A Christmas in Pictures...

Dad and Stubbs. Life is good... and funny too!

JJ and his dad.

Dad got a new 3-in-1 printer.

A Christmas in Pictures...

I tried to be cleaver with my camera and had the setting on "Candlelight"... Of the four pictures I took of our tree, this one turned out the best; it is still fuzzy. :0(

Oh, happy Christmas morning!!! I was up early to get the food prepared; JJ got an early wake-up call by the puppies. He looks thrilled, huh?

Ginger-Mom and JJ fixing Christmas dinner.

Oh, and the puppies got gifts too! They each got a stocking filled with a large rawhide bone, wet dog food (what a treat!) and a Greenie for good oral health! Ha, ha!

Merry Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas, all!

Wishing you all the joys of this wonderful season, and only the best in the upcoming year!

Merry/Crazy Christmas Everyone...

Hello, hello!!! I am finally home and am FINALLY posting on my blog (many thanks to those who are loyal followers :0) I got home to Salt Lake City this past Monday and spent the week trying to get caught up... I think that I am almost there. I have had snowman slate orders to ship, earring charms to get sorted, and yet even more orders to ship. Does anyone else HATE the post office this time of year??? I try really hard to have a moment of meditation before I go in, but even still I find myself having to talk myself off the proverbial ledge of IAmAboutToSaySomenthingThatIsNotInTheChristmasSpirit!!! Needless to say, everyone is still alive, and all my packages have been shipped.

JJ and I are spending Christmas with his family this year, and we are all looking forward to that. Below are some of the pictures taken while decorating his parents' home for the celebration:

The ever-challenging setup of a real Christmas tree... JJ was a trooper.

JJ, bless his little heart, thought it would be nice to decorate his mom... also a trooper!

JJ and Stubbs, Ginger and Jerry's dog (the poor little guy was terrorized by our two labs, and was very much, yes you got it: a trooper)!

I know that this was a very short blog, and it has probably left most of you more frusterated than satisfied, but I could not let another day pass without posting, and here is the explanation for that: I found out today, much to my horrified dismay, that certain people (and I am not going to mention names, you know who you are!!!) actually keep track and then INFORM the blogger (that would be me!) how long it has been since they have posted! ACK! I couldn't believe it! So, Miss Stacey, this one is for you, Sister!!! Tee-Hee!

The Sweetest Girl...

Well, I was finally able to meet my niece, Maya. In the midst of my crazy show schedule, I had the opportunity to spend three wonderful days with Ty and Molly at their home in McMinnville, Oregon. Of course, I fell immediately in love with that little "puddle" (JJ has lovingly nicknamed Maya) and wanted to spend each and every waking minute with her. You have to remember that I have never been around a newborn, so all of this was a very new and emotional experience for me. Some pictures of our oh-too-short-time-together:

This is Maya with her cousin (1 month her senior), Bradley.

Life on the Road...

Hello! Long time, no blog, huh? I have to apologize for that, but I have not had much time as I have had a total of four days at home in a month. 'Tis the season. I left Salt Lake City on October 20th to set up for our show in Tacoma, Washington. The following weekend I was in Eugene, Oregon. Then I traveled to Colorado Springs, Colorado, and then this past weekend I was in Denver for one of our biggest shows of the season. Tomorrow I am off again; I will be in the Tri-Cities in Southeast Washington, then I will fly home only to turn right around and head back to Washington for Thanksgiving, thankfully with JJ traveling with me. Our last show of the year is in Puyallup, Washington, so JJ will fly back home and I will get into "costume" for the Victorian Country Christmas. (By the way, I laugh and say that we play the role of the "peasant population" among the nobility of the Victorian Era.) I love my job, and I love working with my family, but I also miss my husband and puppies, so I try to travel home as much as possible.

Below are a few pictures so that you can get an idea of what it is that we do, especially since we now have a little different show set-up with our new jewelry business. I promise to make a better effort at keeping in better touch, and to update my blog more frequently.

An overview of the Holiday Food and Gift Festival in Tacoma, Washington. From this angle, we cannot see our booth; it is directly below where I was standing when the took the picture.

"The Mom" at our booth in Tacoma. They are hard to see, but in the trays in front of my mom, all the earring charms are displayed.



Each and every time we set up at a new show, our booth is different, which is what makes the business challenging and fun for me. My dad is adjusting a light in our booth in Eugene, Oregon.

