Currently Listening Big Yellow Taxi By Counting Crows, Vanessa Carlton Big Yellow Taxi see related So, although he doesn't peruse Xanga... Happy Birthday Jamie!! I am so lucky to have such a wonderful husband! Even though he hated me at first, clearly he was able to come to his senses. He's so supportive, caring, funny, smart, and patient - my perfect match! Who knew that when we met 16 years ago that we'd get married?! Well, I kind of had a weird inkling, but clearly God had a plan. Lucky for me - I'm a blessed girl!

	Some friends of ours that we go to church with, friends from Best Buy (yes, both of them work at Best Buy), are relocating to San Francisco. Timing is still a little up in the air, but they know that it will probably be early October at the latest. I'm super excited for them, as it's an amazing career opportunity for him, but so sad they will be leaving...

Currently Reading The Alphabet Sisters: A Novel By Monica Mcinerney see related So, when we were in Duluth last weekend, we went 4-wheeling! Now, for most people, that might not be a big deal, but I've only been a rider on a 4-wheeler once before then, and that was in high school. I was slightly nervous about driving, but it was actually pretty easy. Jamie led me to the baseball field that's by their house while Jim and Kim got ready with Kaitlyn. He helped me take it slow at first so I could figure out how it rides. And then when we were down on the field, he was going SUPER fast! I was jealous, so I started going as fast as I could too. Probably 20 mph or so, which seemed really fast on the 4-wheeler. Jamie's so funny - he was just laughing at me cause I'm sort of dare devil at some things, I guess. We rode for about hour or so on some trails right around Jim & Kim's, but it seemed like we were a million miles away. There was this one trail that was like a canopy of trees that went forever. I can see how people get addicted to stuff like that, and want 'toys'. We just will be friends with people that have those toys so we don't have to own them.

Currently Reading Size 12 Is Not Fat By Meg Cabot see related

I've been meaning to post these for a while...here's a couple of photos from our vacation!

Vancouver at night:

At the Capilano Suspension Bridge:

We're clearly big fans of the self-portrait.

Currently Reading Consider Lily: A Novel By Anne Dayton, May Vanderbilt see related It's been a busy couple of weeks! Jamie and I went on the Northbrook canoe trip a couple weeks ago, which was really fun. The weather was almost a little too cool, but still nice. And the water was so low since we've had hardly any rain, but it was ok. Then I had a business trip for work, so I was gone for a couple of days last week. (Luckily it was before all of the madness that happened with bringing liquids onto the plane via carry-on. I don't know if I would have made it without my bottle of water and lotion! )This past weekend we were in Duluth, as Jamie's sister had her baby! Alyssa Arlene was born on Wednesday, so we headed up north Friday afternoon. It was a good weekend spent with the Paulsons. This week is shaping up to be very busy at work, so I'm hoping that it goes quickly! However, since the summer is slipping away, my goal is to make the evenings count. And I think I found a 5K in November that I'm going to sign up for - so that I have a goal to work towards. I ran a 5K last spring, and, well...I finished, but let's just say there's definitely room for improvement on my time! And I really did run almost the whole way. Anyway, training for that will give me something to do outside, and enjoy the weather. And hopefully get me off of this weight-loss plateau I've been on for a couple of months... On a separate note, please pray for my family...there's some sort of difficult stuff going on right now. Thanks.... If anyone is looking for a good, light-hearted read, Consider Lily is a great book I just finished! Now I need to read the other book by the authors - Emily Ever After. I really hope I can wrangle up enough of my neighbors to start a book club this fall! Anyone who has any tips or tricks for organizing - or book recommendations - let me know!

	Well, I should have thought to add this to my post from yesterday, but since there have been several questions about which of my sisters is getting married, let me clarify. It's Diana - she's getting married on September 16. If you're curious about any other details, you might want to contact her directly...

Currently Reading Everyone Worth Knowing By Lauren Weisberger see related Vacation was great! Some of the highlights: Seeing my aunt and uncle and cousins Dinner on top of the space needle (tasty!) Capilano suspension bridge Parliament building in Victoria If you are interested and have some time, there are pictures from our trip (263!) at this link: www.picasaweb.google.com/dawnpaulson Also, Picasa is a super program for photos! Let's see - what else is going on? Girl's night out last week - four of us for dinner at Cheesecake Factory (mmm!). It's a good thing we got together then, since the one girl that was pregnant had her baby on Sunday! Super busy weekend - bridal shower for my sister, meet Oliver party at the Mullens, and a party one of Jamie's friends hosted - and that was all Saturday! Sunday we had friends over to hang out and have dinner. Another girl's night out this week - it was GREAT! Just drinks and apps - seven girls and lots of catching up! It makes me realize that even though we were all together during what we thought was a difficult (read: crappy) time, we had it so good because we had each other. SO glad that I've been able to keep in contact with these girls! Jamie's sister is due any day now, so we may be heading to Duluth for the weekend. Time will tell... Well, time for bed. We'll see how long it takes me to get upstairs since my legs are super sore from circuit - both Monday and today. Ugh!