Home Improvements

We are slowly but surely making our house more into a home. A couple weekends we bought a mirror at a very reasonable price to put in the front room. Since there's such a big wall, I had trouble figuring out what to put there but I think the mirror looks nice. And...we finally have furniture in the front room although it looks like Lexie's playroom. We are also in the process of looking for someone to install a deck for us. We've gotten 2 quotes so far. One was completely outrageous and the other is one that we could live with. We'll see if go through with them. Our backyard will be very nice this spring/summer when we have that put in.

Saturday, we went to the Colorado Garden and Home show. We weren't sure what to expect and we got free tickets so we thought we'd venture downtown and see what all the hub-bub was about. Troy and I decided that it's a great place to go to if you plan on doing some major renovations or purchasing a hot tub but nonetheless it was fun to walk around. I think this is the most walking exercise I've done in months. We then had dinner at Pat's which is a Philly cheesesteak place. Their philly cheesesteaks are yummy and I'm always afraid to venture outside of that but we ordered something different and split it. I think we're turning into my parents! Sunday was a beautiful day. We had Stake conference and decided since the weather was nice, to walk to church. By the time we got there, around 9:45, I had to take off my sweater since it was so nice. The walk home was a bit breezy but it was great to be outside. The majority of the snow in our backyard has melted. The front yard is a different story. Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to the nice weather because it's snowing now. I don't think it's supposed to last but I am definitely ready for 70 degree weather.

Thump Thump

By far the highlight of this week was Tracie's doctor appointment on Monday afternoon. It was a pretty quick visit, but we did get to hear the baby's heartbeat. It was amazing, and I must say that I was surprised how cool it sounded. There really is nothing that compares to hearing your own child for the first time.

Monday night we had some friends (Scott and Laura) over for dinner. We are slowly trying to expand our circle of friends, since we don't have the default of Aaron and Robyn to hang out with all the time.

We did go to the temple with Aaron and Robyn on Friday night and then out to dinner afterwards. It was a lot of fun to go with friends, and the temple is always a little more crowded on Friday nights, which is nice. We really do enjoy having a temple so close by.

Yesterday we enjoyed the sunshine (I wore shorts) and then came home to watch the BYU-UNLV game. We saw Casey Tanner in the crowd, and it was cool to watch the game. It brought back memories of being there, and Tracie enjoyed the fact that two UNLV guys fouled out! (Although the announcers talked during the whole first one, and the second one the cut to commercial before we could hear the "Sit Down!!!!") Lexie is a snuggly cat, and loves to sleep next to you or on top of you. The other morning she wanted to join Tracie for a nap, and took snuggling to a whole new level.

Ahhh..the Life of Luxury

We got our sectional delivered on Tuesday and let me tell you, it is one comfortable couch. I find myself slowly sinking into the couch everytime I sit on it. I even think I've managed a daily doze/nap on it. We definitely like it and it's here to stay. Even Lexie has managed to take a cat nap on every one of the back cushions. We just need to make sure we rotate the cushions so there aren't any "sinkholes."

We have also managed to find a way to keep her entertained when you can tell she's bored.

Also, on a side note...we have had warmer tempuratures this past weekend highs in the low to mid 50s. Troy's mom wanted to know if the snow has melted and well, here are the pictures.

We running out of room to shovel the snow on the other side of the driveway. I'm tempted to just toss it ont the neighbor's driveway. They wouldn't notice, right?!

Tagged...again

This one actually looked kind of fun to do. Hope you enjoy!!!!

How long have you been together? 3 years, 5 months, and some odd days. A little over 4 if you include dating

How long did you date? Dated 4 months and engaged 4 months

How old is he? 27

Who eats more? That would definitely be me. Do we not remember our first date. Troy ordered lasagna and I ordered lasagna w/ chicken marsala. I cleared the plate and well...Troy struggled to finish his.

Who said "I love you" first? Troy did. Although when I told him that I loved him, I thought I had done it first. Not my fault I didn't hear him clearly after BYU beat UNLV and we were jumping up and down.

Who is taller? Troy

Who sings better? I think that's a toss up. We can both carry a tune pretty well but if you ask Troy to sight read music, he doesn't fair too well.

