The Jungbauer Family Website

Totally engaged

Today we celebrated Eric and Angela's engagment by gathering together both families and some of the wedding party for a wonderfully relaxing, enjoyable and perfect day at the lake.

We rented a tent, so of course, the weather was absolutely divine. And since we had the tent, I decided to make good use of it and throw a 50th birthday party for my friend Lynnette, the night before. Eric and Angela joined us Friday night, so they were able to enjoy both festivities . . . and the guitarist, Charlie, who added the crowning touch!

Nine months from today, Eric and Angela will officially tie the knot. At the engagement party, we guaranteed that Angela was our for keeps (I think we love her almost as much as Eric does) by making her put her permanent imprint on our Bubby-built cornhole boards! (Obviously, ALL our kids had to put their prints on!)

Forever 16

. . . and forever celebrating!

Sarah's 16th birthday celebration continued this weekend with a special get-away weekend in Indy with Bubby and Sissy. Tracy drove up from Atlanta for the weekend and we all met for dinner (after a few gigs on Rock Band). Sarah, Tracy and Angela then had a girls-only day and looked for bridesmaids dresses (for Eric and Angela's wedding) followed by a trip to the spa and a girls-only dinner. (Can you believe that none of them took any pictures?!?!)

The next day, it was off to the races: The INDY 500. Eric assures me that he never let Sarah look at the infield with the binoculars.

Steve, Rachel and I drove back to Indy Sunday morning. Rachel surfed the cable channels while Steve and I cycled the Monon trail and then Rae and I shopped while Daddy surfed....

We had Bazbeaux pizza waiting when the crew returned from the race. They were so tired they acted like they ran the race, rather than watched it. Not much post-race commentary, but it was definitely a winning weekend. (I'm sure Rachel is wondering what Bubby and Sissy will do when she turns 16!)

We ended up spending the night so we could jam some more on Rock Band and we definitely ended on a good note.

Boys will be boys

Doctor, lawyer, and Indian (YMCA) chief . . . PLUS a preacher, computer guru, 6-time BMX national champ/bicycle salesman, and a college student.

This unlikely mix of testosterone was actually a father-son ski trip to Steamboat.

Unfortunately, the doctor and the preacher arrived a day too late - the day after Steve and Eric arrived.

The GOOD news: this is NOT a picture of Steve.

The BAD news: this IS a picture of Eric's shoulder after his second run of the day. The rest of the day was spent in the Yampa Valley ER and then trying to dull the pain and sorrow. (Eric and Angela went to Utah to ski in February. They never got to hit the slopes because they both got hit by the influenza instead.)

So what do you think happened the next day? (Steamboat had a record-setting snowfall this year and unprecedented fresh powder even for spring skiing.)

Yep, Eric skied. (But he did admit to his lapse in judgment - and the painful price he paid.) Surgery is April 17th.

My Guitar Hero is on the right

(But I'm a Wii bit biased!)

Memoirs of a Metropolitan Matrimony

Prelude to the Metro

Stay tuned . . . there's a lot more to come

Get your Kleenex ready . . . . .The Proposal

*Bling! *Bling!*

Nate is Great

The first time we met Tracy's fiance, Nate, was at Eric's graduation from law school last May. We were impressed by his quiet, gentle nature and the way he took Steve aside to profess that his intentions toward Tracy were honorable. We were a little worried though, that he was a little too quiet to join such an outspoken, opinionated and frequently ostentatious family.

Worry no more. Nate has proven that he can hold his own and that we will still love and respect him when he's gone back to Georgia!

Nate's Labor Day weekend challenge began with a tour of Tippy in the Boston Whaler. The look on his face as they departed was a little uncertain, but with Captain Rachel at the helm, Sarah as First Mate and scurvy dog Shadow just along for the joy ride, somehow, he managed to return without turning green.

Next stop: Lake Tippecanoe Country Club for a round of golf. No photos available, but Eric retreated to the men's bar after only a few holes to watch football instead. Nate lost (???) the lead on the 18th hole to let his future father-in-law win. Tracy says Nate is quite the competitor, so the next match might be a bit different.

Then for the REAL challenge: coming home to a deck full of "family."

Not only did Nate have to meet the parents, but also the grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and a few extras. We even had 8 Minnesotans. (Senator Mike and Vicki, Josh and Sarah, Aubrey and her fiance Eric, Ariel and Caleb) In all, we had a quaint group of 21 for dinner the first night and the crowd just kept revolving for the rest of the weekend.

