Greg, Courtney & Spice

Another trip to San Francisco

2012-01-30T09:59:00.000-07:00

Saturday, I had the day off and of course so did Greg and rather than lounge around our apartment like we do most weekends we decided to go to San Francisco for the day or really how ever long I can stand to walk around.
I decided that we should go to Alamo Park and see the Victorian House known as the Painted Ladies.
I thought it would be easy to find after looking at the map and figuring out which BART stations to use but oh no we got lost,
We started walking in the right direction and then made a wrong turn down the wrong kind of street so then we made another wrong turn and ended up walking in the complete opposite direction of where we were trying to go.
We finally found a map and got ourselves figured out which direction we needed to be going.
It wasn't all bad being lost. We got see how people kind live in the city and the different houses. The old Victorians homes are so pretty and people have their house painted so cute. But it crazy to see that the homes are split for 3 to 4 different apartments.
It was also crazy that people in the different neighborhoods know each other. On more than one occasion people stopped in the street to talk to each other.
But the most crazy thing was seeing a homeless guy stop by a tree right in the street and start going pee. I didn't notice anyone else looking in shock like I did but Greg said a couple other people noticed. Must just be another day in San Francisco.

Anyway, we finally made it to Alamo Park, after passing it and having to turn around.
It was so pretty. The park is up on a hill and you can almost see the entire city from it. The Painted Ladies are beautiful. There are Victorian homes that surround the entire park and almost all of them were beautiful. We sat in the park fro while, mostly so my feet could recover.

After leaving the park we found a more direct route back to Market St and the BART Station. When we had gotten off the BART, the station we got off at had a huge mall and was in the middle of a large shopping area so we walked around the mall and I checked out what stores were around (for future shopping trips).
And then my feet could take no more walking and we got the train to come back home.

Past updating now

2012-01-26T12:29:00.000-07:00

I am such a slacker when it comes it updating my blog. I cant update it with pictures from my Ipad and I hardly get on desktop anymore. So sorry! Anyway, I wont bother with Christmas update anyway since its been so long but I do a quick update for January.

Earlier this month, Greg and I made a day trip out to Yosemite National Park. I had never been there and we figured wee might as well check it out since there was no snow out there yet. And it was a good thing we went out when we did since the Sierra Nevadas for a bunch of snow last week.
While at Yosemite, we checked out a couple of waterfalls and Greg even got me me to hike a couple of easy trails.

Greg has started back to school and is in the second of the three semesters to get his Master's. I am so glad that we are getting closer to being halfway through our stay here in CA.
Greg is taking 2 classes this semester and is starting work on a research projects. Rather than write a thesis and create his own research. Greg has been advised and opted for assisting on current project with PhD student. He told me what he will be working on but I cant remember what it is or how to explain it.

I am already preparing for Greg's stay this summer in ABQ. Trying figure out how and when we will be able to see each other since I will be staying here and continuing to work. : (

This all of what has been going on here this last month.

Updates soon

2012-01-06T15:28:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since this has been updated. There has not been much going on lately.
Here is the short version and long version of our christmas vacation and pictures to follow later.

Early in decemeber, I started working at a new great clips location and was promoted once again to assistant manager.
Greg finished his first semester of grad school and received all A's. Of course! He starts his second semester in a couple weeks. Only two semesters more to go!
We went back to AZ for about 10 days to visit our families and Greg's extended family that was in town.
We went out for new years eve for the first time in a really long time.
Now it's back to work for me and waiting till march for my birthday, Ashley to come visit and going home to AZ again and our anniversary.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-29T14:12:00.000-07:00

I am a little late on posting about Thanksgiving but I have been working every since Thanksgiving.
Greg and I spend Thanksgiving this year by ourselves in California. Not only could I not take time off work since we definitely want to be in AZ for Christmas but the trip would have either been too expensive or to long.
Anyway, so Greg and I attempted to cook our 1st Thanksgiving meal together. We made a small turkey breast, homemade mashed potatoes, corn, homemade pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce and rolls. Only things was we forgot to bake the rolls until it was too late. Everything else turned out Great! I was surprise that we were able to make all without anything going wrong.
The worst part was cleaning up the mess we made making everything.
Besides the cooking, we spent pretty much the entire day watching football. IT was nice to relax at home together since I had been working a lot before thanksgiving and Greg has been busy with school work.

So on to the other unexciting aspects of out life.
I am switching to a new Great Clips location and into a brand new store. Kind of exciting to be in a new place and this location is slightly closer to home. I will also be working full time instead of the some times part time sometime full time I am working now.
Greg is finishing his last week of classes this week and then has a week to study for finals before taking them. He is already registered for his classes for next semester. he is registered to take 3 classes but may be going down to 2.
Greg, Spice and I will be going to AZ for about a week during the Christmas and we cant wait to see everyone and be slightly warmer. Also, we cant wait to meet out nephew who should be arriving next week.
Greg also found out that he will have to spend the summer back in ABQ working. We knew this was a possibility but were hoping that he would be able to stay in CA with me. I will be staying in our apartment in CA since we have our lease and all our stuff her. No reason to move when we will be right back here in about 2 1/2-3 month. I hope to be able to visit Greg in ABQ about once a month and I hope that people will come visit me in CA to keep me and Spice from getting to lonely.

Well thats all for now!

Az trip

2011-10-28T08:14:00.004-07:00

This week I was able to take a trip home to Arizona to see family and do hair.
It was to get to get out of Cali for a little bit, and get away from the earthquakes.
I got in to PHX Sunday night and got to right to work Monday doing hair after getting a much needed pedicure. Monday I also got see Reed. He is growing up so fast and I don't get to see him that much. I also got to see him on Wednesday before I left. I won't get to see him again until his new brother arrives in December. Reed is also moving to San Diego, now that my brother has a new job that requires him and his family to move to San Diego. So we will be seeing less of them.
Tuesday,my mom and I did our usual shopping trip. Gotta hit all the places to far from where I live and am too lazy to go to. We found a few good things and a great pair of shoes. Later that evening, Kalina came over and we did our hair. Which needed to be done so badly. I feel like myself now that my roots have been dealt with.
Wednesday, I was scheduled to fly home. So I hung out at my parent's house with Reed and got myself all packed up to come back to Greg and kitty.
Overall, good trip and we are planning our next trip back to AZ for Christmas.

Noel's came to visit

2011-10-18T11:38:00.000-07:00

This last weekend Greg's parents came to visit us. They were only here for Friday night and Saturday. So Friday night went out to dinner at Johnny Garlic which is a restaurant owned by Guy Fieri (the guy who does Diner, Drive In's and Dives). The food was good bur not as good as I thought it would be for him being so famous. Anyway, we spent some time just catching up on everything since it has been a while since we have seen Greg's parents in person rather than on Skype.
Saturday, we went to Berkeley and San Francisco.
On our way to Berkeley we got lost. Greg and I never drive to Berkeley since he takes BART to and from school. Once we figured out how to get there, we drove to where Greg's classes are and then walked around campus for a little while. Berkeley's campus is beautiful. Its full of green trees and grass and even a couple of streams. Also some of the buildings have beautiful architecture,
After Berkeley, we drove to San Francisco. I couldn't believe how much traffic there was for weekend trying to get and out of the city. After we found a place to park we went to Pier 39 walked around and got some lunch. Then we went to find the trolley cars but after finding out there was an hour long wait we decided to walk around some more. We went to Gharidelli Square, Fisherman's Wharf and the we drove up and down some hills and then finally down Lombard Street.
It was a beautiful day weather wise. Warm and sunny!
After making it back to Dublin, we ordered some pizza and watched the ASU football game.
It was a good exhausting day and we cant wait for them to come back and visit and to stay longer so we can go more places.

Home Sweet Home

2011-10-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

Finally pictures of our apartment here in Dublin, CA!

View from the door

Living Room to the left

Office and Kitchen to the Right

Kitchen

Office Space

Other view of front door and living room

Living Room and door to our patio

Bedroom

Bedroom and all our furniture squished in

Walk in Closet

Thankfully its a big closet

Hallway from Bedroom to Bathroom
and Laundry Closet on the left

Bathroom

Large Patio

Not much going on...

2011-10-03T09:51:00.000-07:00

The title pretty much sums it up. Not much going on around here.
We have survived almost 2 months here in California, which means 14 months until we move back to New Mexico. I kind of cant wait to move back to ABQ. I am ready for mountains, less humidity and cheaper prices on everything! Oh and getting out of a one bedroom apartment. Ready for big spaces!!

This is not to say we don't like it here. I am doing OK with work. The store I work at is just a temporary store until a new location opens up, so I am working part time still. The store I work at isn't very busy so some days are kind of long. One good part about working is that a girl work with just moved here from Chicago with her husband and we are becoming friends and bonding over our shared experience of moving for our hubbys. We are going to try to be work out buddies since we both put some weight on during our moves and subsequent weeks.
Greg has been doing ok with school. He has recently remembered that studying is important and is working towards studying more and doing his homework before the night before its due. He is glad that he is only taking 3 classes while he is adjusting to being back in school. But we both cant wait for it to be over : )

We have not taken any more day trips since football season has started and I have been working weekends. We hope to taken some soon, next up is hopefully a trip up the Pacific Coast Highway.
Greg's parents are coming to visit us in about a week and half and we will probably be making another trip to San Francisco. Which I have yet to get tired of because of all the yummy food.

I still need to take pictures of our apartment...its never all clean at the same time. But I think I will try to take some pictures today and get the posted,, mess and all.

Labor Day and Pictures

2011-09-06T11:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday on Labor Day, Greg and I both had the day off so we decided to take a little day trip down to Monterey and check out the aquarium. I had been to the Monterey Bay Aquarium over ten years ago with my family and Greg had never been there. It took us about an hour and half to get to Monterey from our apartment. Once we got there,we walked up and down Cannery Row where all the shops and restaurants are. We didn't do any shopping mostly because it was tourist stuff and we are on a strict shopping budget. We did eat at one of the restaurants. We gotta get our seafood fix! The restaurant was right on the water and we had a view of the ocean, kelp forest and the kayakers. The food was delicious but we decided that we like the food we had in San Francisco better.
After lunch we went the Aquarium. It was pretty busy since it was a holiday and it would be nice to go back on another day. We spent about 3 1/2 hours checking everything out and going to some of the informative shows. The aquarium is much bigger than I remember it being and another building has been added. We got see every kind of sea creature and even touched a few, Kids had taken up most of the spaces near the tanks that stuff you could touch but we snuck in for bit.
The cutest thing we saw was the mommy and baby sea otters. The aquarium had rescued a baby sea otter and one of the females and become its surrogate mom. They were both too cute for words. The coolest thing we saw was the baby Great White Shark. It had been caught in Southern California and will in the aquarium in Monterey until it becomes too big and they release it back in to the ocean. There were also baby Hammerhead sharks and giant tunas.
It was really nice to get out of our apartment for the day and explore more of California. since we are only here a limited amount of time we gotta fit in as many things as we can.
The next thing we are planning on doing is driving up the Pacific Coast Highway.

Finally here are some pics from our trip to Monterey and San Francisco.

"Nor Cal" thus far

2011-08-25T21:36:00.000-07:00

We are officially moved in to our apartment! Our stuff arrived yesterday and it took 4 guys and Greg and I, 3 hours to get everything out of the crates and all the boxes emptied. Greg and I helped with the box unpacking. Once the movers were gone, we were left with all of our stuff just laying every where. The movers didn't exactly put stuff away so I have been working on it. Everything made it, no worse for the wear. Some of our furniture has little dings in them but nothing bad. Nothing some touch up wont fix.
The trouble is that we have such big furniture for such a tiny place. When I bought the furniture, I had no intention of it being in a such a small place. Anyway, so the lay out of our apartment is kind of silly but we will make it work. Having the kitchen table in the middle of the living room doesn't make much sense but it was the only way it was going to work. Oh well. Good thing we don't have many visitors!
I will post some pictures of our place when I take some and find the connecting cord.

To back track a little bit, Greg and I went to San Francisco on Sunday. We needed to get out the hotel and the apartment so we took a little trip. We took the BART, which is so convenient for us to go to SF. It takes about 40 minutes and its great for Greg to commute to to school which takes about 50 minutes.
Once we got to Sf, we walked to Pier 39 (which is quite the distance) and got some lunch. We had amazing seafood!! Every time I go to SF, I have to eat seafood. After our lunch we walked past Fisherman's Wharf and saw Ghiradelli Square(I am sure that is spelt wrong, oh well). Then we walked up a ridiculous hill. I swear it went straight up. My legs hurt the next day, it was a seriously steep hill. Then I walked down Lombard St. Which is the "crookedest street int he world" . It a really pretty street and the crazy thing about it, that people have their garages on the street. No way I would want to drive down the street, let alone try to park in a garage or try to get out the garage.
After we walked down Lombard St, we started walking back to the BART station since I was exhausted. And very sunburned, as I found out when we got back to the hotel. Super cloudy in SF and I still get sunburned.
To back track more, Saturday, we went to the local mall in Pleasanton which is one of the connecting towns to Dublin. The mall was huge and packed full of people. I don't know why I was surprised but how can there be this many people in these small towns?
To back track yet again, Friday, I got my cosmetology license for CA. So now I am licensed in AZ, NM and CA. After that Greg and I drove around San Jose looking the card room that Greg plans to play poker at in spare time. We had apparently driven right past it when we got to San Jose but spent the next hour or so looking for it, Eventually, we found it and went inside to check it out. Not too exciting for me but Greg was excited. Later in the afternoon I got hired at Great Clips.
I will be working part time at a location San Ramon (another connecting town) until a new location is finished being built in Pleasanton where I will work full time, hopefully starting in Nov.

Back to the present, Greg started school today! He is taking 3 classes (9 credits) and will be doing research (6 credits) as well. Hopefully, Greg will enjoy his classes and do well in them, so we can move back to ABQ next Dec.

Pictures to be posted later

Move 2011

2011-08-17T09:43:00.000-07:00

We have made the move to California! It has been a long 5 days but we are here and kitty made it too.
So my long moving story....

Thursday, was the day that the movers came to pack everything. It took 2 guys about 7 hours to pack up our one bedroom apartment while I sat and watched. That is probably the best way to pack and move. The most stressful part about it was hoping everything got packed well but since I was watching I saw how much paper they were using to protect my stuff and they even paper wrapped and shrink wrapped all my furniture. So I am hopeful it will all make it here safely.

Friday, the movers were back to put everything on the truck to be taken to the warehouse where all our stuff was put into giant crates. This was again awesome to have someone else move and lift all our heavy furniture. The only thing that went wrong that day was that the movers forgot their tools and couldn't take our bed apart and they had packed our tools. So we all waited for about 30 minutes for another mover to come bring some tools. In the end everything was out of the apartment in about 5 hours and I began the cleaning. Friday evening, we met Dave and Rachel for dinner. It was so nice to spend one last night with our friends before we left.
Friday was also Greg's last day at work. That may have been his last day for the next year and half unless he goes back to ABQ for the summer.
Thursday and Friday, Spice spent alot of time locked up in the bathroom while the packers and movers were in the apartment. Poor kitty didn't know what happened when I let her out and everything was in boxes and then gone. We left Spice in the apartment until Saturday afternoon when we turned in our keys.

Saturday, we spent all morning cleaning the apartment. Thankfully the apartment wasn't that dirty so it didn't take too long with Greg helping me out. We then took Spice to our hotel where she was a little nervous at first. Thankfully we had blocked off the only 2 holes that got behind the bed and there were no other places for her hide. That evening Greg's brother Garrett flew into ABQ. We had him fly out so that he could drive one of the cars because I hate driving. Especially long distances and to places I haven't been before. We took Garrett out to our favorite New Mexican restaurant and then returned to hotel to get some sleep before the big drive. Spice was so cute and slept on the bed with Garrett. He became her new favorite person. My little baby love the Noel boys.

Sunday, we left our hotel around 9am ABQ time to start the first half of our drive. After about 4 hours of driving we decided to stop in Flagstaff for lunch and to meet Garrett's girlfriend. I had complained to him that I had yet to meet her so of course we stopped to meet her. We stayed in Flagstaff for about 2 hours, where it was pouring rain. Crazy amounts of rain!
After the long break and meeting Beth, who was very cute and very nice, we got back on the road for about 5 more hours of driving to Barstow, CA. We stopped there for the night. Spice was so glad to be out of the car that she roamed our hotel room and climbed on everything. She again spent part of the night on Garrett's bed.

Monday, we got up early and started back out on the road. Thankfully, this was a much shorter driving day. We arrived in Dublin at our new apartment after about 6 hours of driving. We got our keys and took our kitty to her new home. We thought we were getting a 2nd floor apartment but it ended up being in the 1st floor. Not a big deal but we were hoping Spice would be able to go out on the balcony and watch the geese and turkeys and ducks that roam the complex. We did end up with a larger patio being in the 1st floor. We emptied out the cars that were packed full of stuff that I didn't let movers take and then we headed to our hotel, where we are staying for the next week and half while our stuff is being shipped to us.

