There are now over 700 pictures taken both by my mom and by Nancy on the Pig-Fest site. I think in total I took 4 pictures over the weekend and they were all of our keg in the back of the Jetta. So if you want to see pictures of the party, check them out here.

I’m still trying to recover from the cold that I caught over the weekend so not much exciting has been going on. Hopefully that will change tonight…

In case you missed it in the comments from yesterday, my pictures from the weekend are up. That’s pretty much what I spent a good chunk of last night doing. I had about 250 pictures on my camera and I chopped it down to just under 100. There are some really good ones in there but unfortunately none of those are from the wedding. I also put together a panorama shot from Devou Park that is really sweet. I wish there was a better way to display it, but so far I haven’t had any luck. That’s about the only productive thing I got done last night, so much for the free night.

Pig-Fest is just around the corner and everyone seems to be getting really excited. My dad informed me that the site had almost 1400 page loads coming from 47 unique visitors to the site! The event has also been found on jambase.com, hopefully we don’t get too many random visitors. In the past couple of days I’ve also thrown together a little logo that we are going to use for some shirts and stuff. If you can’t tell it is an alteration of this years bonnaroo logo.

This weekend was a blast! We got in to Cincy really late on Thursday night, slept for a bit and then spent the next morning with Kim’s family. Soon enough it was time to start one of our busy days. I dropped Kim off to get her nails done and then killed some time. I bought tickets for the Marc Broussard show next Friday, which we’ll be at. I then went to the mall and picked up Emma’s baptism gift. I still had extra time after that so I spent an hour on UC’s campus checking out all of the new stuff they’ve built. I took some pictures, so I’ll have to get those up soon. I then picked Kim up and we headed out to my parent’s place. We visited for a bit and then got ready for the rehearsal. The time at the church went by really fast and then we headed down to the river for the rehearsal dinner. We had dinner and drinks on a three hour tour on a Celebrations Riverboat. It was a great night with awesome views of the city. Again I took some awesome pictures that I’ll post tonight or tomorrow hopefully.

The next morning I dropped Kim off to get her hair done and then headed back to my parent’s to relax for awhile. That was interrupted when I was alerted that Kim forgot her shoes, so I drove back down to where she was and gave them to her. After that I was running behind so I had to shower and get ready really fast. I made it to the church ten minutes before the ceremony started, but others were still arriving so it was ok. The wedding was nice and short. Afterward it was off to the Glendale Lyceum for the reception. This ended up being one of my favorite receptions to date, mostly because they had a live band instead of the standard DJ. The bands name is The Mistics and they were awesome!

Sunday was Emma’s baptism. The ceremony itself was much longer than I remembered or thought it would be, but maybe that’s because I haven’t been to one of these in a long time. There were two other babies being baptized at the same time so maybe that had something to do with it. My only job while there was to light the baptismal candle, which I did successfully. So far so good. :) From there we went over to my Uncle Andy’s house for the after party. It was nice seeing everyone again even though we had to leave just a short time after we got there. I think almost everyone that was there will be at Pig-Fest this coming weekend though…

Last night we picked up Dominique and Bianca and brought them over to our apartment. We cooked pizza and also baked a cake for Bianca’s 11th birthday tomorrow. Kim forgot to buy the candles, so we had to use one of our large scented candles instead, haha. Kim did buy some dominos and a purse filled with makeup for her that she seems to enjoy. We tried to play dominos but soon realized that none of us had any idea how to really play. So instead we set them up a few times and knocked them all down, everyone knows how to do that! If anyone has any tips on real domino games, send them our way…

The time flew by and before we knew it we had to take them back home. They seem to be having lots of fun though and never want to return home. It must be all of the dedicated attention they get when with us. I never realized how spoiled we must have been growing up. :)

I snapped a couple of quick pictures of our party, check ’em out.