We also tubed and ate and played Nintendo Wii and ate and went to "boat church" and ate and Jet Skied and ate and even gave Nate a hair cut.

. . . and of course there were just a few photos taken.

This is one of my favorite snapshots.

Josh, however, "Jungbauered" all of us (even my father) by proving to have the biggest toy in his backpack!
(Click thumbnail below)

Nate and the rest of the clan even formed their own cheerblock for the seaon finale of The Lake City Skiers. (It probably seemed a little hokey to a landlubber like Nate, but it was best for him to see all sides of his future in-laws before he says "I do.")

Obviously, Nate is to be commended for enduring so much in just 3 days. He was thrown into the midst of our family feet first and quickly learned to swim, but he really won my heart when he learned to barefoot too!

I told Nate that I could teach him to barefoot on the first try if he could just do two things: #1) Sit in a chair (What man isn't already a pro at that?!?) and #2) Listen (Ohhhhh.......not so easy!)

Well, Nate was up and barefooting on the first attempt and if he hadn't already endeared himself into my heart already, that sealed the deal!

Nate was not the only competitor in the crowd. Bubby took the gold at sunrise.

Josh also glowed with the sunrise.

.....but nothing compares to the glow on Tracy's face.

Welcome to the family Nate.

Turkey 2006

No, we did not get hit by a freak snow storm.

These are the infamous Jungbauer potato dumplings --- THE most important part of a Jungbauer Thanksgiving dinner.

Father and son bond over the art of making the perfect dumpling.

On my side of the family, the only real holiday culinary tradition is trash . . .

This is the "trash" that Gramma Stands always brought to family gatherings along with her ginger-soy veggie dip. The tradition continues.

Today, however there was something even more appetizing ---- served chilled at 46 degrees but under a 60 degree sunny broiler:

Steve's brother Mike joined us from Minnesota with most of his family: Vicki, Aubrey, Ariel and Caleb. Add Eric, Angela and Gramma Bev and we had an even dozen.

Pre and post dinner entertainment.

It's Official

Eric S. Jungbauer, J.D.

Eric passed the bar exam!

(There's still a lot to learn.)

Sweet Suite 2000

One American Square

This is the view from Eric's apartment in Indy --- and also a picture of his new office!!!

Eric is the newest attorney at Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman one of the leading healthcare firms in the nation.

He will be doing medical malpractice defense work. (He wants to enjoy his holidays here at home and remain on my Christmas list!)

=;o)

You can't see the HUGE smile on his face in this picture, (and unfortunately we won't be seeing him as much in the near future) but we are all wearing HUGE smiles and are very proud of our Bubby!!!

Law and Order

We are proud to announce the graduation of Eric Steven Jungbauer
from the Mississippi College School of Law.

It was a weekend of celebration with an extended, blended family plus two special friends.

But there is something extra special about sisters . . .

. . . and that "something" is part of the reason why we also packed a U-Haul to move Bubby back to Indiana.

Not only will he be completing another year of post-graduate work in healthcare law, but he will also be busy keeping an eye on his two littlest sisters. (As you'll see below, it seems that someone else is keeping a very close eye on his other little sister.)

(Hopefully his friend Angela, won't get jealous.)

So after all the work was done, we played . . .

We ate . . .

And we finally got to meet Nate!!!

(I think he was a bit overwhelmed, but not enough to sway his unofficial, but honorable intentions.)

Law and Order . . . . . . Celebrate!

La Buena Vida

i, Eye. . . Aye

Christmas was all about "i"s this year. iPod, idog, I Spy and mostly "I can't believe my eyes!"

Sarah and Rachel both found speakers for their iPods in the bag that Santa left by the fireplace. Rachel was even more surprised to find a Fly Pen from Santa. (She had her first serious doubts about Santa this year.)

Steve was surprised to find an iPod Nano (in his favorite color, Darth Vader black) because he had "looked everywhere" to find an iPod for me only to find them all sold out. (He went to Indy after Christmas and came home with the 30G!)

Rachel talks to her idog. (And her idog talks back and dances to the music.)

Sarah has her eyes on boys these days. (I will have hair as white as Santa's soon.) Santa left her with some wise advice on a hot pink purse. "Forget love. I'd rather fall in chocolate."

The other big hit on Christmas day was the Spy Kit we gave to my nephew Jeff. Way, way too cool Agent 007!

The biggest surprise was probably for Bubby and Sissy. They still can't believe their eyes when they look at their "little" sisters.

(If you're wondering why they are sitting on the kitchen floor, it's because it is now the best, and hottest, seat in the house since we installed heated tile.)

