Grown Up Thanksgiving...

A few signs I've made it to a "grown up" Thanksgiving...

1. Purchasing the turkey when I was supposed to.  Meaning, not the day before.
2. Witty banter with a fellow Thanksgiving shopper over the turkey display.  And, scoring a great deal while donating a turkey to those who might not otherwise enjoy one...
3. Thawing out the turkey when I was supposed to.  No panicky reading of instructions on how dang slow a turkey thaws out.
4. Not everything came out of a box, or bag.  Points to me for homemade onion rolls, sweet potato pie, pecan pie, mashed potatoes and scalloped potatoes, and green bean casserole.
5. More points for using things right out of the garden - like onions, brussel sprouts, potatoes and rosemary!
6. Wine made it on to the menu - sparkling cider and egg nog, too - with nutmeg!  Dad would be so proud.
7. Timing dinner to coincide with the break between football games.  :) 
8. Contemplated buying a gravy boat.  But it still didn't happen.  What's so bad about serving gravy out of the glass measuring cup?  It has a pour spout!  Maybe next year...
9. Everyone fell asleep by 8pm.  Job well done.  However, that leads me to my last comment...

And finally, one big sign that Drew and I are still "new" to Denver...

1. Everyone fell asleep by 8pm.  And by everyone, I mean Drew, Loui and me.  We need to make some friends!!!  Goal for next Thanksgiving - serving more than two people and a dog.

Thankful...

In this season of thankfulness and giving, I think it's nice to challenge myself to express what I love in my life, and who helped make it so...  Since I'm all about lists, here we go:

1. This year number one is easy...a healthy Liam.  If you haven't been following my friend Dawn's story, check it out here.  This time last year Dawn and her husband received the awful news that their little one, Liam, had cancer.  I couldn't be there to help, but I could cry over the phone and tell her I was thinking about all three of them all the time.  This year they are lucky, and thankful enough, to be celebrating with family portraits. 
2.  My family - from the Swanson's and the Whalen's to the Killian's, Kolb's and the Krebs'...and beyond.  :)  And I'm thankful that we're all willing to sell a body part of which we have multiples to see each other at least once or twice a year.
3. Health - We're blessed, I'll just say that.  Aside from minor calamities that Drew is prone to having, we're all good. And we know where both Urgent Care and the local hospital are in Arvada - so we're prepared for the next round.
4. Loui - who new a fuzzball could be so darn loveable?  I think I'm in trouble - kids aren't that fuzzy.
5. Colorado.  I'm pretty sure Drew and I were born to be Colorado-ans.  Colorado-ites?  Perhaps if I was born to be here I should learn how to say it...  ;)
6. Employment - In a year in which I left one job, crafted another from a distance, became unemployed and then re-employed, I'm thankful to have landed something I really do enjoy.  Not everyone is so lucky.
7. Friends from afar.  Pretty much everyone is from "afar" right now, but I am thankful to have kept some semblance of a relationship (however horrid I am at calling) with NicWo, Kenny, Annie, Dawn and the like.  I'll try harder next year, too.  I promise.
8. Goals - big ones.  I'm a planner.  I'm thankful that I have the luxury of dreaming big, and actually making things happen.  Most of my daydream plans revolve around vacation (don't roll your eyes) because hey, anything's possible.  Checking out New Zealand books at the library?  Nothing wrong with that.  It's actually made it onto the real time calendar for us Swanson's!!!  And that far-fetched one about climbing Half Dome?  Check.  Done.
9. Marrying my best friend.  Cheeseball, I know.  We do incredible dorky things together, and no one seems to mind - particularly us. (Anyone remember the "No Power Wednesday's" story? That's what I'm talking about).
10. Pretzel bagels at Einstein's.  They're my new obsession.  What?  Something had to replace the green olive cream cheese I used to obsess over at Breugger's.  I'm perfectly normal.

So, what are you thankful for?

The Great Pumpkin...

No words, just some awesome-ness in the form of pumpkins.  Have you guys carved any great pumpkins lately?  I'm loving my spiderweb, and Drew's IOWA pumpkin.  Go Hawks!

A work in progress...

For the love of patio refinishing, I tell ya!  Man, this thing has really been a project.  We started back in June or July with this purchase of a patio set in need of much love.  Since then it's been my job to take apart, sand, glue, sand, fill and ultimately stain.  Every.  Single.  Piece.  Yep - Brandy shall be named sander, and Drew shall be named part-time "taker-aparter".  You know, for when I can no longer feel my hands. 