Tuesday, we took Garrett to the airport so he could fly back home and then Greg and I went to check on our kitty in the apartment. She survived her first night but it looked like she spent most of the night on the bathroom counter. Greg decided that she needs some "vertical space" so we went and got her a cat tree to climb and lay on so that she can look out the windows better. She doesn't seem to sure about it but hopefully after a while she'll get use to it and use it. Greg and I went to In and Burger for lunch. Which have missed being in ABQ where they don't have any. Greg then decided that he needed an oil change so we drove around looking for a Jiffy Lube which we couldn't find. So we came back to the hotel looked it up again and found out that we had been right next to it and never saw it. Eventually we got there.
So that has basically been the beginning of our life here in Dublin, CA.
I should be getting cosmetology license here in CA tomorrow, so I think I will begin my job search and Greg went to orientation at Berkeley today and as another orientation Monday and then he starts classes next Thursday.

I'll be keeping those of you who read my blog posted on anything new and interesting as the occur. Which sad to say doesn't happen very often.

Courtney's AZ Trip

2011-08-07T11:21:00.000-07:00

This last week, I spent some time in AZ, while Greg stayed behind in ABQ to work.
My trip began with an early morning Monday flight, followed by a short nap once I got to my parent's house. Then once I was awake and ready for the day, I had lunch with my parents and Xander, who had a long break between FedEx runs at Cracker's (one of the places that I miss). After lunch it was right to work with my hair appointments. Xander got cut and then Greg's mom got a color and cut and my mom got her extensions out. Then it was off to dinner at Gecko Grill with my parents and August. Then it was early to bed for to catch up on the sleep I missed flying in so early.
Tuesday, I gave another haircut to Greg's brother Garrett and did my mom's color and cut. My mom and I also went to visit my Gran'Marie for a little while. Then it was dinner at Tia Rosa's (my favorite). Kalina came over that evening and we did our color and got new hair cuts. We basically gave each other same cuts and varied our colors. I got new hot pink chunks in my hair. Can't have boring hair all the time : ) We did make a run to In and Out Burger for shakes while I still had my hair up in foils.
Wednesday, my dad and I spent the day at my Grandma June's house. I had not seen her since Christmas last year so it was nice to spent some time with her. Then that evening, I went out with my girl friends for dinner at Tia Rosa's (really is my favorite). Then I went to visit Sage and see her cute son who is 7 months old. Then it was time for dessert, where Kalina introduced me to Golden Spoon frozen yogurt,
Thursday, my mom and I did some quick shopping. I got a new pair of shoes (some thing practical, a pair of flats) and then 2 pairs of jeans. Then it was time to pick up Reed! We brought Reed over to my parent's house, where started with playing inside and attempting to eat lunch but the we ended up outside playing in Reed's car and playing with water and hose. Besides the sunburn that I got, it was fun to spend time with Reed, who I only see for short periods of time when I come to visit.
After Reed went home, I needed some time to recover and then I went to work putting my mom's extensions back in. After that, Xander and I had plans to go out to but I was exhausted so we order a pizza from Oregano's and I made him a pizookie. After all that, Kalina wanted to go see a movie, so we went to a late show and saw Crazy, Stupid, Love, which was good but not as funny as I thought it would be.
Friday, I was flying home so I didn't do much except go to lunch with my parents once last time.
So that was trip to AZ.

Now I am back in ABQ getting ready to move to CA. The movers are coming in 4 days to pack everything up and then coming the next day to put it all in the truck. A week from today we will be driving to CA, hopefully getting half way to our new apartment.

Apartment Hunting in Cali

2011-07-01T15:03:00.000-07:00

The last four day Greg and I have been in California looking for anew apartment and checking out Berkeley.
We flew over Monday to meet my parents, who had driven over from AZ in Berkeley. We started out right away with apartment searching. Through my research we decided that we could afford to in live in Berkeley because it was so expensive and we couldn't the space we wanted.
We went out about 30 minutes away to Pleasanton/Dublin area and the Walnut Creek/ Pleasant Hill area. The first day of searching only gave us about 2 places that we liked but didn't really love.
We also spent some time driving around the Berkeley area and I decided that there is no way that I could drive there. So claustrophobic! So many people and so much traffic.
On Tuesday we did not driving around and found a few more places that we liked. The only problem was that all the places that we loved were full so we are waiting to see if people put in move out notices soon so we can move in before Greg starts school.
Wednesday my parents decided to drive back to AZ so Greg and I spent the entire day walking.
We walked from out hotel to the Berkeley campus which was a couple miles away. Greg talked to some student service people and they were not as helpful as we hoped they would be. They basically said that everything we need is online and not worry about scheduling classes since Greg cant get classes till August and he has till the end of the 3rd week of school to have all his classes picked out.
Then we walked through campus for a little bit and then we found the BART station (which is the public transit) we decided to try it out and take it to San Fransisco.
Greg has not been in SF since he was 2 and he doesn't remember being there with his parents that long ago. So Greg wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge so we got off the BART and walked to Fisherman's Wharf. We saw Alcatraz Island and the Bridge and Seals and I got my shrimp and chips, which I had to have. And I deserved after all the walking.
By the time we walked back to hotel my feet hurt so much that we did go anywhere else the rest of the day except to get dinner.

So now we wait until an apartment opens up!
Hopefully we will be moving to Dublin, CA August 13th. And we will be spending the next 16-17 months in California,

Getting Ready to Move

2011-05-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Greg had a meeting with his manager and school liaison person to discuss our move to California and Greg's schooling.
I have been stressing for weeks about the logistics of this move. We thought that Greg's work was paying for our trip to look for apartments and we thought were getting a moving company to move our stuff but then we heard we might not be getting that and then we didn't know exactly how Greg was suppose to deal with all the school stuff and still being connected with work.
Thankfully, Greg got it mostly figured out how he suppose to keep in contact with work and how to proceed with registering and getting a thesis advisor and such. He also found out how to get out apartment hunting trip coordinated but he forgot to ask how to get the movers coordinated (thankfully we have time to get that sorted out.) I am glad that we are getting the mover to and from school.

All in all, I am a lot less stressed out. Which means Greg is probably less stressed out too.
Its crazy that we are moving again and that about this time last year, Greg was interviewing for this job he has at Sandia and we were thinking about moving here to ABQ. Our lives have changed so much in last year and they will be continuously changing for about the next year and half. We are definitely living lives we never thought we would have but we are glad for the opportunities.

Caribbean Vacation

2011-05-08T13:15:00.000-07:00

Greg and I had a Great time on our trip! It was nice to relax and enjoy seeing new places and doing new things. Here is a breakdown of the trip:

Friday April 29th

Greg and I were scheduled to fly to Miami with a lay over in Dallas and stay in Miami for the night before heading out on the cruise. However, this did not go as planned. Our flight from ABQ to Dallas went well and we arrived a little ahead of schedule. But when we got to Dallas we found out that our flight to Miami has been cancelled because the President was at Miami messing up all the flights. Anyway, so after talking to the ticket agents and figure out how we could make it to Miami before our cruise left. We ended up flight to Atlanta from Dallas and then had a 7 hour layover before our flight to Miami. So, I attempted to sleep in the Atlanta airport but that didn't work so well. Needless to say by the time we got to Miami and 9 the next morning we were exhausted. And then to top off that awesome part of our trip only 1 of out bags had made it through on the first flight from Dallas to Miami. We had to wait for the next flight from Dallas to come with our other bag. And a few days later I discovered that my box of earrings had fallen out of a partial open zipper. (I am hoping that they fell out here in ABQ and I can find them).

Saturday April 30th

We finally got all our bags, found the shuttle and made it on the ship. After getting all checked in, we ate some food until we could get into our room and finally shower. After the showers it was nap time until dinner. The food on the ship was all fantastic! After dinner we did all little bit of looking around and then went to bed for some well deserved sleep.

Sunday May 1

We got to our first stop at Half Moon Cay, Bahamas.This island in privately owned by the cruise line so it was nice and quiet. The ship at to anchor away from island and we had to take a little ferry to the island. The first thing Greg and I did in Half Moon Cay was go on a glass bottom boat tour. It was neat to see all the coral and fish swimming under the boat and we got feed some yellow tail snapper. Towards the end our boat tour, I started to not feel well and ended up passing out for a few seconds. I think I must have been the heat because I have not been motion sick before and I have been on other boats and not had any problems.

Anyway, after that little ordeal, we went back to ship to change into our swim suits and check out the beach and grab some lunch.

The beach was beautiful and of course only had the people from the ship on it so it was crowded. The water was beautiful blue and clear. Thank goodness there were no fishes swimming by the beach because I get a little freaked out when live fish touch me. After spending a few hours on the beach we headed back to the ship to shower and get ready for dinner and the n we hung out the deck watching the sun set and stars come out.

Monday May 2

We spent this entire day out at sea. We slept in late and then tried to go hang out on the deck in the sun but it was crazy windy so we opted for chillin in our room reading and watching movies. This was the first formal night for dinner so we got all dressed up, took some pictures and went to dinner. We then went to hang out in the casino, to watch the Thriller Dance class, Pretty entertaining watching a bunch of people attempt the Micheal Jackson moves.

Tuesday May 3

We spent the day in St Thomas on our island tour. We stopped at some lookout points. The island was beautiful but the drivers were crazy and they drive on the left side of the road. We then spent a couple hours at Megans Bay (which is suppose to be one of the top 10 beaches in the world. It was beautiful. It was crazy though because the of the shallow water and the small fish swimming around getting dive bombed by the birds and pelicans.

After Meagns Bay, we to a tour area where they had an old Danish Fort that was known as Blackbeard's Castle and they had lots of pirate history and such. We also toured some old colonial homes and an amber museum. We then ended up in main shopping area in Downtown. It was full of jewelry shops!!! I ended up getting a small pair of Tanzanite stud earrings for a decent price. We then headed back to the ship for a nap and a shower. After dinner, we went and checked out one of the shows that was going on on board the ship.

Wednesday May 4

We were San Juan Puerto Rico where we had a tour of the rain forest. The rain forest is part of the US Forest Service, So it had paved roads and walking trials. We kinda hoping for a jeep bouncing through the rain forest but it was still a nice tour. We saw some waterfalls and walked a trail. We visited a look out tower and climbed the 98 steps to the top. We then went back to San Juan where we check out the old 17th century fort. It was pretty neat to walk around a building that old. We went through tunnels saw the dungeon, cannonballs, barracks and water wells. Then we walked back to our ship and napped and got ready for dinner. That evening we watched a movie out on the deck on giant screen.

Thursday May 5

We were in Grand Turk (which is in the British West Indies). This place was my favorite looking island. Looked like the picture perfect Caribbean Island. We went on a snorkeling tour. The water was so clear that was easy to see all the corals and fishes. We saw some big stingrays and Barracuda. One of the guides even picked up a stingray to show the group. After snorkeling we checked out the shopping and then headed back to the ship. Where I napped and we got ready for our other formal dinner night. After dinner we checked out the comedians, who were actually funny.

Friday May 6

We spent this day at sea on the ship. We mostly just hung out, watched movies and read. Tried to stay out of the sun since I had made it through the island stops with sunburns (only a tiny spot on my back got sunburned). We went to a couple of the shows that were going on and they were entertaining. Took short nap (do you see a pattern going on...yay naps) and went to dinner. Then I had to finish packing and then we went to bed early since we knew we had a long day of airports the next day.

Saturday May 7

We got early because we had to be out of our room by 8. We had breakfast and then chilled on the ship until our number got called to get off. Then we headed to the airport where we were 5 hours early for out flight. We had no idea how long it was going to take to get off the ship so we booked an afternoon flight, next time we will know better. We made it on our 2 flights and all our bags arrived in ABQ with us.

We are glad to be home and back with our kitty. We will definitely cruise again.

Things I learned on the cruise:

Leave a day in advance in case flights get cancelled and bags get lost.

Make sure all zippers on luggage are closed all the way.

SPF 110 sunscreen saved my life and constant re application is essential,

Over packing was worth it.

Glass bottom boat not a good idea when hot outside

All you can eat food is fantastic

Also, special thanks to Rachel for taking very good care of my baby kitty while we gone! Spice got spoiled!

Going on a Caribbean Vacation

2011-04-28T11:22:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, Greg and I are leaving to go on a week long cruise in the Caribbean. We are leaving tomorrow to fly to Miami where our cruise is leaving from but we actually leave on the cruise Saturday afternoon.
We are so excited for this vacation. We haven't been on a vacation since our honeymoon 2 years ago when we went to Hawaii. I decided that we needed to go on this vacation now since Greg had vacation time built up from working these last 8 months and since he is starting school in a few months he (and I) needed a break.
Our trip is planned as:
Saturday leaving Miami
Sunday in the Bahamas, planning on a glass bottom boat tour
Monday hanging out on the ship
Tuesday in St. Thomas, planning on a tour of the island
Wednesday in Puerto Rico, planning on a Rainforest tour
Thursday in Grand Turk, planning on Snorkeling
Friday hanging out on the ship
Saturday back in Miami and flying back to ABQ

So excited!!! Greg gets a full week without a work and I get 10 days of not being scheduled for work.
We are sad to be leaving our kitty home alone for a week. Thankfully, our friend Rachel has agreed to come take of our baby while we are gone.

I'll be sure to post pictures when we get back. : )

Ashley Came to Visit

2011-04-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend one of my oldest friends came to visit.
Ashley came over from TX for a couple days with some friends of her's that were going to Santa Fe and they stopped in ABQ to see me :)
On Friday, Greg and I drove up to Santa Fe to pick up Ashley. Her friends wanted to visit some Art Galleries and I just wanted to see Ashley. This was the first time Greg and I have been to Santa Fe. It was not quite what I was expected. It is really small for being the capital city in NM and everything looked really old. Though I suppose any city that has been around since the 15th century would be old. Anyway... Greg and I got lost when we were trying to find the Old Town Plaza but we some how ended up in the right the place. After walking around Old Town for about an hour or so we drove back to ABQ and had dinner with Ashley and her friends.
Saturday, Greg and Ashley decided that they wanted to watch hockey all morning. The Red Wings and Coyotes were playing. Greg was super excited that his Red Wings won. That Afternoon, we went over to our friend, Cole's house for a BBQ and for Ashley to meet everyone we have become friends with here in ABQ. It was alot of fun!! Then we left, came home and went to bed. Exhausting day!
It was really nice to just hang out and spend time with Ashley since we only see each other a couple times a year. Next time she is going to have to come visit us in Cali.

On a sad side note from Greg:
The US Government has shut down all online poker for US players. Greg is very unhappy that he is no longer able to play his hobby. This is sad for me because that means he has money being held online that he cant get at the moment and he will be playing more video games.

Another Weekend Trip to AZ

2011-04-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

It had been 8 weeks since the last time I was in AZ and Greg has not been to AZ since Christmas so we took a trip back home for a few days. It is so nice that Greg gets every other Friday off so we can take long weekends off. So packed up the car and Spice and headed home Thursday afternoon.

Friday was a crazy busy day. I met my friend Amanda for breakfast to catch up on the last few months. Then went home where my mom had a Golden Retriever Rescue group coming to evaluate Isis so they can find her new home. Isis was a good dog the whole time the people were there. She is a sweet dog that just wants people to pay attention to her and if she could play nice with small children she would be perfect. But since she is scared of little kids she needs a new home. After Isis was evaluated Greg and my mom and I went to In and Out burger. Which Greg and I miss since we don't have one in ABQ. Then Greg went to go hang out with his brother and then with his friend Josh. My mom and I went shopping and found some good stuff. Then we went back home where I started giving hair cuts and coloring my mom's hair. That evening Greg and I went out to dinner with his family.

Saturday was equally as busy for me. The morning started off with taking family pictures with my family at the airport and then brunch at Crackers. I had to run a couple errands before starting more hair. Greg's mom needed her color done and his brother needed a haircut. Greg meanwhile is hanging out watching TV and playing video games. After I got done doing Greg's mom hair then Kalina came over to give a color touch up. We then went out to dinner at Tia Rosa's, another favorite I have to go to when in town, Then I had to put my mom's extensions back in and the boys went off to the gun range. That night Greg, Xander, Garrett and I went out to Wild Horse Pass casino to the night club to celebrate Kalina's 25th birthday. It was so much fun to hang out and go dancing. Even though my feet hurt so much because I decided to wear my super cute high high heels. Towards the end Greg had to help me keep my balance my feet hurt so much. They still hurt all day Sunday on the drive back here to ABQ.

Sunday morning, Greg and I had lunch with my family and then with his family before driving back.

We love AZ but its nice to be back in ABQ where the temps are cooler. We did not enjoy the 100 degrees we do like 70 degrees we have here. We must be getting spoiled!

We will be back in AZ in about 8 weeks!!! Cant wait!!!

Visit from Greg's Mom and Grandma

2011-03-21T12:34:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend Greg's mom and Grandma drove over from AZ to visit us. They spent most of Friday driving over but when they got here to ABQ they came to see our tiny apartment. After checking it out here and taking a break from driving we decided to go out to dinner. We then drove around the edge of ABQ to show them the city lights and headed back to the apartment to spend a little time together before they headed to their hotel for the evening.
Saturday, I had the day off work so we took them on a small tour of ABQ. We started out the day at Old Town. There were some shops with Native American art and jewelry and tourist type stuff. There was also some kind "rally" going on so it wasn't very quiet.

