Season's Heatings

It happened again...I haven't posted in a month!
I always mean to, but it is difficult when I am rarely home to do so!

Over the last week in July, I went camping with the Pueblo crew. Normally they don't camp, but this project would have made for a long commute so camping just made sense!
It was interesting teaching a group how to camp (according to MHYC policies and practices). Some of the crew members had never even been camping before!
We worked for the little town of Williamsburg. We built the city park a nice little loop trail and helped revamp and set up the new playground areas.

section of trail and stairs in progress

Putting up hoops was much more difficult than we anticipated!

Awesome steps the team built!

We worked 4 10-hour days, which were very hot and long! After that, I said farewell to the Pueblo crew. They only had one more week left, and I was about to head out on a 10 day trip!

My next hitch was with the saw crew. We worked in a state wildlife area near Raton, New Mexico. We were working inside the Colorado border, but just barely! The park was very beautiful- we first did a fencing project on top of a huge mesa, and the rest of the hitch we were deep in the woods building a new trail!

View from our camp site- New Mexico starts at the lake!

Fencing project

View from fencing site

Elk herd on our morning drive

Starting the trail

Huge rock wall/walkway we built!

There were some great views at our work sites. We could see for miles from atop the mesa! One day we also drove alongside a huge herd of elk! The area we built the trail in was also very pretty. There was only a small burned section from a fire about a year ago. Most of the forest was green and untouched- it was a nice change of scenery from the barren burned woods we've been used to working in!
The work was also different from what the saw crew was used to. It was the last hitch of the summer, and the first time they had ever worked on building a trail. There was a lot of learning as we went, but everyone got the hang of it pretty quickly.

On Friday, August 10th after we got back from our hitch, it was the last day of the summer season and the corps olympics! All of the Denver and Co Springs MHYC crews came together for a big and fun day in the park! We played lots of field games, reflected on the summer, and had a big cookout! It was a good way to end the summer, but it was a sad day too- there were lots of people to say bye to!

I love these people

As if camping for almost 2 weeks and ending my summer work season wasn't tiring enough, that Friday night Ben and I took off on our road trip adventure! I had a week off between our summer and fall seasons and Ben took a week off so we could go adventuring! Ben's boss was very generous and gave him permission to drive his work truck- which comes with free gas! We drove all through the night and arrived in Steuben, Wi (by Prairie du Chien) on Saturday morning! We were pretty exhausted (mostly me) but it was totally worth it! We were having our annual "crash at Kamerons' parent's place for a few days to hang with lots of college freinds" weekend! We met up with Kameron, Harris (Sarah Jean) and her boyfriend Brynte, Colton, Steph, Meghan, Nick, and Matt! We had a great time catching up, hiking, watching meteors, and having campfires! I miss all those guys so much- it is hard living so far away from such great friends.

On Monday we headed out to Cedarburg! We got to see my family, all the pets, and all of the other craziness that goes on there (daycare kids, tenants, pet guests, cousins)! And, I got to see my lovely wifey friend Amanda! It was quite the change of pace for us! It was so wonderful to see my family, I miss them a lot too!
Thursday we went to Northfield, Mn to see Ben's family! We saw lots of relatives and ate lots of great food! Somehow, we also ended up with a lot of gifts and other items to take home with us- including beautiful woodcraft made by Ben's grandpa, a camera, Ben's drum set, and an adorable kitten! We have thought of hundreds of names so far. As of now, her name is Nymeria! We think she is about 7 or 8 weeks old.

Thanks for the picture, Tonyia!

We left on Sunday morning and headed back west! Now we are all home, safe and sound, with over 2500 miles behind us! We unloaded the truck, went to bed, and now have been at work ever since (is how it feels, anyway).  Although, it can't all be bad, Ben got a raise and I got a new position and a little raise too!
For the fall crew (only 1 crew in our Co Springs office) I'm going to be the mentor. It is similar to what I did over the summer, but I get to assist the crew leader more and provide education for the crew each week. This means I am going to be even more busy and away from home more than usual! Eep!

I have to go now, kitten snuggles are calling....

In the heat of July

After I got back from Trinidad, Ben got flowers to welcome me home! I forgot to put it in my last blog post, and I wanted to show them off!