Bubby also brought a few house guests along. You probably wouldn't have noticed anything if I hadn't pointed it out. Kara obviously fits right in and enjoyed our girly day at the Pottery Bayou.

Here's the real apple of Bubby's eye . . .

Dakota is also growing quickly and attracting lots of eyes with her beautiful silver coat. Shadow is in love, too.

Bubby's got a new girlfriend!

We can't wait to meet her . . .

This is Dakota. Her breeder is from Slidell, LA. His house was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and was only able to save 4 of the 5 puppies from this litter. He brought the 3 females and 1 male to the Holiday Inn Express in Jackson, MS where Bubby goes to law school. He put up a sign at the law school saying "Free displaced Weimaraner puppies, AKC registered, Sire and Dam killed in storm." Most breeders sell these puppies for about $600 to $800 each. Bubby's was free (minus the registration and the boat-load of money he spent at PetSmart.)

Bubby just can't say "no" to a good-looking girl. She is the AKC recognized silver/gray color with big blue eyes, huge webbed feet, and sharp little teeth. Her tail is docked, and even at 1 month old, she is looking for and pointing out birds when they go outside.

She will probably be around 80 lbs full grown. Her mother was 86 lbs and her father was 120 lbs. Dakota is supposedly the runt of the litter.

More Family Fun

Here are more glimpses of our wonderful weekend with Bubby and Sissy.
I wish we could convince them to move closer!!!

Sisterly love

The ART of tubing

Oh Yeah!

Too much testosterone

Double studs (I was behind the wheel not the camera)

Chillin'

Sarah's First Day of School

Even though Sarah's in 8th grade this year, the first day of the school is still exciting. She spent weeks trying to figure out the perfect outfit to wear and was up this morning on her own accord long before the alarm even went off. She even had time for breakfast.

This year she had 3 escorts on her first day of school.

LUCKY GIRL!

Red Letter Day

Both Eric and Tracy were able to break away from their hectic schedules for a long weekend with us before the girls start school.

Eric is getting ready to start his last year of law school in Mississippi and Tracy is still on stage at The New American Shakespeare Tavern in Atlanta.

The Jungbauer Ski Team

Sarah and Rachel both learned to slalom the day Bubby and Sissy arrived and then learned to do "cut unders."

The girls skied for hours and did not even mention the T word!!! (Tubing)

It was a Red Letter Day in many ways!!!

Family Reunion

Annie (Auntie) Carol and Muffin Man (Mark) made their annual trip back to Indiana for the 10th+ family reunion/Fourth of July celebration. We were also fortunate to have Bubby spend the holiday with us too. (Thanks to him, our attendance record for this infamous event almost doubled!)

Is there ever a time when Bubby doesn't get his picture with his babes?!?

Although he spent a lot of time tubing with the girls, Bubby also has to admit that he enjoyed footin' behind the Malibu too. (I hear he took a few "souveniers" back to Mississippi with him!)

Mark is happy to reunite with his favorite family member.

"This is our favorite place to spend the Fourth of July."

Memorable Day

Sarah and Rachel spent Memorial Day weekend in Atlanta with Bubby and Sissy (aka Eric and Tracy). It was Eric's idea and desire to share one of his most cherished childhood memories with his little sisters. The highlight of the weekend, aside from being together, was going to an Atlanta Braves baseball game. (Sarah and Rachel have never even played T-ball, but they still had a ball!!!)

The hard part was putting my babies on an airplane --- alone. Fortunately, it was a direct flight and I was on call so I couldn't go to the airport. Plus, I was so busy that weekend that I didn't have too much time to dwell on the fact that my girls are growing up and will be on their own before I know it.

Here is Eric's recap of their weekend:

First off, I cannot express my gratitude enough for letting the girls come down to Atlanta for the Memorial Day weekend to hang out with Tracy and I. I miss them terribly throughout the year, and it is hard when I see them once every four or five months when they are growing up so fast. This past weekend really meant a lot for me.

Okay, enough of the mushy junk . . . on to the good stuff.

We had an AWESOME weekend. Tracy and I picked them up from the airport on Saturday morning. Unlike their return trip out of Atlanta, it took me about 1 ½ hours to get through security.

So, when I showed up to their gate, I was pretty darn sweaty. The only thing I could think of while running through the terminal was how bad Erin was going to kill me if I let the girls sit in a strange airport for an hour --- but I showed up just in time. When I saw them --- Yes Sarah is tall, but Rachel is a dang weed, the way she is growing.

