With Gratitude

Woman's Best Friend

2012-02-12T12:46:00.000-08:00

I don’t know if a lot of you remember when we had to put my black lab, Zeus, down this past summer. I’ve said before that it was one of the hardest things we have ever done and I still miss him like crazy on most days.

My mom also had a really hard time with the loss because she bonded with Zeus after I moved out for college. When I wasn’t around he would become my mom’s shadow and I think she just enjoyed his company even if he was only sleeping in the same room as her.

She swore after we put him down in August that she would never have another dog again because it was just too hard to go through the pain and loss. At the time I completely agreed with her and understood where she was coming from. I even told Jeremy later that week that if we didn’t already have Willow I’m not sure I would want another dog again because I hate the thought of losing her already and she's only 2.

But months later I am SO glad that I’ve had Willow with me. She’s been great at giving me comfort and helping me remember why animals bring so much joy into our lives and into our families. I’m a dog person through and through. And even though it’s hard and painful to think about them getting older and passing away, the time spent with them is so worth it in the end.

My mom really had a double loss after we put Zeus down when my sister got married in September and moved out of the house to a new city 2 hours away. My mom and dad had an empty nest for the first time in 32 years of their marriage and I think it hit her harder than she would like to admit.

I’ve been pushing both of my parents to just toy around with the idea of getting another dog once they felt they were ready and my mom always firmly pushed the idea away saying she just couldn’t handle getting so close to another pet again.

But then Jeremy and I had them over a couple of months ago for a double dinner date at our house and the four of us got on the topic of all the different breeds available now. After having a Labrador for the last 12 years, my mom was pretty put off by the idea of dog hair and shedding all over their house and was really interested in several of the different poodle mixes that are available.

We started going through some of our favorite breeds that are cross-bred with poodles now and the Cocker Spaniel-Poodle mix was brought up. A Cocka-poo.

I showed my parents some pictures of what a cockapoo looked like and some of the raves I had heard on Twitter about this breed from other girls who recently got them as puppies.

I was shocked when my mom called me a few days later to ask more questions about this breed and told me she had been doing some research online. This was the most interest she had shown in getting another dog so I showed her some cute puppies I found and sent them her way.

And then we came across this little darling:

Ummm… yeah. How do you say no to that face?

My mom had me corresponding with the breeder that same day and after several e-mails back and forth and a lot of talking between my mom and dad; sweet little miss was on her way to their house for a permanent love home within a few weeks.

My mom decided to name her Maia, after finding out the name meant “mother – nurse – caregiver.” A perfect name if there ever was one for my mom; the born nurse and caretaker.

This is the first dog that has belonged solely to my mom and she is having waaaay too much fun with her. Buying blinged out collars, tags, bedding, dish bowls, there’s just no getting in her way right now. I receive countless e-mails and calls throughout the day with opinions, advice and stories about how cute Maia is with the latest adorable thing she did.

To be honest, I’m feeling a little replaced as her baby girl.

It’s hard loving these little animals that sneak their way into your hearts and families but at the same time, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I truly believe they were put on earth to bring us joy and companionship and I’m so happy that my mom is able to see the benefits far outweigh the heartache.

So welcome to our family little Ms. Maia but just remember…

I'm still {and always will be} her favorite.

50 Fun and Cheap Date Nights

2012-02-08T06:40:00.000-08:00

If you guys are anything like us, you are always low on date ideas. I remember during our years in college, we were constantly on the go and coming up with cute ideas for date nights on the weekends.

But once marriage settled in and we both started working full time, it became so much easier {and appealing} to rent a movie, order in food and settle on the couch for some mindless down time.

I’ve really been struggling with this the last few months because I want to take advantage of this time in our lives while we can. What’s the point in waiting to start a family if you don’t enjoy it to the fullest ability? So when I came across this cute blog on Pinterest the other day, I got so excited when I read some of their ideas for 50 Fun and Cheap Date Ideas.

Jeremy’s hours have become more normal lately so it’s easier to plan ahead for scheduled date nights and I’m taking full advantage while I can.

There are some that we will absolutely, positively not do {just because we aren't cool enough to pull them off} and some that we won’t be able to try until the weather gets warmer but I’m really excited to go through the list this year!

Consider it our dating bucket list for 2012:

1. Make your own fondue. We’ve tried this before with a big fat fail so we are more than happy to pay the big bucks for The Melting Pot since we love fondue so much. We try and go to this restaurant at least 2-3 a year for special occasions but I found a cheap set at Target the other day and I think Valentines is the perfect excuse to buy it.

2. Make homemade pizzas. Done and Delicious; even if they are a little deformed.

3. Have a game night. Board games are some of our favorite things to play with other couples and friends but we need to expand our collection a little more. Any fun suggestions?

Willow and Jeremy team up to play a mean game of Scrabble against me

4. Go rollerblading – this one’s not going to happen. If you read this post you would know my husband would rather get teeth pulled than be caught dead on rollerblades. Which means I can have a date with Willow!

5. Have a picnic. Surprisingly, we’ve never done this and I think it’s about time we do!
What are the chances I have of making it look like these?

6. Go see a play. This one won’t be new since we try to go to at least 1 big production a year and they are our favorite types of dates. I've been looking online for any new shows coming up this year that we might be interested in but I got nothin' so far.

7. Check out a local museum

8. Go to a local sporting event – I usually save these for dates with my dad because this is his favorite quality time with his daughters but I need to get better at buying tickets to go with Jeremy.

9. Go on a bike ride. My chicken legs have a hard time on long distances for bike rides but it’s a family tradition on Jeremy’s side every year and I need to get more practice in so I’m not so embarrassing each fall in front of his aunts, uncles and cousins.

10. Have a living room camp out. I LOVE this idea! Piling lots of blankets and pillows on the floor and vegging out on snacks all night… which won’t really be new for us but it’s on the list so I can get away with it =)

11. Volunteer. This is something we have talked about doing for a long time but have a hard time deciding on what we want to volunteer for. We have been approached to help out with our youth group at church and even though it sounds intimidating to be surrounded by a bunch of teenagers again, I think it would be a great activity for both of us.

12. Have a movie or TV marathon. Another thing we love doing. Once we find a show we like, we are HOOKED! We’ve gone through Scrubs, The Big Bang Theory, Sunny in Philadelphia {I don’t recommend this series unless you are ok with being really offended in almost every episode} and we are currently working on Friday Night Lights. It’s a great way to spend the evenings together after work.

13. Go bowling. Our last trip made it very clear that we need to get some practice in. Jeremy was the only one to break 100 after 3 games. Ouch.

14. Have a spa night. If massages were a love language, that would definitely be Jeremy’s. I need to get better at giving them and I think a night of pampering for both of us would be wonderful, relaxing time.

15. Exercise together. We are able to go out jogging a few times a month but I would like to increase the amount to 2-3 a week if possible. It’s fun to just run next to each other even if we’re both listening to music and not really talking.

16. Take a hike. How sad that we live so close to the gorgeous Rocky Mountains and only go hiking every few years. We both want to get on more trails this summer and brave a camping trip or two while we still live here. We’ve only gone camping once since we been together in 8 years which is just plain pathetic to me.

Babies in 2005

17. House Hunting. We love our house now but we both know it’s not going to be our forever home. If we are lucky we probably only have another year or two left in it and we’re already starting to talk about some changes we would want in our next home {i.e. a bigger master closet.} I think it would be so much fun to walk through some “dream homes” and just pretend for someday down the road when we are serious.

If I ever find the home with this bathroom; we're buying it. I don't even care what the rest of the house looks like.

18. Stargazing. Is there anything more romantic than cuddling up and watching the beautiful stars against the dark night sky? Another thing that will have to wait for the stupid weather to warm up.

If you go to the blog, there are a lot more cute ideas but these are the ones that popped out at us when I read them to Jeremy the other night. What about you guys? Any other cute or new ideas you have for date night?

I'm so excited and ready to start dating my husband again!

Cirque Du Soleil

2012-02-03T07:25:00.006-08:00

Greetings from my warm and cozy house in the middle of a blizzard!

Yes, that's right. I finally got the snow day I have been waiting 3 years for as Colorado is enduring a blizzard expecting to bring 1-2 feet by tomorrow morning.

And I just saw a kid ride by my window on his bicycle. Tough guy won't let anything phase him but as I make no secret as to how much I hate the snow, would you guys believe me if I told you we drove almost 20 miles in this storm last night?

I know, that is HUGE! And it was all to go see a show I've been dying to watch for years now: Cirque Du Soleil.

Every year Jeremy and I talk about going to Las Vegas for a quick weekend getaway. He has been once before and I’ve only been to their airport for a quick layover.

And then we start really talking about it and realize we are possibly the lamest couple ever to go to Las Vegas. After all, Jeremy doesn’t ever drink alcohol and we are both too cheap to really gamble. It would be penny slots for both of us and how much fun can you have with those?

We always talk about going to just see the shows and experience the world of Vegas but then file it away in our “maybe, someday” file and move on with our merry way.

But a few weeks ago I was having lunch with my good friend, Carolyn, and she mentioned that Cirque Du Soleil: Dralion was coming to a city near us in February.

So we jumped on the idea of a double date night and an opportunity to get a Vegas Experience without really having to go.

Carolyn and I have been friends since our junior high days when we met in Home Ec class and got to know each other better as we sewed pillow cases and learned how to "cook."

We ended up in the same group of girlfriends all throughout junior high and high school, attended the same University for college and both married tall nerdy boys with the same sense of humor after graduation.

Basically, I love her.

Carolyn and I dancing it up - circa de 2006

As we got closer to the show date and the predictions for our blizzard kept getting worse, I seriously considered canceling and just staying home, safe and sound from the icy roads. But with convincing from both Carolyn and my husband {who didn't want to waste the money we spent} I shakily got in the car and prepared myself for an anxiety attack.

Thankfully we car pooled with Trevor and Carolyn most of the way and I may or may not have had a couple of drinks to calm my nerves once we got there. All I have to say is; I am SO glad we didn't cancel!!

It was such an incredible night watching gymnasts and dancers on crack while experiencing sensory overload. Seriously, I didn't even know where to look half the time because there were so many different acts going on.

Of course we weren't allowed to take pictures during the show so I had to steal these online.

I've never seen such incredible acrobatics before!

I decided during intermission that if these people can dangle from metal rings with only their feet, fly over the audience hanging on to ribbon, do back flips off 30 feet ramps onto trampolines and then scale back up the wall, then I could put my big girl panties on and get in a car during a snow storm for the ride home.

Even if this was our view for most of the drive:

So basically the moral of this story is this: Sometimes you need to face your fears in order to experience cool things in life. And a drink or two doesn't hurt either.

Hoarding

2012-01-23T08:38:00.000-08:00

Does anybody ever watch that show "Hoarding: Buried Alive" on TLC?

Let me warn you now, that if you have anxiety or OCD issues in any way then do NOT, I repeat, do NOT watch it. Ever. I made the mistake about a year and a half ago when I was too lazy to get off the couch and find the remote to change the channel so I sat through an entire episode of this awful show.

And by awful, I mean I ended up going through my kitchen pantry and every closet in our house tossing things left and right for almost 3 hours after the show was over because I didn’t want to end up like the families on TV. If we hadn’t used an item in the last 4-6 months, it was tossed.

This was also the same night I found our lost engagement pictures so I should admit there was one good thing that came out of watching the show that night. Even though I vowed to myself and Jeremy that I will never do it again. Orders from the husband after he came home and found me knee deep in piles of clothes, books and an empty refrigerator and pantry with nothing for him to eat.

But that one episode I watched was enough to scar me for life and if I hadn’t been considered a tosser then, I definitely am one now. Every few months I go through my closet and toss clothes that I haven’t worn in the last few months. My sisters love this side to me because it means they get to go through a bag of my clothes every so often for keeps.

Normally my husband understands my tossing tendencies and complies without too much complaint but has made me promise to never touch any of his things, i.e. his clothes or video games which are really the only things that belong solely to him in our house.

