1st Real Snow

Yesterday, November 27, 2007, we got our 1st Real Snow of the Season. Yippee! Now maybe I'll start feeling a bit more festive...I can't believe Christmas is in 26 Days...where did the year go? This will be our (me and Garrett's) first of many Christmas's as a married couple...how very exciting!

Tis the Season...for an Awkward Night

Last night (yes, in November) was the annual Sinclair Christmas Party held at the Little America Hotel in Salt Lake. Its a night of good food, weird entertainment, a bunch of corporate ass kissing and super awkward conversation. We all see these people on a daily basis but when we're outside of the office, in an actual social setting, its just sorta weird. Everyone just seems kinda fake and I'm a "keep it real" kind of girl. I always feel the night would be a lot more bearable if only I could have an adult beverage or two beforehand, but b/c I'm usually rushed and the party is held by mormons, it never seems to work out. But, amidst the prompted laughter, fake smiles, and an unnecessary amount of clapping, we managed to have a pretty good time...I mean, I only get to see Garrett dressed up one day a year, so I'll take what I can get. So, after the Bagpipers (I'm not sure I get it either) we took our ham and Sun Valley Chocolates and headed home. I guess it was a good night...for a Tuesday.

The Calm Before the Storm

These pics were taken this morning from our back door... beautiful... and you know it had to be beautiful b/c I took the time to find the camera and take the pics and I hadn't even had my coffee yet. We're supposed to get a snow storm this afternoon...why is the sky always so gorgeous right before the bad weather hits? Well, who cares I guess. I'll take my one moment of awe...right before I get in my car to begin my wonderful day of work. I like this positive thinking...maybe one day it will rub off.

Just Our Luck

So for months now, Garrett and I have been planning our Moab Thanksgiving weekend adventure. The food was bought, hotel reservations were made, trails were picked out...we even made it all the way there. We got up Thursday, Thanksgiving Day morning, drove 3 1/2 hours to Moab, rode the Klondike Bluffs Trail (thank god) and checked into our hotel room. The weather was damn near perfect for mountain biking in the desert. We went out to the Moab Brewery for a traditional Thanksgiving Day dinner. The food was really good and the beer was even better (only $2.50 for pints...beer specials seem like a rarity in Utah). So, our trip was off to a great start...

...And then Friday morning we woke up to this:

Just our luck. Snow...in Moab of all places...totally unpredicted, unforecasted SNOW. After much deliberation we decided to pack it up and head back to Salt Lake. It was still snowing pretty hard and it was too cold for it to melt. As we left the city limits of Moab, the ground was bare...not a glimmer of snow to be found. Only Moab. With all the biking we do on a regular basis, we were probably due for some bad weather. Oh well, maybe next time.

All Together Now...AWWWWWWWW

Look how big the babies are getting. They look so cute all smushed together like that. Having my very possible new baby so far away is torture...I just want to hold/pet/kiss one...really badly. We're still not sure if we want a boy or girl, but if it's a boy, I think his name will be Muttley. It's really hard to come up with a name on par with "Munch" but Garrett and I both really like Muttley. If its a girl, we like Moxie, but we're not set on it. If anyone has any fabulous ideas, let me know.

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

I just want to wish my Dad a very Happy Birthday! I love you and I'm sorry I can't be there to tell you in person. Have a great day!

Thankful for Sticks

Top 10 Things Munchie is THANKFUL for

10: Nice, long walks (he saves his pee just for this)

9: Duncan, his very best buddy (his only buddy)

8: Ol' Roy Dog Treats (he is sure he deserves one every time he goes outside)

7: His toys (he really does love them all)

6: His Beds (all 3 of them in our 1500 square foot house,not to mention the couch)

5: His Mom (me)...and Dad (Garrett)

4: Road Trips (Oh how he loves riding in the car)

3: Being able to take mighty dog leaps off of things (I am NOT thankful for that)

2: Attacking Yard Care Equipment (see videos on blog)

And the Number ONE thing Munchie is Thankful for:

STICKS (that includes my knitting needles)

So Dang Cute

After losing my "wear everyday" necklace, I scoured the internet to find something that made me happy. I came across Lisa Leonard's blog: http://lisaleonard.blogspot.com/

She makes the most awesome hand stamped jewelry, keychains, bracelets, etc. I chose the oval necklace with my "NEW" initials. I love, love, love my necklace and highly recommend her stuff.

