Josh's Reunion

Yesterday was Josh's 10 year high school reunion....crazy! I can't believe its been that long since we were in high school (well I still have 2 years left until my 10th, but still!) It was fun meeting some of the people that, since yesterday, I have only heard about. It is a really fun stage in life. Most people are married, or engaged. Most had kids (a lot of which were McKenna's age.) It will be fun to see how all the kids have changed at the next one!

The reunion was held in Nevada, catered by Hickory Park. The night before there was a big gathering at Legends, a cool bar in Ames. Josh missed out on that because he got back from fishing late. There were some people that he didn't get to see, but for the most part his good friends all came to the picnic. Later that night Matt and Charity Johnson, Sarah and Wes Davis, Jason Montegna and Damon came over to play poker. Damon - who doesn't even like poker - ended up winning the whole thing! Jason, Matt and Charity stayed way after the game catching up and talking about who was doing what from high school. I think the resoultion was that while most people have really grown and become good natured, there are still many who still crave the neediness of high school cliques. Luckily those people were, and probably never will be friends of ours.

Sleepover at Gona's!

Last night was McKenna's first sleepover! Brandi had a 5:30 aerobics class, and since Josh (aka babysitter during class) is gone, we thought it would be easiest just to stay the night at Gona's house! McKenna did great, and actually slept longer than usual. Judy, Aunti Em, and Hills came over and we had chinese food, margaritas, and a lot of fun talking!This morning, after we got home, McKenna discovered her mirror. Her Uncle Brandon got her a jungle themed toy with dangly animals, a mirror, music, and lots of fun textures and noises! She has been staring and talking to herself for almost half an hour. Looks like she discovered a new friend!

While Daddy's Away

Since Josh is gone fishing in Canada with his dad, we have been keeping busy on girly outings. After a bath, we went to lunch with Auntie Em and Gona at Panera; then went shopping for new shoes. Yesterday we went to a Best Buy softball game and got to see a lot of people who hadn't met McKenna yet. Brandi is looking forward to working with all the crazy people again!
Some new overalls --------------->

Getting cuddly after bath time

Grandma Great's

Today we ventured out to Grandma and Grandpa Great's in Perry. They just harvested about 100 ears of sweet corn from Mike's garden. We cut, cooked, and froze it to eat later! We got to take some of it home along with homemade applesauce, yum! Bridgot is going out to the western border of the state to meet up with all the Ragbriers. Every year thousands of people come from all over the world to ride across the state of Iowa on their bikes, border to border. Along the way they camp, stop at many vendor's booths, drink, and have a great time! It is quite the event! This year Lance Armstrong is going to ride the last day along with the group. Should be quite fun!

Some pictures of McKenna

So I realized that I didn't have any pictures of McKenna posted! And, since we all think she is the cutest thing ever, I had to put some up!



Here she is playing in her crib. We decorated the room with a jungle theme, with giraffes, zebras, elephants, and alligators. She loves watching the mobile spin and has recently learned how to smile!

And the second one is of her laying on the couch. Lately she is very interested in playing with her hands and sticking out her tounge :)

McKenna is 2 months old!

Hard to imagine that our baby is already 2 months old. We are trying out this blog thing to keep all our friends who are everywhere up to date on the crazy Skinner family. Not too much going on. Josh is having fun working in his shop. He has made a workbench for both his father and himself. Very impressive, especially for his first endeaver. McKenna is discovering new things everyday; her latest being her hands. She gets cuter and more active every hour it seems. You can actually see her learning! Brandi is debating over whether to go back to work. Best Buy is in the process of trying to get job share program established. This would allow for a 3 day work week at 60% of her current salary....pretty hard to resist!

We are anxious to see all our Seattle friends. We will be there over labor day for our good friends Bryan and Rika's wedding. We are also planning a trip to go boating in Wisconsin sometime in August! Take care - till next time!