Bachelors and Bachelorettes

A trip to Bean Town!

Early this spring Jon again got invited to the Internet Retailers Conference, an assembly of other businesses like G&L and many online marketing companies. Jon attended last year in Chicago as well, making excellent connections and learning a great deal. This year it happened to be held in Boston! After learning of this destination; I had to come!

Jon had never been to Boston, so we flew out a day early making sure to take in the Freedom Trail and other historical sites. During our visit we made sure to hit Sarah's Boston favorite - Mike's Pastries, for Jon's first Canoli and other indulgent treats! We also took in a Red Sox game and spent Jon's Birthday at a nice restaurant in the North End called Brico. It was delicious!


Jon spent his days in the conference with other "internet nerds" as I affectionately deem them and I spend time on Newbury street shopping! I was also lucky enough to warrant a visit from my Mom's dear friend (and my friend too!) Susan, who resides just outside of the city. Susan took me to the restaurant, Top of the Hub for lunch overlooking the city. Very similar to the Signature Room in Chicago, but better! It was wonderful to see her.


Even though this trip was short and mostly business oriented, we both left describing it as one of our best trips together yet!

Jon at the Cheers Bar!

Happy Birthday Jonny!

April Flowers Bring May Bridal Showers!

Jon's Dad's sisters - Mary Ellen and Sally, and Lisa's sister - Sally
threw me a fantastic bridal shower last weekend! The event was held at Sally's house just south of Des Moines. The women cooked up several goodies, fun drinks, and even glasses with "Sarah and Jon" imprinted on them! Our families traveled from all over the midwest to be there.

Some of the Guests viewing the gift opening bananza!

Jon Joined us at the end!

Break a Leg!

Or a Foot!

I knew my lifetime of no injuries had to end at some point...but I certainly wasn't planning on it happening 4 months before our wedding! I went to our new Farrell's location on Ashorth Wednesday night for Kickboxing class. The last 5 minutes of class was a series of high knees and situps. In one of the high knees sets I came down very, very wrong on my foot. Thinking it was probably just a simple "roll" I shrugged off my embarressment, finished the sit-ups and headed home. The pain got progressively worse and by 5 AM that next morning it was clear we needed to get the ER fast.

Jon wheeled me to the entrance desk in my little wheel chair where the check in ladies got a kick out us and our humor in the situation. Jon did a fantastic job of keeping me laughing...he knew if I wasn't laughing I would certainly be crying! Xrays and exams and two hours later, it was determined to be nothing life threating as Jon had hinted at (Sarah is having her foot amputated) and I would leave with a boot and crutches.

Working out will be inventive for the next few weeks, but I hope to get swimming and spinning as quickly as possible. Jon was such a trooper through the whole debacle! Up with me all night, carrying me around the house, calming my nerves! I'm sure this won't be our first medical emergency...but it's great to know that we can tackle em successfully!

Painting Party!

First on our house renovation list? Painting! The living room was a bit bold for our liking and did in no way compliment our mostly red/brown decor...so we opted to take on this challenge first. Sarah's Mom, Donna made the trip to Des Moines Friday morning to participate in the party and Jon's Mom, Lisa joined us on her Friday off. Jon spent the weekend in Iowa City with several of his Friends attending our friend Adam's bands show and Sarah was very excited about the opportunity to "nest" a bit while he was away! The crew decided to tackle the living room, dining room, piano room, and front hallway.

The living room and dining room were the real daunting tasks with their dark, outdated colors. We turned the once burgandy living area into a dark latte color that complimented their new rug and curtains. The living room was a struggle for Sarah - she painted several samples, presenting Donna with a spotted arrival. Donna being the decorating genious she is - said; Red. No question, Do it red. A dark, wonderfully dramatic red it is! The piano room and front hallway warranted Lisa's expert painting skills. She tore through the largest room the quickest with a lighter latte color to compliment the living room. Donna and Sarah second coated the rooms Saturday morning and spent the afternoon cleaning and decorating. Donna drove back to Iowa City Saturday evening and Sarah crashed on the couch exhausted! Who knew this could all be so exhausting!

At Jon's Sunday return, they topped off the weekend with re-hanging of the new blinds, curtains, and finishing assembling the new treadmill. The cooked their favorite meal of salmon and Sarah tried a new dessert - Oatmeal Pie, at Jon's request.

A sample of the finished product....Sour Apple Green Bathroom!

Happy Birthday Molly!