Who is smarter? Troy, hands down. He knows all the weird stuff that people don't really need to know.

Who does the laundry? Since I stopped working, that would be me.

Who does the dishes? We both load the dishwasher because I can't stand dishes in the sink when the dishwasher is empty. And we both unload.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Looking at the foot of the bed, Troy does or Lexie.

Who pays the bills? Troy. I try to but I always forget.

Who mows the lawn? Troy but I do want to say that I help shovel the driveway. Does that count?

Who cooks dinner? Me and sometimes Troy. Depending on how lazy I am.

Who is more stubborn? Troy would say me. I would say me.

Who kissed who first? He kissed me first

Who asked who out? He did and when he did I told him it was about time.

Who proposed? Troy

Who is more sensitive? Me especially since my hormones have been a-ragin'

Who has more friends? I don't know. I don't think we've ever compared numbers...

Who has more siblings? Troy does.

I tag anybody that's bored and feels like doing this. :)

Nomadic Desert

In preparation for our new couch coming on Tuesday, we solicited the help of Aaron and Robyn Powell to paint our family room. Tracie did a lot of the taping in preparation, and the whole process only took a few hours.
Thanks a lot to Aaron and Robyn, who made the process go quickly and a lot of fun.
We rearranged our TV and computer, and will post pictures of the full room once the couch arrives.

Besides that, not much else happened this week. Lots of work, a little snow, some cold temperatures, filing our taxes, putting up with 12 crazy four-year-olds in Primary, and much to Brett's surprise, not one game of Mario Party!!!

Troy's Entry: Thanks President Bush!

President Bush was in town yesterday to do some fund raising for a Rebuplican Congressional candidate (do my tax dollars really pay for this? but I digress) and he decided to leave at the peak of rush hour. Luckily for me I was on the light rail as I zoomed past the cops blocking all lanes of Southbound I-25 traffic just before Belleview, and every on-ramp from there until County Line. Luckily for me, I get off at Lincoln, which was the first on-ramp open after Belleview (for those familiar with Denver roads, Pres. Bush was headed east on E-470 to go to Buckley Air Force base). The longer I was on the train and kept looking to the deserted lanes of I-25, the more excited I became. I rushed to my car after getting off the train, battled a little traffic to get on to Southbound I-25, and then basked in the freedom of 75 MPH driving the entire way home. It was the most stress-free commute I've had since moving to Castle Rock. Thanks again President Bush!!

The Life of Comfort

This past weekend was surprisingly productive. Friday, Troy found out that he had passed the exam that he took in December. We celebrated by going to California Pizza Kitchen. I highly recommend their Miso Salad with Shrimp and Crab. It is delicious. Troy got the Tostada Pizza. I tried it and thought that it tasted like a chicken soft taco from Del Taco but in a very good way. We ended up getting the salad for free because I found a plastic piece of something in it. Luckily I found it from picking at the salad than from accidentally chomping down on it. Saturday, we spent the morning playing Mario Party. Then we headed out to have dim sum. I think that fulfilled my craving for the next little while. Afterwards to we went back to the furniture store and bought the couch/sectional that we had been looking at. It is super comfortable and hopefully it'll look nice in our family room. We set the delivery date for February 9th in hopes that we will have finished painting our family room by then. We're excited to finally be able to have furniture in the front room and to be able to rearrange a bit in the back.

On a side note: Troy has some weird toes. I don't know how we started talking about it but he can't spread his toes. Well...he can but no one but him can tell. See if you can...

