nothing's sweeter than summertime...

I have been SOO bad about not taking pictures lately. and not taking pictures means nothing to put on my blog! But it's not completely my fault, my camera has been MIA for a few weeks (months?) now and I can't find it anywhere. I wrangled up a few pictures from my IPhone to make a post of what we've been up to so far this summer... but once I find my camera I'm getting back on the picture taking and blogger band wagon!

Today, my mission is to look through closets, old purses, boxes, drawers, and even maybe my car to find my camera... really hoping I do! I must find it ASAP since we leave for Cali in THREE weeks!!! I will definitely be taking pictures along the way since we are driving the whole 27 hours from Dallas to Sac town :) We have been looking at plane tickets for awhile now and really could find any direct flights or even 1-stoppers for less than about $1200 for two tickets. We talked about it and decided that either Justin couldn't make the trip at all, or we would just rent a car and drive! Justin loved the driving idea and since he does have some hook ups in the rental industry it made the idea even better. We're splitting the trip into two days, 14 hours the first day (to Flagstaff, AZ) and then 10-12 hours the next way all the way home to Orangevale! I wasn't exactly thrilled about making the long journey to the West coast again but once I talked to my Dad and Mom about it and we decided to bring the dogs along too I got EXCITED!!! We leave August 1st and will arrive back in Dallas on the 10th!-- if all goes as planned :)

Here are the few pictures that I got off of my IPhone!




J and I @ the Taggart/ Colopy wedding (in May)




Golfing for the first time with my girl, Kasey! We HAD to wear the "asian" visors to try and imitate the vast majority of our guests! Everyone got a kick out of it.



Justin and I trying out a new local cajun seafood restaurant-- Nate's! It was delicious and J got his fix of crawfish before the season ended!


a few pictures from my birthday: justin decorated the house with pictures that he had gotten from my mom and sister, Nichole from when I was little and others from all of our little adventures in the past couple of years, streamers, and a few bouquets of flowers and it was so sweet to wake up to! Later in the day, we had a pool party with some friends and went out to a local bar to top off the night! GREAT birthday! I guess now that it's July I should probably take down the rest of the decorations I have been putting off :)










Check out my new BEAUTIFUL pots and pans by Paula Deen! LOVE them! Thanks, babe!


FAT BOOTH: the funniest app ever invented! If you have a IPhone it is absolutely worth the .99 cents!



Love, Kate

Happy Birthday, Momma!

Today is my Mom's birthday! She is such a special woman and I think I speak for my sisters and I both when I say that we are extra lucky to have a Mom like her! Can't wait to see my family in 11 weeks! Here is one of my favorite pictures of my Momma and I...




P.S. Once my Mom's birthday hits, I always begin the countdown to mine. 1 month exactly until my 23rd birthday!

Kate

Here's what we've been up to lately...

Ruby & Rocky: They are loving eachother now! Playing really well together and they love chasing eachother around the apartment. When Rocky gets annoyed of her trying to bite his ears all the time he just jumps up on the couch and he knows she can't get up there... yet! Here are a few pictures of them... Ruby is growing so quickly :(





Studying: this means online tests, flashcards, lots of late nights studying and little sleep. Only TWO more weeks and I'm finished with this semester! I'm really looking forward to starting the Fall semester though as this will be the year I make all of my big decisions academically (which school to transfer to, my official major etc.) VERY excited about that!

Moving: We moved into a two bed/ two bath town home on April 17th! We needed a little more space (especially the two bathrooms part!) and this new place is just down the street from our old apartment-- still in Addison, which we love! We're completely unpacked now, just trying to organize everything and work out all of the kinks of living in a new place. We absolutely love it so far though-- love the wood floors, love the double bathrooms and LOVE my own garage! I'll post pictures soon!

Vacation: We traveled to Vegas with a few friends in early April and had a BLAST! We can't wait to start planning our next vaca for next year-- but for now we are getting very excited to go back home (to Cali) in August for the bi-annual visit.






