Family, Christmas and Guns???

It's been over a month since my last post, so I should probably get better about updating! And I'm not going to lie, pretty much the main reason for this post is so I don't feel as guilty coming back from my trip to the Virgin Islands and immediately posting all my beach pics. Sorry if that makes you want to throw things at me.

Last week I headed back to Nebraska for Christmas. I always love spending time with my family, especially when I get to see my cousins and aunt and uncle, but this time - 6 days was too much! Sorry, dad. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy the time at home, there's just not much for me to do in Lincoln, Nebraska anymore for 6 days....lesson learned!

On Christmas Day, my dad, sister and I headed to my grandparents farm where we met the rest of his family for our newest Christmas tradition - Christmas at the cabin. My uncle built this great little cabin on the farm and it's so fun to spend time there each year! My aunt decided to pull out one of her Christmas presents and let the rest of us girls use it, a new gun. I've never shot a gun before so I was a little hesitant that it would hurt my ears, have too much kick to it, or who knows what! I quickly got over that.

Once I found the target that was within the scope on the gun, I was doing pretty good! I hit the targets (empty beer cans - of course!) quite a few times. I suggested next year we put photos of people who are annoying us on the cans, we might all get a little better shot!

Catching some dinner.

I've had so many random comments about me and that gun. Yes, many of you have said I look badass and I know you're saying that because now you're scared and you don't want to upset me. It's cool, I'll take it.

 The trip was a nice one, getting to see the whole family. And early Wednesday morning I headed back to Denver. By early, I mean 2am. My train was supposed to leave Lincoln at midnight but got delayed. And for whatever reason, I was unable to sleep much this time on the train so I rolled (literally) into town around 8:30 and went straight to work. Needless to say, I had to leave a bit early because I felt so crappy because I hadn't gotten any sleep! It could also have been the Christmas hangover....that feeling of you haven't been on a normal schedule, had healthy food in days and your body is hating you for it!

Nevertheless, I made it back in one piece and had a great time with the fam!


My niece all dressed up as Snow White!



Christmas at the cabin!



A Visit From the Bestie

The first weekend in November, my bestie, Bree, came into town to visit me! I always love when I get to see her because no matter how much time has passed, it's like no time has passed when we DO see each other.

Friday night she came into town kind of late so we just went to a local bar and had a couple drinks, catching up on life! Saturday, Bree, Heather and I drove out to Golden and did the Coors tour. I think it's a staple for anyone who comes to visit - free beer! The tour was so packed that after we finished, we had to go straight to the K-State watch party. It was a close game against Oklahoma State, I think I suffered my third heart attack of the year that day, but it was a great one to watch!

Sunday, the three of us had a late brunch together, and then Bree and I headed to Ikea so she could have her first visit. Had she driven out to Denver, we could have gotten ourselves into a lot of trouble loading her house and car up. Luckily, we were able to show some restraint.

I then took Bree back to the airport and said our goodbyes. I'm not sure when I'll get to see her again, but it was such a great weekend to spend with her, giggling about absolutely nothing and spending quality time together. I love my BFFFF!

Now, I'm looking forward to an extended break from work to finally get home and see my family for Thanksgiving. Holiday weight here I come!

The Last One Standing...

It's been pointed out to me recently, by someone who shall remain nameless, that I haven't been the best about updating my blog. Apparently every two months is unacceptable. So I'll work on it.....as I'm sure my followers are really concerned about what's happening in my life.



Bride and her maids!



The excitement of the past two months have been my two vacations. First to Las Vegas and second to Kansas City - both to celebrate the union of my college roomie Meredith and her now husband, Jake. I had three roommates in college and Meredith was the last to get married, not counting myself of course, but this one's not in any rush to get married, sorry folks.

The end of September, Meredith, Jake and 18 of their closest friends headed out to Las Vegas for a joint bachelor and bachelorette party weekend. We stayed at MGM Grand ready for a looooong weekend of entertainment. Friday night we all went out together and wandered up and down the strip. Saturday night, the girls split up and we headed to Fremont Street. Something about the nightlife and atmosphere of Vegas gives you tons of energy because both nights I was out until about 4:30 am, ran on four hours of sleep and went back at it the next day. Talk about exhaustion!



The beautiful bride and I.



I didn't spend too much time gambling because I'm not a huge fan, but since I was there I decided to put a couple bucks down on the K-State football game. They were playing Miami and I figured it wouldn't be the worst $5 I spent all weekend. Turns out I was right, because I ended up winning $18 off of that bet - thank you Cats!