So I was quite surprised when I went up to our bedroom last night to find Jeremy going through his drawers to clean out and organize clothing he hasn’t touched in 10+ years. {And no, I’m totally not over-exaggerating with that timeline.}

He asked me not to help, I ignored him, and we got to work.

This boy has kept every article of clothing since his junior high days. This is one bad thing to having a husband that never gains weight. He can still fit into all of his clothes from when he was 15 making his wife extremely jealous in the process.

What could have been done in the span of an hour took almost 3 because we had to do several fashion shows along the way.

Willow got bored with us and fell asleep half way through.

We found the Sadie Hawkins shirt I made for him our Senior year where all of the girls wore white shirts and the guys wore black with our date’s senior picture on the front and baby picture on the back.

Yep, still fits him. {And just FYI, I did make him keep that shirt because it's sentimental and I'm not that cold hearted.}

And then my baby picture tore off the back when he took it off and I almost cried.

I’ve mentioned before my bitterness with having no baby pictures alone since my sisters hung on me at all times and are in every single picture growing up. This was 1 of about 5 I had before my high school lost it when it was submitted for my yearbook page. And then the only copy of it tore off his shirt to be forever lost and thrown in the trash last night.

Man, I was cute.

3 trash bags to Goodwill later, a thousand extra hangers, and a tidy, organized closet made for a great night’s sleep.

I live for nights like that.

In Sickness and In Health

2012-01-17T09:26:00.000-08:00

It isn’t often that Jeremy or I come down with a flu or the cold. We are both fairly healthy and aren’t around kids enough to catch anything big. There have been only a handful of times since we’ve been married that something has really been able to knock us out. And in those handful of times, we quickly learned our different preferences for when either of us get sick.

Growing up with a nurse for a mom, I was used to being coddled and babied until I started to feel better. Head scratches, massages, ginger ale, my favorite movies, and having a mom that never left my side made me a bit spoiled in the sick department.

Jeremy on the hand doesn’t want to be touched, looked at or even talked to when he isn’t feeling well. I learned the hard way during our first year of marriage when Jeremy came down with a minor form of the flu and basically shut the door in my face when I went in to help him.

However, this was all before the virus from hell came to visit our house Sunday night and tore our bodies apart.

You guys… I am not joking when I say this was the worst virus either of us have ever been through.

It was the kind that makes you wonder if you will ever feel healthy or happy again.

The kind that makes you lose almost 3 pounds in less than 36 hours and just the mere thought of food makes you run to the bathroom to empty out whatever is somehow left in your stomach.

The kind that actually hurts your body and causes aches and pains from the constant shaking and shivering from trying to get warm.

The kind that causes your normally strong husband to call your cell phone from the downstairs bathroom at 3 in the morning because he’s too weak to stand on his own and get to the couch.

The kind of virus that makes you google nearby hospitals in the middle of the night because said husband is starting to mumble incoherent things and declare that he thinks he’s dying so could I please just hold his hand so he’s not alone while he passes?

I learned my husband is slightly dramatic when he doesn’t feel well.

It was a scary night that only got worse when I started feeling nauseous around 7 a.m. after I was finally able to get Jeremy to sleep on the couch after giving up on the hope that he would even be able to keep water down.

But even through all of the pain and sickness, yesterday also showed me how selfless you can be when the person you care about most is suffering.

Because even though I have a weak stomach and can’t handle throw up or dirty diapers, all of that goes out the window when you’re caring for someone you love. You’re able to clean out the throw up bucket without gagging, rub your husband’s back as he is leaned over the toilet, deal with the smells and discomforts and put your normal queasy stomach to rest because someone needs you.

And same goes for him, when he is shaky and cold but still refuses to leave my side when it’s my turn to start throwing up. You know he loves you when he holds back your hair long enough for you to finish emptying your stomach before he has to run to the other bathroom to do the same.

Yes, we were quite a sight yesterday as the two sicklings tried to take care of each other while each battling our own personal hell.

Seriously, I wouldn’t have wished this virus on my worst enemy.

We are both feeling much better this morning albeit still a little weak from lack of nutrients or food in our systems. But if one good thing came from all of this, it showed me that I actually will be able to change a diaper or clean up my kid’s throw up someday.

Score one for motherhood.

And even though this virus originated from Jennifer's littles, all is forgiven when she still manages to amaze me with her new designs. Thanks again sister!

Bronco Nation

2012-01-14T13:19:00.000-08:00

I know a lot of people have jumped on the Bronco bandwagon lately because of Tebow. And while normally this would bother me because I can’t stand bandwagon fans, I’m just so happy that we have even made it this far and that Tebow has brought so much attention to not only our team but also to his faith.

I wasn’t really sure how I felt about him when he was first recruited, there was so much hoopla and attention surrounding the name that I kind of got irritated with how much he was taking away from the team and the Broncos themselves. But as time has gone on and I’ve learned more about this amazing man from Florida, I can’t help but fall a little bit in love with him too.

Do I think he’s perfect or the most amazing quarterback of all time? Of course not. But my respect for him has grown so much as I saw him on the field week to week throughout this season. He’s an amazing team player, 100% devoted to God and not afraid to show it and I get chills every time I see him praying on the sidelines.

They’ve released videos with his audio recordings during the game when he’s singing praise and worship songs while warming up, asking God to protect his team before the games start and most of all give him the strength to glorify God in all he does. What NFL player does that anymore?!?

My nephew, Hudson, is obsessed with anything sports related. He even got a Bronco football jersey from my sister Allison for Christmas and you can find him whenever the family is together playing football with his uncles. I love that he has a guy like Tim Tebow to look up to as his role model when there are so few quality or moral athletes out there.

I’m hoping to start “Through My Eyes” as soon as I finish these last few books I have lined up and I can’t wait to read more about his history and how he got to where he is today.

Win or lose this season, I am just SO proud of our team and how far we have come. I’m proud that Tebow has joined Bronco country and I can’t wait to see what the next few seasons bring with him as part of the team.

We'll be gathering at my parent's house tonight to watch the division playoffs and probably have 1 or 2 heart attacks with a lot of screaming involved.

We don’t joke around. This family has been bleeding orange and blue since I was a baby.

LET’S GO BRONCOS!!!!!

Dreary Beginnings... Through the Lense of an iPhone

2012-01-10T07:56:00.000-08:00

I hate this time of year. It is, without a doubt, my least favorite two months. From January through February all I can focus on is spring, warmer weather, not being cooped up in our house anymore, and more exciting things to come.

I don't know why, maybe it's after last year being jam packed with exciting events and activities, but this year already seems more boring than normal. There's no anticipation of new babies, weddings, showers, future vacations to look forward to, parties... you get the idea. Don't get me wrong, I will always take boring over a bad alternative but it's making the winter months seem like they are dragging on forrrrrrevvvvver {said in my best Sandlot voice.}

But in case you guys are still dying to know what our first weeks of 2012 have looked like... let me just show you through the lens of my iPhone. Who knew a cell phone could take such decent quality pictures? Not I. And because it does, who even needs a real camera to tote around anymore?. The phone does in a pinch and helps me document mundane details from our everyday lives for your viewing pleasure.

One of my favorite Christmas presents from my parents: an espresso maker!

Just what I needed, another thing to get me hooked on caffeine even more than I already am. =)

Where you find me, you will find my puppy always laying faithful by my side.

Other favorite Christmas present? The Hunger Games.

Need I say more?

A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. Jeremy was pretty much ignored for two weeks until I could finish the series.

I've been having fun playing around with my Pic Stitch app for OOTDs. I don't really do them that often because man alive do they take a lot of time in the mornings and I don't consider myself too fashionable, but it is fun to see other's outfits and fashion that gets put together on Twitter.

I clearly don't take them too seriously.

I fell asleep on the couch this past weekend and woke up in what Jeremy calls his "love cocoon." He then proceeded to throw off all the blankets and pillows after I woke up and told me to, "Fly away beautiful butterfly!" The man is such a child but he brings SO much joy into my life.

And while we're on the topic of my leading man: Jeremy and I decided that one of our resolutions this year was to try and speak each other's love languages more. Words of Affirmation for him and Acts of Service for me. Imagine how loved I felt when I came home from a day of errands last week and Jeremy had completely packed and put away all of our Christmas decorations! I almost melted into the floor! ♥

He waited for me to take down our Christmas card collection because he knows how much I love them and wasn't sure what to do with them. They may or may not have stuck around quite awhile longer until I was finally ready...

My beautiful view driving into work yesterday morning after a weekend snow storm in the gorgeous Rocky Mountains:

Sometimes I feel so lucky that I get to live in this gorgeous state! And related to the beauty of Colorado; possibly the utmost favorite picture on my phone right now:

After a nail biting game, is there anything more beautiful than some Tebowing after an incredible overtime win?!

That's right y'all! We're going to the Division Playoffs!!!!

It's TEBOW TIME!!!!

Ringing in the New Year

2012-01-01T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ever since we graduated college a few years ago, our NYE celebrations have been pretty lame. We manage to stay up to midnight, long enough for a quick kiss on the couch, a wish for a Happy New Year and drag ourselves to the comfort of our own bed. What happened to the crazy kids who partied until the wee hours of the morning each year? Life happened people. I grew up and the appeal of staying out late went out the window, along with the ability to bounce back after only a few hours of sleep. No can do anymore.

But this year we actually had a great time celebrating our last weekend of 2011 and spending time with some fun and special people in our lives. Going out with a bang as I like to say.

After months of talking, we managed to get a portion of our group to coordinate schedules for a night at Belmar in Denver on Friday night. Complete with shopping, ice-skating, bowling and dinner.

It's hard to believe it's already been 2 years since we celebrated David and Erin's NYE wedding.

Happy Anniversary you guys!

We ended the fun with some margaritas and Wii dancing back at Erin and David's place with an impromptu night on their apartment complex roof, right in the heart of Denver.

I ♥ city life.

And the real fun came on Saturday night where my big sister, Christine, celebrated her 30th birthday a few days late and had the cool idea for a joint NYE/Birthday party celebration.

Her brother and sister-in-law have the cutest ideas when it comes to throwing parties and really took over with fun projects including a hot chocolate and smores bar, games on the hour leading up to midnight, and decorating with their own DIY projects.

Mmmmm... sugar coma.

Me and the birthday girl

One of the party planners and his look-a-like nephew, Ethan.

Call me biased but I think Jeremy looks goooood with a baby in his arms. =)

Picture slideshow throughout the night

My dad being the fun-loving goof ball that he always is.

Happy New Year!!!

Beautiful birthday girl

It was such a fun night and a great way to start out the year of 2012. I have a feeling this is going to be one of my favorite years yet and I truly can't wait to see what's in store for us and all of the changes and growth we will hopefully make in this new year.

I have tomorrow off but will be spending it by tearing down Christmas decorations and getting our house back into a some-what orderly state. And then we'll be celebrating this stud's 26th birthday on Wednesday. Man he is getting old.

Cheers to a happy and healthy 2012 everyone!

Heaven '11

2011-12-28T06:51:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe another year has come and gone. I know everyone says it, it's over-used and cliche, but I absolutely can not believe how fast 2011 went!

Over all it was a wonderful year. So many blessings and happy times for not only us but for close friends and family as well. Sometimes I just sit in awe at this life God has given me, knowing how truly undeserved I am and trying to never take any of it for granted.

These last few years have been some of the happiest and most special years of my life and I know I will look back someday and think to myself "those were the days."

I know that life comes with hard times and trials but I truly believe God gives us years like this past one to help us through the bad ones and remember that our God is one of faithfulness, love and comfort. So with that at the forefront of my mind, I very fittingly have nicknamed these last 12 months as "Heaven Eleven."

It was heavenly indeed.

January

I surprised not only myself but also loved ones when I finally chopped my hair after growing it out for 10+ years. My husband liked it for about 2.5 seconds before asking me to grow it out again.

February

I had a long girl's weekend with two of my best friends out in Kansas where we filled our days with shopping and eating. Oh how it made me wish we all lived in the same state again. {Colorado is calling your name Steph!}

March

I became an aunt for the 6th time as we welcomed Ethan James into the world. He's the most serious baby I've ever seen but he brings so much joy to our testosterone-deprived family!