We left there and decided to go to Uptown and the mall for lunch. After that we went towards the Air Force Base which is close to where I volunteer. So we did a drive by of the shelter and then went on base for a quick tour to see where Greg works. I had never been on base before so that was also a 1st for me. Greg wasn't sure at first that we would all be able to go on the base since he needs his id to get on but we had no problems. We just stayed in the car and where there for like 5 mins. We couldn't go in any buildings even if we had wanted to. The rest of us don't have the clearance for that : )
After the base tour, we drove back up to where we live to drive around the neighborhoods that we hope to buy out next house in. This is always fun for me because we always find a new little neighborhood that I like. It also serves to remind me that I need to keep saving my money so we can buy a house that really want and not one we would have to settle for.
After looking at homes we dropped Greg's mom and Grandma off at their hotel because they wanted to go to church that afternoon. So Greg and I went back to out apartment, where Greg watched basketball and I took a nap.
After his mom and Grandma got back from Church, we Skype some Greg's extended family in Michigan and New Hampshire and then we went out to dinner for some New Mexican food. The restaurant has some very hot salsa, so I was the only one eating a lot it. Greg's Grandma had a tiny dip of salsa on her chip and she said that was enough her. : )
After dinner, they went back to their hotel.
Sunday, I had to go to work and they had to start their drive back to AZ. But that morning Greg cooked us all a good breakfast and we said good bye!
Although it wont be long before we see them again since we will be in AZ in about a week and half.

Kalina's Visit

2011-03-15T08:56:00.000-07:00

Kalina came out to visit me (and ABQ) for the first time this weekend. She flew out here the day after my birthday which was a great birthday present.
Friday when she flew in, I had to drive the airport all by myself to pick her up since Greg was at work. This was slightly terrifying because I don't like to drive and because I had never driven to the airport here myself and I had never been to the pick up area. Greg is usually just dropping me off the airport the 2 times I have been there. Anyway, I was slightly late picking up Kalina because I was at volunteering way too late. Lots people wanting to see kitties. Once I finally found Kalina we headed back to my apartment and then out to the grocery store. Kalina needed to make her famous layered dip for the party that evening.
Later Friday night, Greg, Kalina and I went to our friend Cole's house for a party/get together. He had friends visiting from Tucson. So Kalina got to meet all the Sandians. It was really fun night!
Saturday, we all slept in and then went out to lunch. We checked out a new place that was sort of a cross between a Wildflower Bread Co and a Paradise Bakery. Both of which I miss because we don't have them here in NM. Then we came back to the apartment where I colored Kalina's hair, colored Kalina's extensions and then put her extensions in. And then we watched movies the rest of the night.
Sunday, we had nothing planned so we were trying to decided on whether to take the Sandia Tram or go to the Nuclear Science Museum. In the end Greg decided that we should take the tram since it was a beautiful NM day and the winds werent too bad. The Sandia Tram is the longest tram in the world and goes up the top of the Sandia Mountain which is over 10,000 ft above sea level. The tram ride was was great and it was beautiful to the see the mountain up close and to the see the city from so high up. Once on the top it was about 40 degrees colder and had 20+ mph winds and snow was still on the ground. It was so pretty on the top we got to see what was on the east side of the Sandia, which we had never seen before. You could even see Santa Fe and Los Alamos off in the distance. Greg though about making us hike to the crest of the mountain, which would have been fine except Kalina and I were not wearing the right shoes for hiking in snow. So we will have to do that another time! The tram ride down was like shaking since the wind was blowing a little harder.

We then spent the rest of the day watching chick flicks and trashy TV : ) Greg spent the rest of the day playing poker and trying not to listen to the movies or tv.

Monday, Kalina and I met Rachel for lunch and some shopping. I took Kalina to our "awesome" mall and the 2 building Dillards and the outdoor shopping mall. Kalina found a few cute things and I bought books. I needed some new reading to get me through my work days. After Greg got home from work and we ate dinner we then drove around ABQ for a little bit to see the city lights. We live up a little higher than most of the city so you can see all the lights. Really pretty! Then we came back to the apartment and watched another movie.

Today, Kalina is leaving! Sad day! So this morning we slept in and Kalina packed up her stuff and we are getting ready to go get some brunch. We don't have much planned for the day since I have to take Kalina to the airport around 2. : (

It has been so great to have a friend from back home out to visit me and see what ABQ is all about. Kalina's next trip will have to be out to California to see what we are doing there. : )

Birthday

2011-03-11T11:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my 24th birthday! I am starting to feel old.

Anyway, so yesterday I did not do very much. I didn't have to work so I stayed in the apartment in my sweat pants, watch some tv and made some funfetti cookies. When Greg got home from work, he took me to Texas Roadhouse for dinner and then we went shopping for these shoes that I have been in love with since I saw them. So needless to say I had to get them for my birthday.

Love them. The 6 inch heel makes me about 2 inches taller than Greg (they make me almost 6' 2") and these shoes look way to good. Greg just has to deal with his very tall wife.

So birthday was not super exciting but thats ok. Today Kalina comes to visit for about 5 days!! Having her here is a good birthday gift. I miss all my friends back home and its nice to have one of them come out to me rather than me always going back to AZ.

Yesterday, Greg (& I) got the best news! He was officially accepted to UC Berkeley Graduate School in Mechanical Engineering.

While we really had no doubt that he would be accepted it is nice to have confirmation. Greg really got lucky with his job offer to Sandia. It has given him great job experience thus far and a future job with some job security and it got him accepted (and paid tuition) to the #3 engineering school in the nation. Berkeley ranks #3 behind MIT and Stanford. I could not be more proud of Greg.

This acceptance does make our move to Cali official too. So come May or June we will be going to look for anew place to live.

My Countdowns

2011-02-10T09:40:00.001-07:00

Here are a few things I am looking forward to:
(also how I am keeping myself motivated to go and get through work days)

26 days until Spice turns 5
28 days until my 24th Birthday
29 days until Kalina comes to ABQ to visit me
46 days until Our 2nd Wedding Anniversary
49 days until Greg and I come to AZ for the weekend
78 days until Greg and I leave on our Caribbean Cruise (8 Days of Vacation YAY)
* In May making a trip to AZ to do Hair
* In May or June making a trip to CA to find a new apartment
* In July making a trip to AZ
Approx. 171 days until I quit my job (thankfully I don't have to work all 171 days. I'm hoping for 1/2 that)
Approx. 173 days until Greg and I move to CA
189 days until Greg starts Grad School
221 Days until Greg's 25th Birthday

This should keep me busy for the next 6+ months. Then I'll start a whole new count down : )

Last Week

2011-02-07T10:36:00.000-07:00

Last week, ABQ got some of the worst winter weather in years. Monday evening it started snowing and didn't stop snowing until late Tuesday. We got about 6 inches snow. The temps dropped from the nice 50's to the teens for the high and negative numbers for the lows. After the snow came it got really windy and the wind chill was -25. I let Spice out on to our patio to check out the snow. She wasn't quite sure what to do with it. But after little it must have been too cold for my fat kitty because she didn't want to go out anymore. Poor Greg had to go to work in the cold snowy weather. He had to scrape all the snow off his car and wait for his car to warm up enough to drive it. This is all new to us. We have never had to deal with crazy winter weather

Wednesday morning I left to go back home to Gilbert. When Greg and I left the house to take me to the airport it was -2 degrees and super windy. I was so glad that my flight did not get delayed even though it was crazy windy and cold. Greg had a 2 hour work delayed so he dropped me at the airport and then home to warm up before going to work. When got home to AZ, my mom and I of course went shopping. It was not a very successful shopping trip since I didn't find much. I also I had to give a few hair cuts and color my mom's hair. And then went to Tia Rosa's for dinner. That is the one place in AZ that I miss the most.

Thursday, my mom and I went to pedicures. Kalina came over to color my hair and then Greg's mom came over to get her hair done. Then August and Melissa brought Reed over for me to see and play with. He is so cute!!! Kalina, Xander I finished the night with desserts.

Friday morning, My parents and I got in my Dad's airplane and flew back here to ABQ. My mom was complaining the days before that she was going to freeze but the temps ended up not being that bad. Our flight was a good one. No turbulence and we made decent time. My mom was bundled up in the back while my dad and I sat in the front. I had my Dad's map and the whole flight we were figuring out where we were relative to the land marks on the ground.

Once we arrived in ABQ, We met Greg for lunch and then my parents came over to see to our tiny apartment. My parents then went to their hotel and my Dad met a friend of his. Then we went to dinner and then I had to show my mom the 2 building Dillards. One building is just for women and other building is Men's, Children's and Home Goods. After shopping for a little while we drove around the area where we live to show my parents the fantastic city view

The picture is of Spice hiding under a blanket by Greg. Hiding from my Dad when he came to see the apartment.

Saturday, Greg and I picked up my parents to go to brunch. After brunch we drove around the NE Heights area of ABQ (which is where we live) to show them what kind of housing options we have when we moved to to ABQ permanently in about a year and half. Then we dove up into the foot hills area looking at the homes with city and mountain views. We then toured a couple new model homes. its unfortunate they are out of our budget but it was fun to look. Greg and I then took my parents to ABQ Uptown which is an outdoor shopping mall. After that we took them to visit the kitties at Animal Humane where I volunteer. We then went to dinner and then my mom and I had to get ready to go see Wicked.

Wicked was great as I expected and we had good seats. Greg and my dad hung out at the apartment watching The Pacific.

My parents decided that they were going to leave Sunday morning, which was a good idea because I spent Sunday sick. I started to have a sore throat on Saturday and then by Sunday I had full blown cold complete with fever. I spent the whole day wrapped up in blankets on the couch. This was fine of course because I was the Super Bowl. Greg was so happy that the Packers won.

Today I feel better but I still have a stuffy nose and a cough. But I feel good enough to brave going to work. Thank goodness it is a short shift.

6 more months in ABQ

2011-01-17T11:51:00.001-07:00

Not much is going on with us. I felt I like should blog because some people complain that I do not post enough. So here is some "exciting" insight into every day like here in the ABQ.
Greg is still loving his job and so glad that he is here and able to work at a great company. The benefits and opportunity to work at Sandia has greatly outweighed the disadvantages of moving away from AZ and our families and friends. We miss every one very much though!
We are still going out every Friday night with people from Sandia. This group of people has really helped us adapt to our new city and we have experienced and been places that we probably would not have without this group of friends. For example, this last Friday we went to downtown ABQ to a hotel that has a live band and salsa dancing every Friday night, Greg and I would never have gone salsa dancing without some push from other people. Unfortunately we did not end up dancing this last Friday because a movie was being filmed in the hotel. Oh well. I think the plan is to try going out there again in a few weeks when the movie is no longer filming there. This will also give us time to learn how to salsa dance.
I also have relatively boring life. I am still working at Great Clips about 3-4 days a week. I definitely do not enjoy my job like Greg enjoys his but at least I get out the house and make some money. This week the store is starting its yearly hair cut sale. It should be a busy week and a half. I can only hope tips will good.
When I am not working I do the house wife stuff. Run errands, clean, do the laundry, hang out on the Internet.
Oh I do still volunteer every Friday afternoon at Animal Humane, I finally got through the training so I can hang out with the kitties. The 2 hours that I spend with the kitties is probably the 2 hours I look forward to most all week. I go in and check the list to see which kitties have not gotten any attention that day. Then I start going down the list. I open up the kitty condos and pet the kitties that are too shy to be held or brought out of their condo. The friendlier ones I take out and put on my lap to get their love. The young playful ones, I take out and take in the play room to play with toys and get petted. When the baby kitten room is full of kittens (which it is not right now because kitten season is over) I go in there to let the kitten climb over me and get some attention. There is also a "cat house" at Animal Humane that has 4 large rooms with indoor and outdoor spaces for the cats to wander and climb. Some days I go from room to room and hang out with all the kitties in the "cat house". Playing with kitties always puts me in good mood. A couple weeks ago I helped on lil guy get adopted. The mother and daughter that adopted him loved him from the instant they saw him. One lucky kitty.
Almost every time I go to volunteer I think about bringing a new kitty home with me but so far I have resisted. It was hard last week because I saw an adorable male Siamese with blue eyes with white fur and tabby markings and he was on special pricing for $45. Which is an amazing deal considering he would normally be $95 and he is neutered and microchiped and vaccinated. But I did leave him at the shelter for someone else to fall in love with him. My Spice would be one pissed off kitty if I brought home another cat.

We are still awaiting Greg's official acceptance to Berkeley. His letter will not be coming until April. However we are not worried about him being accepted because from what we have heard Sandia employees always get accepted. Once we have his official acceptance we will begin planning our move to CA and a trip to CA to get Greg registered at school and find a new apartment, This move to CA will hopefully not be as stressful as our move to NM because Sandia is suppose to get us a moving company. YAY no packing boxes or moving furniture for us.
I will be so glad when we finally get to live a house again. We have already started saving for down payment. And cant wait to sell our Gilbert house even though that might not be for another year.

Fat and Happy Spice

Our Week in AZ after Christmas

2011-01-04T12:30:00.000-07:00

The Monday after Christmas, Mom and I went shopping to see if we could find any good deals and to return some stuff. Unfortunately no good deals that day but I did Greg some snow gear. A new jacket and pants so we can eventually go snowboarding. Greg went out shooting with the guys in my family. Xander had to show Greg is new shooting skills. Kalina came over that evening and colored my hair for me : )

Tuesday I cut and colored Greg's mom hair. Greg helped my dad look for a new truck and they attempted to go shooting again the indoor range was full. Greg and I then went to Tia Rosa's for dinner with Kalina.

Wednesday, I got to babysit Reed for most of the day! He is getting so big and since I don't get to see him that much it was fun to hang out with the lil guy. Greg even played with Reed which he never does. He refuses to hold or touch a baby. He thinks that if he acts like he hates babies then we wont have one in the future. He is wrong but we wont be having one for a while still.

My dad picked up his new truck so Greg, Xander, Garrett and Reed all helped out trying to get everything set up for my Dad to use.

That evening Greg and I went out to dinner and a hockey game with my friend Amanda for her 24th Birthday. It was fun go out and meet her boyfriend. We had a great time and the Coyotes won.

Thursday, my mom and I went to get pedicures. A must every time I go back to AZ. The relaxed at

home because I had a headache. Later in the evening I met Kalina for a movie and went out to dinner with Kalina and her friends Tabatha.

Greg spent Thursday at the casino with his dad and brother playing poker. Though Greg didn't win he still has a good time. Greg later went out shooting with a friend of his, Josh.

Friday, Greg braved the cold weather and went to play golf with some old co workers. My mom and I went out to lunch with Greg's mom and grandma.

We then went to meet Kalina for dinner at Yao's our favorite Chinese place. And then we spent New Years Eve at Kalina's house playing Wii and having a fire outside. Not too exciting but it was nice just to hang out. Next year we are thinking same plan but going even more casual, Pajamas or sweatpants : )

New Years Day, Greg went out shooting again with the guys in my family and my mom and I went shopping. Found some good stuff for Greg but nothing for me. We spent the evening with Greg's family. Celebrated the New Year and his Grandma's birthday.

Sunday,we had to make the drive back home to ABQ. Thankfully this time we did not encounter any falling snow. Just snow on the ground for about 80% of the trip. But before we left and put poor Spice in the car, August came over with Reed. I got hold the lil guy one more time. He is such a lil stinker. He poses for the camera. I think maybe his mommy takes a lot of pictures of him. But cant blame her. His is so cute! Wont get to see him again until Feb. and he will be almost 8 months old then.

Christmas

2010-12-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

Greg and I are in AZ for Christmas! It is so nice to be in warm AZ instead of cold possibly snowy ABQ.
Greg got the whole week after Christmas off from work and he took a extra vacation day off on the 23rd so we come back to AZ sooner. On our drive from ABQ to AZ we encountered snow and rain twice. Once in Northern NM and once on the Rim in AZ. It wasn't too bad and we still made it home in about 7 hours.
When we got to AZ, first thing we did was go visit Ashley. She was in town from TX visiting her family but she was leaving that evening. It so nice to see her! We only see each other maybe twice a year.
Christmas Eve we spend most of the day with Greg's family. We opened gifts and ate a yummy dinner. We then went to visit my Grandma for a little bit.
Christmas Day, we spent time with my family. Opened gifts and watched Reed play with his new toys. Then we watched some movies.
Nice and relaxing. Not so cray having to drive between our families on the 2 days.
Greg and I are going to be spending the rest of the week hanging out with our friends and families. I will also have to do some work. Every one needs their done when I come into town.

Hopefully, I will get some pictures posted from the week later.

Thanksgiving Back at Home

2010-11-28T20:23:00.001-07:00

Greg and I just got back from our trip to AZ for Thanksgiving. We were both so glad to go home to warmer temps than we have been experiencing here is ABQ. We left on Wednesday afternoon and the temp at our apartment was 49 and when we got to Gilbert at my parent's house at 11 that night the temp was 54. So happy to home!

Greg and I had a busy weekend. On Thanksgiving we hung out with family in the morning and made breakfast together and took some family pictures since we have lil Reed in the family now. Greg and I then went to Greg's family Thanksgiving. We watched football, ate some yummy food, the guys played poker and the women played another game.