Not spread:

Spread:

Pregnant Brain moment

So, I had my first "pregnant" brain moment on Monday. We headed out late in the afternoon to do a little bit of shopping and looking around. We stopped by Crate & Barrel and bought a citrus peeler (only $.75, not bad), a silicone baster (only $.95), a bamboo strainer thing (only $4.95), and 2 oil container thingies (originally $12.95 but on sale for $4.95). I think we got a great deal and thanks to Kristin and Will for the giftcard. Afterwards we headed to Sofa Mart to search for a sectional. We think we have found the one. It's not as deep as I would like and it's a little on the bigger side so we will see. Afterwards we headed to Old Chicago for dinner. It was delicious and their tomato sauce is incredible. Then we headed home. As we pulled into the garage I noticed that I had left my purse at the restaurant 30 minutes away. I was so mad at myself. So after about an hour in the car we came home again with purse in hand. We set out Crate & Barrel bag of purchases on the table and proceeded to have family night. Well, Lexie being the bag lover that she is wanted to see what was inside of the bag. Really, she only wanted to be able to get into the bag without stuff being in it so Troy emptied the contents onto the table and gave her the bag. Well, apparently that wasn't what Lexie wanted, she wanted to see what was in the tissue and decided to nudge one off the table. Once it fell, you could hear the glass shatter. Luckily it was all contained in the tissue. We cleaned it up then continued with family night. It was my turn to read and as I started, I burst into tears. Troy, not knowing what's going on, asks me if I'm alright. I blubberishly reply that I'm still mad at myself for leaving my purse and having to make him drive me all the way back to to the restaurant to get it and then Lexie breaking one of our brand new oil holder thingies. (oh sigh) I really hope that incident isn't a forecast for things to come or else Troy is in the for the long haul!!

First Date

It was four years ago this weekend that Tracie and I went on our first date. She out ate me at Old Spaghetti Factory, we watched the BYU men's volleyball team win, and then the men won playing "Battle of the Sexes". The following Monday, a bunch of us went sledding. Now four years later, here is how we spent our long weekend. Friday I had the day off of work, not for anything fun, but to work on my final project in order to get my ASA. That is what I did all day Friday, only taking a small break to have dinner at Red Robin. I got up early to work on it on Saturday and got a lot done in the morning. We had waffles in the morning and went grocery shopping for the first time since Christmas. It was just like when I was younger because we filled up the entie cart. We watched the Bourne Ultimatum that night and enjoyed our freshly mulled apple cider. Sunday we got up and had blueberry pancakes for breakfast. About an hour later Lexie discovered that the pan was still a little warm. It was ward conference, and I think that it wore Tracie out. She and Lexie settled down for a nice nap.

Today I have work off due to Martin Luther King Day, so we have spent some time playing Mario party, watching the Australian Open, trying to find a sectional, and then dinner at Old Chicago.

O'Hare Dash

As I promised around Christmas, here is the much anticipated story (actually I think only Kay is waiting for it) of my holiday party. This is long and I apologize in advance. I will post something more interesting (i.e. pictures) tomorrow.

