~Sara & Alex~

I'm always so behind :s

2011-08-20T15:23:00.002-06:00

July and beginning of August update coming soon!

June

2011-07-06T14:00:00.000-06:00

June I'll give an A-....mostly because husband is MIA :( and work was kinda poopy BUT otherwise I've been having a blast with friends, visitors and vacations!

Pool days and hanging out with my Clovistan "fam" (me and G)

my mom and aunties came to visit me. we explored ABQ and then they got to see how Clovistan does what it does lol

i traveled to Corpus Christi to visit my bestie, Mirielle. We had a great time eating delish seafood and watching her fiance, Jorge play baseball. Was soooo great to see them both :)

Mirielle and Jorge after he pitched

i miss her! love u turtle

we have fun

Happy (late) 1st Anniversary!!!

2011-07-06T13:52:00.000-06:00

Our anniversary is June 19th. We unfortunately couldn't spend it together this year but it was a wonderful day full of reminising and opening my gift :) I got a pretty sweet pashmina and shawl from somewhere on the other side of world ;) They are beautiful!!!

To my husband: I love you more today than I did a year ago and I know that our love will keep growing and our relationship and our life together will continue to evolve and make each day better than the next. I look forward to many many more wonderful years with you and whatever our future holds! MUAH!

June 19, 2010

I suck at updating this!!!

2011-07-06T13:48:00.002-06:00

That's all...HAHA! A few post coming your way pronto

A day late but...Happy Memorial Day

2011-05-31T13:14:00.000-06:00

This picture was take quite a while ago (3 years ish) but I just wanted to show you who my hero is :) I love you honey!

"Greater love hath no man than to lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13

Thank you to all our service men and women, past and present, for your dedication to our Great Nation and to ensuring our freedom. Much love to you all!

Where the heck has May gone??!!

2011-05-24T10:40:00.000-06:00

Seriously, where had the month of May gone?! Whoa. I feel like it was just May Day and now it's the week before Memorial Day Weekend...time just flies sometimes, having fun or not :) This month has been slower at work (for Sara at least) and has allowed a little time for playing. Also allowed for a little bit of over due office work and spring cleaning, yardwork etc etc. It's been nice to actually have a weekend (for Sara at least lol). Alex is still extremely busy and gone. He'll be around sooner or later but such is life in the military. Here are a few pictures to recap the month of May.

Sara was driving Alex's car one day and got hit in a parking lot but a chick with no license or insurance. Oh happy day!!! At least she came inside and asked who's car it was and told me she hit it. It could have got unnoticed for a bit and that would have SUCKED! We're getting it fixed though woooo!!! Along with the crack in the bumper a la Alex :)

Sara went for a visit to Denton, TX (north of Dallas) where she (I whatever) went to school. I visited some friends and had a great ol time. This is a picture of the new Mean Green Football stadium. While I really didn't have a hand in doing any thing for this, I was there when the process was started and helped promote the capital campaign etc. So I feel a little source of accomplishment :) I think it's pretty sweeeeeet

Me and Miss Tana :) I babysat her a lot when I lived in Denton and can't believe what a big girl she's grown into. So crazy that sh'es going to be in Kindergarten :s

Got to see friends Brad and Jana and their sweet little girl Chloe :) We ate at our fav spot in Denton, Fuzzy's Tacos that I introduced them to and they no go all the time! yay me. This is a picture of me, Jana and Chloe after dinner...and Brad's finger lol

Me and Jenn...she's my old bosses wive and a very very dear and awesome friend. I miss her everyday and was so happy I got to spend time with her and the fam and watch her graduate :) Ur awesome Jenn

Sometimes I wish I had a dogs life...so easy :) (sorry she's not very lady like!)

Excited to see what the rest of summer has in store for us!!! Next up on the agenda...Memorial Day Weekend, my Mom and Aunties visit, my trip to Corpus with the bestie, Alex working...oh wait LOL. Ciao!

Spring

2011-05-05T14:42:00.000-06:00

This Spring has been NUTS!!! Between the....

weather,

work

more work,

even more work,

fun times,

and more fun times....

Its been a crazy one. I've been working my tail off at fundraisers, baseball and softball, plus trying to have a social life and be a good wife. Alex has been super busy and gone with work as well. We've had 2 house guests and hosted Easter dinner for all our friends at our house (like 25 ppl, yikes!). But let me just say its also been great. Work is slowing down (for me aka Sara at least) and summer is upon us. I'm taking a trip to Denton next weekend, my mom and aunties are coming in June followed by another trip to the BEACH!! It's shaping up to be a great summer! Love ya'll xoxoxoxo

Loves...

2011-03-25T00:02:00.000-06:00

I seriously love the month of March...conference tournaments and then the NCAA tournament :) It's amazing!!! So much basketball and brackets and upsets and awesome wins <3 Wonderous...

p.s. GO CATS!!! Represent the PAC!

The Big Easy

2011-02-16T10:12:00.000-07:00

These pictures are so not in order...grrr blogger...but here are some pictures from our adventure to New Orleans for New Years.

These are our friends Elsa and Chris...Chris and Alex were in pilot training together and also were roommates at one point. Chris lives in Mississippi now and his gf Elsa was visiting so it was nice to meet her and hang out with them.

This was on the 30th when Alex and I got there. It was a better time to be on Bourbon St. because there weren't as many people but there was still a lot to check out...see the man in the bottom right lunging for the garbage can and almost missing. He wasn't having a successful night...or was he?!

Morning of New Years Eve we did some exploring...NOLA is such a beautiful city and I hope to go back soon and do some more exploring, shopping in the little shops all around and eating the fantastic Cajun food.

The was on the 30th... Alex bought me a rose from a man in a wheelchair (I made him haha) and then bought me this awful drink called a Hand Grenade aka lots of sugar and some booze. Headache city but man it was a fun trip!

I think next time we go I want to take our parents...it would be a blast :)

My 30 'Things'

2011-01-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

I read someone else's 30 things and I thought it was be interesting to see if I could come up with 30 things about myself that not EVERYBODY knows....hmmm, we'll see how this goes...

1. I'm super slow at putting pictures up on here or Facebook. Pictures usually sit on my memory card until I can't fit any more on there.

2. I often talk to myself....a lot

3.I absolutely hate the "C" word...if you don't know what I'm talking about, it refers to a women's body part but I find being called it is very degrading.

4. Some people have a fear of throwing up...not this girl! Ever since I was little, if its going to make me feel better, I'll do it. It's just one of those facts of life things that happens sometimes and I just deal with it. Don't get me wrong, I DO NOT do it on a regular basis but like I said, if its going to make me feel better, why not?

5. I've become quite the germ freak over the past few years. Maybe it's because I spent some time in some fraternities in my college days or because I moved to the city for a while and saw some pretty gross stuff...Idk but I have 2 bottles of hand sanitizer in my purse, a few in my house and a giant one on my desk at work. I have the wipes in my car and I ALWAYS use them after coming out of a store or public place.

6. I love doing laundry! I love the sorting, washing, drying, hanging/folding...the catch is I'm very anal about how it's done. Ask my husband, he thinks I'm crazy. I like things folded a certain way and if they get folded otherwise, I'll refold them (again ask the hubs). I may be OCD but whatever.
7. I know the words to a million songs, probably the artist as well and around the time it came out. My mom says if I had applied this skill to school, I'd be a doctor (yeah right!)

8. I love kids, and kids usually love me. I have rarely found a wee one that doesn't like me and have been called the "baby whisperer". That may sound weird and a bit creepy (maybe) but it's true. My friends have always called me the "mommy". I like to take care of people and am always worrying about everyone else. As of now, I don't have any kids of my own but I hope to someday and for the time being I love babysitting, play with and visit my friend's kids and the best part is I can give them back. haha!
9. I want to get better at photography...I'm waiting for my husband to buy me a sweet digital SLR camera. I have a nice digital one and a point and shoot but I really like the quality of DSLR.

10. I really miss my grandpa...he was my best friend and its still hard to think that he's not home, sitting in his chair, watching CSPAN and sneaking chocolate.
11. I clean when I'm angry.

12. I hate feeling unsafe and I kind of do where we live. I don't like that feeling.

13. I eat chocolate every day. Not a lot, but probably a piece a day. It keeps me sane :)

14. I get horribly car sick unless I'm behind the wheel, especially in the back seat. I've gotten better as if gotten older but it still happens from time to time.
15. I only have 2 piercings and they are in my ears.

16. I have a hard time parting with clothes. Even if I don't wear them any more I always find a reason for keeping them. I need to go through my closest this week and I'm dreading it...

17. Even though sometimes I complain that I work most weekends (at least one of the days) I really don't like sitting around all that much. I get that from my mother, always have to be doing something.

18. I find it nearly impossible to leave Target without having made some sort of impulse purchase.

19. I don't know if I could never not work...I often think about what I want to do when we have kids and from talks we've had I think hubs would like it if I stayed home but I just think I'd go stir crazy. Maybe I'll change my mind...