I Will Miss Her

Winter is almost here...Snow is almost here...Freezing temperatures are almost here...No riding my road bike is already here. Garrett and I got one last road ride in yesterday...probably for the season. We took Wasatch Drive all the way out to Draper and back. That is such an awesome ride. This time of year is great for the skiing but horrible for my biking addiction. It's so nice to be able to get off work, go home and still have plenty of time to get a nice road ride in. Oh how I love my road bike. My beautiful Vicious is just sitting in the garage...missing all of our weekly adventures together. I'll also miss all of our usual rides, the beautiful scenery and all of the critters, large and small, we may come across. I'll miss you Wasatch Loop. I'll miss you Millcreek Canyon. I'll miss you Emigration Canyon. See ya in the Spring.

Round 1: Munch vs. The Blower

Score: Munch - 1, Blower - 0. As you can tell, Garrett and I get our kicks from watching Munch attack outdoor yard equipment. We laugh b/c Munch is so easily entertained...but who are the real ones being entertained here?

To Garrett: Please keep an Open Mind

Good News Garrett...I found us a Xmas Tree...please keep an open mind of how fabulous one of these babies would look in our living room. Kari found these treasures at Big Lots for only $30 a piece. I mean, for only $30 and a quick trip to Big Lots, you can have 6 feet of pink heaven right in your living room. Who could say no to that?

Sidenote: As much as I love this tree, I know Garrett would probably beat me if I showed up with one of these. One can only dream.

Munchie in the Sky with Diamonds

This picture was taken back in August while we were on a fun, family trip in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. I LOVE my handsome boy!!! He is showing off his new Moots Collar he just got. Thanks Dave.

The Leaves Have Officially Fallen

Another weekend has come and gone and it's Monday yet again. On a positive note, this is our last full work week until the Thanksgiving holidays...yippee!! I am ready for the nice, long break.

This weekend was fairly lowkey, but nice. Saturday, Garrett and I woke up to the cable guy ringing our doorbell. That was nice :) Garrett scheduled the guy to come between 8:00 am and 1:00 pm to fix our internet and sure enough, the doorbell rang at 7:58 am. What are the odds? He was early. That must be a cable guy first. Usually they give you the five hour time slot and they show up 15 minutes late. Not our guy...he's on top of things. I mean, who doesn't want to wake up on Saturday morning to a strange guy tromping in and out of your house. I for one, was quite pleased. I especially liked the part when Garrett invited him into our bedroom while I was still in bed, sans pants. Nice.

Anyway, when the cable guy departed, Garrett and I headed off to Park City to do some mountain biking. It was a fabulous day! Perfect mountain biking weather. We did the Glenwild Loop and the Flying Dog Loop. We have never ridden either of those trails before, but we didn't get lost and really enjoyed ourselves. Those are my kind of trails...lots of uphill, little to no obstacles...just smooth single track riding. I was pretty out of it by the time we got back to the car and managed to leave one of my mountain biking shoes. Of course, I didn't realize it until we got ALL THE WAY HOME. After showers, we drove back up there and luckily, it was right where I left it.

Sunday was a lazy day. It sprinkled here pretty much all day. We did manage to get outside for some quality leaf raking. It was much needed. Our whole street is a mess so it was good to finally get that done. Its beside the point that our yard is covered in leaves again today...we tried. Munch really enjoyed himself. One of his favorite activities of all time is attacking the rake, its pretty funny (see video). He also enjoyed hopping from leaf pile to leaf pile, peeing right in the middle of each one. It made picking up those leaves all the more pleasant. After raking, we ate lunch, napped and worked some in our basement. Nothing too terribly eventful.

Why so Sleepy?

Thursdays are always hard for Garrett and me. We always have the hardest time getting up in the morning. The alarm clock goes off and we always insist on pushing it so far that eventually, we are both running around the house trying to get ready and still leave on time...or nearly on time. I never take a shower in the morning (I do it the night before) so that I can stay in bed as long as possible. When Garrett gets out of bed around 6:15 am, Munchie takes his spot and we continue to lounge and watch the news until 7:00 am. Yep, that means I have only 30 minutes to get ready for work, take Munch out, get my coffee, get my breakfast and start a load of laundry. Why don't I just get up 15 minutes earlier so that I'm not so rushed? Maybe it would be nice to actually have time to fix/brush my hair (its kinda funny b/c on the days I do actually brush my hair, people will comment on how nice I look...haha). Maybe one day. Until then, I'll continue to spend quality cuddling time with my Munchie. I think it's much more gratifying than a brush to my hair or an extra minute to clean the countertops.

