They Say It's Your Birthday, Happy Birthday To Me!

Well, today is my 27th birthday. On the downward slope to 30... :) I said that yesterday to one of my co-workers, and he said that from his perspective at 73, where I am is not even beginning to slope downward yet. I guess that's true! It's nice and sunny in Seattle for my birthday today, woo-hoo! I went to the gym this morning and I forgot they would have my date of birth in the computer, so when I checked in they all said "Happy Birthday!" and I was really confused... I've been going to a water aerobics class twice a week and it is super fun! I'm the youngest person there most days, and on Thursday night this cute little old lady said she thought I was the instructor :) Ha ha. But just because I'm the youngest, don't think the class is easy! The Saturday morning instructor is awesome and totally kicks your butt. I love it!

Chelsea and I have been laying low the past few weeks. Her back is still pretty painful, so we're trying to figure out where to go from here...more physical therapy, another surgery, acupuncture, etc. so send healing thoughts our way. We're going to get hair cuts today, and then out to dinner tonight for my birthday. And I am excited to relax this weekend! The new summer floor plan will be rolled out this coming week at work, so I'm gearing up for a big week. Whew! It's always fun to change things up and see the new summer colors. Hopefully the weather will hurry up and match the product we have in the stores--it's always strange to have patio furniture on the sales floor in March in Seattle, meanwhile the weather is crappy and you couldn't sit outside without getting soaked! Cold and rainy through the 4th of July, with the exception of one teaser-week usually toward the end of March where it is sunny and beautiful. Got to love the Pacific Northwest :) I'm loving my new design training job at Crate! I'm learning a lot and having lots of fun. This week I learned how to use a design software program called Auto CAD that we use to create our new season floor plans. It was fun and challenging! It's an awesome program that architects use to build skyscrapers--obviously I am not learning all of those tools, just the basics for a one-story floor plan, but still it's pretty cool!

Not too much else has been happening here... Last night we played banana-grams with Sean and Claire which is my most favorite game right now. I had never heard of it until recently, but apparently everyone else in Seattle loves it! We had a local author do a book signing at Crate last fall and she challenged the customers to play banana-grams with her while trying tasty appetizers from her game-night cookbook. Pretty fun!

Happy Saturday!

Chels and I have had a busy week! Last Sunday we went to brunch with our friends Erin & Ashod before going on a tour of houses for sale. It was great to see them! Ashod lives in Portland and Erin lives in Seattle, so when he comes up to visit we always like to get together and catch up. Ashod owns a house in Portland so he was giving us some tips. We're excited to be searching for a perfect little house for us :) When Chelsea's parents were visiting over Christmas we talked about the housing market in Seattle and how now is a great time to buy. Since then, we've had home-buying on the brain and have been going to open houses every weekend. There is so much to learn! I read "Home Buying for Dummies" and we attended a home-buying class, but still! We're having fun so far, but it's a lot of work. I feel a little more savvy after seeing 20+ homes--we're still trying to figure out what we do like (what we DON'T like is always much easier), what we "have" to have, and what we could compromise on. Very exciting!

After our open houses, we went to Sean & Claire's for a little mending party with some of our friends. It's nice to get together and do stuff with friends that you never want to do alone :) I had a sad mitten to repair, a hem to secure on a pair of jeans, and a hole in the shoulder of a sweater. I wish I would have paid more attention to my mother's sewing over the years--I made it through, albeit not gracefully :) Then Sunday night we went to Aunt Cathy & Uncle Sandy's for Steph's birthday dinner with the family. Her birthday was the Tuesday before, happy 30th Boo! We got her the most hilarious gift: cheese! Anyone who knows Stephanie knows how much she loves cheese--well, there is a sharp cheddar cheese made at Washington State University called "Cougar Gold" that is delicious. It's a big wheel of cheese that comes in a tin, which Chelsea knew would be the perfect gift for her sissy, and it was :)

This week we've been equally as busy--we've been celebrating one of my best friend Todd's birthday as well. Thursday night we hosted a sushi making party at our place for some friends in honor of his birthday, and last night we went over to his place and he made delicious pulled-pork sandwiches. Todd is currently in culinary school so it's always excellent when he cooks for us :) And my wife, the vegetarian, LOVES pulled-pork sandwiches! Isn't that funny? We're getting together with friends tonight for drinks to celebrate as well, whew! And then tomorrow the house-hunting continues before I have to work (inventory Sunday, my favorite Sundays of the year!). Wish us luck!

