Fun Times - Dusty & Marlina

Fun Times

Prioritizing Girl Time

January 21, 2014

I’m so lucky to have really great girlfriends!!! I’ve been part of a book club for almost two years, and from the beginning I knew how great it was to meet up with other women to gossip, to eat, to drink, to laugh, and to cry (every once in a while it happens). Before Annabelle I never had to prioritize girl time. It just seemed to happen. But since I’ve had a baby I realize more than ever how important it is to make time for girlfriends. Sometimes it’s just getting together on a Sunday for an hour for a drink at the grocery store with a couple of girls, but that time is worth more than any amount of money.

I really look forward to those random Sundays that we find the time together or the Friday lunches or the monthly Book Club gatherings. Even though there are nights that I’m exhausted and just want to go to bed (and Book Club is probably the last thing I need to be doing), but I know that if I just put some comfy pants on, grab a bottle of wine, and go that I’ll have some great laughs and it’s exactly what I need. And it’s so true, I’ll come home, lay down and smile, saying a little thank you for the wonderful girlfriends I have. And above is a picture from a couple months ago at one of our Book Club gatherings.

4 Comments | Posted in: Daily Life, Fun Times | Tagged with: Girl Time
French Open

June 20, 2013

We were able to go to the French Open a few weekends ago and got so lucky because it was the first really nice day in Paris since we arrived. It had rained almost everyday (at some point during the day) the week prior and I was a little worried that we wouldn’t get to see any matches or have to sit around in puddles of rain.

Like I said last year, Dusty and I are both novices when it comes to tennis but what we love is going to cheer the athletes on, especially the American and French players as well as be a part of the excitement surrounding the event.

My favorite match to watch this year (and last year) was the Bryan brothers (see them above). They’re ranked number 1 in the world for men’s doubles and really put on a great show. They not only won the match but ended up winning the French Open men’s doubles. We also got to see them play in 2010 in Omaha when they were on tour and probably another reason I’m such a fan.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times, Paris | Tagged with: French Open, Paris, Roland Garros, Tennis
Big Omaha’s Five Year Anniversary

June 13, 2013

Last month Dusty and the SPN crew hosted their annual Big Omaha conference, now part of the Big Conference Series. They hold three events a year (in KC, Des Moines, and Omaha) showcasing some of the creative entrepreneurial talent locally and nationally. I wrote a little about why I love Big Omaha so much in one of my weekly pregnancy updates and want to just say that I’m so very proud of what my husband does and all of the things he believes in. We both care deeply about Omaha (and surrounding communities) and I feel so lucky to be a part of such a fun event. Of course, one of the funnest parts of the conference is that they have a photo booth at the actual conference and then have booths set up at the parties they hold each night. You can also check out my posts on the past four Big Omaha events here.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times, Work | Tagged with: Big Omaha, Silicon Prairie News, Work
Big Kansas City 2013

May 16, 2013

In March, SPN hosted one of it’s three Big Series events in Kansas City, called Big Kansas City. Like Big Omaha and Big Des Moines, Big KC is full of innovative and creative people trying to create change in our communities! Here are a few pictures from the event! I was 18 weeks pregnant and at the time I remember thinking how great it was that my belly was finally starting to show. As the website says,

Big Kansas City is a two-and-a-half-day conference on innovation and entrepreneurship. Four hundred of the nation’s most heartfelt hustlers, builders, entrepreneurs, change agents and doers will come together to hear stories of innovation from more than a dozen leading speakers, create lasting connections within the regional and national community and walk away with an energy to follow their passions.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times, Work | Tagged with: Big Kansas City
Megan’s Baby Shower

May 2, 2013

This weekend I hosted a baby shower for a wonderful friend, Megan (she’s the one in the black dress with the gold necklace), who’s having a precious little boy in June. Megan and her lovely husband Dan are such great people and we can’t wait to meet their gorgeous addition to the family. She’s the third one having a baby in our book club (Keely was 1, Melissa was 2, Leanne will be number 4, Michi will be number 5 and I’ll be 6). If you can believe it, these six babies will all have come in just one year.

