Allow Me To Be Your Tour Guide (The Springs)

Colorado Springs, Co. 

Our home for the next few years...

Come and visit?

My Little Bro=The Next Youtube SENSATION

When did my 15 year old little brother actually grow up?  Right in front of my eyes apparently...I can't believe the videos that he and his buddies are creating.  They are funny, entertaining and even have subliminal jokes and references!

They are leaving this morning, so I'm off to send them off, while I'm doing that-you watch the video.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!  They're only just beginning, so I can only imagine where they are going to go from here!

My In-town Vacation!

Daddy and Marc have been here since Monday and it has been AMAZING! Not only is it great to see them, but I have been off since Sunday and we've been exploring all of The Springs!  We have gotten to do soooo many neat things that I haven't done yet and have had some major bonding!  So far we have been to:

Mr. Biggs

(Fun Center doesn't begin to cover it)

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

 (only zoo on a mountain)

Pikes Peak 

(or BUST!)

I can't wait to recap all of those adventures, but there are still more that lie ahead! They only have one day left, but we plan to make the most of it with:

Garden of the Gods

(crazy rock formations)

Manitou Springs

(cutest/most unique little town)

Old Colorado City

(food, shoppping, history and fun!)

Let's just hope we can squeeze it all in...It's gonna be a looong GREAT day!

Miss you all!

Ode To The Father Figures In My Life

Hope you are all enjoying a lovely Father's Day!!  I'm actually not, but I will be when my daddy comes tomorrow, and I will still be thinking about the Father figures in my life on their important day!  I try to make sure they all know how much they mean to me all the time, but today I hope they enjoy the accolade and respite that I hope is given to them.

Marcus Fowler is my daddy and I am definitely daddy's little girl.  He falls into the select group of  the most amazing people in the entire world and if you were to spend 5 short moments with him, you would see why.  He is truly a giving soul who NEVER thinks of himself before others, and has managed to provide for, and hold our family together through thick and thin.  He is the kind of dad, who when asked to go camping with the boys- asks if he can bring his children.  The kind of man who never lies, cheats or steals and more importantly the kind of man who doesn't allow you to leave a room without an "I love you" or go to bed with out a good night hug and kiss.  It is because of him that I have respect for myself and respect for others.  He embodies what a father should inspire in his children.  Thank goodness his calm, quiet manner offsets the sauciness that I got from my mother....

(I love being surrounded by these two VERY handsome men)

Christopher Haskell is the man that my mother was lucky enough to find after my father.  He has been in my life since I was a wee toddler and has also played a MAJOR roll in who I have become today.  He was there for me every time I was in need and taught me more about the world than I would have learned otherwise.  I'm pretty sure that I would not be any where near as well rounded if he had not been a part of my life.  He is EXTREMELY intelligent, very creative and talented and is ALWAYS the life of the party.  As a very loving and dedicated father, he made sure that my brother, sister and I knew that we were loved and that he would always protect us, no matter what.  He also took us on great camping and fishing trips and always got us the BEST fireworks ;)

Papa Buddy Olen came into my life a little later, but is just as important.  Despite the fact that I wrecked his 4-wheeler the first time our grandmother took us to meet him, he still learned to love me and honestly helped me make it through college.  The man should get a medal for signing up for the crazy side of our family, but that's how I know he MUST love us all...No matter what he has been put through (including but not limited too-dealing with all of us kids in our teens, family drama, stress from the family business and our grandmother's neediness) he has stuck by us all.  Honestly, he has become some what of a family buffer and the glue that holds us together...We owe him more than we could ever be able to fully thank him for!

Jim Bogert has been my father-in-law for the past year, but I knew as soon as I met him (and ate his yummy food) that he was going to be so much more than that...My husband and I lived with him for about nine months, while we were in Virginia and we all had sooo much fun!  We had family dinners, happy holidays, trips to Busch Gardens and made many other wonderful memories along the way.  By the way, he spoiled us ROTTEN with his cooking, and I will never forget the taste of his Mexican Lasagna.  Will and I joke that we want to bring him around the world and have him live with us, but that's not even a real joke, because we would LOVE to have him with us.  I also thank him for bringing my husband into this world and making him the man that he is today...I couldn't imagine my life without him, so thank you.

I would also like to honor my deceased grandfather's that made an impact on my life:

Grandpa Halle Fowler

Papa Fred Windridge

Gramps John Bedsole Sr.

They were honorable, strong, inspriring and loving so they must be appreciated in all their glory.