Anyway, the week of July 9-13 I was back in the Hayman area. The first part of the week we worked on erosion control matting. The jute matting comes in big rolls. After we rake down the slopes and seed them with native grasses, we roll down the matting, bury the edges, and stake down the matting. Finally we put on slash (twigs, branches, and brush) and transplant some plants into the matting.

In process of putting down jute matting

Midweek, we did lots of weeding around the park. The fire ban was still in effect, so there were limitations on our chainsaw use, which prevented us from building headcuts because we weren't able to cut down the dead trees to fill them with. Weeding was certainly not as exciting as our other tasks, but still definitely important. After the fire in 2002, plants started to slowly grow back in through the burn area. Unfortunately, invasive plants/weeds tend to grow in first and outcompete the native plants (that can provide food and habitat for animals and better control erosion). Removing the invasive plants allows the chance for the native ones to grow in (especially after we spread seed and plant baby trees in the area).  The weeds we removed were toad flax, ox-eyed daisy, mullein, russian thistle, canada thistle, and musk thistle.

mullein

Mareya and Toad Flax

Russian Thistle

Musk Thistle (and bumble bee!)

ox-eyed daisy

Not a weed, but there were delicious raspberries all over the woods! 

Later in the week, we were finally able to go back to our scheduled work- head cuts! As per the fire ban regulations, we had to have some someone follow the sawyer (person running the chainsaw) with a fire extinguisher. Most of the time, I got that job because I was the guest and odd one out on the team. It was fun actually running around finding unsafe trees and watching them get cut down. We also got a special treat one day, some of the board members came with our boss Nancy to see the work we were doing. It was really fun to get to explain and show off our work! We do all the work in the woods and when we are done, it looks like nothing was ever there- no one ever sees it!

Working on three adjacent headcuts

Overall, it was a very hot, tiring, and fun week- as always!

The weekend after I got back, we all had lots of fun! I did some shopping with Ashley, and we all went to see the new spiderman movie. Bill had to leave on Sunday for work in Oklahoma. It's been a quiet week since he left. 

This past week (16th-19th) I worked with the Pueblo crew at a park in Pueblo building trails. I was sent down to fill in for their crew mentor who was out on a work related injury (nothing major, just muscle strain from over exerting himself). I worked along side the crew, provided them an hour of education each day, and I also had to give a little tough love! The crew has been getting their projects done, but they haven't been working with much motivation and drive. They got a little upset with me for my scoldings and encouragements, but they came together as a group and got through it. The Pueblo crew only works day shifts (not camping) so I had some early mornings and long days to get down there and work with them. On Wednesday I had to get up at 3:45! We did some awesome work on the trail, and even built some sweet new stone stairs! 

Stairs!

View from the trail

It was a long and tough week, but I got some great feedback from my superiors and got offered a new position for the fall! I was already going to be working though October, but my new position as the fall crew's mentor will give me more responsibility, possibly a raise, and a contract that goes into November. I'm really excited about the fall season (starts August 20th) and my new position, but I found out that I'm going to be camping every week (whether I took the mentor position or not) and it is going to be very hard to be away from Ben and home so much! 

On Friday I worked in the office getting ready for the Pueblo crew's first and only camping trip that I'll be going on next week. There was lots of shopping and packing to do! It should be an interesting week because they've never worked and camped before, but they're a tough group so they should get through it just fine! 

On Friday morning, as you've all heard, the shooting in the movie theater happened. The theater is not far from our house and Ben and I had recently seen a movie there. I can't wrap my head around what happened at all, and thinking about it makes me sick to my stomach. Thanks to everyone who checked in on us and are praying for the victims. It's hard being so close to something so awful.

Friday night we had tacos with Justin and Ashley and watched Batman Begins. Saturday, Ashley and I volunteered with the Mile High Weimereiner rescue and hung out with a bunch of awesome dogs at a meet and greet for potential adopters! It was fun, but very hot! Meanwhile, Ben and Justin went skeet shooting at the park by our house. Afterwards, we met up at Justin and Ashley's house, grilled out and watched the Dark Knight movie. We then went to see the new Batman movie. It was a good movie, but it was also so heartbreaking to think of the shooting while we were there. 

Today Ben and I had a lazy day around the house, did lots of chores, and I've been packing up for my camping trip that I start tomorrow!

An Early Spring!

