Labor Day Weekend 2016

Great Grandpa Lenny's dress

 Things here have just been crazy.  I have lots to write about, so let's start with Labor Day.  After going back and forth we decided to take a trip to Carlsbad Caverns over Labor Day.  Chris's Aunt Mary was in Albuquerque visiting a friend and was kind enough to make the 3-hour drive to stay with us for a night and meet baby Bennett.  She brought this beautiful dress that was originally worn by her father 100 years ago!  It's a beautiful dress and looked gorgeous on Helena.

Chris, Aunt Mary, Helena, and Bennett

 Saturday morning we packed up and left for Carlsbad.  We stopped in Cloudcroft, a mountain town about 30 minutes away and on the way to Carlsbad for breakfast at Rebecca's at The Lodge.  Helena enjoyed it and it's so much cooler up there!

 Roadtrippin'!  Helena is now constantly asking to go on a trip.

 My parents met us there and they are always such a big help with Helena and Bennett.

 That night we had a nice dinner out and Helena had a blast with the chocolate dessert!

she loves her chocolate

 The first night was interesting.  Helena was so super excited to be in a different big girl bed.  She laughed and giggled and didn't fall asleep until after 10pm!

 The hike down the caverns was ...interesting.  My dad immediately went ahead of us which was frustrating because I really wanted us to stay together as a family.  Chris wore Helena in the beco carrier on his back and I work Bennett in my ring sling.  About half way down Bennett had a meltdown which resulted in me also having a meltdown.  It wasn't fun.  He was tired and just wouldn't give in to sleep.  Eventually Helena was moved to my dad's back, and Chris just carried Bennett until he finally fell asleep.  It was nerve-wracking and I didn't really get to enjoy the view, but it was an experience.  

 We had to wait almost an hour to catch the elevator back up and I got Bennett to fall back asleep in the ring sling.

Everyone sleep much better the second night, and Helena crashed at around 9 (I think?).  We left the next day (Monday) back for Alamogordo.

Summer Weekends

 At the early literacy fair at the Broomfield library.

 A girl and her tractor.

 At the beginning of the month we headed to Golden to go for a little “hike”.  This wasn’t a hike at all (it was completely paved) but we walked along a stream and got our feet wet!

 

The second weekend of the month we went to the Adams County Fair!  We saw lots of animals and had a great time

 She loves splashpads!

This past weekend was pretty jam-packed.  I honestly love weekends like this.  I like to spend my time being busy.  Friday we went to the Orchard for their free concert summer series.  We splurged and got a pizza and made it a fun family night out!  We got rained on a little bit, but after the rain we had fun walking around and dancing!

Saturday morning we headed out early to the Aurora Reservoir a good hour away from us for Helena to get her picture taken on the “beach”!  Helena even got some pictures with Grayson!  After the photo shoot we went home for a nap, then took off to Lafayette for a Peach Festival.  It was so hot!  But we enjoyed walking around and looking at all the vendors.  The peach smoothie and peach cobbler we fantastic!!!

And have I mentioned she loves to be outside!

Catch Up: July 2013

July was a pretty low key month.  We went to a couple of Rockies games through the courtesy of my work and friends.  One of the games was the one before the 4th of July so we got a good dose of fireworks.

Our first trip to the pool!

3rd of July fireworks!

my friends new baby: Lincoln

my first time making brussel sprouts: SO good!

One activity that has made a big impact on Chris and I this summer is church.  We've been going to the Sunday night service at 505!  It's a much more intimate service, not so "serious" and really laid back.  One of the reasons I love it is because it's in the chapel, which is where we got married.  It's just beautiful.
Over the summer our relationship with God has truly grown.  We've started praying together, and reading daily verses in the bible.  It has truly been a blessing.  There are some aspects of the morning service that I miss, but this service works for us if we have something going on in the mornings or decide to sleep in.
This makes me think about my relationship with God.  How He knows our ebbs and flows before we do. He knows when we'll be strong and weak.  And He's always there for us.  He knows the path that we are on, and He will protect us.  It's a very overwhelming feeling.  But the true blessing is the feeling of being comforted.  Knowing that when you put your trust in Him, everything really will be ok.  Better than ok.   

Just a cute picture

 Another of our date nights was a date in Denver, that included tickets to the Botanical Gardens.  We had a great time walking around and looking at all of the pretty flowers.

Catch Up: June 2013

June, you guessed it.  Another busy month. 

