Our new home

We finally have a house!!! We moved back to Oregon from Puyallup WA back in January, but had to move in with John's parents because our house was still on the market. We really didn't think it would take as long as it did, but the market was super sluggish, and although we had a nice home, it was next to a busy street and there were a thousand other homes on the market that were just as nice and not on a busy street.

John's parents are seriously the kindest people I know. We couldn't have asked for a better living arrangement. The kids got to wake up and have breakfast with their Grandma and Grandpa everyday and spend most days with them. They were very supportive when I needed to teach classes, offering to watch our kids and helped out every chance they could. We feel truly blessed to have been given the opportunity to reconnect with them since we had been away for three years.

After 10 months, however, we really needed our own place. We were getting desperate and so I checked into a company called housetrader.com. After a few months, they found us a match and we traded homes with another family. We lucked out and got a beautiful home. It was much smaller than our previous home, but had lots of upgrades and the best part....a HUGE cul-de-sac and super fun neighbors.

We are excited for summer to come so we can play in the park behind our house and the kids can ride bikes and scooters in the cul-de-sac and have lots of bbqs.

Christmas 08 Happy Birthday Jesus

Christmas was a bit different this year. It was a WHITE Christmas. We were hit with the worst snow storm since 1944. It was a bit irritating being home bound, but we lucked out. Some folks were without power for a week, while others had to endure overnight stays at the airport, stuck vehicles, and other misfortunes. We were blessed with having our family together in our safe, warm home. Some of our presents still haven't arrived, but that will just make for a nice surprise later on.

Haley is really into Hannah Montana, so she received alot of Hannah Montana gifts; a guitar, a head set, several dolls and CDs. She also got a sweet Karaoke machine which we still haven't used.

Jack got his first real bike. It's got the Disney Cars theme and is so dang cute. He hasn't been able to ride it yet due to the weather, but this summer we will be taking lots of family bike rides.

My husband and I decided on only gifts for the kids this year. We have each other and that's enough. Besides, we are saving for a Disneyland vacation and also hoping to renew our vows this summer at one of our favorite spots at the beach.

The weather has been nuts, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. The Northwest is a beautiful place to live with all four seasons and awesome countryside. I wouldn't dare live anywhere else.

Sorry this is sideways. Not sure how to fix that. Jack liked Haley's Hannah Montana mic more than she did.

My husband, John Brase

I met John Brase while I was bartending at Big Reds on Sylvan Hill. We had a mutual friend, Wyatt, who thought John and I would make a good couple. At the time, however, I was trying to get over a very toxic relationship and was making poor decisions right and left. It was a tough time. Not only did a boyfriend betray me, but two very good friends as well. Needless to say, I was in no position to take on a new relationship, especially with someone so...well....so NICE!
Seriously, most of the relationships I had been in previously were either toxic, abusive, dysfunctional or all of the above. In all seriousness, NEVER stay in an abusive relationship...you always deserve better.
ANYHOO.....Here was John, this wonderful family man who drove a car, held a steady job, rented his own house, and as far as I knew, had never been to jail, hit anyone or had any substance abuse problems. He was waaaaaay outa my league. He made me laugh, was polite, sincere, had a college degree and was the most honest, down-to-earth man I had ever met. What you saw was what you got. I was scared shitless. So, when we started dating, I did everything in my power to screw it up, because I knew he was way too good for me. I needed to find some guy fresh out of prison with a raging meth problem and 5 DUIs to take me out for a nice mad dog and marijuana date.
For some reason, John never gave up on me. I managed to set myself free of the drama and other bs that was holding me back and let myself fall in love with him. I've never looked back and 10 years later, he's my husband, the father of our two wonderful kids and the absolute love of my life. Of course he has a flaw or two. He'd rather have his limbs removed than miss an Oregon Duck game and if it weren't for the last minute, he wouldn't get anything done....I love hime with my heart and soul and wouldn't trade him for the world. I love you, John...and....GO DUCKS.

Parteeeeees

This holiday season has been filled with holiday parties. The best part was finding new outfits to wear to each one, but somehow I managed. ;)

My company party was thrown at the Crown Hotel right near us. It was alot of fun but John and I were so tired from a busy week, we left a little early and had a nightcap of Spanish Coffees. It was nice spending some quiet time with John.