I’m back at work wishing I was still in Wisconsin. That was a great weekend, and we may just have to head back up that way next year when DMB returns. Here’s a recap of what happened:

My hockey bag weighed 48.5 pounds on the airport scales! The lady at check-in said I was lucky. After an uneventful flight, I met up with Weeba at the airport in Chicago and we headed over to Tracey’s apartment. Our friend Pat was already there and the rest of the clan was already out at a bar. We quickly got ready and took a cab over to meet up with everyone. A friend of a friend was having a $20 wristband party. I guess these are a popular thing in Chicago. Basically you and your friends pay $20 a piece to drink whatever you want for a certain amount of time. I think we got our money’s worth even though we only had an hour and a half of drinking time. From there we went and checked out a little bit of the Greenstreet show but we didn’t stay out too late since we wanted to get up to Wisconsin fairly early.

We woke up at 7 AM or so, Tracey said that we looked like kids on Christmas. We were way too excited to sleep anymore. After some breakfast and showers we packed the rental SUV (aka the urban assault vehicle) to the roof and headed off. I’m not sure why, but we hit some traffic that never seemed to end. We ditched the highway route and headed on the back roads to the campsite. It probably should have taken an hour and half to get there but it took us over three hours. Not the best way to start off the weekend, but oh well. We finally got our site, setup our camp and waited for the rest of our group to get in. One problem with the setup, I forgot the tent poles for my tent. Ooops. We did have 3 other tents though and there were only six of us so it was alright. Once everyone got there we ate some food and drank some beers until a very scary storm quickly approached our camp. At the front of this storm were some rotating clouds right above us. We were in the middle of a field with a tornado forming above our heads. It was fairly frightening and it almost canceled the show. We didn’t know this at the time, but when this all was blowing over the venue they closed the gates to the lot. We left really soon after the storm passed and were then stuck in traffic for awhile waiting for the gates to open again. Unfortunately we didn’t get into the lot until around 6 and OAR was starting at 7. As we found out the next day we should have arrived earlier, the party scene in the lot is incredible. The show was great, the seats were great, everything was great. After the show we sat in our seats for awhile and when everyone was gathered we exited the venue. We quickly saw the insane amount of traffic trying to get out and the large number of people who were giving up for now and carrying on with the party. We joined in for an hour or two after the show and then ventured back to camp. We did stop at some local country bar on the way back for a drink and on the way out had a little fun with their sign (see the pictures). When back at camp we hung out some more and before we knew it the sky was getting lighter and lighter. Three or four of us managed to stay around the fire for awhile and I don’t think any of us managed to keep our eyes closed for longer than ten minutes.

Later that morning everyone else decided to get up around eight. Later on I took a pretty nice nap under the canopy and was ready to go again. We took everyone back to the bar we visited the night before for some lunch. From there we headed into the lot to take full advantage this time. We brought along our cornhole boards and beer and had a blast despite it being about 110 degrees with the cars packed together, people everywhere, grills going, etc. It was worth it though, the partying was great! The show was of course excellent again and we were all pretty much in the same 5 rows of the same section. After the show we hung out like the night before and headed back to camp. We tried to keep the party going but you could tell everyone was dead.

The next morning it was time to pack everything up and head back to Chicago. We stopped back by Tracey’s to clean ourselves up and were off to the airport. Sarnovsky and AP were also flying out around the same time we were. We soon found out that all of our flights were being delayed though. We had some lunch and a few drinks to kill the time and then we were all on our separate ways, thus ending a great weekend. The nice thing is that most all of us will get back together again in a few weeks at Pig-Fest!

Crazy weekend number one was a ton of fun! The drive in, however, was not. We got stuck in traffic leaving Kansas City and again just before St. Louis. One nice thing is that they are finally making repairs to I-70 across Missouri. Oh yeah, and the highway speed limit in Indiana was bumped up to 70 MPH. That leaves Illinois as the only state between here and Ohio with 65 MPH speed limits (well Ohio is 65 too). We finally got to Kim’s family’s house around 3:30 AM and crashed before 4.

Saturday morning came early, but that is to be expected. We hung out with Kim’s family for awhile and then were off to my family’s house. My dad and I replaced the back brake pads on the Jetta. We still aren’t sure why the back pads wore out way before the front pads, anyone? From there we all got ready and then it was off to my cousin Karen’s wedding. The mass was fairly quick although late in the day. The reception was excellent! The food was great, the facility was really nice and the attendees were in good spirits. I forgot to bring my camera along with me, but that’s ok since my mother was there to get everything on film.

