When in Doubt, Add More GLITTER!

Everyday that I go to work, I come home covered in glitter! 

Oh yes, I finally decided to go out & get a job.  After nearly a year on a work-hiatus I have returned to the workforce! I decided if I was going to get a job, it needed to be fun. Pier 1 Imports gives the idea of chaos a run for its money; with the no logic over cluttered setups all over the store including things with feathers & glitter neatly tucked everywhere.  It's like "surprise!! More GLITTER!" 

 Halloween & fall decorations have been out and in abundance the entire time I've been working there. Each trinket more glitter covered than the last.  Ready for the sickening part??? We are decorating for Christmas in about a week.  If you are a person who walks around retail-land before Halloween saying "ugh!! Christmas already!?!?!?" Avoid our stores like the plague until you have come to grips with that. 

My experience so far has been good, the employes are a fun mis-mash of people/ transplants to the area.  Which funny enough gives a great sense of comradery since most of us aren't from here.  I even learned the easy way to get glitter out of my EYE! (Yes that happened) I wish I was being challenged, but I can't expect to be mentally challenged in retail sales I guess.  I've got a ton of sales experience so this isn't a difficult job but I'm having a good time. And that is what matters. 

I've recently decided to go for a management position, I figure I've been there a month, it's about time I start running that place! 

Up, Up & Away! The Snowmass Balloon Festival

Ever since I was a little kid I have been fascinated by hot air balloons, probably due to my dads love of them too!  

Mr. Wonderful and I had always gone to the Limonera Hot Air Balloon festival, so when I decided that we were gonna go to the Snowmass Balloon Festival; I assumed it would be similar.  Boy was I wrong! 

It was so much more than I ever could have hoped for! We came into the valley and this is what we saw. 

I mean REALLY??? How cool is this?? 

I figured that they balloons would be inflated and tethered but to round the corner & see this was truely amazing!! 

The balloons filled the valley & touched down on the golf course (I'm sure it was a sight for some startled golfers!) 

The aspen trees haven't started to change much yet, the rain I'm sure has something to do with that. 

The mountains & stormy skies were a perfect backdrop for this event! 

This was totally worth getting up before the sun to see this. We can't wait to go next year!! 

(Thank you iphone for panorama shots!)

Sidebar: Hot air balloon ride has been added to our 2014 Bucket List!  

The Garden is Giving us Yummy Treats!

I'm so excited for the progress that my little garden is making! (Pretty good for my first attempt at growing things!) 

I haven't gotten to eat a watermelon yet, but they are growing away- getting bigger everyday! 

I even managed to grow peppercinis (although what I will do with them, I have yet to figure out). 

I'm still trying to grow Brussel Sprouts, but so far they just look like a heap of cabbage. Which is disappointing- but I still have a bit of time before the first snow. 

My strawberry plant finally decided to read the memo about fruit, and they are Amazing!! 

My cucumber plants are doing well but I'm not getting the yield I was expecting- I think next year I will change their position in the garden a bit. 

I even have 3 happy little cantaloupes!  They are resting underneath some protective chicken-wire to keep them safe from predators! 

 I think this is one of my garden predators, I killed him with borax and honey. And today the rain helped to teach him how to float.  I hope he didn't bring friends. 

Happy Gardening!! 

Congratulations to the Future Grijalvas!!

I'm a little late in posting this, but I have to say that technology really is a wonderful thing!  With the help of technology, I was able to get a FaceTime call late one night (August 24th to be exact) from our dear friends Zebbie & Justine- telling me that they are (finally) Engaged!!!  

 I wish we could have been there but with the help of technology, I still felt like I was there. We are so very happy for them! They are the ones who introduced us years ago & I mentally thank them EVERY DAY. ❤ 

Forever has a nice "ring" to it- Congratulations Justine & Zeb!!!! We can't wait for your wedding!! 

Summer 2013 Adventures (The Recap)

The beginning of summer started with our move from New Castle to Battlement Mesa. We LOVE our new place!! Mr. Wonderfuls' mom came to visit & we got the garden planted & prettied up our space with fabric projects.  We went to Avon for the 3rd of July fireworks show over Nottingham Lake (it was breathtaking!!) 

 

Kristi came to visit, we kayaked the mighty Colorado river (I accidentally went swimming!) We finally took a dip in the Glenwood Hot Springs Pool!  We went to Aspen, the weather was beautiful & it was so colorful up there! 

The end of July brought the Thompson Family our way! We had a wonderful time with them (I can't believe my nephews have gotten so big!!) We took them to the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park & even made Mr. Wonderful go on the cave tours (he's claustrophobic!) there was lots of Gondola riding on this weekend, the adventure park has one & we went to Aspen & rode the big gondola up to 11000 feet! 

We just loved getting to have the family with us for a few days- we have missed them very much! 

August was hot & yucky in Colorado. We escaped to Ventura just in time for the Fair! 

I dragged my adoring husband to a country concert (Hunter Hayes...which he barely tolerated) we spent some much needed time by the pool! 

Visiting with friends & family was so wonderful, there is much to be said for being in the same room your loved ones versus seeing them on Skype or FaceTime. (I'm still grateful for those options whenever I am homesick.) 

We came back home to a flourishing garden & monsoon season. (Remember my "fondness" for thunderstorms!?!)  I have been looking for a job, something part time (with Mr. Wonderfuls crazy work schedule, that's all our hectic life will allow for now) and I finally got a job! I'm working at Pier 1 Imports!  With my love of all things decorating this should be a fun job for me & it will help me meet more people which is always a good thing! 

Fall is coming.. I can't wait! 

Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning?

September 11, 2001.  Anyone can tell you where they were, what they were doing and if they were awake to see the second plane hit the towers or watched the recap on the news.  That event is generation X's big turning point, for most of us we were in our early stages of adult-hood.  (I was 19, and already at work when it happened, I watched the news in the break-room with my co-workers; standing there in stunned silence... my boss closed the company for the day & sent us all home to be with our families.) I of course called my momma, and woke her up so she would be aware that life as we knew it changed that day.  Some people enlisted in the military, some went out and began prepping for the worst. 

That for me was the first time I think I got what it meant to be a Patriot, to the core of my being, I was so proud to be an American, proud of the average people, and the first responders who risked their lives to save others in the aftermath of that attack.  It was also when I became acutely aware of my 2nd amendment rights- but that's a whole other post.  I found myself thankful in the days after that I didn't know anyone who had lost their lives that day, and so heartbroken for the families affected.  The effect on my life was different, I had friends who were deployed immediately after that, and I spent the better part of a year fearing for their safety as they went places that they couldn't tell me about in our letters, worrying that they would never return.  Thankfully, they did- safe & sound.  I continue to be so proud of them for going and doing what they did.  For standing up. 

Land of the Free BECAUSE of the Brave! 

Every year since that day, on September 11th, I take time to remember the day... remember the feelings (which for me are still very fresh- I can't listen to "Where were you when the world stopped turning" by Alan Jackson without choking back tears).  http://youtu.be/TpZJD6deEGc

9/11 reminds me to focus on whats important and let go of the BS, the things that don't matter; to make sure that my loved ones know how much they are loved- I tell them all the time, but it reminds me to make sure they know.  Life is short. Make the most of your time on this planet. And Never Forget 9/11/01.

XOXO

Megan