lame

So, im not a fan of my blog. I keep trying to convince myself to keep it, but my life is so lame from day to day that I really haven't gotten that much to write about. I remember the days of xanga and how much i wrote on that thing - man, i was a bloggin' fool! haha - now, i feel like a lone ranger in a world full of babies and photography gurus. 

I will keep it, cause like i told my dear (ex) co-worker, the day i deleted that xanga a wave of regret hit me so hard, i felt like i had just thrown away 3 years worth of journals! So no matter how lame it is right now, im hoping for more to start going on in my life - and i think either way, one day i'll look back and laugh at these random entries. :) besides - its a good way to share a little bit of me with you  - even if it is rare and sometimes slightly boring! haha

As for today - Im going to go walk around the mall with Topher and Ryan. Woooo

Oh and im on the last Twilight book - (finally) and i can't even begin to express to you how much i hate this series! lol Loved the first book and kinda liked the second, the third got a little old and now the fourth is just twisted and dragging on for eternity! I think Bella Swan is so dumb. She should have been with Jacob to start with. Just a little thought of mine. As soon as this series ends, im not sure i'll ever start something i dont want to finish again (as far as books are concerned). haha

miss and love

Skiing, Concerts and Oh, so much snow!!

This is our little fox that would visit us in Crested Butte - just so beautiful!

This is the view from our Crested Butte condo - looks fake, its so beautiful!

This is the "Wildflower"  - where we stayed in Breckenridge. I took this pic from the other side of the street - but it looks like an add. haha

Think its time to post something else.. .

I kinda lost touch with the whole blogging thing.. but I thought I might as well just make it into a journal of things i'm doing, or want to do - more for myself than anyone. Just so I can look back and read it later. 

I can't believe I will have been here for 5 months on January 25th!! Thats longer than any trip - including study abroad, that i've ever been on! I can't deny that i've had my moments when I've been ready to pack it up and come back home - but, I really do love this place. How can you not look out at the mountains and be thankful? But what I love most - is the environmental friendliness of this place! I've never seen so many trails anywhere - right outside my door! And everyone wants to be organic and exercise outside and recycle and drive hybrid cars and there is no limit to their cause. I love it! Only negative: My family is much, MUCH to far away. I miss them so much!

Anywho - I went to a concert last night in Boulder and it was awesome! Katie Herzig and Griffin House played at the b.side lounge and they were excellent! I even stood next to Katie's mom in line and got to talk to her for a bit - she was really down to earth. (Not sure what i expected her to be.... but still - very cool moment!) :)  

The weekend before I got to go to Crested Butte with some friends and ski. I had such a good time!! And it was possibly one of the most beautiful sites i've ever seen - overlooking the snowy mountain village! The most magical scene i've ever seen! A few weeks before that I got to tag along with some friends to Breckenridge! It was amazing - as you can see from the pic above, we stayed in the cutest loft ever - right on Main street, above a gift shop! I have been SO lucky to have great friends who stay in the coolest places ever! 

Anywho - im doing good here. If i could just get a job outside of this house - i would be doing EVEN better! :) 

Love and miss you all - ALL! xoxoxo

TAYLOR ELIZABETH STROUD!

Any minute now our new niece, Taylor Elizabeth Stroud will be born and she couldn't be any more on time!! Today was her original due date and Jan's water broke at 1:30 AM!! We have been here since about 3:30 AM in the waiting room at the hospital. Mom is excited and keeps going back to check - we've been joking that she is going to hide under Jan's hospital bed just so she can be in the room when Taylor has her first cry!! LOL The news is that any minute now Jan will be giving birth to our new baby girl!! We couldn't be happier! Especially ME - i am supposed to fly out at 3:40 this afternoon, to go back to Colorado, and i thought i was going to miss the birth completely!! As i started to fall asleep last night i was praying to the Lord that Jan would have Taylor - and God is good - Mom came in my room at 2:15 to tell me it was GO time! :) Getting to hold Taylor in my arms before i leave is worth more than any sleep i could have gotten or shower i need to take! ;) Im already looking forward to coming home for Christmas!!

Too bad Uncle Colin is in Arkadelphia preaching at our church and we had to leave him to come up here. We wish he was here with us - as do we wish every one of our south african (and Tennessee) cuzzies were here as well!

SOON and VERY soon!! Praise the Lord!!

*Nik

Im coming HOME! in 3 days and i can't wait to....

Hug and kiss my family!
Hold Karoline!!
Rub Jans tummy (TAYLOR!!)
Meet my newest Niece!! (fingers crossed and prayers answered!)
Pick up Dad from the airport
Spend QT with each one of my sisters and parents and bro in laws and niece(s!)
Throw a babyshower for Brittany Weeks
Hang with Maggie
Shadow Dr. Hankins
Get my hair cut
Eat THANKSGIVING at Barri and Justins house!!
Go walking with Bitty!
Have a game night
Play Nertz
Count my blessings
Make future plans... ;)

hope i can fit it all in!! lol

I can't wait to love on my family!! - in just 3 days!! xoxoxox

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!