April

Jeremy and I took a long overdue break from work and went on our first cruise together! We're doing a great job at celebrating our anniversary on time so far... this year we were only 4 months late instead of 7.

May

My sister and I flew out to Washington to spend one of the best weekends I've ever had with two special bloggers. I'm only slightly obsessed with them.

June

I co-hosted my first bridal shower for my best friend and finally realized all the hard work that goes into throwing a party but Kristen is more than worth it. =)

July

Jeremy and I were proud to stand by Kristen and Adam's sides as groomsman and bridesmaid when they exchanged their life-long vows. What a beautiful and love-filled wedding!

August

The day I'd been dreading since I was 13 years old came as I had to put my loyal and devoted black lab, Zeus, down. I still think of him every time I go to my parent's house and he will never be forgotten as the best dog I've known. I love you and think about your every day Zeusy. ♥

September

I stood by my big sister's side as Matron of Honor as she married her love in a fall-themed wedding.
And our family continues to grow...

October

Our family friend, Becky Young, captured our gorgeous state and blessed us with professional family pictures to update around the house and for our 2011 Christmas card.

November

My parents, Jeremy and I went on an incredible double-date night to see my favorite Broadway play "The Lion King" and celebrate my promotion at work.

December

I switched to the dark side and met my new soul mate, a sweet little iphone, and never looked back.
It's love people. Head over heels, passionate, all-consuming love.

And for my resolutions past and future:

I made the 200 mile running mark I set for myself at the beginning of last year!!! And just when I was starting to feel really proud for accomplishing that goal, we went out to dinner with some of Jeremy's co-workers a couple of weeks ago where I sat next to the "marathon runner"of the lab who only eats vegan and is up every morning by 5 to run before the sun comes up. He happened to mention that his running goal for 2011 was 600 miles and he was "pleasantly surprised" to realize he had already passed 650 and still had a couple more weeks to go before the year was over.

To which I, of course, nodded like that was no big deal and honestly who hasn't ran 600 miles in a year at some point in their life? Way to burst my bubble dude.

So my fitness goal for this year is to just continue staying active. Keep running a few times a week as much as possible, more hikes in our lovely Rocky mountains once the weather is nice enough because who knows how much longer we'll be living here to take advantage of it, and just spend as much time as possible not sitting around.

I failed miserably at my other goal from last year to read the bible cover to cover and only got to Joshua before I gave up. I just wasn't getting as much out of my quiet times {man, the Old Testament is hard to chug through} and it became more of a chore to sit down and read my bible than something I looked forward to. I've decided to read bits and pieces along with my other studies and maybe in about 5 years or so I can say I read the bible all the way through. =)

And to cap off this loooong post; a quick list of some things I would like to see accomplished this year for 2012.

1. More quality date nights with Jeremy each month

2. Get more involved with the church here in our hometown, including a women's bible study and couples group

3. Call my grandma Rose once a month just to talk

4. Find two different organizations to donate to

5. Give myself more grace in certain areas and not be so uptight about everything

Since we have a busy week ahead I won't be back on here until next year, but I wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year's and we'll see you again in 2012!!

The Beginning of "Us"

2011-12-21T05:11:00.000-08:00

Happy 3 years to my husband, the best decision I ever made.

I love you to the moon and back and I thank God every day for placing you in my life.

It’s been an incredible 3 years Jeremiah James and I can’t wait for the next 50! ♥

iheart

2011-12-19T06:27:00.000-08:00

My husband felt obligated to buy a Mac book for some software he needed on his research a few weeks ago. And this was grudgingly done since he's sworn to anyone and everyone for years that anything by Apple© was "from the devil."

The first night we brought it home, he spent almost 4 hours learning the ins and outs of his new "work" toy and with a heavy sigh looked at me and admitted, "This is how a laptop is supposed to work."

One night and he was converted.

And somehow I got pulled into this Apple© nonsense over the weekend when we went with my in-laws to look at new phones and a possible new family plan for us.

2 hours later we walked out of the store, all 4 of us proud new owners of our own iphone. I've been against the smart phone trend for years now. 1. Because I know having unlimited internet access whenever I want can be a dangerous thing for me and 2. Because I'm cheap and never saw the need.

Until Jeremy begged {I think he's tired of me getting lost everywhere I go} and I finally caved as long as my sweet hubby would agree to His and Her iphones.

Black for him. White for me.

And who would I be without picking my favorite pattern for our covers?

For both of us. Ha!

Apple© has taken over our house.

My how the times have changed.

Christmas Card Carousel 2011

2011-12-14T09:44:00.000-08:00

I'm linking up with Faith for her annual Christmas Card Carousel for 2011.

I just finished addressing the last of our cards and dropped them off in the mail yesterday afternoon. {HUGE relief to have that off my shoulders. Now onto the mountain of presents that are waiting to be wrapped and put under the tree.}

After our very color-less Christmas card from last year, I decided to brighten ours up this time and was lucky enough to get a custom design from Munchkinland Designs. It's nice to know people in high places. =)

Even though I will always love the classic combo of black and white; I have to acknowledge that color just seems to suit the Christmas season more, no?

2011:

And the back:

And just for fun, our boring B&W card from last year:

2010:

Isn't it fun to see how our taste changes from year to year?

My walks to the mailbox this last week or so are much more exciting now that I have a handful of cards each day to greet me. I love love love getting them in the mail and reading updates on loved ones. They are proudly being displayed on our office doors until I can come up with a more creative and pretty way next year.

From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

In a New York State of Mind

2011-12-12T09:48:00.000-08:00

Well, it seems Christmas came early for us this year.

After multiple failed attempts with my in-laws for a double date at The Melting Pot to celebrate my FIL’s bonus, my husband’s publication, my promotion and a “surprise reveal” it seems my MIL just couldn’t wait until January for our next attempted date night.

So at our weekly brunch yesterday after church, she let it slip that we need to start planning for a summer vacation to… NEW YORK!!!! Eeeeeeek!!!

A dream vacation if there ever was one for me. This will be my first time on the east coast ever in my life and my reaction was “priceless” in the words of my mother-in-law.

And even though we still have at least 5-6 months (dates to still be decided) before departure we sat down and began to make a list of “musts” we all wanted to do that week together.

Of course there will be Broadway plays, Letterman, possible Kelly and whomever is co-hosting at that time with her, Double Decker bus tours, fancy restaurants, trips to the Empire State Building and the famous Macy’s, morning runs through Central Park { can’t wait for that one}, and squeezing in as much tourism as humanly possible in the span of 7 days.

And either my in-love family is humoring me with their excitement considering they’ve been there multiple times before or they really are just as excited as me to go again. Jeremy knows what a dream come true this is for me and mentioned yesterday that it will be almost like going for the first time again and getting to experience it through my eyes. I’m thrilled! =)

Now for the, shall we say, bittersweet part of this post.

Jeremy is getting closer to graduating with his PhD in Biochemistry every day. Of course not that close as we still have another year or two left but we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel and with that comes a lot of mixed emotions for both of us.

There are decisions to be made about post-graduation and it seems like every week Jeremy is changing his mind about going for a Postdoc. Not only if he wants to go for it and spend another 2-4 years in school but if he decides yes, where exactly he’ll be applying and what programs he is most interested in.

If a Postdoc is in our future, that means Colorado is not. At least not for those few years. Our ultimate goal is to settle back home as close to family and friends as possible but we would be required to go out of state for this step in his never-ending path to higher education.

Seattle has been a front runner, Cambridge in London {SO not a fan of that one} and most recently Jeremy has been showing a lot of interest in Rockefeller in Manhattan. It’s the most high funded place in Biochemistry with the most advanced research and I can see his face light up every time he talks about it.

And because Jeremy knows me so well, he also knows that it takes me a long time to warm up to any idea of moving away from my family. So before we even heard about our early Christmas present to New York, he had brought up the idea of Manhattan and ways in which to convince me and get me excited at the prospect.

He dangled fashion, plays, tourist sites and all other city life components I love in front of me. Which is why this vacation announcement came at a very appropriate time. I have a feeling we will be making at least one pit stop at Rockefeller and the surrounding areas while we are there. I’m not a city girl but I’m optimistic that I could be for a few years if needed.

3 years after our wedding and I’m not as scared to leave as I used to be. As much as I love my big sisters, my nieces and nephews and my parents and as much as it's going to kill me to be away from them, I also know that Jeremy is my family now. And where he goes, I will follow. His goals and dreams have become mine and I want to support him in every way I can to help them be achieved.

It will be hard, it will be scary but it will also be so exciting. A time for our little family to step out on our own and have the experience of a lifetime wherever that may be. Be it Seattle, London, Manhattan or some dinky town out in the middle of nowhere.

And in the meantime, I’ll be looking forward to our week vacation this summer and trying not to jump too far ahead to the future. We have a lot of praying and work to do and tomorrow will only take care of itself.

So back to my original excitement before this turned serious for a Monday… any suggestions for a “must do” in New York?!?

December Happenings

2011-12-06T04:21:00.000-08:00

For whatever reason I have not beean able to put a well though out post together in the last few weeks. I don't know if it's lack of motivation, timing, the busyness of the season or what but my mind draws a blank on this blog right now. So in true random fashion, a quick update through Christmas bullet points. {Because those are the best kinds right?}

While I love this time of year more than you can possibly imagine, it also gives me a lot of anxiety. I've really been feeling the pressure lately and it's taking a little bit of the joy out of the season this year. In the month of December we have: 3 niece's birthdays, our anniversary, Christmas, my big sister's 30th birthday {who we are planning a New Year's Eve party for} and my husband's 26th birthday 3 days after that. Which means, A LOT of parties, presents and planning to do within a 31 day time period. Holy stress.

This was taken at my niece, Ashlynn’s, 1st birthday party over the weekend. Jennifer doesn’t know this yet but I’m planning on kidnapping her oldest someday and making her my own.

The Farmer’s Almanac had predicted another dry winter for Colorado this year. Which is freaking hilarious because we’ve already surpassed last year’s ENTIRE winter in inches of snow and it's only the beginning of December. Seriously guys, we are living in a true winter wonderland this month. And I’m so over it.

Speaking of which, we had the coldest night so far this year with a low of -4 degrees last night. So of course, that was the perfect time for my car's battery to die while Jeremy and I were out running errands after work. Which meant a 2 mile walk home in 3 degree weather. We thought it was going to be a fun adventure at first and then realized about half way in that we were either going to die or lose all of our limbs to hypothermia. I kid you not, I had to peel my frozen toes apart once we finally got home. Never ever again.

It did, however, provide us with an opportunity to look at Christmas lights on our walk home. Which we actually appreciated for the first 10 minutes before we lost feeling in our fingers. Remember crazy neighbor who puts the rest of us to shame on each Holiday? Check him out:

I've decided the man needs to get a life.

I'm a list person. It comes with the territory for Type A Personalities and it's one of the few things I can do that keeps my anxiety from going through the roof. Every night I sit down with my planner and go over what I need to get done the next day. Needless to say, my lists are about 5x longer than normal. {And yes, I cross them off as I get each thing completed. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and a pat on the back for my OCD ways.}

It's tradition for me to make my sister's kid's Christmas stockings. I made Elliana's a couple of years ago before she was born and then I did a huge auntie-fail and completely forgot about one for Ethan. So the poor boy will be going stocking-less this year until I can finish his pattern. I just started this week but I'm reminded of how much I enjoy sewing during the winter evenings. I am a true grandma at heart.

My current design for little boy Ethan:

My Christmas shopping is a little more than half done, I have a bazillion Christmas cards on our counter waiting to be addressed and mailed and an even bigger pile of presents in our upstairs guest room waiting to be wrapped. Hello anxiety.

I absolutely can NOT believe that Jeremy and I will be celebrating 3 years of marriage in a couple of weeks. I know I've said it before but these really have been the best years of my life. I LOVE being married to my husband; he just makes life so much better and I know I can go through anything {like freezing to death a mile from our house} as long as I have him by my side. Blessed doesn't even begin to describe how I feel when I think of him.

