Twilight Fever

I do not have it. I'll stick with Harry Potter. Vampires will always freak me out and I am so ready for people to get over this fad. In the meantime, I continue to appreciate articles like this.

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=142076&catid=188

Chairs

More pictures from my birthday and our new chairs!

Birthday!

Yesterday was my birthday. I am obsessed with my birthday. I am 25, which means I finally won't have to pay extra fees to rent a car.

Shane got me two beautiful Adirondack chairs for my birthday. I love them. Along with them, I received some other very cool things from other very cool people. Thank you to all for making me feel so special on my birthday!

We went to dinner at the Broker downtown, which was so delicious and fun. It is a restaurant that used to be a bank vault, so we had to walk through the vault door to be seated. Dinner was perfect and we went out for drinks afterward.

(We took some pics with my iphone because we forgot the camera, so forgive the blurryness, but they are still fun!)

you know how I feel about chocolate cake!

in front of the vault door...our waitress apparently did not have a very steady hand
(Mom, do you recognize the dress and sweater?)

martinis after at the Corner Office

Article in the Denver Post

I know this isn't too exciting for most of you, but it's kind of exciting around work, so I thought I'd share...

We were on the front page of the Denver Post today!

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_15391193


Go us!!

Moving

I don't like moving. It is probably my least favorite thing. And for the first time in my moving career, I actually have furniture that I care about and things that may need to be packed with care. I have a feeling that this will only add more to my dislike.

But that's not even the half of it. To add insult to injury, we need to move twice in ten days. Our lease is up on July 31st and our new lease begins August 10th. What this means in moving lingo is, pack up everything, rent a U-haul, move it to Shane's parent's house, unload it, bring the U-haul back, live out of a suitcase, have a long commute, rent another U-haul, pack it back up, drive it back to Denver, unload it, and then bring it back once more.

Shane doesn't seem to find this nearly as dramatic as I do, so we have come up with a solution, which I think will work nicely. I pack everything, and then he moves everything, twice.

Don't tell Shane, but I think I win... Hello new apartment!

(Don't get me wrong, there are quite a few things I am looking forward to in the new place, despite my lack of enthusiasm for the process.)

Camping at Eleven Mile

This past weekend we went camping to Eleven Mile Reservoir near Lake George, Colorado. The scenery around us was gorgeous and we very much enjoyed spending time with good friends and being outside in the mountains. It did get windy in the afternoons, but it calmed down again in time for my favorite part of camping, s'mores on the campfire!

I used to be very self conscious eating s'mores. I make such a mess and feel like the fat kid with chocolate and marshmallow all over my face and hands. I now realize that there is really no other way to enjoy a s'more except to get messy. We melt the chocolate on the graham next to the fire, toast the mallow to golden brown and it becomes the highlight of the weekend. Pair it with a glass of cheap white wine and I really cannot ask for anything better during my camping experience. Shane knows to pack the ingredients in order to guarantee a successful camping trip.

our arrival

sunset

it's really not a big deal

we wear our headlamps at night

My teams need to get it together

I promise this whole blog will not be centered around the World Cup, but for now it's consuming my life a little. This morning we went to the Hornet at 5:30 for a breakfast burrito, lots of coffee and a disappointing game by the Germans against Serbia. I had to then go to work, but was fortunate enough to get score updates on the USA v. Slovenia match. At least the US was able to bring in a tie after an unimpressive first half. Some pictures as I reminisce about the days I didn't have to work during the World Cup...

In Germany at the USA v. Italy game 2006

Gretchen's boyfriend. She's always loved those soccer players ;)

Weltmeisterschaft 2010

As most of you know, I was privileged enough to be in Germany for the 2006 Weltmeisterschaft. I studied abroad in Germany from March through July of '06 and it couldn't have been more perfect. This year's World Cup will be slightly different, living in Denver, instead of the largest University town in Germany. However, in order to bring the World Cup to CO, we have the Deutschland Mannschaft poster from 2006 hanging in our living room, I broke out the German Jersey, and Shane rocked a Deutschland t-shirt to show his support for the first German game of the World Cup on Sunday... where Germany natürlich kicked butt. And I think I will paint my nails to represent the national flag. I may not be drinking Pilsners and celebrating in the streets with 2,000 college kids, but I am anticipating a Germany victory where we can sing about Deutschland as the Weltmeister! Auf geht's Deutschland!

Not my most flattering picture, but you can't deny the energy.

New Blog!

Welcome! I am so excited about this blog and being able to share my life through it.

I have noticed that although I am coming up on two years in the great state of Colorado, I still blame things in my everyday life on the high elevation. I have never worked so hard to stay hydrated as I do here in Denver. If I get a headache and it seems unexpected, I blame it on the elevation. "They" say that your body adjusts after 3 months, but I am pretty convinced my body, and mostly my skin, will never truly recover from this altitude.

I am often asked why I am in Colorado then? "It sounds kind of miserable." "Isn't it really cold there all the time?" "Is it snowing" (sometimes asked during the summer) My go to response for all of these questions is always: Colorado has the most days of sunshine in the continental US. California and Florida, you can try to claim it, but it just isn't true. Let me be completely honest for a minute though of why I am in Colorado. As early as high school, I dreamed of marrying a man from Colorado and moving out here, becoming ski bums, and living happily ever after. This may not be happily ever after and we may not be ski bums, but I got my Colorado man. Shane is the reason I am here and eight months ago Shane and I were married. This blog I hope will become a chronicle of some of our adventures, along with Ipswich (the pup), and mostly the everyday things in between.

recent climbing trip

cave dog