November 30, 2009

A shot of the Shocker Maniacs in the student section. They are more fired up this year than usual and have been really fun to watch each game. The crowd here is definitely the "6th man" that makes a difference to this basketball team! Go Shox!

November 29, 2009

Don't be fooled! This is not a picture of nothing! This is proof that a monster catfish lives in my grandparents' pond! It was so nice again today that I took my BFF Mindy out to the Pondhouse for some exploring and hot-tubbing. When it was starting to get dark out we walked out onto the dock (same location as yesterday's photo). I glanced down and saw the most gigantic catfish I've ever seen in my life, and here is the picture I got of it. Mindy and I stared at it and couldn't believe what we were seeing. I ran inside to get a high-powered flashlight but when I came back Mindy said the fish had just kind of suck down below sight and swam toward the middle of the pond. I promise that he is there on the right/middle side of this picture, but I don't have the technology to make it any clearer. If you look closely you can see a beam of the dock on the bottom left side, so you know it's not just a blank picture. But I'm not sure I'll ever be able to prove what we saw.

November 28, 2009

This week has been absolutely gorgeous weather for Kansas, so we decided to take full advantage of it today. OG, Mitch, Ken, and Jason all went golfing while Jennifer, Amy, and I took the kids out to the Pondhouse for some outdoor fun. They had a blast feeding the fish, climbing trees, playing soccer, and collecting pine cones to make bird feeders. It was one of those really perfect days that come along so rarely anymore. It reminded me to be thankful for every blessing that I have in my life and to make time for days like this.

November 27, 2009

Today we went back over to Ken and Jen's to maximize our family time. Colin and Ashley came over in the evening to play a round of Wii bowling with us. It's pretty funny to watch grown men lose to kids...

November 26, 2009

This year for Thanksgiving my family all went down to Texas, but OG and I couldn't take off work, so we had the opportunity to committ our full attention to OG's family. It was a wonderful, relaxing way to spend our first major married holiday. Natalie and Mitch (and Oscar) got to come, so OG's mom had all 3 of her kids in town for the first time in quite a few years! She was a little excited!

This year we were also joined by our Candadian-Texan family! Amy, Jason, and Rachel came up from Midland to celebrate their first real "American Thanksgiving" . It was fun for all of us to be together. We wrote out what we are thankful for and we blew up a bottle of diet coke with some mentos.

November 25, 2009

This week has turned into a showcase for all of our little furry babies. Natalie and Mitch are in town for Thanksgiving and, of course, they couldn't leave Oscar behind! He loves being around the kids, but after a long day in the car, he was being a total Mama's Boy. He came screaming through the house until he found mom and was a little whiny mess acting like his paw was hurt. Five minutes later he was running around again, but we did have a chance to catch this pathetic display of "I know I'm cute so I'm going to milk it for all it's worth". Who can resist?

November 24, 2009

Over the Thanksgiving week we try to visit friends that we don't usually see. Tonight we went and saw Dr. Homeboy and got to meet this furry friend as well. Compared to our 3 monster cats at home, this little kitten was a sweet change.

November 23, 2009

Jackson loves animals...but they don't always love him. This picture is pretty typical. He gets so excited to pick them up, but they aren't always quite as enthused as he is. Here Nala is being a good sport, but I'm not sure how long that will last based on her expression...

November 22, 2009

This poor coyote lives in the field behind Ken and Jen's house. He usually runs around chasing rabbits and taunting the farmer's dog, but right now he has a serious flea infestation. He has been rolling around and scratching constantly for days.

November 21, 2009

The wait is over! I have been obsessing over the opening of New Moon for months, and today we finally saw it! It was so good! I love when a director actually sticks to the book! If you aren't on the Twilight bandwagon, you are missing out! And yes, I did make OG watch Twilight last night and take me to New Moon today!

November 20, 2009

Once again, the poor cats become the default entertainment. We love our little Miley cat because she takes whatever we dish out and loves us anyway. She's really more like a dog than a cat...

