Kitty Love

The first pic is of our newest addition, Lucy. She's adorable, but hasn't quite gotten to lounging with her big brother and sister. I love our little fuzzy family!!

Tuesday February 12 - Fat Tuesday

Mardi Gras was on Tuesday...

For some, it was a day of celebration. For others, it passed quietly without a second thought.  For me... it was a day of last minute munchies before giving up junk food for Lent. 

Now, before you jump to any conclusions... no I am not Catholic, nor overly religious.  BUT... I like the idea of having a defined period of time in which it give up something.  Especially something that I could probably do without. Like junkfood.

Junkfood? What exactly defines junkfood?  For me it is a lot of things.... chips, cookies, candy, fries, cake, brownies, ice cream...etc.  Which is a lot to try to give up.  40 days.  It will either feel like an eternity, or I will start feeling fantastic without the added junk in my diet.  I have a feeling it will be a little bit of both. 

I want to keep this blog updated as to my progress, partially to keep myself on track but also to be accountable. Or something... :) Fingers crossed.
                          

Winter Feis

Winterfeis. Its been a few weeks and I have been horrible about updating everything....

So, Winterfeis was interesting.  First off, it was the very first time our little &over Adult 4 hand competed. I whipped together the capes and belts for our team, and we did pretty well.  It started a bit rough, but we got our lines right and kept the smiles on our faces!

As for solo competition... we started the day off by getting to the feis 2 hours early. Mostly because I had misread the schedule. Ooops! Luckily, the outlets were only a few minutes down the road so we were all able to head over and spend a little time shopping. Once solos actually got started... it was a MAD DASH!  I barely made it on stage for Reels.  They started early... which is shocking since feisanna almost never run on time. Much less early. Also... they had us competing 3 at a time. Which is rough since we don't compete on the largest of stages and most of us are over 5'5... so it was a bit of a cluster. Grrr....

But... I did feel pretty good about my steps. Especially my hornpipe! I have been struggling with these lately... not because I don't dance them well... but I COULD NOT PLACE THEM OUT OF NOVICE.  But... my awesome buddy Julie (also a teacher and champ at our school) gave me the best advice ever. "Just dance it like you dance in class".  Um... ok. So I did.

And I placed my HPs! Woot! Out of 14 people... I kicked some butt. Which was awesome. The rest of the feis was good... now to work on placing things out of prizewinner!

Icy Branches = Icy weather

Ringing in 2013

It has only been the new year for a few days (14 to be exact)... and already I feel like so much has happened!!But, I shall start with posting pictures from New Years eve. Heather, Pontus, Mary Margaret, Jay and I all headed out on the town. We went out to dinner at the Crimson Canary.  Tasty Italian food! We then trekked down to the Punch Bowl Social to listen to music, have some drinks and ring in the new year.

H&P looking cute as always

Jay, MM and I

cheesing it up!

photo op with the big red chair

sipping on some adult punch

Happy New Year!

Ringing in 2013 with my handsome man

At the start of 2013

Its the beginning of a new year.  And now that last year has ended, there is a lot on my mind.  About work, family, friends, relationships and life.  Yea, life.
Work:  I mean, really, work is going great. I love my new job and consider myself incredibly lucky to have gotten the new job and the one I've been wanting and longing for.
Friends: I can count myself a lucky girl for having the friends I do in my life. I have one group of friends that I see every week at dance. I love them and I love the time I spend with them doing something I love.  I have another group of friends that I can count on to set my head straight when I am being irrational.  They are the girls I can share details with...and not worry about any judgment
Family: I am glad for family. Even with the drama that surrounds a portion of it... I am glad I have my mom and dad and brother. I wouldn't trade them for the world.  Its always good to know that no matter what, they love me and I love them.
Relationships:  This one is a sticky subject.  This year has forced me to ask a lot of questions. Some good, some not so good.  Jay and I have been to 3 weddings so far this year.  I have also had more than a handful of friends separate this year. It has not been an equal balance... and it makes me question relationships in general and mine more specifically. I mean, how does a relationship work? How can two people expect anything to last long-term when we live in a world of instant gratification and short-term commitments?  What will it take to keep a couple together? How can you trust the solidity of your own relationship when you witness those around you falling to pieces? Is it even possible to have a long term, long lasting relationship?  I would like to think so. But there are so many times... especially lately, that I feel like it would be so much easier if things were different. Different, like I wish relationships didn't feel like so much work sometimes.   For me, for Jay, for anyone who finds themselves in a relationship. Yes, I know relationships are hard work. They require a lot of effort by both people. But sometimes I don't want to put in the effort. Sometimes I want relationships to be easy. Sometimes I want to have more romance and passion and that Hollywood-esque spark than what I see. Not just in my relationship, but in everyone else's.

I wouldn't trade my relationship with Jay, with my wonderful friends or my quirky family for anything else. But...it doesn't mean that my relationships are perfect. They aren't. They never will be. But I guess, as the new year approaches... I can only hope that my relationships stay solid, grow stronger and never burn out.

New Job

This post is a long time coming...like a month or so. But I wanted to wait and see how everything panned out.  And guess what...

ITS AWESOME!!!!

Seriously.  It is a complete 180 degrees from what I was doing at the law firm.  I am getting the chance to see the other side of law. The grittier, more basic, from the beginning of the legal process - side.

I am still in the training process... so I learn something new every single day. Every day. It is similar work, but everyday brings a new case, new file, new defendant, new situation. And I love every second.  Even the simple act of filing (which I am sure will become boring) allows me to learn something. I can review files and see at what point the person is in the process.