20. I love to organize and clean, but I'm hopelessly messy. Especially when it comes to my car.

21. My mind never stops wandering and I get side tracked a lot.

22. Along with wanting to get better at photography, I also want to get better at editting it (aka Photoshop efficiency)

23. I love baths but rarely think about taking one.

24. I detest doing the dishes.

25. I could watch/listen to Chelsea Lately for hours.

26. Fear of failing often keeps me from trying new things.

27. I can almost always find something to be nervous or worried about. Not my favorite character trait.

28. I want to learn to knit and crochet.

29. I love reading but sometimes I loose myself too far into a book and when I'm finished with it, it takes me a long time to get over it. Take the last Twilight book, Breaking Dawn, for example. I got so engrossed in it that when it was done, it took me a couple months to want to read again. Granted it was a looooong book but I had a hard time, when I let my mind wander, from thinking about it. Right now, I'm taking a break from reading my favorite section of the bookstore, romance novels (no, not the dirty ones!) and am reading George W. Bush's book, Decision Points. I'm really enjoying it (on my new Kindle ;])

30. I used to be a person that let people walk all over me so they would like me and I let myself be used but after being in a sorority in college, I changed. I'm not longer that person and at times the complete opposite, I'm too hard. Nowadays, if you burn me, you have a fat chance at gaining any respect back. I tell people what I think and don't take shit. I'm learning to be a little more in between than too soft or too hard but I think it's going to be a loooong work in progress.

If you'd like to list your own 30 Things, please do! Leave a comment and include a link to your post so I can come and read about YOU, too.

Wow...always playing catchup

2011-01-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Well here I am playing catch up again...its been a crazy holiday season! Thanksgiving, Alex's training, the end of fall semester for work and my masters and LOTS of traveling in the month of December.

This are my 2 best friends here in NM, Tina and Emily. We had Thanksgiving at Emily's casa with lots of friends :) We cooked all the food, it was fun!

I got to go home to Washington for Apple Cup...it was a surprise to everyone but my mom and Mirielle. Haha my daddy almost cried it was pretty cute :) I got to hang out with my sister who is now at WSU and see her dorm and what not. It was great to be home!

This is a group shot from our Spirit Squad Christmas party. We did ugly sweaters, cookie decorating contests, silly games and white elephant gifts. It was way fun and these girls are so silly.

I graduated with my master's in December and it was a great feeling! After 2 years of soooo much work, it finally paid off and I'm glad it's over haha.

Alex missed the actual graduation ceremony because of work and I didn't think he has going to get to come at all. But he, my mom and my dad were very sneaky and he "showed" up at dinner after the ceremony. It was an excellent surprise and I was so glad he got to be there with my family. We did the Dallas aquarium and Dave and Busters and other fun stuff.

For Christmas vacation, I drove to where Alex is going some training and we went galavanting all over the southeast. For Christmas we went to Florida and it was a blast. New Years, we hit up New Orleans with friends and had such an awesome time!

Here is Miss Gabby and her first ever Christmas stocking :) so adorable!

I will post New Orleans pictures whenever I get them downloaded....

Road Trip #2: Flagstaff, AZ, etc.

2010-11-23T11:40:00.000-07:00

Alex and I decided since there wasn't too much going on for either of us at work that we should take a little trip/week vacation. We found this great timeshare/condo renting place in Flagstaff, Arizona (2 hours north of Phoenix). We had an amazing time. It's beautiful there; reminded us both of Washington and the PNW in general. We went hiking, sight seeing, eating, drinking, etc. etc. It was really great to get to spend some quality time together since we've both been very busy lately. Here are a few pictures from our adventure, hopefully I can narrate them all.

in the kitchen of our condo making some breakfast

Gabs lounging by the slider to the deck

there was a nice park we took Gabby to quite a few times

this is the mtn we decided to climb the next day...

Gabby was pumped there was snow on our hike...she LOVES playing in snow :)

making our way up the mtn

it was gorgeous up there

random pic in the middle of our hike documentation but we went to this brewery for lunch on the first day

stopped for a rest and a picture

ADVENTURE DOOOOOG!!!

yep, we were pretty high up there

grabbing a little break from the wind...Gabby ducked out of the pic for some reason

the summit of Humphrey's Peak

I DID IT!!! (Alex didn't take a picture of himself, we went one at a time the last little way)...it was seriously cold up there and the wind was blowing soooooo hard. it was a really long way up and a really long way down. i was "done" with a about a half hour left on the way down. i think i recited the Lord's Prayer and Psalm 23 about a million times and did a very dramatic "Thank you GOD!!!" when we got to the meadow. BUT we did it and it was a great experience.

the next day with very sore bodies, we went to the Grand Canyon National Park...it was seriously awesome...here are Gabby and Alex checking out the first stop on the South Rim

the Watch Tower on the first stop was really neat

Canyon

It was so gorgeous. Better than I even expected

beginning of sunset...the sunset was quite magical :)

the next day we went the site of the 2nd largest and best perserved meteor crater in the world. it was a BIG hole in the ground

that's our tour guide, Eddy

the next and last day of our trip was spent around Flagstaff. we went to the Lowell Observatory and saw some neat stuff. This is where Pluto was discovered....in the evenings they have "star gazing". We got to look at the Moon, Uranius, and Jupiter with 4 of its moons. Here I'm view Jupiter.

Alex checking out Jupiter

On our way home we went through the Petrified Forest National Park (per Momma Hill's request) and it was pretty incredible how all this land and things of the land have been perserved.

Petrified Wood

This was a great trip and our first vacation as married people :) Can't wait for the next one!

Road Trip: Tucson, AZ

2010-11-10T16:02:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we both had a little break from work so we decided to pack up and drive to Tucson to see Alex's friend John and his girlfriend Lisa. John and Alex were in pilot training together and have remained good friends. They hadn't seen each other in a little over a year and after spending the last 3 years together most of the time, I think they kinda missed each other haha. The boys did a lot of golfing while the girls (Lisa and I) did a lot of shopping. I got a TON of my Christmas shopping done. It feels great to not be stressed about it. Gabby got to come along and had fun playing with Lisa's dog, Daisy.

Anyways, it was a super fun weekend and we hope to have John and Lisa come visit us soon. Unfortunately I have no pictures to show for this weekend :( Maybe I will from our next adventure.

Why I love the End of October/Early November....

2010-10-27T10:09:00.000-06:00

SPORTS!!!! There are so many different things going on...the end of College Football, mid season NFL, start of the NBA, end of MLB and the beginning of College Basketball :) It makes my heart happy. Not only am I good and busy at work but ESPN and other sports channels are really all that get watched at our house this time of year (besides the occasional shows that we watch regularly; GLEE, Parenthood, Chelsea Lately and Grey's...ok the last 2 are just me lol.

Tonight is the first game of the World Series between the SF Giants and the TX Rangers! I'm a huge Rangers fan (I will always be a Mariners fan too, just a little angry with them the last few years and my 2nd team took over). I've got my MOOSE CLAW shirt all ready to go and I'm pumped! GO RANGERS!

My next thing to look forward to is the College Football end of season and playoffs. YAY!

I love FALL!!!

2010-10-25T14:01:00.000-06:00

On Sunday we were able to go to the local pumpkin patch. We went with 2 other couples; Matt and Emily and Matt and Rachel. Matt and Rachel's little guy came along as well. It was a ton of fun. We walked around, got snacks, watch the pumpkin cannon and went on a hay ride where we got to pick pumpkins. Afterwards we went to Matt and Rachel's house and carved our pumpkins! They are all set up on the porch now :) Enjoy the pictures....

Pumpkin trail

Us in front of the pumpkin mountain

Emily and I...Alex was being a goober and right here I think I'm telling him to stop being a dork before he drops my camera.

Matt and Mr. L

Matt and Emily

Alex getting ready to pick our pumpkins

We are very excited for Halloween this weekend. Some people from Alex's work are having a party so we are dressing up and getting ready to have a great time!

Playing Catch Up

2010-10-21T10:35:00.000-06:00

Even though I don't have very many pictures to show for it, we've both been extremely busy. Mostly with work and not much play :( Fall sports are winding down for me finally and we'll be starting into basketball soon. Alex has been working on a BIG project at work as well as starting his masters back up after taking the summer off for the wedding and a little brain break. We did manage to make it to the Coug game in Oklahoma, which was a serious blast! We also spent a day in Oklahoma City (pictures of both below). We also did a weekend in Lubbock. I went early with a few friends to run the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and then our guys showed up and we had a great time letting loose a little (pics below as well). Miss Gabby is a year old and she's such a sweet puppy. She loves to cuddle, knows how to give hugs (sweetest thing ever!) and is so playful and little bit of a jokester. Hope you enjoy this little update of our lives...next stop - the beginning of basketball, Thanksgiving, Sara's graduate school graduation, and much more :) Love ya'll!

Us with Butch

Starship Concert with Emily :)

Spirit Squad on Homecoming

Alex trying not to kill himself on Craig's mini bike

Oklahoma City - baseball game

Alex playing with our neighbor, Miss A

Happy Miss A

Gabby looking out the window

blinked!

Tina and I at the piano bar

Craig and Tina

Again...

they were pretty talented

hahahaha

the group...what a fun night!

Alex and Craig...right before i broke the crap out of Alex's camera (epic fail)

and I'm not really sure why I can't make this go away....

My friend Samantha...I took some pictures of her for her graduation announcements

Married Life: The adventures begin

2010-09-01T12:58:00.000-06:00

We've been married for a little over 2 months now and let's just say that neither of us notice much of a difference between being married and not. Haha, we're stilling waiting for "it" to happen. For now, we're just enjoying the titles of husband and wife and each other's company (as always).

