Mission Call and Texas

Shortly after Thanksgiving my little younger brother received his mission call.  No one was home but I happened to be on the phone with him.  He waited for the parents to get home and then announced he was called to the Tuxtla Gutierrez Mexico Mission.  Since then he has been nervous about the language and we're all trying to reassure him he will be fine. 

Mr. H and I also went to Texas a couple of weeks ago to see my family.  We didn't see them for Thanksgiving and won't be able to make if for Christmas.  We only told my dad and surprised the rest of the family by getting them to go with dad to pick up a "coworker."  Actually said coworker was supposed to be a "big boss" who wanted to meet the family. Mom was mad at first but I think she warmed up to the idea of us staying for the weekend.  Even though she thought the house was a mess.

It's tradition, or convienent, to take family pictures anytime I am in town.  This year was my favorite.  The colors were fun and it took maybe 30 min total. Nice!  I would like to say the kids didn't complain a bit but the little younger brother was a little sick.

Thanksgiving 2011

The last few months have flown by.  November was here and gone in a blink of an eye and now we're into December.  Mr. H and I have had a great couple of months. We've house hunted, gone on dates, and planned what we want for our future. Thanksgiving was great, I of course missed my family but I was in charge of dessert and I made peanut butter pie to remind me of home. 

So here is the time line of our Thanksgiving day:

Mr. H and his dad got up early for the Thanksgiving flag football bowl.  I stayed in bed and then took my time getting ready for the annual bowling. 

Then we went downtown to Rosalinda's to help pass out free Thanksgiving dinner.

By the time we got home it was time for the feast. 

Here are all the pies I made...except for the pumpkin pie grandma made.

And now that Black Friday started on Thursday night we got all of our shopping done by 1 am.  The girls even drug Mr. H and his dad along for all of the fun.

It's Fall Again!

I love Fall! Unfortunately, it doesn't last long.  If it could be Fall year round I would be in Heaven.   I love the changing of the leaves, the cooler weather (notice I didn't say cold), and even the leaves falling.  I know they are a pain to pick up, I've helped Mr. H a time or two while he was working in landscaping, but I love he way the crunch under your feet and swirl around in the wind.

I also love the muted colors.  Weird right?  I am a bright color wearing gal that has been known to mix bright colors into the same outfit.  (As I type I am wearing my neon yellow T-shirt)  But I do think the muted yellows, purples, reds and greens are beautiful.  I've just never been trendy enough to pull it off.

Anyway!  Mr. H and I took a trip to Utah a couple of weeks ago, I can't believe it's been that long, and on the way back we stopped in Vail to take pictures of the pretty leaves and Aspens.  I want that perfect picture of an Aspen grove in my living room.  I didn't get one this trip but I am still hunting.

Have you Forgotten?

{source}

Has it really been ten years? I remember it so well. I was in 8th grade and none of my teachers had said anything. In one of my last classes, a history class, the teacher asked us to have a moment of silence. I didnt know why but I did it anyway. He then takes to us about the military and how we would all end up being drafted. I remember feeling the conversation was very strange.

I didn't hear anything else about what had happened until driving home after school with my mom. She turned on the radio and as recordings from previous news segments played, I was shocked at what I heard, this being the first time I had heard of the attack. My mom explained what had happened. I guess my teachers were too much in shock to tell us or I wasn't listening.

I was glued to the tv the rest of the night, watching the towers fall over and over.

It's amazing how devastating 9-11 was and yet as a nation we have grown stronger. It's amazing how devastating natual disasters are as well and yet as communities and families we have grown stronger. Please watch the following video and know how important family is to me. I know there is a God, a Heavenly Father. And I know he loves me and my family.  

Evacuating

It was just like any other Sunday night. I was in the living room relaxing.  The phone rang and someone picked up but I didn't need to find out out who it was. (9 times out of 10 it's not for me)  Later the phone rang again, this time my mother-in-law picked up.  It was her dad, Grandpa Green, worried about my family down in Texas who were near the fires.

Confused.

I had not heard about the fires or from my family so I assumed they were fine. We let him know they were ok not really knowing if they were.

Unsettled.

I go downstairs and call my dad. I call dad because he is the most reliable at picking up. The line rings. The line keeps ringing. Finally, just before it reaches his voicemail, he answers. 

Joking.

"I am calling to check up on you. Grandpa Green is worried about you guys."  I laughed hoping that by making light of everything there won't be a need to worry. He will laugh too and say they are out of harms way. "We're evacuating now.  We're leaving Connie's and we will head to Seguin."