We walked through the terminal and came up the big escalator. It was kinda cool because as we got closer to the top you could hear the constant clapping and cheering from the crowd waiting for loved ones as servicemen randomly came over the top and appearedÂ…talk about goose bumps. Anyways, we immediately saw Tracy as she had a bunch of baseball balloons for the girls.

Okay, so we got Sarah's luggage and went out to the car. As we were leaving the airport, I started talking to Rachel. I told her that my birthday present to Sarah was the weekend down here in Atlanta and the Braves' Game. So, I said I had her "early birthday present" and I reached into the console and took out a pink iPod mini. I handed it back to Rachel in such a manner as to make sure Bear saw it very clearly.

Bear's face went ghost white.

Rae was pretty excited. I totally ignored Sarah. However, she was such a trooper. She went very quiet, and had this fake half smile on for like 10 mins as Rae tore through the box and started messing with the iPod.

I couldn't take it anymore and gave Bear hers. She was pretty darn excited --- pretty wild.

So anyways, we dropped Tracy off at work, and we went up to Alpharetta to grab breakfast and go to Jason's parents' house to meet up with them. Jason and his girlfriend, Jenn, met us there and we headed to the ballpark. Jason had a secret parking lot right across from the field - only $10! It is usually like $30 to park so close.

Well we got into the park and the girls were amazed how big it was. Pretty wild. We walked around, bought tomahawks and ballpark food --- basically killed about and hour and a half. Got to our seats and enjoyed the game. Tracy took a cab to the field and was only 30 mins late. GOOD TIMING!

Well after $80 in pizza, hotdogs, and nachos and in the 5th inning, Rae wanted to go hang out in the nose-bleeder seats. Those seats are seriously the coolest in the park. Not crowded, see everything, high up, skyline in the background - pretty cool.

Okay, so in the 8th inning it was pretty obvious the game was going bad for the home team. We headed down to our section, which had emptied out quite considerably. We decided to try and help the Braves to a 9th inning comeback --- a RALLY!!!! Yee-HAW! We stood for like 30 minutes doing the tomahawk chop . . .

. . . and rooting the Braves to a . . . . . loss.

However, I am pretty jealous of Sarah. You see I have been going to Braves game for the good part of the last 20 years. I have been to about 40 games. I have never been on the big screen. Sarah was in Atlanta for about 5 hours, and while she was standing, looking pretty in her Braves shirt, cowboy hat, doing the tomahawk chop, the powers that be decided they needed to put her on the largest HDTV screen in the world for about 7 seconds! THAT WAS AWESOME! I think her rubberbands on her braces were about 10 feet tall on the big screen. We all (all 50,000 people or so) saw it, including Bear and Rae.

Andruw Jones and Chipper Jones acknowledged our rallying cries and pointed to us while coming off the field at the end of the game. Wild! We took our time leaving the field.

It was seriously the coolest Braves game I have ever been to. The only thing it would have made it better would have been a win.

Well, we went swimming late afternoon, and then went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner.

After dinner we walked around the city, then came home. Rae and Bear stayed at Tracy's and I heard they passed out pretty hard that night.

On Sunday, Bear and Rae cooked us breakfast and we went to the Renaissance Festival. We stared at all the strange people that come out of the woodwork for things like this, and ate a lot of "carni" food. Then we went on a lot of rides, and ate more food. On the ride home, the food didn't agree with Sarah. She started crying (because apparently her stomach was doing flips) and politely asked Sissy to pull over at the next gas station. Sarah bolted into the bathroom and came out 45 minutes later with Pepto-Bismol stained lips. Poor baby.

Went home, took a nap and then went to Bahama Breeze for Dinner with Nate. (Tracy's boyfriend. Sorry no one took your picture, Nate!) Ate a light dinner, then went to see Madagascar -- pretty funny. Went home, passed out. Said bye to the girls. (Don't tell them this, but I actually cried when I got in my car to go back to Mississippi.) I guess the girls went to DSW in Buckhead to buy shoes or something . . and there you have it, the weekend.

Again, thanks a lot. It was a super weekend.

Thank YOU, Bubby (and Sissy). NO matter how tall (or short) you are, Sarah and Rachel will always look up to you!

Happy Birthday Bubby

More Christmas Memories

This is another VERY LUCKY guy who has three little sisters that WORSHIP him!!!

We were fortunate to have a visit from Bubby for a few days. The girls clung to him the entire time. We all miss getting to see him more often. Ditto for Big Sissy Tracy. Unfortunately, she couldn't get away for the holidays, but at least we got to see her in Atlanta over Thanksgiving.

