New Car!!!

I went to pick up the new car today!  A 2011 Ford Escape Limited in Steel Blue with 4 wheel drive!  I LOVE IT!

North American International Auto Show

Saturday we headed to the D with Jill & Aaron to visit the Auto Show and grab some dinner.  We met down there around 2, and actually found parking very easily.  Since Aaron works for Chrysler, we spent a lot of time looking at the new stuff that Dodge and Chrysler had out.  I have to say that I really like the new Durango.  I didn't like the old one at all, but the redesign is pretty awesome.  Jill checked out a Jeep Grand Cherokee because she's thinking of getting one, and then we checked out the new revamped Grand Caravan for my mom.  The stow-and-go seats in the Durango and Caravan are AWESOME!

Here are some of my favorites:

 This Mercedes was sick.  The paint job, combined with the lights, made the car look like it was glowing.  Awesome, although it totally screams "GIVE ME A TICKET!"

 This concept car's exterior was made entirely from clay!

 I love how the clay car's doors open like they do.

 Almost nothing that beat the old school Continental from Entourage that Lincoln had at the very front of their display!  This baby is amazing!

 The new Lexus sports car.  The styling, especially the back, was fantastic.  Maybe we can convince Jack to get this to replace the Z.

 And THIS was my absolute FAVORITE!  Scion had a contest and this was the winner...The Squid Car by Salty Dogs.  I love that they even got the boat port windows on it!

And here's the front of the squid!

We saw a bunch of other cool things, like the 12K aluminum paint job on a Mercedes.  The Swagger Wagon by Toyota was neat.  They basically took two Sonata's and put them together to make a stretch van limo.  And best of all, it was purple!  

After the Auto Show, we all decided to do dinner.  It had been decided that we'd go to Slow's, which apparently has the best BBQ anywhere.  We left early so we could get seats without a huge wait, since it's rumored that Slow's frequently has a 4 hour wait.  We got there around 4:20 and there was already a 3 hour wait.  We decided to pass up Slow's and head down to Fishbone's.  We totally forgot that Kid Rock's birthday concert was going on the same night, and about peed our pants when we saw all the parking lots were charging $35-$40 to park!!!  After driving around for about 20 min (with Aaron waiting in line at Fishbone's), we decided to head out of the D for dinner.  On our way to pick up Aaron we lucked upon an open spot on the street.  Only $2!!!  Dinner at Fishbone's was AMAZING!  My Alaskan King Crab was to DIE for!  After dinner, the boys picked up some desserts (viddles as Aaron calls them) at Astoria, and the girls went to pick up the car.  The girls got lost (oops), and ran into a creepy homeless man who fancied himself a musician and profit. 

We all headed back to Auburn Hills to hang out, partake in some delicious desserts and spirits, and play some Bezzerwizzer.  That game, by the way, it super hard!!!  We had a great night with great friends!!! 

It's definitely time...

...for a new car.  I was hoping we could put this off for a while but that is not going to happen.  The final straw -- the heater broke.  Ryan surely cannot drive around for the rest of the winter without heat in his car, so I guess we'll have to start researching cars and prices.  Bummer.

At this point, here is the list of what is wrong with the car:

• No heat
• No air conditioning
• No reverse lights and one break light is out -- we can't fix it because the lights are rusted into the sockets
• Muffler is bad, just 2 years after replacing the thing
• The trunk is rusted almost completely through
• And, sometimes it doesn't like to start

How much is the car worth?  Probably about $1, so we're just wasting money by having anything fixed.  Off to the dealership we go!!!  Guess it's a good thing we're checking out the Auto Show tomorrow, maybe it'll get us into the mood to car shop.

Wedding Album

I got the layout for my wedding album last night!  It is absolutely amazing.  Ryan, my mom, my dad, my sister and I all sat down last night and took a look at the layout.  There honestly is not a single thing any of us would change about it.  I think my dad was the most surprised to be honest.  And, my mom changed her mind and decided she wanted an album for herself (probably a good thing that dad & Ryan negotiated 2 parent albums even though my mom insisted she didn't want one). 

I truly cannot say enough good things about my photographer.  He is amazing.  His photos are amazing.  My album is going to be amazing.  He has been a pleasure to work with!

If you're looking for a photographer, PLEASE check him out...I promised you'll be happy you did.  He does everything, weddings, engagements, parties, portraits, high school photos, etc.

I wish I could post the layout here for everyone to see (especially Jayne & Jerry), but it is too big for the blog to host.  The link to download is active for another 10 days, so if you'd like to take a look please let me know and I'll send it to you!  But, here's the first page:

Happy Birthday Grandma & Sean!

I just wanted to wish my grandma and my brother-by-another-mother a VERY happy birthday! 

Grandma and I at her birthday dinner - January 12, 2007

My brother and the other mother - June 18, 2010

I hope the day treats you both well! 



%#!$ Ashley Says

I've decided to make this a new reoccurring post.  I kind of want this to turn into our family's "she pulled a Monica." 

Most everyone who knows my sister knows that she has a remarkable ability to say some of the craziest stuff, and it's always highly entertaining.  So, without further adieu...her most recent question that sent me into fits of laughter.

Ashley comes running into the office, "OMG Melanie, did you know that we live in the Milky Way?!?"

...yeah, she's 22.

Holy Helicopter, Batman!

Yesterday, I found out about a dual birthday present!  First a little background...

The ASHRAE show historically has always fallen on my grandfather's birthday (Jan. 26th).  Last year, he celebrated his 90th birthday in sunny Orlando.  This year, however, the show is after his birthday but on my birthday.  So, my dad decided to get a dual birthday gift for us and I am totally psyched for it!

We are all going on a helicopter and boat tour.  My dad sent me the information and it sounds like SO much fun!  We are going to fly over Hoover Dam, Lake Mead, the Grand Canyon's Rim, the Colorado River, the Grand Wash Cliffs, and extinct volcanoes.  Then, we get to land at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, take a boat ride on the Colorado River and finally, take a walk on the Skywalk Bridge!

It's times like this that make me wish I had a SLR camera!  I've had my eye on a Canon Rebel for a long time, but I just can't justify spending that much money on a camera right now.  So, my trusty Canon Digital Elph is going to have to do the job!