And now that I have a full time job (no, not as a sander - though I should consider it) this project has taken on a new deadline.   The original deal was to have the whole thing done by the end of summer.  And that didn't happen - a few too many days of sniffing stain repeatedly will do that to you.  And now the deadline is to have the table sanded (all the other pieces are done) by late fall and then if we have a nice day in early winter that's warm enough we'll stain it.  For now we're pretty proud of it - of course the finale is really the table top.  And it's the hardest piece, of course!  Wanna check out our progress?

Fall always does this to me...

Well, I see that I haven't posted since September!  Whew - sorry about that.  Fall just does that to me...I want to be outside, enjoying, hiking, leaf-crunching, pumpkin picking, etc.  Anything but indoors - which often means I'm bad about updating.  And lots has happened since early September - from an unexpected trip back to Iowa, an expected trip to Georgia, a job offer/acceptance/start date, and our 2nd wedding anniversary.  So yeah...busy.

In mid-September we heard that Drew's uncle John passed away unexpectedly.  Drew and I made the decision to drive back for the service, and I'm thankful we were able to.  The love, support, singing, playing and reminiscing was just what everyone seemed to need - and it was great to remember John in that way and support the family.  On the way back to Colorado we drove into the most amazing sunset over the mountains- and Drew and I just looked at each other and thought, "That's John..."

We got back on a Saturday evening and I turned around and headed out to Georgia on Sunday morning.  I had already accepted a side project consulting for my old university, Life University, on their new Student Advocacy Center.  It was great to see everyone - and I enjoyed seeing a lot of the things that I had helped plan on paper find their way into real life on campus.  Very invigorating, and perfect timing for me to get a full time offer with a university in Denver.  Of course, that sort of thing only happens when life is running in high gear...right?  So when I got the call, and it was a good one - I accepted.  Thankfully they gave me a week off between my Life gig and a new start date.  So yeah, I'm the newest student advisor with Lincoln College of New England (no joke - they have a distance campus in Denver) and I'm pretty stoked about it.  I'll update you as I stumble my way through my first two weeks...  ;)

Finally, Drew and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary over the weekend.  Well, today is the actual anniversary - but in true romantic fashion Drew had to be out of town for work this week.  So not his fault...  We went golfing over the weekend, had some amazing morning fires in the fireplace, made crazy dinners and ran our traditional 5K.  Relaxing, right?  Well, yeah - up until that last part.  We love our tradition of running a 5K for our anniversary (no matter how much we grumble the morning of...) so it was all good.  I scored a killer nap on the floor with Loui afterwards, (pretty sure Drew has pictures) too, so it was a great day.

And yeah, that's fall so far.  Dig it!  Here are a few pictures (and I forgot, we went pumpkin picking, too!).  Enjoy!

Happy birthday, Thomas!

Just a short note today, but we wanted to say happy first birthday to our man, Thomas!  We've watched him grow up from just a little bean last September to a walking and dancing fool this September.  Here's to many more - and we hope you enjoy all your presents!  Love, Uncle Drew and Aunt Brandy

Obviously I don't see these boys all that often, so I take full advantage of picture time when I do...  ;)

I've married a monster...

Yep, it's official.  Or rather, it was official on October 17th, 2009.  But since then it's become even more apparent that Drew is a Pillow Eating Squashing Monster.  He drags his favorites around from couch to chair, floor to futon, room to room, even house to truck with a wanton disregard for color combinations or textures.  He then proceeds to squash (cringe) or fold them into submission to fit the perfect spot - leaving craters of lumpiness in his wake.  Lumbar support, you say?  It's as if he thinks pillows were meant to be comfortable or something...  ;)

And since I now have a second pillow warrior in the house (Loui is learning from the master) I thought I better come up with a stealthy way to win the war, if not the pillow battle (err...pillow fight?).  Enter my trusty sidekick, the pillow form (with removable pillow cover, hurray!).  I had the idea that if I could appear to be living with this habit (can't change 'em, right!?) then we might just get away with a win-win-win.  Drew gets to manhandle his pillows and Loui gets to leave drool all over them, and I get to replace the form or just take a cover off to wash it when it just all gets to be too much - without having to buy a brand new pillow, which would be ridiculously expensive and frowned upon.

