Take me out to the Ball Game!

On Tuesday, most of my sisters joined me and Jon for a Rockies game! Actually, Hilary was on her way back to Utah from Texas, and Whitney flew out for the game. They were here on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. It was a ton of fun, and let me just say it was nice to have my sisters for a few days!

I think Jon had fun too, even though we were probably a little much to handle. Wish Courtney could have been there too! Here are a few more pictures of the game and us. The Rockies lost, (to the freaking Diamondbacks!) but the game was really fun to watch. Something exciting happened almost every inning, which I must say is rare for a ball game!

Great Outdoors Weekend

Last weekend, Jon and I joined our "single" friends for a "Great Outdoors" adventure at our friend Travis' cabin up in Wyoming. Really it was just a giant slumber party in a cabin and those who couldn't fit slept in tents, but we got our own room in the cabin, and it was so nice! First we had to drive up there, and the instructions were very vague. We were glad we were following Travis up there and weren't relying on the directions alone. We took Jon and Melissa with us in our car. It was a long trip up, but the cabin was awesome!

As you can see, it was a really nice place, just out in the middle of nowhere, which is where you'd want a cabin to be I suppose. We had lots of fun with our friends, and we had some interesting surprises on the way back, someones car breaking down, waiting for a tow truck and a super long drive back home.

Pretty intense for only a 24 hour vacation...

Weight Loss Queen

So as many of you know, I was recently working on losing weight, for health reasons as well as I had gained 20 lbs since I started working at Center Partners, and getting married didn't help that either. I joined a 12 week Weight Loss Challenge sponsored by Herbalife products, and I won the challenge! I must say, I didn't think I would win, and that's not why I did it, but it was nice to get that bonus, and to look and feel great!

This is me with my Weight Loss Coach Mary Jo. She is so awesome!

Everyone who joined paid in $35, and so I won half of all that money being the first place winner for a total of $135. The second half was divided between 2nd and 3rd place. Jon was so happy he called me "The Weight Loss Queen" and asked me when I could join up again. I explained that since I lost 10lbs, the chances of me losing more and winning again would be slim. But I subtly hinted that he should join!

Happy Fourth!

Saturday was one of the longest days I've had in a while, but it was a good day. I usually don't like the 4th of July, since I hate loud noises and bright lights, both of which are prominent features of the celebration. I've always understood the significance of the holiday, how America is the promised land and how this holiday celebrates our independence, but I've just never really enjoyed those traditions. Usually my family goes to Paonia for Cherry Days, and we watch the parade as well as picnic in the park. That is how I usually like to spend the Fourth, among my family in a low key setting. This year we decided not to drive 7 hours each way, and stayed here in Fort Collins.

As a result we started with our friend Tabi, who we went to brunch with after her run in the Firecracker 5K. We went to The Farmer's Table and it was really good. I had a breakfast burrito, while Jon and Tabi got the classic biscuits and gravy. Then we went to 3 different barbecues, which put us eating at 11am, 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm. Blah!

One was the Fairbank BBQ with all the ward members who were in town. It was fun, but it rained on us, so we mostly spent the time inside. Bing got to meet lots of kids from our ward though so I'm sure he enjoyed it.

Then we went to the Hummer BBQ put on by Paul and Moriah. The other Hummers came, including Meghan, Alli, Matt and Catie, and a few of Paul and Mo's friends. That was fun too! Bing got so wet just running through the grass with Choco, he looked like he just got out of the bath. :)

The last BBQ was at the Baratta's house. We go over to dinner there almost every Sunday, but this time we went over on Saturday too, because the Fourth of July is a very big deal at their house. It's Mike's birthday and the kids love setting off fireworks and all that fun stuff. I had never really done that before. I must admit I didn't like the screamers that produced no colors, but there were some awesome fireworks, and it was cool to see what they would do!


Malia with her sparkler!

And Jacob with his!

All three kids, Jacob, their neighbor Isabel, and Malia.

Bing was so scared of the fireworks, we left him inside for most of it, but here's a pic of him whimpering...

As you can see we had a really great time with our friends and family. It was one of the best 4th of July's ever, and it was great to spend the whole day with my wonderful husband. :)

Happy Father's Day!

So Father's Day was on the 21st, and yes, I am aware that this post is a little late, but I had a stressful week. Anyway, for Father's Day I decided since I love my dad, and he was home all alone (with Mom in Utah for Whitney's knee surgery), that I would drive out to see him. I drove out Saturday and we had dinner together at Carino's, went to visit my Grammy and on Sunday went on a hike on the Colorado National Monument. It was a really great weekend and it was so good to see my dad. I don't usually get to do stuff with just me and him, so it was awesome to have Daddy-Daughter time.

On our hike we took the trail to see what they call the "Coke Ovens" which don't really look like coke ovens, but oh well. It was a short hike, but a lot of fun. Here are some more pictures of our adventure!


We decided to take the easy route. Monument Canyon Trail would take us traipsing through the wilderness for 7 miles one way... not a good idea.

Cave drawings or paintings, like the ones seen here, are actually NOT a history of ancient peoples or their form of art.

The View...
Below is Monument Canyon Trail, which really isn't a trail at all

The Coke Ovens! And Proof that we were there!































On our way back we saw a little cave and decided to go exploring.

About when we thought we should turn back because it was so dark we saw an opening and just HAD to check it out!


Turns out it was just a drainage area so that the roads don't wash out when it rains. Pretty lame, but at the time it was very exciting to go through the cave and find out where it went to...

Later, Dad said I should've stayed down there and he would've taken a picture of me from the top. I don't think that would've ever happened, but it was a nice thought.


Thanks for a great weekend Dad! You're the best! I'm so lucky to have the family that I do and the parents that I do. I miss all of you so much and wish I could see you more often.

Update on the Car Situation...

As many of you know, Jon's brand new Corolla was totaled when someone vandalized it by lighting the driver's seat on fire. The insurance company valued it at more than what we owed on it, so they paid off the lease and we got the rest. We also got the money we paid in for our extended warranty back. Overall, it turned out to be not so bad, but I think Jon still misses Burnie...

So because of all this, we recently bought a neused car! (meaning "new" to us, but "used" by someone else) It's a 1999 Honda CRV, painted red and has a manual transmission. It's a really great car, took Jon to Utah and back, and we're so glad we were able to find a good deal on it. We have really been blessed through this whole ordeal, though it may have seemed at the time to be a horrible thing, it just turned out to be a minor inconvenince to not have a second car for a while, and also a huge blessing in the end.

Here are some more pictures of the car. Enjoy!

Front seat.

Driver's Seat

Spacious!

Look at the Trunk Space!

Happy One Year at TiVo!

Today marks my one year anniversary working for TiVo inc. We had a huge party, since it was also TiVo's one year anniversary at Center Partners. It's hard to believe it's been that long, but I'm actually doing really well at my job and starting to get used to what I do. Sometimes it's draining, and sometimes it's hard, but I feel like I'm doing the best I can to provide for my family and to put Jon through school. I have really great supervisors and managers and I feel like I'm making a difference, albeit a small one. Next summer I'll be going back to school to get my teacher licensure and then on to a MA in Education. I'm super excited for that and ready to be back in school, but for right now, this is working out. Plus, who doesn't love TiVo?

Me with my friend, TiVo (aka Randy)