November 19, 2009

I LOVE Christmas! I realized that Thanksgiving isn't even here yet, but I just can't help myself! I found this cute decoration at TJ Maxx. Jingle Bells are one of my favorite sounds, so what could be better than a sign that says jingle bells and has jingle bells on it???

November 18, 2009

Our 3rd Shocker home game. Tonight we played Arkansas-Monticello. We let them score a few points, but it wasn't even a contest. These two girls were fun to watch as they got more excited about the game.

November 17, 2009

New Cat Bowling High Score! I'm convinced it's all luck and no talent with this game, but I am proud of my new score anyway!

November 16, 2009

At the game last night we picked up the new season poster. Today I gave it a place in my office at work so I can keep my schedule open for game day!

November 15, 2009

Here's our own Shocker version of Where's Waldo. Gobo was at the game with his brother Dean, and he was wearing a pretty vibrant black and gold knit sweater. He was pretty easy to spot even in the sea of Shocker fans at the Roundhouse! Can you find him?

November 14, 2009

For our wedding, OG's Uncle Harlow and Aunt Edith gave us 3 beautiful art prints that fit perfectly in our bathroom. This one is the Marigold, which is my favorite, and the other two are an olive tree and a lemon tree. They are one of my favorite gifts from the wedding.

November 13, 2009

Time for another Wichita favorite! OG and I have each gained about 10 pounds since the wedding, and we can safely say that 99% of that is due to this place: The Donut Whole. If you love donuts, do not miss this place! They have live music and are open 24 hours a day. Their best flavors? Maple Bacon, Blueberry Pancake, Rootbeer Float, and Fruity Pebble-covered Citrus Crunch!

November 12, 2009

Well, since we don't have kids, our default picture for an uneventful day ends up being one of the cats. At the end of most days, OG and I end up on the couch with at least one cat. Miley is always the first to jump in our laps as soon as we sit down.

November 11, 2009

7 months pregnant and growing! Taryn is so tiny that it hardly seems possible for her to get so big, but she still has 2 1/2 more months to go!

November 10, 2009

Sooo...I am not the most organized person on Earth, and moving is not a strength of mine. However, eventually I get things done! It's not even close to all of them, but I finally hung up some of my earrings after 4 months of marriage! My mom got me this as a decoration for my apartment and I decided it was a fun and different way to display and organize all of my earrings!

November 9, 2009

New season, new apparel! I bought these awesome slippers the night of the first Shocker game. They are super comfy and have grippy soles so I won't slip around. Now I can show my Shocker spirit and stay warm!

November 8, 2009

We celebrated Ken's birthday a couple of days early this year. I love catching that moment right when the candles are getting blown out. Obviously this was a group effort!

November 7, 2009

Shocker fans rejoice! It's a new season! The Shockers started us off with a win against Newman University. The opening video for home games is probably the coolest thing we have seen in a while: Iron Wu!

November 6, 2009

This is another Wichita favorite. OG can't get enough of the "glowsticks"! Any chance he gets, we make a detour to pass through the intersection at Central and Meridian so that we can see what color the lights will be that day. I love watching OG get excited every single time!

November 5, 2009

So I have already posted an ode to the Sugar Sisters once, but we just can't get enough! And it's not just the cupcakes! It's the 5 cheese mac 'n cheese, the fried KT Cristo sandwich, the sausage, feta, and scallion quiche, and the homemade bierocks too! If you haven't tried it yet, you are missing out!

November 4, 2009

Grammy and Papa's house + Trains = A Happy Gabriel! OG and I stopped by for a few minutes and got to play with Gabe and his trains. Brady was helping too.

November 3, 2009

After 2 extra months of waiting, my work finally updated my name in our system! I logged in this morning and there is was! Now it's officially official. Hopefully that's the last time I will have to say that.

November 2, 2009

Well, we don't have any kids yet, but OG is making sure that the lives we do have influence over are keeping their priorities straight. On game day, we are only allowed to use items that are appropriate to the team we are supporting. Even the cats have to follow the rules.

November 1, 2009

OG got me a Mary Engelbreit calendar for Christmas last year, and this month's picture is my favorite by far. I love mermaids.