Friday I was doing hair almost all day. On thanksgiving the guys in my family got theirr hair cuts. So Friday, Greg's mom, my mom, Kalina, Garrett and I all got our hair cut and us girls got color. While I was busy cutting hair, Greg worked out with Garrett and played video games. That night Greg and I went out with his family for dinner in honor of Garrett's 21st Birthday which is today (Sunday). I then met Kalina and Amanda for dessert.

Saturday was sort of our day to relax. Greg hung out with my dad and Xander. They tried to go shooting but everywhere was busy. My mom and I went out shopping. We didn't find much. I suppose everything got picked over during Black Friday. I got some jeans and some new earrings. I also got some Christmas shopping done. My mom and I met Greg's mom and his grandma for a midday snack at the Cheescake Factory. Greg and I then went out to dinner with family at Tia Rosa's, I had to eat there while we were in town. I love that place! We went home to play with Lil Reed and I made sopapillas.

Today, Greg and I had lunch with my family and then drove back home to our tiny apartment in cold ABQ.
We drove through a snow storm for about 30 minutes between Payson and just outside Heber. I am not a fan of driving in snow but Greg seemed to be enjoying himself. We had clear skies for a few hours and ran in to another tiny snow storm just over border in NM. There doesnt appear to be any snow here in ABQ but is complete dark outside.

We are glad to be home but super sad to have left out families again. That is definitely the hardest part about living in ABQ. We miss everyone so much! But we cant wait to make the drive back home to AZ again in about 25 days for Christmas and we will get to stay for over a week!

Spice on the other hand is probably not so excited about doing the drive again. She behaves so well in the car but she doesn't like it.

While we were home, we got see old Daddy Kitty. He is 20+ years old and my parents just had his long fur shaved down because he keeps getting matted fur. He looked so cute in his Christmas sweater. I think he looks like a little old man!

9 more months...

2010-11-04T10:28:00.000-07:00

Greg doesn't like me to put it in those terms because it sounds like we are waiting for something else rather than the countdown till our next move.

We have made it 2 months her in ABQ. Overall I think we have adjusted well. Time has sort of started to fly by especially with the holidays fast approaching. These last 2 months of the year I know are going to go by crazy fast, like they always do. Greg and I will be going back to AZ for quick holiday trips. I am so glad that Greg gets some good holiday vacation and that my job is being flexible with me leaving for the holidays,

As for what has been going on the lately...
Greg is still working away. He will finally be moving into his cube and then a shared office this next week and will finally begin some real engineering work. He has been keeping busy taking classes at work so that he is better prepared engineer and soon he wont be able to discuss his work with me or really any one.
Greg is still waiting on his acceptance letter to Berkeley. Maybe by January he will have that so we can begin our next move.
I have finally started working as of last week. Although it is at Great Clips and I am not entirely excited about it. I am excited to get out of the house and talk to people. It has been nice to ask people questions about ABQ. I am only working 4 days a week which is just enough. I don't think I can handle full time Great Clips again especially not having Kalina to goof around with,
Also, working only 4 days has left me able to volunteer. Last Saturday, I went to my 1st training class at Animal Humane. Tomorrow at 7am I start actually volunteering in the cattery. Hopefully, the 7am shift wont be bad. It is the shift that is suppose to be the busiest. I have to do 8 hours of training before I am allowed to handle the cats. So maybe next month I can hang out with kitties.
Greg and I are still having our Friday nights out the people from Sandia. The group continues to get larger and larger. It is nice to have this sort of built in friend network of people in our age group. Last Friday, I met the first married couple to hang out in the group. Rachel and I bonded over our love for shopping and trashy tv (housewives, Style channel, E channel and Bravo). She invited me out tomorrow for lunch and some shopping, I am so excited to have finally met some one with similar interests.
Spice seems to still be enjoying her life of spoiled luxury. She hangs out all day and then waits for her daddy to come home and give her some love. She is not so interested when her mommy comes home though. She will be joining us on our holiday trips to AZ. I know she will be so excited.

Quick Trip to AZ

2010-10-25T20:06:00.001-07:00

This last weekend I made a trip back home to AZ. I flew back leaving Greg and kitty in ABQ.
I flew in late Thursday night. Later than I was hoping due to my flight out of AB being about an hour late. I suppose it was due to the storms in NM and AZ. It was raining and hailing a few hours before my plane was scheduled to leave. I made into AZ with only experiencing some turbulence in air.
Friday was a busy day. Getting a pedi and shopping with my mom. Met Kalina for dinner at our favorite Chinese place, Yao. I also got my hair colored and some extension put in (to make my hair look a little better while the layers continue to grow out. I cut and colored Kalina's hair as well.
Saturday was really busy. I cut and colored my mom and my sister's hair. Got ready for Sage's baby shower. Went to the shower. It was suppose to be a surprise but someone ruined and Sage found out. The shower turned out great otherwise. Sage got lots of cute things for baby Bennett who is due to arrive on Christmas day. After the shower Kalina and I went to dinner, while she recovered from her severe cat allergy.
Sunday, I cut and color my mother in law's hair and had lunch with the Noels. Went back to my parents house and lil Reed came to visit. August had to bring him to see him or else he wasn't getting his hair cut/ My family all had dinner together and then it was time for my flight back to ABQ. The flight was again late but only by about 30 minutes.

All in all it was a good but busy trip. Everyone got their hair done and will be set till Greg and I go back to AZ for thanksgiving.

Today back in ABQ, the weather was freezing and cloudy. But I now have a job. My NM cosmo license came while I was gone, so today I went across the street and filled out all my Great Clips paperwork. I start tomorrow. Hopefully this shop will be as good to work at as the old shop. I will definitely miss the perks of having Kalina as my manager.

Baby Kitty

2010-10-08T10:47:00.000-07:00

I just found this picture of Spice.
My little baby kitty when she was 6 weeks old and could in hands. Now at 4 1/2 years she weighs 16 pounds and I can barely hold her in arms,

Greg and I love her! I am so glad to have my kitty to hang out with me all day. At least I don't have to talk to myself, I have her. Even though she gets in to trouble pretty frequently around here.

One Month in ABQ

2010-10-07T09:32:00.002-07:00

Time is actually going by kind of quickly. Thankfully! Greg & I have been living in ABQ for one month now, ten more to go. We haven't done anything really that exciting since we have been here but I think we are doing ok. We have made some friends and I have gotten out of the apartment. Greg is loving his job even if he is only reading up on stuff rather than actually designing stuff. He had explosives training this week in which he learn explosives safety and saw a small explosives demo. Greg found out what project he will be working on once he has his security clearance from the Department of Energy. All I know is that he will be working on designing new components for nuclear weapons and that's probably all I am allowed to know. Greg really likes this new job way better than designing cabinets.
We are waiting for Greg's acceptance letter to Berkeley. His application is in and his letters of recommendation are all that needs to be sent in. Hopefully once he has his acceptance letter we can start planning for our next move to California. I am so thankfully that Greg found out that Sandia should be taking care of move to California for us. That makes my life so much easier and less stressful. Also I found out that Berkeley's mechanical engineering program is only suppose to take 3 semesters so that means Greg will still finish his degree in the winter of 2012 instead of spring of 2013. Which is what we thought was going to happen since he is starting a semester later than we had hoped for.
My life on the other hand is not quite so exciting. I am still unemployed. I sent in my paperwork to get my NM cosmetology license and I am waiting for a license in the mail so I can start work. The Great Clips across the street from our apartment has already told me I can start working there as soon as I have my license. While I am not too excited about working at Great Clips again, I am excited about getting out more. I have been thinking about volunteering at the Humane Society here in ABQ. Greg is concerned that I will bring home another kitty. He has every right to be concerned but I don't think we can handle another kitty in our apartment and I don't think Spice would be too happy about sharing this small space.
Also on a very exciting note, Greg and I have health insurance/benefits with Sandia. Its so nice to finally have reasonable insurance and it has great coverage. And Sandia pays for $500 worth of copays (once I figure out to work the cards they send us). I got my eyes checked and Greg is getting his done next week. My prescription is half the price I was paying. And now I gotta find out when I can schedule dental appointments. (When you spend time alone like I do small things are exciting).

Big Fat Spice A Roo

*This posting is my 100th posting YAY!

Weekend Excitment

2010-10-02T10:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Greg started his new work schedule in which he gets every other Friday off. We decided that we needed to do something outside of our apartment and experience ABQ. Well there is not a whole lot to do here. People here are really into outdoor activities, hiking, biking, etc. We thought we would attempt an "easy" hike. The trail we found online said it is an easy 4 mile hike. Well is was kinda easy but I have never hiked so about half way through I not having fun so we turned back around. Greg thinks we almost made the 4 miles. The trail was a loop and we just didn't quite make it to where it starts to loop back around. Maybe another time I can make it all the way through a trail. Today, though my legs are a little stiff and sore. On the bright side we got a great view of the city and the temp. was great for being outside.

We were planning on going to out to one of the New Mexican restaurants but we got invited last minute to a BBQ at one of Greg's co-worker's home. We got to meet a few new people that work at Sandia and hang out again with the people that I met a couple weeks ago. Everyone that we have met here so far has been really nice. Sandia has hired a bunch of young people from all over, so we aren't the only young people from out of state. Greg and I are the only married people. Every one else we have met is single (and really to mingle). The 2 times that we have been out with this group of people there is definitely some flirting going on with the guys trying to hit on the very few girls.

Oh and yesterday in between hiking and the BBQ, we drove around the area where in live looking at the different neighborhoods and possible housing options for when move here again in couple years. Its was fun to see what our options are and hopefully there will some good options when we start looking for real.

This weekend starts the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta but we have some weather, clouds and forcasted rain. i am not sure that Greg and I will be going out the see the balloons there is suppose to be crazy traffic. I really only want to the see when the go up at night all lit up and we can probably see them from our apartment or close by.

Another Week in ABQ

2010-09-24T10:24:00.001-07:00

This last week has not been very exciting. I have been hanging out in the apartment pretty much all week. Greg and I have been working out every day (well except yesterday, my muscles needed some recovery time). Working out has gotten harder the more I do it. Which seems odd to me but whatever I have been doing it. We are still working on eating better and less salt. Greg had his blood pressure checked again when he a physical this last week and its still really high. I have been trying to feed him more veggies. Chopping them up and putting them in food with out asking him first. Greg made faces the whole time he ate tomatoes that I put in a pasta salad but he did manage the celery in the tuna salad yesterday without faces. That is an improvement I suppose.
Greg filled out his application to Berkeley this last week. His letters of recommendation are the last thing that needs to be turned in before he is officially accepted but those are out of his control. I have already begun our search for some where to live in California. I was hoping fro student housing since it close to campus and the price was ok for CA but they don't allow pets in student housing and we refuse to go without out kitty. So i have the challenge of some where that is price reasonable. I will not pay $1500/ month in rent for a 500sq studio apartment. Must find a deal without sacrificing comfort.

Greg and I are adjusting ABQ pretty well over all. I still don't like to drive too much because I don't where I am going. The city has it nice parts and its not so nice parts but we like where we live. The view we have is great and the weather is amazing. 2 day ago we got 2.5 inches of rain in one day. It was crazy and pretty chilly. It is in the low 70's. Greg and I realized that we have to start saving like crazy so we can buy house with a view when we move here in 2013.

Greg and I are making a short visit home this weekend. I have got work. Color and cut the hair almost everyone (my family and Greg's). It will be so great to see everyone even though its only been 2 weeks seems like forever. We are taking Spice with us. I am not that she is so excited for this trip. She has to get use to being a traveling cat.

One Week Down, 47 more to go

2010-09-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Not that I am counting...it just means another move.

I have made it through 1 week in NM. I have not yet had a mental break down so I think things are going well. In this last week, I have finished unpacking all the boxes and put up some decor to make our tiny place feel homey. I have applied for a couple jobs because I am already bored. Great Clips across the street from our complex offered a job once I have a NM license, which will take 4-6 weeks once I send my paperwork in. Currently, waiting on a pay check to put in to our new account so I can get a check or money order. BTW, it is inconvenient that there are no Chase branches in NM.

Yesterday, Greg and I got invited to hang out with people from Sandia. Everyone that I met is a recent transplant to NM as well. One guy was also form AZ but from Tucson. Another guy went to UofA but is from California. Everyone was really nice and I didn't feel like a complete idiot even though they were all super smart. Everyone except for Greg and I had Master's degrees or PhD's. Greg is super smart like they are so I was the only with a normal IQ : ) I hope that they invite us to hang out with them again. I need reasons to leave the apartment.
The only other girl that went out with us last night (she has a PhD) suggested that I take some classes through UNM continuing education program. I looked in to it and they have some classes like cooking , sewing, business, etc. They even have a paralegal course with a semi reasonable tuition so taking some of these classes is something I am considering so that I can get out and talk to people.
I have been keeping myself some what busy, running a few errand and exploring some near by shopping areas. I also have been using out complex's fitness room. It gets me out of the apartment for a while and hopefully in the process will get me better shape.
Greg had to have biometric screening at work for his health insurance and he was told that he has high blood pressure. SO he needs to cut out sodium, eat a more balanced diet (fruits and veggies) and exercise. So we are going to be adjusting our diets to include more fruits and veggies, less salt and we are going work out together. We have also been thinking about trying out some of the hiking trails and maybe biking. Even though I am not a fan of the outdoors, outdoor things are basically what people do in ABQ. I will admit that it is nice enough outside to do outdoor things so I will have to try.

All moved in...Mostly

2010-09-13T13:32:00.000-07:00

Greg and I are officially ABQ residents.
Friday, Greg and I packed up our few things and Spice to drive to ABQ. Poor Spice was scared/stressed/pissed at being in the car. She did really well considering she had never been in the car for so long before. I hope that she will adjust to being in the car since she will be travelling alot.
After 2 days of unpacking, almost all the boxes are out of the apartment. Only bathroom needs to be unpacked and organized. Other than that everything else is done. Just need to clean everything up so I can take some pictures of this tiny place.
Actually, the small space isn't as bad as I thought it would be. We have everything that we need. Couch,TV, computer, bed, dressers and 2 bar stools. I guess that is all 2 people really need.
Our apartment has actually a lot of storage space. Which has come in handy because we have a lot of stuff. Eventually, I think the stuff will condense and there wont be so much because I cant buy any more stuff until there is more space available. I am really grateful for the large closet, which without I would be in big trouble. All the clothes and shoes fit with a little extra space for storing stuff. I don't think the storing space would as big of a deal if we didn't have to move again in a year. We wouldn't have to keep all the boxes.
Spice has adjusted well to her new surroundings. It took about a day for her to really relax. I think having a lot of the boxes out sort of helps too. She loves to look out the windows and see whats going on.
I am adjusting as well as can be expected for now. I haven't left the apartment too much mostly because I have no where to go and I have to work myself up to driving places that I have no idea where I am going.
Greg and I did go to the grocery store, Costco, Home Depot and I went to Target today by myself. There are a few other errands that I need to do but I am spacing them out that I have things to do every day.
I definitely am going to need to get a job in the near future so I can get out more.
Greg started his Job today. He just had orientation so still no idea what he will be doing for real. However, he does know that he will not be doing real work until his security clearance comes back. Which can take months.
So Far So Good!
The weather here has been so nice! I heard on the news that they are having a heat wave here in ABQ with temps in the high 80's to low 90's. I walked around the complex today at about 1pm. It was so nice!! Couldn't walk around in AZ in the middle of the day. We are suppose to get some rain this week so we'll see that is like around here.

Greg and I already miss every one back in AZ! We plan on making monthly trips back. Also, we got a web cam so that we can Skype our families. That has seriously helped my separation anxiety : )

*I will post some pictures soon of out new place and the mountain view. and some pics from the drive from Gilbert to ABQ.

Moving

2010-09-08T19:31:00.001-07:00

Greg and I have moved to Albuquerque! Last Friday, with the help of Xander, his friend Nick, my parents, Greg's dad and uncle and his uncle's friend we packed up our house into a Uhaul Truck. Thankfully everything barely fit into the 26' truck. I didnt realize we had so much stuff.
It was a long hot day but it all got done.
Last Saturday, Greg, myself, Greg's dad, brother and uncle drove the7 hour drive to ABQ. We stopped in Show Low where my dad and Xander helped us unload half the truck at "Goebel Storage". Where we are storing half our stuff while we make all our moves over the next few years.
After Show Low we drove the rest of the way to ABQ where we move into our tiny 1 bedroom apartment. Thankfully the apartment has a laundry/storage room and a large closet or I dont know where all our stuff would go.
Sunday, we drove back to Gilbert. Greg and I have renter's moving in this weekend so we had to get the house ready for the renters. Who are our friend's Sage and Devon.
These past few days have been crazy with all the cleaning and touching up we have been doing to the house. And with the dinners and lunches we have been going to. Trying to see everyone before we go to ABQ for real in a couple days.
We will be driving back to ABQ Friday with our kitty. I am hoping that she will behave for the long drive!

