Bye Bye Hank

We sold Hank...Jonathan's 91 Chevy Blazer. We thought we would get much less for him but after 2 years of owning him we turned around and sold him for a profit. The days to follow getting rid of him we had some terrible snow storms in which the plows didn't clear our neighborhood for about 4 days...boy do we wish we had Hank back :)

Dan & Amanda Ryan's Wedding

After our lovely & chilly visit to Niagara Falls we headed straight to rehearsal and rehearsal dinner for Dan & Amanda. It went pretty quick...once Amanda arrived that is :)

Once rehearsal was done we headed next door for some yummy dinner. We had the privilege of sitting with Dan's mom and dad during the meal. After the meal we headed to the hall where the reception would be held after the wedding to decorate. It was fun being able to be a part of these special times especially because Amanda was at our wedding helping in the very same ways.

After all of the excitement a group of us headed to the Anchor Bar...the place where Buffalo Wings originated. Joelene & Rachel, my old roommates, came in from Pennsylvania and Alaska; Paige, we went to Moody together, came in from Spokane; and then 3 of Amanda's friends...all went.

We ordered a plate of 50...yes thats right...50 wings! They were so yummy.

The next morning we got up and relaxed at the house before getting ready for the wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony. We are both really excited that we got to witness Dan & Amanda's wedding!

Joelene, Rachel, Nicole & Jonathan

And they will live happily ever after :)

To Buffalo NY we go!

Jonathan & I went to school with a wonderful girl named Amanda. Amanda and I were in the same class and went on many an adventure here in Spokane, WA. After our first year of college she moved back home, joined the army reserves and fell in love with a wonderful man. He asked her to marry him and so we headed to Buffalo NY to celebrate their marriage with them.

We flew with United as we had some miles stocked up from paying for flight school. After nearly 9 hours of traveling we arrived in Buffalo and were greeted at the airport by Amanda's fiancee, Dan. (this was our first time meeting him)

Coke from Singapore!

This picture cracked us both up. At least the baby will float!

Flying into Buffalo NY

 We met up with Amanda, just finishing up at her bachelorette party and headed back to their house where Jonathan & I would be staying. We chatted for a while, catching up of course, and concluded that Dan is a really cool guy! We were really excited for Amanda :)

The next morning we got up pretty early so that we could head up to Canada and view Niagara Falls before the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. Besides having our car checked at the border (because we borrowed Amanda's car that had no handles on the outside except the drivers door and also no handles to roll down the windows...I am sure they thought we stole it!) and the cold rain the falls were BEAUTIFUL!

Right across the Canadian border! They sure know how to attract the ladies :)

We decided that we wanted to grab a bite to eat before we headed out and stopped at TGI Fridays. We figured that since they were all over the US that the prices had to be like all the others. Boy were we wrong! So we opted for the cheapest thing on the menu, burgers, and enjoyed it a whole lot! 

A sign hanging up in TGI Fridays. I love hippos and couldn't believe this was hanging right next to our table. And yes, I want a hippopotamus for Christmas!

And here is the Welcome sign...so nicely placed where we exited :)

Night Flying

Another requirement for Jonathan, before taking his private pilot test, was to accomplish a night flight. The great thing about these flights is that they leave after I get off of work so I was able to tag along again! What a great privilege and honor it is to fly with my husband!

Red head lamps worn so eyes don't have to 'adjust' to the darkness of night.

Spokane International Airport. One of the many landings Jonathan did that night.

Cross Country Flight

Jonathan had to accomplish a few cross country flights, flights that are further than 50 miles, before he went to test for his private pilots license. I had the privilege of getting to tag along for one of them and boy was it a great time!

The scenery was spectacular and it was a really beautiful day to fly!

(this video shows just how strong the winds were towards the end of the flight)

 We stopped for lunch with his instructor at an airport. We had to park the plane and walk inside. The wind was starting to really pick up and it was quite chilly. We ate at a little diner type place inside the airport.

Jonathan uses his charts (really looks like a map, but if he calls it that the instructors are quick to correct) to map his course. These charts have all types of landmarks, even silos, on them to help him from the sky get to his final destination. He did a really great job! His instructor, Dan Swanson, even threw in a diversion to his course and he figured it out well. I am so proud of how well he is doing and all that he is accomplishing :)

The red arrow in this map marks the roof of our house! There is a large hill in the way so the shot isn't that great but as you can see from this picture, our back yard is the state park!