Happy Birthday to Me and Fall Foliage

Happy Birthday to Me. I will gladly admit that I was not looking forward to turning 25 years old this year. I had a hard enough time turning 24 last year but for some reason I'm okay with it. My only complaint thus far is that I'm now part of a new demographic which does make me feel old. I had a wonderful birthday. Troy said that he was going to make me breakfast Friday morning but the idea of pouring cereal and milk for me at 5:45 in the morning and letting it sit for an hour did not appeal to me. It was a good idea. I got to work and found that the girls had gotten me a houseplant which is quite beautiful. Now if only Lexie will behave and not eat all the petals. Troy got me a game system that plays both Nintendo and Super Nintendo games. He also got me Super Mario Kart but it hasn't arrived yet. Brett and Taylor, all I have to say is bring it on!!!!!! After work, I came home to a clean house and Troy making my birthday cupcakes. I opted for cupcakes because you can only make 24 with a box. Troy made dinner for me which was fantastic. He made steak, roasted potatoes, and roasted asparagus. It was all delicious. Who needs a fancy schmancy steak house when I have Troy. Robyn and Aaron had dinner with us also. We then had a night of game playing. We taught Robyn and Aaron how to play mah jong. I think they were more interested in stacking the tiles.

Saturday was a busy day for us. I wanted to do a little shopping at the outlet stores. We ended up buying a sandwich maker and a soup pot. That was the best deal of the day. Regular price was $225.00 but they had a sign for $99.99. Apparently one of the employees was supposed to take the sign down the night before but forgot. The cashier did the math to give us the discount but ended up doing it wrong and rang it up as $80. I told her that the sign said $99.99 but she said not to worry about it. We ended up buying the pot for 63% off. How great is that?! After a little bit of shopping, we went and had dim sum. It's definitely not like Hong Kong but it's the best we have out here. Then we took a drive into the mountains to look at the fall folliage. I think this will have to be an annual trip for us. It is absolutely gorgeous. I love fall. We're starting to get the feel of fall down here. The mornings and evenings have a little bit of a chill and I love the crispness of the air.

Anywho, thank you to all for your birthday wishes. It made turning a quarter of a century old a little bit easier. :)

Happy Birthday

Please join me in wishing Tracie a happy quarter century. Happy birthday Tracie!!!

Princess and the Castle

What a weekend! Tracie and I were relaxing this evening and we both said to each other that it seemed like a three-day weekend because we got so much stuff done. We awoke Saturday at 8 to go outside and plant our bulbs, but decided to hold off for a couple of weeks after talking to our neighbor. So we will be planting them before and after general conference in two weeks. So we got ready for the day and headed outside to Princess Hayley's 4th birthday party.
She lives next door and all of the neighbors were out to celebrate. The kids liked jumping around in the bounce house, while we enjoyed chatting with everyone, the pizza, and watching our next door neighbor Joe try to catch a yellowjacket with a cup and paper plate. We then ran some errands, and came home to make some potato salad for our BBQ at the Moylett's. The BBQ was a lot of fun, dessert was fantastic, and we played a Catch Phrase with the three couples there. (The men swept 3-0 by the way).
The Moylett's had just purchased a new TV, so the gave us there old one. If you can't tell, we now have a full 8 inches more of viewing pleasure (27 inches total). No more pulling the TV out to watch movies! We got home late, but prepared our prayer rocks for our Primary lesson this morning. But the late night did not deter us from getting up early and heading to choir practice this morning at 8.
After church we decided to start making our house a home. First we hung the curtains in the front room. It is touches like these that remind me how grateful I am to be married. I would not know how to pick out something that looks good, but I sure appreciate it when it does. We also finally got our ceiling fan prewire fixed, so we were able to hang the ceiling fan in our bedroom. We want to thank Grandpa Ware for this housewarming gift, and promise that it made a lot of sense when we bought it at the end of June. (Got to love the prompt response to our warranty issues!!). Finally we hooked up the new TV and hung our big picture. Whew!

