The picture to the left is my stack of reference books that I brought into the P.E. exam. I’m sure that the Office Depot across the street from my apartment wondered why there was a sudden spike in the sales of Post-it Tabs. The Professional Engineer Exam for Fire Protection is a very difficult 8-hour test – it’s only about a 52% pass rate for the first attempt to take this test. Passing this exam means that I can become a licensed professional engineer in Illinois.
Today we celebrated Abby’s second birthday. This year she understood what it means to have a birthday – she was looking forward to opening presents and eating cupcakes. She even sang happy birthday to herself! Abby’s favorite gift was a rocking horse – she loves horses.
On November 27th, my grandma took her final breath here on earth. About 7 weeks ago, she had emergency surgery to replace her heart valve. She fought hard to recover from the surgery and get off the ventilator, but the doctor recently discovered that her phrenic nerve was damaged during the surgery (the phrenic nerve controls the diaphragm during breathing).
On Thanksgiving, my grandma was alert and had many visitors; however, a few days after Thanksgiving she was having significant problems with her blood pressure and her kidneys started shutting down. Her three children were with her when she died on Sunday November 27th.
On November 30th, we had the wake for my grandma. It was touching to see all the various people that came to pay their respects...family, neighbors, friends, the mechanic that worked for her company for 15 years, her accountant, my dad’s coworker, my dad’s siblings, etc. I enjoyed hearing their stories about my grandma. It was a true testament of how amazing my grandma was and how many lives she impacted.
The funeral service for my grandma was a very special event. I have attached audio/visual links:
Pictures: part 1 and part 2 (an assortment of pictures of my grandma during the 85 years that she lived life to its fullest)
Audio tracks from the funeral service:
We spent Thanksgiving weekend in Iowa this year. Thursday night/Friday morning was our annual Black Friday shopping event. We started shopping around 10 p.m. and finished up around 4 a.m. My mom, sister, and I love finding fantastic deals and getting almost all of our Christmas shopping done in one day.
On Friday, Abby enjoyed searching for a Christmas tree at the tree farm. She ran from tree to tree declaring “dis one!”
It was a beautiful morning for flying! Today I went to Belmont Harbor to swing on the flying trapeze. I’m so excited that there is now a flying trapeze rig in Chicago. There is nothing like flying through the air with the greatest of ease…
It was great to watch a new generation of Kramers experience the fun of the annual Kramer family summer party. Here are a few pictures from the party: Pool Party Pictures
Abby came to Naperville for the 4th of July weekend. We had fun blowing bubbles and chasing after them.
This week I traveled to Ann Arbor for the wedding of my dear friend Sara. I had the privilege of being one of her bridesmaids. Sara and I lived together in Ann Arbor for about 6 years.
I spent a relaxing vacation in sunny Florida with my family. The highlights include hanging out at the beach, a trip to Universal Studios, visiting the zoo, swimming in the pool, searching for Easter eggs, and climbing to the top of the Jupiter Lighthouse. When I was younger, we spent almost every spring break at my grandparents’ house in the West Palm Beach area. It has probably been about 10 years since the whole family was in West Palm Beach together.Here are some pictures from our vacation: Florida 2011
Also, here is a video clip of Abby talking: Abby's New Words
I have been learning some crazy new drops in my aerial silks class. Here are a couple videos:
Today I went on a tour of the Carson Pirie Scott Building. The building is located on State Street and stands at the zero point of the Chicago street system. I learned lots of interesting facts about this building during the lunchtime tour. I love my free tours through the Chicago Architecture Foundation! Here's a link for my pictures: Carson Pirie Scott Pictures