We spent about 1/2 of the 2 months apart because of my trip back home and then him being TDY (aka gone for work, silly Air Force and their technical terms) for 3 weeks. Now that my work is getting hectic once again, I feel like we only see each other for a little bit in the evening and passing in the bathroom in the morning. Such is life though...We ARE however very excited for this upcoming Labor Day weekend. We're heading off to Stillwater, OK on Friday for the WSU vs. OK State football game. We've both been to away games but never together so we're excited to do that together as well as get to see the Cougs play, which is always a treat since we're not at home.Our good friends here in NM Matt and Emily Crowe and Craig and Tina Blessing just got married as well as the 6 of us spend a lot of time together :)

Below are a very pictures of the adventures of us newlyweds:

Adventures at the fair bring some delisious treats! Texas Taters w/ cheese mmmmm

Above is a trip to the Josh Abbott concert and then fun with our neighbors, Ed, Leslie and baby Ana. This is baby Ana in my sweatshirt, ready to make smores :)

Our friend Meg takes amazing pictures and asked us to do some modeling for her portfolio...this is just one shot but they all turned out amazing! Thanks Meg ;)

Football season is upon us!!! We dominated in the first game and hope to continue that trend...this is a picture of my cheerleaders

We got to do a spouses day at Alex's sqrn and learned some things about their jobs as well as getting to go on a few flights on their planes. it was a blast! above I'm in the cockpit and below is Tina (mentioned above) and I at the end of the day.

Can't wait to put up pictures from our Coug weekend :) See ya'll later

Everything wedding and more

2010-07-22T15:05:00.006-06:00

The month of June was, to put it lightly, CRAZY! Crazy, fun, amazing and just a super great time in my life. I went home for my sister's HS graduation, shower, bachelorette, wedding, etc. Alex came for his bachelor party and the wedding preparations. It was so much fun. Here are some pictures from our amazing month...

my shower was put on by my aunts and cousins on the Shuler side. It was a really great time to visit and spend time with lots of people I love.

My bachelorette party was fun as well. We had dinner at Michael's on the Lake and then went to the Saucy Hog to dance the night away. Alex's bachelor party was a weekend long event at Cresent Bar and although there aren't any pictures that I've seen (thank goodness) I know they had a great time.

It was really fun to get to do lots of the last minute stuff with my mom, sister and maid of honor. These are some of the favors we spent hours putting together :)

Our rehearsal dinner was at the Jamison House in Moses Lake and was catered by Famous Dave's BBQ...yummmmy!

Wedding day was so much fun! Getting my hair and makeup done...

more hair

mom putting my dress on me

lots of hurry up and wait but the wait was worth it :)

Jeremy Vasquez and his wife Sarah did our pictures and they are AMAZING! exactly what i wanted :)

MARRIED!

Our reception was the Moses Lake Event Center, catered by Michael's on the Lake and DJ'd by Bill Ecret. The food was great, dancing was fun and I wished the night would never end. It was so beautiful to be able to celebrate with our friends and families.

a BUNCH of my sorority sisters came and i can honestly say that I was soooo happy to see them and felt so loved because they all made it..IIKE babes

Alex's fraternity brothers were there in full force of course...ha

the day of the wedding Alex and I had breakfast with his family then headed to my parent's house to open presents and hang out. We also had Jeremy and Sarah come out and take some neat "trash the dress"/day after pictures. They turned out awesome and the rain stopped for an hour just for us ;)

so handsome

Alex drove to WA so that we could pull a uhaul with all our loot back to NM. let's just say it was fun but i never want to do that again!

we took the Pacific Coast Highway down Cali and got to see the ocean...

The Redwoods...Night #1 we stayed on an Air Force base near San Francisco. Day #2 we made it to...

VEGAS!!! Our friends Derrick and Erin live there so it was nice to visit more with them and see Vegas. It was both Alex and my first time being there. We walked and walked until we could walk no more. Can't wait to go back and do all the fun stuff we saw!

We did play a few slots...just for papa <3

The night before we left we took the Erickson's out to dinner at TAO...oh my gosh, it was the most amazing food I've even eaten and the drinks were delish. Our waiter suggested lemongrass coolers and I thought they were amazing, even after my Raspberrytini :)

All in all, the pre-wedding activities, wedding and the journey home were all things I'm going to remember for a lifetime! Married life is treating us well, still trying to put away all our presents and stuff haha. But more or less life is back to normal. Check in with ya later!

-Sara and Alex

Sherman P. Draney - Sept. 17, 1915 to June 30, 2010

2010-06-30T23:13:00.003-06:00

(our last day - 6-22-10)

Today the most wonderful man I've ever known left us for heaven. I know that he's up there with Grandma Lil after all these years and smiling down on us. But my heart still hurts because he was the most wonderful grandpa a girl could ever ask for.

For those of you that don't know me well, my grandpa and I were very close. My mom went back to work when I was teeeny tiny so I stayed with my mom's parents during the day. My grandma passed away when I was about 4 and after that it was me and the papa. I went there in the morning and left after mom got off work. Me and papa had lunch with her every day tho :) Papa picked me up from school everyday as well.

He taught me so many things from words and walking to the meaning of hard work. From how to make top ramen and hold a knife and fork correctly to how to loving someone. I learned about politics and the stockmarket from many hours of CNN and CSPAN (yikes) and sooooo much more.

Even though, I know he's in a better place now with our Lord, I'll still miss him and love him forever.

I love you Papa. Thank you for being you, I'll miss you :) Kiss Grams for me

MARRIED!!!!

2010-06-30T23:11:00.002-06:00

We're back to NM after a whirlwind trip up to Washington for the wedding, among other events. I can't wait to share all the pictures and fun details with ya'll but my computer isn't quite cooperating this evening so that will have to wait.

Married life is going well. We're trying to settle back into our routine and sift through all our wedding gifts and what not and get organized.

<3

1 MONTH!!!

2010-05-19T09:05:00.002-06:00

1 month from today I will be Mrs. Alex Hill :) I'm excited (if you can't tell haha)

counting down...

2010-05-11T08:39:00.002-06:00

Less that 40 days til the wedding :)

I'm getting slightly anxious, not in a bad way though. I'm just excited for it to get here. I know that the momma has everything under control and everything is going to be great!!! I received a picture from lil bro last night of mom stuffing invitations with gloves on. She's so smart :) ivory paper and oil from skin don't mix. I'm the luckiest bride in the land to have her as my mom/wedding plan/etc, etc.

I NM to go home on June 3rd and I'm so excited to get there and help with the last minute things, have time with Mert (pool, workout, Starbucks, Michaels for lunch, etc), to see both gpas (one just moved into an assisted living facility and the other had a heart attack a few months ago), and the list goes on.

We made our plans for the drive back to NM on Sunday night. It was fun to create a little itinerary with the places we wanted to stop and the places to stay for the night. We're taking the pacific coast highway 1/2way down Cali, the first night stopping and camping the Red Woods (so cool), then the next day driving down the PCH some more to Vandenberg AFB to stay the night, day 3 we are heading to VEGASSSSS!!! It will be a short stay but we're hoping to get to spend a little time with some friends that live there, final day we're heading to the Grand Canyon and all the way home. Then with 2 days of rest, we'll be back to work and 'real' life haha. Regardless its going to fun, wonderful and very tiring but a mini honeymoon will be had.

For now the countdown continues until I'm on my way home :)

Amazing Lady...Nie Nie :)

2010-05-05T16:48:00.002-06:00

I read this woman's blog almost everyday, or at least a few times a week. I think she's amazing and has been through some unspeakable pain and suffering but has come through it with such grace. She listens to what God tells her and I think that's so important and something I need to work on. I am not LDS but I think her message of working for something higher speak to all who believe and to help people who may be facing any kind of trial. Watch the video and read Nie Nie :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY!!!

2010-04-27T09:36:00.002-06:00

Happy 26th Birthday, Alex! Love you :)

Cheer/Dance tryouts and the new team

2010-04-27T09:34:00.003-06:00

This past weekend we held tryouts for the spirit squad here at Eastern that I coach and it went great! The day went faster than I thought it would and very smooth. We got a great group of girls, all the vets tried out and made and we got a few newbees :) Really looking forward to this fall.

Trip to ABQ

2010-04-27T09:25:00.002-06:00

For our friend Emily's birthday we went up to ABQ for the night/next day. It was fun to go out to dinner and we even got to take the pup :) Pet friendly hotels are great!

Emily and her fiance Matt, Matt works with AlexGabby enjoyed her very first trip to Starbucks :) she got a nice little cup of whip cream and LOVED it

Saturday we got to attend a Mariners pre season game at Isotopes Field. It was great!M's!!!
Family pic :)

hellos and goodbyes

2010-04-12T14:17:00.003-06:00

This past week we said goodbye to the Cougar mobile :(

And hello to the Trailblazer!!! :)Woo hoo, lovin' my new ride! We decided we needed a little more space to haul things around such as the dog on trips, stuff from Lowe's (our favorite store haha), etc etc. We bought it from a friend's Dad who owns a dealership in Rawlins, WY and his mom drove it down here for us. So far, everything has been awesome and 2 trips from Lowe's later she can carry a good load. We will miss the Cougar mobile, she and I have been through a lot together...most of college, moving to Texas, trips to see Alex and moving to NM. Thanks Kris, Kev and Sue for everything :) Now all we need is a Cougar sticker to show up in the mail from the lovely Mirielle Morgan yay!!

