Catching Up On Fall 2012

Happy Thanskgiving, y'all!

Oh wait, it's Christmas now, isn't it? My how time flies.

Okay, so here's a quick recap of our fall, in picture form.  Because I realize I'm far behind, but should cover all of my bases.

First of all, Evan turned 32 25 in September. (I wasn't kidding, I'm that far behind.)

Evan's birthday saw!

Not necessarily a birthday present, but our new mower.

Handsome guy, even at 32.

All dressed up for Casino Night, benefitting MDA

In October, OU played Tech in Lubbock, so some of my lovely college girlfriends came in town. Trouble!

Aww.

We may be old older, but it's never a bad time for a little Delta Love.

Evan and I watched a lot of football, and yes -- that includes cheering for the Red Raiders. (Aside from OU/Tech weekend, of course.)

Oh, hey, Thanksgiving. You came up fast!  This year was our year to spend it in Denver with Evan's family. 

Cooking with the soon-to-be mother-in-law!

Christy gets the champagne poppin'

The spread!

Love my sister-in-law to-be.

Back in Lubbock, it was time to get ready for our first Christmas in our first home.

I'm not sure Bear was feeling this pose...

But get him in front of the tree, and he is READY FOR CHRISTMAS! (He probably thinks that present is for him.) (Sorry, bud.)

So with that brief and belated update, I hope all of you are enjoying this holiday season! It's a busy one, but always so much appreciated when you spend it with family and friends.

 And just because I love you all, I'm going to leave you with this.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Hot water, & other adventures in home ownership

Yes, I haven't posted in a long time. No, we haven't fallen off the face of the earth.  But YES -- we have had hot water for nearly two months!

I still get asked about our hot water problem, and it makes me laugh because I already forget the nightmare that we moved into.  That's a good thing!

Let me explain.  We moved in August 10th, and on August 11th we took our first showers. No hot water. We thought it was a gas company issue (forgetting to turn it on?) so we waited until Monday. Nope. So we called our inspector, who climbed up into our attic (seriously, builders. Who had the idea to put the heater in an attic? Stop it!) It was our pilot light -- out. So he got it back on, and we had hot water for... 6 days.

Same thing again, pilot light was out.  So we had someone who knows what they're doing (not us) come look. He messed around with other things, turned the pilot light on, we're good to go! For... another 4 days.

Long story short, the hot water got to where it wouldn't even last 24-hours. So 4 different professionals and a very unpleasant Julie later... our warranty company awarded us a brand new heater!

I'm pretty sure the heavens rejoiced and the angels cried, right at this particular moment. So happy I was able to document it on film.

So it took awhile, but we were finally enjoying our new home AND properly showering. I'm pretty sure my co-anchor was sick of hearing, "hey -- sorry... I wasn't able to shower again today."    I know, I'm such a joy to have around.

We are still slowly making this house our home. I've been busy thrifting and antiquing, and Evan has been making a name for himself as quite the handyman.

Building his shelves in the garage...

And ta-dah! Excellent work!

Evan also fixed a leaky gushing water faucet in our backyard. I didn't take a picture, but you know what those look like. It was a lovely surprise to come home to after we were both out of town one weekend.  But thanks to Mr. Fix It, it was done in an afternoon, and even better -- barely cost us anything!

We have many more projects planned, but it's all taking a bit of a backseat for wedding planning. That's right -- we're still doing that.  More on that to come!

The Move

If anyone's followed any portion of my life the last few years, you'll know I've moved a few times.  I haven't stayed in one place (city or apartment) for more than a year since graduating high school.  I am EXHAUSTED.

So, in honor of Evan and I both finally being adults and putting some roots down, I wanted to document our last (at least for awhile) move.

It's funny though, how attached you get to a place.  Especially a rented one, like the Tech Terrace house. I will miss it. It was the first home we shared together, and where we got engaged. 

Remember this? Aww.

It also had the best backyard, where we had many ridiculous get togethers.  So first things first -- we had to host one last party there.  This is the only picture I remembered to take, but I think it's a pretty fair assessment of how that one went.

The doctor, dancing in lights. Why not?

After we recovered from THAT, it was time to tackle packing.  Evan sure was quick to take my diploma off the wall. 

Look at that grin. What a jerk!

My favorite part of moving is always the cleansing part. It's like my OCD's own little holiday. And I was so proud of Evan, getting rid of so much! We're talking DOZENS of old DVD's, old clothes, books, kitchen stuff he'd had in storage for years, and......... his Nintendo pajama pants. 

To be fair, he bought these for a Halloween costume.  However, a man in his 30's should prooooobably let them go.  (I love you, honey!)

There were still several DVD's that couldn't be parted with after all that.  And here is where they landed on our first day of moving.

Sidewalk Sale! I'll give you a great deal.

I'm not ashamed to say that one of the first things we unpacked was the bar. Still classin' it up with the MD. 

Note: that was a gift from our boss. No joke.

When you move, you come across things that make you say, WHY? Below is evidence of that.