Just as I've told you that I had some amazing women who helped me to become who I am, I am blessed to have these men who are just as amazing and had just as much impact on my life.  I cannot put into words how much they mean to me and only hope they all never forget how much I love them and appreciate them.  All I can say is Thank You and Happy Father's Day, may your day be long and restful and full of good food and good family.  If I only I could be with each one of you on this day!

If you want a good movie for today, that'll give you a chuckle and show you a good story about a "father", then watch Despicable Me. You will NOT be disappointed!

P.S. T-Minus 1 DAY until Daddy and Marc are here!!

We're Havin' More House Guests!

First off, let me say that everything went well at the hospital.  Other than the fact that I had to go all by myself and get stuck with a lot of needles, it wasn't half bad.  I won't recommend the Glucose, they made me drink though:

It wasn't bad at first, but by the time my 5 minute time limit was ending I wasn't sure I was going to get it -and keep it- all down.  The nurse said that it is equivalent to 3 sodas. YIKES.

I felt totally fine the whole time, and then as soon as I got in my truck, the blood sugar drop hit me and boy was I loopy.  I wish that had happened in the hospital instead, but at least I always have snacks in the car!

Now onto the good stuff~

In Less than one week, my daddy and little brother are coming to visit! 

Yep, they're that awesome ;)

 Neither of them have ever been to Colorado, so they are very excited.  I am even more excited to have their company and show them around my new home.  I'm probaly going to spend the next week getting the house ready, planning all of our activities and planning our menu.  I know planning the menu sounds a little overboard, but I have to accomodate for two Southern boys, who don't eat like Will and I do, and more specifically- a growing boy 15 year-old who eats more than an elephant. Between that and the house, I'm going to be busy.... Unfortunately, my hubby has had a lot of time off and has strewn his toys, car parts and clothes about the house, so now I'm going to have to whip this place into shape!  I'm not too worried about it, but I am having pantry issues, since I don't have one and need to get a new shelving unit ASAP!  I've been searching and found some great deals at Goodwill in the process, but still pantry-less. 
Well, y'all have a happy Tuesday!!
xoxoxo

No Food=Grumpy Me

I wish I was eating this:

But instead- I'm going to bed before 9pm, to stop myself from eating anything (I can't even chew gum).  Why would I want to stop myfelf from eating, you ask?  Well, its doctor ordered. That's why.  I'm undergoing some minor tests tomorrow, and apparently I must be tortured prepared first, by fasting for 15 hours.  Just the THOUGHT of fasting has had me in a bad mood all day, and then on top of that- I have to spend 4 hours in the hospital BY MYSELF because my husband is going 4wheelin'.  He's gonna owe me BIG TIME for this.  Alright, well nighty-night.  I have to be up at 5:30, so it's off to slumberland for me!

Blogging 101

Did you know that BLOG is short for WEB-LOG?  I wondered where the term "blog" came from, so now we both know.  It was initially just a type of interenet journal where people could vent and voice their thoughts and opinions, but now it is that plus sooo much more.  I find that it is a way for all of us to share our lives with family and friends afar, find and share answers to common and not so common questions, share tips on health and nutrition and yes -VENTING still applies- all the while entertaining ourselves and our followers. 

Now, I'm not all cocky, thinking that my blog is so good that I must "teach" people to blog, but I was asked to help a dear friend of mine begin one and figured I might as well just dedicate a post to her and it.  I know I always find blogging posts from others helpful, so hopefully Amanda and at least one or two others will as well ;) 

If I'm going to dedicate this post to Amanda, I should tell you a bit about her, plus you'll appreciate her reasons for joining the blog world.  I met her in Augusta, Georgia where our husbands were both stationed for A.I.T (Advanced Individual Training).  They were such a cute couple and so sweet.  I only wish we had all had more time together before we all got our orders to be scattered across the world.  Amanda and Chris got orders for Texas, which would have been nice if Chris hadn't also found out that he was getting deployed right away.  Amanda is proud to have her husband fighting for our country, but as you can imagine- you can't help but be a little selfish and wish that your other half didn't have to leave you.  It's just not fair, I tell ya.  Amanda doesn't let her frustration show, though.  She has been very positive and strong and now wants to begin a blog to help keep her sanity throughout this deployment.  I feel ya girl.  I'm sure she will make fast Blogger friends, and it will help and inspire her as much as it has me.  So proud of her and touched that she came to me for help.  I shall do my best!

