Fantasy Football and Goals

Last night, my office had the draft for our fantasy football league.  Steve came, with Parker, to the party and it was pretty fun.  I was lucky and got the #1 pick.  We'll see if it helps me at all this season.  I have a feeling I'm going to lose, big time, but what the heck - it's fun to talk trash and pretend I know what I'm talking about.

We paid off our discover card today - HOORAY!  One step closer to debt-freeness.  At this point, we now only have three credit cards with balances (two of which are pretty small) and I think we'll get one more paid off in September... and 7 without balances!!  YAY.  That means we are super close to paying off our wedding, honeymoon, trip to Europe, and the furniture we bought for our new apartment.  Steve and I have not, generally, been the best about money - day to day living, we do OK, but we tend to make some big purchases.  We're trying to curb those (although we are planning a Europe trip for Thanksgiving time) AND be better about the day to day.  It's pretty exciting to actually see a light at the end of the tunnel.  We almost have the Volvo paid off, too... so, in a few months, we should be down to no consumer debt!  All we'll have left is our house and my student loans.  That's pretty impressive, if I do say so myself.

Dave Ramsey is kind of inspiring us lately... I want to be able to call his show and scream that we're debt free.

Steve is snoring on the couch - it's 10:15.  He's a tired boy.  I'm going to put him to bed.  

Our "New Church"

Another weekend come and gone. . .

On Saturday, Steve woke me up at 7:30 and after getting over being pissed at him, I rolled out of bed, brushed my teeth, and climbed into the car.  We were on our way to Eugene to help the Bandstras with their sewer problem... well, Steve was on his way to help.  I was on my way to visit Jessica, John Spencer, and of course, Kate.  

For being a work-day, it was actually pretty relaxing - I took a few cat naps throughout the day and got to see my parents for awhile - it was the first time I'd seen my dad since the beginning of July, so that was good.

We went out to dinner with my mom and grandparents and then watched the finals in men's platform diving before heading back to Portland.  It was a long night and I was, once again, not too thrilled when the alarm clock went off, reminding me that it was time to go to church.

We spent the balance of Sunday afternoon cleaning and cooking (after my 2 hour nap)... and Steve went to work for about 5 hours.

Today, I had to head down to Salem for a couple of hearings in one of my cases.  It was nice to be back in the courtroom - it reminded me of how much I like motion practice and being in court for non-evidentiary hearings - and it also struck me at how good my colleagues are, generally, at their jobs.  I like these kinds of days.

I think I had bad breath at the hearing though - ick... I need to carry gum or tic tacs for such occasions, really.

Now, I'm off to make corn bread to go with the beef stew we made for dinner tonight, which is simmering in the crock pot.  I admit it does not smell delicious, but corn bread makes everything better, right?  

Canonball

So, we went to the Brandi Carlile concert tonight (if you're unfamiliar with her, check out her webpage at http://www.brandicarlile.com/

About 2 months ago, Nat introduced me to her music and I was hooked... He said that she sounded just like her albums in concert and I didn't believe him.  I was right.  

She is *better* live, which is a pretty amazing thing to say.  I would describe her as kind of a cross between the melodic and quirkiness of Sarah McLaughlin, coupled with the incredible power and raw emotion of Janis Joplin.  Steve said it's the best concert he's ever been to, and I have to say, I might agree with him - which is saying quite a lot because I've been to a number of Alison Krauss concerts and well, she is very good in concert... but there's no rawness there.

Many people like her song The Story the best - it's a good one (and recently featured in a GM commercial, which she explains on her website) and displays her incredibly rich and crisp voice - but there are better ones... and she does a great rendition of Alleluia.

Before the concert, I made bbq pork sandwiches with the leftover pork from dinner the other night.  It was tasty and even Steve didn't mind eating left-overs.

I had to take Steve back to work after the concert - and we're headed to Eugene tomorrow.  I get to see John Spencer for the first time so that's pretty exciting.  I will also get to see KatieKateKateKate.  

I'm feeling lonely tonight - so perhaps I will go to bed now.