John's company party was at the MAC and was awesome. I had a great time meeting all of the employees who had nothing but grand things to say about their boss....my husband. We ate, drank, danced and laughed for hours. John got us a room at this swanky hotel in downtown Portland. It was so trendy and luxurious. Thank you!

My mom's company party was held at Sunset Lanes. The whole bowling alley was ours, so the kids had a blast playing FREE video games, bowling and of course visiting Santa.

Our neighborhood through an amazing Couples Bunco and Progressive Dinner. You have to understand the the cul-de-sac we live in is....AMAZING. It's huge and all our neighbors are wonderful people. It's such a warm community with so many social events and a safe place for all the kids to explore and play. Appetizers started at Lee and Paulas, followed my salad at MaryJo's, Main Course of super yummy Gumbo at Beverly's followed by desert at Veronica's. Couples Bunco was hilarious. I nearly peed my pants from laughter. Thank you friends. John enjoyed it too. He normally likes games involving more skill, but this was fun for him. My mom watched the kids, but best of all, we could just walk right on home after. What a blast.

Winter and family connections

We are currently experiencing the worst snow storm since 1944 here in Portland, Oregon. That basically means it snowed more than a foot or two, so the whole state shuts down because we can't handle it.
So, all my fitness classes have been cancelled along with Haley's school, so we have been staying home trying to come up with new, inventive things to bide our time. We had a dance party, made up a song, made glitter Christmas cards, made snowmen out of marshmellows, built several forts, played Wii til we couldn't hold the remote anymore and read many, many books.
The best part was our snow adventures. It was such a great time to spend with the family, get some much needed exercise and have a whole lot of fun. We crunched in the snow, knee-deep, which meant chest-deep for my kids all the way to the park right behind our house. There are lots of fun grass hills which made for AWESOME sledding.
John and I decided to stand on our Tobogan and "snowboard" down the hill. We got pretty good, but most of all just laughed our you know what's off.
The snow has been magical. I love the smell of snow, the sound of snow and best of all, the amazingly good time I've had with my family re-connecting during times when we would normally be too busy to build a fort and make up a new song. I love you all.

Boredom and Body Wax

Okay, so I'm somewhat hairy. Not enough that I need lazer treatment or anything, but enough that if I don't wax and pluck, my eyebrows would become one and the hair on my upper lip would make people stare and wonder if it's hair or newspaper ink.
So, normally I go to a salon to have my waxing taken care of. It's relatively cheap and so much easier. But I recently stopped tanning which meant that the hair on my body gets pretty dark and shows up against my white skin. Most of all, my arm hair. So, I decided to wax it.
I grabbed a box of wax I had saved for a rainy day and after reading the directions and heating the wax, started the process. It was very messy. Isn't there an easier way? I had more wax on my fingers than on my arms and when I tried to apply the paper strips to my arms, my fingers stuck to it. Argh. Anyway, rrrrriiiiiiiip.......ouch! Was there supposed to be blood? I don't think so. I managed to take off a little skin in one area, but other than that, it looked great and FELT even better. It's been over a month and the hair still hasn't sprouted back. I wonder if it's gone for good!? Oh that would be wonderful. If not, I think I'll leave the arm waxing to the professionals. A new brow bar called Brow Betty just opened up near my favorite shopping nook Bridgeport Villiage. I'll be paying them a visit.

First Blog

Okay, this is my first attempt at "blogging."

Our family just moved back to our hometown of Oregon after living in Washington for 3 years. We are ecstatic to be back home close to family and able to reconnect with old and dear friends. The housing market has been terrible lately, so it took us 10 months to sell our house in Puyallup, WA. We lived with John's parents during that time. Oh how I love his parents and we were so blessed with the opportunity to stay with them. Our kids had so much love around them and the support was truly wonderful. I must say, however, that I'm a very private person and need my "space" more so than the average person. As much as I loved living with my in-laws, I'm grateful to have our own home now.

My husband was hired on by Cook Security Group and is loving it. They are a wonderful company with a fun and professional atmosphere.

More later.