OUCH!! - [not for the faint of heart]

The Infamous can of doom

Ok- so i have funny, yet painful story~ :[brace yourselves]: 

This morning i was cleaning the apartment, as usual, and decided to shake off the rugs. I stepped out our front door (which faces the interstate and a flight of stairs for the apartment above us.) When i was shaking off the rugs, i noticed there was an unsightly "Keystone" beer can in the bushes. I ducked under the stair case to grab it, which is pretty low, and then turned around to walk back out to throw it away... im not totally sure, but i must have thought i had cleared the stairs, because i stood up and WHACK!- the next thing i remember i was laying on my back underneath a dirty staircase with beer can in my hands and two rugs next to me. haha I was a sight to see!!!

I layed there for while... stunned and wondering if i had just made a 2x4 sized hole in my head!! And as i layed there, i had flashback to my diving board experience when i was 13... 

You see... about 11 years ago - i was playing in my neighbors pool. Our neighbor was a large, 16 year old boy. While i was on the diving board, he decided to hold on to the bottom of it, to annoy me. Well, i didnt like that - so when it was his turn, i decided to do the same to him. As i held onto the low diving board with both hands, John decided to take a running leap and do the biggest cannon ball he could muster up... which coincidentally - left a larger hole in my head than it did in the water.... I ended up having to get 8 staples in the dome of my head and needless to say, wasn't invited over to swim much after that. haha 

The place the 2x4 hit me today.... RIGHT ON THE SCAR!!  I cringe thinking about it. Its a sensitive place on the best of days. I didnt realize it was bleeding until i called my mom to laugh about how crazy i must have looked; touched the spot again and ... FEAR STRICKEN, bloody-handed me was zapped back to that 13 year old little girl, who just ran home looking like freddie crooger's victim. 

I took some pictures just to remember the humor of this day... and also the pain. I would post them, but im sure you wouldnt like an anatomy lesson on where brains go.. ;)- totally kidding. it wasn't that bad. Instead - here are some pictures on the infamous beer can, the stair case... and my cover up hair do... ;) 

The stair case and bushes where i saw the can...

What I saw when i was laying on my back... (The beam. Topher came later.)

PEOPLE:  DON'T LITTER!! It really can cause others harm! lol

My new do - i dig the braid down the side. lol

much love!!

p.s. im SO thankful i wasn't hurt worse- i doubt Topher would have known how to dial 911!! lol Thank God for Guardian Angels!!

At This Point In My Life...

 My Best Friend in the World!!~ Maggie

I'm a bad citizen... eek. Who knew that if you didn't vote for 2 federal elections, they pull you off as a voter?? [in my defense, i was in another country for the last one!] But, I was never told they would or did pull me off until i called up there a minute ago (thanks to Brian- my future P.A.) and asked why i couldn't pull up my voter registration- then they broke the news!! :( And of course the last day to register was last Monday. Dang... who feels guilty now??? <-- ::me::

Anywho....on a more adorable-note i want to wish Baby Karoline and my best friend and soul-mate, Maggie Happy Late Birthday's!! :) I of course called them on the actual b-day (like 4 days ago)- but i just thought it would give me a good reason to post these on my blog... hehe: (who is the most beautiful baby on earth??!!!) yea... P.K. ::Princess Karoline - as PaPa calls her::

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY KAROLINE!!!

If you want to see how adorable the party was, look at my sisters blog.. tonyanddayle.blogspot.com! She threw the most rockin' 1st birthday/football party ever!!! :) :) Wish I could have been there for it - but i was in spirit!!

 

Oh and I wish Brian and I could have been at the G/GNO [girls/guy night out] with my old coworkers/bf's! But i thought about you girls! Hope you didn't cry too much over us not being there. ;-) love you all very much!

Well, im off to go read and then try to get some oil drained from my car. I put like a whole bottle in ... not smart, but it was so low i thought it needed it! - now its about 2 inches above the "full line". :shaking my head: which apparently, is NOT good!! ~Without Dad, i often wonder how i will make it. lol Im gonna be a poor poor lady.  

I need a bike...

                            .... So much less maintenance! 

Bitter Sweet

So i found out that i have to pick between going home for Christmas and Thanksgiving...

Naturally i want to come home for Christmas, of course!! BUT, i already bought my ticket for Thanksgiving... which means.... yea, i dont even want to say it.

But the good thing is - i have 10 days home for thanksgiving, more than i would probably have for Christmas - and im going to try to do something useful at Christmas - like work at a soup kitchen or something. So far, i can't find one thats close enough to me... but i'll work on it! Im just going to have to skype my family like 24/7 during that time... cause Kaci and Caleb won't be here either. I'll be Home Alone!! {hands of face: aaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!} haha - hopefully no bad guys will come for me. :) But Kaci's Papa called me today and told me that he wants me to come to their house as much as i like during that time! They live in this glorious house up high in the mountains and it over looks aspen trees and snow for miles! its gorgeous!! He is the sweetest man alive... i'll post a pic of him... just to warm all of our hearts! :)

[disclaimer: dont write sad comments unless you want a blubbering ball of emotions over here in colorado!!] :) i love you all so much!!

Who's up for Christmas in November??!!! :)

pps...JAN- you better work on having Taylor between the 20th and 30th... k?! We're eating jalapenos the whole 10 days im here so that baby will come out faster!! :)

XO