Greg and I are both anxious and excited about this move. We are just hoping that everything goes well!
Oh, Greg will not be going to UC Berkeley this January. He will have to wait until the next Fall semester. We just found out that Berkeley does not accept grad students at Spring semester. So we will be spending 1 years in ABQ and then moving to California for 2 years. With Greg spending a summer in ABQ.
So That is what has been going on with us.

The Chaos

2010-08-22T17:15:00.000-07:00

Only 12 days till we pack up the truck and move to ABQ. After today I only have 2 days off of work so I have been packing slowly but surely for the last few weeks because I knew I had a limited number of days off. And I have to do all the packing myself because I am just that anal about things. I have a system and a strategy to my packing and its just easier if I do everything my self.
Greg has been given a To Do list so he is helping out in other ways. I am making him make all the phone calls and such because I hate doing those things.

Anyway, my house is in utter chaos. Boxes, Paper and things every where.

This is the office. The most difficult room to pack since it is still in use. Along with most the things in it. What you cant see in the picture is the closet in the office is full of boxes with all our books.

This is the Guest Bedroom. It was easy to pack up the room but it has been the place to store boxes and the thing that have yet to find a box or the donation piles.

The Kitchen and Dining are a complete mess. This is where most boxes are being stored. Thankfully, I have most of the cabinets emptied. Just waiting until the last minute to pack the things we are still using.

I feel like I am back where I was 17 months ago when we moved into the house only going in the wrong direction. Putting things in boxes instead of taking them out. Thankfully, we did not accumulate too much stuff in these 17 months so not too much extra stuff. I am sad to be alot of stuff into storage and that I wont be seeing or using quite a few things until we have a permanent home again. Its a little difficult condensing my 1400 sq house into stuff that we can have in our 700 sq apartment,

Moving

2010-08-15T16:10:00.001-07:00

Last weekend my dad flew Greg and I over to ABQ to go apartment hunting.

We looked about 9 different places and found out that because we need a short term lease that we would be spending alot more than I had originally planned for especially because we did not want to sacrifice a nice place for lower rent.

We ended up leasing a 1 Bedroom 1 Bathroom apartment on the NE side of ABQ. The apartment is about 1/2 the size of our house so it going to take some adjusting to the new space. The nice thing about our new home is that we are right next to the Sandia mountain which is beautiful and we are above the river valley. It is definitely going to be the area we try to buy a home when we make our final move to ABQ.

This was also my 1st trip to ABQ. The weather was really nice it was about 88 degrees during the day and it was cold when we left at 5am to fly to home. ABQ is different then home. Greg and I think it is kind of like a larger version of Mesa. It has its nice parts and its not so nice parts. I found 2 different malls both of which I could drive to in about 15-20 minutes. ABQ isn't that large and it doesn't seem to have a sprawling neighboring cities. Its just ABQ.

I have yet decide if I am going to be working while we in ABQ. Since we will only be there for 4 months and I have to come back to AZ for a bunch weekends I am not sure how working will be. There is a Great Clips literally right across the street from our apartment so I am working on getting my cosmetology license in NM so that I could transfer stores if I want to and if the store is hiring. I will probably need a job so I wont be so bored.
We also have renters for our house. My friend Sage and her fiance are going to be moving in! So thankfully that is one less thing that I have to worry about!

We start our big move on September 3rd!!! Less than 3 weeks!

Decision Made!

2010-07-23T15:40:00.000-07:00

Its official! Greg has accepted the job with Sandia. He has start date of Sept 13th.
The decision we came to is that Greg will work at Sandia for the fall semester and then start Grad School at UC Berkeley (which we found out is the #3 school in the country for engineering).
We will be attempting to rent our house out for the next 2 years until we make our final move to Albuquerque. For the fall semester while Greg is in Albuquerque, if no one rents our house I will be going between AZ and NM. That way I can continue to work to pay for the un-rented house but still be able to see Greg. I hope that we can find someone to rent the house so that I don't have make those trips and so Greg, Spice and I can all stay together.
I will be going to Berkeley with Greg because that is too big of a distance for me and he will be staying there longer.

Greg and I are so excited about this new (employed) part of our lives. I just don't think the reality of moving and being away from our families has quite set in for us.

Decisions Decisions

2010-07-21T09:47:00.000-07:00

On Monday this week, Greg for a formal verbal offer from Sandia (the written is suppose to be coming by mail by the end of the week). The very exciting part is that Greg has been offered a poition in the Master's program at Sandia, in which he will be going to school to earn a Masters degree and then will be working for Sandia as a Technical Member once he completes his degree.

This is fantastic for Greg! He will get his tuition paid for, receive a salary and benefits.

The decisions is as follows:
Greg was given 2 options.
#1: Stay in AZ and attend ASU. Go to Albuquerque in the summer. Finish degree at ASU and move to Albuquerque for good.

#2 Go to Albuquerque for the Fall semester. Attend UC Berkeley in the Spring. Albuquerque in the Summer. Finish Degree at Berkeley and then move to Albuquerque for good.

This is tough because we don't necessarily want to leave AZ before we have to. Especially because we have our house here. However, attending a great school like Berkeley is an offer that one can't really turn down.

We are still working on making a final decision and this is a decision like we have never faced before.

A Very Long Story...

2010-07-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

Where to begin...

For those that read this blog (the few of you do) know that Greg was layed off from Orbital last August. He thought that since he was an intern there for most of his undergrad years that he would be offered a full time engineering position once he had finished his degree. Of course, that plan did not quite work out the way he (and I) had hoped for. So, with the depressing news that he and all interns were being let go, Greg began the job hunt. Between the 5 months of being let go from Orbital and finishing his degree at ASU, Greg (and I) applied for many jobs but did not get a single call. He got a few reject emails or emails saying the positions were no longer going to filled and even more no responses. The news was definitely discouraging. How could NO ONE want Greg as an employee? He graduated with the highest honors and had fantastic recommendations from his co workers and manager at Orbital. I still do not understand why he never got calls or invites to interview.
Anyway, 3 more months pass and August (my brother) offers Greg a job at StoneCreek furniture. Greg takes the job because we can't afford to go any longer with only my paycheck. Greg told August that he would stay working for him for a year, this would make it worth it for August to train him in complex cabinet design. Greg is working hard trying to learn all about cabinets and furniture, even though he says rocket science is easier. He definitely has more respect for the work that August does and all the effort designing furniture entails. However, this is not what Greg spent 4 1/2 years going to school for.
* I was continuing to find job openings that Greg qualified for and getting Greg to apply for them. He told me to stop but I didn't. I didn't even stop having him apply for out of state jobs.

During that last couple weeks in May, Greg received a call to interview with Honeywell. He had previously interview with Honeywell during an ASU info session/interview. He had not been hired for that particular position but he must have impressed someone enough for Honeywell to call him in for another interview. Greg went to this interview, it was for a position that Greg would have been capable of doing but not one he was particularly excited about. Anyway, Greg thought he did well at the interview but we had to wait 2 weeks before he would know whether we got the job or not.
The next week, Greg received news that Stonecreek was going to cut the work week to only four days and some people were being let go. The very next day (on his new day off), Greg received one phone call and one email, both about job positions he had applied (both I might add at my very aggressive urging). The phone call was from Orbital in California and the email was from Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico. I soon received my own phone call, from Greg, that I needed to stop having him apply for jobs out of state even though he was grateful : ) I told him not to worry cause no one ever calls him and then he told me he had received that call and email. I was so excited for Greg. I was literally jumping up and down at work I was so excited. Greg was excited but at the same time extremely nervous. Neither one of us likes to interview.
Greg was informed that he would need to do a phone interview and then he would be flown out for personal interviews.
Greg got through both phone interviews, of course. He flew out the first week of June for his Orbital interview which was near Lompoc, CA. His interview took up about half his day there and he spent the rest of the day before his flight home driving around the area to check it out, in case we need to move there. He took some pictures for me and it seems like a nice place to live.
*While Greg was away I had to spent my first night in the house without him. Thankfully Kalina came over to have a sleepover with me so I would not be alone in the house.

Greg would have to wait up to 3 weeks before knowing if he would get an offer for this job.
The third week in June, Greg flew out to Albuquerque, NM for his interview with Sandia. Greg spent an entire day interviewing at Sandia. During his one of his many interviews, he was told that we would be better suited for a position in one of Sandia's Master Degree programs, rather then the position he had applied and was interviewing for. So while Greg interviewed with some of his scheduled interviews, HR was setting up another interview and determining that he is in fact a better fit for the Master's program. (Greg was pretty much certain that he was going to be offered that position he had applied for since he was told that the position would have to be re posted and new applicants be interviewed if Greg goes in to the Master's program).
The Great News is that Greg will be attending school for his Master's degree as planned but Sandia is going to cover the cost of tuition and pay him a salary and give him benefits while he attends school. Greg (& I) will be spending a summer in Albuquerque and will be moving there in 2 years when Greg finishes his degree and becomes a full technical member of Sandia National Labs.
Paperwork is still pending for this offer from Sandia. Greg would like me to mention that this is not all set in stone yet. He is confidant that once the details are all hammered out, it will be for real. The details include making sure Greg gets into an engineering program that suits the needs of Sandia and that he can get into the program before the fall semester starts.

* Greg will not be accepting any offers from Orbital unless he is offered an obscene amount of money
I am so proud of Greg and so glad he is being offered this opportunity to further his education and gain full employment!!! The job search appears to be over!!!!

Baby Reed

2010-06-09T19:30:00.002-07:00

Yesterday, Greg and I became an uncle and aunt to cute baby Reed.

August and Melissa had Reed August Goebel yesterday at 5:23pm. He weighed 7lbs 11oz and is 20in long. He also has a head of dirty blonde hair.
We waited at the hospital about 2 1/2 hours to see him last night. Melissa had to be be put under general anaesthetic during her c-section and us family members were not allowed to see Reed until Melissa had recovered from the drugs and seen him.
I finally got hold the little guy today. He is so tiny and just as cute as can be. And seems to be behaving well for his mom and dad.

On a side note: Spice has made it in to the top 200 pets for the mix 96.9 top pet contest. So keep voting for her. Here is the new link to vote for her.

http://www.mix969.com/pages/arizonas-top-pet/vote-entrants.php?type=c&gid=1&id=15

Spice will be AZ Top Pet

2010-05-24T21:36:00.001-07:00

Everyone needs to vote for my kitty Spice to be AZ Top Pet.
Mix 96.9 radio station is having a pet contest and my kitty needs to win because she is the cutest :)
here is the link to vote at:
http://www.mix969.com/pages/arizonas-top-pet/vote-entrants.php?type=c&gid=3&id=12

just click until you find her. the pet are listed in alphabetical order. and this is her picture.

you can vote once per day per email address. Please vote everyday with all the email addresses that you have

Thanks Everyone!

Greg Playing Hockey

2010-05-05T21:19:00.001-07:00

Greg has started playing hockey again with one of our friends from high school, Kyle.
Last Thursday was Greg's first night playing in over a year. Kyle said Greg played pretty good and Greg said he didn't and he was sore the next day. Someone took some pictures for the game they play and I got them to put up here, since I never post any pics.
Its so great seeing Greg play again and he looks so good playing too : ) Its cute too since when Greg and I started dating he was playing hockey.

Greg is in the White Jersey with the white, black and gold striped socks.

Slacking

2010-04-27T13:36:00.002-07:00

I know I have totally slacked off on posting but nothing interesting or exciting has happened. No one really wants to read about how boring out lives really are.
The most exciting thing that happened lately is we went to a Coyotes Hockey game a couple weeks ago. It was the last game before the hockey playoffs started. Today is Game 7 of the Coyotes and Red Wings series. Greg is pulling for his Wings to win so they can continue into the playoffs.
Nothing else much happening.
I have been working lots as usual. Although, I have dropped one of my days at Sassy Chic. Just hasn't been busy enough to work 2-3 days a week there and not make any money. So, I am sort of going back to working more full time at Great Clips. Mostly because I need the health insurance. With Greg not working at a job in his engineering field we haven't been able to secure better health insurance,so I am finally breaking down and getting Great Clips insurance. (A few of you may realize what new health insurance really means for us. Needless to say Greg isn't too excited about it... yet).
Greg is still working at StoneCreek with my brother. He doesn't love it, actually most days he complains about it. He says rocket science is way easier than building furniture. Greg will start Grad School in August with 2 classes. Hopefully starting his Masters will help him in finding a "real" job!
Saturday, is my sister in law, Melissa's baby shower. Little Reed should be here in about 6 weeks. Greg and I cant wait to be aunt and uncle. Greg is still struggling with idea of being an uncle though.
That's about it for us.

One Year

2010-03-30T09:44:00.000-07:00

Sunday was mine and Greg's 1st Wedding anniversary!! We survived each other for a whole year and we are so proud of ourselves! Our wedding was so perfect, I really couldnt have asked for anything better.

Our first year as a married couple hasn't excatly been as easy as we hoped for but it hasn't been all rough.

We bought our first house.

We honeymooned in Hawaii for a week, which was amazing. Despite the sunburns.

We spent Christmas in New Hampshire and I had my first white Christmas.

Greg graduted from ASU with honors and he was accepted in to grad school at ASU.

I have started wokring at a full service salon and I am attempting to build a serious clientele.

Spice is still fat and happy.

Greg got laid off at Orbital and has spent the last 8 months out of work. He just got hired by my brother and works at Stonecreek Furniture.

I still work at Great Clips though it is more part time now : )

and No, we are not having kids in the near future. We are awaiting a nephew to arrive in a couple months.

Overall, we have enjoyed be married and I couldnt have a better husband. And I'm sure Greg thinks the same of his wife (or at least he better).

We have many more years to enjoy together and we look forward to what is in store

Vegas!

2010-03-28T13:10:00.001-07:00

Greg and I just got back from a short trip to Las Vegas. We went to see Daniel Tosh (he's a comedien) and to celebrate our anniversary. Kalina came with us so we could celebrate our birthdays.We drove up on Thursday and wewere hoping traffic wouldnt be bad. The only place we ran in to traffic was at the Hoover Dam. There was blasting going on on the road going up to the dam so we got stuck in traffic for over an hour. Once we finally got to the hotel, The Sahara, we all took a nap. Then Kalina and I got all dressed up and we went out. We walked around for about an hour on the strip before our feet could no longer stand being in heels. We went back to the room changed into out jeans and flip flops but at least we looked good for about an hour.

We then went to the MGM and the New York New York. We thought about going to Studio 54 but it was just too much for the cover for Greg. Its expensive being a guy in Vegas.

The next day, we walked the strip, We went to the Bellegio fro Greg to pick up his player's club card. He got $10 free slot play with it, so he used it and then gave me $10 to play in the slots, which I lost in about 15- 20 mintues. Greg ended up only playing poker for about 3 hours at the Bellegio. He came out about even. He said he played ok but he likes playing poker on line so much better. He was a little scared to play live again especially at the Bellegio. Kalina and I went shopping at Planet Hollywood while Greg played.

After Greg finshed playing, we went back to the room to nap and then get ready for the show.

We got the Mirage where Tosh was performing, ate dinner and went to the show. He was hilarious!!

He had a good Mormon joke. A little girl asked her mom why she was only 9 years older than her. Thought it was funny since obviously lots of mormons have kids young. and another joke was the ugly women are just like men - they have to work.

I realize not as funny when i type it but it was fantasic live : )

After the show we went back to Planet Hollywood, too many people there so went to Margaritaville, where there we less people and I jammed out to the 80's music. Then back to the room, and up early (10am) for the drive home. Long 6 hours + drive home. Slow traffic over the dam again,

Greg Has A Job

2010-03-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

For my Birthday, Greg got a job.

My older brother August gave my hubby a job. Greg will be working as one of August's engineers at Stonecreek Furniture. While it’s not the engineering job Greg has been hoping to get since graduating from ASU. It will do for now. Greg and I are both glad that he has a job and is able to get out of the house and do something. Also, since Greg isn't going to be working in the Aerospace/ Defense industry liked we had hoped, he will definitely be going back to school for his Masters. Even if he only takes one class at a time, while working.

It’s really nice for me that I am not the sole money maker anymore. It’s been getting pretty stressful for me, especially with starting at Sassy Chic. I had to give up money making days at Great Clips to be able to just sit and be seen at Sassy Chic. Hopefully, things will start picking up for me at Sassy now that it has been a few months and now that Kalina and I can the extensions. So anyone that needs their done please ask, still trying to fill my appt book. Also, since Greg didn't get a job he had been hoping for my dreams of quitting Great Clips has yet to come true. I will however be cutting back my days there. So now I will be back to working 5 days a week instead of all 7. Which will have to be good enough for now.

Also, Greg and I are going to Vegas next week. We are going to see Daniel Tosh and enjoy the weekend which marks our 1 year wedding anniversary.

New Service Added at Sassy Chic

2010-03-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago Kalina and I took a class to learn how to do Har Extensions. We learned how to put in the extensions that fused to a person's natural hair with a keratin bond. Keratin is the protein that Hair and nails are made of so the bond is not damaging to the exisiting hair.
So far the only person that has them is my mom, She was nice enough to be my first client. However, my mom does not have longer than she started wth. We just wanted to give her more hair. I think her hair looks great lots more fullness.
I ordered some extensions for my hair and I waiting for them to arrive so I can longer hair. I already have thick hair so I want to try out having long hair since I have never really had my hair longer than my shoulders.
Once I have extensions in I'll have to post some pictures. I am also going to put some extensions in Kalina's hair once her hair finally gets delivered too.