Love to all--- happy almost summer {... and my birthday :D }


Katie

Meet Ruby

Our new bundle of love! Her and Rocky are finally starting to get comfortable with one another and we looooove having her here. She fits right in, and it's as if she's always been here. It's been a teeny bit stressful potty training a brand new pup, but she is very smart and is picking it up pretty well! She loves to eat a ton, chase after Rocky (although I think she's mostly chasing after his tail, not him) and gives lots of wet kisses!





I'll be taking her to the vet on Wednesday for her second round of shots and I can't wait to see what they say about her-- keeping our fingers crossed that she gets a good report from the doctor.

In other news, we are headed to Vegas with some friends April 1-5 and then once we get back were moving to a new, bigger and better (and much more spacious) apartment just two weeks after we get back! It's going to be a hectic April for us but I can't wait until May gets here-- school is out and I can finally breathe a little bit again! :)

it's a beautiful day in dallas

Snow is one of my very favorite things in this whole world. It is so beautiful and magical and makes everything feel fresh and new. I love how clean the air smells during and after snow falls and watching the little snow flakes fall from tke sky is so peaceful for me. I decided to give myself a "snow day" today. Some of the schools and businesses around here are closed (my school wasn't one of them) as we are expecting about 10 inches of snow today, but instead of running around like crazy, trying to be productive in the snow and ice and nervously driving around town I decided to just stay in my PJ's, take an online test for my Religion class that is due next week and just veg! Rocky and I have been out twice now since about 7:00 AM to play in the snow and take some pictures and just enjoy it-- it doesn't come very often in Dallas but when it does I am a VERY happy girl. It started snowing this morning around 4:00 AM and has not quit! The snow is coming down in bunches and I have all of the window shades up just enjoying it. Here are a few of the pictures I took this morning... all taken with my iPhone as it is the best camera I have right now :)

Enjoy!


Even the iPhone picture looks better with snow!






Rocky paws :)


Not my best picture, but hey it was only 7AM! (and yes, I was freezing!)


Where's Rocky [Waldo] ?



I'm off to bundle up and go take some more pictures-- the snow fall has probably doubled since these were taken!

Meat and Potatoes

Last week it was pretty chilly here and I was feeling like making a nice warm meal! I headed off to Whole Foods to do some organic grocery shopping (I just LOVE Whole Foods!) and also brought along my PW cookbook to grab the ingredients to make two of her delicious recipes-- meatloaf and twice- baked potatoes! Both recipes are pretty simple and by the end of the meal Justin was saying it was the best meatloaf he had ever eaten (and his Mom makes a mean meatloaf, so I know it was good!)! Here are a few pictures of the meal and also the link where you can find lots of other delicious recipes from Pioneer Woman.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/category/all-pw-recipes/



Mmm mmm good!


You can NEVER have enough cheese!


PW's Cookbook which I love! It has great recipes in it along with cute stories and gorgeous pictures taken on her ranch in Oklahoma.


(my apron says "Cowgirls Rule, Horses neigh, Cowboys obey" ha)

Lately

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about eating healthier and working out. I have been to the gym 6 or 7 times in the last 2 weeks which must be a record for me! It feels good to be doing cardio and lifting some weights again. Along with that I have been reading a few books on healthier eating and cooking and alternative ways of cooking. After watching a show on Oprah (she's always getting my mind rolling...) about the new documentary Food Inc. in which they show how technological chicken, turkey and beef has become in our country. It's crazy how engineered these animals have become and it just didn't sit well in my stomach (ha). It also talked a lot about "real food" vs. "fake food"-- fake being lots of additives, dehydrated foods, etc. etc. So, I ordered some books online and I have been soaking up a lot of information about this topic... I talked with Justin and we have decided that all meat that we buy from now on will be Organic, and for beef this means grass fed cows not corn fed= healthier more natural cows = healthier meat that we'll be eating. I think for the most part the American public just doesn't have a clue where their food really comes from-- If we all made an effort to eat only Organic meats and veggies, it might become the "norm" and be less expensive as well as healthier for all. I have found some great recipes and can't wait to try them and blog about it! :) A lot of the information I have been reading has been Vegan type stuff- not that I'm going Vegan- but they do offer a lot of different ideas for soy products etc. which I am interested in too. Here is a link to the Oprah show I saw last week, if you want to check it out...

http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/The-Truth-About-Food-with-Michael-Pollan

Here are a few of the books that I am reading or are waiting to come in the mail from Amazon :)






(Yes, this is Alicia Silverstone from Clueless! She looks good, huh?!)