So, since most of my existing pillows don't have removable covers I went to the expert (with a sewing machine) - Mom.  While Drew and I were home for the Annual Killian Salmon Derby I asked my mom if we might run out and pick up some fabric and forms, and work on making pillows.  And while my mom has a tendency to get bombarded with sewing requests when kids are home (I'm notorious for leaving jeans at home that need some love) she seemed to be into this one since she's in the middle of a remodel and needed to make some pillows of her own.  By the end of the trip we'd bought forms and (Mom had - let's be honest) completed one of my pillows - I just needed to sew on the buttons when I found some I liked back in Denver.  Score!  This way I get to pick out my own designs/fabrics and have some good ol' Mom time.

Anyways...I think this little novella (sorry for the length - and about pillows, geesh!) has some Hollywood potential.  No?  You don't think so?  It's got all the right stuff - monsters and villians, a lovely pair of heroines, a stuffed sidekick, drama, romance, and wit.  Okay, maybe I'm stretching it a little lot.  Maybe I wanted to make a post about pillows interesting.  Maybe I've been reading too many Young House Love blog posts.  Maybe I'm a little melodramatic today.  "Today?", asks the Pillow Squashing Monster.

**So, tell me about it.  Do you live with a(n) (insert Household Item Abuse here) monster?  Do you have a fun pillow pattern you want to share?  Anyone else out there addicted to Young House Love?  Do you take on another persona entirely when you blog (like me - I'm not this funny in person)?**

Horseback riding...twenty years later

As a belated birthday present (for me) Drew and I finally went horseback riding this past weekend.  I was a little nervous since the only fond memories flashbacks I have of horseback riding come from an ill-fated overnight trip at Woodward camp (a gymnastics camp in Pennsylvania) when I was eight or nine.  All I can remember is that I made the mistake of putting my hair half up (tight and on top of my head, because that was cool back then) and then having to wear a riding helmet.  A few minutes into the ride my ponytail holder was drilling a hole into the top of my head under the helmet with every bumpy step - and I was too shy to say anything about it.  So I lived with it, for the whole day.  The fact that I remember that detail tells you something, right?  I can't remember the horse at all but I remember the ponytail debacle, and that has been enough to keep me from riding for oh, about twenty years or so.  Why I decided to do this for my birthday, you ask?  I'm not sure - I just bet that pretty fall colors and mountain views had something to do with it (damn pretty colors...they get me every time).

Well after that intro you probably think that we had a horrible time.  We didn't at all - it was pretty fun!  Sure I was nervous at first, and I didn't wear my cowgirl hat 'cause I thought like I might look like I was trying too hard, and anytime we got to a canter I thought I was going to fall out of my saddle (luckily that wasn't all that often) - but overall it was great!  We did a half day ride and we were the only people who booked that day, so we had the trip, and guide, all to ourselves.  I think that made a world of difference - Drew has a hard time when he feels like he's in a "class" since he has the "I can do anything, even the first time" mentality - and he's usually always right.

So we went out with our guide Leah, and after a little horse recall at about a mile or so (apparently we got out before the owner got there and he needed a few of the horses we were on) we ended up with Merle in the lead (begrudgingly), me on Intrepid in the middle, and Drew bringing up the rear on Jonesy.  All beautiful, even Merle who was a donkey/horse mix.  He looked like a Merle, and acted like one, too.  Merle was stubborn and ornery, and we didn't know it at the time but he just truly didn't want to lead the show.  He did much better when Leah finally gave up the lead and let us go ahead.  Merle seemed to fall right in line after that, as if that's what he wanted all along and it was us (ridiculous people) who just couldn't get it right.  Drew took the lead on Jonesy and all was right with the world.  My horse, Intrepid, just liked to be up close and personal with Jonesy's behind - and seemed content to stay there the whole trip no matter how much space I tried to create.

So yes we were sore the next day, but the experience, and the views were well worth it.  We had incredible views of Mt. Elbert and Mt. Massive, and even Turquoise Lake (complete with campsites - that's where we're considering taking the canoe one of these weekends).  I got over the whole ponytail debacle (no helmets this time, but I was prepared either way) and even had a fun time nuzzling with my man Intrepid afterwards before we left to drive back home.  I had the camera most of the time, so get ready for some pictures of the "behind the scenes" pictures.  Or maybe scenes of the "behinds".  Ha...