So if anyone wants extensions or knows anyone that does please let me know.
Kalina and I are having a special for March and April. We are offering $500 for the extensions, and after care products. The normal price is going to be $800.
Human Hair extensions are not cheap. and the application takes a few hours.

Sage is Engaged

2010-03-05T09:56:00.000-07:00

My Friend Sage is engaged! Sage and I have been friends since 7th grade. She called me up in January to tell me that she is getting married to a guy she has been dating for 9 month now. So anyway, Last weekend Sage's family threw her and her fiance an engagment party. Myself and Audrey (another friend snice before 7th grade) are bridesmaids. I am so excited for Sage and excited for one of my friends to be getting married. Sage's wedding is planned for the end of October and I am sure it will be coming up quickly.

Here are some pictures from the party.

New Job...Sort of

2010-01-22T15:42:00.002-07:00

Kalina and I are going to be working part time at a full service salon.
Its called SASSY CHIC and its on Gilbert and Southern. It uses to be Bliss and Baubles but recently got a new owner.
I am going to be working Thursdays, Fridays and every other Saturday. Then the rest of the week I will be at Great Clips until I have more clients at Sassy Chic.
Kalina and I are offering $5 off mens cuts as a promotion for us just starting out.
If anyone needs a cut or color give us a call or just come on in to the salon. We will be taking walk ins until we start to have fully booked days.

Side Note:
Greg took the GRE at the beginning of the month. He scored great, of course!
He is now working on completing his Grad School applications for ASU and New Mexico Tech.
No job offers or interviews as of yet but he is still trying.

New Years

2010-01-09T15:44:00.004-07:00

I have been slacking off on my posting.

Greg and I got back from our trip to New Hampshire on Dec. 30th. It was nice to get back home where it is warm. We had fun even though it was cold. It was definitely a new experience.

For New Years, Greg and I had planned on going out with Kalina. Out plans were undecided but we were thinking of going out to the new casino and nightclub.
However, Kalina had worked all day and she didn't really want to stand on her feet all night and Greg didn't really want to go to a nightclub.
So instead, we went to Kalina's parents house because they were having a party.
It was nice to relax and hangout. We spent most of the night sitting outside by the fire pit.
We got all dressed up because we were suppose to go out. I got to wear the new dress that Greg got me for Christmas. I love it so much. Its a vintage 50's dress. And I got to wear my new cute shoes too. Kalina said all i needed was a vacuum and I looked like a 50's housewife. Fine by me as long as I looked cute. I got lots of compliments on it.

Here are some pics.

Beer and Snow

2009-12-28T11:11:00.001-07:00

Recap for yesterday and first part of today.

Yesterday, we went to the Budweiser plant, where Greg's uncle works. We took a tour of the place, learning how the beer is made. We even got a little VIP treatment, when we started our tour Greg's uncle pulled off to look in all the huge vats where the beer processes starts at. Everyone else on the tour had to stay behind the ropes. I also tried to convince Greg's younger brother Garrett to sample some beer, even tough he is underage. He had a sip and Greg told me I am bad influence. I think I am just very persausive. : ) Needless to say, he didnt like it. Which is fair because I dont like the smell of beer and can only imagine it tastes worse than it smells. We also got to see the Clysdales (i spelt that wrong). Those horses are even bigger up close.
It didn't snow yesterday but it was raining and super foggy. A little warmer yesterday than it has been. Though it is suppose to cool down into the twenties tomorrow.

Waiting for our tours

The Horses Barn

Today, its snowing. Big flakes that I caught a few on my tougne. Greg's cousins are out making a snowman. Its too cold for me to go help or even go outside.

This morning we went candlepin bowling. Its kinda like regular bowling, except that the pins are super skinny. They look like big candles. And the balls are really tiny and there are no holes for your fingers. Also you get three chances to hit the pins and the machine doesnt clear the pins each time you throw the ball.

So, I did really bad. I couldnt get the hang of throwing the ball. My best scores were 49 and 51. Greg did a a little better. He scored 54 and 70 something. It was fun trying a new game even though we were terrible at it.

Day Trip in the Snow

2009-12-26T15:02:00.000-07:00

Despite the cold snowy weather, we went on a day trip to Portsmouth, here in NH.

On our way to Portsmouth, we stopped in Hampton to see the Atlantic Ocean, the first time for me. It was so cold and windy that we didnt stay long. We then drove towards Portsmouth and on the way we ended up crossing in Maine. We were only there a short time but I can add it too the list on new states I have visited this trip. (Colorado, Mass. New Hampshire and Maine so far).

We had lunch in Portsmouth and walked around the down town area. It was so cold but the snow had mostly stopped falling by the time we started walking aound.
After Portsmouth, we stopped at the Lindt Chocolate Factory. It wasn't open but we went to the store and got some yummy chocolate bars.

Since I am still not frozen, I'll call this a good day : )

White Christmas

2009-12-25T14:50:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, Greg and I flew to New Hampshire to spend the week with Greg's extended family.
We started our day with having our first Christmas together. Opening out gifts to each other and out stockings. Grre gave me the dress that I have been dying to have for months. Its a beautiful vintage 40's dress and the tulle slip to puff the skirt out. I love it!! Greg is so good to me! Greg had a less exiciting Christmas. He got a few new shirts and a new pair of jeans. Spice also got some Christmas presents. She got new collars and new mice.

So after that, my parents took us to the airport and we started out trip. We flew from Phoneix to Denver. Denver was covered in snow but thankfully the skies were clear and we got out of the airport with only a 15 mintue delay. We arrived in Boston at about 11pm eastern time. I was so glad we finally landed and both my bags showed up on the luggage claim. I was concerned the whole flight that my bags would get lost.
Anyway, we got picked up by Greg's parents and we drove about an hour to New Hampshire.
Today, I woke up to a white Christmas. My first one ever! Its super cold here (to me anyway). Everyone else doesnt seem to mind the snow and cold. However the snow is suppose to disapper soon because it is forecasted to rain in the next couple days. This morning Greg's whole family went to Christmas Mass. I have never been to a regular Catholic mass before, Been to a Catholic wedding and funeral before but not a mass. Anyway, it was very interesting. Lots of standing. Not use to that.
After Church, all the younger cousins opened gifts. Then lunch and then the adults (which we were included in) did a "yankee swap" gift exchange. Greg and I got wine glasses and a set of towels and a reed diffuser. Good gifts.

So far I havent frozen, so everything is good. Chirstmas has been good!!!

Greg has Graduated

2009-12-17T22:22:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was Greg's last day at ASU. He took his last final on Tuesday but I don’t think he officially graduated until today (commencement) or tomorrow (when the engineering ceremony is). But Greg isn't going to either so therefore he has graduated.

So Proud of Greg that he is done and that he graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA and summa cum laude honors. It’s so amazing that he has such great grades because engineering is a difficult degree.
It is definitely way harder than my Justice Studies degree and I graduated with 3.4 GPA and only cum laude honors. I feel lame compared to Greg. Oh well, at least my hubby is super smart!

Tomorrow, we are having a party to celebrate his graduation. It will be the first party Greg and I are throwing at the house. Hopefully, everything turns out ok.

Greg finished the backyard with all the pavers and it looks super great! He did a great job considering that he had no help and had never done it before. My dad did have to help just a tiny bit at the end when there were some bricks that needed to be cut to size. Other than that Greg did everything, Kitty and I supervised pretty well too.

Now he has to work at finding a full time job/career. Nothing has happened for him yet but we are hoping soon and he is trying super hard.

Busy....ish

2009-12-09T15:17:00.000-07:00

December is kind of busy for Greg and I.
First of all Greg is finishing up his last semester at ASU. He finally graduates. He had his last class yesterday at which he presented his senior project. He has 2 finals but he doesn't seem too worried about them. And he officially graduates on the 18th. However, his mean wife didn't want him to walk at the graduation ceremony so he wont be walking. Greg is not disappointed at all.
Since, Greg still has not gotten a job offer yet. (Only one rejection letter so far.) He registered to take the GRE next month. Then he will be applying to grad school. I think the plan (so far) is to apply to ASU and to New Mexico Tech. ASU because it is close to home and where he goes now and New Mexico because they have a mechanical engineer masters program that Greg can specialize in Explosives Engineering. Greg really wants to do research and blow stuff up.
Though New Mexico isn't exactly my first choice of places to move it would give Greg the opportunity to do something interesting and he would be closer to one of the companies Greg has great interest in working for.
Besides school, Greg has been working on laying down the pavers in our yard. So we finally have a patio instead of a completely dirt area. Its about 3/4 of the way done! YAY!!! Cant wait for it to be complete!

As for me, I have been working and that's about it. I have been trying to get my Christmas shopping done. And trying to get ready for the party I am giving Greg for graduating. And trying to get ready for our trip to New Hampshire to visit Greg's family for Christmas. I am trying to mentally and physically prepare myself for the cold. So in preparing for all this, I only 2 more days off of work before we leave on the 24th and tons of stuff to do. Hopefully everything will work out.
And even more hopeful Greg gets a job offer soon!!! I'm tried of working and need a vacation (somewhere warm too, New Hampshire is not vacation)

What I Want for Christmas but Know I Won't Get

2009-11-22T17:07:00.000-07:00

SO there is a show on Animal Planet, Cats 101. Which of course I watch and love because I am a crazy cat lady. (Thankfully Greg loves kitties as much as I do now.)
On the second episode I watched, they showed a breed of Cat I had heard about but never seen. This breed is the Savannah. And this is what I want I for Christmas.

These particular cats are hybrids. They are part African wild cat (Serval) and part domestic cat.

I want one of these so very much! Problem with getting one is that they are super expensive because they are rare. $500 is the cheapest one I have found.

The reason I want one so much is that they are are like super cats. They are much larger than the average house cat. Even larger than my big baby Spice. She weighs in at 16 pounds and Savannahs can weigh between 15-30 pounds and they are much larger in size. About the size of a medium dog. The picture below gives you an idea of the size of these guys.

Yes, these cats can be taught to walk on leash, fetch and they even like water. Also they can jump about 7 ft vertically from a sitting position.

I think it would be super awesome to have this cat around when people come over. I could have an attack cat. Also, when these cats hiss it sounds like a snake hiss.

Go the animal planet website to the Cat 101 show and look for the Savannah video.

So that's what I want for Christmas. Greg says maybe in the future when we have more money.

And my mom says I should have a baby instead of getting another kitty.

I, however, want the kitty!!!

Nothing New

2009-11-21T18:59:00.001-07:00

Still nothing new to post about!
Greg has only 4 more classes to go to and then he will be done with ASU. Still no job but applying lots of places.
We are getting ready the holidays.

Thats about it!

Whoo HOO!

Vegas Weekend

2009-11-02T19:35:00.000-07:00

This last weekend, my parents took the family on a little vacation to Vegas. It was super nice of them to take all of us on a trip. Which I don't think we have done in a really long time.
So the trip basically went as follows:

Friday morning we all set out on the drive. Xander rode with Greg and I in my car. Mom, Dad, August and Melissa went in my mom's car. On this part of the trip, we discover Greg is a much more cautious driver than my brothers and dad (and me a little bit). He was very good not to speed to much and to be careful when passing cars. We were constantly getting left behind because August drives fast and isn't afraid to pass any car. Also, my car doesn't really like to go over 80mph. It starts shaking the steering wheel. I need a new car.

Anyway... we stayed at the Mirage. We had really nice rooms. We checked in to our rooms and got ready to go out.

We went to dinner and then walked around until our show started. We saw Blue Man Group and they were amazing. Kind of mind trip and still amazing. My mom called her name put up on the message board. Said she had a headache that in order to get rid of her headache, she needed to think about killing cow. It was pretty funny. She was just glad she didn't have to stand up like some of the other people who had their names put up on the screen.

After the show, we all walked around the shops at Ceasers. No luck finding anything to buy. After that my parents and Greg decided that they needed to sleep. Xander and I decided to go try our luck at the slot machines. $20 later no luck. It was fun anyway.

Saturday, We slept in! Then we ventured out for brunch/lunch.

We first stopped to pick our tickets for our show that night and then went to shops at Planet Hollywood. We decided on lunch and then went shopping. Melissa had better luck finding things to buy. I didn't find anything exciting.

After shopping we went back the Mirage and decided to go the dolphins and Big Cats. Oh how I love my kitties! The Tigers and Lions were just beautiful! 2 of the big white tigers were fighting each other. Which was amazing to see and then we saw the 2 white tiger cubs. They were adorable! I wanted to bring them home to play with my big Spice a Roo.

We then went back to our rooms and decided where to go for dinner. After dinner we got ready to go see our next show. We saw cirque de solicel's O (I am sure I spelt that wrong and don't care enough to figure out the right way to spell it). It was amazing. Its crazy how the people can lift, flip, twist and bend like that. It was a great show. and unfortualey i forgot to take a picture of us dressed up for the show : (
Greg and I after the show went to check out the fountain show and then walked back to the hotel. Greg decided (after some convincing) to play poker. Greg bought into a game for $200. I watched him for a little bit and then I decided to leave and go get Xander out of the room. We decided to go the Beatles revolution lounge. We hung out for a little while we debated on going into the nightclub or play more slots. We eventually decided to play more slots. Xander didn't want to pay to cover charge to get into the club and since it was Halloween and we weren't dressed up I think we would have stuck out by looking normal. So i lost another $10 to the slots and Xander lost $12. But he actually made $3 dollars on one machine. The only time either of us made money that night but it was a loss overall.
At a little after midnight we went back the room since we knew my dad would want to leave early to come home. Greg stayed out playing poker till about 1am and then came up to the room having lost all his chips. He didn't do too bad for his first time playing a live table since he plays online poker usually. So he is going to play some more live poker around here before he tries Vegas poker again.

So, it was a fun and losing weekend. Hopefully the next time we go to Vegas, we will bring home some money along with fun memories.

Not Much Happening

2009-10-16T15:45:00.000-07:00

The title of this post sums everything up. We are extremely boring!
I'm still just working and have not done much else. Did some shopping in prepration for our trip to visit Greg's extended family in New Hampshire for Chirstmas. I had to get some winter clothes. I am an AZ girl that doesn't like the cold so I have no warm winter clothes.. It was a nice excuse to go shopping.

Greg has been trying his best to get find a job. He has been to 2 career fairs at ASU. People are interested in him but there are so little positions are available soon. He has also turned in some applications for specific jobs and he has given his resume to lots and lots of people.
We have even been considering moving to another state, where there are jobs. Greg has applied for jobs in New Mexico (with NASA) and he is hoping for some openings to show up soon for a subsidy of Lockheed that is also in New Mexico. He has applied for 2 jobs with in California and should be applying soon for a job in Virginia. Who knows what will happen and where we will end up??
As long as I don't have to work at Great Clips anymore I don't think I'll care too much. : )

Well that's all I guess......exciting... I know....

Happy Birthday Greg!!!

2009-09-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

Greg turned 23 yeaterday!!!
YAY!!!

Greg had a very uneventful birthday. I am a terrible wife. I didnt throw him a party and we didnt go on a date. Well kinda my parents took Greg & I out to Texas Roadhouse. So Yummy!!
I did make Greg some cupcakes. Spice and I surpise Greg with cards and gifts during breakfast.
Otherwise, Greg watched football and played video games. We watched Quantum of Solace and that was it.

Gosh we are so boring!!!

Oh well!

happy Birthday to my wonderful Hubby!!! I love you!!!

What I Did with my Day off

2009-09-01T18:29:00.001-07:00

Back story to the picture is that whenever I come over to my parents house I change the background on Xander's (my little brother) computer. He usually has a picture of himself on his quad or just his quad. So I put up pictures of my kitty, Spice up instead. She is much cuter!!!

Anyway, Xander recently created this picture of him jumping his quad with the superstitions in the background. So i changed it and add my kitty to the picture and the title.

So now I am thinking of creating a whole series of pictures showing the adventures of Xander and Spice!

And this is what happens when I have nothing to do on my days off and Greg is not around and I cant go shopping,

5 Years Ago

2009-08-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

Courtney Posting from Greg's account (cause he never posts on here)

5 years ago yesterday Greg and I went on our first date. Nothing too exciting, he picked me up and went to see a movie. We then drove around talking trying to get to know each other a little bit better.
Ever since then we have been together. There isn't really anything remarkable about our story but I'll describe the events leading up to us getting together and to getting married.