I love baseball season

2010-04-12T14:08:00.002-06:00

Baseball is my favorite sport to watch (some may think it's boring) with football and then basketball coming in after that. I have always loved watching it and going to Mariners games with my family. Now I "watch" sports for a living and it's the best thing ever! I love my job :)
Mr. Russell Campbell...throwin some heat

Senior Day for my Greyhounds :) Congrats boys

Backyard: Final Stage (for now haha)

2010-04-05T19:43:00.003-06:00

FINALLY!!! WE HAVE GRASS!!!! We're so glad that we finally have a yard to enjoy and entertain in. Also happy that Gabby has a nice place to play now. Not that she didn't love the dirt land it was before but now she doesn't have mom (aka me) trying the clean her up everytime she comes inside. The house will be A LOT cleaner :) YAY!! Below are a few pictures of the finished product. Alex also got out the patio furniture his parents bought us at a house warming gift. They were nice to sit in and admire our beautiful yard on a nice Easter Sunday afternoon.

Left side of the yard with fire pit area

eventually will have trees like the other side

steps to the patio

Gabby is enjoying her new yard already. exploring and lounging in the grass :)

Backyard: Stage 3

2010-04-04T20:10:00.002-06:00

We now have rocks in the flower beds and perimeter of the yard. Things are shaping up nicely and now we're anxious for grass and to finally have a yard for us, friends and the dog to enjoy.

Lookin' good! Now we're waiting on GRASS!!! The legal kind hahaha

Backyard: Stage 2

2010-04-04T19:59:00.003-06:00

A couple weeks ago they finished leveling out the yard and getting it prepped for rock (outside the brick) and sod (inside the brick). We're getting anxious for it all to be done...They also finished a couple projects we started MONTHS ago (see below):

Stairs to step down into the yard from the patio

small patio for our firepit

Next stage includes ROCKS!!!

Backyard Take 2: Stage 1

2010-03-17T10:57:00.002-06:00

Well Alex and I decided to try and tackle our backyard ourselves in the fall (see post/pictures from like October). We didn't really get very far. We removed most of the jungle of weeds that had shown up over the summer and Alex layed a brick perimeter and a started a small patio out of pavers for our fire pit. Since then we've come to our senses and realized we don't know enough or do we have the time to complete this task in right manner. We hired a local brother duo to do our dirty work (literally MUD!). One brother owns an irrigation business and much to my dad's delight sell's RainBird products (just like my dad hehe). The other brother has a landscaping business. It's working out really well so far. Last week we got our sprinklers and then this week they're doing the sod and other landscaping (i.e. fixing our bricks, finishing the patio, planting some plants and laying rock). The pictures below are after the sprinklers were put in. Today they are leveling the yard and getting it ready for some sod...YAY GRASS!!!! Gabby will be so excited :) I know Alex and I are!!! More pictures to come...

left side of yard

right side of yard

middle of the yard

some of the dip lines

Sprinklers!!!

pup is growin' up!

2010-03-12T09:01:00.002-07:00

Well it's been a while seen I posted a pic of the Gabinator aka Gabby the puppy. She is about 24 weeks old now and weighs over 25 lbs. She's a growin girl and just cute as ever. We started puppy obedience classes about 4 weeks ago. She's actually doing really well and its probably the most mild mannered and well behaved dog in the class. She gets used for demos a lot because the instructor says she's easy to deal with (haha easy to say when you're the lady with a pocket full of cut up string cheese). But anyways, she is a little ray of sunshine in my day because I get unconditional love from her. She's always happy to see me and love me :) Her favorite thing to do with Alex is bark and play bite. I don't really like it but it's their game...silly!

Today the demo on our backyard begins. sprinkler system, sod and landscaping. Gabby is excited to finally have a yard and we are excited for no more super muddy paws every time it decides to rain or randomly snow. YAY!!! (pic to come)

No pictures please...this photo shoot pooed me out

She's so BIG!

Baby Bungalow GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

2010-03-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

Baby Bungalow GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

These are fun!

Picture/Life Update

2010-03-09T16:06:00.003-07:00

I can't believe it's March!! Holy crap, where did the last few months go?! Well basketball season has come and gone (for me) and I'm PUMPED for March Madness to begin. It's definitely my favorite time of year, even over Christmas haha. Alex and I have both been very busy. He has been gone a lot for work, a week here and a week there. I get to stay home and work lots of baseball games and take care of the dog :) Also, I've been preparing the dance team that I coach for a competition that we just returned from in Dallas. We took first in our division! It was a lot of fun.

Right now Alex and I are preparing for the completion of our backyard. We finally decided to hire a sprinkler guy and a landscaper to just get it all done. I am SO DONE with a muddy dog every time she comes in from outside. It will be so nice to finally look out the back door and see GRASS! YAY!!!! Wedding plans are also coming along and we are down to about 100 days on the countdown, crazy!

Well that's what is going on with us :) Some pics below...

With friends at an away basketball game (left to right: Sam, Kourtney, Chelsea, me)Baseball season has begun!
Dance team in Dallas...taken in American Airlines Center plaza before Mavs game
after we won! National Champions!!! WOO HOO!

And it begins...

2010-02-12T08:55:00.002-07:00

Spring sports are here and that means my days and nights will be spent at countless softball and baseball games for the next 3 months. Makes it hard to keep up with school, the house, laundry, etc. I'm just waiting for the middle of May to show up...

Engagement Pics

2010-02-05T11:49:00.003-07:00

We took our engagement pictures last weekend and they turned out awesome! Thank you Randy @ Randy Holland Photography for making our day fun :)

Here is a little taste of the plethora of pictures...

I love this one in our Coug gear! It's going to be so hard to pick :s

Copyright: Randy Holland Photography. All rights reserved.

Wedding Plans and Puppies :)

2010-01-11T11:55:00.003-07:00

Well the wedding plans are coming along quite nicely. When I was home for Christmas, my mom and I got A LOT done in 5 days. Stuff that should have taken like 3 months to do have just trucked right along. I have a dress, booked the reception venue, flowers, photographer, caterer and rented all the things we need to rent. We picked our invitations and centerpieces. Its been really great and fun!

We also have some fun news :) We got a PUPPY! She's oh so very cute and her name is Gabby. She's a 12 week old Shepard mix and we love her to pieces.

Miss Gabby and her cute little sweater
precious :) this is when we picked her up at the vet

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T11:43:00.001-07:00

Merry Christmas to you and yours! I hope you have the most wonderful day with family and friends. May God bless you all and remember the reason for the season :)

WE'RE ENGAGED!!!!

2009-12-18T11:51:00.002-07:00

So excited!!!

My rock!!!!!

I am so excited! Today is our 4th anniversary so it was just perfect timing. Alex is so wonderful and I can't wait to marry him :)

Thanksgiving in Denton

2009-12-04T11:03:00.003-07:00

This year for Thanksgiving because I couldn't be home with my family I wanted to go see my Denton family so Alex and I made the treck across Texas to be there for the weekend and spend the holiday at the Batchelder's (my old boss, his wife (and my friend) Jenn and kids). I left NM on Tuesday afternoon and arrived mid evening that day and Alex flew in on Wednesday because he had to stay for work related business.

It was so great to see everyone! I got to attend a couple Mean Green basketball games and see people I worked with and hung out as well as some of my favorite donors and other friends. We had drinks with some staff of Wednesday night after the women's game and it was really nice to catch up with Mandy, Sarah, etc. On Thursday we spent the day hanging out and obviously eating. We also took some pictures. I told Jenn I would take their family pictures and the weather was so nice so we let the turkey cook and went a park. It was fun!

On Friday morning Jenn and I got up at 3:45 am and went out with all the crazies to do some shopping. It was definitely an experience but I did get a lot done and got some great deal! Pretty much done shopping except for 1 person and few odds and ends. Yay me!

Here are some pictures from the weekend along with some of the pictures I took.

Taking a break from cooking and lounging with 2 of my favorite boys, Lane and AlexThe Batchelders with the dog, Zeppelin

Jenn took a couple of us...too bad there were a lot of shadowsBatch clan
Me and Jenn :)

Thanks for a great weekend Paul, Jenn, Kalyn, Lane and Zeppelin...oh and the cat that hates me, GeGe :) We love you guys!

Birthday trip home

2009-11-16T15:32:00.002-07:00

For my birthday, Alex bought me a ticket to go home for the weekend which happened to be Dad's Weekend at WSU. My dad and I headed up on Friday night. We had dinner with the Pixton's and got to see my Uncle Dan and cousin Erin (their first dad's wknd!). Dad and I had a great time and then Mom, Em and Zach came to the game Saturday. We watched the Cougs lose :( and then went to New Garden YUM! It was a short and sweet trip but very worth seeing my family and best friend.

Dad and I at Mikes
The party gang :)Me and my turtle...love you!

Saw Butch on the way into the Field House and had to take a pic...GO COUGS!

Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeeen

2009-11-05T16:26:00.003-07:00

Halloween this year was pretty fun. Last year I didn't do much but paint pumpkins with some friends which was something I'd never done before. This year I had a football to work at so I had all my cheerleaders and dancers dress up. I dressed up like a mouse and I thought it was pretty cute haha. Alex decided to be Vince the Shamwow/Slap Chop guy and even added a black eye for that whole hooker fight thing. It was pretty hilarious. He is a picture of us after I got done with football.