I have way too many things to cross off my lists by the end of this week so I don't think I'll be back on here for a little while. I hope you all are staying warm and dry and enjoying the true meaning of this season. {Something I need to remind myself with several times over the next few weeks when remembering what's really important.}

Christmas Crafting

2011-11-30T17:48:00.000-08:00

It’s that time of year folks. The time when you can decorate your house in glittery gaudiness and no one can say anything because it's Christmas.

Every year I slowly try to add more decorations to our collection without breaking the bank so that one day our entire house will be oozing in Holiday Cheer. I’ve mentioned before that most of our décor comes from our wedding leftovers 3 years ago. After all, what’s the point in having a Christmas wedding if you can’t keep the pretties that came along with it for your own home?

However, it also kind of limits your color options when you have a gazillion wedding favors in burgundy and silver left over. Going with that theme, I added in some gold and our colors are pretty much set for now.

Of course Pinterest has been really bad for me this year and I’ve spent more time than I would care to admit on that website browsing all of the DIY options. Trying to be practical, I decided to only attempt one this year and spend the rest of my time and money buying and wrapping Christmas presents since my family has grown to a GINORMOUS size and it’s going to take every lunch break I have till the end of December to complete.

So after a visit to Hobby Lobby over the weekend, I turned on one of my favorite Holiday movies {extra points if you can name it!} grabbed a glass of eggnog, and settled in for a night of Christmas crafting while Jeremy worked late.

Christmas Chandeliers

My Pinspiration:

These are SO easy to do but kind of time consuming: just a head’s up.

Supplies:

A whole butt load of cheap shatterproof ornaments in your color of choice {I went with gold and silver to stick with my theme.}

3 bigger ornaments to be the centers

String to hang up

A hot glue gun and plenty of glue sticks

Decorative string to dangle from the balls {optional}

It’s pretty self-explanatory just looking at the pictures but the hardest part is getting all of the different sizes to fit together so there’s not too much spacing in between.

You may need to take several breaks to stop your puppy from chewing on the ornaments, but make sure you get a picture of that cuteness first.

And then sweetly beg your husband to climb a tall ladder and hang them for you while you make his favorite dinner in exchange. {Don't mind his boxers.}

And…. wa la! Of course, my DIY projects never turn out as good as the picture but I’m still pretty pleased with the outcome.

Now... back to my overwhelming task of buying all the presents off my list.

Let's not get our hopes up family.

The Turkey Trot

2011-11-26T11:23:00.000-08:00

Evidence that I woke up in the wee hours on Thanksgiving morning just to "trot" a 5k in the winter cold with my big sister.

We met up with some friends of ours for a quick photo shoot before Erin and Elissa smoked us in the race.
Way to go ladies!

And I would just like to do a quick shout out to my husband and our dad who woke up bright and early that morning to stand by the sides and support us with the other husbands, dogs and children waiting at the finish line.

We've decided to make this an annual tradition so we won't feel so guilty consuming 3,000 calories later in the day. Next mission: try to get Jeremy to run with me next year. =)

I hope everyone enjoyed their feast of a holiday as much as I did, what a beautiful day to spend with family and give thanks for all of the blessings {and food!} in our lives.

Big or small, thank you God for all things that come from you!

Including a husband who still doesn't know how to smile for the camera.
Amen.

Hey Santa

2011-11-18T07:00:00.000-08:00

Every year I struggle with Christmas gift-giving anxiety. And the more my family continues to grow each year, the higher that anxiety level gets.

Gift-giving is not my love language. Seriously, I could honestly care less about it.

Jeremy and I always talk about how lucky we are that neither of our love language revolves around gifts. In the 8 years we have been together, we have given each other one anniversary gift. And that was the 1st year when we felt a lot of pressure and it was the "socially obligated" thing to do.

We agreed even before our marriage that instead of giving presents each year for our wedding anniversary, we would just budget a portion of our income to go into our "vacation" bank account each month. And then as our marriage went on we generalized that rule to ALL gift-related events. Birthdays, Christmas, anniversaries, Valentines, promotions, celebrations, you name it. Instead of presents we do one BIG vacation each year.

Mexico, Caribbean cruise and... still undecided for our vacation spot for 2012.

There is no "What do you want this year?" or presents wrapped in pretty paper to open. And you know what? We LOVE it that way. We both feel too much pressure to come up with ideas as the Holidays creep up. And let's face it, once you're an adult making your own money you can buy pretty much whatever you want, whenever you want.

Unfortunately the deal we made with each other does not apply to our families when it comes to these special occasions. Moms, grandmas, sisters, and friends want lists and they want them now.

I CAN'T HANDLE THE PRESSURE! {I know, I know: First World problems.}

***Please know that I am NOT complaining, I know how blessed I am to have so many people in my life that love me and want to show it through the tradition of gift-giving. But it's just not me.

My mom on the other hand has a love language that SCREAMS gifts. You can tell that she never feels more loved than when a family member spends time and effort getting her something they know she will love. I've learned through the years that I need to speak to her love language more and put more thought into her presents than I have in the past. And she can never show her love more than when she does the same for those in her family. I think Christmas time is her own personal heaven because she is surrounded in her love language. =)

So after a couple of weeks racking my brain for something, anything to write on my "wish list" and give to loved ones I have finally come up with a somewhat decent list that my loved ones might be able to spread out if they can. And since my entire family reads this blog I might as well just put this ol' thing to good use and get it on here for reference {and give you a chance to peek into my completely random and weird mind}:

For the caffeine/latte lover in me:

A beautiful milk frother to get my mornings started off foamy: Just the way I like them!

Or if our Santa chooses to be very generous this year {I wish.}

Mugs to add to my pathetically small collection {all found via pinterest of course}:

Self stirring coffee mug?

Yes please!

The default/easy option of gift cards to any of my favorite places:

Soft blankets for cuddling with my love on winter nights

A CD to indulge my current obsession:

Boxer shorts to sleep in because Jeremy keeps getting mad when I steal his.

Hey babe? It's been 3 years. Get over it.

I never thought, as a girl, I would be particular about the kind of boxer shorts that were most comfortable to wear... go figure.

Possibly a Nook or Kindle to make my reading more convenient, especially now that I spend so much more time commuting on public transportation right now

New running shoes {or I'll just take her legs}:

And if Santa wants to make me really happy, he can always wrap one of these to go.
{He may want to have a loooong talk with my husband first though.} =)

And because I don't want to end this now that I've managed to sound completely shallow and greedy this Holiday season; please know that I am keeping the true spirit and reason behind the magic of Christmas. One that has nothing to do with shiny paper, a jolly man in a red suit, sparkly trees in living rooms, piles of presents underneath them or the parties that accompany this time of year.

Because all I will ever really want I already have. Health and safety for my loved ones, security with our jobs when so many are unemployed right now, a roof over our heads, a God who loves me more than I could ever understand, and a country that gives me the freedom to openly enjoy my faith.

After all:

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above"

James 1:17

The Circle of Life

2011-11-14T04:00:00.000-08:00

If you've ever wondered what my favorite pastime is; wonder no more.

I am head over heels, obsessed, enamored, to-die-for, in love with the theater. Always have been, always will be. The very first show I ever went to was a Christmas gift given to our family by my mom to go see Phantom of the Opera in Denver when I was a little girl. That night is still one of my favorite memories to this day and my 2nd favorite show I've ever seen.

What's the 1st you ask? Well, let me give you a little hint...

I die you guys. I seriously just die.

After almost ten years of waiting, The Lion King finally came back to Denver and Jeremy and I made a double-date night out of it with my parents this last weekend. When you combine my two loves of Disney and the theater, you get one ecstatic girl! To give you an idea of our excitement; I actually bought these tickets last December for my parent's Christmas gift and they were more than happy to wait the 11 months for it. My mom and I were like giddy school girls counting down the weeks until we got to go together.

And my parents made the night doubly special by taking us out to a nice dinner beforehand to celebrate my promotion last month. Great memories for great celebrations! ♥

Pay no attention to the messy house, it's been a busy week and we have a puppy that refuses to pick up after herself. =)

Our future children have no hope... they are doomed with poop brown eyes

I love getting the chance to dress up and have a night out on the town with my husband. We don't have a lot of hobbies that we can do together but the theater is definitely one that we both enjoy immensely as a couple. It always reminds me of my great-grandpa and grandma "Papa and Grammie." Going to the theater was one of their favorite pastimes as a couple too and my Grammie had a closet full of long evening gowns, fur coats and dripping diamonds whenever they went out together. I remember she used to let me go through her jewelry box and she would tell me the stories for each set of earrings or necklaces Papa would give her for certain plays or ballets they had attended.

And I think that's why I love going to the theater as much as I do now. It brings back those memories and I can always picture Papa and Grammie walking the streets of Denver arm-in-arm and enjoying the city like Jeremy and I do now, three generations later.

The Circle of Life at its finest.

I was joking to Jeremy Saturday night that he needs to step up his game and start buying me fur coats {faux of course} and jewelry if he wants to compete with my Papa. =)

The Lion King was even better than I had remembered it as a little girl and I would have no problem going to see it a few more times before they leave if my husband would allow it. Unfortunately, there is just no convincing him.

It was such an amazing night and one of my favorite new memories with my husband and parents. Being the youngest of four girls with six nieces and nephews, I don't always get a chance to spend quality time with my mom and dad and have their full attention. I think I enjoyed it too much because at one point during dinner my dad asked if I've always talked so much or if he had just never noticed it before.
Thanks dad, love you too.

My mommy and me

Although I was sad to see the night come to an end so quickly, I was able to comfort myself knowing that we have an amazing year of theater lined up with more family and friends starting in just a couple of months.

One of my favorite movies "West Side Story" is coming to town in January and Jeremy has already promised me great seats for our 3rd anniversary since I have never seen it in the theater before.

And...

Wicked is coming back in the spring!!!

If you have never seen this play before, trust me when I say you need to go as soon as possible. You can read about my amazing first experience with this show here.

It just might tie for 2nd place with Phantom of the Opera.

Making Money, Honey

2011-11-11T05:47:00.000-08:00

Lately I've been asked several times through comments, e-mails and twitter what I do for a living and what my degree is in. I've seen a few conversations on how talking about your job is kind of taboo when blogging for some reason. I'm not sure what other people's reasons are but I know that I'm kind of vague about this subject on purpose for several different reasons.

1. My field is EXTREMELY confidential. I'm talking, I have to sign into 3 different screens each morning with my electronic signature saying I won't misuse any of the information I can access through my work. I'm always afraid that I might share too much on here one day and my boss will find out and fire me so I just choose to say basically nothing.

2. Whenever someone does find out what I do; I get several different reactions and I don't really like any of them. Either people get really curious and start asking questions for their own benefit and free legal advice {like my hair dresser who drilled me during my appointment and wouldn't change the subject after I tried several times. Yeah... didn't go back to her.} Or I get people asking how I can stand to do a job like that and isn't it soooo depressing?!

3. And honestly, I didn't think people cared that much because it's not a glamorous job and it's definitely not fun to talk about.

BUT, I figured I could give a little more detail to answer your questions and be on the safe side as long as I don't say too much.

First off, I majored in Psychology and received my Bachelor's degree from Colorado State University. The original plan was to counsel young girls who struggle with eating disorders but I would need a lot more schooling to get to that point someday. The plan is eventually for me to go back and get my masters in a few years but we are getting Jeremy through his PhD first.

Right after graduation I was pretty burned out on Psychology and not sure if I wanted to pursue that field right away after 4 straight years of studying it. I started looking for a job in the town where Jeremy got accepted into his grad school program {about an hour away from my family} and my entry position into the government came with perfect timing. It was such a God thing; I started work exactly two months before our wedding and I fell in love with it from the first day!

I started on the legal team in the Family Courts for about 2 and a half years before getting promoted to a caseworker position this year. During my "legal" years I would attend court with our attorneys and sit up at the bench with the Magistrate issuing orders and doing court research during the hearings.

So you know I work with the Family Courts and the government. Do you have a small idea what I do yet?

If your first guess is like everyone else no, I do not work in child protection. I don't think there's enough money in the world for me to do that job. I have so much respect for those who are able to handle that stress and the things they see on a day to day basis. Seriously. Huge kudos to anyone who works in that field.