Silence.

I don't remember the rest of the conversation, honestly. We talked a little more than that, not much, but all I remember is hanging up and heading toward the door to go back upstairs. Before making it to the door I hit the floor crying. I knew my family would be safe but the house we have lived in for 20+ years could be gone by morning.

I regained composure and did my best to update myself on the situation since not 10 minutes before I had no idea about what was going on. I used the news, Google, even Facebook to gather all the information I could and then send it off to other friends and family members who were asking about the area. 

I spent all day Monday checking Facebook by the minute. My family was able to return to their home but they were not sure when they would have to leave again.  Not wanting to be surprised again, I bugged my family for updates.  I bugged everyone on Facebook for updates.

My family made it through the weekend with our house intact. Our extended family was very fortunate as well.

I know I have friends in Texas who have not been as fortunate and my thoughts and prayers are with them as they begin to clear and rebuild. I am grateful to all who took part, and are taking part in containing the fires.

The Rockies

Tonight Mr. H and I joined his parents for the Rockies game. We had fun, especially end when they scored 7 runs in the 7th inning to take the lead and sweep.

Of course I couldn't help but feel like my dad or brother should be there instead. I was greatly worried for everyone but it turned out to be a great distraction from the stress and worry. (More on this to come)

I was still on Facebook every few minutes looking for updates but at least I was out doing something.

Happy Birthday Mr. H

Mr. H turned the big 25 this year and we celebrated all weekend. Saturday Mr. H played in a fun golf tournament. I tagged along and even hit a few.  Each hole had a different challenge (putt like you're playing pool). Our favorite hole was the Happy Gilmore.

After golf we went to the Peterson home for dinner.

Today Mr. H opened my gift first since I wanted him to be able to wear it all day.  I was able to get a birthday gift this year without him knowing ahead of time. You see, I am not very good at surprises.  I even tried to throw a surprise party but the golf tournament kind of got in the way.  Ready to find out what he got?

A white Nixon Player watch!

Yep, he had no idea!

Sunday night we had a few people over to have Mr. H's favorite dinner and dessert. (King Ranch Chicken and Cake Bites...except I made Oreo Truffles)

Happy Birthday Mr. H!

Lake Powell 2011

 The yearly family trip is over and we have now been home long enough to be back to normal. It was a blast to be with family and friends and to just relax.  I believe I went through at least 2 books while we were gone. My brother, Weston, was also able to be there as an adopted Humrich for a week. 

While Karlee, Darla, and Madison are sun goddesses all week, I must stay under cover because I tan too quickly and then I peal. Yuck.  No worries I still left Powell much darker than I came. 

Weston spent most of his time reading or in a tub war.  While everyone else rotated out because they were too tired Weston stayed on a tub the entire time.  It's was his first year so he didn't know you are supposed to pace yourself or you will end up too sore to do things the rest of the week.

Weston also spent a lot of time getting hurt or hurting others.  His elbow made solid contact with Karlee's eye and then this happened. Karma?  On his second trip he head planted into the sand and then just laid there for a while before slowly making his way down Ice Cream Canyon.

One thing I am always grateful for is the fact that we are able to be closer to these three.  Corey has been friends with these guys since grade school or high school and I love how much fun we always have together.  There's never a dull moment when you get them together.

Corey got to enjoy the new board this year.  This is his branding move for CWB.  

We went all out for this year's family photo.  This rock is barley peaking through in the middle of the channel.  We took the boat right up to it and had Weston take tons of pictures.  

I was glad to be home but sad to see the week end.  I hated saying bye to Weston because he will be turning in his mission papers soon. Which I am thoroughly thrilled for, I'm just nervous and protective. He will of course do great anywhere he goes. I'll be sure to update everyone as soon as he gets his call.

Over The Hill

Age is relative. Have you heard that? Most were shocked to hear that Scot Humrich was turning 50 this weekend. Scot, my father in law, hides his age well. Or rather, ignores it well.  He snowboards, wakeboards, camps, and travels around the world. (Jamaica, Australia, and recently Greece) I hope Mr. H and I have as much fun as this guys does in 25 years.

I had the great opportunity to plan a dinner party for my father in law this weekend. I had a blast planning out all and hope to have more dinner parties in the future.  I decided on a vintage theme just so I could use the glass coke bottles I have been collecting.