I suppose it might not be considered an early spring for Denver, but experiencing 60-80 degree weather in March is a wonderful change for me! I still keep expecting a freak snow storm or cold snap, which would be perfectly normal in the Midwest!

Although it has been warm, we haven't been doing too much more outdoor activity. This makes me sad! We have been pretty busy over the last month, which I guess is why I haven't posted lately! I keep reminding myself to do it, but somehow it never quite gets crossed off on the to-do list.

Let's see here... last time I posted was the end of February! Wow! ...Sorry. We have spent a lot of the last few weekends spending time with our friends Justin and Ashley. We have had lots of game nights. These usually involve a combination of board/card games, movies, beer, and cooking great food! We have also been helping (or tagging along) with some of their wedding planning errands. I've been helping Ashley pick out shoes, but we haven't found the right pair yet- even after some very long days of shopping! I keep telling her to just have no shoes like we did- it makes it so simple! ;)  Bill, Justin, Ashley, and I also looked at a bunch of tux options and made some decisions on styles and color combinations. They are going to look very sharp! Ashley and I also tried to narrow down some bridesmaid dress options- the trick is that we have to find the combination of the right color, style, fabric, and price! Very tricky.

We had a special night out at the beginning of the month with Justin and Ashley when they had some guests from college visit! There were 4 visitors, and 3 were foreign exchange students. They were getting a mini tour of America over their spring break! We just got to spend one night with them in downtown Denver, but it was very fun! They all had great personalities and were easy to get along with. They were very impressed with the half yards of beer and food at the Yardhouse! We were especially impressed with the service there when Ben accidentally knocked his half yard glass onto someones food and the restaurant didn't end up charging him for the first plate or his replacement dish either. We didn't end up staying out very late because they had to get on the road early to go skiing and then keep heading west!

Another special weekend we had was St. Patrick's day! The three of us dressed up in fun green clothes (and of course Ben was in his kilt) and went downtown. We met up with some friends at the Yardhouse to start out our night. We hung out with Joey and Tracey- Joey is an old friend of Ben's from high school who just moved to Denver to be with his girlfriend Tracey. Ben hadn't seen Joey in a few years and we were all meeting Tracey for the first time, and we all got along famously! It was really awesome to meet people that we got along with so well. We're hoping to spend more time with them soon! Anyway, at the Yardhouse our St. Paddy's day was complete with green beer and corned beef sandwiches (that were totally divine! I wish they weren't just a holiday item!). After the Yardhouse we tried to find another nice place to hang out without much luck. Even with a Denverite, Tracey, we weren't able to find a place that wasn't packed! Eventually we came across a bar called 1 UP, which piqued our interest. It was full of retro (and some newer) arcade games. There was a bit of a line, but we didn't feel like going anywhere else, so we didn't mind waiting for a bit. When we got to the front of the line we were still going to have to wait a little longer, but the bouncer really liked Ben's kilt so he let us in right away. Ben was very proud! We got a few drinks and spent lots of quarters playing games like pacman, pinball, and street fighter. I wasn't too skilled at the arcade games, but I found out that I am not terrible at skiball! We're hoping to go back there again soon and play some more games hopefully when it isn't so busy! After we spent all of our quarters we went home on the light rail. Tracey and Joey only live 6 stops away from us, so it won't be at all difficult to meet up in the future.

The weekdays, I'm sorry to say, have been far less interesting than the weekends. Ben and Bill have been keeping busy at work and I have been doing a lot of reading (Swamplandia, Rook, and the Percy Jackson series- I recommend all of these! ), watching Queer Eye on netflix, and of course applying for lots and lots of jobs. I have only heard rejections so far :( . Ben and I ended up making a deal that if I could apply for 10 jobs in 1 day that we would go look at dogs together. I accomplished that goal, and we had a fun day of going to some dog shelters around Denver. We went to the Denver city shelter, Max Fund shelter, and the Dumb Friends League (which has a silly name, but is a very cool place!). We saw lots of dogs (and cats!) that we liked, but we couldn't decide on one to take home. I did have a dog in mind that was at the Denver shelter but it was being adopted when we got there! We looked at lots more, but we have very different tastes in dogs and we didn't see any that seemed like the right match for us. Ben likes black lab mix dogs, and I like Australian Shepherd/border collie dogs or other similar kinds with longer fur. Another problem is that we should probably get a smaller dog than either of those kinds so that it will fit in our apartment and won't need as much exercise. We both really love huge dogs (we saw a really cool great dane!), and don't really know what to think of medium sized and smaller breeds.
Some slightly more exciting things have going on in the apartment though. A few days ago we had the fire alarm go off and lots and lots of fire trucks came to the building! It was very noisy and exciting, and luckily nothing major happened. I think there was just a little kitchen fire in the building adjacent to ours. I guess other than that things have been pretty quiet. We got some new neighbors with some barky dogs that we have yet to meet. Our lobby, mail area, and exercise room just got repainted and they look pretty snazzy!