Over the River and Through the Woods...

to Grandmother's house we go. Okay, so maybe we didn't go to Grandma's house but they came to us!!!! Grandpa and Grandm Burt came to vistit us this past weekend. They arrived Friday evening and we were able to go out to dinner. We went to a place called the Old Stone Church Restaurant. The place was pretty cool looking. We sat in the choir loft. Dinner was fabulous. Afterwards we pretty much just crashed. Saturday we took them to Downtown Denver. We ate at Pat's Philly Cheesesteaks and was able to participate in a Penn State hoopla. It was pretty fun. Afterwards we made our way to the outlet shops in Castle Rock. We had fun meandering through the stores and buying a caramel apple from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. It was very tasty. Then we made our way home and watched the BYU vs. Tulsa game. Although it did not end in our favor, I thought it was an okay game. Sunday, we went to church and then played games for the rest of the day. Have I ever mentioned how much I love games. Grandma and Grandpa taught us how to play Tippie Canasta. That's a really fun game. Too bad you always need to have 4 players. All in all we had a fabulous weekend with the. THANK YOU GRANDMA AND GRANDPA.

And on a side note...we have finally been harvest a crop. We're farmers!!!

For some reason, Lexie really, really likes to eat the ends of green beans. What a weird cat.

Tennis, Football and Fall

Now begins one of my favorite seasons of the year (it's in my top 4), fall. For one we have really enjoyed watching the U.S Open and the best tennis player of all time, Roger Federer. We have nothing against Federer, but especially Tracie gets frustrated that he never loses! Tennis is great, but having college football back is the highlight of fall. We had a few friends over to watch the BYU game yesterday, and we were all impressed with how they played in the second half. We are counting down the days until the Utah game (76).
Fall also means a dip in the temperature, and the nights are definitely cooler. Today was also decidely autumnal in weather, and that means we get to bake. We didn't make the pumpkin, but it is much more photogenic than the banana bread!!
Lastly, the leaves begin to change. This is old stock footage to tide you over until they actually start to change.

Labor Day Fun

Since, only working 3 days a week now holidays seem to blend in with the rest of the week but it's always a highlight when Troy doesn't have work. So this weekend has been filled with tons of fun. Friday night, I picked up Troy from work and had dinner at one of our favorite Chinese food places. ( I would even say that it's probably the closest thing to Sam Woo that we have here) After dinner we played mini golf at a course that even had flags in the holes. Troy won by 2 strokes and got a hole-in-one. Saturday, Troy got up early and I willed myself out of bed. (the previous Saturday, I may have slept in really, really late) Troy had mentioned that he wanted to go for a bike ride so we cruised around The Meadows for a little bit. Afterwards, we made our way to the pool. This was the last weekend that they would be open for the season and we wanted to soak in as much of the great weather as possible. We met up with our neighbors there and even got to sit on the "kiddie" side of the pool. It was a lot of fun except Troy may have forgotten to put sunblock on so he was feeling it by the end of the day. For dinner, I made a fabulous Creamy Fettucine with Shrimp and Bacon. It was tasty. Apparently Troy likes to take pictures of my food so here it is. Sunday, we went to church and taught our primary kids. They actually noticed that we were gone. I felt special. In the evening, our culd-de-sac had a progressive dinner. We were in charge of the desserts. We made oatmeal carmelitas, brownies, and apple crisp (thanks Kristin). Our neighbors are so much fun. Monday, I cut Troy's hair. I started cutting it then took a step back and noticed that it was a lot shorter than I normally cut it but needless to say, I think it looks pretty good. Afterwards, we went to the pool for the last time. :( Troy remembered to put the sunblock on this time. Then we went to Colorado's annual Taste of Colorado. It's where a bunch of restaurants set up booths and you can have a taste...at a small price. It was fun. We got to taste chicken tandoori, BBQ brisket on a bun, steak on a stick, crab cake, and a corn dog. All for less than $20. Then we came home and relaxed. All in all we had a fabulous weekend. It was a wonderful end to our summer and I can say that I'm now looking forward to the fall.

Beans, beans, the magical fruit...

