three beers 'til dubuque

On Wednesday night my friends JohnaLee, Kelsey and I went to Sparta to hear Neil's band, Three Beers 'Til Dubuque, play for Sparta's Concert in the Park Series. Three Beers is a La Crosse-area cover band that has cycled through plenty of musicians in its long lifespan. The guys are great (just a step below local newscasters) and the music? Simply the best.

They had lots of the kids (and even some grownups) on their feet, though it was a fairly shy crowd.

Andrew Steeno & Neil Ferris. (Neil is doing what I've christened the Neil face. This is the face he makes every time he plays the guitar. Remember it; you'll see it in every future guitar photo I ever take of him.)

Jesus Arellano, Zak Kaszinski, Jim Piela & Ryan Torgerson on the drums.

That's the frontman Jesse Gomez in the middle.

Three Beers went out with a bang, inviting the kids up onstage. They loved it. I went up there to take some more photos and after they finished playing I heard a girl going from one band member to the next, gushing, saying, "YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME." It was pretty cute, and I have to agree: they are awesome.

This boy looked super foxy.

This being Wisconsin, there were two things for sale at the park: beer and brats.

I had great company at the show: Ms. Kelsey and Ms. JohnaLee!

Ms. J is super saucy, not to mention stunning. She also has a blog, Abide the Bride, where she is writing about her DIY wedding projects. You should check it out.

This is my pouty face. Sometimes it gets me what I want... sometimes.

Kelsey is hilarious. I'm so glad she's living with JohnaLee for the summer, allowing me to get to know her better!

One of the most amusing moments of the night came when JohnaLee turned to Kelsey and said, "We're just going to have to start calling her Mama Bri!" This came after I was once again backing out of one of the schemes that they are always trying to corrupt me with, but that wasn't the funny part. The funny part is that I already have other friends who regularly call me Mama Bri. So apparently my clucking, worrying, and difficulty throwing all responsibility to the wind is earning me the same sentiments from a variety of sources! It's a cute nickname. I don't mind.

I loooooooove these girls. I had a great night with them... it was much-needed. The weather was divine: temperatures stayed in the mid-seventies and there were no mosquitos. NONE. I came equipped with bug spray, but miraculously didn't need it. A perfect Wisconsin night. I couldn't have asked for anything more.