Lagoon

We went to Lagoon last weekend for the Stampin' Up! company party. It was crowded and hot, but we had a lot of fun. It was the first time I had been since I was in high school, and although a lot is the same (the old roller coaster is still my favorite ride, the log ride had the longest line, and we ended the day on Dracula's Castle) I still couldn't help but notice how much difference the Lagoon experience is for a mom vs a teenager....

• I used to be able to ride the Scrambler over and over again, now I feel sick on all the rides that spin around.
  
• I used to be able to be able to stick a few dollars in my back pocket - and that's all I had to carry. Now I have to carry a camera, cell phone, credit cards, sunscreen, water bottles, plus all of everyone else's stuff.
• I also have to make sure that everyone is wearing sunscreen, well hydrated, and not hungry.
  
• Maybe it was just me, but the lap bars and seat belts on all the rides sure seam a lot tighter than they used to. :)

It wasn't all bad though. It was so fun to see the smiles and feel the excitment of the kids.

And, as a teenager, one of the goals of going to Lagoon was to find all the cute guys. Now I have my own! (and, we totally made out in Dracula's Castle!)

Here are a few of my favorite photos of the day:

Convention was Awesome!

It's been so long since I've posted anything, I don't even know if I remember how. Part of the reason I've been too busy for blogging is that we've been preparing for our annual Stampin' Up! Convention. This was our 20th anniversary year, and it was bigger and better than ever! I can't believe that it's over. I was lame and didn't take any photos, but I have awesome friends who shared some of their's. So, here are some of my favorite moments:

It was so much to see all of our fabulous demonstrators! I am so lucky to have made so many great friends, and to be surrounded by so many creative and enthusiastic people. Here is just a small glimpse of the crowd. There were close to 6000 people there.

The crowd was waiting to get into mainstage where we make all the big announcements and show really cute projects and ideas. This year we opened the show with a big production number of our theme song. The singers were fabulous, and I got to be in the back-up choir. I thought singing and dancing on stage would be dumb, but it was really fun! There were fireworks and everything! I couldn't find a picture of the choir, but here's one of the set. It was so cool!

Here's a photo of me and Shannon at awards night - which is always a highlight. It's such an inspiration to hear the accomplishments of such amazing women. It's also fun to get dressed up and go out for the night.
I worked with some of the cutest demonstrators for the class I taught. I got to share their awesome ideas for new kinds of workshops. I taught the class 12 times over three days - and loved it! But, the real teaching highlight for me came on the last day when I made my convention mainstage debut and got to present on for all 6000 people at once. My presentation was all about projects from the kitchen. So here I am on stage in my Stampin' Up! apron. Can you tell how nervous I am in this photo?

And, finally convention ended with a free stamp set give-away from UPS. I have never felt excitiment like I did when we got to hand out the free stamp sets. There was screaming, confetti, running, jumping, and even crying. It was an amazing experience!

I have the best job ever!!!