find them all very facinating!

Joanna and I have spent a lot of time together this summer, and it was excellent! We are setting our schedules to plan 'us-time'. . . . . I guess that's what you have to do when you are really busy!

Our records finally got transfered to our new ward, so I hope we get quickly called into the nursery! Talking about babies, Joanna and I were at Target looking for Star Trek action figures when we came across these toys:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1HSofGW7Zg&feature=related
These toys are AWESOME!! . . . . and potentially annoying. . . .

After the April rear-ending of my car, I finally had time this past week to do something about it! Instead of taking the car in to get a $3000 repair, I spent $300 and did it myself. Here are the before and after pictures-

Before. . . .

After!

First, I got a new light, then a new plastic bumper, then bent the metal as much back into shape as I could, then drilled numerous holes, then filled the void with "Great Stuff" spray foam, then covered that with an aluminum sheet, then spread pink bondo all over, then sanded that down, then sprayed on primer and several layers of paint and clear-coat onto the bumper and wounded area. It doesn't match exactly, but it is close enough!

I have also been slowly cleaning/organizing our back bedroom. I have a lot of stuff!! Joanna wants me to get rid of most of it. . . . .but that might never happen. . . . .  especially when we move to a place with a garage!! Nya nya nya!!!!

Joanna took some "first day of school" pictures of me this morning. Here is one:

I remember having new clothes and shoes and backpack when I went to elementary school as a kid, and how I was so excited and anxious for the first day that I couldn't hardly sleep the night before! This time, I again didn't get much sleep, but that was because I still had reading I had to get done before class started. . .

Joanna wishes she didn't have to work, and I wish I was back at work! We are going to be uber happy when we switch places in a couple of years!!!

Here is Joanna's glamour shot from the WI reception!

Here's Rene's glamour shot from the WI reception.

(Notice the delicious salmon he caught, and then grilled for us!)

Welp, I need to get back to reading.

- Ben & Joanna

A Tale of Two Weddings

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

It was the best of times for my parents because not just one, but TWO of their lovely daughters were finally going to be off their hands for good because they were getting married and would only have to spoil one daughter now.

It was the worst of times for my parents because they not only had one wedding (which had been planned for years and years), but TWO weddings to pay for and plan and travel to within two weeks of each other.

They sure must love their daughters :)

To make one of my dad's dreams come true and have a casual and inexpensive reception (he always supported the have the reception in the park or just elope ideas), we and the Woods had a combined reception/open house in Wausau for our people here. It was the perfect combination: a beautiful summer evening, my parent's backyard, friends from the ward (and even OH friends and family from NY), great food, and lots of fun!

Welcome to the Family!

This past weekend Brian got a good welcome to life in the Scoresby house (more about that later), but that isn't who we are welcoming into our family.

Last night we brought these guys home with us!

It was such a happy day! Last week Ben promised that I could get a season of JAG because he has all his Star trek videos and I don't have anything. Last night we were at Target doing some heavy duty shopping (thank-you target cards!) and we went to the dvd section looking for JAG. Originally, I wanted season 7, my personal favorite but it must have been everybodies favorite because they were all out. My heart sunk because we only saw seasons 1 and 2 on the shelves, and I'm not quite as attached to them as the later seasons. I was about to give up JAG for another few weeks until we found season 7 until Ben found seasons 3 and 4 in a package together!!! And, the best thing about it was the price: $26.99 for two seasons while normally they run about $40-$45 per season! What a deal!

So, this morning when I was feeling rather grumpy and not wanting to come to work, I wandered into the living room to grab my bag and saw Harm and Mac on the coffee table. They put a smile on my face :) and I get to introduce Ben to them tonight!

Now Harm and Mac have a new home where they will be loved. Hopefully, in the future we'll get the rest of them and then they'll all be home with us :)

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our one month anniversary! What a month it has been. In the time that we have been the Joslin family, we have:

*enjoyed our honeymoon (especially the cinnamon rolls at the second hotel!)

*been to Arizona for Abram and Rebecca's wedding

*gone to work (that's nothing exciting)

*played with all the nieces and nephews

*been to Utah for Sarah and Brian's wedding

*cheered on the Twins

*started attending our own ward

*finished two summer classes (YAY! now it's exam time)

*encountered our first real car troubles

*cooked way too much good food

That means we've logged a total of:

*5285 miles of travel

*3 hotels (not including the Joslin Family Inn)

*1 1/2 rental cars

*5 lbs gained (that's an estimate-we have no scale)

It's been a great first month of marriage. It's so much fun to come home and have Ben waiting for me. He is the best husband ever! Tonight we are going to the temple to celebrate and after this weekend we'll finally be done with all things wedding.