We may not have a cup of sugar, but we certainly have scissors.

We got everything in by Saturday afternoon.  Then it was the fun part! Finding a place for it all. While we did that, Bear kept watch on the 'hood.

What's that? You want to see pictures of the house? But of course! Here's a few. Please bear with me as we still have decorating and painting to do... and the fact that my iPhone doesn't have flash.

Living room, from the front door. 

Living room, looking from the kitchen.

Front guest room.

Kitchen!

Oh, and my diploma that Evan couldn't WAIT to take down?  I found a lovely new place for it. On the center wall of the master bedroom. There was already a nail there! How convenient!

 I crack myself up.

Julie

We Bought a House!

We might be absolutely crazy, but... we bought a house.  We're homeowners! That sounds crazy to say out loud... even now, a few weeks in.

We closed on Friday, August 10th after keeping it a (somewhat) secret for what felt like forever.  And you know what? As an avid HGTV viewer, I really feel cheated from this experience.

We put in an offer, on one house, and within 24 hours it was done. No Sandra telling us our expectations were too high, no guessing of which house we'll choose out of three, and certainly no living room makeover "thanks to our friends at HGTV." My expectations! So high! Just broken!

Here's how it went.

July 4th -- That house online is so cute. But we're not buying until May '13.

July 5th -- Let's just go to the bank and see how we're doing. Pre-approved.

July 6th -- Let's go look at that house for fun.

July 6th-8th -- Went to Possum Kingdom Lake. Talked about that house the whole time. And ate a few hot dogs.

July 9th -- Let's try it. Make an offer.

July 9th, 9:50 p.m. (10 minutes until airtime) -- we had bought a house.

We may or may not have signed off the air, rushed to Market Street, and popped a bottle in front of the new house in the car. Our neighbors... they just have no idea.

Our realtor sent us this picture the very next morning. Reality check!  What did we just do?!

So then it was time to get another sign up.

I hated putting that Rent sign back up. As tiny as that Tech Terrace house was, we loved it so much.  I teared up when it became real -- not only had we bought a house, we were leaving this place!

But, when thinking about how much more space we'd soon have, we couldn't stay sad for long. So on closing day, we were ready to get those keys!

Evan grappling with our realtor, Milad. Hand 'em over!

And now we have the keys... Evan is a little nervous.

Just give 'em to me! I'm pumped.

Alright, we're officially a team on this. The key to our first home!

As fast as this whole thing happened, we are slowly settling in and it feels so good. Our neighbors have been beyond welcoming, and our dog adores his new porch view. All is right.

We so look forward to having our friends and family over, and the guest room is ready to go for a sleepover!

Oh, hello. I live here!

Much love,
The happy homeowners.

And back to Lubbock I went...

A year ago today, I handed in my keys to my amazing apartment in Austin and gave Evan the keys to the U-Haul.   In a move most unexpected, I was heading back to Lubbock.

I acknowledge this day as an "anniversary" of sorts, because it was one of the toughest decisions I'd ever had to make.  My dream job was in Austin, my dream city, the place I'd planned on staying forever.  But in the end, Evan wasn't there.  So, after much debate and prayer and stress and cocktails to ease the pain -- I chose the man I love, over the city I love.

Cue eye-roll.

Let me just say, the move was less than fabulous.  I slammed my shin into the back of the U-Haul.  All I had left in the apartment was a frozen popsicle.

And a year later, I still have a hole in my leg from above injury. Yay!

But really, even though I had a great job to go to (better than the job I left!) it wasn't what our plans had been.  I remember agonizing over the thought, "what would my determined college self think of this?"  You know -- you're graduating, and you're calculating the years it will take to be the best in your business.  In my case, Diane Sawyer had about 6 years left in her.  

There's a quote I often see... "Sometimes on the way to a dream, you get lost and find a better one." I love that.  Because in just one year, we've lived so much.  For those who know the TV News business, you know it's a whole lot of work with very little pay.  Working every holiday, constantly researching what's going on in your community, and getting holiday "bonuses" of a grocery store gift card.  But we're on your favorite local cable channel! Oh, right. Too bad most starting reporters can't afford their own cable.

I digress.  I'm just happy that Evan and I made this decision together.  With this move, we were able to have the same work schedule, weekends off, and vacation time to play with and visit family. As crazy as it seemed at the time, I count my blessings every day -- even when I'm reading that Austin is once again topping the list of best cities to live/work/play. I mean, really!

So, I'm back in the market I started in.  Eh. But Lubbock has been good to us, and we're happy.  I think that deserves some recognition! And I may not be charging my way through newsrooms, but I'm happy showing up to the one in Lubbock every day.

Happy one year return to Lubbock anniversary, self!

You're welcome, Diane.

The Engagement Session

Lordy, I almost forgot I even had a blog.  I'm so sorry, dear readers... I have let you down.

But not today! I feel inspired! To write about what? I'm not sure.

