Kentucky Derby

As close as I got to seeing Super Saver and Calvin.. the front page of the morning paper.
Max told Candice to bet on him cause he liked his name, so she won! Joe bet on Paddy O' Prado to show, so we won on him. Yes, WE won and if Paddy hadn't won, then HE would have lost.

Mrs. Stencel's to-go gifts of granola and candy.

There was a monument of Barbaro in the front of track that people could jump up and pose with.

My fav is the horse in the middle with all 4 legs in the air.

Once the Derby was over, everyone pretty much left. But there were two more races still and one of them was just the Filly's. So we felt it was important to stay and support the female horses of the derby. Plus we got to watch from the rail, which was definitely the highlight of the day.

I found out later that there were 100,000 people in attendance. It felt like a million!

The Granstand seats were right in front of the starting gate.

Classy on top, and practical on the bottom!

This is the center arena where they show the horses right before they race. This was the first horse I saw, so I bet on him. He lost.

The main entrance.

Erin and Kara or Kara and Erin?

So after we got all dressed up, we headed straight to Target to buy raincoats and galoshes. Cause it POURED the whole time we were there. The sun came out for a few minutes right before the main race, but by that time we were soaked through and through.

Our tickets. 4 in the Granstand Bleachers, and 4 in the Infield Club. I know there are only 7 of us, but Erin's twin sis, Kara joined us. She joined us for a couple spring break trips in college, so it's always fun to see her. I still get them confused even though they aren't identical!

Day Two, Derby Day!

We got all dressed up with our dresses, heels, and hats!

An unexpected treat! We got to visit with Candice's husband and kids. Max is 3 and Reese is 1. We met Max when he was a few months old during our Nashville trip and this was our first time meeting Reese. I was so happy we got to see them! They are the only babies of the group.. but not for long! Lindsay is hiding her little baby bump and we will have a new baby to play with in September!

Gotta make this for summer..cucumber dill dip with veggie chips, so good!

We had grilled salmon, spinach pies, and roasted veggies. And the best part?? We only spent $55pp on food for the entire weekend!

First Day

Everyone gathered by around 5pm for dinner. Kelly's flight was delayed and she didn't get in till 11pm. Sadly, I was already fast asleep when she arrived since I had been up since 3am driving. You can tell I have my "Teddy Ruxpin" eyes as Joe always says in this pic.

Ok, so here's this years trip. I drove 9 hours with only 2 quick stops. But that's really only because I was too scared of stopping in the boonies of WV by myself.

Wisconsin 2009

The girls in Wisconsin for Lindsay's wedding, which I couldn't attend. Sorry girls, this was the only group shot I found in the pics Linds sent me!

Nashville 2007

All of us plus Bekah, who I roomed with the second half of freshman year.

Miami 2008,

There was a very nice group picture but I thought this one was more representative of our personalties! My favorite is Amanda in the corner cleaning her coconut before it's photographed.

I put together a little mailer card of our trip, but I don't think I ever sent it to the girls!

San Diego 2007

This weekend I drove to Lexington, Ky to have my 5th reunion trip with my college girlfriends. We stayed with Erin's Mom, who graciously opened her home to us and let 7 girls crash there for 3 days! And when I say graciously, I mean it...we had delicious meals, bourbon balls by our bedside table at night, and to-go snack bags for the ride home.


These girls are dear longtime friends of mine and to catch up for only one weekend wasn't near enough time. Linds mentioned that we have known each other for 12 years now, which blew me away! Once we graduated in the spring of '02, we knew it would be extremely hard to see one another frequently. Lindsay is in Wisconsin, Erin lives Miami/Dallas, Candice, Amanda, and Katie in Nashville, and Kelly in DC. But I am so proud of us! We have seen each other almost every year since our graduation. We have traveled to San Diego, Miami, Nashville, and Wisconsin. We are lucky this year because we get to see each other again this coming October in Charlottesville, VA for Kelly's wedding. So here are some pics of our past trips and ones of this weekend!