Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

Yes, Brenton is now taller then Bristyn!

Today was an FFF day, FORCED FAMILY FUN!!! And actually, it turned out to be a fun day! We went to the Wildlife Sanctuary, which is northeast of Denver. We had read about it and really wanted to see it! Bob Barker (from The Price is Right) and Jorja Fox (CSI) are the celebritities that have really helped these animals. They just donated money to have a building built for 25 new tigers and have them flown in from Bolivia. All the animals at this sanctuary have been abused but they are all healthy and thriving at this time. I couldn't believe how close we came to the animals, it was awesome!

Britnee and Chris' Wedding

The Garwood family....Richard, Denise, Caralynn, Chris, Britnee, Casey, Kelsey and Lindsey

The Thompson family....Diana, Bristyn, Chris, Britnee, Bradley, Mike and Brenton

This past Wednesday, our family went to Las Vegas to celebrate the wedding of our beautiful daughter, Britnee and Chris Garwood!! Britnee was absolutely gorgeous and Chris wasn't bad himself!! The wedding was held at the Little Church of the West and then we all went to Bootleggers for a celebration dinner. We are so happy to have Chris as part of our family, we love him to pieces. I am so happy that Britnee found such a wonderful person to marry and someone that makes her so happy! Congratulations Britnee and Chris!

One mans trash

I have been doing a little re-doing in the living room and front entry way this last week. The other day, my husband was helping a friend load up his storage unit to move. While there, his friend was throwing away some of his wifes decorations, which included these 3 pictures of Paris. He had bought them from a street vendor in Paris. My husband stole them right up!! They are so beautiful, I love the simplicity of them. I am still trying to learn how to use my new camara, I love trying to figure it out, but I seriously need to take a crash course on it!!


For all of you who didn't believe me, this is Bradley after he cut off 15 inches of his hair! It was my surprise for Easter! He is so stinkin cute!

Pretty In Pink~Prom 2011

Prom 2011.....This year, Prom for Bristyn was on a Friday night. The kids didn't have school yesterday, so it was all about getting ready for Prom and all the drama with it!! Bristyn had her heart set on this cute little dress, but it was huge on her. We bought the dress, but we had to have it altered. Thank goodness for talented friends, because I have no idea how to sew! This is Bristyn and her best friend, Savanna Wallace. They are so hysterical, I love being around them. Reminds me of my friends growing up. The kids all had such a great time.... of course, I don't have a picture of Bristyn with her date...

Fun Stuff

This last week I went to Washington to visit my daughter, Britnee and granddaughter, Caralynn. I just cannot get enough of this sweet baby girl. She is so stinkin cute!! She is so happy all the time. She always has such a huge smile on her face. She is 14 months old now, she is walking really well and saying a couple of words. Of course, while I was there, it rained almost every day, but I miss the rain living here in Colorado. While in Washington, I went down to Vancouver to visit some friends and my brother, Mike. I had a great time with everyone, just wish that I could have stayed longer....and why don't I ever take pictures of me with my friends?

I got those white velvety pillows from Ikea when I went to Portland, Oregon. I can't wait until Ikea opens up in Denver, I love that store!!



This little suitcase is a gift from Barb. I love it, so cute!!

Mike and I have been working on trying to get our bedroom complete. It has taken forever for us (meaning Mike!!) to hang our TV up. Mike didn't want to put any more holes in the wall to hide the cords so my friend, Barb, found what I call a chord condom!!! It actually looks really cute.

Yearning for Spring

I am in desperate need of spring and nice weather. The last couple of days, the sun has been shining, but it has been crispy cold outside. I went out yesterday and picked some of these branches down the road from our condo, I love how they look in this urn. I need little changes in my decor to liven things up. Do you ever get bored with what you have? I seem to be in that rut lately. I can't wait until all of the flowers start bursting with color in the next couple of months, I love the spring!

Have I ever told you about my walking partner, Barb? She is awesome!! She is one of those friends who always knows what to say and makes me feel better about life and myself. She is also a great gift giver! Do you see that tiny clock on the scale? It is called a Tiny Tim and she got it for me for Valentines Day, I have never heard of Tiny Tim clocks, but it is very old. I love it. Also for Valentines Day, Mike got me a massage, lets just say, I need a massage from that massage!! I am feeling alot better today, but I know now that I have muscles where I never knew I had muscles!

My new obsession!!

I have a new obsession and I think my husband likes it!!! My sister, Liz, works for LeCreuset and I have become totally addicted to their cookware. They are pretty expensive and I would never be able to afford them if it wasn't for her discount!! My goal is to buy one piece a month until I have the whole collection. Everything I cook, seems to taste better when I use these pans, I absolutely love them. They are also so pretty, I have been collecting the kiwi color cause I love the color green. It seems as I have been cooking alot more since I started using LeCreuset.

Onto my next obsession, Brenton, my little guy! After wrestling season was over at school, we decided to put Brenton in a wrestling club so he could continue practicing and learning. Today we went to a tournament in Loveland called the Pikes Peak Tournament and Brenton came in first place in his division, we are so proud of him. He got some scratches and got his ego hurt during one of the matches, but he pulled himself together and won! He loves wrestling and he is such a natural at it, maybe its because his older brother always beat him up!!

Is it already January???

These are my first attempts at using my new camara. While we were in Washington, I took a trip down to Portland, Oregon to shop at Ikea and Monticellos. I bought that cute white, chippy box. Actually, it is quite big. Filled it with some things that I had around the house, but I had to add the new picture of Caralynn!!!

Munching on a candy cane at Uncle Mikes house!!!

What is that gross thing in your nose Bristyn???? I am not a fan of nose rings, and I think that she did this to tick me off, but it didn't!!! Our daughter, Britnee, did the same thing when she was in college, but after a couple of days, it was gone....hopefully, Bristyns will be gone soon!!

Hottest grandpa EVER!!!! Mike is sharing a piece of ice with Caralynn, anytime anybody had any food or drink, she was all over it!! By the way, did I ever mention that I have the best husband in the world??? Our anniversary was on December 20th, and he gave me a Canon Rebel....everyone knows how computer illiterate I am, but I am worse with a camara!! That camara makes me feel dumb, definately gonna have to take a class on how to use it!!

I miss this sweet baby girl so much!!! Everytime I see Caralynn, I fall in love with her so much more! I loved our visit with Britnee and Chris, and I so bad just want to be near them. I promised myself that I wouldn't get depressed coming back to Fort Collins after the holidays, but it happened. I am working on counting my blessings here.....