observing 2007

january: i rang in the new year with friends gathering at our place. after an enjoyable night watching the ball drop, i spent the beginning of the year eating, drinking, and playing cards. gary and i celebrated our one year anniversary.

february: i started the month off spending a long weekend in colorado on the side of a mountain to celebrate andrea's big birthday! it was great fun (and i was just happier to make it down alive!). i can't wait to go back! i managed to make it through the rest of the gray chicago month with only a few bouts of S.A.D. getting to me.

march: gary, andrea, amanda, and i spent an enjoyable st. patrick's day together in an irish pub in downtown chicago. the snow and cold cut our festivities short, returning home soon after! the cold was gone soon and we thought that the winter might be turning to spring. we even got out bikes out for rides along the lake! to end the month, we celebrated with our dear friend jill for her bachelorette party.

april: during my spring break from school, gary and i went on a caribbean cruise. the weather was great, even if we did visit some of the same locations as our cruise the previous year.

may: i discovered that my teaching contract would not be renewed. even though i had been terribly upset about the direction the school was being taken under new leadership, i was distraught that my job could be taken away from me so suddenly. things got better as i celebrated my niece's first birthday. i was told that another niece or nephew was on the way, to be born at the end of the year! that was a shock! as the career search continued, i toiled with finding a new school, going back to school for my master's degree, but ultimately decided on pursuing a career in the airline industry.

june: i wrapped up my final school year as a teacher. it was sad to be packing my boxes, not knowing exactly what the future would hold. boxes were also being packed to move. gary and i moved to a new apartment (actually, the same apartment building i lived in with andrea when i first moved to chicago), just two floors below andrea and amanda. my great friends jill and nick were married in our college town. it was a beautiful wedding and i was glad that i was able to be a part of it. i had my first interview (of two) for a flight attendant position for my first choice in airline companies. gary and i left for london at the end of the month.

july: gary and i spent a great week in england. we started in london, visiting friends and seeing sites, and then made our way south to brighton. as always, we loved our visit and would move there tomorrow if possible! a week later, i broke my foot. i thought it might be a sprain, but after numerous x-rays, a fracture was spotted. thankfully, my friend jill was able to come out for a week and giving me a helping hand! this was the beginning of a long healing process. i found out that i had completed all interviews and background checks, and would be going to training as a flight attendant in the future! gary and i went to ohio to visit his family.

august: i tried my best to enjoy the rest of summer in chicago in a walking boot. i visited my friend teresa in charlotte to help her get her new classroom ready for her school year. gary and i took in some sites in chicago, visiting the museum of science and industry.

september: my mom, miranda, gretchen, her boyfriend aaron, and lilly came to visit us. a big surprise was in store for gretchen. aaron proposed to her while walking along the lake, with the city as their background. we also visited brookfield zoo.

october: gary, amanda, andrea, and i went on a caribbean cruise together. we had an amazing suite! we spent the week relaxing and getting a tan. gary and i went shopping and ended up with a new car! i finished out the month working at home. my dream as a house husband had really come true! i finally was taken out of my boot as my broken foot had healed completely. i was able to finally see gary at work, flying with him to denver to visit our friends jill and nick. jill and i spent an additional day having lunch and drinks with massages!

november: our nearby train station opened back up after being closed for a year. as a dork (with little to do), i made a special trip downtown just to use the new station! at thanksgiving, gary and i spent time with both of our families. we did the "midwest mambo" driving to cleveland, then to indiana, and then back to chicago. it was definitely tiring, but nice to see all our family. we decorated our place for christmas, something i look forward to each year!

december: i celebrated my birthday with my great friends. rachel came in from cincinnati and jill came in from denver. along with our friends in chicago, we had a great dinner and enjoyed drinks and laughter throughout the night. while gary went to london with andrea to see a band they like, my mom and i went to vegas for a little mom/son weekend. we had fun on our penny slots and even both came home with some money! for christmas, gary and i drove the "midwest mambo" again, visiting both ohio and indiana for the holiday. two days after christmas, anderson was born. our nephew is so cute already! i also got to spend some extra time with my niece lilly. it was fun being the favorite uncle (sorry gary!). we will spend new year's eve at home. although we would have loved to go to london, denver, or dallas, we will just stay on our couch, possibly playing games to ring in the new year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Bring on 2008!

thank you.

it's not about politics. it's about service, and sacrifice, and it's about gratitude.



the gratitude campaign.

winter fun!

Don't send a lame Holiday eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

praise the lord!

for those that enjoy primetime television like myself, it's been disappointing to tune into your favorite program only to find out it's in constant reruns. in addition to the holiday specials that invade regular programming during this time of year, the writers strike has prevented the typical holiday episodes on my favorite tv shows.

so nbc has been proactive and released some reality television to keep us going during this yuletide. not only did we have an entire week of 'deal or no deal', but it was followed up by the highly publicized 'clash of the choirs'. now, how could i not watch this?

the idea of this show is to have five singing stars - kelly rowland, michael bolton, blake shelton, nick lachey, and patti labelle - put together a choir of 20 singers from their hometowns of houston, new haven, oklahoma city, cincinnati, and philladelphia, respectively. singers auditioned and the first episode was reminiscent of 'american idol' with the horrible singers and the others with amazing talent. but, in addition, each choir performed one song.

nick lachey's group from cincinnati was good, singing a rendition of 'unwritten' by natash bedingfield. kelly and blake's choirs were also entertaining. michael bolton's choir was just plain awful, in my opinion. and then miss labelle's choir closed the show. now, with a diva like patti labelle, you KNOW that this choir was going to work it.

miss patti said she was going to work them to death. and that she did. the opening soloist started it up with her big voice. the rest of the choir provided nice harmonizing sounds in the background. that is until the Holy Spirit unleashed itself halfway through the song.

check it out for yourself!



i'm pretty sure i threw my hands in the air and screamed hallelujah!

happy christmas!

(just click on picture!)

enjoy!