Wow, time to play catch up! August to October

2009-10-21T11:29:00.003-06:00

Well it's been a while. So much has been going on in the last few months that I haven't had time to do much of anything. Here is a recap as of August 1st:

I stayed in Denton for the big football kickoff event at North Texas because I had helped plan it and was emotionally involved so that was my last day. That night (Saturday), I packed a UHAUL and stayed with my bosses family one last time before heading to NM. My friend Jennifer (old bosses wife)drove the 8 hours with me to Clovis, NM, where Alex lives. I hadn't found a place in Portales yet (about 20 miles from Clovis) so I stayed with Alex until Thursday. I signed a lease on a cute 2 bedroom apt with a master and utility room :) Monday prior was my first day of work at Eastern New Mexico University Athletics!

I didn't plan on getting a roomie but the new softball graduate assistant, Jeana, needed a place so she took the spare room and its been working out great. We work together but aren't around each other enough to get sick of each other. Her husband plays professional baseball and is only around every now and then so it works for us pretty well because I'm back and forth to Clovis a lot too.

Work from the get-go has just been crazy. Between planning for the falls sports season and signing corporate sponsors, my first couple weeks was a hectic. After I got in the groove (kinda, still working on it a little) planning sporting events and getting all my ducks in a row has been great. I love working will all the sports, something I didn't get to do at Washington State, and only got a taste of them at North Texas. Being in charge and running a football game was pretty nerve racking at first but its been smooth for the most part. Basketball season is upon us now so I'm preparing for that.

Being the cheer and dance coach has been really fun. They are a great group of girls and I'm having a great time. I'm excited for their routine we've been working on since August. Its a long one with a lot of different stuff going on. We're performing it on Nov. 7th and I can't wait. Its the biz!

The best part about being here is being close to Alex though. We've been able to do so many things together that we haven't been able to in the last 3 years of living long distance. For Labor Day weekend we took a fun trip to Santa Fe. We attended a wine festival which was amazing, we came home with 9 bottles of wine haha. We've taken little day trips to Carlsbad Caverns and such. With my work its a little hard to get away because there is an event pretty much every weekend, at least one of the days. Thursday-Sunday are my busiest.

Anyways, that's the jest of whats been going on in this girls life. I'm still working hard on my masters. Looking forward to my early birthday present from Alex, a trip home/to Pullman for Dad's Weekend :) Can't wait!

BUSY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-07-30T15:41:00.002-06:00

Getting ready for the big move to New Mexico, finishing up work in Texas and everything else AHHHHH!!! Look for an update soon and wish me luck!

Texas Lately

2009-07-13T13:59:00.002-06:00

Haha, this title sounds like a magazine or something. Anyways here is a little looksie into my life lately. Enjoy!

mom came to visit :)

went to the 9th annual Dickenson family cookout at Hank and Missy's house (I work with Hank). This was the first out of work event I went to with coworkers and it was a blast. This year was just as much fun if not more! This photo is of the manly man cannon ball contest.

Jenn and I at the cookout

Free show by the Bird Dogs at the cookout. Pictured is the man himself, George Dunham, he's the voice of the Mean Green and has a sports talk radio show in the DFW.

Pool time with Sar (our new and amazing intern)

NTD at 4th of July parade

me and Faith at the parade

me and Sar on the 4th of July

I went to Clovis to visit Alex and we went golfing :)

got to watch Alex play softball on his city league team as well

I went Fort Worth with some friends for a Johnny Cooper concert (ok so I'm a little obsessed haha) It was also his CD release :) We ate dinner at the Stockyards before the concert

Johnny Cooper!!!!

me and Sar

me and Johnny!!! he signed my CD too

the next night in Fort Worth I went with another group of friends to a comedy thing at Four Day Weekend improv. It was awesome! This is me and Jenn before the show

Four Day Weekend

me and fav furry friend, Zeppelin

So wow, that was a lot but its been a fun month or so. Can't believe I'm leaving in 2 weeks or so :( I'll really miss it but I'm excited for my new adventure.

Another move....I GOT A JOB!

2009-07-09T11:18:00.002-06:00

Well my time in Texas has sadly come to an end but I won't be too far away. I got a job at Eastern New Mexico University as the Events Manager (aka mktg/promotions, booster club, corporate sales and spirit coordinator). I'm really excited!!!! I will be about 20 minutes away from Alex which is amazingly perfect. I'll be moving at the end of the month and starting right after the 1st of August. AH! I better get packin!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

2009-06-18T11:56:00.002-06:00

Today is my parents 26th anniversary! Happy Anniversary to my great parents. Thanks for being such a positive example of a happy marriage, full of love and friendship. You guys are the best. Love you!

Johnny Cooper...I'm a groupy haha

2009-06-16T15:06:00.002-06:00

Ok I'm not really a group but I do really enjoy this guys music and I've seen him in concert 3 times. Once I had no idea who he was and just went with my friend, Faith. Now I'm addicted and love his music. I'm going another concert next month at a fun venue I haven't been to before. Anyway here are a couple pics from the evening with Mr. Cooper.

Such a cutie!

Summer Vacation

2009-06-10T10:04:00.002-06:00

After North Carolina, I went home to Washington for 2 weeks. It was so much fun and very relaxing. I had a great time. My friends were home and I really enjoyed hanging out with the fam. You don't realize how much you'll miss it until you're gone. Here are a few pics from the trip.

Memorial Weekend was great because everyone was in town. We hung out, played games and went boating it was great...Mert and I playing SloshBall aka best game ever invented

Kevin pitching

Brought Em along to da lakes!

The other Em and I enjoying a swim

my adorable cousin Maybelle...she's just precious and soooo funny! She rhymes everything is probably the coolest 4 year old ever :)

We helped the grandparents out with the annual cleaning of the nasty winter pool. It was completely brown. This is Emily trying to part the brown pool like she's Moses and the Red Sea

My dad got a new shot gun and so we went trap shooting. It was fun...haven't done it in forever. I got to use Zach's gun because he has a broken arm (dumb 13 year boy stuff).

My trip was great!!! Love everyone back home and I'll see you at Christmas :D

Trip to N.C.

2009-06-08T12:14:00.003-06:00

As I mentioned previously, I took a little vaca from work and real life (haha) and went to North Carolina to see my friend Kayce and her husband, Mark before heading back to Washington for a bit. Here are a few pictures from my adventures with Boo (aka Kayce)...

We did their baby registry at Target and Baby R Us

I was the official documentor ;)

Boo and I drove to Myrtle Beach, SC and spent a few days. Even though the weather was kinda yucky we still had fun walking on the beach, shopping and hanging out in our sweet condo!

"got my toes in water, ass in sand..."

Me and Boo- thanks for the great time Boo, love you and my little Karson!

Karson's Godmother :)

2009-05-17T08:13:00.002-06:00

A few posts ago I told ya'll about my friend's Kayce and Mark who are having a baby in Oct. A couple weeks ago they found out they're having a BOY!!! They decided on a name, Karson Michael. I think it is just adorable. I'm in North Carolina visiting the Matthey's right now and they gave me a present when I arrived. They gave me the cutest frame with an ultrasound picture and it says "I love my godmother". I am so honored to be this child's godmother. It's gonna be a fun job...almost like a grandma in the way of spoiling and fun haha. Thanks Mark and Boo for this opportunity to be involved in Karson's life. Love you guys!

Karson Michael Matthey

Off I go into the wild blue yonder...

2009-05-14T08:54:00.002-06:00

Ok so I'm not trying to sing you the AirForce theme song...I'm trying to tell you I'm going on VACATION!!! YAY!!!!

I'm going to be off school (haha) for 3 weeks and I'm taking advantage of it by taking 3 weeks off work (I have a super nice boss!). I'm getting out of Texas for a bit...no offense Texas. On the 16th I'll be making my way via plane to North Carolina where my friend Kayce lives. We'll be able to hang out and visit and we're going to the BEACH! I hope the weather holds up. After 5 days in NC I'll be flying all the way across the country back to Washington. I'll be visiting Warden and the surrounding area for 2 weeks. I'm so excited, as is my mother :)

I'll be posting pictures of my adventures for sure so check back soon!

Alex's house is finally done!

2009-05-14T08:48:00.003-06:00

Alex's house is finally finished!! YAY! He's all moved in a happy as a clam. Can't wait to go see it in July!

The front door
living room
Kitchen and diningmaster...isn't that bed just gorgeous!? i have great taste ;)

My trip home: Family Pictures

2009-04-23T12:57:00.004-06:00

While I was at home last week we took family pictures. Alex was with me so he got to be in them :) My mom got a sweet new camera to take them with so here are a few shots:

Family shot

The rents (I took this one)

siblings :)

Emily (I took this one too)

Zach (and this...)

Emily took a few pictures of Alex and I:

More pictures from my trip home to follow :)

What I've been up to lately...

2009-04-23T09:29:00.002-06:00

WORKING MY BUTT OFF!!! lol work has been pretty busy and school also. I've had a little time to have fun between the office, school, softball games and tennis matches. Here are a couple fun things from the last month or so...

I went to the Big 12 Championship game in OK City with my friend Stacey and her brother, Blake. We had a great time! Too bad Baylor lost but hey they did great in the NIT. Sic em Bears (just for you Stac :))

My boss and the lovely Miss Sarah were married at the end of March. Very nice wedding, simple and elegant. The reception was very cool. They had it at an old theater and the setting was very swanky. There are a couple pictures below of the reception...