Rachel show off her culinary skills

You may not be able to see the details in the photo, but Rachel made "chocolate cups" by dipping balloons into melted chocolate. Once they cooled she popped the balloons and filled the cups with fresh fruit . . . and then had fun topping them with Reddi Wip and then served them to us on Christmas Eve. (She learned it all on a TV program the day before.)

You can guess what she did next . . .

Daddy helps Rachel program her personal "ATM" bank.

I guess the ole piggy bank just isn't sophisticated enough for this generation!

Who would have ever thought that we would give our pre-teen a cell phone?
What kind of precedent are we setting?
Do we really understand what we are doing????

Yep, it's all about connectivity!

(If you don't have a teen or pre-teen yet, just wait. You'll understand.)

Jeff, Penny, Rick, Samantha, Gramma Jane, Grampa David, Steve, Sarah, Erin, Rachel

Breaking Thanksgiving tradition

I guess I'm rubbing off on my children . . .

Instead of our traditional four-day Thanksgiving feast with family this year, we broke tradition and left town.

"But Mom," whined Sarah, "we always have Thanksgiving at Gramma Mary's. But Mom, we always have old-fashioned cream pie. But Mom, we always put the Christmas tree up the day after Thanksgiving. But Mom . . ."

My parents heard the same song from me when I was growing up. I like tradition!!!

Despite the deviation from tradition, we all had a very special Thanksgiving in Atlanta, with Eric (aka Bubby) and Tracy (aka Sissy). We shared a wonderful Thanksgiving feast prepared by Eric and Tracy's mother, Susan. Although we did not have old-fashioned cream pie, somehow Sarah survived with potato dumplings, mashed potatoes and chocolate pie instead.

No low-carb living for this girl!!! And don't forget the Reddi Wip!

Here you see Steve and Rachel playing a duet of traditonal Christmas carols while Sarah sings
(Not really, but it looks good!)

One highlight of our trip was dining in a revolving restaurant overlooking downtown Atlanta. Afterward, we enjoyed the water fountains and Christmas light display, but agreed that Warsaw's Central Park display is still top notch.

The greatest highlight of our trip away from tradition, however, was seeing Tracy in the spotlight at The New American Shakespeare Tavern.

We were admittedly a dreading just the thought of more than two hours of Shakespeare, but were pleasantly suprised by a fun and witty performance that we even (kind of) understood!

We are very proud of Tracy for working so hard to live her dream.

Sarah is still lamenting our break from tradition, but we did manage to do the traditional Freaky Friday Shop 'til You Drop and Make Auntie Carol Proud of You shopping excursion the day after Thanksgiving, so all was not lost . . . and we still shared the most important tradition of Thanksgiving, FAMILY.

Graduation from Hanover

Tracy graduated from Hanover this weekend.

It was another day of mixed emotions for all of us. How could so much have changed in such a fast four years? A quiet teen who wanted to teach and write childrens' book was transformed into a confident, charming and ever more beautiful young woman whose passion is to perform Shakespeare.

We tried to recreate a moment that dramatically shows how things have changed from our first visit in the fall of 2000, to our last visit at graduation in the spring of 2004.

WOW!!!

Eric --- still very protective of his little sister.

I guess Steve does get some (genetic) credit for a job well-done four times over!!!!

Colorado

It takes 1 week to get ready for vacation and at least 2 weeks to catch up after vacation . . . hence the time delay in posting our latest adventure.

In March, we travelled to Longmont, CO where we met Bubby (aka Eric) and his friend Stephanie. Steve had an Orion Software board of directors summit at Keystone. Brandon Fuller, the President of Orion himself, along with his charming wife and daughter, hosted our short break from reality.

I'm not sure which was most exciting for Sarah & Rachel: meeting Stephanie, seeing big brother Bubby again or . . . getting to ride in Brandon's Hummer!!! I wouldn't ask them to choose, but we all enjoyed our time with Steph and she was a very good sport.

We also enjoyed a day of skiing at Keystone. Sarah, Bubby and Stephanie tried snowboarding though the altitude took its toll in more ways than one.
On the way home, a spring squall dumped about 8 inches of snow on us. The drive down the mountain turned into a treacherous slalom course that took three hours instead of one to complete. Steve won the gold medal for leading us across the finish line safely!!! We went 4-wheeling the next day and then tried to ski again before going home but were shut down by 100 mph winds!

Rachel discovered yet another culinary delight . . . crab legs. Sarah still prefers to stick with filet mignon . . . I gotta get back to work!!!