Since we recently filed our taxes, we got our return money back! Most of the money went to paying off bills, but we saved so me to spend on ourselves. Ben bought a new video game, Mass Effect 3. I went on a little shopping spree at Kohl's and Target and bought some spring clothes! I got a blue purse, a pair of stripey slip-on shoes, a yellow skirt with paisley stitched on the bottom, an off white lacey dress, and a fun multicolored stripey dress. Unfortunately, it hasn't quite warmed up enough for me to wear them yet (although my standards for wearing shorts/dresses is pretty high), but I have been getting lots of use out of the purse and I totally love it!

This past weekend we had an extra special adventure! On Tuesday night, Ben's uncle was in town on a mini business trip. He took us out for drinks and snacks at Earl's and we had a really great time! It was fun to catch up with him and also have some really good conversation. Ben's mom and sister came drove to visit us and take a vacation! They got here on Wednesday night. Ben's uncle was still in town and we had a big dinner planned, so it worked out fabulously that everyone was able to come to our apartment and have a big shrimp scampi feast! I don't know how we are going to eat all those leftovers! On Thursday, the three ladies drove to Idaho Springs to go to the cabin that the Little family rented. The town was very cute, the woods and mountains were beautiful, and the cabin was perfect! I hope we can go back soon! Here's the link to the place we stayed: http://www.vrbo.com/290592 . If you're planning on a visit I highly recommend it! We had a ton of great adventures hiking and exploring in on the property, the national forest, and the town of Idaho Springs. We also had a great time playing lots of games together, cuddling up in blankets, reading  books,  and making and eating lots of wonderful food. We also visited the Tommyknocker brewery that is located in Idaho Springs- Ben was very jealous that we went there without him because they make some of his favorite kinds of beer! Ben drove out to the cabin on Friday night after he got done with work, and Bill came out on Saturday morning, too! We played more games and did lots more hiking and exploring with the guys! We found a river on the cabin property and Bill found some fools gold in the water. It was pretty cool to see all the sparkly gold water, and our boots were still sparkling after we got back! The Littles left early Sunday morning to head back to Minnesota. After we finished packing up the cabin, Bill, Ben, and I went into town to do a little more exploring and to get breakfast. Bill headed home on the freeway, and Ben and I took the top off the Jeep and took the back roads home. It was very nice out, but it was still a bit cold in the mountains! The ride was very beautiful! Once we got home, however, we noticed how sunburned we had gotten! On our way back we stopped at Ben's work. They had just finished moving into their new office on Friday night and I was seeing it for the first time. It is very cool and huge- several  times bigger than their old office! Ben has a big desk and shares an office with 1 other guy who I haven't met yet. Bill has a big corner office that he shares with 2 other people that he works with. There is still a lot of organizing left to do there, but everyone is very excited to finally have enough office and work space for everyone!