Michael and I having a dance off...p.s. that move I am making is trademarked lol! (who ever knows what I was doing)

Jamie (boss) decided he needed a picture with his "bitches" LOL, I laughed so hard.

Spring Break in the Desert

2009-04-23T09:10:00.006-06:00

I got to take a few days off during UNT's spring break and I drove to Clovis, NM to see Alex. He is stationed there now and liking it so far. We pretty much just hung around and watched the NCAA men's tournament, went golfing and checked out his house (still in progress, ugh). It was great to spend the week together :)

Alex, my chauffeur or caddy for the day

<3

Cute little pond on the course

I parred a hole! YAY me!

me and my fairy ring aka my lucky crescent (IIKE!)

Alex in his unfinished home (should be done next week though yay!!!)

YAY!

2009-04-23T09:10:00.002-06:00

It worked...yay I can upload pictures now :) Get ready for a ton of posts lol (thanks Boo for the uploading help)

Sun Belt Conference Tournament

2009-04-23T08:37:00.003-06:00

I had the opportunity to go to our basketball conference tournament in HotSprings, Arkansas. It was really fun and interesting to go to and experience. Here are a few pictures from the games.

This is halftime of our 1st round play in game at home in Denton.

This is the women's first round game...they came from way behind and lost by 2 :(

Spirit Tunnel before the men's game

Boxin out!

The North Texas Dancers

so...

2009-04-01T08:54:00.002-06:00

I don't know what's going on with this thing but I can't upload pictures. It's really frustrating me...I've been trying for about a week now. Really annoying. Any suggestions on another way to upload onto here with out using the tool on the post itself???? HELP!

Lots to post about...

2009-03-04T12:38:00.004-07:00

I have been a busy girl in the last month. Sooooo many events with work going on in the midst of regular work, school, friends, etc. So here is a little bit of what I have been up to.

Rachel and I with Martellus Bennett at the Ticketstock Convention. He plays for the Cowboys :) We got his autograph and our pic taken (obviously). He was really nice. Ticketstock was a bit over whelming...its put on by a sport talk radio station and has tons of vendors for fans to come visit, including us, the Cowboys, Mavs, Stars, etc. Very busy day of giving out free stuff. hahaMarc Grow was in town for some business and we got to go out in style. He and his friend/coworker Dave rented a stretch towncar and we rode around Dallas and went dancin :) It was really nice to see him.

For Valentine's Day I went to Little Rock and we had a really great weekend. The picture below is on Vday. Alex took me rock/wall climbing and man is it a work out. It was really fun though and I made it to the top of several walls. yay me! Above is us at dinner and Ciao Baci. It was really great Italian food and amazing wine...from Washington! We always get WA wine whenever its available.
I've been going out with some friends to concerts here and there. This is my friend Faith and I at a Johnny Cooper concert. The next week we went to Eli Young Band (they're on the radio) and it was really fun. I've learned to country dance, two step and half step. I'll be really good by the end of my time here in Texas haha

Some more Warden people came to town. The Warden football coaches came to a convention right outside of Dallas and on their last day in town I got to hang out with them, walk them around Dallas and be the tour guide for a bit as well as go out to an amazing dinner and Texas de Brazil. They walk around with all different kinds of meat on swords and serve it to you. Really fun! It was great to see all of these guys, esp. Mr. Wiggy, Joseph and Nano :)

My roommate/coworker Rachel got a new job (a real one!!!) at University of Texas at Arlington and will be starting on March 16. She's really excited and I'm excited for her. We'll still be living together for the time being because of our lease but towards the summer she's gonna find a place closer to work (about a 45 min drive right now) and I'm gonna live by myself for the first time. EEEEK! Congrats Rach!

Spring sports are well underway. Tennis and softball are keeping us busy as well as the end of basketball season. This week is the start of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. Should be interesting. Above is our mascot Scrappy at a tennis match and below is Kadie Platt ready to steal 3rd for our awesome softball team.

My bosses family (Paul, Jen, Kalyn and Lane) are like my second family down here. I spend lots of time with them. They recently got a new puppy, a little black lab and he is soooooo cute! Above is Zepellin and Lane while Zep is passed out. Adorable

Alex came to visit this last weekend and we had a good time. He's done in Little Rock now and has made his way to Clovis, New Mexico for his first "real" station. He's bought a house (a couple posts ago you can see where) and is really excited to start flying with his squadron. He stopped here in Denton on his way to Clovis to visit me for a couple days. We had fun with tennis matches, shopping, going to drinks and dinner with my friend's Jana and Brad and then dinner with next night at my friend's Jill and Joel's. Very busy and fun filled couple of day. I'll be heading to Clovis for a short spring break here in a couple weeks :)

Well that's my busy life. Enjoy!

Boo Boo having a Baby...Auntie Sara here I come!!!

2009-02-09T21:39:00.002-07:00

My best friend from college, Kayce (boo boo) and her husband Mark are having a baby and I'm so excited!!! I'm going to be Auntie Sara as I was informed yesterday afternoon. Congrats to the Matthey's and may this be the experience of a lifetime.

We're crazy and this kid will love it! I bought Boo a preggo book today by Jenny McCarthy and the part that I read online is hilarious. Boo is gonna love it!
The proud parents to be. Love you guys!

Slip and Slide

2009-02-03T14:32:00.002-07:00

This is what happens during winter in Texas...it rains, freezes and cars, roads and everything are covered in sheets of ice. They actually closed the university last Tuesday and 1/2 of Wednesday because of this business. It was crazy because city people don't know how to drive in this stuff and there were SOOOOOO many wrecks. Note to all: don't live by a hospital in a big city...lots of sirens :(

The Cougar mobile covered in ice

You're Beautiful

2009-02-03T14:09:00.002-07:00

I had the opportunity to work with my friend Jennifer on a project that she was working on. She is on a committee with the American Cancer Society and they put on an event every year here in Denton called "You're Beautiful" that showcases cancer survivors and benefits cancer research. Jenn was in charge of the decor this year and I got to help a lot with the home making of a bunch of stuff. In the end it turned out to be really gorgeous and the event itself was awesome. So many amazing men and women, I was so lucky to be apart of this. Thanks Jenn!

The stage backdrop...haven't been on a ladder in a while
table centerpieces...we worked on these for a couple months. made the vases from empty containers, covered them with paper, ribbon and feather. I made all the table numbers. Jenn got most of the supplies and I was the gluer and such when I could go over for an evening and turn her and Paul's house into a craft show HAHA. She did the arrangements too since I had class.
Jenn made this AWESOME fountain...she's decorating my wedding some day because she is amazing! :)

Sara does Waco

2009-02-03T13:59:00.003-07:00

I took a 2 day trip down to Waco to see my friend Stacey who now works at Baylor University. We went country dancing on Friday night at a club in Waco and listened to Wade Bowen (Texas country guy). And then on Saturday we made the rounds in Waco checking out campus and town and going shopping :) It was great to see her and get away for a couple of days.

Dancin at Wild West...gettin our 2 step on!
We went to an equestrian event and it was interesting.

The actual Baylor Bears...they were sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeping, seriously passed out lol
The sunrise as I drove home on Sunday morning...made it in time to shower and go to church :)

On to New Mexico!

2009-01-23T08:56:00.003-07:00

Alex is moving on to the next venture in his career and it is taking him to New Mexico. He went there last week to check it out and find a place to live. He bought a house in a new development where a few other pilots have bought houses. The house isn't built yet but the pile of dirt is his! The blue prints look great and the area is really nice. I'm excited to go see it over Spring Break in March, it might be almost done by then :)

Alex and his "house" or pile of dirt
Taking over :)

He's really excited to own his own place and I'm excited for him (plus I get to decorated it hehe :))

Home for the Holidays - Part 4

2009-01-11T15:47:00.003-07:00

For New Years we went to Tri Cities and spent it with a bunch of our friends at Neilan and Katie's place. It was great to see Neilan and Katie and fun to spend time with everyone. Then we went over to the west side to Federal Way, where Alex's family lives and spent some time with them before we both had to had back south.

My trip home was a success! It was great to see my family and friends and spend time with the people I love the most. Can't wait to go home in April for Neilan and Katie's wedding :)

Something didn't taste good

Me and Katie

Neilan and Alex...reunioned. haha they love each other

First kiss of 2009! Happy New Year!
Playing Pictionary with Alex's parents...me and momma Laurie won! YAY!

Home for the Holidays - Pt. 3

2009-01-11T15:37:00.002-07:00

After Christmas, Alex came to visit and he had a good time in Warden visiting my fam and our friends. My sister had a bball tournament and it was fun to get to watch the balla in action.

Alex and I after opening presents

Mia the kitty loves to play under the rug

Emily the balla
Mirielle and I at Rusty and Seamus's

Playing Apples to Apples

Home for the Holidays - Pt.2

2009-01-11T15:23:00.002-07:00

Christmas Day was great! Had fun fam time when we got up. Got awesome presents :) Then my mom's family came over and we had a late lunch. Gpa was so cute, as always. Then we to my dad's family later that night. The Shuler fam is always a good time.

My sweet Christmas Eve pjs!

Me and Derek

the kids attacking Zach...adorable

Amaya...such a sweet little girl
Me and Derek again a couple nights after Christmas...we went out in Moses Lake with all his friends. It was a good time at the Saucy Hog :)

Home for the Holidays - Part 1

2008-12-24T11:52:00.003-07:00

I'm home in Washington for the holidays and here are some pictures from the first few days I've been home. It's nice and snowy here and I'm loving spending time with my family.

