Happy One Day Birthday!

Dear Caleb,

You don't know this yet, but you are one lucky kid. You have two amazing parents- trust me. I'll remind you of this as a teenager! Your mommy and daddy have been friends with me for 8 (eight!) years and have been there for me in good times and hard times. And they'll do an even more amazing job of being there for you.

So trust me Caleb- you're super blessed. Especially because your parents didn't pick any of their friends' lovely name choices- like Job or Duck or Bear or Treasure or Scavenger.

Love,

aunty nicole

I Run for Bread

And reusable bags... It's true. This morning Carissa and I embarked on the pre-race of our 1/2 marathon race journey- the Panerathon 10k, where we also met up with Carissa's roommate. It was a beautiful a.m. and a rather uneventful run. But we made good time and got to eat delicious bagels, which in my opinion always makes for a good morning. I ran this race with my friend Susan two years ago. At that time, the 10k was our goal. It was fun to see how much easier the race was this time around. I'd like to think Susan was running with me in spirit though. After all, she's currently at the hospital doing something much harder (no thanks to Eve).

On Hobbies

So unless you're a complete stranger, it won't come as a surprise to you that Eric and I are very different. It's good for us- trust me- but it also has its challenges. Especially when trying to connect our social calendars.

During the past year, Eric used to play nerd games on Sunday afternoons. I don't really consider myself "needy" persay, in my humble, biased opinion, but to be honest I would miss our ability to hang out and relax together. Eric took a hiatus from that hobby earlier this summer and took up a new one- playing soccer on Friday nights at a local park. I love soccer and am glad he has this recreation, but do not so much relish the idea of playing it after a long week of work. So he and a friend often go together. This works well, except when I try to fill his Friday night with a double-date or when my extroverted-ADD self is trying to break free from Friday night boredom.

As we made a compromise a couple weekends ago on this point, Eric looked at me and said, "You know what. You need a hobby." He then proceeded to list a couple of ideas that didn't quite light a fire under me. I explained that I love planning parties and things for us to do, which he said didn't count. It was then that I came to this realization: My hobby is people. Anything involving people, I am all about. Which didn't quite solve our problem. Though it did aid in my mid-twenties self-discovery. And that's just what you get when an introvert and extrovert tie the knot.

Why My Students Will Say, "Why Teacher, You Look Like a Lobster!" Tomorrow

Saturday morning we hiked our last 14-er of the season. We started a little bit later than we normally do (pushing 8 am) since we got lost on the way up to Mt. Quandry. For you non-Colorado-ins, the reason for the really ridiculous early start is because afternoon thunderstorms usually move into the mountains by late morning. (Yes, I realize the irony of that sentence.) And really, who wants to be a lightning rod on the top of a mountain???

However, there was not a cloud in the sky the entire day, making for a beautiful hike. It was pretty rocky trail, which made it slow going, but like always, the view was worth all the calf pain.

I did, however, make one mistake.

For those who know me well, you know that I am always slathering on the shield of outrageously high - numbered sunscreen- and telling all you tan people to do the same. So like always, I put it on my face first thing as we got out of the car. Yes just my face. In my five hour sleepy brain dressed as I was mini-Eskimo style, this was the only exposed skin to be seen or thought about at all. Which would have been fine … except for the fact that I left the sunscreen in the car.

This realization dawned on me a couple hours later at the summit. I decided not to worry. After all, I was 3,000 + feet above my sunscreen- not much I could do. Except hike down and get it. Oh, wait.

So, here I sit with the entire back of my neck slathered in alo vera writing this post. There is no moral. It just is what it is. Though I probably will never forget my sunscreen again.

p.s. A special shout-out to our friend Aaron who just conquered his second fourteener and took gorgeous pics all day!

From There to Here, From Here to There

In addition to learning 25 + new faces, we got to see quite a few familiar and familial faces in August!

First up was an undocumented visit from several members of Eric's family- Mom, Dad, sister Rachael, sister Ruth, and along for the ride- boyfriend Kent. We hung out with them briefly. It was good to see them!

Next up was a visit from Nicole's family- Mom and Dad (celebrating 30 years- congrats), brother Garrett, and Grandparents from Tennessee. We hung out with them over the weekend and showed them fun sites such as Rocky Mountain National Park (Bear Lake to be specific), Cheesecake Factory, and our house!


Lastly, we had another visit over Labor Day (technically September I know!) from sister Ruth and her fiance Kent. Big congrats to those two. We enjoyed low key hangout with them, when they weren't busy doing wedding planning down in Colorado Springs.


We love company- so please come see us!! I promise to even make you famous on our blog :)

Happy Grandparents' Day!!

Yesterday, I received a phone message from my Grandma, also more affectionately known as Gram or GM. She was calling to check in on me, particularly because I have been MIA from the blogging world for over a month now. So in honor of her and of all our grandparents out there on this lovely Grandparents' Day, I will dedicate my first post following the black hole month of the year, otherwise known as August, to them.

Here's to you, Grandpas and Grandmas- Eric and I owe all of you much thankfulness for years of wise advice, lots of love, past spoiling, and of course the fact that we're here :)

To Nicole's GM and GP in Arizona

To Eric's Grandma in California


To Nicole's Grandma and Grandpa in Tennessee

And to Eric's Grandma and Grandpa in Ohio (who for some silly reason I couldn't find in a picture together!)