I have been waiting so long for our green beans to starting popping up so I could post this blog with that title and they're finally here. I just thought I'd give everyone an update on our growing garden. I have now picked off 4 cherry tomatoes to date and have eaten all of them except for one, that went to Troy, within a couple minutes of picking them. The strawberry plants that we thought had gone the way of the earth decided to come back and they're thriving more than ever. They're kind of alien-like how they sprout off from the main plant and take root. Earlier in August, I noticed that blossoms were on our apple tree but sadly, we had to pluck them off to strengthen the roots. That was a sad day. Lastly, our green beans have been flowering the last couple of weeks and I've been waiting patiently for them to start growing the beans and they're finally here. If you look really hard, you can find them.

Green Thumb

First off, and most importantly, the crop yield is starting to flow in from our garden! Well, not really, but we did get our first tomato and Tracie enjoyed eating it straight from the vine!
In other Tracie news, Tracie officially got a new job last Friday. She is now working for another dentist in the Denver area as a dental assistant. She likes it because it is fast-paced, and best of all it is only three days a week, which will come in very handy in the future.

On Sunday we had Becky over for dinner (finally) and she bought both of her cats, Jasper and Fritz. Lexie was not used to the company and even though she spend a holiday weekend with Jasper last year, decided that she would much rather hiss at the both of them. Oh well, what can you do?

In other Colorado news we are pleased to be the home state of the new Miss Teen USA. (She's from Louisville Dave and Bri).

The fantasy football draft was Saturday night and Tracie was pleased how quickly it went, and I was pleased that once again I drafted the best team in the league!

Jenna's Wedding

This weekend was Jenna's wedding, and we managed to see pretty much everyone we know in our three days in Utah. Friday we had lunch with Drew and Jenna, Ryan and Erin, and Bri and Brooklyn. That evening we had dinner with Will and Kristin, Rachel and McKenna, and Mandy and Spencer. The food was good, the service was slow, but the balloons and Jason and McKenna made it great. We then drove down to Cedar Hills to see Auntie Christina and Mom and Dad Wu's new places. They have wonderful views.
Saturday was the wedding in the morning. Ryan was on baby duty, and Grant was not a big fan of the sunshine! We hung out with Kristin and the girls on Saturday afternoon, including some very, very delicious apple crisp. (Thanks to Mickie for the suggestion, and Kristin for the execution) The reception was Saturday evening and it was fun to see all of our old friends and catch up, including Bishop Klein. It was also nice to see the Porter and his proud father Matt and his "girlfriend" Wendy. Sunday was spent with the Ware family, and Channing enjoyed Tracie's shoes! Heather looks great with the twins, despite the fact they feel weird moving in her stomach. It was also good to see Jer and Kenz, and congrats on the new Pilot, it will look nice at the new homestead in Avery Ranch.

All in all it was a busy, fun-filled weekend, and I want to thank all of Tracie's friends who came in for the wedding and made it such a memorable experience. I know she enjoyed it immensely and you all mean a lot to her and to each other. See you all again soon sometime in Colorado!

Happy Anniversary to Us!!!

This last weekend we celebrated our 3rd anniversary or our 36 month-iversary (we like to tease Robyn). Troy planned our getaway this year to the exotic destination of Colorado Springs. We left Saturday morning after eating a wonderful breakfast of McDonald's yogurt parfaits. They are the best yogurt parfaits around. We drove up to Pike's Peak late morning and it was a spectacular drive all the way up. Troy was smart in heading up there in the late morning because by the time we left, the clouds started rolling in. While on the drive we saw a mule deer and I saw a pica (think of a miniature chipmunk). When we

made it to the top, we had a picnic lunch and walked around for a bit. Then we headed back down. We went to an Italian place for dinner called Biaggi's. It was pretty good. I especially liked the shopping center it was in. We stayed at the Grand Hyatt that night. It was so nice to sleep in and have drapes that actually block out the sun so we could sleep in. We had breakfast at IHOP then made our way home. Sunday was the day for activities when we got home. Our next door neighbor was having a stamp party that I thought I would pop my head in to see what it's all about. A lot of cute stuff but since I am really not creative, I think I'll let my neighbor think up all the projects to do then copy her. Afterwards, Robyn's family came over for dinner which was scrumpdiliumpcious then our neighbor across the way was having a BBQ. I really like living in a culd-de-sac and I really like all of our neighbors. We tried to see the meteor shower last night but were out of luck. So, all in all it was a wonderful weekend and we can't believe that it's been 3 years already. Where does the time go?!?!?!?!(Maybe one of these days, one of your readers will get this card)