About the middle of our JR year in high school, my best friend Ashley wanted to bring this guy to the movies with us. He was a guy she talked to in her French class and she thought he was so cute ans so smart (which I later discovered to be true).
She brought him along on various outings with our group of friends. On one occasion I beat in him pool. Probably the only time that ever happened. When it came time to take the SAT's, I was telling Ashley that I didn't want to drive myself because I wasn't totally comfortable driving at the time since I been in my first car accident. She mentioned that Greg was going to be taking the SAT the same time and place that I was going to be. so she was going to ask him if he would mind taking me with him. I asked her not to but she did anyway and Greg texted me to let me know he would be picking me up. So nice of him! As the SAT starts kind of early in the morning, Greg pointed out that I was kinda quite that morning. One of the rare moments he had seen me up to that point not talking someones ear off. (i was in high school what else was I suppose to do besides talk, also going to beauty school didn't help my constant talking.) So after that event, I hadn't talked to or seen Greg in a few months until one random day I got some text messages from some random number. It was Greg which he finally told me after a while of texting (he thought he was texting Ashley since she always text and called him from my cell. He then told me our SAT scores were online and we checked our scores. He of course did much better than me. sad for me!! This began our random texting relationship.
In the beginning of August, Ashley and I decided to invite Greg (who I had developed a crush on) and Tyler (who Ashley had developed a crush on) out to dinner. Tyler never showed but Greg did. After that dinner we starting texting even more. School then started and we texted each other every night. If you haven't noticed we never talked on the phone we only text and that is how it is still. We never call each other we need an answer to a question quickly or the situation is too much for texting.
So after this week of texting, I finally asked Greg when he was going to ask me out on a date. he replied with "Do you want me to?" I of course said yes and then he asked. We went out to the movies the next night.

Our mutual friends in high school seemed surprised by us starting to date. Most were probably surprise to see Greg dating more than me dating.

During the last five years lots of things have happened with us. We have gone places and done things together that we will be remembering for many more years to come. We both look forward to experiencing even more things together in the future.

That was very long beginning!!
Ever since that date, Greg and I have been together. We have never broken up or taking any "breaks" from each other. I knew after that movie that I would marry him. I called Ashley after he dropped me off that night and I told her so. I don't think she thought I was serious but here It came true. 4 Years, 7 months and 1 day after that 1st date.

The first picture is from our senior homecoming dance.

Second is from High School graduation

Third is within the our first year in college

Fourth is within our second

Fifith is our engagment annoucement picture

Sixith is our our wedding annoucement picutre

Nothing New Yet

2009-08-17T14:13:00.000-07:00

Since the terrible news about Greg getting laid off at Orbital nothing new has happened. So I thought the blog needed that update, in case any of the few readers of my blog really wanted to know.

Greg has however has applied for a few a jobs and a few referrals.
I had a client that works for Lockheed Martin take Greg's resume and give it to the HR people at Lockheed here in AZ and at General Dynamics in Scottsdale. So maybe thing good will come of that. Its nice that by work at Great Clips I have the opportunity to network for both Greg and I. I meet Loran while working there who gave me a job working as his assistant during Tax season. So while I may not love working there and cutting hair it has some benefits.

Also, on Greg's job hunt, he has applied from some random jobs (Best Buy and Costco) in hopes of a part time job while he finishes this last semester. (Which starts next week).
And today, Greg and I were both looking for Federal government jobs. Greg did applied for a job with NASA today. The position is in NM so mixed feelings about that but it would be nice for him to work for NASA.

Well, thats about it for us. Told you nothing new happening.

Bad News

2009-07-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

Posting from Greg's email.

Yesterday, Greg text me to tell me that he had been laid off his job and next week would be his last week. Greg kinda expected that this would be coming with rumors going around work about lays off to 10% of the company, due to a huge contract being lost a month or so ago. I hoping that by Greg being an intern that he would be safe from lay offs but no. All interns were let go. We are both grateful for the length of time in which he was able to intern because he has given Greg almost 3 years of engineering experience and practical knowledge in multiple aspects of his desired field.
So after the initial shock of Greg (the breadwinner of our house) losing his fantastic job, we went into calculating survival mode. Thankfully, I have a skill that allows for me to work even though my degree has gotten me no where yet. Being able to do hair is definitely paying off huge for us. Its going to be able to pay all bills until Greg Finishes school and get find a career.

One (of the many) downsides to Greg losing his job at Orbital is that he no longer has a secure job for after graduation in December. There are a limited number of engineering jobs in the Valley. And even fewer in the aerospace industry since Orbital lost the latest contract. We are hopefully that job opportunities will pop up in the future has Greg finishes school.

Otherwise, Moving out of state is looking very likely. In my recent job searches for Greg, I have found a few positions with in the federal government that could be possibilities for Greg. Especially the positions within NASA, the FBI, etc. I have so far been unable to get a job within the fed. but Greg has more experience in his field and better grades so I hope he will have a better chance.
I also have found a few jobs with in well known engineering firms that have openings but none here in AZ.

While moving is a last resort, since I don't acclimate well to other climate, if we have to, we will.

Besides all the bad news, My wonderful mom bought Greg an amazing new navy power suit, shirts and ties so that we will look great while interviewing for jobs. Employers will have no excuse not to hire Greg. Intelligent, educated, experience and a good looking. What more could they want.

Projects

2009-07-18T10:43:00.000-07:00

I have gotten bored staring at blank white walls at my house and the mis-matched furniture, so I have started to livin up my house.
Last week, Greg and I ventured to IKEA, which I had never been to before and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. Anyway, we went to find bookcases, and a coffee table.
After wondering through the maze of stuff and people, we did manage to find some bookcases and a TV stand. No coffee table. W came home and got those put together. Its a good thing I use to put furniture together at Tuesday Morning, because it took both us to figure out the assembly. But now the office looks more organized and all the books are finally out of boxes. We are officially unpacked now. I knew between Greg and I we would have a lot of books but we have almost filled the 2 bookcases we have.
The TV stand have changed the look of our living room. Looks much cleaner. No white dresser with my brown and black decor.
I am in the process of painting that white dresser to black the match the other dresser I have already painted.
Speaking of paint, I have started more painting projects. I painted out 1/2 bath a pale yellow color. Finally, rooms are starting to have some life to them.
I also went to Hobby Lobby and got some more pictures and things to put on the walls. Looks way less boring around here.
I got my wedding pictures put in frames and hung around the house.

The projects I have yet to start are painting the master bedroom and maybe the master bath. I haven't yet decided on that.

4th of July

2009-07-06T19:38:00.000-07:00

Over the 4th of July weekend, Greg and I went up to my parents cabin in Pinetop, along with my parents and Xander. We had a great relaxing weekend. Did not do very much. Watched tv, saw Ice Age 3 (my dad's idea), saw some fireworks and played some card games.
It was very nice not having to work and be in cooler temps, even though we missed the storm on Friday night.
Now its back to work and the heat.

Nothing else new going on with us.

Observations

2009-06-22T19:48:00.000-07:00

Greg and I have been married for almost 3 months now and been together almost 5 years and some interesting observations have been made.
First, Greg lacks the ability to clean without specific instruction. I don't know if this is because he doesn't want to clean or because he seriously cant figure out that by the me telling him to clean the bathroom while I am at work requires scrubbing the shower, counters and toilet and occasionally mopping the floor. Greg does help me clean when I ask him too and I am grateful for that because there is no way I can do all the cleaning myself.
Second, I am slightly more of an anal clean freak than I thought. I hate the bathroom and kitchen being a mess for more than day.
Although the flip side to that is that I don't make the bed, ever and I hate cleaning the kitty box. Even though it gets a little out of control sometimes. (Spice gets even with me leaving her home alone all day by peeing on the floor next to her box. She only does this when both Greg and I work 9-5 and not when I work a night shift).
Third, Greg takes over the cooking sometimes. I'll start something and he will jump in and help. Usually it is just easy stuff, cooking hamburger meat or noodles. I think that he thinks I am incapable of cooking these items unsupervised.
Fourth, Greg and I hardly ever go out to eat. Before we got married we rarely ate at home and cooked a meal. Occasionally, yes but no more than once every few weeks. Now, we go out maybe once a month and that includes fast food. I have gotten a lot of use out of my pots, pans, baking sheets and crock pot. Its amazing I can cook actually meals and grocery shop.
Fifth, We rarely have dirty dishes in the sink. I hate doing dish so my rule is that once you rare done with a dish it gets rinse and put directly in the dishwasher and we have both stuck to the rule. This is completely the opposite at both our parents home, we both hardly ever did the dishes or even rinsed and put a dish in the dishwasher.
Sixth, Greg can iron a shirt. Although it took 3 months for him to turn on an iron and he has now almost mastered the ironing. I refuse to iron his shirts. I am not going to be like my mom and have a date with ironing board once a week to iron my husband's shirts. My mom did not train my dad, or my dad trained my mom.
Seventh, I don't pair or fold socks. I hate socks, Too small to mess with. I make Greg pair his own socks. Ill leave them on the bed for him to put away. However, Greg will not put my laundry away when he does the laundry, he folds them, sometimes, but will not put them in the drawers. Not sure why this is.
Eighth, I love to shop. But, I don't like shopping from home accessories. I like a lot of things but I don't want any of them in my house. I don't want lots of clutter. I don't want lots of random pictures on the walls and I don't want random things every where just to have them. I like simple. Very simple! Also, I just don't know what I want to do yet decorating wise. I have a few things here and there. But I have yet to have a fully decorated a finished room. Oh well, I have time to work on this. I find my lack of a need to decorate and buy accessories interesting considering my mom is the interior designer and my parents house is full of accessories. But then again that may be why I don't want to over accessorize.

After all this random observation, its clear that Greg and I are an interesting couple to say the least and I am sure more random observations will occur in the future.

Na Pali Boat Tour Pictures

2009-06-09T10:42:00.001-07:00

http://s731.photobucket.com/albums/ww312/cmgnoel/

Hawaii Honeymoon

2009-05-31T21:55:00.001-07:00

Greg and I just got back form our week long stay in Kauai. It was a great week..everything but my serious sunburns.

I'll recap the week and post some pictures.

Ill Post more Picutres in a slide show when I have more time

Sat. May 23
Greg and I left for Hawaii. Our flight was 7 hours long and incredibly boring. Good thing I had a book, which I finished like half way through the flight and there was a movie for me to watch otherwise I would have gone crazy. Greg reads slower so he read almost one book on the flight there. We got to out hotel on the beach at about 7pm Hawaii time and went to dinner, then went to sleep.

Sun. May 24

Greg and I had nothing particular planned for this day so we drove all over the East and North part of the island. We basically stopped at every lookout point and beach.

The beaches were beautiful and all the lush greenery was beautiful. We also managed to end up in massive down pour of rain. It was probably normal for the part of the island we were on since we were just East of the wettest place on Earth but for us desert dwellers it was alot.

Its kinda scary driving around on a 2 way highway with one lane bridges with so much pouring rain it was hard to see even with the wipers going as fast as they could.

Mon. May 25

We decided to explore the South and West parts of the island. No rain on these sides thankfully.

We saw the beautiful south beaches, clear beautiful blue water. And saw some beautiful beach house ( trying to convince my parents to buy a house we saw for sale on the beach, only 4 million I totally think they should do, even if we don't have 4 mill). Anyway, then we drove up to the Wimea Canyon, which is the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. It was of course beautiful also. After that we drove up towards the missile range that was on the island and we turned around and drove back to the hotel. We swam in the enormous pool there and in ocean.

Tues. May 26

This was the day of our boat tour from the South part of the island up the Northern Na Pali coast. We got up super early and drove south, got on a catamaran and started out. Right after we left the port a school of spinner dolphins we swimming in front of our boat. And we later saw them out spinning and such. We also saw a mother and baby humpback whale, which was amazing because the whales are usually gone by April. We saw a bunch of beautiful waterfalls and the cliffs of Na Pali. We then went snorkeling, which was way more fun than I thought it would be. We swam with the fish and sea turtles. I was only a few feet away from Crush. (I love Finding Nemo). Anyway, after that it was lunch on the boat and back to port. This was when I got burned. Forgot to reapply the sun block. We finished the day by buying some aloe and more sunblock.

Wed May 27

We didn't have anything planned until the evening so we decided to go find Secret Beach and the Lava Pools. After driving around for a while we found the path down to the beach. It was a pretty steep downhill path but we finally made it to the beach. It was of course beautiful and only a few people were there. We found the lava pools, we think, but it was super slippery so we didn't investigate too much. I was also getting really hot and my sun burns from the previous day were starting to hurt. I almost died on the path back up the car. I swear it was a really steep incline but Greg didn't think so. Needless to say it was an awful hike back up. Greg ended up getting sick from the breakfast we had so we spent the rest of the afternoon at the hotel.

Later that evening though it was Luau time. Greg was super excited for the all you can eat food, which was amazing. SO much food and too little stomach space. After food, there was a show with the hula dancers. I am amazed at how fast they shake those hips.

Thurs. May 28

I decided that I needed another book to read since I had finished mine on the plane, so Greg and I went to the book store. I got 2 novels and Greg got a book on the mathematics of poker. It literally has math equations in it. So we spent the morning out by the pool reading. Greg loved his book and mine was good too. We were then suppose to go on a helicopter tour of the island but our tour was cancelled due to weather so we rescheduled for Friday. We spent the rest of the day reading on the balcony of our room and went swimming in the pool at night. Safer for my burns.

Fri. May 29

We got up early to go on our helicopter tour, which was amazing. The island is beautiful. We saw most of the big sites during the week driving around but it was definitely a different experience seeing them from the air. We also got to go inside the old volcano crater, which you cant do in your car, especially since that is the wettest place on Earth. There were so many waterfalls, it was beautiful. After the helicopter, it was breakfast and we decided to go find the beach that was voted best in the country, Hanalei Bay. After a few turn arounds we finally made it there and it is beautiful. Lots of surfers were out that day. We then needed to find a gas station since we were almost out and I was freaking out that we were going to run out before we found a gas station, and I don't know if AAA response in Kauai. But in the process of looking for a gas station we stopped for some famous Hawaiian shaved ice. It was yummy!!! and then we found a gas station a few miles away so I could relax. Then it was back to the hotel.

Sat. May 30

Time to go back home but our flight wasn't until 9pm, so we had time to kill.

We thought about paddle boarding but it was super expensive and we were starting to run low on cash. So instead we opted for Starbucks Frappacinos and Cinnamon rolls, reading our books, Jamba Juices more reading, shopping and then dinner. Then off to the airport for more reading and the 5 hour flight home. Which I did not sleep on very well.

Sun. May 31

We arrive in Phoenix at 6:30am and ready for bed!!!!

A's for Greg

2009-05-21T09:31:00.000-07:00

Posting from Greg's account again...
But this post is about him anyway.

Greg just got all his grades in yesterday and he has yet again gotten all A's.
He always gets worries that he is not going to get all A's but then he does. So I am never shocked when he does. Ill be shocked if he ever gets anything but A's.
I am always amazed that he takes these super hard engieering classes and does so well. Engineering is suppose to be hard but Greg does it with what looks like a medium amount of effort.
So only 3 more classes next semester and Greg will have his degree. If he does another semester of all A's (which I am sure he will) he will gradute will suma cum laude honors, and will make my cum laude honors look so very lame.

Also, Greg makes me look so very lame because he works his PAID internship at Orbital while I had to intern for free and will probably have to work for free again. Greg also will most likely have a job once he finishes school with hopefully some great pay so I will not have to work anymore...if I dont want too. (staying at home all the time seems like it will be a huge bore)

Ready for Summer

2009-05-14T14:35:00.000-07:00

Posting from Greg's email today....

We are ready for summer and vacation!!
Greg finished up school on Wednesday. He stayed up super late finishing his senior design project and then we was done. All of his grades should be coming in soon but I am certain that he got all A's as usual.
Now that Greg is done with school that means it is almost time for HAWAII!!
We leave a week from Saturday and I cannot wait! An entire week without work. Cant get any better than that except that will be in Hawaii. Can anyone tell I am excited??
We have already booked some of our activities. We are going on boat tour with snorkeling and a helicopter tour of the island and we are of course going to a luau. Greg also thinks he is going to get me to hike a trail. It about 8 miles so we'll see if I ability to do it.

Also, since I am having a difficult time trying to find a job. I have decided to volunteer. yes, work for free at the City of Mesa's prosecutor's office. I am just now starting to the paperwork completed and don't know when/if I will start soon. Hopefully this volunteering will help gain the experience and connection I need to be able to get a "real" job. Cutting hair at Great Clips is paying the bills but it is not exactly the job or challenge that I want.

House and Hair

2009-05-02T18:42:00.000-07:00

Finally got some pictures taken of my house painted, and more decorated.

I painted some walls blue for an accent and got some cute stuff at Hobby Lobby and Kirklands so now the house looks like some one lives here. Also I finally the dresser that I put downstairs painted. Its not complete since I missed a little bit because I didn't think it was going to show once the drawers were in and I still need to 2 knobs for one drawer.

Also I got my hair cut a few weeks ago and colored it a few days ago. Not sure about the color yet. Maybe darker or lighter but I am just glad for a change. I was so boring for so long. And I needed a little fun with my hair so I don't look like an old married woman.

Slacking on my posting

2009-04-25T10:12:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting to post something new until my projects were complete and cleaned up.
I am finished but just haven't got around to cleaning up all the mess yet.
I don't have enough time off to do everything. So hopefully today I'll get everything cleaned up and get some pictures up of what I have been doing.

Update

2009-04-12T19:46:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged since the wedding and I don't have much interesting to update everyone on but Ill try to think of something.

I am still waiting for my proof from the photographer so no wedding pictures yet except for the ones I posted earlier. However, pictures can be viewed at www.stilllifestudios.com. The password for us is noel.
I still haven't taken pictures of the house since we moved in because it is still a mess. Everything is slowly getting done. Hopefully, we will be all finished by the time we go to Hawaii in about 6 weeks.