The first of the month started off with a garage sale!  I’ve been planning a garage sale in my head for years, and moving into the new house was just a reason to actually do it.  Chris wasn’t really on board, so we had a wager for the garage sale.  If I didn’t make at least $200 never again would we have a garage sale.  If I make more than $200 dinner at a restaurant of my choice…which now that I think about it, hasn’t happened yet!  Because of course, I won!  We made almost $400!  I didn’t know it until the week of the sale, but Friday’s are the day to  do a garage sale.  But ours was only “open” on Saturday.  I definitely think we could have made more; Chris kept telling people “whatever you can fit in your car $5”.  So they knew we would be cheap on offers.  For me it wasn’t that much work, but I did spread out the planning and prepping, so I think that helped.  Afterwards we took what was left to Goodwill, and it felt great to get rid of so much stuff.  We now have a fairly empty basement.  Hopefully one day, we’ll get to that (furnishing it, and filling it that is)!

Garage Sale success!

Just a pretty collage I made my Dad for Father's Day.

 Mid month we traveled to Albuquerque.  We had two big family get togethers.  One was my cousin Kyle’s wedding, two was my cousin Nikki’s baby shower!

The view of the mountains from my parents house in ABQ.

Chris & I having fun at the wedding.

Chris wearing my headband.  So pretty!

 Kyle married his HS sweetheart at the UNM Alumni Chapel, and the wedding was beautiful.  My mom did a reading as Kyle’s godmother during the ceremony, and Chris (the bride) wore my headband from my wedding!  She looked beautiful!  I was so happy that my headband got to be worn again.

The Happy Couple: Chris & Kyle! <3 br="">

Nikki's baby shower!

My cousin Nikki is currently due any day now (seriously her due date is 10/1)!, but with all of us in Albuquerque, it was the perfect opportunity to celebrate her pregnancy with a baby shower!  Nikki’s mother in law threw the party the day after the wedding and it was perfect “girl” time.  My cousin Kari did the fabulous cake, and the rest of the shower was filled with all things that Nikki loves!  Nikki is expecting a boy, and she was so gracious for the outpouring of love and gifts.  It truly was a fantastic celebration!  Plus, who doesn’t love to spoil a new baby!

where to begin?

just a pretty picture from the balloon fiesta last weekend.

that is the question. i have no idea. so much as happened, and i just don't know where to start. it's overwhelming. usually when i know i'm going to sit down and blog i'll think of my post in advance and have an idea of what i'm going to cover. well i haven't blogged in so long that even now i'm at a loss. i've known for a while now that this weekend was coming, that Chris would be out of town that i would have a chance to work out, hence giving me the opportunity to blog.
my summer of love has come to an end...the season not the love. and now fall is here and another busy season has begun.
the whole month of september flew by. Chris had a whole month long celebration of his birthday, and as his girlfriend i took it upon myself to spoil him. birthdays are a big deal to me, and Chris is a big deal to me, put that together and you get a over the top celebration.
along with his birthday month we had some of Chris' friend's come hang out with us from Kearney. and the month ended with a trip to New Mexico. this trip also brought us into October.
the summer has been a crazy one. i think about the short time Chris and i have been together, but how it feels like it has been so much longer. and that's because we've done so much. we've had so many different experiences in the short time we've been together and i feel that all of them have brought us closer.
with the end of the summer i've spent a lot of time reflecting, and all of the life changes i've had over the past three years. it's just insane to think about. from being so lonely, alone, depressed, overweight. wanting to change but afraid to change. starting on this journey, going to the gym, losing weight, making friends, creating a life, and now finding love. it's a lot! what's weird is that it seems to have all happened naturally. that maybe what you put out into the world does come back to you.
i do now definitely believe that good things come to those who wait.

strike! 60min

summer twentyten

summer 2010 is officially over.
i have lots of feelings about this. without sounding too dramatic, i feel like my life changed this past summer. not because of any one thing, in fact i'm not even too sure why i feel this way i just know that i do. more importantly i'm the one that changed it. nobody else. granted over the course of this past summer i have made some friendships that i feel have made a huge impact on my life, and will continue to do so. but how i've changed as a person over the past few months is my doing. and i like it. i like who it is that i have become.
one thing that i have found that i love about getting older is being truthful. truthful to myself, and honest with others. i love having conversations with people that i have always wanted to have but was too afraid, but now i have let that fear out the window. i can talk open and honest about my feelings, and just let it all out. it is comforting to know that my friends (new and old) accept me the way that i am, and gives me more confidence in my friendships because of this.
i feel like a completely different person. not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. it's weird that my life is changing, but in what direction, i don't know. i suppose their is only so much i can do. right now i feel as though i'm working on appreciating what it is that i have. enjoying it. not questioning it. letting go, and realizing that i'll end up exactly where it is that i'm suppose to.
in lots of ways i feel like this journey i'm on is just beginning. almost like the calm before the storm. like something big is about to happen, but i don't know what. what i do know is that i'm having a blast right now in my life, and that i haven't felt this way in a really long time. i feel good, happy and content. i feel ready for fall, and a new season of change!

