I finally have news!!!!

Time to write again because I have lots of news!

We have a very busy couple of weeks coming up. This weekend we are moving to a new condo. I don’t have pictures yet because we don’t live there. But I promise to get some on in a couple of weeks. The place is on the other side of Georgetown and it’s on the beach. We are on the water now, but it’s mostly reef with one small patch of pretty rocky beach. The new place is all nice white sand. Because the place has been available for 8 months, we were able to talk them down (yes, you can negotiate your rent) to the same price we are currently paying. The new place is just fancier. I think any guests will be more comfortable.

Speaking of guests, Sarah and Sam are coming in 5 days! They arrive Monday afternoon and are staying for a week. Sam (bless his heart) booked a surprise trip for him and Sarah a couple months ago. He wasn’t aware that we already had a trip to Switzerland booked. So, we will only have a couple days with them before we leave. We’ll have to make the best of it! I am sure they will enjoy their stay. It worked out well that we are moving only a few days before they arrive because they won’t have to drive to get to the beach. Now my only challenge is getting our stuff unpacked before they arrive so they can find things when we are gone. I might be in trouble if they can’t find the beach towels and sunblock!

Next on the list is our trip to Switzerland! I know I wrote about it a couple months ago, but I will remind you in case you missed that blog. Travis’s band from back home, Cash Box Kings (http://www.cashboxkings.com/), got invited to play at the Lucerne Blues Festival (http://www.bluesfestival.ch/cms/). It is such a great opportunity for us! It’s a nonprofit festival that focuses on “increasing the awareness of blues music and giving blues musicians a platform where they focus completely on them.” What does this mean for us? Well, they pay for everything including flights, hotel (http://www.schweizerhof-luzern.ch/), meals, and a driver! And Travis gets paid to play! They treat the musicians like they are superstars. They have a couple other shows at local venues while we are there, but we will have plenty of free time to act like tourists. We are sooooooo excited! The band has played a lot of gigs over the past 6 years together, so I think they definitely have earned this trip! I might not be saying that if the wives and girlfriends didn’t get to go for free too! We are getting a new camera this weekend so look for lots of photos when we return.

We also have decided to spend Christmas in the Caymans. Jean, Jerry, and Trent are coming for two full weeks! Travis is trying to convince me to make a full turkey dinner, but I thought turkey legs on the grill at the beach would be more appropriate. I think in the back of his head, he thinks that if I make a full dinner, his mom will make him her awesome homemade pie. :) Either way, we are very excited to have them visit again. We really miss Trent! I am sure he’ll get his summer tan back in no time. We talked to him tonight and he dressed up in his new Iron Man outfit on Skype. It even has built in muscles. He looked so cute! Around Christmas both Travis and I have quite a few days off of work, so we should be able to spend lots of time with them. I hope they like the new place!

We are glad to hear Jace is doing well after his surgery. Take care all and don’t forget to check back in a few weeks for lots of photos!

In the past month.....

Well, I spent 3 weeks in Denver helping Sarah prep her new house to move in. We painted, painted, and then painted more. She is now living there, although she says she is not moved in because there are still lots of boxes to be put away. I also got to spend a lot of time with Harper while I was there. He is in the stage where he will repeat whatever you tell him to say. It’s great. I was a little easier on him than I was to Jackson at that age. I taught him, “Zip it, Lock it, Put it in your pocket!” and “What does an alligator say? Chomp, Chomp, Chomp!” Not quite as bad as teaching Jackson, “Who let the dogs out? Woof, Woof, Woof!” and “I am going ride that donkey, donkey” both with actions to go along with the songs. I think Katie was pleased overall.

Sarah, Katie, Mandy, Courtney, Lacey, and I also all went to see The John Butler Trio (featuring Lacey’s husband) and G-Love at Red Rocks. I have never been there before. What an amazing venue! We had a blast.

My parents came for a long weekend and we took Harper to the Denver Zoo.

I also went to the International Gem and Bead Show with Aunt Lori, Courtney, Sarah, and my mom. We all found too much!

All of my cute photos from Denver got erased on my camera except a few from the zoo. So, I won’t be many, if any, photos from Denver. L

A couple days after I returned from Denver, I started back to work at the same bank I was at earlier this year. I am working in the same department. It’s nice because I already know all of my coworkers and the basic ins and outs. My work isn’t any more challenging, but it should be getting better in the next couple of weeks.

Last week we had guests! Our friends Gayle and Cheryl came from Wisconsin. Unfortunately, they brought some rainy weather with them. They arrived on Sunday afternoon and got some sun the first few days. But Wednesday – Saturday we had completely cloudy and rainy days. It was a bummer because most of the activities to do here are outdoors(obviously). So they had 4 days inside watching the tube. Since Cheryl is a huge Brewers fan, they watched the playoffs most days. The sun did make an appearance long enough Sunday morning that they were able to both get sunburned before they flew out. Since we have never lived here this time of year, we didn’t know it was so rainy. So anyone planning on a trip down here, should not come in the end of September or beginning of October! J

Not much else going on. Travis’s work has slowed a little, so he may not be working 70 hour work weeks for awhile. He is very relieved!

He is going home to visit Trent next weekend. I am very jealous! We miss him so much! He says third grade is boring, but that is what he says every year about school. His favorite class is still gym. Imagine that for an active 8 year old boy.

Well back to work. I will try to add some photos tonight. We miss you all! Take care!