Last weekend, I headed back to Kansas City for the big wedding day! It was an action-packed weekend catching up with so many people....friends from North Carolina made the trip in, all of the roomies were reunited, quick visit from my dad, got to enjoy Monday lunch with the financial goddesses one more time, met the newest addition to the Barstow family (welcome little Riley!), and got to spend quality time all weekend with Shane before he takes off for paradise.

My handsome date.

Congratulations Jake and Meredith Bolin!

I love getting to go back to Kansas City and seeing my friends, it always makes me miss them even more. Looking forward to my next trip back!

The worst part about moving.

....Nope. It's not the job search. Not even the process of changing your address (although, that's a close second). But it's the process of becoming an 'official' resident of that state - meaning getting your driver's license and re-registering the car. I think it's such a huge pain because of all the steps needed to change the registration. Change to Colorado car insurance, VIN verification, emissions test, etc.

I've been in Colorado for not quite a year, yes I'm aware that I should have done this awhile ago, but deal with it folks. I had to renew my Kansas plates the day before I moved to Colorado, so I made the executive decision I would just wait the year out to renew.

With my last comp day of the season, I headed to the DMV......not thinking that this was a Monday, therefore, the busiest day of the week to go. I got to the DMV a little later than expected, which meant I was at the back of a very long line. After three hours of waiting, they finally called my number and I made my way up to the counter. I had properly done research to figure out what was needed, so that I would be able to get in and out, but apparently the DMV website decided they didn't need to provide all of the information necessary. My Kansas driver's license had my middle initial on it, and in cases like that, Colorado requires proof of your full legal name, meaning they needed a birth certificate or passport. Unfortunately, I didn't have those in my possession at the time.

So I got back in my car, drove back to my apartment, found my passport (thank goodness I still had it) and went back to the DMV. Because I had used not the friendliest tone with the employee at the counter, he felt bad for me and said I could cut in front of everyone and head right back to him when I returned. After the painful waiting game (and some HUUUUUUGE apologies to the employee), I was able to get the driver's license paid for, picture taken, and paper temporary ID issued in less than ten minutes. If it takes such a short amount of time to do all of this - how on earth does it take them so long to move people through the line?

A couple weeks later, I completed the registration process and went to get my license plates for my car. This time around, I learned my lesson about the waiting game. The office opened at 8am so I headed over there at about 7:45. Sure enough, this was the way to go. I ended up getting 9th in line and was in and out of the office in under twenty minutes - score!

The issue this time around? I didn't have my car title. I once again, had done the research to figure out everything I needed, and I thought I had my car title.......I was wrong. Before you say anything, I do own my car outright, I no longer have a loan on it, so the title should be in my possession, not the banks. But I have on idea where it's at. Truth be told, I don't remember ever having it. Luckily, the woman still issued my plates, and said that once I get my title, they can change my car's registration for no cost.

So it only took a few weeks to get myself officially registered as a Colorado resident (and one trip back to the apartment because I had forgotten my 'temporary' ID, and therefore couldn't order a drink), but I can finally check that off my list. Now, if I ever think about moving again, besides making sure that my dad is in good health and can handle the stress of me moving, remind me of the pain it is to not find a new job, but to register my car.

Next on the list? What I can only assume will be another adventure trying to track down my car title. Kansas, I'll be calling soon.

Weekend in Estes!

 This weekend, I travelled up to Estes Park with my roommate, Katie, and two of our other friends, April and Tiffany. I had been up there one other time for a hike, but it was a short one and we turned and came back. This time we planned to spend the entire weekend!

Friday after work, Katie and I drove up to Estes and met up with Tiffany and April, who had left earlier that day and already gotten a hike in. We were staying at the KOA cabins and weren't sure what to expect. The cabins were the perfect size with just beds and a couple of outlets. We also had our own firepit, but opted to go to the community firepit to roast our hotdogs and smores. When the KOA employee got the fire started in under 60 seconds, we knew that was a wise decision. Plus, they had real roasters to use rather than the wire hangers I had thrown in the car originally. Bonus!

Saturday morning, we woke up early to get a good start on our hikes. We planned to hike the flattop mountain trail, and things started off pretty good. We soon realized we were in for more of an adventure than we had planned. The mountains had gotten a lot of good snow this past winter, so much so that a lot of it was still there.

The second half of the trail was majority covered in snow. There were a few points where we had to say a quick prayer and hold on to a strong tree branch to keep from falling down the mountain. Just kidding, dad. Nothing was quite that bad. But there were some scary moments. After a couple miles of hiking, and getting to a peak where we actually saw skiers, we decided to head back down and try a different trail.