Pretty snow right outside of PullmanGpa Sherman was excited to see me

My friend Jenn took some nice pictures for me

I got to see my "sister" Shannon and her family

I also went to a Cougar bball game. It was awesome and they won! GO COUGS!

I'll have more pictures to put up as the days go on. I'm staying around until the 4th and will have fun Christmas pictures :) Merry Christmas to everyone!

Christmas Time in Texas

2008-12-15T15:45:00.003-07:00

I LOVE the holidays! This year I'm not working at the Wild Ivy in the land of Christmas so it makes me even more excited because I haven't been subject to the same Christmas music for a month and a half already haha! I decorated my apt a little bit for Christmas but I'm so ready to go home and spend the holidays with my family and friends (3 more days! yay!) Here are a couple holiday events I've enjoyed in Texas this year.

My front door
My tree

Holiday Fest in Denton with my two favorite little dudes, Kalyn and Lane (my bosses kids)
Cookie making at mine and Rach's...Jess was a super frosting machine :)
Watch out, Jess has the rolling pin

I went to Arkansas for a weekend to see Alex and we exchanged gifts early. This is the gingerbread house we made.
Alex putting the "snow" on our house

me with my presents (i have the BEST boyfriend in the whole world!)

Thanksgiving Cowboys Style

2008-12-07T16:15:00.002-07:00

Alex got Cowboy tickets for my birthday because they were playing the Seahawks here in Dallas. It was a pretty fun and different way to spend Thanksgiving (we ate Thanksgiving on Apple Cup).

Walking in

At the game. Me the 'boys fan and Alex the Seahawks fan

Cowboy Cheerleaders and the famour kickline

Texas Stadium (first and last time I'll watch a game there, Cowboys Stadium is almost done)

YAY!

My 22nd Birthday

2008-11-24T19:42:00.003-07:00

For my birthday, Alex came to visit right before my dad went home and so they got to see each other which was nice. Then Alex took me to Dallas (45 mins away) for a romantic getaway. We went and saw the King Tut exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art. It was very cool and super interesting. Then we went out to a really nice dinner and got all dolled up. I love getting dressed up :) We stayed in an amazing hotel in a really nice room. Alex's parents upgraded our room to one with a terrace for my birthday present which I was totally cool with. Anways...it was a great birthday and a relaxing, much needed weekend away.

With our buddy Tut

I really should have bought that but I didn't
At our lovely dinner. The food was AMAZING and the wine was delish. Thanks for a great birthday babe!

GO COUGS!!!! APPLE CUP 2008

2008-11-22T16:32:00.003-07:00

Well the Cougs pulled it off and won the Apple Cup. I was pretty sad I couldn't be there but I got to watch it on TV with Alex and love it :) My family was there and called/text me the whole time. Poor Huskies are gonna have a long ride home. GO COUGS!

Coug are still the kings! YAY!

Bringing Dad's Weekend to Texas

2008-11-14T15:15:00.002-07:00

My dad came to visit for a little over a week (Oct 31-Nov 8). The first weekend we went to the NASCAR races at the Texas Motor Speedway. It was our substitute dad's weekend since i'm not in Pullman anymore. It was sooooo much fun! We had a blast :) My dad hung out with me until Tuesday evening and then he went to a conference he had in Southlake (about 20 mins or so away). We met back up a couple times for dinner and Alex came with us on Friday (he came for my birthday...post coming for that soon!). I was so happy to see my dad and I can't wait to see the whole fam (and everyone else) when I go home for Christmas.

Dad and I at the truck race on Friday Night

Dad at the Nationwide race on Saturday...wearing his sweet shirt I gave him :)

Jimmy Johnson my fav! (yes i'm a hick)

"Texas Forever" - Chris Cassler and Alex Hill

Dad and I at Thanksgiving Square in downtown Dallas

North Texas Homecoming

2008-10-27T21:03:00.003-06:00

This week was Homecoming here in Denton. It was a very long and tiring week, with all the preparations for the weekend along with 2 volleyball games and an 13 hour football gameday. Despite being worn out it was a fun experience plus I got today (Monday) off to recover :) I have a pretty sweet boss

The North Texas Traditions - Talon's 50th Homecoming Bonfire (this is after it was burnt down alot, it was stacked about the poles you can see)

Me and Rach

The Mean Green March as the team comes in. It was fun to watch from the front for a change.

On Sunday I put on a breast cancer event at volleyball called Dig for the Cure. It was really fun planning everything and I think the teams had fun with their pink shirts and the hair bows that Jess helped me make.

The volleyball team - we raised over $500 at the event that will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Update: Football games, Alex visits and the boss's birthday

2008-10-15T18:56:00.004-06:00

Well it's been a little bit since I've put pictures up because of my dead computer, but my wonderful gave me his old computer that he cleaned up for now. These pictures are from the last couple weeks.

Football vs. FIU

This is Pagee and I. He's a cheerleader and he's the best :) He comes to visit Rachel and I in the office a couple times a week and helps us out of game week Fridays. He's a champ!
This is the Girl Scout Dance Clinic that I coordinated. It was really fun and the dancers and girls had a great time
All the dancers and girl scouts

Football vs. Louisiana-Lafayette

Alex came to visit for the weekend and helped out for game day
Someone's dad painted his semi in mean green glamour
Jamie (the boss) had a sliver and Rachel got it out with plyers lol

Me wearing the headset for the game. It's hooked up with the press box (Jamie), the band, Paul (the big boss) and the video guys. It's really fun and everything is comical on there because we're the only ones that can hear :)

Alex and I went to the Kennedy 6th Floor Museum. It was very interesting and very cool. I learned a lot.

The window that is a little bit open is the window JFK was shot out of.

The JFK 6th Floor Museum from across the street. That is the road on which he and governor of Texas at the time were shot. They came around the corner where that fence is and it happened. It's so crazy and such a huge part of American history and I really enjoyed learning about it.Here we are at another landmark in Dallas. It's where some pioneers came through with cattle and...I can't remember the rest of story.
Today was Jamie's birthday and Rachel and I threw him a a surprise office bday party

Birthday boy and his FAVORITE interns!

Hittin' the Books

2008-10-13T21:36:00.002-06:00

Well I got accepted to the University of North Texas graduate school and the program I wanted to get into finally. I'm really excited/scared about starting school again and moving on with my education. Hopefully I'll be able to do school and work, with all the events for work and class and homework for school. Right now I need to start studying for the GRE (the test to get into grad school). I have to take it before my first semester is up in June. Lots and lots of vocab is in my future :)

Sad Day

2008-10-06T10:23:00.002-06:00

My computer crashed about a week ago and now I have no pictures, no music, etc. I'm pretty sad about it actually. I'm sending it back to WA so dear ole Daddy can do something about it, at least get stuff off my hard drive because I don't think it's going to start working. Anyways...I'm lucky that my boss let's me take home a laptop from work so I'm not stuck in the dark ages while I relax in the evening. Alex has also offered to clean out his old laptop so I can have that until I get a replacement...which might be a while. Anyways hope everyone is great and I'll post pictures soon. LOVES

Another Rangers game and weekend in Little Rock

2008-09-23T17:45:00.002-06:00

Lacretia, who was in my sorority with me and graduated with me, just moved to Fort Worth because she's working for our sorority and serving at TCU right now. We were able to get together last week and catch a Rangers game. It was great to see her and hope we can spend more time together soon.

Last Thursday I drove the 6 hours to Little Rock to see Alex for a long weekend. It was fun to just relax on my off weekend, hang out with the boyfriend and his roommates dogs (soooo cute!) and cook the starving bachelors of deer meadows court some food :)
I've never been to Arkansas before
Alex playing with Tim's dog Necko, she's a trouble maker
Watching the Coug game in our jerseys
Kiss the cook!

Happy Birthday Little Brother!

2008-09-18T09:58:00.001-06:00

Happy 13th Birthday Zach! Can't believe you're a teenager! :) Have a great day buddy!

Happy Birthday Papa Sherman!

2008-09-17T08:35:00.001-06:00

Today is my grandpa Sherman's birthday! He's 93...wow :) Happy Birthday Papa. I miss you and love you!

Texas Cougs! WSU vs. Baylor

2008-09-13T20:55:00.002-06:00

I got the pleasure of going to watch the Cougs in Waco on Friday night. My friend Ray and I went (he's from Royal City and goes to school here). It was a fun little road trip even though the Cougs lost :( We ran into some people from the CB (Columbia Basin duh) to include my cousin's friend Wes, which was really cool because he lives in the DFW not too far away from me!

The gang with the bus drivers with sweet Coug hats and the cheerleaders

Wes and I in front of the Texas Cougar Alumni Association banner. Who would have known...lol

Me and Butch!

Ray and I

Football Weekend

2008-09-10T11:55:00.003-06:00

Last weekend was our first home football game here in Denton and although it was a lot of prep and hard work (13 hours on Saturday, yucky) it was still very fun and I learned a lot about what goes into putting on events of this magnitude a little more indepth. Too bad we lost...but I had a great time coordinating our Friday Night @ Clark Park pep rally event on Friday and setting up tailgating and performing game operations on Saturday.