My area of expertise however has more to do with the actual families and couples going through divorces or separations. Since my promotion a couple of months ago, I no longer go to court but work straight out of my office with a few occasional trips to Denver for meetings and trainings throughout the month.

Now I'll give you an even bigger hint and say that these are a pretty accurate reflection of what my work day looks like:

*** Just to clarify: I'm not a licensed mediator but I work as a type of mediator in a very specific field relating to these situations. Vague enough for ya'?! ;)

Like I said, it's not a glamorous job but it's something that I actually love doing believe it or not. I am able to take my fascination with law and the legal system and use my Psychology degree at the same time. I don't think it's something I will do for the rest of my life because it does get emotionally draining sometimes and you can only handle the anger and stress for so long, but it's been great experience and I'm really enjoying it for where I am in life right now.

I've felt God placing divorce heavy on my heart these last few years through this job and perhaps there's a calling for me to look more into this as a career path down the road. Who knows? Maybe it could be an area for me to specialize in when I go back for my masters so I can help counsel marriages and couples before it ever makes it to this point.

So there you have it: a faint look into my work life.

Now, be honest. Aren't you glad you're not in my shoes? =)

What We Can Do

2011-11-09T18:33:00.000-08:00

I've been a bit absent from blog-land lately and you can totally blame these girls:

That's right, we were blessed enough to get ANOTHER girl's weekend with my two favorite bloggers in all the world. Last May, my older sister and I flew out to Washington for a blogging meet-up with some ladies that have become very special to not only the two of us but also to our families. We knew at the end of that last weekend that we couldn't go too long without seeing each other again and before the summer was over, Kelsey and Amy had booked their tickets out to spend a weekend in our state.

My mom was chomping at the bit to officially meet Kelsey after the raves she heard from us and happily agreed when we asked to crash at their house for a night. It's so funny because even our moms have become friends through us and facebook and we are trying to get them to tag along on our next girls visit so they can officially meet too. Seriously... how weird is blogging?!?!

There are times I even forget how this whole crazy scheme happened and that we actually met on line. I feel like I have known them forever and they've always been a part of our lives. We can do anything and everything together and basically just live life on a day to day basis.

We can sneak away on auntie-niece Starbucks dates to talk about the unknown fears of motherhood while struggling with our OCD tendencies {like gagging when both of our nieces started making out with the walls at the coffee shop.}

Kelsey and Hollyn

Myself and Ashlynn

We can sit on the couch in our pajamas and just veg out while watching chick flicks

We can hang out with the rest of my crazy family for a day of shopping in our famous mountain town "Estes Park"

We can dress up as salon "ladies" while there and pose for old fashioned pictures

Can you tell who the sisters are? =)

We can shop and eat unhealthy caramel coated goodies together

We can sorority squat in front of freezing cold rivers and not feel awkward because we both acknowledge that we're weirdly obsessed with pictures and it's nice to have that camaraderie

We can look up to and admire the advice and wisdom of our big sisters {even if I don't always like hearing it}

We can feel like 5-year olds again as we share a room with twin beds at my parent's house

We can introduce each other to new things and foods

{first bite of Chick-Fil-A!}

And we can create a friendship that may have started on the internet but has definitely turned into something real and treasured in all of our lives.

Love you Amy and Kels, thanks again for another great visit!

They're Baaaaaack!

2011-11-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

And the Scientist and the Shopper return decked out in Christmas cheer!

I know what you guys are all thinking and no, I am NOT crazy.

Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas as much as the next girl {Ok, that's a lie. No one likes Christmas as much as I do} but I'm not so excited for it that I start celebrating at the beginning of November. I'm at least willing to acknowledge Thanksgiving first.

However, Munchkin Land Designs is doing A LOT of Christmas specials for the next 2 months and Jennifer asked if she could put up my design early for some examples/ideas. And when she sent her draft to show me what she had done to my all time favorite animated characters, there was no way I could say no {not to mention that she hooks me up anytime I want a free design so what the big sister wants, the big sister gets.}

Plus, how amazingly adorable is this Christmas header?! It makes me want to go out and start all of my decorating, shopping and baking right now!!!

And when Starbucks breaks out their Holiday cups and eggnog lattes I feel like I have full permission to jump into this magical season. {Now how's that for commercialism?!} =)

If you guys are looking to spruce up your blog for a discounted rate this Holiday season - be sure to check out the deals going on now and take a look for yourself. I may be biased but I think the designer for Munchkinland Designs is the most talented one out there.

And if my design doesn't get you in the mood for Christmas then just take a look at some "winter" pictures we felt inspired to take over the weekend, thinking this fall storm was just a fluke and it would be awhile before we saw snow again.

But believe it or not we've been hit with another huge snow storm that started last night and is ending here pretty soon as the last few flakes swirl around our house. We've already had more snow in the past week than we had for the entire winter last year. Crazy, huh? This winter wonderland is making the transition from the fall/Halloween frame-of-mind into the winter/Thanksgiving/Christmas frame pretty easy.

Now... Let's go put on some "Jingle Bells" and Deck our Halls, shall we?

Halloween In My 'Hood

2011-10-28T05:01:00.000-07:00

I feel a little cheated with Halloween this year. I'm a bit envious as I listen to everyone talk about costumes, fall parties, trick-or-treating, and all the other fun stuff that comes around while I look out our window at theWinter Wonderland our state is currently in. It feels like we should be shopping for Christmas presents, listening to Christmas music and getting ready for the Holidays instead.

Halloween... What Halloween?

Believe it or not but we actually hit a record high of 80 degrees this past Monday before the storm blew in just a measly 2 days later. With the knowledge of what was coming our way, I toted along our camera for my daily walk with Willow to capture some of the beautiful autumn scenes while I still could.

We really do get amazing falls around here and I'm always wishing that the weather stayed so beautiful long into November. But in Colorado it's just not realistic; so we have to enjoy it for the short few weeks it does stick around. It's a small window I tell ya.

autumn time in suburbia

If you were to walk this route today, you would see a slushy blanket of snow covering almost everything and sagging trees from the weight of it all. Even though the temps are supposed to get back into the 70's next week, you can be sure and bet our fall is pretty much over. There is nothing left but soggy, gross, brown leaves littering the ground and dripping snow puddles everywhere, which makes me even more thankful I was able to take these when I did.

But if our natural beauty isn't doin' it for you, let's move on to some of the, shall we say, uglier decor that's also gracing our neighborhood right now.

BOO!

Everyone has that neighbor that puts the rest of us to shame on each Holiday, especially when we see him outside for hours working on his home set-up. I love how he felt the need to tell me that as much as he loves each Holiday, "Halloween holds a special place in his heart." Ummm... ya think?

The gigantic spider that sends Willow into frantic barking and growling every time we pass by

His wife actually makes no secret as to how much she hates their house in the month of October.

The things we put up with for our loved one's hobbies. =)

And from the scary to the more "kid friendly"

I love walking by this house because it always makes me think of the most anticipated item on my Bucket List for someday in the hopefully near future.

HALLOWEEN AT DISNEY WORLD!!!!

♥ ♥ ♥ A chance for me to walk through Mickey's neighborhood...

... and visit with all of his neighbors as they dress up in costume for the special Holiday.

It's going to happen someday people and when it does I will be one of the happiest girls alive in the Happiest Place on Earth.

But for this Halloween weekend, I'll instead be getting our own house prepared for the flood of trick-or-treaters that will be coming our way and trying not to eat all of the candy that we've stocked up on in the mean time.

Wishing you a Happy Halloween Weekend from a ballerina-puppy and a girl who had no idea what to be this year so just got her own little headband to match. =)

Be safe everyone.

First Snow

2011-10-26T07:36:00.000-07:00

It's only October 26th and I wake up to this:

Colorado is at 8 inches and going strong with another 4-6" on its way. Schools and businesses are closing left and right, power outages are being reported throughout the state, but my lovely job is of course... still open. In the 3 years I've been there, we've only had one 1/2 snow day. But Jeremy and I have decided to take our own snow day because I hate driving in this and staying in pajamas and watching Christmas movies sound much more appealing to me.

BUT before I go off to check our dinner in the crock pot and grab another mug of coffee, I just wanted to jump on here and say a HUGE thank you to everyone who left such sweet and supportive comments yesterday. Seriously, you guys have no idea how much they all meant to me. I was almost shaking with nerves yesterday when that posted on Tatiana's blog but I was so happy that I finally had the courage to write it after reading all the encouraging words. I appreciate you guys so much, and even though I don't think I'll be talking about that subject anymore on here, I just want you to know that if anyone has any questions or just wants to talk about it privately, I'm always here.

Hopefully, you guys are all enjoying much nicer weather than we are today. Enjoy it while you can because winter is on its stupid way.

What I Don't Talk About

2011-10-25T05:41:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only one who struggles with what I want to share on my blog. I feel like there is such a fine line between wanting to be open and real but also respecting my personal life and the relationships within it at the same time.

If you know me in real life, you know that I am NOT an open person. I care too much about what people think of me, I'm worried about being judged and the thought of being an open book makes me sick to my stomach, to be quite honest. I'm not one to air my dirty laundry or secrets with just anyone; I usually have to build up a pretty strong trust level for me to get to that point and truly there are only a handful of people in my life who make that list.

BUT on the other hand, I hate reading bloggers who try to come off like everything is always perfect and amazing because THAT does nothing for anyone.

So when one of my favorite bloggers who I've been blessed to develop a friendship with through the online world contacted me about a special guest series she was doing, the butterflies in my stomach started to fly. It's an amazing idea and one that I think and I hope will inspire other women out there, written by other bloggers about stories that have helped define, shape, and inspire them into the women they are today. "For Women, By Women."

I've always wanted to share a part of my history that I don't talk about with anyone, but every time I went to hit the publish button I would chicken out and delete the entire post due to fear of who would be reading or judging me. But knowing the story I felt convicted and urged to share, I prayed for confirmation that I was doing the right thing, took a deep breath, wrote one of the longest blog posts I've ever written and sent it over to Tatiana {who has the most ADORABLE baby girl I think I've ever seen by the way} before I could change my mind.

I'm incredibly nervous about being this open on the internet but at the same time I also hope that it might help other women out there who struggle with the same issues I do. So if you have any time today; feel free to stop on over to Tatiana's blog at "Living Life and Loving It" and read the novel I shared from a time in my life where issues were born that I still struggle with today.

OR, if you just want to go look at pictures of her model baby, then that will be more than worth your time too.

Happy Tuesday my friends.

Through the Years

2011-10-19T14:52:00.000-07:00

A lot of people don't understand my obsession with pictures. My own husband used to be one of them. He never could fathom why I've always wanted to capture any minor event or change in our lives {and this obsession started looong before blogging came into the picture when photos became a necessity of life.} He would roll his eyes during our dating stage whenever I took the camera out and would stiffly smile or make ridiculous faces as I tried to capture those memories with my trusted digital camera.

But through the years even he has had fun going through old pictures and reminiscing about some of our favorite memories that we have been blessed enough to experience together. We’ve laughed and made fun of one another as we looked through our changing and evolving looks since high school. He made the comment once that he was sad we didn’t have more pictures from our first year together since I didn’t get a digital camera until college {something that I’ve always regretted as well.} And I think that’s when he understood it.

Life changes too quickly. Memories fade. People, things and events are so easily forgotten. This season, too, will be over before we know it.

If you don't have pictures to keep solid memories, how else will you remember? {Another reason I started blogging and never looked back.}

After all of our years together, he finally understands why I whip out the camera every chance I get and in the past few years, he's actually been the one encouraging me to keep it in my purse at all times just so I don't miss a Kodak moment wherever we may go.

And honestly? The basic truth is: I LOVE comparisons.

I love seeing how families and people change year to year and I love being able to put pictures side by side to see the differences. I get so excited during the Holiday season when Christmas cards and pictures come in the mail, seeing the differences from the year before. This is what capturing memories and freezing time is all about for me.

I have never regretted taking too many pictures, the real regret comes only when I realize I didn't take enough.

