Happy Birthday Husband!!

The love of my life has been on this earth for 25 years today, almost 4 of which I have been a part. He is an amazing man- strong, capable, loving, gentle, understanding, talented, kind, open and intelligent. He truly observes the beauty and tragedy in the world around him while many others, like myself, simply blow on by. Happy birthday, my angel. I hope you enjoy the day, knowing that you are incredibly loved by so many and are every bit worthy of that love and admiration.

And to the woman who brought him into this world and did a hell of a job raising him- thanks Cecile!!

My Perfect Valentine’s Day

For anyone who doesn’t know, I thoroughly enjoy being outside in God’s majesty. Whether it is at the beach, in the water (lake, bay or ocean) or in the mountains, I find His creation refreshing and absolutely awe-inspiring. So, for Valentine’s Day, Ryan and I decided to go to our favorite place to hike and go farther than we’ve ever gone before. It was SO FUN! I loved it! The vast majority of the hike was climbing up a rock waterfall. We also brought delicious cheeses, meat, French bread, fruit and wine for a yummy, restful lunch. Thank you for a rejuvenating and beautiful Valentine’s Day, guapo.

And anyone who loves to hike, we are more than happy to be your tour guides any time!

Beautiful Colorado

Claire and I went to Colorado to visit two of our amazing friends, Alysha & Ara back in January. It was so fun!! My one and only wish (besides spending time with these incredible women) was to play in the snow. Claire and Alysha both enjoy looking at the snow but preferably through a window of a nice, warm building (potentially their one big flaw! ;). Anyways, God sent Ara to my rescue and we set out on a mission to find snow (of course we went the one time that Colorado hasn’t had tons of snow this winter). Much to my delight, we found it!! My high school friends and I used to drive to the snow at least once every winter, but, sadly, I have not been in quite a few years (I know, Kristin, you’re trying to imagine this crazy life I lead). I was SO excited to tromp around in snow up to our thighs, throw some snowballs, make an amazing snowman (his name is George Allen) and, of course, a snow angel. These few hours did my heart a lot of good!

Next on the agenda in Denver was….the rodeo, which, in Denver, is apparently a HUGE deal. Man, was that an experience. I find different cultures and lifestyles very intriguing and I was fascinated! The four of us could not have stuck out more as the naïve California girls (well, ok, maybe if we were wearing pink PETA shirts or something, but we were close). Thankfully, I was sitting next to a very knowledgeable woman from Kansas (yes, who drove to Colorado just for this rodeo) who helped us understand the rules, scoring, and general background of the different events.

Back in Colorado Springs, Claire, Alysha and I went to the Garden of the Gods, a public park with really unique rock formations. Claire and I were also able to see Alysha and Clifford’s beautiful home for the first time.

Thanks to Ara, her roommate, and Alysha for their hospitality and for showing Claire and I around Colorado. It was such a fun girls trip and I love you all!!