"Eclectic and Eccentric" would be the two words that I would use to describe our new friend, Jeanne. Her booth was right next to ours and she was a kick in the pants! I think her goal was to keep us laughing the entire weekend in Eugene. We would love to do more shows with her and I look forward to seeing her again soon.

Wigged Out...

I love the fall season, and I love Halloween, but with everything going on this year, I have to be honest and say that this is the extent of my Halloween costume... I bought a wig and freaked the kids out! It was truly priceless to watch their faces as they realized who was under the black and blue hair; I even fooled a couple of my adult friends. :0) Happy Haunting!

"Annual" Pumpkin Carving Party...

My heart was warmed about a month ago when several of my little buddies asked me when the "annual" pumpkin carving party was taking place. What makes this funny is that we have only had one other party of this nature, and that was last year. I am thinking that after several more years we can make it "annual". As you will see from the pictures below, it was a great success and everyone had a wonderful time!

Step 1: Pick your pumkin. Ashton, Elyssa, Stacey (their mom) and I went to the 90th Street Pumpkin Patch; I think we must have wheeled that 'barrow about a mile before we found the perfect carving specimens.

Step 2: Pick your stencil. My pictures don't do any of these carving justice, but let me tell you, some of them were so intricate and well carved that by the end of the evening, we had a difficult time picking the winners of the carving contest.

Step 3: Take the lid off. Tamea had never done this before, and she thought the pumpkin "guts" were "cool, but really, really slimy."

Step 4: Start the cutting! Most of the kids are a bit too young to do this part themselves, so the parents stepped in... They probably sawed, cut, scooped, carved and detailed for over two hours straight!

Step 5: Display your masterpiece! This is the very best part of the whole evening: when the finished product finally has a candle in it, the designs absolutely come to life. The kids and parents really outdid themselves this year!

Step 6: Have some fun, why dontcha???

On the March...

I was able to attend this year's Utah National Guard Governer's Day up at the University football stadium, and I have to say, the show was pretty impressive. Because JJ works for the Air National Guard, his commander-in-chief is the governer of the state of Utah, and each year, he does his "review of the troops". It was a sight to see and definitely made me feel 100% patriotic, and so proud to be part of a "military family".

Lining up before marching onto the football field (they had to stand in approx. 95 degree heat for over three hours - one and a half hours were at attention!)

I can tell which guy is JJ, but can you? :0)

I ran way high up in the stands to get this shot, and still was only able to capture about half of the field.

JJ and Jerry with Ginger and I - all of us so thankful to finally be in the shade! This was Jerry's last Governer's Day with the Guard; he will be fully retired in about six months.

Lean Not...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways follow Him and He will make your paths straight.

- Proverbs 3: 5-6

This is the Bible verse that has been running through my head for the past two days, and I feel compelled and prepared to share the reason why: today I gave my two week notice at my construction/office job. Yes!!! I really did it!!! I know that some of you probably find this baffling, especially my close friends and family, because I have not talked about it with anyone; but my mom and I just bought a business together, which will become officially "ours" in the middle of October.

Most of you know that we have been selling earring charm jewelry for the past couple of years; well, we are taking it a step further, and we are going to be the wholesalers now. It is a big step for both of us, having been mainly in the "retail" end of business for most of our lives, but I feel that we are up to the challenge, especially since we are buying a well-established company. I signed a lease yesterday on a little office space about a mile from our home here in Salt Lake City. In the meantime, JJ is looking for promising jobs in the Spokane area, as that is where we would like to be in a year or so. Until that point, I will operate the wholesale business from my office, and then travel with my mom and dad for retail shows and other business trips.

The most difficult part of this entire event has been having to tell my office that I will not be with them any longer. My announcement this morning was met with surprise, sadness, anger and well-wishes all rolled up in one 15 minute time frame. That was hard for me. I have been really happy at my current job - I enjoy each and every person that I work with, and the job has proved challenging and exciting, although at times (and more often than not lately) extremely boring. When I sat and weighed all my options, the words of a very dear friend of mine came back to me: "You can always settle for stability and security, Erin. There are many, many jobs available at all times that offer both. But how many times are you going to get an opportunity like this? Is it worth it to pass it up, when the chance may never come around again?"

I say: "Wise friend."

Lagoon...

Brock came down and visited us for the weekend, and what better way to have fun then spending a sunny Saturday at Lagoon?! We had a great time with him, and we have the pictures to prove it:

Playing "Whack a Mole" (which JJ won every time. Cheater!)