Here is the cute couple! Notice the "I love my soldier" shirt she's wearing:

Ok, so here we go...bare with me ;)

Starting a blog is simple enough, but it can seem daunting at first.  As a matter of fact, the first time I attempted blogging, I didn't even make it past the set up, believing that it was too complicated for little ol' me.  A few months later, the blogging bug started nibblin' at me again, and I decided to make another attempt, boy am I glad I did!  After sitting myself down full of enthusiasm and determination, I began following the Blogger prompts, and within the evening I had a simple skeleton of a blog, within a week I had added gadgets, edited my profile and had earned a couple of followers.  That was HUGE to me!

I would suggest, that before you even touch the computer, you need to decide your content or niche and then come up with your "domain name".  Your blog name has a lot more importance than you might assume, and unfortunately, I didn't learn that till recently.  Not only is it the opening to your blog that can scare away interest new followers, but it is also how people find you through web searches and how they know what to expect from your blog.  I really like mine, but I don't think many people google the keywords in my title lol.  Better luck next time for me, but you however, can learn from my mistakes.  Have a few options, so that when you are setting up your blog through your blog provider, you have choices in case some of them are already taken.

Next step is choosing what "blogging provider" to actually go with.  I was only familiar with Blogger, so that is the one that I chose, but many say Wordpress is the way to go.  If you want to make money off your blog or if you think you might end up getting really into it, then you might want to go ahead and make the commitment to Wordpress.  For those of you that are doing this for fun and want something simple and user friendly-stick with Blogger.  It won't do you wrong.

Once you commit to a site, you will find that that most of them are pre-made, user friendly, push-button publishing that don't require a Ph.D in computers, although some say Wordpress is too complicated, just to warn you.  Since I went with Blogger, I'll walk you through their setup!

1) Click on the "Create Your Blog Now" button on their page.

2) Create a Google Account as prompted, and then sign in to the account.

3) Name your blog.

4)  Choose one of their templates.  They have cute ones, so I would start out with one of theirs and then once you get used to Blogger and are ready to venture out and add more to the substance of your blog, you can visit sites such as The Cutest Blog on the Block and Shabby Blogs.  I found that this part wasn't hard, but it was a little more challenging, so no need to overwhelm yourself right off the bat.

5)  Get EXCITED cuz you are ALMOST done!

6)  Create your first post and bask in how good it feels to have accomplished your goal!

Phew...I think I made it through that safely....buuuuut I think I'm done for now and have bored you long enough ;)  If I can actually remember how to do some of the fun stuff- i.e. gadgets, fun templates, adding pages, etc., then I'll work on "Blogger 202" ...we shall see!

Recap Of Our Latest Happenings

Now that Spring has segwayed into Summer, Colorado is full of life!  Everything is green and luscious, the parks are filled with people, the festivals are endless and I don't see any snow in our near future! Although, that could change at any time... We have become hermits homebodies and those cold winter months only fascilitated that behavior.  Luckily, the summer bug is very contagious and it has gotten us to go out and about much more than usual.

We finally went and explored Pueblo, Co. (about 30 minutes south of us)

Their Riverwalk was LOVELY!

We were there for a festival called "Wild, Wild West Fest".  The day was gorgeous, it wasn't too packed and we even got to go antiquing!

A perfect lunch date after:

There has been lots of baking this month- including, but not limited to "Pizza Bread" and Chocolate-Marshmallow Blondies.

We FINALLY went to a nice dinner for our One Year Anniversary, only a month late...

(This was our first Bison Steak experience)

The next weekend we went to "Territory Days" in Old Colorado City, and even though I don't believe that it was as good as Pueblo's festival, Im glad we went.

Great way to celebrate Memorial Day, and it was awesome when people would thank all the boys for their service as we perused the festival.  Heartwarming.

Had a great group of people!

I had to buy that hat because I was getting burned!  We are at such a high elevation that the sun is brutal.

For some reason the boys had the most fun that day at Walmart buying pinatas.  Which, by the way, they plan on launching with rockets....

Another fantastical dinner was at the Craftwood Inn.  They had Elk, Antelope, Bison and deer, just to name a few.  It was super swanky and such a lovely evening!  Our friend Roger took us to thank Will for his service...so sweet!

How cute is this?

Oh and summer always= BBQing....LOTS of BBQing.

This was our dinner tonight- fresh sweet corn on the cobb and asparagus.  Tonight was VEGGIELISCIOUS! 

See why I have been a slacker?  At least I now have a lot of inspiration for new posts <3