On Monday afternoon Ben came home early after starting work early. It was great to see him, but unfortunately he was mostly home just to pack up for a work trip to southern California. He'll be gone at least a week and he's very busy so I haven't been able to talk to him much so far. Hopefully everything goes well so he doesn't have to be gone longer!
On Tuesday, yesterday, I biked to the dentist. I had an appointment for an exam and xrays because I hadn't been to the dentist in a while. It turned out to be a 3.5 hour appointment because 2 of my fillings had to be replaced! Luckily, my teeth were otherwise in great shape- the dentist was very impressed that I came in without a problem and that my teeth were doing so well! The appointment was of course very long and painful, but it wasn't too bad overall because the dentist was basically the nicest and most caring person I have ever met! She was actually really fun to be around and made the whole experience a lot better. Oh yeah, and my replacement fillings are made of porcelain! They took 3d pictures of my teeth and a machine carved my fillings with diamond drills so that they fit into my teeth perfectly. Pretty spiffy! Once I finally got out of the appointment, though, I was so exhausted, hungry, in pain, and numbed that I didn't feel well enough to drive home so I had Bill pick me up! I felt much better after eating some (soft) dinner (I had an early breakfast and skipped lunch because of my appointment) and taking some pain killers!
After dinner Bill and I ventured out to the Denver REI. It was huge! It is a (the?)  flagship store, and it was way cool! It was locate in a giant old International Harvester warehouse- I definitely got lost a few times! Bill picked out some sandals, a water bottles, and bike lights, and we had fun looking at lots of other stuff! I'm excited to take Ben there when he gets back, but I'm afraid we'll never be able to leave! After the REI, Bill remembered that there was a really cool ice cream place nearby. We walked across a huge bridge to get there. It is called Littleman Ice Cream and it is just a little hut (shaped like a giant milk can) with 2 guys serving a huge line of people through the windows. All the dining space was outdoors. The ice cream was incredibly delicious and they had very unique flavors! We got served by a guy who looked exactly like Jude Law. I asked him if he was Jude Law, but he denied that he was (I'm convinced he was lying). We ordered 1 serving of lemon creamsicle to share and we got a huge serving that I don't know how 1 person would be able to eat!  I'm hoping to go back again soon to try some of the other flavors like oatmeal cookie and salty oreo.

Phew! That basically catches us up to today! I'll try to post more so the entries don't get so long!!
Thanks for reading!

February Fun

February has been full of adventures!
We have been settling in here even more now. There still hasn't been much (lasting) snow, so we haven't gone snowshoeing or skiing again yet :(
We have, however, found a way to get outside more often and to get things done! We have been walking to Target about once a week. There are lots of stores there such as Target, Kohl's, game stop, grocery store, and a frozen yogurt shop! The walk is about 2.75 miles one way. So we walk, do what we need to do, and then head home.  It takes several hours but we don't usually mind because none of us stay particularly active. The frozen yogurt shop is called Menchie's and it is incredible and delicious! If you ever visit us (please do!) it is very likely that we will take you there (but we won't force you to walk. maybe.)! You just walk in, take a giant cup, and fill it with any flavors and toppings you like. Then you pay for it by weight. There are always new flavors every time we go, so it is always a new experience. Also, they have mini cups out so you can get samples of any kind you want to make sure you like it!

The grocery store there is called Sprouts farmer's market. It is like a Trader Joe's or other chain health/co-op type stores you may have seen. I like getting our fruit and veggies there and sometimes we get extra delicious cheese there too! I tried to apply for a job there but they did not have any positions open. Typical.

Over the last week of February we had some fun visitors! Ben's cousins and their significant others took a road trip to Colorado. Nic, Megan, Chris, and Manda were in town for about a week and we spent some great time with them. First they had some adventures on their own, but then we got to spend time with them exploring downtown Denver, and later, the Rocky Mountains! I was lucky that they were so generous to offer me a place in the cabin they rented just outside Rocky Mountain National park. The visitors' center was right across the street from where we stayed. We stayed in the cabin for several days and spent lots of time playing games, making and eating delicious food, hanging out in the hot tub, looking at the stars, and of course exploring the mountains. Ben was able to drive out twice around his work schedule, which was really great! In the mountains, we saw lots of deer, snow, and elk! We saw a few groups of male elk and we saw some fights which were really cool! The clack of their antlers coming together bounced off the mountains. We also saw a huge group of young and female elk. There were about 200 of them and we had to wait for them to cross the road in front of us in a single-file line! It was very cool to see and I hope we can go up there again soon! You can see some of the pictures I took on facebook.

Only a few days after they left I got a message from my family that my youngest sister was in the hospital. She had been sick for a while and they finally were figuring out what was wrong with her! She needed a few minor surgeries and procedures done, so I decided to fly back to Wisconsin to take care of her during her recovery. Little did I know, my sister is a super-human and healed exceptionally fast and well! I was with my family for almost a week and I got to spend lots of great time with my family and all the pets! I also got to see some great friends that I haven't seen in a while! And, over the weekend my brother was able to fly out to visit as well- it was a nice reunion. Meanwhile, Ben was in Denver working 12 hour shifts! He worked enough so he didn't get too lonely, but it was a tough week! He finished it up by going on a ski/snowboard trip with some coworkers, which was fun, but he did get a little banged up!