Sunday we woke up and headed back to the westside of town to meet up with Kim’s family and head over to Indianapolis. It was her youngest brother’s birthday and he wanted to ride go-carts. They found a track just outside of Indianapolis, so a group of us headed there and rode the go-carts for 2 hours. What a tiring way to spend the day. I’ve got blisters on my hands, my leg hurts and I know Kim is a little beat up as well. I definitely give a little credit to NASCAR drivers now. After our punishment was over, Kim and I headed back to KC and got in around 10. We actually shared driving duties last night since we both were tired from the weekend.

I finally got a nap in after work on Friday. After that we picked up Christie and Ashley and headed to Doni and Phil’s for dinner and some cornhole games. This time Doni and Phil actually played a game or two. Not much else happened, I think most of us were still recovering from the night before.

Saturday we headed over to the pool at Woodside. Todd and Susan met up with us and we spend a few hours lounging and swimming. From there we headed over to Geoff and Casey’s apartment to meet up with them and Mike for some more rounds of cornhole. We suddenly became the life of their apartment complex. We must have had a dozen or so people out playing, and some were actually good even though they claimed they had never played before. After the sun went down we decided to meet up with Christie and Ashley at Tomfooleries. Not sure that was the best idea since we had all been drinking most of the day, but we escaped with no incidents. On the walk back home Mike decided it would be a good idea to take a dip in the JC Nichols Fountain. We all joined in and were having fun until we realized how dirty the fountain probably is. We continued on our way, but when we got to our apartment I realized that I didn’t have the keys to get in. Kim was convinced I dropped them in the fountain, so she went back down to search for them. We later realized that we left them in the car which was parked outside of Geoff’s place on the other side of the plaza. Therefore we opted to borrow dry clothes from Mike and just crash at his house for the night.

We woke up on Sunday and decided to take a walk to Chipotle and then over to Geoff’s to pick up our cars. Before we knew it, it was time to head out to the Tom Petty and Black Crowes show. We got their early to do a little tailgating and ended up missing part of the Black Crowes because of the large line to get in. What I did hear of their set was really good. Tom Petty also rocked the place and toward the end of the night said that the crowd was the largest ever at Sandstone. I guess it was a sold out crowd, and one that was probably oversold. There wasn’t a bare spot on the lawn, which was pretty annoying at times, but we all had a good time I think.

Pictures from the 4th are finally up on the site. I had to manually lighten a bunch of them since I forgot to switch back the fast shutter speed I was using at Wakarusa. Check ’em out!

After work on Friday we quickly packed up the car and were on our way to “the lake.” Doni and Phil were already there when we arrived and before too long we were firing up the grills and making a fire in the pit. The first night we had grilled chicken and fish along with potatoes and asparagus. Afterward we drank a few beers around the fire and even roasted some marshmallows.

Saturday we all woke up pretty early to get a head start on the day. Doni’s mom and dad stopped by for a bit to check out our setup. Todd came down just as they were leaving. Soon after it was time to pick up our pontoon boat. I wasn’t feeling all that well so I stayed behind with Phil and Gabe (the doggie). I think I was suffering from a combination of the returned humidity, my allergies and maybe a slight cold. I wasn’t going to let that stop me from having fun though. And besides we had to sneak the dog onto the pontoon after the girls picked it up. The Martins met up with us in their boat and we headed off to a couple of different coves in the lake. It’s almost like Lake Cumberland on a smaller scale. My family used to go to Lake Cumberland yearly, but we haven’t been back for a couple of years now. We floated around in the water for a few hours, relaxing with a few beers. It was really nice! For dinner we headed back to camp and while I took a little nap some fajitas were cooked up on the fire pit. The Martins and The Schmidts (co-owners of the boat) also joined in for the fireside activity.