So I don't care that we don't have kids yet or that other families don't get professional pictures every year. This family does and will hopefully continue to do so for the rest of our lives. How fun to sit down someday when we are old and gray and go through our family pictures year by year to mark the changes.

Becky has such a knack for capturing beauty in almost every shot and I love how much she incorporates the scenery and backdrop of our beautiful state.

The only downside to having such a talented photographer? I have no clue which one I'm going to pick for our Christmas card. Seriously, where do I even start? Would you believe that these are just a handful that I have reluctantly narrowed it down to? I wonder if there are Christmas cards that allow for 20+ pictures. =)

I can say without a doubt that these are some of my favorite pictures that have ever been taken of our family. Beautiful job Becky! Thank you so much for helping to capture this time in our lives!

10~17~2003

2011-10-17T12:13:00.000-07:00

This morning as I turned my work computer on and tried to wake up with my second cup of coffee, I found myself being caught by the date flashing on my screen and wondering what I needed to remember about October 17th. An important meeting? A personal appointment? And then it hit me in my sleep-deprived state:

8 years ago today, this spikey-haired cutie took me on our first date and the rest, as they say, is history.

I had no idea then what that tall, thin, boyish-man would come to mean to me or that I was sitting next to my future husband at Texas Roadhouse as we tried to make small talk and fill uncomfortable silences. I was only 17 at the time and anxiously awaiting graduation while weighing my options for which University I wanted to attend after school.

A serious relationship wasn't even on my radar and Jeremy was nothing but a {very cute} distraction at the time. Someone who's company I enjoyed as he could keep me laughing more than anyone else I had known and would be able to make my senior year go by faster.

But from basketball games where I sat in the stands to cheer him on, to high school dances, to weekend movies, to study sessions {where we spent more time staring at each other than our books}, to long walks around his parent's neighborhood talking about our futures, dreams and hopes, I fell hard in love for the very first time.

And just like this morning, I still get a giddy smile when I think of our first night together and remember the butterflies in my stomach as he walked me to my parent's front door asking if we could do this again sometime.

After sending Jeremy a "Happy Dating Anniversary" e-mail I couldn't help but grin as he replied with, "Thanks for being in my life so long."

Almost a 1/3 of our lives and 8 years later and I wouldn't have changed a thing.

Never Been Kissed

2011-10-14T05:43:00.000-07:00

"That thing, that moment when you kiss someone and everything around becomes hazy and the only thing in focus is you and this person and you realize that that person is the only person you are supposed to kiss for the rest of your life, and for one moment you get this amazing gift and you want to laugh and you want to cry because you feel so lucky that you found it and so scared that it might go away all at the same time."

I am obsessed with the preview Becky sent me from our photo shoot last night; it's going to be so hard waiting for the rest!

But in the meantime we'll be wishing you a beautiful and fun-filled fall weekend!

Happy Friday everyone!

WILW

2011-10-12T05:42:00.000-07:00

Now that wedding madness is behind us, I feel like I am finally able to get back into a normal blogging routine. And since life continued on even during our busy last few months I thought what better way to do a quick update then through Jaime's WILW?

First and most importantly: I’m LOVING that I was very blessed to interview for a promotion position in our department and after a few intimidating rounds I was offered the job and started a couple of weeks ago! God is soooo good and I’m so thankful for His continued blessing in my professional life!

I’m LOVING

that I finally broke down and jumped on the Erin Condren life planner craze. I was finally able to justify buying one after a few mishaps between my work calendar and personal calendar and a day I ended up being almost 2 hours late for a state meeting in front of the head honchos. Not a great impression to make.

The OCD in me was VERY happy when this pretty little thing arrived on my doorstep and I was able to start filling it in with my future events, appointments and reminders in color-coded categories.

Jeremy even looked up at one point during the evening as I wrote things down and commented on what a nerd I am. Only for me to quickly remind him that if it weren’t for my ridiculously organized tendencies, he would be lost in this life and not know when his own appointments and events were. And just because I want to take note of this for the future: I am totally taking partial credit for when he receives his PhD someday as I have pretty much kept his schedule from the first day of school. The man is a genius, even if he is disorganized and forgetful at times. All mad scientists are, in my opinion. ;)

Speaking of the husband and his PhD program, I’m LOVING that my man is finally a published first author! If you’ve ever wondered about the Tetrahydrofolate Riboswitch {I'm not even sure if I spelled that correctly}, be sure to grab a copy of the research journal "Structure" and read everything you’ve ever wanted to know. I'm so proud of you Jeremiah James!

{My husband and brother-in-law are complete dorks but obviously very proud of it as they are willing to wear shirts stating this fact.}

I’m LOVING

that Jeremy, Willow and I are getting our annual pictures taken for our Christmas card with the very talented Becky tomorrow who has kind of become our family's honorary photographer. Look at the amazing shot she took of my oldest sister and her beautiful family last week!

My aunt heart just melts with their sweet little faces! ♥

I’m LOVING

the new Lady Antebellum CD. It’s been playing on repeat in my car for almost 3 weeks now and I’m still not even remotely sick of it yet.

I’m LOVING

that fall has taken over our house! Mums are gracing our front porch and we've welcomed our old friend, the canned pumpkin, back with open arms. I’m having so much fun baking all kinds of autumn goodies with my Kitchen Aide. Pumpkin cookies, muffins and bread are being brought into my office for a treat almost every week because even Jeremy and I can’t eat as much as I’ve been making. {Try not to pay attention to the skull treasure chest my husband and his buddies built when they were in college - I've been told I don't have a choice when putting it out for the month of October. Hopefully the mums beautify the area a little bit though.}

And finally, I’m LOVING the Fall Bucket List Jeremy and I made a few weeks ago. We are both really wanting to take advantage of our beautiful state and all it has to offer this time of year.

Go on a hay ride

~~Enjoy bonfire with s’mores~~

Eat a caramel apple

Corn maze
Take fall pictures for our Christmas card
~~Drink hot apple cider~~

Go to a pumpkin patch

~~Bake fall goodies~~

Go up to the mountains

Carve pumpkins

Have a Picnic

You'll Be in My Heart

2011-10-04T19:33:00.000-07:00

I still can't believe that it's already been over a week since my sister and her new husband exchanged vows, came home from their Jamaican honeymoon and have started looking for a new apartment MUCH closer us than expected. Brian's boss gave them the best wedding present of all time and approved a transfer to a big city about 30 minutes away from us instead of the 3 hour drive it would have been. We were all ecstatic when we heard the good news! I think we would all agree it was the favorite wedding present of the pack. =)

Shutterchic Photography did such an amazing job capturing the beauty of the day and we were not disappointed when we got to see the final product. I'm not even sure where to begin on ordering a few prints for our own home.

The morning of the wedding was probably one of the most stressful ones I've ever been a part of. You know the saying "anything that can go wrong will?" Yeah, that would about sum up our day.

First, Allison missed her make-up appointment because her hair was taking too long to finish so I was {un-willingly} volunteered to step in. Ummm... this girl was nervous enough doing two other bridesmaid's make-up let alone the bride's. Every two seconds I would make her stop and look in the mirror to make sure she liked what I was doing.

Then as she was getting into the car to take her from the hotel where we had been getting ready to the ceremony site she looked down and saw a huge black smear going all the way down her skirt. Which prompted her to burst into tears which then made me and my mom start crying and a small freak out may have happened so champagne was ordered to our room so we could each drink a glass and calm down. After our amazing grandma sat and scrubbed the dress for over 20 minutes, the black smear finally faded enough to not be too noticeable.

Another bridesmaid, I won't name names, {ahem Christine} lost her shoes and ended up driving all over the place trying to find them before realizing they were right where she had left them in the first place and ended up being late for pictures. At least we can look back and laugh about it now right?

One of the flower girls decided she was done wearing her diaper right before the ceremony started so she took it off and then proceeded to pee in her white dress with a puddle around her feet before anyone noticed. It was fun holding her by the arm pits while it dripped down her legs and others cleaned up before it could soak through the white satin material. Fun times.

But in the end, all that mattered was Allison married her Brian and the rest of the wedding went off without a hitch, thank the Lord!

My older sister made such a gorgeous fall bride and I was so proud of her as she walked down the aisle towards her new husband. I’m pretty sure all the bridesmaids were crying as she walked to the soundtrack of "Legends of the Fall." Appropriate, no?

The reception was actually at the same Hilton as our wedding and my oldest sister Jenn’s wedding. It’s become a very memorable place to us for obvious reasons.

I can't tell you the relief I felt once my speech was over, I thought I was going to pass out or throw up as the dinner came to an end. I don’t think I have EVER been so nervous to make a speech before. I seriously thought I was going to get sick to my stomach and throw up in front of everyone when it was my turn for the toast.

I’m not big on public speaking, it actually goes down as #2 of my top fears in life. But I love my sister and wanted to do it right for her.

I think Jeremy was even more nervous than me leading up to this weekend. He told me months before the wedding when I was just starting to think about my toast and what I wanted to say to her, that I should NOT, I repeat NOT, try to be funny.

To which I replied, "But honey, I’m really funny. I think it will take the edge off, don’t you?"

And then Jeremy proceeded to beg and plead with me to try not to make my speech funny. He even resorted to saying, "I’ll leave Courtney. I swear I’ll just walk out if you start making jokes."

JEEZ!!!! I guess someone doesn’t think of me as a comedian.

Lucky for him, I was waaaaay too emotional and sentimental to even think about cracking a joke to break the ice. I was holding back tears from the moment the microphone was placed in my hands until the end where I very THANKFULLY handed it to the best man.

One of the things I really wanted to talk about was Allison's role in our family and how much she has always meant to us. If you remember this post, I briefly mentioned that we almost lost her due to an eating disorder when we were teenagers. It was the hardest thing our family ever went through and completely changed us into who we are today and how close we are now. There's a song that is a pretty accurate description on how we view her and it's become known as "Allison's Song" with our family. It's the Phil Collins "You'll Be in My Heart" from Tarzan and it came out around the time we admitted her into Remuda Ranch for therapy.

The first time we heard it on the radio was as we drove home to Colorado after dropping her off and my dad started bawling as we listened to the words. It was the first time in my 14 years of life that I had ever seen my dad cry and that memory still holds close to my heart. I can't hear that song without thinking of that time in our lives or my big sister and I don't think I have ever listened to it without crying to this day.

"For one so small, you seem so strong.
My arms will hold you keep you safe and warm.
This bond between us can't be broken.
I will be here, don't you cry."

My dad and Allison danced that song to their father-daughter dance and we were all up at the head table crying as we watched our father sing the words to her and then tell her he was finally ready to let her go.

It was a beautiful moment for our family and the one I know I will always think of when I think of Allison's wedding day.

The rest of the evening was a breeze for me and I was finally able to relax and enjoy the night of dancing and catching up with guests. Here I am "Doing the Dougie" with two of my good looking cousins and girlfriend; please try not to be jealous of my amazing dance skills. We had such a blast and like any wedding, it was over before anyone was ready for it to be.

Jeremy and I ended up spending the night at the hotel since we were puppy free and planning to stay out late that night. It was fun staying in the same hotel we did for our wedding night, although our room wasn’t nearly as nice as it was then. Something about a honeymoon suite.=)

And... that's it guys!!! I'm D.O.N.E with any and all wedding posts for the near future! You can't imagine the relief that comes with that statement knowing I am finally able to get back to a normal life and hopefully back into a regular blogging-about-nothing routine. Woo Hoo!!

Pre-Wedding Festivities

2011-09-26T07:04:00.000-07:00

I don't really even know where to start with this wedding to do it justice. It was one of the most beautiful and heart warming ones I have had the honor to be a part of. I love getting to spend so much time with all of our friends and family that have blessed our family's life so much and getting to celebrate new marriage is one of the best things there is to celebrate in life!

Like any wedding, there is so much more that goes into celebrating than the actual day itself. Out of town family and friends come in, parties and BBQ’s commence, girl time is spent with mani/pedi sessions, and of course the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.

I can’t wait to get to the wedding pictures but we have yet to see them but I’m hoping they come out soon so I can show them off. They are going to be absolutely beautiful, I’m sure.