They day after Bill and I got back it was Valentine's day. We were all pretty worn out, so we didn't have any big plans. We stayed in and had our traditional dinner of fetuccini alfredo and caesar salad. We were thinking about watching a romantic movie to complete the night, but then we just ended up watching a few episodes of How I Met Your Mother, our standby show lately.

In addition to seeing the cousins, we've had another guest lately as well. My college friend Nathan visited recently as well! He was also visiting other friends, but we did have time to go out to a few meals and take a trip to the zoo! That was the second trip to the zoo I took this month, and it was very worth it! The Denver Zoo totally rocks- I see new things every time I go. If you come and visit (please?) I will take you there too! (If only they would call me back about the job I applied for...)

We also have had fun with local friends lately too! Last weekend we went to Justin and Ashley's apartment for a game day! We played lots of board, card, and video games and had a great time! We also got to meet their very friendly foster dog- a black lab/weimeriner mix named Wyett who loves to play and cuddle! Our next date is to bake and eat some apple pie- yum!

Things in our apartment have been pretty calm. We got some new shelves for our game collection- it looks much nicer than a big pile on the floor! We also put up two wall shelves for our movies (and perhaps a projector in the future). It looks pretty snazzy, if I do say so myself!
Our big activities lately has been doing taxes, sorting paperwork, paying bills, and working on eating the 9 boxes of girl scout cookies we bought!

January Heating Up

So far, the coldest temperature I have seen is about 25. Ben says that one morning it was down to 13. But these temperatures are apparently not normal around here. It seems like most days are between 30-60. A couple days ago it got up to 70 (the day that it apparently got very cold in the Midwest!). It feels a little unnatural, but it is ok with me to not be freezing all the time. Ben is pretty sad though because he loves the cold! There are a few things that I miss about having a cold winter though! It hasn't snowed very much here (as everywhere, apparently), although, more accurately it has snowed a few times but then it gets so warm that the snow melts very quickly. There are just a few big black snow piles around in parking lots for the most part. Another sad thing is that we got an apartment with a fireplace and we don't really have occasion to use it! We have used it a few times to add some atmosphere, but really, it just makes us get hot! There's something to be said about curling up in front of a warm fire on a cold day! Those two things are the ones I miss the most. Other related items are: less occasion to drink hot tea, I have a ton of super warm and awesome winter clothes I am not wearing ( I even just added to my infamous wild knee-high sock collection!), and we haven't been able to go snowshoeing or skiing more than once!
Anyway, no one reads blogs to hear about the weather. You read my blog to find out about my exciting life! Hah.

I bought some new hiking boots! I have been ogling them for a couple years now. Finally we have some money I can spend! I thank my husband profusely for working so I can spend his hard-earned money on things for me! ;) My boots are purple Ahnu Montara boots- here's a picture: boots Cool, right!? They are so lightweight and fit perfectly that it feels like I'm not even wearing them!
See how exciting my life is?!

Last Sunday we went on a big adventure to fix the guys' cars. We drove to a shop about two miles away from us and left the cars there while we explored the surrounding area for the day. It was nice being forced to get to know the area we live in! We first walked a mile-ish down and checked out Target and Kohl's. We got a couple things after the guys enjoyed searching the clearance area for shirts. Bill ended up with 3 nice shirts, and Ben got some much-needed pants (unfortunately not on sale and very expensive), hopefully these last longer than some of his other pairs! After shopping we walked back past the car shop and probably another mile in the other direction to get lunch at the Olive Garden. Endless soup, salad, and bread sticks- yum! Eventually we made it back to the car place and picked up the cars. Ben's car unfortunately needed lots of work done and we spent lots of money on it! Hopefully, Daisy won't need any more major repairs for a while.
On the way back from picking up the cars we checked out a "farmer's market" called sprouts. Really, it's just a store akin to Trader Joe's. But, it is nice to find a store close to us that sells really great produce and natural products. And a lovely selection of cheese! I got a very large block of Fontina...  yummmmmm!