barbell strength 60min

boating fun

in the driver's seat

yesterday was a super active day. in fact the whole weekend was pretty jam packed. i got home at around 9pm saturday night after the race and went straight to bed, after blogging and talking on the phone with my parents of course. i got a good nights rest and was up by 7:30am. to my surprise my body wasn't in any pain, out of my normal workout soreness that comes with working out as often as i do. anyways, sarah has an 8:30am Core class, which is 30 minutes of core exercises before Strike! at 9:15am. well truth be told i'm not much of a morning person, but as time goes by i find myself more awake in the mornings. when i woke up yesterday at 7:30 i convinced myself to go back to sleep, skip the core class at 8:30am, and just do strike. well that didn't happen. i got my butt out of bed and went to core then did strike. after class we (april, sarah, and i) made plans to meet up with bobby to head to boyd lake in loveland to soak in the last of summer's sun for the year.

so that is what i did yesterday afternoon. we loaded up into bobby and april's truck, kids in tow for some tubing and boating fun.

i had a blast! growing up my dad had a boat, and loved to fish. whenever i think of boating i think of my childhood with my dad and being so happy hanging out with him on the boat fishing. i instantly have great memories. needless to say, i was super happy to add this to my memories of boating and being out on a lake with my new friends.

april and bobby were fabulous hosts' as always, along with their 2 adorable little boys.

along with the boat they have lots of toys to play with, including this huge fluffy tube thing. ....not too sure how else to describe it. i went out on the tube with sarah as we went on a crazy ride through choppy water and waves. i was seriously hanging on for dear life. a little bit later i went out with bobby and their older son zachary, which was so much fun. i have the rubber burns on my elbow's and knee's to prove it!
i even got to do some cuddling with little ayden who is april and bobby's little 2 year old that gets scared of the boat and water when we go too fast. so i held onto him to let him know he was safe. gotta love some good baby love.

the rest of the time was spent relaxing in the sun and hanging out. i even got behind the drivers sit, and take the boat for a spin, which was a first for me!
even the ride home was a blast. i was giggling with ayden and zach the whole way home.

it was such a quality time mainly because of the people the time was spent with.

for the first time in a really long time i feel like i'm building friendships that will actually last and have some substance with them. which for me is saying a lot, because i don't make friends easily or lightly.
overall it was a fantastic sunday. and an awesome weekend i won't soon forget.

sarah and i on the big fluffy tube thing

P.S. I woke up this morning with my whole body in pain. my shoulders and back are so sore from holding onto the tube yesterday. my abs are sore from core. and i'm pretty sure my legs are sore from the run. it's a good pain, but still painful.

legs/triceps/chest
zumba 60min
476

Lilith Fair '10

tuesday night i went out!
i went to lilith fair.
the main reason i wanted to go to this concert was to see kelly clarkson.
she canceled all of her lilith fair tour dates last week.
booooooooooooo!
the other reason i wanted to go was to make friends.
hang out with some girls i know and meet some new girls.
because of that fact alone, this night was a success.
sara (with no H {i know i know, how many "sarah's" do i know? a LOT!}) is a STRIKEer at the gym. i went to her house for the 4th of july BBQ, and she invited me to this show because she had an extra ticket.

the two performances that i knew were ingrid michaelson and sarah mclachlan. i really enjoyed ingrid michaelson. her performance was actually comical. her last number was britney spears "toxic" and at the end she and her band did this really cute dance routine. it made the whole number! and of course sarah mclachlan. i've seen her twice before (one of those times was at lilith fair '99?). sarah is a classic performer, and is amazing live. such a beautiful voice.

but like i said what made this show was the company.

a big group of us met for a yummy lunch before the show:

we got a group pic behind a "green screen":
it's a sara(h) sandwich:

sara, me, and sarah

i see a dear true friend in sarah. building a solid friendship this stage in my life isn't the easiest thing to do. but i feel that sarah and i both are doing it.

sarah and i

well i look good :) sarah and her tongue and sara

the other sarah

STRIKE! 60min
616