One day at a time... this is the 4th week on the job. And I can't wait to see how it all turns out!!  I will start accumulating lots of crazy stories. Dad tells me that I should keep them written down and write a book... maybe someday :D

When in Texas...

Drive, drive, drive! :) A few weeks ago, Jay and I took a roadtrip down to see his Aunt and Uncle and my baby brother. It was well timed, right before Andy's birthday, and right before I left for my new job (a separate post for that later).

Jay and I left super early in the morning...we were able to see the sun rise against Pikes Peak.

 We definitely knew we were in Texas....

We stopped for a night to stay with Jay's Aunt and Uncle. A nice meal and a great visit were in perfect order. Next time we'll have to stay for longer!!

We got to the town Andy's living in the next day. We managed to hit the Fort Worth Zoo and try out an awesome little beer emporium and spend a lot of time with my bro, Andy, before having to head back to Colorado.

the boys get a close up of the white tiger

hello big kitty! 

Andy and goof around a bit

wouldn't be a stop in Texas without some.... beef jerky?

a GREAT beer place!

Jay and I

baby bro and I

sunrise leaving Texas

It was a short trip, but a great one! Its always nice to know that Jay and I can spend nearly 5 whole days in the car with each other and still love each other :D Until next time!!!

My new dress in action!

This past weekend was Fall Feis up in Loveland, Colorado.  It was also my first feis debuting my new dress!! I was crazy excited to wear it and feel like it added a little boost to my confidence while on stage dancing.
First, let me start by saying the I spent Saturday trying to come up with something for my hair.  Yes, for my hair. You see, the dress came with one of those giant headbands that get put into a wig. But... I don't ever wear a full wig for competition, so I needed to figure something else out. Thank goodness for Hobby Lobby! I was able to put something together that was fun, me, and fit with my dress.

 My mom and Jay took the obligatory photos of me posing in my new finery.  See the front (above) and the back (below). In both pictures you can see the blue and black feathers in my hair. :) I was quite proud of my creation!

 Jay tried to get a few pictures of me actually dancing, but the distance and the lighting made it difficult with my point and shoot camera.  I liked this one though, because my legs were crossed and my feet were turned out! Looking good... at least I think so :)

 The only other picture from this weekend was taken of my fellow dancer/classmate and I. Since our dresses are very similar in coloring.... we made sure not to stand next to each other on stage.

It was a pretty good day! New dress, good placings, good fun.  And, my old dress found new life with one of the other adult dancers who made Fall Feis her first &over feis. Congrats Kathleen!! She'll be borrowing my dress until she gets a solo of her own, but it looks good for now and I hope it brings Kathleen as much luck as it did for me!

Blurry, but thats my dress dancing on the left!

While I love, love, love my old dress, I am excited for my new one and hopefully with the way I dance in it.  Thanks a million, mom. :) Until next feis ... in January. I have a lot of work to do and hope my placings will show it!

Halloween Part 2

So... I promised that there would be a part 2 to our Halloween adventures. And there was!! For the second time, Jay and I participated in Courtnay and Rob's annual Haunted House. Rob is the master planner and comes up with a pretty  fantastic haunted house, in their FRONT YARD! Sounds silly, I know. But, I promise, its not. :) Last year Jay and I were in the "O.R". Meaning...Jay was the crazy doctor operating on me... and I was the still awake and alive patient! It was a lot of fun, see?

This year, I have more pictures, thanks to Miss Stace, who came out to hang out out, but didn't really participate in the scare factor. It was so much fun having her there!!

Stace wrote all about our adventures in her blog, but I wanted to share a couple of pics here.

 Jay and I were asked to be gravediggers this year.... ooooh! Stace got this shot of us before all the shenanigans started.

 See that coffin on the ground? Before long, I ended up inside of it. As people walked by I would pound on the inside and scream to be let out.... creepy!

This was my view from inside the coffin! It wasn't really that bad, as I was lying on the grass and had plenty of air. :)

 Jay looked extra creepy in the lights as it got darker... excuse the pictures, I could only get my phone in my pocket...hard to take too much stuff with you to the coffin. ;)

Every once in a while, Jay would open up the top of the coffin and check on me :) This is one of the shots I took looking up at him.

All in all it was another GREAT year of scares and fun.  Thanks to Court and Rob for putting it all together again... we can't wait until next year!

Exciting News!

Extra, Extra, read all about it. Exciting dance news!  

Now that I have you at the edge of your seat, let me show you a few pictures throughout the last 5 years of dance, and evolution of sorts....

 

 I started in our school costume. Simple skirt and vest and long sleeve shirt.

 We've danced in jeans and matching tshirts for some occasions.

 Our summer dresses provide cool relief for those incredibly hot shows. Normally I don't wear tights with it... but just ignore those for now ;)

I've gotten to join the Denver and District Pipe Band, and with it comes a new outfit!

 St. Patrick's Day shows come with a variety of dance outfits, some more traditional than others... while some are all about comfort.

 We even introduced a new show outfit, simple with some flash!

 I even got my first solo dress!! First with no bling, then added some sparkles and even tried it out with poodle socks (that look didn't last long).

But.... finally, after much looking, fretting, measuring, etc. I have a new look to add to my dance evolution.

 MY NEW SOLO DRESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Ignore the poor quality cellphone picture. Or the fact that I am not wearing tights, or hair, or make-up. I am just sooooo excited!!!! I will be wearing tights with this fab new dress. In one week, at Fall Feis, I will get to debut it. As an &over prizewinner, my mom and I felt that it was time to leave the older, traditional dress behind. I will still wear it for shows and such since I truly love the dress. But... new, updated dress? I think so!