Cheerleader showing off her sweet moves at FN@CP
Michael (the busiest man alive) and Scrappy on stage
Talon (spirit group) Car Bash
Me on my way to pick up Coach Dodge and some players at the Holiday Inn so they could come talk to the crowd
My favorite Saturday helpers, Evelyn and Tom
Me and Evelyn
The sweet arch we have at the entrance to tailgating
Faith and Paige at the Mean Green March (a little parade in the tailgating area signaling its 3 hours until kick off)
Rach and I (sweet headset she has) at the game, game op-ing it up!

Pretty picture of the sunsetting on Fouts Field

Babysitting adventures

2008-09-09T10:20:00.002-06:00

I had the pleasure of hanging out with my boss, Paul's kids and the Deputy Athletic Directors kids while the 2 couples went to a Sheryl Crow concert in Dallas a few weeks ago. We rode scooters, went to the community pool, ate pizza, played 'let's shoot Sara with Nerf guns' and watched a movie before the boys had to hit the sack for the night. All in all it was a good time and now I like seeing them and hearing about their school, soccer and football adventures. Kind of like havin' my cousins and all the other kids I know at home around :)

From the left: Kaylen, Lane (they're brothers), and Dan after they terrorized me enough to get off my floaty and give it to them. (20 cannon balls did the trick)
Being goofy
Joe (Dan's little bro) and Lane thought they were really good at hiding
Kaylen just chillin (this is what I attempted to do before the cannon ball business)
From the left: Joe, Dan and Lane playing in the kiddie pool with the fountain...pretty sure they broke the fountain but shhhhh, we won't tell :)

Checkin' In

2008-08-26T10:05:00.002-06:00

Hello, I've been pretty busy with work and such lately. Football starts this weekend, along with volleyball which I am in charge of. I'll be at a volleyball tournament all weekend (YAY lol) but the up side, Alex is going to be here for the weekend so that will be nice. I'll put some pics up soon!

At the lake

2008-08-12T19:33:00.002-06:00

We had a day off on Saturday so a couple people from work took out one of our co-workers jetskis. The lake was pretty cool, we got a prime spot on the shore and soaked up some awesome rays in the 94 degree weather (aka perfect). We're probably going to go out this weekend too :)

On the phone with our boys :)
Ray Roberts Lake
After a day of sun, a couple of pink/tan girls lol

Football 101 and Kick-off Cookout

2008-08-10T13:17:00.004-06:00

Last week was very busy (technically 2 weeks ago). Thursday was Football 101 where women are invited to a dinner, drink and fun night to learn more about football and ask any questions they might have. It was really fun to help plan and set up. Saturday was the annual Kick-off Cookout for North Texas Athletics and a lot of my blood, sweat and tears...well maybe not tears but lots of sweat for sure was put into making everything happen. It took all week preparing everything but Friday and Saturday (Aug 1 and 2) we put up tables, 300 some chairs and I even got to drive the 2008 Lexus IS250 that the athletic department is raffling off. All-in-all the event turned out to be a big hit, even through the 106 degree heat. After it was over the employees went out for a little R&R. Ladies havin a good ol time at Football 101
Me and the pretty car
Me driving the pretty car...it starts with a button...no keys
Brian and I at Sweetwater...his wife was impressed by his lovely face lol

I really don't know what was up with the face

Mariners come to Texas

2008-08-10T13:03:00.002-06:00

My friend Jessica, who I work with, and I decided to catch a baseball game. Well the truth is I wanted to watch the Mariners and I asked her to tag along so I didn't go alone. We got some awesome tickets from a friend that were right behind the Mariner dugout, 14 rows up. They were great and we had a lot of fun. It was Jess's first Rangers game and she's lived here 4 years!

I'm wearing my Rangers shirt because I couldn't find my Mariners shirt...I think it might be in Washington
Josh Hamilton (Rangers) is amazing
Willie and Jeremy...2 of my fav Mariners
This is for my sister,Emily, who texted me and told me to take a picture of Ichiro's butt...here it is Em ;)
You know what's under a pony's tail, don't ya?!

Red Hot Summer

2008-08-04T19:25:00.002-06:00

It has been so hot here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area for the past week or so. It has been over a 100 for days and days and it's starting to wear on people. This morning the Today Show reported about it, so that means it is hot :) Hopefully it cools down again soon so it's at least comfortable to be outside.

So excited!!!

2008-07-29T11:55:00.002-06:00

Since I was little I've always wanted my dad to take me to a NASCAR race and he finally is! YAY! My dad happens to have a work conference in Dallas the week after the Dickies 500 here at the Texas Motor Speedway so he's coming early and we're gonna go to all 3 races of the weekend and have a blast. I'm so stoked I can hardly stand it and I'm glad I get to see my daddy right before my birthday :)

Rest in Peace Grandpa Zeiler

2008-07-27T17:54:00.002-06:00

My friend CJ's grandpa passed away this week. He was a very special man to me and he will be missed by all that knew him. He's in a better place now, with Grandma and Cousin Adam, and away from pain. Rest in peace and God Bless Grandpa. Love you!

Some new friends

2008-07-27T12:38:00.002-06:00

These are some people I work with/my new friends down here in Texas

Lauren, Alan and Me
Alan and Grant
Rachel and I...Roomies!
I stole Grant's ball...LOL
Me and Grant @ Karaoke (spelled right?)

Cougar Football Saturday...Get ready people! YAY!

2008-07-21T21:37:00.002-06:00

4th of July

2008-07-19T13:27:00.003-06:00

Alex came to visit in Denton for a week and we spent the 4th in Dallas with his friend Tim, Tim's friend and Tim's Mom. Alex had to head back to Corpus for the week but we met up the next Friday in Austin. I've been begging to go there ever since Alex moved to Texas 2 years ago and I finally got to go! It was really fun :)

Waiting for the fireworks
A smooch before going out ;)
This is Austin's city motto...they do a really good job of keeping true to their motto
Having lunch at Shady Grove. It's a really cool spot we saw on a Rachel Ray show. The dining is all outside and they have great burgers
We walked into a shop on 6th street and Alex really wanted this shirt...I said no ;)

Mom and Dad hangin out in Texas

2008-07-16T19:32:00.003-06:00

Pictures from Mom and Dad helping me get settled. We had fun fun fun!

Texas Stadium
Rangers Ballpark
Having fun at the Rangers game
Victory Lane at Texas Motor Speedway (its about 20 minutes from my house :))
YAY!

Road trip to Texas

2008-07-16T18:52:00.004-06:00

These are some pictures from the trip down here. They are a little out of order but Mom and I had a lot of fun and covered a ton of ground in 2 1/2 days.

Mom doing the "Emily" face. LOL
Rest area photo op
YAY!
Almost there!

This is me just leaving Warden. My face says it all
The road

Mom risked our lives just to take a picture of me sleeping, funny girl!

This is just for Alex :)

I'm a little blog illiterate

2008-07-14T13:56:00.001-06:00

So I haven't figured everything on this out quite yet. Sorry if you've been checkin it out. I'll figure it out soon, hopefully (I'll call you soon Sierra for my lesson :))

Hi!

2008-07-03T09:26:00.001-06:00

Well this is my first blog so I just wanted to try it out and see how it all worked. I will post some pictures of my apartment and the area soon :)

~*Sara & Alex*~

I'm always so behind :s

June

Happy (late) 1st Anniversary!!!

I suck at updating this!!!

A day late but...Happy Memorial Day

Where the heck has May gone??!!

Spring

Loves...

The Big Easy

My 30 'Things'

Wow...always playing catchup

Road Trip #2: Flagstaff, AZ, etc.

Road Trip: Tucson, AZ

Why I love the End of October/Early November....

I love FALL!!!

Playing Catch Up

Married Life: The adventures begin

Everything wedding and more

Sherman P. Draney - Sept. 17, 1915 to June 30, 2010

MARRIED!!!!

1 MONTH!!!

counting down...

Amazing Lady...Nie Nie :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY!!!

Cheer/Dance tryouts and the new team

Trip to ABQ

hellos and goodbyes

I love baseball season

Backyard: Final Stage (for now haha)

Backyard: Stage 3

Backyard: Stage 2

Backyard Take 2: Stage 1

pup is growin' up!

Baby Bungalow GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Picture/Life Update

And it begins...

Engagement Pics

Wedding Plans and Puppies :)

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

WE'RE ENGAGED!!!!

Thanksgiving in Denton

Birthday trip home

Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeeen

Wow, time to play catch up! August to October

BUSY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Texas Lately

Another move....I GOT A JOB!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Johnny Cooper...I'm a groupy haha

Summer Vacation

Trip to N.C.

Karson's Godmother :)

Off I go into the wild blue yonder...

Alex's house is finally done!

My trip home: Family Pictures

What I've been up to lately...

Spring Break in the Desert

YAY!

Sun Belt Conference Tournament

so...

Lots to post about...

Boo Boo having a Baby...Auntie Sara here I come!!!

Slip and Slide

You're Beautiful

Sara does Waco

On to New Mexico!

Home for the Holidays - Part 4

Home for the Holidays - Pt. 3

Home for the Holidays - Pt.2

Home for the Holidays - Part 1

Christmas Time in Texas

Thanksgiving Cowboys Style

My 22nd Birthday

GO COUGS!!!! APPLE CUP 2008

Bringing Dad's Weekend to Texas

North Texas Homecoming

Update: Football games, Alex visits and the boss's birthday

Hittin' the Books

Sad Day

~Sara & Alex~