Here are a few pictures from the weekend. We had a great turn out. I would like to thank all those who helped me out. I couldn't have done it without all of your helping hands.

Here's a picture of Aunt Wendy.

We set up a pasta bar for dinner with three different types of pastas and two types of sauces. 

We also had chicken skewers and these guys helped out with the grill.

The geezer still has lots of wind left in him because he got all 50 (I mean 48 since candles come in packs of 24) out in the first breath.  

 We had the guests bring "50 things" for the 50 year old. There were some great gifts there including a "prune bush" with 50 prunes.

I believe that despite the fight we had with him to have the party he still had a blast. This guy is quite the social bug.

What kind of party should I host next?

Wakeboarding!

I'm getting better! There are a lot of things left on my list of things to do while I am 23. This one isn't one of them.

Get up on a wakeboard!

It doesn't last long but I am up!

And of course Mr. H has been doing this for years!

1 Down...Many More to Go!

Mr. H and I have been married a year! The past year has gone by fast but we have put Mr. H through two semesters, attended many BYU sporting events, vacationed in Lake Powell, Nevada, and Texas, worked hard to make and achieve personal and family goals, made a move to CO and now we both have jobs here!

Our anniversary was on Sunday but we celebrated on Friday. We went to the Cheesecake factory and walked through the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver. The Cheesecake factory was of course yummy and we even got to sit outside so Mr. H could do his people watching. We stayed the night there thanks to some free rewards points and then came back home in time for me to realize I left my camera in the hotel and had to turn around to go get it.

Then on Sunday we brought out the cake topper. Everyone had their doubts on if it would be any good, except for me of course. My parents cake was made by the same lady who made ours and theirs was just as good as the day of the reception.  This topper made it from the Texas reception to Denver then on the road to Grand Junction and Provo where it stayed in our freezer until the move. The move took it to Murry, UT and back here to Denver. It was still so moist and not freezer burned at all. And it was so big we're still eating on it!

Mr. H had also picked out a very sweet card to give me on Sunday.  Which he did after we walked for the cure at Washington Park with his mom and sister.

First Week in CO

We were able to unload the entire apartment when we got into Arvada on Sunday thanks to family and friends.  This week has been interesting with finding things we need, putting away things we don't, and trying to find out what some thing even are. I fill my days with Zumba and job hunting while Mr. H fills his days with the new job.  I also got to decorate his office!

The plan is to find me a job and then we will need to find a home or apartment. Yay!

We're Moving!

So most of our followers already know we're making a move to Colorado.  I wanted to make the announcement as soon as we found out but we had to make sure we had all of our shoes tied. We move next Saturday! Wow, that feels good to get out.

It's starting to sink in:

1 more week of work
1 more week of packing/cleaning...yuck
1 more week of Utah friends
1 more week...

What We've Been Up To

We have spent a lot of time with our friends this past month.  We've gone to flag football games, basketball games, and water polo games.  We've played an insane amount of cards...insane amount. We eat, laugh, and have a great time. 

One of the places we eat is IHOP. Yum!  And out of all of the times we've been there (it's really only been a couple) we haven't seen this sign:

Sorry for the wiggly camera phone quality.  Either the sign is new or we ignore bad grammar. 

We also had an amazing weekend with Mr. H's dad.  He came in last Thursday night and met us at the infamous IHOP. 

Then there was General Conference. Amazing! I love General Conference weekend. Great messages!

Mr. H's dad left on Sunday morning. Way too quick of a trip! 

My Stud

Probably not what you want to hear, but isn't he a stud? I just love that crooked smile.  I've been itching to take pictures and since Mr. H just got a new suit he let me get a few shots in.  We had another busy weekend. I was really ready for a break but you have to actually make time for those I hear.  I decided that since we're back into the weekday schedule we will make a little time for a break.  I asked Mr. H to take me on a date tonight and of course he had to say yes.  There's no game on tonight, no game to go to, no meeting, or homework (that has to be done immediately) it's the first day of the work week, it's perfect timing for a break! Except for the fact that I hear it could snow tonight, that's never perfect timing. Come on Spring!

March Madness

March has been fun.  Mr H has been busy with school and basketball and football and tennis. I have been busy with work and blogging and crafting and blogging. Have I ever told you I love blogs?  I have recently taken on a 365 project and it's been challenging to keep on task with it but I think it will be good for me.

