Couch to 5k

So, 5 weeks ago I tried something I never thought I would do! I joined a Couch to 5k running class? Why? I needed to get my butt off the couch! I never have been able to run, so I thought I would try and if I failed, no big deal. I wanted to tell no one! Tim agreed to take the class with me, even though he could run a 5k in his sleep. The contract for the class required that I tell 2 people for accountability. I told Kaitlyn and my friend and assistant Emily. With their support and encouragement I made it through the entire class. It was one of the toughest things I have done.
Tonight was the last class. I ran 3 miles, the most yet. I have my 5K race coming up next month. My cheerleaders and Tim are running with me. My goal is to keep up the training and run the entire 5k. With this post I just took it public. No quitting now!

Beauty and the Beast

Last night I got to spend an amazing evening with an amazing young lady! When Kaitlyn was little she LOVED Beauty and the Beast. She pretended she was Belle and she was adamant that she was going to marry Beast. The Broadway musical came to Seattle so she and I got the chance to go to the theater. We had dinner at PF Changs in Seattle and then walked down to the Paramount. The show was really good and I had the best company I could have asked for. She is the REAL BEAUTY!

SNOW-MAGEDON 2012 - Enough Already!!!

Christmas 2011

Our first Christmas in our new house. Since I had just unpacked a gazillion boxes, there was no way I was packing it all up again to decorate for Christmas. I did swipe a mini tree from my Mom on Christmas Eve and that's what we put our gifts under. Hey, don't judge! It worked! :)

I made a 19 pound turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, sweet potatoes and salad for dinner. My Mom came over along with Kaitlyn, Derek, Rose and her boyfriend Shea.

Kids all got their "wish" for Christmas with a Kindle for Rose, a laptop for Derek, and a Columbia Sportswear jacket for Kaitlyn.

Our New Home

These are the marketing photos, but now it has our furniture and belongings! It is truly starting to feel like home, especially now that Kaitlyn is home from college.

Holiday Lights on the Lake!



Our friends' boat that we were on as we participated in the Coulan Park lighting and boat parade.



 

Coulan Park all lit up for Christmas. Awesome!







Kris & Tim on the Emeral Star for Tim's Christmas Party






The Christmas Ship with the carolers!



Holidays 2011

May you find the wonder in the Season!

Happy Halloween 2011

 

What is Black & White......



My 2012 TSX!

We had a zoo theme at the office today! The zebra and the panda (my friend Sandy)!

My BRAND NEW 2012 TSX! Isn't she pretty? She needs a name! Any suggestions?
Turned in the 2009 for an updated version of the car - even the same color. I must really like it! This white is a brighter white than the last one, the navigation system is way better, and there is a hard drive that holds 3500 songs! Cool!

View from our Condo!

We had an incredible sunset over Elliott Bay this weekend. This is the view from our bedroom in our temporary condo in downtown Seattle. We are at the south end of the Pike Place Market. It is a small (about 700 sq ft) 1 bedroom condo. The location is ideal for me - a 4 block walk to work. We are planning to stay here while we are looking for our dream house!

We Sold Our House!

I LOVE my house...but I've HATED the 3 hour commute to work the last 2 1/2 years and Tim has HATED my complaining about my commute for the last 2 1/2 years.
The time has come for us to make a dramatic change in our life. We put our house on the market at the very end of July and it sold earlier this week.
Unfortunately, we have nowhere to move to. We have 27 days before we have to have this house, with 4 bedrooms and a 4 car garage that is packed to the gills, all packed up and moved out. At this point, we are looking for a house to purchase somewhere closer to the city, but that won't happen in time for us to move directly from our house in Puyallup to our new home. In the meantime, we are looking for a place to rent while we search for our next dream home. It's funny how that "dream" changes over time. Now that all the kids are grown and out of the house (mostly), we are thinking downsize and smaller mortgage. However, we're balancing that with wanting to live on the lake, which means WAY BIGGER mortgage. Hmmm...wonder how it will all play out......

My Baby is 19!

Today my little Princess turned 19 years old! Wow! How can she be getting older when I'm not getting any older? (Wishful thinking!)
Kaitlyn started out as this tiny little pink bundle of a precious baby girl and has turned in to a beautiful, amazing, young woman, whose outer beauty is only a slight fraction of her inner beauty!
I am so proud of you Princess and wish you the happiest year yet!
This is your last year being a teenager, so enjoy it!

European Cruise

 Kaitlyn and I just got back after 14 days in Europe! We spent 1 night in Barcelona, Spain, and then 12 nights on a cruise through the Mediterraean. We went to France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and back to Spain. It was AMAZING. A true blessing to spend this time with my daughter!

Valentine's Day 2011



Kaitlyn & Charlie

 They are so freaking cute....so cute in fact that you may want to actually throw up a bit!

I love you Katie Sue!

Seahawks vs. Bears - January 16, 2011 - Chicago

Soldier Field - Seahawks vs. Bears

 Because we are crazy - we flew to Chicago this past weekend to watch the Divisional Playoff game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Chicago Bears.
We proudly wore our Seahawks shirts, and although the Seahawks lost, and we took a bunch of crap from the 60,000 Bears fans, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that was WAY COOL.
Speaking of cool, it was downright COLD! It was 2 degrees when we left Tim's parents house Sunday morning and headed for the train into the city. Upon arrival at Soldier Field, it warmed up to 15 degrees. By kick-off it was 19 degrees and SNOWING!
In addition to a great football experience, we got to see Tim's parents and all 3 of his sisters and their beautiful kids! We even got to meet a niece and nephew we'd never seen in person before. Loved it!

Sears Tower - the view from the entrance to Soldier Field

My Diet Coke froze - it was so cold on Sunday!

The 12th Man flag made an appearance with more Seahawk fans braving Bear country!

Practice makes perfect - just not this past Sunday!

SNOW! It snowed from kick-off to half-time.

The view from the cheap seats - to the tune of $457!

Frozen Lake Michigan as seen over the end zone stands



Why can't I flip this photo? Sleep deprivation is my guess!



1/1/11 - Happy New Year