STP 2009

I am officially registered to participate in the 2009 Seattle to Portland bicycle ride; 204 picturesque miles along the I-5 corridor during the second weekend in July.

This will be my fourth time participating in the STP, and I am looking forward it more that before. Why? The last time I rode, I didn't finish. It was very bittersweet, completing 150 miles in just one day is, to this day, my personal record. However not finishing the ride was a huge dissapointment.

This year we are riding over the course of two days, which will be much more enjoyable. Trying to push through and complete the ride in one day meant missing out on a lot of cool stuff! Over two days, you have the luxury of time, of rest, and of better food. One day was just too stressful and took a lot of the enjoyment out of the ride.

I have 5 months to get in shape, which means lots of seat time! Building up muscle is one thing; preparing your rear end for torture is another.

So if, in the future, you notice that I am walking a little funny, instead of laughing, give me a big "Way to go!"

Appliances!

Clint and I bought our new appliances today! We purchased a new Maytag 3000 Series washer and dryer in crimson red, and a Kitchenaid French Door refrigerator! They are so beautiful! The washer and dryer are just like the series that has the TV commercial with the monster truck driving over the washer and dryers, just without the steam! We purchased them from a local store here in Everett; they will hold them for as long as we need until they can deliver them! And we got a great rebate for purchasing all three pieces together! Here are some pictures, and new pictures of the outside of the house! Doesn't the Jeep look perfect in front of the house? Love it!

House of a Different Color...

OURS! That's the color! Clint and I accepted and signed a contract on a house last night! This house has everything that we were looking for, and more! It's going to be a great house for us! Here are some pictures!

New Year's Resolutions

While I have never really made resolutions in the past, I feel like this is a good year to start. Below are the things that I want to challenge myself to do in 2009:

1. Stop complaining about things that don't matter. I like to hear myself talk, and I like sympathy. But complaining is boring and gets me nowhere.

2. Stop swearing. There are much better and more clever ways to convey a point than resorting to foul language. It's unbecoming, and it makes me sound stupid.

3. Utilize my friends. I am fortunate enough to live within about an hour of most of my friends, yet I seem to find all kinds of excuses to not see them. "I have to wake up really early." "An hour is a long way to drive." We say so often that we should spend more time together, yet we never do. I want to change that. I want to stop being comfortable making excuses and propose ways to spend time together. So when I call you to see if you're available, help me out and point out flaws in my plan that will hold me back.

4. Stop being lazy. Clint and I ask each other frequently, "What do you want to do today?" And more often than not, the response is "I don't know." This inevitably leads to doing nothing and wasting the day. There are so many things to do if only we could break out of our rut and do them. Instead of the usual "I don't know" response, I will provide several options. They may not all appeal to us at the moment, but I refuse the path of inaction. There are parks for hiking, snowshoe rentals, bicycle trails, and museums all within reasonable distance from us. Wouldn't it be nice to make a list of the places we'd like to go, and then actually work on crossing them off? All it takes is a little creativity and motivation. This leads me to my next challenge;

5. Become more active. Because I am comfortable with my sedentary lifestyle, it is difficult to imagine anything to the contrary. But I remember a time in my life not too long ago when I was active; I would hike with my family, ride my bike, and just get out and about. Again, I need to utilize the resources around me and make a conscious decision to MOVE IT, MOVE IT!

6. Branch out my craftiness. I make cards. That's about all I make. And while I thoroughly enjoy making cards, and my cards are nice, I have the tools to do more. I want to be more creative and try new crafty things like scrapbooking, or making jewelry. How cool would that be? Handmade cards AND gifts! Just kidding. Mostly. I see a lot of things that I like that make me think, "Oh, I could make that!" But I never do, even when the parts and pieces are waiting for me. I should try it!

7. I want to complete a sprint Triathlon. SWIM - BIKE - RUN. This will become my mantra while training for a triathlon. I have dreamed of completing a triathlon in the past, but never done anything to get myself in shape to do it. A sprint triathlon is a 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike, and 3 mile run. There are several in the Puget Sound area in this coming year, and I want to complete at least one of them. How awesome would that be? Now I just need to find a pool to use for the swim training.

RubyMonroe gets Married!

I have created a new blog for those of you interesed in following the progress of our wedding planning. It can be found at www.RubyMonroeGetsMarried.blogspot.com. I will post items relevant to the planning, ideas for wedding "stuff," and our thoughts regarding various aspects of the process. I'm not sure how often I will post, but there will be updates here and there.

NOTE: If you want any aspect of the wedding to be a surprise, then I would recommend forgetting about this new blog, as it will contain SPOILERS such as pictures of the venue, the dress, veil ideas, invitations, etc.

ICON Consulting, LLC NERDS!

Here are some non-endorsed, non-professional, random photos from our office photo shoot a couple of weeks ago. One good thing about being a small office; we can get away with things like this!

The tall, dark-haired guy is Matt, my boss. He, Sarah (the Asian girl) and I are "Team Symbiotic," and the curly-haired girl and the yawning redheaded guy are "Team Moretsky."

My Ring!

Clint doesn't want me to show anybody pictures of my new engagement ring yet, but *shhhh*. I'm too excited to not share the photos! The setting that we chose is a classic white gold cathedral setting that tapers as it nears the diamond. It is almost like a diamond high-lighter because the band is wide, then gets thinner and thinner, and then, BAM! There's the diamond! It is SO beautiful, and we both LOVE the ring. I am so happy that we both found a style that we love, and that is not too dissimilar from the original setting that belonged to Clint's grandmother. So, don't tell Clint that I posted pictures.