I also want to say "CONGRATS!" to my big sissy Bonnie for her recent promotion from associate designer to full-fledged designer for Target, a well-deserved promotion! Way to go, Bon! :)

It's Saturday and I'm Not at Work!!!

Woo-hoo! I've officially survived my first week in my new design training position! I have a few bruises, but didn't fall off any ladders so I think I'm doing pretty well :) I now have weekends off like everyone else (okay maybe not everyone, but like those who are not in the service industries) and I'm loving it! Apparently my plans for my first weekend off did not live up to the standards of some of my jealous co-workers: gym, laundry, and house-cleaning. I was told I need to "rage" and "get crazy!" to start this weekends-off thing with a bang... We'll see about that :) Chels also returned to work this week. I think she's thrilled to be out of the house and back among the living. She's working in reception until her work restrictions are less limited and she can get back into her vet assistant position again--her co-workers have been very supportive and understanding which is great! Alright, I'm off to enjoy my Saturday! :)

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

I guess the rain matches my mood: I'm sick, boo! I've been home from work sick the past three days and I'm going crazy! It's always the worst being cooped up at home and feeling crappy--the only nice thing is that Chelsea is still home from work so she's been taking care of me :) She's still home from work after her recent back pain episode that happened in mid-December, but has been going to physical therapy twice a week and is hoping to return to work next week. I'm supposed to be training my replacements at work this week so I can start my new design job next week, so I need to feel better ASAP! Send some healing thoughts our way!

Sushi Making Party!

Chels and I went to Sean and Claire's last Sunday night for a sushi making party! Sean and Claire got a sushi making kit from Chelsea's parents for Christmas, and we also have one from them that we've had for a few years. So we decided to try theirs out together! Here are all the tools we used:


The sushi dishes are ours, gifts from Chelsea's mom. The mandoline is Sean & Claire's newest kitchen gadget. Pretty neat, we might have to get one!


Here are the small and larger sushi-making molds we used.


Chels is excited to use the mandoline!

Edamame, yum!

Sean and Chels, hard at work making sushi rolls with nori

Stuffing the inari sushi

Fixings for the sushi

Sean's masterpiece

Chelsea's masterpiece

The smaller sushi rolls are hard to make! Too small to fit all the stuffings! :)

Claire's work of art

Ta-da!

The finished product

The final product was pretty and delicious! Thanks Cindy and Barry :)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! Chels, Kitten, and I have had a pretty good NYE so far--we made nachos for dinner, sipped some champagne and sparkling apple cider, and watched Titanic (ha ha, still makes me cry)! I have two days off in a row at home with my wifey, yay! For those of you who don't know, Chels has been having an episode of back pain that has lasted almost a month, so she's been home from work trying to recover. Slowly but surely! Thanks for all of your support, our dear family & friends. Chelsea has been dealing with back pain and herniated discs since she was 15, had back surgery a few years ago on one disc, and occasionally has flair-ups. Currently she has a disc protruding that is pressing against her sciatic nerve a causing pain down her legs, making it difficult for her to sit, bend, stand for long periods of time, etc. Not good... But! We're hanging in there :) We renewed our gym membership and are hoping to get stronger and more fit--cheers to a healthier 2011! Hope everyone is having a fabulous NYE and a has a happy 2011 New Year!

Christmas Day

Christmas is here! Finally! :) Chels and I had been waiting to look in our stockings for days (apparently Santa comes early to our house...) YAY!


A new cupcake carrier for her lunch


Some new lotions and potions for me



A cute new jacket and sweet new watch from my sweet wifey :)


Chelsea's new boots, neck warmer, scarf, hat, gloves & Wii motion from my family

My new gloves, neck warmer, and a new purse, thanks Mama & Sissies!

After we opened the rest of our presents we headed over to Steph & Dan's to spend Christmas day with them and Barry & Cindy :) We had a lovely brunch and spent the day relaxing and catching up.

The newlyweds and chefs extraordinaire!

Barry & Cindy

Me & Chels

Yay! New Sonicare toothbrush for Chels (and one for me, too)! Thanks Mom & Dad!

Steph & Dan with a wedding photo canvas from Barry & Cindy

Chels & I with our wedding photo canvas

Family Christmas picture

We had a great holiday! Love to all of our family and friends we didn't get to spend it with, we miss you! :)