Insanity at its Finest

On October 13 & 14, Garrett and I rode in the epic Mountain bike race...24 Hours of Moab. I wasn't quite sure what to expect upon arrival, but it's safe to say it was pure craziness. We took the easy route and rode on a 5 man team, each person doing a 16 mile loop before handing off the baton to the next poor soul. Some people compete solo in the race...it's fascinating to me to see them come through the finish, looking totally spent, and then get back on their bikes for even more pain and suffering. The race course is the "Behind the Rocks" course in Moab. The course wasn't my favorite that's for sure. There was lots of sand, several hike-a-bikes, and some pretty steep rocky, loose downhill. In the day it was fine, but riding that course in total darkness, with just a bike headlight, was a lot for me to handle. I was scared and nervous before my nighttime ride, but thanks to my wonderful husband's words of encouragement, I was ready to go by the time my team member came through. Poor Garrett, b/c of the riding arrangement, rode all his laps in the dark(that's why I don't have pics of him). He didn't seem to mind though. All in all, it was a great weekend. We didn't get much sleep, as you can imagine, but we left Moab tired and dirty with a sense of pride and accomplishment that you can't find anywhere else.

ELECTION DAY

Today is election day. I find it unfortunate that I only want to vote so that I can skip out of work for a while. It's not the politics, our city leaders, proposititions, referendums...its the good excuse to have an out-of-office adventure. Sad, isn't it?

Utah, Utah, Utah. Here in Utah, on election day, one cannot buy liquor, wine, or full strength beer in restaurants or bars while polls are open. I saw this on the news this morning and nearly fell over from shock. Well, I shouldn't be shocked. I should be used to these wacky laws. It's just that everytime I turn around, there is another weird liquor law with even weirder reasons for its existence. Sometimes I just have to think, where are we? But then I remember, the answer is so simple...Utah. Home sweet home.

CUTEST PICTURE EVER

This picture should be in a calendar. Oh wait, it will be...the Munch 2008 Calendar, made by yours truly.

Another Monday

So it's Monday, yet again. For me, every week is nothing more than a countdown for the weekend, kinda sad isn't it? Don't get me wrong, I have a great life...a great husband, a great dog, a great house, a great family...I just need to have some sort of fulfilling job, aka work for myself. I'm working on it, trust me. I'll keep everyone informed of my progress. I'm done waiting for something great to happen for me. I have lots of good ideas, I just need to make them happen. Afterall, that is how people become successful right?

This past weekend (the dreaded time change weekend) was really good for me. Garrett and I drove down to Moab just for the hell of it and had a great time. We got there pretty late on Friday night, and to save money, slept in the back of my car. I can certainly think of more enjoyable things than trying to sleep on the hard surface of the back of a car seat, being so cold I couldn't get out of the covers to get more clothes and Munch thinking the best place to sleep was MY pillow. BUT I'm not complaining...it was a super idea :) thanks garrett. It was definitely worth saving the $35 for the hotel with bed/shower/sink in town. You betcha. Anyway, I'm digressing. So, on Saturday morning, when the sun came out, thank god, we put on some spandex and headed for the Poison Spider trail. Its definitely a fun trail, slightly more sand than I'd like, but fun. We got off course a few times but managed to find our way back to the poor little Munchy stuck in the car. Overall, I was pretty impressed with my riding. I'm becoming more adventurous on the downhill and only walked away with an elbow scrape. (For those who know me, an elbow scrape is a great day) After that, we checked into a hotel room, watched UT barely pull a win from Oklahoma and then headed to the Moab Brewery for beer and dinner. It was a lot of fun...I love that place, its always good times.

Sunday, we got up early, checked out of the hotel, and headed to the Amasa Back trail. Garrett and I rode really well on Sunday. I tried almost all the downhills and made it up almost all of the technical uphill spots. There were several obstacles we tried several times...and ended up making most of them. It was pretty much as good as biking gets. When we were done, we headed back to Salt Lake. Thank you Moab for such a fun weekend! We'll see you for Thanksgiving!!!

The Newest Member of Our Family...perhaps???

So Garrett and I have gone off the deep end and decided to add a new member to our family. I just can't leave well enough alone, it has been proven time and time again. First a french bulldog (the dog love of my life) and now an English Goldendoodle. Whats that you ask? Well the father is an English Retriever and the Mother is a standard poodle. Basically it looks like a giant teddybear that DOESN'T SHED. The puppies were born on Saturday November 3rd, yippee skippee! These little guys aren't free, so I'm being pretty picky as to the dog I actually get. If one of these babies turns out to be a champagne color with a blocky head, its ours. I sent in a deposit and I'm now 3rd on the list. If I don't get what I want out of this litter, I'll be put 1st on the next one. So, for now, we just sit and wait...but one day, we will have a giant teddybear running around our house, and I can't wait!!!!

Munch the Bumblebee

Munch is famous for his fabulous Halloween costumes and this year was no exception! He rocked a bumblebee costume like nobody's business. All of the trick-or-treaters loved his cute little bee face sitting at the glass door...who wouldn't? Several neighbors were sent to our house just to see the cute little bumblebee.