Ch-Ch-Ch-Chaaaaanges

Countdown to job change: T-minus two days and counting.

Can't wait to be in my new gig, and out of legacy code purgatory. It's been an interesting year here at McKesson, and as much as I enjoy the people I work with, I just can't swing this VB6 development anymore. Very much looking forward to my new home at Enprecis!

Countdown to school: T-minus 16 days and counting.

I'm really excited to get back into school and knock out my Master's degree. It's been nearly 5 years since I got my Bachelor's degree, and really, who needs a 5 year break anyway?

Brady is chugging right along with his student teaching, really getting an opportunity to prove himself in front of a classroom full of crazy, unruly students. I look forward to the end of indentured servitude student teaching, as I'm sure he does.

Critters are doing marvelously. We finally revolted against the quadruped incursion and started locking the cats out of the bedroom at night. They're both sweet kitties, but they're far too nocturnal to keep around when we're sleeping. 5:20 in the morning is early. It's REALLY early if you've been a feline trampoline all night.

Wedding Pics!

Just a small sample. =)

New Kitty!

We have a new kitten! Our friend Carol is a new foster home for the Homeward Pets shelter in Washington, and we grew really attached to the runt of a litter of kittens. We were so excited about bringing her home, were all set... and then Carol called to tell us the kitten had tested partial positive for Feline Leukemia. There's a really good chance she'll fight it off, but there's also a chance of it coming back later in life.

Since we already have Adia, we can't in good conscience bring a new kitty into the house that could make her sick down the road. We were so excited about getting another cat (and having a little friend to help Adia gang up on Serra), that we decided to head down to the Tacoma shelter and pick up...

ROWEN!


He was *SO* incredibly calm at the shelter, purring and quietly investigating. It was a ruse! A farce! He's a little ball of piss and vinegar, and it's been so much fun to watch him rip through the house.

At this point, Adia is NOT amused. She'll come around. She can't hide under the futon for forever. =)

Lumpy Butt!

Puppy pictures!

So cute!

We're not... yeah, we're not sure what's going on there. It's very... floppy.
Again, so cute. =D

Holy Crap

Sheesh, been a while since I've posted anything. Since last October, Brady and I got engaged (we've set a date in August for the wedding, so we're pretty excited.) He'll be home for good on Friday and can start his student teaching stuff. He's been placed at a local high school close to the house, so his commute will at least be awesome. =)

Not a whole lot else is going on, really. Same ol', same ol'. Serra's huge and healthy. We had to play around with her diet a lot, and evidently she's allergic to chicken. After figuring that out it's been pretty easy to keep her happy.

Adia's big too; no longer the cute little fluff ball kitten. Now she's the cute, fluffy house cat with a propensity for laying on keyboards (which, while adorable, isn't entirely helpful.)

My bestest friend in the world finally got married (yay Teri and Sean!) She's asked if I'd make her a painting for the new house they just bought, so I'll probably post pictures here when I get started. Should be the same process as my panels with the added bonus of a dog trying to eat my paint.

Technicolor dog poop! YAY!

Work It Out

I had an appointment with a physical trainer last night, and if you haven't done this, I strongly recommend going at least once. Almost every trainer in this area offers one free consultation, so even if you can't afford to keep them on the payroll, take plenty of notes and do the same things at home.

Over the course of 30 minutes, my trainer Adrian (who will be known only as "Mr. Pain") led me through about 12 exercises. The point being that you keep all parts of the body moving as much as possible.

Of the 12 things covered in the gym, I think I could reasonably emulate about 9 at home, maybe 10 if I find a good, sturdy stud to attach resistance cords to. I'm thinking I could get by with the follow pieces of equipment:
Step, ball, weights, resistance cord.
Various dumbbells.

The step and weights were used together (I was using 10lb weights at the gym, but I guess 8lbs would be alright for now), then smaller weights were used in a variety of routines. Ideally, you'd have set of dumbbells with adjustable weights--like these--so you could add/subtract as necessary.

I think that at this juncture it would be easier to list the parts of me that DON'T hurt. Fingertips and eyeballs come to mind, but not much else.

Also as a part of this "get my tubby ass in shape" routine, I'm keeping a journal of everything I eat and drink. I'm sceptical, but I'll give anything a shot once.

Well, not anything.

Last Weekend

Was out in SLC over the weekend; my sister Liza made the trek with her husband Norm and their 4 kids all the way from Paris, Texas. I got there Saturday just afternoon, and we spent the day up in the mountains, fishing and goofing off. Mom went with Norm and a couple of the older kids for a hike. We caught a glimpse of them up on the hill, and Mom was kind of crashing around in some bushes off the trail. My prediction was she was snagging rocks. I was SO right (she loaded up one of Margaret's boys with a couple, and had her hands full at the end.)

Sunday morning, we all went to the zoo. For clarification, "we" is: myself, my mom and dad, Mema, Liza, Norm, their 4 kids, Brieanna, Wade, and Brieanna's three kids, Margaret and her 4 younger kids, Daniel (Margaret's oldest) and his girlfriend Katie, and my niece Heidi. For those of you that suck at counting, that's 23 folks, trekking through the zoo.

I think the sentiment of the visit goes to my mom, whom I overheard talking to my sister. She was in the back of the pack, walking towards the zoo exit. Pointing to the group, "Wow. That's all us." No kidding.

After we got home Sunday night, Dad grilled up a bunch of dead stuff for us to eat, and then we got some pictures in:



We should start a biker gang.