It was so much fun planning out the invitations, decorations, and games for Megan’s shower. I also owe a big thank you to Michi, Kate, and Claire for helping with the food too!! We didn’t play any competition games but we did help Megan and Dan with Baby Fletcher’s name. We also did a Mad Lib. Does anyone remember this from when you were younger. We helped tell Megan’s birthing adventure by choosing random verbs, adjectives, etc. and then filling the words into a story about Baby Fletcher being born. We also decorated fabric squares that I’ll make into a baby quilt.

I feel so lucky to have Megan as a friend because she’s just far enough ahead in her pregnancy that I can ask her questions and she always has the answer for me. I can’t imagine what I would do if I didn’t have all of these wonderful friends who have already had children or are now pregnant and can help me along the way.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times | Tagged with: Baby Shower, Fun Times
Book Club Anniversary

April 9, 2013

A little over a year ago I invited a few friends to start a book club. I’ve written a few posts about some of the things we’ve done, including the month I hosted and then another night that some of us painted beautiful pictures on canvas.

I don’t think I’ve ever shared how Book Club was started. It started for a couple of reasons. First, because a few years ago I started listening to audio books nonstop and found myself needing recommendations on what books to should read next as well as a way to share all the wonderful books I was reading. Second, I was just hoping to get a group of women together, many of them friends of mine who I felt I just wasn’t seeing enough. And third, I had heard several people talk about how much they loved their book club. I don’t know if I ever realized how much more this book club was going to be.

In March we celebrated our 1 Year Anniversary! It was the first time, the entire year, that all of us were able to attend and we had a blast reminiscing over the past year. Over the last 12 months, collectively, we’ve experienced a lot (so many good but not all) and I love that we’ve had each other to share those experiences with, to celebrate with, to contemplate with, and just to confide in with. Many of our gatherings are less about the books we’ve read that month and more about the stories that we create together. Here are just a few pictures of our anniversary party!

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times | Tagged with: Book Club
Big News

March 19, 2013

… and we’re so excited!

We’re very excited to announce we’ll be expecting our little bambino (italian for “baby”) at the end of August. We’ve been keeping it hush hush for quite a long time but we’re really happy to finally tell everyone. I’ve been keeping a little journal of what’s been going on these past few months and I’m hoping to update you all on the past four months with a few posts and then regular updates going forward.

Many of our friends have children already and we’ve heard lots of great stories of what to expect but it’s so fun yet simultaneously so scary experiencing it all the first time for ourselves. The first trimester was a roller coaster of emotions but Dusty has been great and I can’t imagine doing it without him. Let’s see what the next five months brings us!

And a big thanks to Daniel Muller for taking our pictures for this announcement. The pictures were taken when I was 13 weeks along.

23 Comments | Posted in: Fun Times, Pregnancy | Tagged with: Baby, Pregnancy
Canvas & Cabernet

December 5, 2012

One of my book club friends discovered that Omaha recently acquired a new art venue, called Village Canvas and Cabernet where friends can enjoy a glass of wine or beer or nothing if you so choose and discover their creative side. Each night there is a theme and an instructor gives step-by-step instructions while you paint your own canvas masterpiece.

After checking out the schedule the themed night we chose was “Krazy Kat.” Six of us were able to go and enjoy a night of painting, drinking, and lots of laughing. Do you like my abstract cat? I just couldn’t do it. I don’t have a cat, never owned a cat and planned on hanging the painting in our spare bedroom so I picked one of the other themes and just went with it on my own.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times | Tagged with: Book Club, Painting, Wine
AIGA Le Show 21

November 10, 2012

AIGA is a national organization that is trying to advance designing as a professional craft and each year the Nebraska chapter has a design competition, celebrating the winning work of local designers. Dusty and I are big fans of many of the local designers in and around Omaha and Dusty teams up with many of them for different projects he works on. A couple of designers won awards for the projects they did with Dusty and we were able to go and celebrate! Here are a couple pictures from the photo booth.

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Fall Omaha Fashion Week

October 5, 2012

Fall Fashion Week in Omaha has become an annual event for us and as we’ve done in the past, we hit the red carpet in our very best.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times, Omaha Night Out | Tagged with: Fashion Week, Omaha