Meet Lexi!

Lexi is a 6 week old Great Dane. She was born January 31 and already weighs 19 pounds. Drew and I picked her up yesterday from a family in Lexington (hint: how we came up with the name). She is the sweetest, most playful dog and newest member of our "relationship". Drew has always wanted a Great Dane. He loves the idea of a big dog that will grab people's attention on the street, but is also relatively lazy and not high energy. So after careful research and conversations with me and his family we chose this beauty. She is still growing into her paws. Right now, they are so big, she practically gallops across the floor when she tries to go fast. A lot of times she ends up sliding on the slick surface.Don't be fooled by the blue collar. The family gave us the extra collar, but she will have a girlie one on there soon. The blue does bring out her eyes though... She loves to be in the sun.I keep saying she is a mix between Drew and I. She sleeps like a rock - (doesn't even flinch when the train passes...including when she's awake), but she's always cold and loves a blanket on her.

Picture post

Here are a couple of pictures that I found on my computer that I wanted to share. This one is from last summer - out with some friends.This one is a little more recent.
Drew and JZ trying to be tough guys! The three of us went skiing together in West Virginia.
And of course, as promised, the bowling pictures from a few weeks ago.

365 Days and counting...

It amazes me that a year ago (yesterday) Drew and I went out to dinner for the first time -- just a casual dinner at O'Charlies and a viewing of Bedtime Stories at the cheap movie theatre nearby. I remember being so nervous and so uncertain, about the night, at the same time. Was it a date...or just two "friends" getting dinner. Mind you, we ran into each other that January at a holiday party - one of which neither one of us had any intention of going to - talked through Facebook and eventually a a couple phone calls while he was finishing up in Texas. Now, 365 days later, we are still getting dinner, seeing movies and enjoying each other's company. And, apparently, thinking alike. I decided I wanted to do something fun for the occasion so I created a handful of clues and laid them around his house in little Easter eggs. The clues led him to a gift hidden under his bed. However, before I could do all that he announced he had a surprise for me (not realizing what the day was either). He said it was a gift that I would keep at his house, and we could enjoy together. I closed my eyes and he put in front of me the Wii game Deer Drive. Now, let's be honest, the game was a gift for himself, but was something we could play together. However, the irony behind the surprise was that the gift I planned on hiding under his bed...you guessed it, the EXACT same Wii game. I couldn't believe it. I knew he wanted the game, but all he had to do was wait ONE day. I had purchased the gift days before and he had to spontaneously go out and buy it that day. We got a good laugh out of it.

Striking out

First off, Happy St. Patrick's day!

Bruegger's Bagels just dropped by the station and brought us some green bagels.

It sounds as though it is going to be a beautiful St. Patty's day too. It's suppose to get up to around 65. As of last night Drew and I had plans to play Frisbee golf after work. I'll let you know how that turns out. This will be my first time playing and I'm not in the mood to lose ;)

My only other excitement revolves around the weekend. After work Saturday I headed up to the Armory to take Drew lunch (a promise I made on Thursday) and stuck around to help his sister sell bake goods/drinks to the soldiers. I've really enjoyed spending time at the Armory getting to know the other soldiers. I think it will help when Drew goes overseas to know who he's talking about and feel comfortable knowing he's in good company. Before I knew it though, it was nearly 3:30 on Saturday and I was exhausted. I attempted to watch some basketball before heading upstairs to take a "nap". The "nap" that started around 4:30 or 5 lasted until 2:45am!!! Yes, that's right, I woke up at 2:45 confused, shocked and disappointed that I slept through my Saturday night. Fortunately, Sunday and Monday are my days off so I still had some "weekend" time.

Sunday Drew's sister and I saw 39 Steps (murder mystery, comedy play) downtown. It was extremely clever as there were only 4 actors in the entire show, but many, many more characters. I'm glad I saw it, but it's not something I would see again. That night, the three of us grabbed a wonderful dinner at PF Changs (yum!!), then Drew and I headed to the bowling alley (pictures to come). He was determined to beat me after I kicked his butt the last time. Unfortunately, he ruined my winning streak beating me all four games. I was not happy about it!

Congratulations!

Drew got promoted on Thursday. He is now a 1st Lieutenant. I actually stopped by the Armory on Thursday to help his sister with an event to raise money for when the soldiers get deployed. Unfortunately, I didn't realize he was getting promoted and left before the "ceremony". Luckily his sister was still there and was able to snap a picture with her phone.

Yes, for those of you who haven't met him, he's on the right ;) I promised I would bring him lunch tomorrow as a congratulations.

Mother nature brings sunshine

And it puts a smile on my face!

It has been the most beautiful last couple of days here. Temperatures reached the 70's yesterday and were in the mid 60's for the days prior. I am happy to say I even made it to the driving range on Monday to hit a few balls in my new golf shoes. But, I must admit, I'm not worthy enough to be wearing golf shoes. I whiffed quite a few balls. And, my new nickname is "killer" because I always try to swing as hard as I can to crush the ball. It's amazing how much further I hit it when I actually swing slow and soft. What a goofy game!

Drew had been out of town for the last two weeks for training. Not only did he get back earlier than I had expected, but he surprised me with these beautiful flowers! (He later surprised me again when he washed and vacuumed my car. I had fallen asleep after work and he snuck out and washed it for me after watching my his car. It's never looked so clean!)It was great being able to spend time with him over the weekend. (He has more training, in town, from Thursday into Sunday.) Last Saturday night turned into a game night with random card (I have a love-hate relationship with speed solitaire) and Wii games. I forgot how much fun Mario could be!

Where to start

Boy does time seem to fly. It's hard to believe March is right around the corner, although I am definitely looking forward to spring. Mother nature can't seem to decide if she wants it to stay cold or if warmer temperatures are on the way. I know I sure don't like it. I am fighting a cold and ear infection right now and it's definitely not comfortable. Still, the last couple of weeks have been full of fun and excitement.

Let's rewind to Valentine's weekend....

That Saturday (2.13) Drew and his sisters held a bake-off benefit for their mom. (Drew's sister's cookies are the ones above.) She passed away two years ago and they wanted to raise money to do something special for the cemetery where she is buried. They chose to make it a bake-off because she loved to bake goodies. Guests were asked to bring a dessert/dish and then vote on their favorite one. Yours truly won!!

Yes, that is right, I took my mom's advice and made a Hamburger brownie/cake. The funniest part about winning is that only one person actually had a bite. Everyone was too afraid to cut it because they didn't want to ruin it.

Overall, the night was a huge success. There were probably over 60 desserts to choose from.

And, I had the opportunity to meet a bunch of Drew's family and friends. The next day Drew treated me to dinner and a movie ("Valentine's Day", of course).

This past weekend I enjoyed a mini vacation in West Virginia. A group of us drove to Snow Shoe Mountain to go skiing. Boy, was it an adventure. On the way up, Drew got his car stuck in the snow so four of us spent the first part of the trip digging his car out. Later, we hit some really bad roads, still covered in snow. It made for a long and slow last couple of hours. But, we made it safely. We still weren't completely out of the clear though. The power went out across the entire mountain. Needless to say, everyone had a good time with plenty of stories. This was the first time I had been skiing since high school. I did surprisingly well though. Over the entire weekend I only fell twice on the slopes, and about 4 or 5 times getting off the ski lifts - those things are dangerous! I really wanted to try snowboarding but I was told that in the beginning you spend most of the time on your butt. I didn't want to waste my money being frustrated so I stuck with skiing. I'm hoping to get out at the slopes close by and try it before winter wraps up. I'll let you know how that works out.