Hey there, blog.

Lots going on over here in Colorado. My Mom is currently on the road with her friend, Lorna, but will be officially becoming a Colorado resident on August 1. While she's traveling, Mike and I are taking care of Suzy, my Mom's dog. Suzy was my dog at one point too and she's the best. Wiley, my dog, is still my #1 pup, but things have been interesting with both dogs in my apartment. First of all, Wiley can be kind of a bully. Due to this, Suzy finds respite in my roommate, Andrea's room. Andrea is allergic to dogs and Suzy really shouldn't be in her room...but Andrea has found a new friend I think and doesn't mind at all. Andrea is very calming for Suzy when Wiley is obnoxiously running around in front of Suzy's face with her toy in his mouth. When Mike and I yell at Wiley, Suzy thinks we are yelling at her. She's very sensitive and it makes me feel terrible that she thinks she's getting in trouble too. Anyway, the dogs are in the process of sorting out the whole "you're a new dog to me," "you need to understand that I'm the Alpha-dog," and "hey, that's my Mom...why the heck is she petting YOU?" thang.

Mike and I were happy and surprised to see the two dogs getting along much better today.

Exhibit A:

Worthwhile.

Working with the kids I work with can be very taxing and frustrating. But, it's worthwhile. I realize that it's worth it to drive from work to Walmart at 8:00 pm, and then back to work, to get one of my kids headphones and batteries for a cd player that could possibly help ease some of his anxiety,

even if he still hates me tomorrow...which he probably will.

The Christmas Season

I'm looking forward to hanging out with my fam on Christmas Day and exchanging gifts after we share a taco dinner! Turkey is out for the next few holidays I think, due to the sickness of November 2008. My poor sister and her puking. I don't mind skipping the turkey for awhile, it's never really been my favorite. The stuffing on the other hand, I don't want to leave that out for too long. It's just soo good.

I love Christmas music, especially the Elf Soundtrack and Harry Connick Jr. The other day I was driving home from work and suddenly realized, "Good grief, it's December, I need to break out the Christmas jams!" That's not exactly what I said, but you get the point. I promptly pulled over into a parking lot and dug out my Starbucks Christmas mix...I couldn't find my other standbys in the cd case.

I've yet to buy any gifts and it's December 13 already. This is not abnormal. I'll scurry around next week at Target getting presents.

I was inspired by Mike and I's friend and Young Adult Pastor, Bryan, to be creative about gifts this year and focus on making them relational. His example was giving coffee to a parent and writing a note on it, saying, "Only you and me can drink this coffee together when we sit and talk."

Wiley is currently growling at me. Not out of aggression of course, but probably because he wants me to get out of my bed and play with him...or because he has to go to the bathroom. One of those. The thing is, Mike already took him to the park. He is a stinker - Wiley, not Mike.

I'll leave you with this. Rock on Christmas!

This was fun.

Manda and Victoria meet!

Holding my friend/niece, sporting my morning emo hair.

Michael, sporting the really ugly Christmas sweater he found at Goodwill, now regretting that he didn't buy it.

Bridesmaids, along with the Bride, striking a pose.

Love those Conrads. And now there's another one!

Natalie asked Mike, "Why do you have stamps on your arms?"

Liz bought her first home! I got to see it when Mike and I had our whirlwind visit in IL.

There's much more to report, but lately I've been slacking and my schedule has been jam packed. I'm excited for Sydney's first Christmas and spending more time with my fam.

Mom's here!!! And a brief recap...

Tucker came to visit (our friends' cockapoo)

Jenna's getting married Sat, Nov. 22

And Wiley is as cute as ever.Yay, my Mom and her beau Howard are here visiting. I can't wait until she moves here for real.

Sorry for the blog absence. I think I blog like I return phone calls, not timely and not regularly...oops. Laura, I got your messages and I love you! We'll talk soon, okay?!

Yep, life has been full, but good. Work still has a lot of ups and downs. Today I was a "piece of shit"...next week I may be referred to by another cuss word. Of course, working with these kids has it's rewards, but sometimes I want to say..."Shut up and put a bar of soap in your mouth, for the love of Pete!"

Right on. I'm way excited because my sister, brother-in-law, and new niece will be here next week for Thanksgiving. It's going to be great to see them and hold my favorite baby.

The next couple of weeks will include: two weddings, Thanksgiving, time with family, and traveling to Grand Rapids and Chicago.

The Zoo!!

Mike and I went on a fun zoo trip with Lily, Troy, Isabella, and Victoria. I love the zoo! We're thinking about getting a zoo pass. We really liked it.

Victoria and I taking in the sites.

I think Isabella enjoyed the bears the most...oh wait, that's Mike! Ha. Isabella confuses the two : ) Zebras!!

The baby giraffe! The baby animals were my favorite, go figure..
My hand compared to a polar bear's paw.
Isaboo..."Can I get out and walk yet??" She was a little peeved that she couldn't walk around after it rained.

Roar.


The rest of the zoo crew: Lily with Victoria and Troy with Isabella.This was my first time to the zoo in our town. It was soo much fun! I hadn't been to the zoo since I was a kid. It was zootastic.

YAR aka: Young Adult Retreat

Mike and I had a blast on our YAM (Young Adult Ministry) retreat this weekend. We got to stay in a beautiful home owned by a family at church. 30 people were on the retreat and everybody had a bed...this place was definitely spacious. We went to Fairplay, which is 2 hours West of Denver. The Aspens have turned and were quite a site. Here follows a picture tour:

During the weekend we played foosball, went on walks, played wiffle ball, had family style meals, got little sleep, played poker, some of the boys watched the Broncos game, we played Apples to Apples, and we had group devotional time. It was a wonderful weekend filled with quality time with new friends.