Tahoe pics

Here are a couple of pictures I just retrieved off of my camera from Lake Tahoe. Isn't it gorgeous??... Justin and I ask each other daily why we ever left there...




Squaw Valley 2009

Lake Tahoe

2010

First question: Are people pronouncing it "twenty- ten" or just going with "oh- ten" for short? I haven't decided which one I like better yet, and honestly don't even think I have had to write or say 2010 so far... my life has been quite a bore lately.

Justin and I flew back to Dallas on December 28th-- We both had a BLAST in Sacramento and we're sad to come home. It was honestly the first time since I have lived in Dallas (over three years now) where I was genuinely not excited about coming home (to Dallas-- "home" has two meanings now a days)... other than the fact that I was missing my pup. I was just having such a fun and relaxing time with my family and since Justin was there too, it just didn't feel like there was much to come home to. Some of the many highlights were getting to spend some precious time with my niece, McKayla-- she is so much smarter and funnier every time I see her and I just love spending time with her. Jennie and Brian made an awesome Surf and Turf dinner a few days before Christmas and I had the best tempura-ish shrimp EVER! Thanks, Bri! A few days later we went back over to Jennie and Brians, just my Mom, and Justin and I and we all played Country Band-- like Rock Band but ALL country! It was a blllllast! ... I may need to post one of the videos-- too funny! Justin and I also got to take a short day to trip to Lake Tahoe the day after he landed. It was perfect weather and it was so fun being able to show him such a beautiful place! He was blown away by the gorgeous mountain ranges and all of the freshly fallen snow-- we just don't have anything like that here in Texas. Here are a few pictures from the trip--



Surf and Turf dinner at Jennie and Brians!



The Sabel- Harless girls-- and Brian at Sabel Family Christmas in Novato!



KB and KB! My niece, McKayla and I spending lots of time at Christmas together :)

(I'll try and upload some of the pictures of Justin and I in Tahoe tomorrow)

Anyway, when we came back to town I started training as a bartender at the Country Club that I have been working at since August. Since this is our slow time of year all of the bartenders and cart girls are cross training so that this summer we can trade off on positions. I think this is an awesome idea-- generally it means I might not get too burned out working 12 hour shifts outside in the blistering heat this summer... an awesome concept! I haven't been working much (literally I've worked 2 shifts in the last 2 weeks) because of the cold cold COLD weather. Tonight we are getting in some sort of "arctic freeze" that is going to put us in the teens overnight for the next couple of days! Not sure that I have ever had to deal with such low temperatures-- a new experience! ... one that I'll be enjoying from inside! :)

What are y'alls new years resolutions? I honestly don't really remember ever really making one and staying up with it but this year I think I might... I think my NY resolution is going to be start being a little bit more passive. I have realized that sometimes I can be a little overwhelming in my opinions and about what I think is right-- not saying being a push over is anything to brag about but I think I should just mellow out for a while and really try and relax and not be so aggressive... this having to do alot in my relationship with J, as well. He is allowed to have his opinions on things and just because I don't agree with them doesn't mean it's always right to stir the pot. Definitely something I can work on. My other resolution will be to (try) and stop worrying about other people so much. I refuse to put myself out in order to help someone that is not willing to help themselves. Even if that means absolutely cutting all possible ties with that person in hopes that it will help them to realize their own individual potential and maybe even do something to better themselves... on their own.

Wishing everyone a blissful year full of all of life's endless possibilities!


-KB

P.S. These are my new cowboy boots, courtesy of Santa (err... I mean, Justin). They are finally starting to mold to my feet but even if they didn't I would still wear them because they are just so darn cute!