My little kitty has adjusted to living in the new house. She had a rough first week. Or more like I did because we was not using her box properly for a few days, in what I assume was a kitty tantrum.

Greg and I have adjusted to married life. The only difference it seems we had to adjust to was living together. We have been together so long that we haven't had any real surprises in behavior or anything like that. We are just trying to get through the next weeks.
Greg is finishing up his semester at school. Only one more to go!!!!
And I am finishing up my second job as the accountant's assistant on Wednesday. YAY!!! Back to searching for a full time job again. Although I am certain it will not be a good search for a while still.

On a bright note, Greg and I are going to become an aunt and uncle near the end of the year with my brother August and his wife Melissa having a baby. We are super excited for them and cant wait to meet baby Stone or Tessalyn ; )

Wedding

2009-03-30T14:22:00.001-07:00

Here is just a quick blog about the wedding. I'm in between jobs so Ill post more later.

So we are finally married. After a week of going to to different appts. House and wedding stuff. the wedding went amazingly well. No glitches that I am aware. Greg looked amazing and so did the rest of the bridal party. The reception was great. Food was good. Everyone is lame and no danced unless forced. Hopefully I will have the professional pics soon but in the mean time here are some pics my camera happy mom took before the wedding.

House Update

2009-03-16T17:54:00.001-07:00

So I am huge slacker at posting pictures. I took these pictures of the house a couple of weeks ago and never had the time to post them. And the house has already changed since these were taken. Brand New black appliances are all in, the washer and dryer and the paint has been redone. All the front courtyard landscaping is in too. The only thing missing when I checked it out last week was the blinds.

We sign our closing papers on Thursday, have our walk through and orientation on next Monday and we get the keys and move in next Thursday.

Also, 12 more days till the wedding!!!

Happy Birthday to Me

2009-03-10T21:59:00.000-07:00

Today was my 22nd birthday!
I sorta started celebrating on Sunday. Greg's parents and grandma took Greg and I out to dinner at Brio. Seriously yummy Italian food. Greg's chicken was undercooked so he had to send it back to be remade. Which was fine not like we were in a hurry to leave. Then we went back to Greg's parents house for cake and some presents. His family gave me a super cute Pink Coach purse.
Monday was a good day because I only had to work one job and got some errands done. Melissa also gave me a much needed facial. Finalized stuff at the Wright House and got some more essentials for the house.
Today, my actually Birthday. I didn't have to work at all. Loran ( the accountant I work for) let me have the day off even though its a busy time.
So I woke up this morning to find the shirts and dresses my mom bought me outside my door.
I also got a sewing kit with thread and pins etc from my grandma to go with sewing machine I have. My parents also got me the beautiful necklace and bracelet to wear for the wedding and another dresser for mine and Greg's bedroom.
I spent the day shopping with my mom. Buying stuff for the house and my mom bought me some cute capris and more tank tops. So all in all a good day that was followed up with dinner at Macaroni Grill with my parents, Greg and August and Melissa. And brownies with ice cream and strawberries for dessert.

Besides it being my birthday, Greg and I are counting down to the house closing and the wedding. 16 days till we get the keys to the house and 18 more till wedding. I still feel like we have so much to do. Hopefully we have enough time for everything.

Moving Along..

2009-02-26T13:29:00.000-07:00

4 more weeks till the wedding!!! Its getting so close! And my perfect planning so I could be stress free is not entirely working.
The wedding is all taken care of but the house closing and moving is what is throwing the stress in,
We got our official closing date for the house which is the 26th of March. 2 days before wedding. Talk about no time to get settled. And to make things more stressful, Greg and I have to go to home orientation on the 23rd. When they show us how to use everything in the house and all about HOA and such. The stressful thing is, that the day they scheduled us for is the same day Greg and I are taking our pictures for the wedding and the time they gave us is 3 hours before our session. Time crunch!!!
Greg also has to take basically the whole day off of school and the whole off of work on 26th. And I gotta take practically the whole week off.

Needless to say we both cant wait for our week in Hawaii in May. It will be a much needed and deserved vacation.

Bridal Shower #2

2009-02-22T21:53:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Kalina threw me a bridal shower with my friends and my family. I have yet to down load my pictures.
Kalina made some amazing food and we had a decent size crowd. My aunts all came and some of mycousins. The flower girls came and all three bridesmaids. Ashley came down from Flagstaff just to come to the shower : ) and a few of my other friends came too.
I got my great gifts. Lots of baking stuff and cleaning supplies. I joke that Greg gets to do all the cleaning because I work 2 jobs but I am sure I will have my fair share to cleaning duties.
Greg is so nice to put up with me telling him he has all domestic responsibilities because I work a lot, even though he has work and school to go to.

So Thank You to all of those who came and for the wonderful gifts!!!

The wedding is getting so close and I am so excited!!! 5 more weeks!

More about Us

2009-02-11T22:16:00.000-07:00

I cant sleep even though I am tired so I am going to do one of those survey things. I stole it from Lynette.

1. What are your middle names? Mine is Marie (which happens to be both of our maternal grandmothers names) and Greg's is Alan.

2. How long have you been together? This month will be 4 1/2 years. Our first date was August 27th, 2004

3.How long did you know each other before you started dating? That's hard to say. I think I had met Greg in January(ish) of 2004. But we didn't really start talking until July/August

4. Who asked who out? Greg asked me out after I asked him when he was finally going to ask me. We had been texting each other for like 4-5 days.

5. How old are each of you? Greg is 22 and I am 21. We are almost exactly 6 months apart.

6. Whose siblings do you see the most? Well we see Xander (my younger brother) the most. And its a toss up between Garrett (Greg's brother) and August (my older brother).

7. Do you have children together? of the human kind...NO but we count the kitty as our baby

8. What about pets? obviously by the answer above we have a kitty. See a few blogs back to admire her cuteness.

9. Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Umm...nothing really comes to mind. We agree on most things and when one us stresses they other is pretty calm. SO we balance out.

10. Did you go to the same school? Greg and I are high school sweethearts so yeah we went to the same high school and we went to the same college. I am ASU alumni and he will be too in Dec 09.

11. Are you from the same town? We both grew up in Gilbert. But Greg was born in Michigan and moved here when he was 5

12. Who is the smartest? Greg is. He understand alot more things than I do. But between the 2 of us we are super smart. Greg takes the science and math topics and I take the social and trivial topics.

13. Who is the most sensitive? I want to say me but every one of my friends would say I am not sensitive at all. But I think it is a toss up between Greg and I. It just depends on the subject

14. Where do you eat out the most as a couple? We are fast food junkies since my family doesn't cook food ever. We don't really have favorites

15. Where is the farthest place you have traveled as a couple? San Diego. We went there during Spring Break a couple of years ago. But we are going to Hawaii for our honeymoon

16. Who has the craziest exes? Neither of us have crazy ex's. Greg didn't date any girls before me and I didn't really date just had crazy guy friends.

17. Who has the worst temper? Greg doesn't angry that easily so it must be me.

18. Who does most of the cooking? I do. I have the cookbooks. But Greg is going to have to do more cooking now

19. Who is more social? Greg is. I hate social gatherings. I always feel so awkward. But we hang out with my friends more often so it seems that I more social

21. Who is more stubborn? Me. I have to have my way.

22. Who hogs the bed? Well we don't share at the moment. But i sleep in my queen size bed alone right now and Greg sleeps in a twin. SO i will probably be doing all the bed hogging since I am use to having lots of space

23. Who wakes up earlier? Greg wakes up earlier more often than I do. I have to wake up early but not as early just more often.

24. Where was your first date? Movie and then driving around in his car talking

25. Who has the bigger family? I do

26. Do you get flowers often? usually for my birthday, anniversary and valentines

27. How do you spend the holidays? My family's party and then his family's party. Lots of food

28. Who is more jealous? I don't really know. Probably Me1 But I don't really worry about it. I know Greg is always coming home to me.

29. Who does the laundry? I think I am going to have to. He is just going to have to put it away since my laundry never make it in the drawers or closest

30. Who is better with the computer? Greg i suppose

31. Who drives when you are together? Greg. 3 car accidents for me has cured from driving unless I have to

Bridal Shower #1

2009-02-08T15:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, one of Greg's mom's friends threw me bridal shower.
We had an amazing brunch and then everyone got to ask me a question, so they could get to know me better. Even though Greg and I have been together for almost 5 years people still don't really know any of the details about Me. So they want to know..I suppose. I am so boring!

Anyway, I got some wonderful gifts, My favorite though was the chocolate fountain, Greg's cousin Julie gave me, I have been wanting one for so long. I think they are the best. Anyway, that was not to say I didn't like my other gifts because I did. Everything will be great for Greg and I! Especially the recipes people gave me. I need to cook more!

I don't have any pictures from the shower because my mom slacked off on the picture taking. So Ill have to wait to get some copies from Greg's mom.

Greg and I Bought a House

2009-02-08T14:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Greg and I signed the contract for our new house. After lots of looking and a few failed offers, we finally got one.

First the long (very long) story about finding the house. Greg and I have been looking for a house the beginning of December. We have been looking at short sales and foreclosures in Gilbert. We did not want to go all the way to Queen Creek or out to Mesa. We like Gilbert so we were not budging on the location. So in our searched we put offers on about 4 houses. One we were out bid, another we were not fast enough getting our offer in, one the bank wanted 20K more for and the other we have been waiting over a month to hear on. Being that most were short sales and foreclosures they needed some cleaning and fixing.

However, with the wedding getting closer and 3 houses not working out and the other taking so long to hear on, my mom went decided to look at some new build while we were out running errands last Thursday. We just wanted to see what was available and the pricing was at.

The first neighborhood we went to was the one where the short sale we hadn't heard on was at. So, I showed my mom the model for the house we had the offer on. She liked it and I liked it. But there was no way we could afford a new one. So we went to another new build neighborhood. The sales guy was interested in showing me anything. He was rude but oh well they didn't have anything I like anyway. So my mom and I went down the street. And this where Greg and I are buying our house.

Our house is a new build in the neighborhood called The Willows. It on Recker between Ray and Williams Field. We are buying a spec home because we needed to be in by the end of March and this house just happens to have a finishing date of the 3rd week in March. It is the perfect model (3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths) and has been highly upgraded. The square footage is small in comparison to what we had been looking at but the floor plan is open and the house has tons of windows so it doesn't feel small. Plus I don't have to clean that much! Greg and I really couldn't have picked it out any better ourselves.

We got upgraded cabinets, granite counter tops (black and brown), upgraded tile and carpet. We also get all the window treatments and all new black appliances.

Greg and I are so excited that we finally have some where to move to once we get married. And its even more excited that we can move in without having to change anything.

Our house is still being constructed but I took some pictures of it at the stage it is at now.

The front of the house (I didn't get the front door and porch area in the picture)

The kitchen the cabinets just got put in on Friday. The dining area is with the kitchen.

The Family Room and patio door (our yard is super tiny)

One of the bedrooms and the upstairs bathroom

The Master Bedroom and Bathroom

I went Shopping...OPPS

2009-01-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I got a call from work and they said it was really slow at the store so I didn't need to come in until 2. So I decided to go shopping. I wasn't planning on buying anything, just looking. My mom and I went to American Home, which is going out of business. I wanted to see if I could find some nice inexpensive furniture for Greg and I for when we finally get house. Well needless to say I found some stuff at some great prices so I couldn't leave them.

I bought Greg and I a kitchen table and chairs and a dresser that matches the bed we are getting. I am so excited about what I got. I cant wait to finally hear some good house news so I can actually use my furniture and the stuff I have been collecting for the last 3 + years that I have in storage.

Ode to the Spice a Roo

2009-01-12T13:57:00.001-07:00

An overload of Spice pictures!

I have lots more but I thought these few summed up Spice in her every day life.

Mostly she is a lounge around girl but once in a while I find her some odd places.

Spice turns 3 in March 2 days before my birthday.

She is big and fat.

The Vet told me is a big kitty and that her 15 pounds doesn't put her at overweight but she is on the heavy side.

Oh well, I love my baby anyway!!

New Years and more

2009-01-09T11:44:00.000-07:00

For New Years, Greg and I hung out at our friend Ashley's house. We played some pool and some Wii and then went home a little early to avoid the crazies driving home.

On New Year's day, Greg and I hung at his parent's house with his aunts, uncles and cousins. We watched the Winter Classic, which is the yearly hockey game that is played outdoors. The Red Wings were playing in it this year so of course we had to watch. the Red Wings won so it was a good day. And then we watched some football games. I don't remember which games. We ate some yummy food and then opened some Christmas presents, because Greg's family was gone for Christmas.

Not too much exciting stuff still.

Still getting things done for the wedding, though most is finished. Got stuff finalized at the Wright House and sent out the invitations for the out of town people. And got a few other little things done.

Basically same old boring Greg and Courtney!

Moving Right Along

2008-12-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

First of all, Greg and I had a good Christmas. We spent Christmas Eve with my family and my grandma, aunt, uncle and cousins. Watching my grandma try to bowl on the Wii was probably the most entertaining thing of the whole evening. She wasn't quite grasping the concept of holding, swinging and letting the button go. After that, my family all came to my parents house to open gifts. All of us were except my little sister who is still MIA.
Greg and I both got new clothes. Greg got some tools and I got some cookbooks. I think maybe someone was trying to tell us something.....
On Christmas Day, Greg and I spent the day at my house just chilling out. We opened Santa presents, which for me was bedding for our guest bed (as soon as we get a house) and Greg got an ice cream maker and ice cream cookbook. I'll probably be the one making the ice cream, Greg will just be the one eating it all.

Second, I started my second job today. I am working as an office assistant for an accountant during tax season. I am working a few hours in the morning and working at Great Clips in the afternoon and nights.

Third, Greg and I went looking at more houses yesterday. We saw about 13 houses and we decided that we really liked 2 and put in some offers.

Lastly, Greg and I are getting married in 3 months. Its finally getting closer and I am trying to get some stuff done. I am getting all my envelopes addressed and stuffed so I can start sending them out soon. Also, Greg and I finally went and got our marriage license. Been putting it off for a while but we finally got that done. Just got to get everything finalized now. YAY!!!

Untitled (for lack of creativity)

2008-12-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

Greg and I have ups and downs again this last week.
An Up for Greg: All of Greg's grades have been posted in the last few days and he was very happy to see that he got all A's and a couple of A+'s. Basically, Greg got his usual grades. He is so amazingly smart. I don't know he always pulls A's in his super hard engineering classes.
An Up for Me: I have gotten a second job. One of my clients that came in a couple of weeks ago offered me a part time part as his office assistant. This client is a CPA and needs some help during tax season. So now I am going to be super busy working, at least until April
A Sort of Down for Me: I was rejected yet again by the county for the job interviewed for on Thursday. I am not too disappointed since I got the other job.
A Down for Both Greg and I: Greg and I found the PERFECT house last week and we put in an offer at the full asking price. Unfortunately, someone put in a much higher offer and we didn't get the House. We are now faced with the difficulty of finding a house we love and not trying to compare to the prefect house we lost. : ( of well. We will continue our search after Christmas.

Christmas Plans
On Sunday, Greg and I has dinner and Christmas with his family. Greg's family left for Michigan on Monday. Greg and I were suppose to go but we opted for a car payment over plane tickets. I think its better for our financial situation in the long run and I am sure we will in the future make a trip to the cold.
So Greg is so happy to spending all Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family. Bot much exciting happening though. Christmas Eve is dinner with my Dad's side of the family and Christmas day is hanging out with my family at home.

Brief Update

2008-12-15T12:46:00.000-07:00

Let's see good news.....

Greg and I are officially looking at homes. Yay!! We are hoping to find something by the end of the year. Houses in our price range seem to not last very long on the market.

Greg is almost finished with the semester. His last final is tomorrow and he can't wait for it to be over with. Only 2 more semesters to go!

Finally got my Christmas shopping done. Yay for me. I put it off way late this year.

Still working at Great Clips. I have an interview on Thursday for the courts again. Hopefully, it will go well.

That's all!

So Glad the Week is Almost Over

2008-12-04T20:03:00.000-07:00

YAY for Friday!!
For the last 3 days I have been at Great Clips training. Not by choice but by force (more or less). It was 8 hours of training. Learning all about Great Clips for 1 day and 2 days of hair cut training. The first day was awful and butt fell asleep after sitting the whole day. The last 2 days were ok because we were up actually cutting hair. Didn't learn a whole lot, just a few new ways to do what I was already doing. Most of the people in the training were right out of school. I have been out for 3 years (in school for 2) and there were only 3 other people that had been licensed longer than me. Anyway, even after the class I am still going to refuse to do a flat top and I'm a little unsure of blending my fades but I have a little more strength than before so I guess it wasn't a totally waste of 3 days. Except for the drive to PHX.

Anyway, enough about me. On to Greg!
Greg is almost done with his last full week of school. He got his huge research paper done and turned in and only has a few more things to do before finals start next Thursday! He is supposedly writing his lab report as I type. Greg will be doing homework and studying all weekend, while I go to work....yay for both of us! : (

Nothing else new..... we are so exciting.......