Movies, movies, and more movies

This past weekend my parents came out to visit. Mom came out Wednesday night and Thursday we just hung out and made a fabulous dinner. On Friday we saw Hairspray which was a fantastic movie. I highly recommend it. Not knowing what it was about prior to seeing it, it was really enjoyable. Then we made another delicious dinner. I swear, both Troy and I are spoiled when my mom comes out. Friday night we went and picked up my dad. Unfortunately the weather has been crazy so dad's flight was delayed 2 hours!!!!! Saturday, we wentto the Nature and Science Museum to see the Titanic Exhibit. It was really interesting. Afterwards, we had dinner at Hacienda Colorado and then went and saw The Bourne Ultimatum. That was an awesome movie and it helped wrap up the story. So all in all, we had a great weekend despite the weather. This past week it has felt like we have been living in Washington with all the rain that we have been having. I do have to say, though, the thunder/lightning storms are awesome.

Full House

This weekend we did another "stress test" on our hosting capabilities. Our friends Spencer and Mardee and their one year old daughter Cadence were out visiting from San Francisco, and Robyn had two of her old roommates, Tracy and Emily out visiting as well. We survived the massive rain storm Friday night by hunkering down at the Cheesecake Factory. On Saturday we headed down to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. It was a lot of fun, and the views were gorgeous. Cadence got a lot of attention, and especially liked the lady with the big black dog. (Unfortunately Cadence grew bored just as we pulled out the camera!)

Before we could go out and play we had to do our chores, so Tracie watered the garden and found our massive cherry tomato growing.
I got to move to the next level of manhood by mowing our grass. (Actually it was more like cutting down weeds, but quite manly nonetheless.)
Another picture from the Garden of the Gods. Spencer and Mardee were a lot of fun to have out here, and even more so it is nice to have friends in San Francisco that now owe us a favor! :)

Lexie has a new game, which consists of me throwing things up at her while she lounges on the balcony. She actually has pretty good hands (paws?) and will catch it with her claws.

Sickly...

If only I had a camera on me this morning. Apparently Troy ate something yesterday that did not sit well with him. This morning he looked whiter than a ghost but thankfully there was no puke-age. But that did leave me to go to church all by myself and teach our primary class. Luckily there were only 4 kids today instead of 11! The funny thing is is that Troy and I ate the same things yesterday so I guess I have a tougher gut than he does. This past week has been pretty uneventful. The weather has been getting warmer but not unbearable. We do appreciate being at a higher elevation than Denver so our evenings are pretty cool. For those of you who don't know, I changed jobs back in March and now work for my dentist. The opportunity came at the right time and I decided to take it. Right now, I'm working the front desk and handling all insurance stuff and scheduling appointments. Troy's so excited that we can talk insurance stuff now! Once the gal that I'm covering for comes back from maternity leave, I'll be transitioning to a dental assistant position. I actually had my first taste this past week and it's not as bad as I thought it would be. I even got to take a impression of my mouth and make a model. I do have to say that I have some pretty good looking teeth! Anywho, from now until late August will be a whirlwind of fun. We have some old college friends coming in this weekend (are we really old enough to say that?!?!?!?! I thought my parents could only say that), the weekend after mom wu is coming to visit and hopefully dad wu will come along. The next weekend is our anniversary, not sure what Troy has up his sleeve but I'm sure it'll be fun. And then finally, the weekend after that is our beloved Jenna-bean's wedding! We cannot wait and we're excited.

This is Lexie discovering the air conditioning for the first time. I don't know if she knows what to think of it yet.

These are our green beans that we planted last weekend. They are finally starting to sprout. the other picture is of our strawberries that we were once dead but decided to come back to life. Just disregard the brown things.