We then started the trail by the Glacier Gorge. I'll preface by saying I haven't gone on that many hikes in my life, but this was absolutely stunning. These pictures can't even show how beautiful it really was. About halfway up the trail, we stopped at Alberta Falls. The wind blowing the water onto us a bit felt great and I could have sat there all day staring at it.

As we got near the top, our legs really started to wear on us. At this point we had hiked about 8 miles for the day. However, the last .8 miles had a high elevation so it was quite the struggle to reach the top, but when we reached the Loch, it was worth every bit of it.

That night we had dinner in Estes Park and went to the bars there. We also found a very disturbing shop that we seriously considered burning down:

The weekend was an amazing one and I'm glad we all got to go. It's pretty awesome to think that we can make a quick one-hour trip up to Rocky Mountain National Park when most people plan that as their summer vacation. If you've never been - I strongly encourage you put it on your to-do list!!

Let the chaos begin.....

Well, I'm well into Relay For Life event season and to call it a busy season would be an understatement. For those of you who don't know what Relay For Life is, here's a quick synopsis:

Relay is an overnight event (yes, I said overnight) for the American Cancer Society that celebrates cancer survivors, remembers loved ones we've lost, and fights back against cancer. I got involved almost nine years ago when my mother passed away, and it's been in my blood ever since. The idea of Relay is to recruit teams, approximately 8-15 people of friends and family, raise money through fundraisers or good ole-fashioned letter writing, and then come out the actual Relay event to celebrate all of your hard work! And by hard work, I really mean it. Relay was started in 1985 and has since become the world's (yes WORLD) largest fundraiser raising over $4 billion to date. The incredible thing about this event is that it is completely volunteer-driven. The volunteers do have the support of ACS staff (which is my current position) but each event is unique to their community because it is put on by those volunteers, not by staff.

The reason Relay is overnight is because 'cancer doesn't sleep, so for one night, neither will we'. One of my favorite stories is the comparison to the nightfall and the cancer journey. As the team members are walking in the 3 or 4am hours, their bodies are getting tired and they don't want to go on, just as a cancer patient feels in the middle of their treatments. Then, the sun rises and everyone knows the end of the event is nearing, just as the cancer patient's treatment is ending and they are coming through on the other end.

At the event, each team camps out around the track and tries to have one representative from their team on the track at all times. The first lap of the night is just for cancer survivors. It's a very inspiring time when everyone else spreads out around the track, cheering on their family and friends who are survivors, and giving hope to others.

After the sun sets, there's a luminaria ceremony. During this, all of the lights get turned out and their are luminarias that are lining the track (which people have purchased throughout the night) to honor loved ones and in memory of those lost. This is probably everyone's favorite part of the night and can be very emotional.

Through my years of Relay, I've definitely met some amazing people who have such awesome stories of inspiration. Especially now, being on the staff side of ACS, I feel so incredibly lucky to meet such great volunteers who are as committed to the fight against cancer as I know I am. Knowing that so many people want to bring an end to this disease and seeing so many people putting aside their difference for one night, is something you can't explain. If you've never been to a Relay For Life before, you definitely need to do it. I'm not saying you need to get a team together you're first time out. Just search for the event in your community and spend an hour or two out there (don't forget to take some cash for the awesome fundraisers they'll be doing!) and you'll be hooked. Guaranteed.

A New Home

When I moved out to Denver, I was lucky enough to find a great family that opened up their home to me. After seven months, the time to move out came. Last weekend, I packed up my things (well, technically it was all packed up about 7 months ago) and headed up north. Downtown Denver to be exact.

When I moved out here, I only knew a handful of people, one of them being my friend Julie from K-State. A couple months before I moved out to Denver, Julie's best friend, Katie, also picked up and moved to Denver. Long story short, Katie's lease ended in April, and I decided it was time to move out. With all of my events for work being near downtown, or north of it, it made sense.

We've quickly settled in and made the new place our home. Coming from an 1,100 square foot house all to myself, to a 900-ish square foot place to share....I've rejuvenated my organizational skills. I've definitely paired down on things I don't need - but some stuff it's just hard to part with. If I know I'm going to need/want it again at some point - why get rid of it now? Simple living, though. It's pretty nice.

And, although we're only a week in, I'm enjoying living in non-suburbia for the first time. Our more frequent hangout is two blocks away, and the heart of downtown is less than a $10 cab ride away.....something I could get used to. :)

Needless to say, it's been a great move so far. Pictures to be posted soon. :)

Oh Yeah, I Have A Blog

Well it's been about seven weeks so I'd say it's time for a blog update!!