I flew out Sunday night (Dec. 16th) and spent Monday at a professionalism course to become a credentialed Actuary. Monday night the rest of the Denver crew flew out and I met up with them for dinner. Tuesday we had meetings all day in the basement auditorium of the Chase tower. The party that night was up a floor in the dining hall. It was pretty nice, finger foods and mingling, but it was over by 8. Luckily we had an after party at the Blue Frog karaoke bar. It was typical karaoke until Deng took the mic and brought down the house with "Welcome to the Jungle". I also had to sing "Sweet Caroline" due to losing a bet on the World Series. Wednesday we had more meetings and then a couple of hours of downtime before catching our flight, which was at 5:45. Most of the Denver office had left right after the meetings to try and get on the 4:45 flight, including my boss, who I had also driven to the airport and was taking home on Wednesday night. I did some work and planned on leaving the office at 4. A 45 minute train ride would leave me ample time to get to the gate, since I was already checked in. Needless to say, I just missed a train as I got to the station, so I didn't leave until 4:15. Now I was starting to get a little nervous that I was cutting it close, yet I still felt pretty confident. So I got off the train and made a long brisk walk (with my suitcase, a laptop bag, a coat, and my nice warm scarf) up to the terminal. I got to the security line a little after 5, and was greeted by a very long line. I spent the next 10 to 15 minutes fretting over the prospect of leaving my boss high and dry (since at that time I knew that he didn't make the 4:45 flight, but not being sure about anyone else). I did have time to notice which of the security checkpoints were going faster, so I jumped in that line as soon as I got past the boarding pass check guy. I got through security at about 5:25, and I was feeling ok, but knew that it would be close, since I still had to go over the the C concourse. I threw on my untied shoes and had to walk very quickly through the underground walkway. At the end of the walkway both of the escalators were pretty crowded, so I decided to jog up the stairs. At this point I was very grateful that I used every single square inch in my suitcase, and that I was still wearing my very warm scarf. Luckily the gate was right there and as I rounded the corner the doors were still open, and there was a long line of people off to the side. The gate agent asked me if I had a boarding pass on the flight, I said yes, but apparently I didn't have a seat assignment. So she told me to take the second place in line, behind a girl, and in front of a guy. Finally I had a break to tie my shoes and wipe the sweat from my brow. I talked to the girl next to me and she said that they had overbooked the flight. So we both had tickets, but no seats. Meanwhile, the guy next to me was asking the gate lady why he was number one in line but now number 3 (he was just on standby). They finally said that the first 6 people in line could now get on the plane. We walked down the jetway and stopped just outside the plane. The flight attendant came out and told the girl and I to take the first two seats (he made it sound like they were together) so we walked on and there were two seats off to the side at the back of business class. Another flight attendant told us to sit there, so we started to unload our stuff. We weren't there for more than 20 seconds when another flight attendant told us that we couldn't sit there and that we had to find something back in the main cabin. At this point I didn't care too much, at least I was on the flight, but then Mr. #3 in line asked if he could sit there, and even offered to pay for them. I finally found another seat back in economy, and was about to sit down when the girl came by and told me that they told us to go back up front. So, in the end, we settled down into business class just as we pushed back from the gate. I got to stretch out, enjoy a complimentary dinner, drinks and hob-nob with the haves.

Moral of the story: It pays to be early, but just getting there in the nick of time gets you free upgrades to business class.

Bye, Bye Birdie and....

Our little Robyn has left the nest. This past weekend, we headed down to Las Vegas to attend her wedding. It was a lot of fun to see everyone and to celebrate Robyn and Aaron getting married. Friday night, we met up with Jonnelle, Jenna, Shannon, Kristin, and the Bacchus' and had dinner at Baja Fresh. It was delicious. There was also a RiteAid across the parking lot that sold Thrifty's ice cream so we ended up buying 4 half-gallons of ice cream and taking it back to Robyn's place for dessert. Saturday was a busy, crazy day. Robyn and Aaron's sealing was in the morning. It was beautiful, except for the crazy girl (me) coughing like crazy in the background. (It is really hard to contain a cough and be quiet at the same time. They really don't mix). Afterwards we waiting in the cold for what seemed like forever for them to come out. She looked gorgeous. We would have taken more pictures but the batteries ran out and the extra ones that I had brought were not charged either. Way to be prepared! They had a luncheon at a buffet which was decent. It's been a while since I've been to a buffet. We were able to head back to Shane's house to relax for a bit then headed to their reception at a country club. The place was beautiful. They had a ring ceremony and then we pretty much hung out with everyone until it was time to leave. Sunday, almost everyone had early flights to go home so we were able to sleep in. That was really nice. We met up with Tracy and Chad at ESPNZone for lunch then parted ways. Thank goodness our flight wasn't delayed. We actually came back to Denver without seeing any new snow although we supposed to get some tomorrow. Anywho, it's crazy to think that it's been over a year since Robyn moved here to live with us. We have enjoyed having her here and are a little bit sad to see her leave. But, we're happy that they're still in Denver.

Hello Baby!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, after keeping a secret for a few months we're ready to tell the world that our family is expanding. Kind of crazy to say, but we're havin' a kid this summer. The due date is July 25th. It is still a very surreal thing to think about and besides the bouts of morning sickness and the expanding waist line, I don't feel too different. I'm sure that'll change soon though. Anywho, we just wanted to share the great news.