Sunday was another early morning. It started off with some crappy weather, but that eventually gave way to another great day. Besides Todd, the same group as before all piled onto the SS Schmartin (Phil’s name for the boat). We headed back to “party cove” which was not as crowded as the day before. We soon realized it was because we were just a little too early, and before we knew it there were boats all around. We pretty much followed the same itinerary as the day before, float in the lake with a beer in hand. That was until I was attacked by one of the local fish. At first I thought it was someone in the water messing with me, but the second time the fish bit me I saw it. Guess where I was bitten? No, not my toes. Right on the nipple! The little sucker got me good enough to draw a couple drops of blood. From that point on, the water was avoided or at least we would wear protection when using the facilities if you know what I mean. As another storm began rolling in, we decided it best to call it a day. We spent the rest of the night inside the RV as the storms got worse and worse.

The weather never really got any better, so Kim and I left the lake area fairly early on Monday. It did seem like the weather cleared up later in the afternoon, but by that point we were clean and mostly unpacked. We spent the rest of the day at the driving range then at the grocery store. Finally we ended up on the roof over at Mike’s place with Amanda and Christie (one of the new trainees at Kim’s office) to watch any fireworks in the area. If only we were a few stories higher we could have seen it all but still not a bad place to watch from, especially without driving anywhere. Speaking of trainees, Christie and Ashley both started work today. It was just brought to my attention that Ashley knows some of the hockey guys a few grades below me, including my brother. It’s a small world. I’m just happy that we will have even more people to play cornhole and euchre with!

As I mentioned earlier, my boss is on vacation for the rest of this week and Raji is gone. They are already throwing some stuff my way to get done asap, so I better get busy on that…

My pictures from Wakarusa are up. I tried to avoid taking pictures of bands, although I had tons of them when I went through the last night. I ended up deleting most of them because they were mostly crappy and not very entertaining.

Today is the start for a free burrito promotion at chipotle. Basically you need to buy a burrito today and then you can go in anytime before Sunday with your receipt from today and get a free burrito. I know where I am heading for dinner tonight!

Wow, what a weekend! On Friday we got back out to our campsite pretty quickly. We had dinner and a couple of drinks and were then on our way to see some bands. The first act we saw was the North Mississippi Allstars. It was my first time seeing them, but I’ve always heard great things from my friends. Good news, they did not disappoint us. We then headed over to another stage to check out Ozomatli. Their set was supposed to start while NMAS were on stage but it luckily for us it didn’t. This was an awesome show, I even think I caught Kim dancing a couple of times. I’ve seen them before and was happy that I finally got a chance to see them again. We then caught a little bit of the String Cheese Incident on the first stage and headed over to see Chubby Carrier. The lady I share an office with said to check him out and I’m glad we did. That pretty much wrapped up our Friday night since we were both pretty tired from the week.

Saturday Mike met up with us fairly early and the party quickly started. Before too long we were back at the main stages to check out Mofro, Rose Hill Drive and then the John Butler Trio. I was pretty impressed with the first two bands for not knowing much about them. I was very happy to finally see John Butler. The day was off to a great start. After those sets we went back to camp for some dinner and to refill on a few beers. Kim opted to stay behind at camp while Mike and I headed out for some more music. We caught some of Wilco’s set and then wandered over to see the end of Gov’t Mule. At this point the stages were pretty crowded with something like 30,000 people now at the festival. We then watched Matisyahu and his hasidic reggae. Probably one of the most interesting bands I have seen, but it was really cool. Definitely something you have to see for yourself. After that set Mike and I walked up and down “Shakedown Street” grabbing some grilled cheese sandwiches and even helping sell them for awhile. Next thing I know the sun was peaking out over the tree line. I couldn’t believe how late it was so I went back to camp to sleep for a couple of hours until the heat would wake me back up.

Mike left fairly early Sunday morning and then we packed everything up into the car. I was a bit worried that all the stuff we brought wasn’t going to fit in the car, but luckily it all did. We caught a few more sets of music from ProtoKaw and Xavier Rudd. Then we went over to see Matisyahu again so Kim could experience the show. The heat from the day was really getting to me and so we decided to head out a little earlier than I would have liked, but I had definitely got my money’s worth at that point. All in all it was a really good time and I would definitely do it again. Maybe next year it will be Bonnaroo, we will see…