Last Saturday Ben and I went on a date to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It totally rocked! We saw a ton of cool things- Ben and I both found exhibits that we were particularly excited about and of course saw things that we were both interested in. We also had a delicious lunch at the cafe. One of the coolest exhibits was a traveling exhibit. We were lucky to catch it on the last day! It was about dinosaurs- particularly the Trex skeleton named Sue. Aside from info about Sue's bones and the dig, we learned a lot about dinosaurs in general and saw animatronic dinosaurs as well. The robot dinos were especially interesting because they were interactive! If you got too close to the nest, the triceratops would get visibly agitated and try to protect her eggs. The raptors would follow your movements and "hunt" you- very creepy actually. The robotic trex would follow you a bit too and roar occasionally, which would, in turn, frighten the other robotic dinosaurs. In general there were a lot of interactive exhibits at the museum and I really enjoyed it! We have to go back soon because even though we were there for over 4 hours, we only saw about half the exhibits! The place is huge!

This week, we took a step toward becoming official Colorado residents! We went to the DMV to get in-state driver's licenses. Of course we had to wait in line for 2 hours basically just to sign our names. And of course the other line went about 5 times as fast. But the lines were for different services and we just had to stand and wait. We should be seeing our licenses in the mail in as soon as 30 days! Wow... so fast! Unfortunately, Bill is going to have to go back another time with more paperwork to get his. Additionally, we'll have to go to a different DMV again to get Ben's license plates transferred as well (and cross our fingers in hoping there's no emissions test!), but at least we have started the process!

Last week I did something exciting! Well, got excited about something, more accurately. I applied for a job at the Denver Zoo! I've been applying for things here and there, but I haven't gotten excited about any jobs until now! The job is basically an educational zoo keeper. If I get the job, I would basically work with animals and then teach other people and kids about them in shows and workshops. It is pretty much right up my alley, and I definitely had a strong application. Keep your fingers crossed for me! If you have nothing better to do (which must be the case because you are still reading this blog), you can look at the job description here. I'm trying not to get too excited so I don't get my heartbroken, but I am obviously not having much luck with that.

Today I got to see some Luther friends, Nathan and Alyse! It was great to see some familiar faces! While the boys were still at work, the three of us took a nice hike to Cherry Creek State Park and had some tea (thanks for the AWESOME tea, LittleC!) when we got home. After that we had some cheese and crackers before the whole gang went to the Bent Noodle (our restaurant of choice lately) for dinner. It was wonderful to see them and hear about all of their adventures. Hopefully we'll be able to do more with them while they are still in town!

We'll see what's in store for this weekend- maybe I can convince the guys to go to the art museum!
Hmm, pretty unlikely.

Thanks for reading!

A better late than never update!