Well, as many of you saw on Facebook, we recently took our engagement pictures.  Of course, since we're getting married in Austin, our photographer is in Austin. So in order to get these pictures taken, we needed to make a road trip.  And of course, the weather was not cooperating for said road trip.

We took it anyway.

First things first -- dinner and drinks with our hosts, Jordan & Michael.

What, we were thirsty! It's a long drive from Lubbock! And if you're ever in Austin, we definitely recommend Drink.Well.  Really, really good eats.

Now, for the main reason we were here. Engagement photos.  And the weather was still hinging on disaster.

We woke up Saturday morning to gray, overcast skies.  Now, keep in mind, one of the main reasons we chose our photographer was his ability to capture light and use it to create beautiful photographs.  So, uh... that wasn't going to happen.  BUT, no rain -- and no weekend in the near future to reschedule -- so we pressed our luck.

We met our photographer, Allen, just south of Lady Bird Lake to start. It was absurdly windy (we thought we LEFT Lubbock!) and dismal.  We took several pictures with the Austin skyline, and then things got mobile. We piled into Allen's van, and drove around until Allen felt inspired. Sounds odd, but so much fun.

Here are a few of my favorites:

That last one was during a (literally) 30-second break of clouds. Allen was so on it -- even got us to stop laughing when we just started shouting, "SHOOT, ALLEN! SHOOT!"

Quick outfit change in a hotel bathroom, and the adventure continued -- to a bar.  Photo shoot, plus happy hour? Let's do this more often!

So maybe it wasn't the dream engagement shoot that we imagined.  But we got plenty of photographs to cherish, and had a lot of fun doing it.

My advice? Trust your photographer.  Ours made a gray day look like we shot it on purpose.  Also, if it's windy -- don't wear a cardigan. Or a shirt with ruffles.  They just blow everywhere and look ridiculous in some of the pictures.  Fail on my part.

And bring your lipstick/blush in your back pocket! Mine wore off and I think I'm a little too "au natural" -- says the TV girl.  Blush and a teasing comb are two of my favorite things.

With the engagement session down, I guess it's time to get rolling on this whole "wedding session!" 9 months to go!

What's your experience with engagement photos? Any horror stories? Any things you'd do differently? Or was it everything you hoped and dreamed?

Shower the Mrs. Plunk-to-be with Presents.

My dear friend Cassandra is getting married May 26th, and the last weekend of April we got together and threw her one heck of a bridal shower.

I think I'm qualified to make that kind of statement, because a.) each of the bridesmaids lives in a different location, b.) we pulled it off via e-mail, and each taking on a different duty, c.) we had fun. I think the key here, was the fact that each of us had a talent. Thank goodness no one depended on me to make that thing pretty. Lord knows crafts are not my forte. (However, I CAN modge podge my way out of any predicament.) (It's a true gift, I know.)

I was in charge of the food, which we all know makes this size 2 healthy girl very happy.  Of course, I consulted Food Gawker like any good hostess should, and found some really awesome recipes.

Below is the spread, before I set out the quiche and artichoke dip. (You'll see their placement according to the labels... ha!)

I think the biggest successes were the artichoke dip, the blueberry loaf, and the Stuffed Baguettes. (And those were the three recipes requested after we ate, so I'll share them here!)

Here's the recipe for the DIP.  Note, I omitted the bacon and green onions. I thought it'd be too salty.  It was delicious.

My Lemon-Blueberry Loaf did not look like it does on this website. Mostly, because I'm an amateur. And I also think my blueberries weren't dry enough when I added them to the batter. So, keep that in mind. And don't judge my baking skills.

And the Stuffed Baguettes -- I think next time I'd add fewer sun-dried tomatoes. And make sure you get big baguettes! They're really hard to stuff if it's too narrow.  No fun at all. But really tasty.

Melissa was our punch girl. She made a really good Lemon-Blueberry mix that kept our purple theme going!

And yes, it "contained vodka." As all good punch should.

A little background, Cassandra and Melissa and I met in junior high.  Well, Melissa and I met in 4th grade when RISD carted us off one day a week to meet at Bowie for REACH -- but that's another story, another day.

THE POINT HERE IS, I really adore these girls.

The bridal party: Eileen (Cookie/favors duty), Kayli (Decorations), Bride Cassandra (Mimosa drinker), mastermind behind this extraordinary blog (food), and Melissa (drinks.)

Even each gift was purple. How convenient!

And just a cute shot of Cassandra opening presents.

Cute girl.

Eileen hand-crafted each cookie as party favors, and I'm so upset that I didn't get an up-close shot! They were so pretty.  Almost as pretty as these two.

After the shower we relaxed and did bridesmaid-y things... then laughed a lot around a couple of beers.

I don't think that weekend could've gone any better.

Wait -- no, I could've done without the lid of the cake blowing off in the parking lot after I picked it up from the bakery.  And I'm sure the drivers could've done without seeing me chasing after it in a dress and heels, in a panic.

I didn't drop the cake.

But I still could've done without that.

Otherwise, couldn't have gone better. :)