Since I've been so horrible about updating, I can't promise this will be too exciting, except with a rundown of all the fun things I forgot to update on over the past two months.

Since I last wrote, things have picked up quite a bit with the new job - and I am loving every minute of it! Working not the normal 9-5 can be exhausting, but to get the opportunity to work with such awesome volunteers is so rewarding. Plus, if I weren't working I'd just be doing it on my own time anyway! Essentially, my job consists of managing four Relay For Life events (the events of Westminster and Arvada, Broomfield, Golden and Lakewood, and NE Denver), and assisting with our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk. My job is to manage the volunteers, guide them in putting together their event, and build relationships in the community as I do it. I get to help these communities in the Denver area fight back against cancer in their neighborhoods......and it's something I love waking up for each morning!

In other news, I am officially moving!! After almost eight months out here (I can't believe it!!) I have found an apartment in downtown Denver and will be moving in Easter weekend! I'm so excited to finally get a place I can call home, but more importantly - have all of my stuff back! It's been buried away in Nebraska and it will be like Christmas all over when the big move finally comes! I'll post pictures after the move....assuming I remember to update this again! :)

The rest of the seven weeks have been spent, working (I got to spend a few days in Seattle for training), trying to work on more snowboarding skills (I believe I finally figured out how to turn...just in time for the season to end!) and getting ready for spring to come! I'm not much of a winter girl anymore (yes, I'm aware I moved to Colorado where it snows a lot. They also have 300 days of sunshine, however.) so I'm looking forward to the days of hiking, patio drinks, and weekends at the park!

Like I said, not much of an entertaining blog - but something is better than nothing! I'll do my best to update more, as I'm sure when spring comes there will be much better stories to share!

In the meantime, since I know have a place to stay - start booking trips and come out to visit!!

Change of City - Why Not Change of Career?

Almost 9 years ago, my world was turned upside down when my mother died. I think about it her every day and miss her incredibly. But I am a firm believer in the saying, 'everything happens for a reason'. Since she died, I have been a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, specifically Relay For Life. I've met a lot of amazing people through my years of volunteering, and really feel like I'm making a difference in the lives of a lot of people, no matter how small my contributions might be.

Never did I think it would become my career. You always hear people saying "find what you love to do then find a way to get paid to do it". While enjoying unemployment (and some days, not so much enjoying it), I found a position with the American Cancer Society doing, that's right, Relay For Life. I immediately applied and a month later was lucky enough to get offered the position. I was on cloud 9.

On Valentine's Day, I started a position as a Community Relationship Manager with ACS. I will be managing 4 events in the Denver area, and assisting with the local Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event.

I'm so incredibly excited for this opportunity, but still kind of shocked that I left the financial planning world. I guess this is the year for me to do that. A lot of people feel like I just up and moved to Denver, the same way it seems like I just up and changed careers. Your life has gotta have some adventure folks. And with a little prayer (ok, let's face it, a lot of prayer) everything will work itself out. God has a plan for you and we all just need to trust in that. As tough as some times have been, I know that God has a master plan in motion for me. And after accepting this position with ACS, I know my choice to move to Denver was the right one. There's no other company I'd leave the finance world for, and no way I'm leaving this opportunity.

Like I said: everything happens for a reason.

What Makes You Happy?

Different things make different people happy. Maybe it's your family, your kids, friends, a job, or a hobby - reading, running, the list goes on. But what is it that makes you happy?

I have so many things in my life to be grateful for, that it doesn't take much to make me happy. Lately, though, it's been a bit more difficult. Not that I haven't been happy, believe me, I have. Colorado has brought a good change to me and given me a chance to do so much! But what's been hard is knowing that there are still so many unknowns, but also, realizing how many of my friends are not happy for me - or more importantly - not supporting me.

Most of you would probably say: "who cares what other people think? Do what makes you happy!" But when I try so hard to support the others around me and be happy for them, it's frustrating that they can't do the same for me. Your friends are supposed to be the people who will tell you what they think, how they feel, but at the end of the day support your decision and be happy for you whether they agree or not. I hope one day, everyone will realize why this was the best decision for me. Will I stay in Denver for life? Who knows! Anything could happen and I'm not going to say never, but why not take advantage of this time and try something new???

I found a quote recently: 

"The greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion. The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being."

So for those of you who don't understand why I made this move - don't worry about it. It's tough making a big change like building a new life in a new city, but what makes it easier is having your friends to support you! It's not yours to worry about - all I ask is that you be my friend, be happy for me and support me. And also - come out to visit once in awhile! :)