January in Colorado

Well, it's been a quiet last half of the week. We have been getting some good use out of our Wii, and out of Mario Party 8 that we bought earlier this week. (That's my celebration dance for finally beating Tracie!). On Friday night we got to meet some of the new kids in our class. I think they had a good time, but mainly because we had M&M's for them. It should be a fun year with them. Saturday we finally dropped off our Christmas tree to get mulched, and I picked up our ladder (thanks Mom and Dad!). We had to get those things done, since our Little Robyn is leaving the nest. We helped her and Aaron move pretty much the rest of her things to their apartment. She leaves on Tuesday for Vegas and they get married on Saturday. Crazy that she has lived with us for over a year, and we have mixed emotions about seeing her go. We are gearing up for heading to Vegas next weekend, and for the return of American Gladiators tonight!! I'm not sure which is more exciting!!

Christmas in California: Part 3

So, I have taken it upon myself to update you with the rest of the goings on from Christmas to New Year. Christmas morning was a lot of fun. Both Will and Kristin and Troy and I got Wiis which was definitely the highlight for us. Thanks mom and dad!!However I think Jason scored big time by getting all the Cars' cars imaginable and a Cars' racetrack. I think he spent the rest of the morning playing with the cars while we played the Wii. Having never played it before, I think Troy and I got the hang of it pretty quickly.

Look at their focusChristmas afternoon/evening all of my mom's side of the family came over for Christmas dinner. I believe that this is the first year that Troy has experienced Christmas with my side of the family. It's definitely different but I love it. All nine aunts and uncles were present including spouses and a few cousins and a few of there kids. If we had to do a family tree, I really don't think our family would fit on one tree alone.

Every nook and cranny of my parent's house filled with people The day after Christmas we spent the morning relaxing while playing the Wii then headed to my aunt's house for dinner. Thursday, Will and Kristin headed back to Utah. Our flight wasn't until 4:30 that afternoon having already been delayed one hour, so my parents and us headed out to lunch. I tried to convince my dad to take us to dim sum but he said that in order for us to go it would require a 3 hours delay so we settled for Vietnamese. By the time we checked our bags into the flight, we were still expected to leave at 4:30. We got to the gate around 1:45ish and sat around for a bit. Then there was a voice over the PA announcing that our flight was delayed in Denver due to de-icing but the plane was in the air. She made it sound like if they could deboard and refuel quickly we could actually leave a little before the 4:30 departure. Well to make a long story short, she made that same announcement about 3 other times saying that the plane was delayed due to de-icing but it was now in the air. Our final departure time was 6:30. We so could have gotten dim sum!! Anywho, after all was said and done we flew into Denver around 10:15 pm when we really should have gotten in 6:30. Troy went to dig out the car while I grabbed the bags. Now let me tell you, carrying 3 big bags that weigh as much as I do is not easy but I finally made to the curb to meet Troy. By the time we got home and into bed it was 1:30 am!!! I told Troy that this is our luck every Christmas. Last year was the blizzard. The year before was a 4 hours delay at the SLC airport and the one before that was the crazy rainy weather driving back to Utah and almost getting in a car accident. I wonder what will come this year?!?!?!?!

Just thought I'd add a pic of my really cute niece, Sierra. She already has pigtails.

This past weekend were able to plow through our puzzle and finish it. Surprisingly, Lexie did not make any of the pieces disappear. New Year's eve, we went to dinner at Hacienda Colorado then headed home to watch the first of the Bourne trilogy. We were in bed by 10:30 no thanks to me but hey, somewhere in the US it was the new year. :) New Year's day, we just chilled indoors playing the Wii and watching bowl games, and watching The Bourne Supremacy.

I think that about covers it. Just wanted to wish you all a fantastic New Year. I hear it's supposed to be a great one. :)

Christmas in California: Part 2

Christmas Eve was a very nice day. A storm was brewing in Colorado that would eventually dump 7-9 inches on Castle Rock Christmas Day, meanwhile we took full advantage of the sunshine and 75 degree weather by going mini-golfing and going to the beach. Will ended up beating everyone in mini-golf, but we all had fun, and Jason probably had the best shot of the day by hitting it through the windmill and into the hole.
We then went to the beach in Ventura. Will, Jason and I ventured down to the water to go wading. I guess the cold water was a shocker to Jason, who, like any rational two year old would do, sat down. So he was soaked, but I think he liked playing in the sand.
We got home to the delicious smells of Joanna's roast. It was a lovely Christmas Eve dinner, and Kristin's biscuits were great!