Anyway, my reason for posting today is because this morning I discovered something beautiful:

1 Frozen banana
1/2 c milk
1 tbsp peanut butter

Blended into a peanut butter banana milkshake. mmm

Basketball

Ever have one of those days that can only be cured by a milkshake?  How funny is that? I came home today dreading the rest of the evening knowing it would be filled with basketball.  We came home, had a quick snack, went to Mr. H's game and then the BYU game.  We ended up in nose bleed seats...it was hot, stuffy and smelled of baby bile. I managed to snap this before the sad game started.

I left Mr. H at the game at half time and took off with the girls. We grabbed Oreo shakes and took a drive. We checked out a make out spot that rocks! Can't wait to use it. TMI? 

Now I am back at home and sadly out of vanilla coke.  

But wait! As I upload the picture for this post I discover a picture I did not take:

The Groundhog Said What?

This morning we woke up to this...

And although I am sooooo ready for summer, I was ok with this. The snow wasn't cold; it was light and fluffy. I work at the base of Timp and normally it creates a great background for this window view but this morning it's missing! I feel like I am in the clouds!

Have a wonderful day,

Happy Love Day!

Say what you want to about the holiday of love. {made by Hallmark, single awareness day...} I don't buy it.

I love the love holiday. I don't buy into the oversized stuffed animals, boxes of chocolates, and flowers...ok so maybe I do love me some Dove Dark Chocolates.

I do buy into going on a date, reconnecting and falling in love.  I buy into this every other day too but there's a holiday for all of it and it makes me super happy.

Today my valentine had a french toast breakfast. He also has little notes hidden in his backpack and lunch. Nothing fancy. Later we will go out to eat and enjoy a relaxing evening.  We might even watch some 24...not romantic you say? Maybe not, but still awesome!

Valentine's day has never been about the expensive or ridiculous stuff for me.  My best memories were coming home from school to find the table nicely set and dinner still cooking.  My mom would cover our plates with a napkin and underneath was her gift to us.  {mine was always the store bought sugar cookies with tons of frosting} I felt special, I felt the love of my mother and I loved the time I had with my family.

It's not like I haven't felt a little angst toward the holiday...I was dumped on a Valentine's day in high school {but who wasn't right?}.  But I decided to take on the mind set that I can find one person to love.  We're supposed to love everyone right? So on this day I can find {at the very least} one person to love.

Who do you love?

Here's mine with his vday breakfast:

Friday Blues

I had an AH mazing lunch with Mr. H!  I picked him up from school, we went to Taco Bell, and brought the food home to eat.  Alright, maybe the food choice wasn't the amazing part, sorry for that slip in detail.  But it's been awhile since we've had a lunch date and I loved it!

Now he's probably at home playing Madden 11 while I had to go back to work to finish out the last couple of hours for the week.  But that's ok because soon enough I will be home too.

What I want to be when I grow up

I am sitting in a little nook at work.  Minding my own business. When...

Someone comes up to me and tells me he needs a job.  He's trying to become a mortuary driver.

Odd.

That's nice I say. What do you say to that? Well that will be fun.

Biggest Loser Cookbooks

I have two of the Biggest Loser cook books. I don't really follow recipes but these books give me great ideas on how to make meals, I normally cook, a little healthier.  And now they have a dessert cookbook! mmmm.  I bought mine on Amazon and received free shipping because I bought two.



Last year I gave two of the cookbooks to Mr. H for Valentine's day because he kept saying he wanted them. I know, I know not very romantic. Maybe this year I will buy him the dessert book and make him a dessert for Valentin's day. Better?

Be Where Your Feet Are

The last couple of weeks have been quite an adventure. And I choose the word adventure now but that's a recent development. I was looking over one of my favorite websites {mormon.org} and watched this video.  I came across a quote I absolutely love:

"Be where your feet are."

I was in the habit of looking too far forward.  Finances were good and I was making plans. Bigger apartment plans...Bigger family plans. {gasp} No I am not pregnant; yes I do have the itch. The key is I was comfortable.  And then I was laid off, health care providers two stepped around my questions, and my lip swelled to twice its size. It's no secret I stress about finances and life in general but maybe the key is not to focus so much on what I cannot have in the future and focus on what I currently have.

I have:

An amazing husband

A warm and cute apartment

A job

Family

Friends

Hobbies

Food for my table

A degree

Don't get me wrong it's good to have goals for the future, especially finacially, but it's also good to enjoy life today. 

So good bye for today while I go enjoy life...and a girls' night.