Jon's family has a wonderful tradition of gathering the extended and immediate together to celebrate everyone's individual birthday! Molly turned 28 at the end of March and we all gathered for our first family celebration in Bob and Lisa's new house. Drew found Lisa's new "crock" as his favorite play item of the night. Check out the fun photos of his amusement.

Movin' on Out

Would it surprise anyone that our fabulous state provided us with a rainy/snowy/windy/cold day to move our home? Of course not! Being the last weekend of March, flurries aren't out of the question - but we're definitly not a challenge we were excited about.

After the Thursday closing, it was game on! We started the packing trips late Thursday afternoon, spending most of the evening there - followed by a couple more Friday after work. Saturday morning Jon and his Dad, Bob began the excursion, rounding out the morning with the help of several of his friends. I entertained Jon's Mom, Aunt Sally, Molly, Jud, and Drewbear while the movers came and went. I was quickly falling in love with our huge house and its ability to entertain! It was very, very fun having the whole family there help!

We both took work off Monday to "enjoy" (work our butts off) the long weekend. Our list of activites includes but is not limited to; removing all current curtains, hanging new wood blinds in two rooms, speckling and patching the walls, hanging new lighting, organizing the kitchen, closets, unpacking, and putting the house together, buying a snazzy new red leather chair and console table for the living room,

We Bought our First House!

We are Officially Homeowners!

It's been a turbulent process of house shopping, offering, countering, and negotiating...but we've survived and close in less than two weeks! The house is a great location; close to Jon's Dad's clinic where we take Lola each day, a short walk or drive from Jordan Creek and West Glen, and close to many running and biking paths. We have plans to renovate the kitchen shortly after moving in to provide Jon with the dream kitchen he's always wanted, but here's a glimpse of the "before" photos(these were taken by the sellers). The house is truly wonderful and could very easily be lived in for many years "as is"...but we plan to re-decorate, remodel, and finish off several areas making it "ours"!


Jon and I are always anxious for new projects and exciting ventures to keep us busy...as if our year wasn't crazy enough - we've decided to add more and can't WAIT! More photos and stories to come!

A Rhodesian Photo Shoot

Our Rhodesian Ridgeback Lola has recently celebrated her first birthday! We acquired Lola from a breeder in South Dakota after weeks of research about her breed and purchasing options. We made the 8 hour trip to bring her home last April where we would meet the Amish family that raised she and her brothers and sisters. The father and daughter met us a local park and brought us our Lola ("Serene" at the time). The daughter explained that Lola was her favorite of the litter because of her calm, gentle, and loyal personality. It only took about a week before we realized those first two traits were no where to be found in our puppy!

Lola in her first year with us has caused us several pairs of shoes, scarves, pieces of furniture, and throw pillows - but most importantly she has brought us laughs, a running partner, cuddles, licks, hugs, and many, many stories to share!

We have found her to be one of our favorite subjects to take photos of. Whether it be capturing her chasing squires and sticks in the backyard or cuddling on the couch, her little face is sure to bring us a smile even in the worst of days. We've inquired with Lola's Breeder parents about their next litter. There isn't a new batch of ridgies in their future yet...but we're on the list for when that time comes!

A Double Diamond Vacation

Most of you know that both of us have a passion for all things skiing! It started out early for each of us as kids and has progressed into our favorite activity to do together. We've decided at least one trip a year is an annual requirement. Our trip last year to Breckenridge with Sarah's sister, Katie and boyfriend was going to be hard to top - but after pairing up for the '09 excursion with our great friends Brian and Kerry we knew we were in for a blast!

Wednesday after work the four of us loaded up the Honda Pilot; men navigating in the front, women with the DVD player and GPS in the back and we were off! We drove strait through to Denver where we arrived somewhere around 1 or 2 in the morning and crashed at the hotel in preparation for our last hour of the drive the next morning.

We reserved a condo at the base of the mountain and close to the village. We skied hard three days and were fortunate enough to have warm, sunny weather! The trip lacked fresh powder - but certainly no lack of adventure. We spent a few nights out dining and shopping and stumbled upon a new favorite restaurant in Breckenridge called Mother Loaded. The place is small, so arrive early - but in the event your apres ski goes long, it's well worth the wait!

The trip ended with a Sunday full of driving. We all had a wonderful time, but were glad to have our own beds to come home to, to rest our sore legs!

Did cupid get a shot at you?

Happy Valentine's Day!