It is my pleasure to tell you that I am posting from a new computer! The keyboard even works! Unfortunately, this is only a new computer to me. It is actually my brother's 7 year old computer (3years older than mine!) but it is in a little better condition than my Betty!
Anyway, the reason I haven't posted lately is a mix of being too busy or not busy enough. Essentially, my life has either been incredibly boring to say anything about or I've been too busy to post!
But lots of exciting things have happened!
Let's see... I went dress shopping with Alex and Ashley again and she picked out a dress! It is beautiful and I'm very excited to see it on her!
It isn't nearly as exciting, but I got a haircut last month too. If you haven't seen it- it's a quite a bit shorter and a darker reddish brown. I like how it turned out, but I'm not sure I'll go back there or not- I didn't like the stylist I had very much.
We have also done lots of new arranging in our apartment and I decorated for Christmas! We got lots of new shelves, put lots of things away, and even got furniture slip covers! I have some pictures of the place on facebook.
Speaking of Christmas...
For a couple weeks before the holiday, we kept getting gifts in the mail. It seemed never ending! We had our own Christmas between the 3 of us before we left the state. We exchanged gifts in the afternoon that the guys had off. Ben and I got Bill snowshoes so we were able to all go tromping out together at the state park that same day. We ended staying out til sunset. It was beautiful! There's a couple pictures of that trip on facebook too.
Ben got me tickets to go to the holiday lights at the Denver Botanic Gardens as my gift! It was very beautiful and romantic! We got to walk around outside and look at lights, plants, snow, and ice! Inside we got to see some beautiful orchids- apparently that is their specialty!
Our friends Wilfer and Alaina were in town over their school Christmas break. We were lucky enough to get to see them on the 23rd after we got back from the gardens. It was great to see them, although we ended up staying up late chatting and eating cookies.
As for out big Christmas pilgrimage, we left on the morning of the 24th. Although, at that time of day, I'm not sure if it even counts as morning yet. We got up at 2 am, and gathered up our things. (Please not that Ben and Bill went to bed around 12:30 and I think I fell asleep about 1:55) At 2:45 we left to walk to the light rail station. It was very cold and I think bags weigh more that early in the morning. Ben ended up having to carry mine part of the way! We caught the bus at the train station. The airport shuttle was supposed to be a coach bus, but for some unlucky reason, we had a city bus. The ride ended up being very long and crowded! We did meet a nice little old lady that we got to talk to though! Finally, we got to the airport at 4 am. Luckily the airport was pretty quiet at that time and we didn't get held up by lines. Unfortunately, we did get held up at the ticket counter. All the other airline counters were open when we got there except ours! It didn't open until 4:30. So we got to have even more time to sit and rest. After we got our bags checked, we went through security and waited at the gate. Then we had our 6 am flight- our first flight of the day. We landed in Kansas City, Mo and had an incredibly boring 4 hour layover. If ever you have a choice of going to that airport, you should avoid it at all costs! It was tiny and boring and we couldn't even get anything to eat unless we went through security. Eventually we made it to Milwaukee and got to see the family! The only good thing about those flights was that we had some really nice and entertaining flight attendants!
The rest of the day we relaxed and wrapped up our gifts. We went to bed early and tried to catch up on some sleep! The next few days we fun, family, and friend filled! I'm glad I got to see lots of people, but sad that I missed seeing some and wished I could have seen more of other people. The whole experience was short but sweet.
Family and friends aside, it was also fun to see my family's new kitten and even newer puppy! Freyja the kitten and Gracie the puppy don't get along but they are both very cute! Gracie is an albino deaf puppy and she has a lot to learn! We are lucky we have Cody to take care of her and teach her everything she needs to know!
We flew back to Denver on the 29th. This time the layover was in Las Vegas. Were hoping it would be slightly more glamorous than our previous layover- and it was- but not by much. We finally made it home and had a friend pick us up this time. Then we slept for a long time to recover!
The next day, we were lucky to see Ben's parents! They stayed in town for a couple days and we got to have another family Christmas! They left on new year's eve and went to Justin and Ashley's house with some other friends- including Wilfer and Alaina! We had a very nice celebration complete with kinect and champagne.
The next morning we at french toast and came home to Bill's new mattress! He finally won't have to sleep on the floor anymore! New year's day was also Ben's and my 6th month wedding anniversary. So far, so good!

The boys have now gone back to work and I've gone back to looking for some. This week they are pretty bored, but they did have a special day on Wednesday. They had a big meeting with the whole office for the end/beginning of the year. They even met some  people that they hadn't met yet. That night, we got all dressed up and went downtown for an office dinner. It was really great meeting all of the coworkers and finally putting names to faces. The place was called ocean prime, and it was the fanciest place any of have ever been! We had calamari, crab rolls, and goat cheese ravioli as appetizers. Then, we had lobster bisque. Next, asparagus and hollandaise and truffle oil macaroni and cheese. Our main course we had options of 2 different steaks and crab encrusted tilapia (which is what I had). For dessert we had huge individual lemon-blueberry cheesecake (like me!) or an even bigger chocolate peanut  butter cake! The drinks were all really fancy too! I don't remember what mine was called but it had a organic edible orchid in it! There was so much food in that meal that no one could really finish! I brought lots of mine home to enjoy later! The company paid for all of that, and the icing on the cake was that their boss also got them Christmas presents- they each got a Nook reader! I'm very excited that I don't have to share with Ben anymore- he hogs ours!
Now that all the holiday madness is over, things are finally back to normal around here. Well, things would be more normal, however, if the temperature wasn't 60 degrees! When I took jterm courses at Luther the temperature was often below 0, even down to negative 40 once! Quite the difference! It doesn't even feel like winter!

I think that concludes my updates for now... although I feel like I probably left a lot of things out because there was so much to write about! I'll try to be better about updating more frequently and in smaller posts now!
Love you all!