Brock on the Fire Dragon. Wheeeeeee!

Brock was one seat in front of us and took this picture.

JJ with "Frogger". He looks thrilled, huh?

Poopies on the Deck...

Yes, they went with us for Labor Day Weekend, and I have to say, they were both Angels! Can you tell? (Faith on the left, Jazz on right)

Labor Day Weekend...

JJ and I made a very quick trip up to the lake for Labor Day weekend... We both feel that our time there is never, ever long enough, especially with a 12 hour drive on either end of the trip, but we both agreed that our time could not have been better spent.

Some pictures from our fun-filled weekend:

The "boys" playing Sequence, one of our favorite lake games. From L to R: Uncle Bob, Uncle Matt, JJ, Cousin Oliver and Brock.

A great picture of Aunt Marty and Brock.

JJ in the infamous Shark Hat, generously given to my dad by my Auntie Gretchen. For those of you who don't know, my dad is terrified of sharks and loathes anything to do with them. Funny!

My dad and his boat. What more can I say???

My "Tikki"...

I post so many pictures of our puppies, that I am sure our cat (JJ calls him "Tikki"), Hobbes, is jealous. OK, maybe not, but since he acts like a dog - he came in the door last night dragging someone's [for sure not ours] dirty, smelly, icky, white, wife-beater tank top - he deserves his own post. :0)

Long Overdue...

JJ and I were married last July (on the 21st of 2007) on the banks of Deer Lake in Washington. I am just now getting around to sorting through photos... I honestly don't have a good excuse for myself. Anyway, here is just a snippit of our incredible day.

This last photo was taken at our dance reception. My mom, dad and uncles built this "tent" for us - it was the most perfect end to a most perfect day! (I am in the red dress :0)

So Cute...

OK, I admit: I think I might be a little bit obsessive about my new niece, Maya. I check my brother and sister-in-law's blog site at least two or three times a day looking for new posts, and then I steal their pictures! I don't think they know that I do this yet; I might have to confess to them. I just can't wait to meet that little sweet pea!

Tagged...

I was tagged by my friend, Christa, so here goes...

5 Things on my list to do today:

1. Survive the new accounting program at work.

2. Clean my house - my brother is coming tomorrow.

3. Help my husband organize our new book case.

4. Figure something out for dinner. Any ideas?

5. Play with my puppies.



5 Snacks I enjoy:

1. Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate.

2. Home-made rice krispie treats.

3. Apples.

4. Popcorn.

5. Anything that is really, really bad for me.



5 Things I would do if I was a sudden Billionaire:

1. Give a portion to a well-researched charity.

2. Buy JJ two '56 Chevys; one to fix up and tinker with, the other in mint condition.

3. Buy houses for everyone in our family.

4. Buy a cabin on Loon Lake.

5. Go on a trip with JJ around the world.



5 Bad Habits:

1. Picking my toenails - gross, huh?

2. Drinking soda pop, especially Coke or Dr. Pepper.

3. Talking on my cell phone in the car.

4. Not keeping my clothes neat and tidy in my bedroom.

5. Forgetting Birthdays.



5 Places I have lived:

1. Loon Lake, WA

2. Ellensburg, WA

3. Anchorage, AK

4. Puebla, Mexico

5. Unai, Brazil



5 jobs I have had:

1. Floor Supervisor, Tommy Hilfiger in Park City, UT.

2. Manager for my mom's company, Goose Lake Mercantile.

3. Flight Attendant, Alaska Airlines.

4. Grocery Store Clerk - I sold cigarettes, fishing/hunting licenses and lottery tickets. Whooppee!

5. Retail, retail and more retail.



5 things most people don't know about me:

1. I am a nerd at heart.

2. I had more than one boyfriend at the same time when I lived in Brazil. Agh! It's true!

3. I wish that I could go back and do things differently during my swimming career - namely eat better and train harder in order to reach my full potential.

4. I never did get nervous, not even one time, before my wedding.

5. I have never had any broken bones (surgery on my foot does not count).


I tag:
Molly and Ty (although they are so busy with Maya, that may be a long shot) and... umm... I am new to the whole blogging world and don't have many contacts yet! :0)

The Love of My Life...

Our wedding photographer took this shot in Spokane in the early spring... It is one of my favorites of the two of us.

This is another of my favorites, taken right after we got engaged in November of 2007.

I think I got this shot by holding the camera out in front of us. Pretty good, huh? (This is probably the most recent picture of us.)