In the meantime, I wanted to share a few of the “before” wedding pictures and activities that we partook in this weekend.

On Thursday night we had a girl's get-together for manicures and pedicures and Allison got treated to her very first pedicure ever. Shocking, I know.

The rehearsal was obviously held at the ceremony site called "The Oval", which is a popular spot in our town and conveniently located on my Alma Mater's campus. We had been hoping all of the gorgeous leaves would be changing color at this time of the year but they were still as green as green can be. The bride and groom had deliberated about having the wedding in October so the colors would be sure to pop by then but they would be taking a HUGE chance with the weather for an outdoor ceremony. So green leaves and warmer weather it was.

A gaggle of flower girls.

Jeremy was in charge of taking pictures for the evening since I was obviously going to be too busy doing, you know, matron of honor duties. It's always humorous to me when he is behind the camera lens because you get either one of two shots: artsy pictures or a bunch of close-ups of me. Or both if he can manage it.

Hello sister!

Of course my glare was going to show up at some point =)

In the words of Christine after looking through our camera; "Wow you can tell he loves you" {said in a very sarcastic voice.}

The groom's parents graciously opened up their home for the rehearsal dinner with delicious food served in their backyard. I can't even imagine all the hard work that went into preparing that meal... we are not a small family. They were absolute geniuses though and rented out a small bounce castle for all the little kiddos to run and jump in so they could get their energy out and parents could enjoy the meal without worrying too much.

Seriously genius.

You can probably tell that I had control of the camera during dinner as all of my pictures were actually taken of other people.

I'll try to post pictures from the wedding once relatives head back home and life slows down to a more normal routine. And then I promise this will be the last wedding post you guys will read from me for a loooong time. I'm probably more excited to hear that than you. =)

But just a quick sneak peak... one of the most gorgeous bouquets I've ever held:

Her Last Hoorah

2011-09-19T05:15:00.000-07:00

She gets married this week. We can all offiicially say that this week, our last and final sister will walk down the aisle towards her best friend and take his last name. The sister I shared a room with for 18 years, the sister who used to be my partner in crime and who got in trouble with me more times than I can count, the sister who gave me stitches not once but twice on my forehead and chin, the sister who I always looked up to, admired and cherished is becoming a wife and moving away from me this weekend. Excuse me for a second while I grab some tissues.

Everything has been done; payments made, alterations complete, invitations sent out and RSVP's returned, a certain speech written, the weather forecast is looking to be a gorgeous day, and now we are just anticipating all the fruits of our labor as we start seeing things come together.

But before anything else can happen and the wedding moves forward, we had to celebrate one last night of Allison being a "single lady."

The "5" sisters before heading out to meet the rest of the group {we adopted Annie as one of the sisters when we were all little girls.}

Thankfully, Allison just requested a quiet night out with a small group of friends for a nice dinner and some drinks. After a little deliberating, I decided this Bachelorette Party called for a night out at The Melting Pot! Best.Restaurant.Ever.

We headed to Elliot's Martini Bar beforehand for some cocktails and girl talk before walking over to the restaurant and sliding into the food coma that is inevitable when you eat there.

Some ummm... {ahem} gifts were opened at the bar that made Allison blush a beautiful shade of red.

Don't be fooled by the size of the martini's, they had quite the punch to them and made some people a little giggly by the end of the evening.

And the embarrassments just kept on coming long into dinner...

Trying to get her to pose with any of the pretty under-things was a mission impossible.

I know we will all be fighting back tears on Saturday as we watch the last sister put on her wedding gown and experience a wedding day she's been dreaming about and looking forward to for years.

Out-of-state family and friends are going to start arriving tomorrow and I have a feeling it will be Saturday before we can blink an eye with how busy our schedules are this week. I don't think I'll be able to get back on here before the wedding but you can be sure to expect A LOT of pictures and stories when I do return. {That is only if you aren't completely burned out with all of the wedding posts leading up to this weekend.}

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!

The Winds of Autumn

2011-09-12T06:50:00.000-07:00

I've been late posting on my excitement of the upcoming fall despite that fact that my life has REVOLVED around this season for the last 9 months. All we've been talking about and planning since December are autumn themed flowers, colors, dresses, decor, favors, etc. It's so surreal to me that all of this planning will be pulled together in less than two weeks and we will finally get to see the whole product for my big sister's wedding day.

I have to be honest and say that I am an emotional mess right now. This wedding has hit me harder than any of my other sister's and for a good reason as I mentioned in a previous post. Allison holds a very special place in our hearts and in our family and I'm struggling with letting her go as the wedding draws closer. I would love to sit here and pour out my heart and all of my feelings for this special woman in my life but I've been trying to get a grip of myself for last several weeks and I don't want to put anything on here that will only make it worse. I'm having a hard enough time trying to find the right words for my maid of honor speech that aren't going to make me cry in front of all of the guests but still say how much she means to me. {I have never been so terrified to give a speech before, I seriously feel like I'm going to have an anxiety attack every time I think about it.}

But all of that just to say that fall has finally hit our wonderful state and the weather has cooled to beautiful 70-80 degree temps. The leaves are barely starting to change color and I've had to bring a sweater to work with me the past few mornings due to the crisp chill in the air. Several evenings have been spent on our back deck as I do my quiet time and Jeremy grades papers for the lab he is teaching this semester while the Autumn Leaves candle spreads it's delicious smell around us. I find myself relishing this time of year a lot more than in previous years and I'm sure it's due to the season of change we are in with life right now.

I've also been getting in the "fall" mood by reading some of my favorite Christian series from my childhood. Growing up, Janette Oke was my favorite Christian author for years. I loved her writing style and the way she could tell a story. I think between me and my three sisters we had almost the entire collection of her books and would each re-read them through the years.

A co-worker of mine, who recently became a Christian, asked me for advice on some good Christian authors and while Francine Rivers steals my heart now a days, I thought that Janette Oke might be a better transition into the Christian genre for her right now. Explaining the books got me so excited with flashbacks to my childhood and made me want to re-read my favorite Seasons of the Heart series for the 5^th or 6^th time again.

I’m currently on The Winds of Autumn which is perfect right now with our own autumn approaching and getting me in the mood for all the future fun events we have ahead in the next few weeks.

While I am a summer girl through and through, I still look forward to fall every year with football and cute clothes {hello leggings and scarves, I have missed you!!}

I love the colors and smells associated with this time of year. I LOVE that Starbucks came out with my favorite Pumpkin Spice Latte {I've had one every day since September 6th, much to my husband's objections.} I love that pumpkin patches and corn mazes will start opening up and I absolutely love the crisp feeling in the air during the mornings and evenings.

My trips to Hobby Lobby are always increased around this time because I just can’t resist any of their autumn decorations. At least this year I had an excuse to go and buy things for Allison’s shower, even if that did mean I ended up picking a few items for my own house including our marriage pumpkin #3!

And if you haven’t been following me since last year, I’ll just quickly explain my tradition with our marriage pumpkins. Feeling inspired by a friend of mine from college, I decided that every year I would buy a decoration pumpkin for each year of our marriage until the house is filled to the brim with them. I love me a good pumpkin. =)

Our first year marriage pumpkin:

Second:

Third:

Our mantle is complete for another fall to make our house feel warm, colorful and cozy.

So many delicious things to look forward to even if that means nasty, cold winter is right behind, which I hopefully won’t be thinking about until December if I can help it. Colorado: please don’t let this be another year where you dump snow on us in October. I’m not in the mood.

Fun with our Willow Bear

2011-09-06T16:01:00.000-07:00

We spent our Labor Day on a small hike at one of the nearby mountain towns we live close to. This particular city is known for it's healthy, organic, out-doorsy type population and if you know Colorado in the least bit I bet you can guess what town I'm talking about. It's the liberal, crazy part of our state but Jeremy and I are starting to fall in love with the crazies. We even stopped by at the local health nut store to buy some organic materials for a low fat dessert after our hike. {I can almost hear my family dis-owning me as they read those words, don't worry guys we haven't switched over completely.}

This town is also known for the fact that people own more dogs here than they do children so we were able to fit right in with our own four-legged child. We did not, however, fit in with the six pack runners that kept zooming past us with their muscular, zero fat, bodies. #showoffs <--- yep, remember the day when I said I didn't get the point of Twitter? That's long gone.

Willow had a really great Holiday weekend because on top of her fun hike with us, she also got a new collar.

And when someone gets a new collar... we take pictures!

Sometimes I feel left out when I see everyone doing photo shoots with their precious kiddos and babies so I decided to feel included by taking pictures of the of the closest thing I have.. my fur-baby! {P.S. am I the last blogger alive who isn't pregnant or has a baby?!}

Plus, Willow hasn't graced this blog in awhile and since I spend so much time with her, {Jeremy likes to joke that she's permanently molded into my arms} I figured it was time for me to show of her cute little face around here again.

I'm sad to say that her puppy stage has pretty much ran its course. She is so mellow and chill now and the happiest dog in the world as long as she's by either one of us. My favorite part of the day is when Jeremy and I cuddle up on the couch before bed watching TV or talking with Willow snuggled in and sleeping between us.

And sometimes she just likes to scare me and play dead when I walk into a room to find her.

I'm so blessed with this little family of mine. ♥

FALL in Love

2011-09-05T07:35:00.000-07:00

After months of planning and ideas running through my head, we finally held my big sister’s bridal shower on Saturday. I really wanted this shower to be perfect for her since she did such a great job with mine a few years ago. And just like my shower, I also teamed up with our Aunt Debbie to help host the special occasion.

Our aunt is more like a second mom to us than anything. We grew up living 5 minutes away from their family and most of my childhood memories involve her and my cousins in some way or another. We both love to host and come up with fun party ideas so we had a great time brainstorming ideas in the weeks leading up to the fall-themed shower.

The invitation my sister designed set the tone for our "FALL in Love" theme:
{by the by, she also just put up my new fall design and as much as I'm going to miss the Shopper and the Scientist, this is fitting my mood a lot more right now. I'm sure those two will be back soon enough though.}

We did an Around-the-Clock shower which, for those who don't know, is a shower where each guest is assigned a certain hour throughout the day. Everyone has to buy an item that corresponds with that time. So for example, if a guest had 6:00 PM assigned to them then they would probably want to buy something having to do with making dinner. It's a great way to get a variety of gifts and it helps guests to stay interested while they are opened.

Aunt Debbie and I had talked about doing an outdoor shower and just prayed and prayed leading up to this past weekend that the weather would cooperate. It turned out to be mid-seventies, shining sun and cool breeze; we could not have ordered more beautiful weather if we tried! Now if we can just be as blessed on the actual wedding day...

I got in contact with my favorite Etsy go-to shop and had a custom banner made with the theme intertwined.

I LOVED the final product!

{Please notice our amazing uncle who took time out of his busy holiday weekend to help set up for his niece. He'll be the same pastor that marries them in three weeks and also married me and Jeremy.}

I think we may have gotten a little too carried away with the theme but we just had so much fun coming up with new ideas!

Pumpkin cheese ball and pumpkin bread with cream cheese sandwiches

Pineapple Punch and Iced Tea

Oh hi bride!

"Have Some Advice for the Bride-To-Be? 'LEAF' it on the Advice Tree!"

The Ah-Mazing towel cake our Grandma Sue made:

Yes, there are TOWELS in there.

Who is allowed to be that talented?!

And I wish these pictures had turned out better but instead of doing a cake, we just decided to order A TON of cake pops from Starbucks and display them in autumn topiaries.

Pretty sure I gained 5 pounds just eating those but it was worth every.single.bite. I highly recommend the tiramasu flavor if you've never tried one.

Friends, family and loved ones came from all over to help celebrate this special woman in our lives. The stunning bride-to-be looked beautiful and we got a small glimpse into how she will glow on her wedding day.

Four Girls getting ready to celebrate the last sister getting married.

I can't even begin describe how happy I am for her and I get a little teary every time I think about their wedding day coming up in less than a month but I'm sure I'll have a whole other post about that later. No need to get too sentimental and nostalgic now.