Christmas in California: Part 1

So when I was younger, we borrowed the Encylopedia Brown video from the library. In it he concludes that a Civil War sword is a fake because it was inscribed with the First Battle of the Bull Run, which is a problem since the Second Battle had not yet been fought. The point you ask? Well, don't write this off as a fake just because I'm calling it Part 1 already.

It seems like so much has happened since we last wrote, that I will split it up for ease of posting.

We left on Thursday to visit Tracie's family in California. I had just gotten back from our Holiday party in Chicago (I'll save that post until next year!) on Wednesday, so I was expecting large crowds at the airport. Suprisingly we got to the gate with little problems, but I wish we could say the same about the plane. As has become a holiday tradition, we were delayed, so we arrived in CA just before midnight.
Friday we hung out with Tracie's parents and saw the second National Treasure movie (just like the first one). Saturday Will and Kristin drove in from Utah, so we got to see Sierra for the first time ever. She is quite the cutie, and we agree with Kristin that Ed and Joanna have the cutest grandkids! Saturday night Tracie and I went with Ed and Joanna to the Magic Castle.
We dressed up and had a nice dinner, and then we saw 3 magic shows. One was a very small venue, just the magician and 20 others. Tracie got to sit at the table and be his assistant. When I asked her if she could sum up the show, she said "I don't know where the coconut came from!" We also saw a big show, and a mathmagician. It was a lot of fun, and Will and Kristin were even nice enough to Tivo the game for us and watch it with us on Sunday morning. Let's just say it was nice to fast forward the commercials and between plays, although the ending was very stressful. A win is a win, that's all I can say. Sunday was nice, and Tracie and I even sang in the choir. That made up for missing the Christmas program here in Castle Rock. To be continued....

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Christmas is finally around the corner. We have finished most of our Christmas shopping. All that is left is me to go shopping for Troy. That should be fun and easy since he's gone for the next 4 days in Chicago. JP Morgan decided to fly out all the Compensation and Benefits department out to Chicago for their Christmas party and Troy had to leave a day early to attend a seminar for the Associates of the Society of Actuaries. (I think Troy would actually be proud of me that I knew what the letters stand for) So that leaves me at my lonesome for the next few days. Good thing I have Lexie here. This past week has been busy for Troy. He finished studying and took exam #5 on Wednesday. Lexie even helped study and may have even gotten a little bored with the material. Friday night, I hosted a Relief Society Enrichment dinner. That was a little nerve-wrecking but it turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. I even had everything ready to go on time. Saturday morning we decided to open our Christmas puzzle that we bought our first Christmas. I think we have made pretty good progress especially with Lexie trying to help. Hopefully I'll be able to get most if not all of it done before Troy gets home and we leave for CA for Christmas. Yay for sunshine and warmer temperatures. It has snowed quite a bit this last week and I'll be excited to not have to bundle up to leave the house come the end of the week. We want to wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a fantastic New Year if we are not able to post next week. We'll be having to much fun in the California sun!

It finally feels like Christmas

Maybe it was the early Thanksgiving, the exchange of presents with my family, or the warm weather in late November, but it wasn't really feeling like Christmas. That changed this weekend. Although not really Christmas related, we went to Olive Garden on Friday night, and they did have holiday wrappers on their after dinner mints. Then we watched 'The Transporter' that night. The movie is all right, but the main actress looks exactly like Tracie!!!

Saturday we got some snow that started as a dusting, then quickly escalated to a few inches by Sunday morning. We also had our Ward Christmas Party Saturday night. Dinner was good, but the program was better, mainly because Tracie and I played killer shepherds for the nativity scene (no really, killer, we had headbands that made us look like ninjas.)

Sunday we had the Community Inter-Faith Messiah Sing In. We chickened out at the end from singing in the choir, but it was fun singing with the congregation, along with Aaron, Robyn, and her friend Emily.

Lastly, as promised, here are pictures of our Christmas tree. Hard to find the right lighting.

We also got three plates of cookies tonight. It's that time of year!!!!