Our Vacation...Finally!

Alright, so here is the promised blog entry about our vacation! Sorry it took so long! The vacation was busy, productive and relaxing at the same time!
We got a lot accomplished for our wedding! We chose a photographer and a baker for the cake. We also saw our ceremony and reception site for the first time! It is beautiful! My mom and Dave's mom could not have picked out anything better!
Over the weekend we spent tons of time with family during several gatherings! It was a great time! I finally got to meet all of Dave's family as well. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming. I'm honored to become a part of their family.
Then on Tuesday my mom and I drove down to Champaign to visit Michael and Traci! The drive was not nearly as hard as I anticipated. The time went fast and I never even got close to falling asleep while driving (a very bad habit of mine). I was so happy to see their house...it's gorgeous! It is cozy, but not small; modern, yet warm and welcoming. It was perfect! They have done such a wonderful job decorating, it looked like something out of Trading Spaces! So, we spent that day and the next going out to eat (we ate a lot), walking around downtown, driving through Champaign and visiting back at the house. We also went to Allerton Park!!!! Michael has had many entries about this gorgeous park, and he was right. It's huge and beautiful. We had a blast exploring the trails and checking out all the funky statues that filled the property! I got a chance to take some more artistic photos with our new digital camera, which I must say turned out pretty good! Of course the time came when we had to say good-bye, which sucks!!! I miss my brother and Traci a lot! At least when I lived in Milwaukee I got to see them several times a year and now we're averaging about once a year.
Dave spent his time hanging out with Jenny and Don and Lynn and Matt while I was in Champaign. He misses all of them like crazy and I know he highly enjoyed that time. Not to mention, playing with Nathan and Grace! By the time I got back from Champaign, Dave was back in Houston. I had 2 more days in Milwaukee which I spent hanging out with mom and dad and going out to eat lots more!
It was a wonderful time! We are both extremely glad we got to see so much of our family while we were there, but it was also good to get back home. Every time I refer to Milwaukee as "home", Dave corrects me and says"Houston is home now". And you know he's right, it does feel like home. Milwaukee will always hold a special place in our hearts. It is of course, where we grew up, but it does feel nice to get back to our lives; and that, for us, is here. Thanks to everyone for making our vacation so perect! Now, it's your turn to visit us! :)
Laura