Emotional Rollercoaster v. Even keel

So - Steve and I joined a group of movie goers from Craigs List tonight - the group is called "movies and meaning."  We went to the Sensation of Sight.  Steve didn't like it; I found myself identifying with it quite a lot.  It was interesting in that it brought out some realizations for me - that my relationships are emotionally charged and my relationship with God is like the image of the woman kicking and screaming and finally succumbing into the embrace of the man waiting to comfort her, but only after intense emotional exhaustion.  Steve, on the other hand, is more even keeled.  Sure, he has his moments of emotional outburst - but they're never directed at God.  He just KNOWS and is at peace.  

On a lighter note, Steve and I had a very good parmesan encrusted sole for dinner. . . part of the new recipe/menu program we joined.  I can't believe that WE can make dinners that taste that good for pretty cheap!  Exciting stuff. 

We're going to a Brandi Carlile concert tomorrow.  That should be fun...

Steve wants everyone to know how much he wants a new Mac laptop - airbook or some nonsense like that.  I'm putting my foot down on this ridiculousness.

Steve didn't have to work late

Tonight, Steve went to work around 5:30 and said he'd be home around 10, he hoped.  At about 7:30, the apartment door opened and it may, or may not, have scared the peewaddlings out of me.  It was Steve.  hooray.  The only bad part is that instead of wanting to watch the Olympics tonight - he wanted to watch Family Guy.  The only funny part of that show is when Stewy laughs hard, it sounds just like Steve when he's laughing hard... which makes me laugh.  In case you didn't know, Steve is a guy who really really knows how to laugh.  Really.

Tonight, for supper, I made this apple/sage pork roast that was very tasty.  Very tasty.  I'm pretty stoked.  I'm not the most creative cook and I often find that recipes don't turn out as well as you hope - but this recipe did not disappoint.  Of course, I overcooked the veggies ... bummer.  

I read a good book last week - Steve read it this week... Rik had recommended it to me - called The Shack.  It was a unique book and is full of a lot of truth; I need to read it again, though, because when I was reading it, I was reading for the story and because I needed something... the book didn't really give me what I needed (of course it didn't) but it pointed me in the right direction.  After many angry outbursts and tears, I feel like maybe I'm back on the necessary path... the path of freedom - after all, it is for freedom that Christ has set us free.  I would recommend the book.  It was the first book I'd read in quite awhile - I think I need to read more - it's relaxing and edifying.  So... I'm off.

Oh yeah - and Shawn Johnson won the gold on balance beam last night.  I was happy.

And We're Back

It has been forever since either Steve or I have blogged.  There is not much point in trying to summarize the last 3 years, but here we go:

April 2006 - We got married and went to Costa Rica for a honeymoon

July 2006 - We adopted Parker, also known as "schmarks" and "parky-pants."  He is a very good yellow lab/australian shepherd mix.

January 2007 - Steve officially kicked off Endeavor Plumbing

April/May 2007 - We went to Europe.  This trip was full of ups and downs.

July 2007 - Steve turned 30 and we went to Disneyland to celebrate.

August 2007 - I started two new jobs, including a teaching job at the University of Oregon Law School.

May 2008 - We started our three-month process of moving to the Pearl District in Portland; I   started yet another new job.

June 2008 - We become aunt/uncle and godparents for the first time - to our nephew, August.

July 2008 - Steve started a new job, in Portland.

I guess those are the biggest events.  It is so difficult because although those are the most exciting, the day to day life is what makes us who we are, but there is no way to plug all those things in at this point.

This past weekend, Steve's whole family came to visit, as Jose Luis and Diana were in town.  It was a fun weekend but exhausting.

The Olympics are on tv now and Steve is working late.  The balance beam final.  I hope Shawn Johnson wins gold.  We'll see.

So the name of our blog... although we fail at this every day, we desire for our desire to be to know God and enjoy Him forever - to have relationship with the Father.  One day, it won't be so difficult.

I guess it's time for bed.  I will see how I can do about writing on daily basis.  We'll see how good I can be at that.