I love you Allison Lea, more than words can even describe.

Rainbow Bridge (& Our Vlog)

2011-08-29T06:35:00.000-07:00

Before I begin, I wanted to say a very heart-felt thank you to everyone who took the time to leave a comment on my last post. I wish you guys could really know how much your kind words and sympathetic understanding meant to me after I wrote that.

To be honest, it was written in such an emotional state that I don’t even remember everything I had said until the next morning when my mom called me crying and it all came flooding back from the middle of the night when I typed it. As most of you know, I’m not usually comfortable being that open and vulnerable on here, but man did it feel good to get it out and made me feel so much better knowing that many of you have gone through something similar with your own childhood pets. It’s amazing and unexpected how much they come to mean to us and I said before it was one of the hardest things I have done.

So thank you. Thank you for sharing your own stories with me about your furry loved ones and thank you for the support you gave {not to mention the links to poems and books that brought on even more tears!}

I dreaded going home to my parent's house this past weekend. It made Zeus' passing all too real for me again and it just didn't feel the same walking into that house and not having him greet me at the door with his wagging tail. I wonder if I'll ever be able to go there again and not think of him automatically.

I went home for several reasons, one so that I could scatter his ashes at mine and Zeus' favorite spot near my parent’s old house yesterday. I knew instantly where I wanted to go when we decided to have him cremated and had nostalgia and heartache all over again as I drove to the field we used to play fetch for hours on end {and hide out from family members until my mom finally discovered it a few years later after following me in her car.}

My mom gifted me with this latest Willow Tree figurine after he passed and I now have it on a shelf in our living room along with his collar until I can find a better place for them. I don't think she could have found a more perfect gift if she tried.

Angel of Comfort
You're never told how hard it is to say good-bye when you bring home these loving and crazy puppies, but I find myself holding Willow closer and lavishing even more attention on her these past few days, if that was even possible to begin with.

It also doesn't help when this heart-wrenching article has been spread all over the web this week.

Breaks my heart.

Friends from Twitter and comments in my last post brought my attention to a poem last week and it is helping me through this grieving process whenever I think about him. I hope that if you have ever lost a beloved dog, it might help you too.

Rainbow Bridge

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.

There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.

There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.

The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from you life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together...

Author Unknown

I can't wait to meet you at Rainbow Bridge someday Zeus.

Another reason I went home this past weekend was to spend the night with my mom and sisters as all of our men went on my future brother-in-law's Bachelor camping trip and we were forced to fend for ourselves. It’s hard to go from something that emotionally draining to trying to perk myself up for all the wedding events we've had and get in the right state of mind for those yet to come. While a part of me is SO excited for Allison and this special moment in her life, it’s also bittersweet knowing that she will be moving away and living farther than us four sisters have ever been separated from each other. It’s another huge loss for me right now and my emotions really are all over the place.

I sat down to start my matron-of-honor speech the other day and I was bawling like a baby before I even got past the first paragraph. I really need to get a grip before the wedding or people won't even be able to understand me through all the blubbering.

But as promised {and to help lighten the mood around here} we sat down and did the Sister Vlog we talked about earlier. We got some really great questions but didn't even answer half as apparently we talk too much to make a short video.

Trust me, I'm already more embarrassed than you can imagine after watching it when we finished. Like I said before, I do not like myself, or my voice more importantly, on audio but with a few alcoholic bevarages and our friend Annie making jokes in the background, we were all more comfortable to attempt it. If you don't have the time to watch an 8 minute video, I advise you to just watch the bloopers at the end. {But promise me we'll still be friends afterwards.}

My Marley

2011-08-21T01:30:00.000-07:00

I know that there are some people that won't understand this post. People that have never loved a dog like a family member and people that look at dogs as nothing more than pets. But for those who have loved a dog like I have, I know you will understand this.

Please bare with me here as I feel a need to write this down as a form of therapy for myself and it's my small attempt at a tribute for the most incredible dog that I have ever known. My emotions and thoughts have been all over the place the last few days so this might not even come out as coherent but I'm going to do my best.

When I was 11 years old, our family was rocked with a crisis that we could never have seen coming. My older sister, Allison, was diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa and almost lost her life from it.

Anyone who knows my family, knows that this was the hardest thing we ever had to go through and it defined us into the people we are today. We came closer than I ever wanted to losing someone who meant the world to us and when you go through something like that, it changes you.

For two years we watched her struggle with this disorder and watched Allison lose weight down to 58 pounds when she was just 15 years old. She was in and out of hospitals more times than I can count and our family had to go through a lot of transitions to help her get through that time. My mom moved an hour and a half away in order to be closer to her at the Children's Hospital, my dad had to work more hours in order to pay for the ever growing medical bills and through all of that chaos; our family fell.

We all dealt with that time in our lives differently in order to cope. My older sisters, Jennifer and Christine, began hanging out with friends and their boyfriends constantly and creating another world outside of our house where our sister wasn't dying. And my dad coped with his long work hours and spending as much time out of that house as possible because nobody wanted to be there anymore. It was too depressing with too many bad memories and too much time left to just think.

And in the midst of it all, at 12 years of age, was me.

I'm not writing this for a pity party, because this story is absolutely not about me. It's a story that defines our entire family and like I said, we all grieved in different ways.

But that year was a very lonely time for me. While I watched the other girls in my class start their teenage phases of talking with boys on the phone, learning about make-up and clothes, going to movies with girlfriends, etc., I was dealing with the realization that my sister was dying.

And while this story is one of the most monumental times in my life, it's not about Allison today.

It's about the one who got me through that time.

My parents knew how much time I was spending alone at home. Everyone but me was able to keep themselves busy and away from the house and I had lost most of my girlfriends because I wasn't at the same place in life they were anymore. I couldn't get myself to care about the things I should have at that age. It all just seemed so trivial compared to what I was going through and what really mattered.

So for my 13th birthday, 2 years after our nightmare had begun, my parents surprised me with the best birthday present I have ever gotten.

I opened a box the morning of my birthday and saw inside, a collar, a leash, two dog dishes, and a package of dog toys.

Growing up, I had been begging my parents forever to get a dog and their response had always been no. They didn't need another thing on their plate at that moment, and who could blame them?

So I was shocked when I opened my present and I had to keep asking my mom if it was for real. She told me that they knew what a hard time we were all going through and wanted to get me a companion to help keep me company since she had to take care of my sister and couldn't be around as often.

We had just admitted Allison into a treatment facility called Remuda Ranch in Arizona, that specializes in eating disorders. She was going to be gone for at least two months, if not longer, and we were only allowed to have minimal contact with her. We knew it was going to be a painful time for all of us and my mom thought it was the perfect time to introduce something happy into our family again.

So a week after my birthday, my mom and I went to look at a litter of puppies I had found in the newspaper ad. I had my heart set on a yellow female lab from the beginning and was told when I called ahead that there was one female left. We went into the backyard where all of the puppies were playing and I sat down in the grass to look at her. Of course they were all crazy hyper, and it was hard to really see what she looked like as she would never stop playing with her brothers and sisters long enough to slow down.

And as I sat watching them all play and wrestle, a roly-poly black boy puppy slowly meandered over to me, sniffed my hand, and lazily crawled into my lap where he stayed for the next fifteen minutes as we watched the others run around. He was so relaxed and calm and in that short amount of time, I fell in love with him.

Looking back on that moment all these years later, I know that it was him who picked me.

I told my mom that I wanted this one and she kept asking if I was sure because she knew how badly I had wanted a yellow female. The leash and collar had been given to me in pink and I had nothing but girl names picked out.

But this sleeping puppy in my lap had to be mine; I knew he was going to be something special.

And he was. Zeus was everything I needed during that time and more.

I wish I could really describe what he meant to me but I don't think I will ever be able to adequately talk about my best friend during the hardest part of my life. He became my companion and a true friend more than just a dog, he was there with me through everything.

He slept next to me at night when I got lonely looking at Allison's empty bed across the room we shared, he kept me laughing and happy for the first time in a long time, he gave me a reason to be excited when I came home from school after years of coming home to an empty house. He brought life back into me and our family and I don't know how I would have gotten through that time without him.

We spent so much time together the following years; we went to puppy and dog training classes together, dogs shows, we started volunteering as a therapy dog and handler so we could go to nursing homes and brighten up other people's days with his energetic and happy attitude. Everyone that met him fell in love with my Zeus.

He would sit with me while I cried over Allison or over teenage drama. He would come with me on walks when I just needed to get out of the house. We would spend hours at the park, just the two of us, playing fetch and going for long walks around our neighborhood.

He was without a doubt, the perfect dog for me. And as Allison came home and slowly started healing from her anorexia, he became a part of all of our lives.

Things started to get much better. I started growing up, getting more friends at school, started my first job, and allowed myself to finally become a teenager.

And Zeus was with me through every stage. He was always home waiting for me with a big smile and a wagging tail when I walked in the front door. And even as I began to spend less and less time at home, he never stopped waiting for me by the front window.

I never felt lonely with Zeus anymore, because wherever I was, he was always by my side. There was one night I remember so well and probably the memory that I will always think of when I think of him. Jeremy and I had broken up for a semester in college {another story for another time} and that first night after the break up was probably one of the hardest nights of my life. Although Zeus had been trained by mom to stay off the beds, he snuck into mine when he heard me crying in the dark. I pulled back the covers to let him in, he layed down by my side, put his head on the pillow next to mine and just stayed there while I cried my eyes out. I put both of my arms around him for a tight hug and he would lick my face from time to time and stayed awake with me until I finally fell asleep a few hours later. It was one of the most touching nights with him and a night that I had never appreciated him more. He always seemed to know when I needed him most and never failed to be there for me.

And although he transitioned into our family dog after I moved out, he never stopped being my dog. After all these years, whenever I came home to my parent's, he was there. He would follow me around the house like nothing had changed, he acted like I was the best and most important person in the world to him just like he would always be the best dog to me.

Because no matter how much I love Willow {and I really do love her}, she will never be my Zeus.

Willow is my baby but Zeus was my best friend.

Jeremy and I watched "Marley and Me" a few years ago and I couldn't watch that movie without thinking of him. I sat there not just crying, but bawling with tears and snot running down my face because I knew that I was going to have say good-bye to my own Marley someday.

And unfortunately, that day came on Friday when I made the hardest decision I have ever had to make to put my my best friend down. Zeus had been showing signs of aging for the last few years and we all knew it was just a matter of time for him. None of us wanted to see him suffer and my mom and I had both agreed, years earlier, that we would take care of things before it got to a point in his life where he was in any pain. After living in denial about his health the past few months, we were forced to confront it this past week when a tumor he's had tripled in size and the vet believed it to be cancer.

After a lot of talking, crying and prayer I knew I couldn't deny any longer that my full-of-life puppy had turned into an old dog and it was only for my own selfish reasons to keep him alive any longer.

Walking into that house Friday afternoon, knowing what we were about to do, was one of the hardest moments of my life. I couldn't stop thinking about him and all of our memories together. I kept remembering the day we brought him home as a puppy, how young and immature I was when he became a part of our family, and how much we had gone through together. I grew up with him and he had such a huge impact on my life. I could barely see him through my tear-filled eyes when I finally got to his side.

And even though I had objected to any pictures before we left for the vet's, I'm so glad my mom ignored me and said I would regret not taking them. This is one I already hold dear to my heart and plan to have framed and put on my desk at work.

Our first and our last picture together, almost 12 years exactly in between. I had no idea then what he would come to mean to me.

As we sat in the vet's room, I put my arms around him one last time and began whispering in his ear. His tail slowly wagged back and forth as I petted him and I spoke softly so only he could hear. I thanked him for being the best dog I could ask for, I thanked him for crawling into my lap 12 years ago, I thanked him for every way he had ever loved me and most important; I thanked him for bringing me back to life when I was 13 years old.

There is a favorite quote of mine from "Marley and Me" that will always make me think of Zeus.

"A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. ~~Marley~~ Zeus taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things- a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness, and above all else, unwavering loyalty."

Oh my Zeus, you were the best of the best and there will never be another like you.

Zeus Dax Waterfields

1999-2011