Water World

Kari and I had a fabulous day today. We took the day off from work and went to Water World, which is voted one of the top ten water parks in the US. We had SO MUCH FUN! It was way better than going to work. Duh! There were several rides that were "adrenaline" rides. They really got our blood pumping and our heart rate up. We tried almost all the rides in the park, but there were three rides that we did over and over and over again. One of them was a slide that was literally straight down for five stories. Kari did it first, and I was too chicken to go. But once she did it (and lived to tell about it), I decided I couldn't be out done by her, so I did it, too. Then I wanted to keep doing it. There was a also a ride that looked like a half pipe. We sat in a double intertube. You drop straight down and then go up the other side. We did this one about five times. It made our stomach drop every single time. The other ride we really liked was a racing ride. You race seven other people down a winding, dark tunnel and then speed to the finish line where they have a timer to show your time. You lay on your stomach on a pad. Kari won the first time, but I beat her the second time.
If you ever come to visit me in the summer, we HAVE to take a day and go to Water World.

Answer Your Dang Phone!

My brother, Collin, and his wife, Katie, are quite the comical couple. They are exactly one day apart, so if you believe in horoscopes, I don't think one Scorpio is supposed to marry another Scorpio. They are too much alike (according to the horoscope). But Collin and Katie manage just fine. It's hard to believe that my little brother will have three kids by age 26 and was married at age 20. I'm going on 28 with no husband and no kids, which Collin never forgets to remind me about.

I learned a lesson from them today. Katie is training in Denver this week, so she left Collin at home (Loveland) with the little boys so she could enjoy a week of work, silence and relaxation. After she got off work yesterday, she tried calling Collin several times. No answer. She texted him. No reply. She texted me to see if I had heard from him. Nope, my brother doesn't answer my calls or reply to my messages. So this morning (over 16 hours have gone by), Katie still couldn't get a hold of Collin. By now she was starting to worry. She emailed me to see if I had heard from him. Again, refer to my comment about my brother not responding to me. Since she was in meetings and training all day, she asked if I could keep calling him. I called him a few times, until at last he answered my call. I was so shocked that he answered my call that I was lost for words for a moment. Then I remembered why I called. He's ok. The boys are ok. Carson turned his phone on silent yesterday afternoon, and Collin didn't realize it until 11pm last night. Why do I ask? I told him Katie is worried about him and about to call the National Guard (well, not really, but it makes the story better).

He says, "Oh, brother. I'm perfectly fine and there's no reason to worry."

I emailed Katie. "He's ok."

She replies back, "Thank God! I was about to have my mom go to the house to check on him."

Moral of the story: Collin was as happy as a lark taking care of his children. Katie was worried to death because she couldn't see or hear from Collin. Do you think we're like this with God? God is happily taking care of his children. We're so far away from Christ doing our own thing (work, school, fun stuff) that we don't realize God is right there taking care of us?

I sometimes wonder if God would put us on silent if He could. It would give Him silence to complete His awesome work in our lives without us getting in the way. But like my brother who called Katie to tell her he was okay, God has a way of reasuring us that everything is going to be okay.

Things You Don't Know About Me

* I am very quiet in school. Always have been. I'm not one to go around voicing my opinions or thoughts to people I don't know very well.

* Cilantro is the worst food ever created. I can't stand to eat anything with Cilantro in it.

* I drink a cup of coffee every day on my way to work.

* I wear a mouth guard when I sleep because I grind my teeth so bad.

* I hate going to the doctor, so I find myself enduring the pain rather than finding a solution for the pain.

* I've never broken a bone but I've had three major surgeries.

* I've lost 45 pounds in the past year and I'm still losing.

* When I visit my parent's house, I love to sit down at their piano and play. I took lessons for years, so I like to pretend that I can play the piano.

* I have a pretty decent voice. I can harmonize like none other.

* I want to write a book someday.

* I want to adopt a child from across seas.

* My biggest desire (apart from getting married and having kids) is to travel to Africa.

* I have a beta fish named Princess Sparkles. He doesn't like the name, but he's just happy to be alive at this point.

* It takes a while for me to open up to people.

* I never drank a drop of alcohol until I was 21 years old.

* I'm very stubborn, so if I set my mind to something you can gurantee I will accomplish my goal. For example: MS150.

* I hate my legs. Ugh.

* I snore.

* I drool.

* I only shave my legs every other day in the summer. In the winter, it's reduced to about once a week.

* I hate hiking, but I'm about to climb a 14er in a week. I'm only going because a cute boy might be there.

* I am so organized it's sickening. Everything must be in perfect order for me to concentrate on the task at hand.

* Ice cream is my downfall. And Peanut M&Ms.

* Going in to Target makes me very happy. Spending money at Target makes me giddy.

* I'm really weird. More than the average joe. When I'm with my family or by myself, I sing really loud, really off key. I like to sing Opera.

* I have a hard time getting rid of my fat clothes for fear that I might need them again some day.

* I like to talk about me. Hence the blog.

My Favorite One Year Old

Isn't he about the cutest little baby you've ever seen? He has red hair and fair skin, so he for sure belongs to my red headed sister. Little Case is a doll and about as sweet as they come. He just started walking in the past few weeks, so he loves to get up and GO, GO, GO! And man, he can put down the food, but you'd never know it because he only weighs 20 pounds. He eats more than Carson most of the time.

He loves to say goodbye to me each morning when I leave for work. If he's up, Shan will put him on the sofa so he can see out the big window. He'll stand there and wave and blow kisses until I'm out of sight. It's a good way for me to start out the day. He also loves to stand at the top of the stairs by the baby gate and look down at me in the basement. He'll shake the gate as if saying, "Let me down there so I can watch you."

Case loves to cuddle, especially if he's tired. He'll lay his head on your shoulder and just relax. He also loves to give open mouth kisses. If you're the one to receive them, you'll have baby slobber all over your face.

Case has been a special addition to the family. He loves his older cousins and can't wait for the day to be able to keep up with them. Case and Kye are still learning to share with each other, but they all love to play together. I love you, Baby Case. You're a joy to have in the family.

My Favorite Four Year Old

The mohawk speaks of the attitude this little guy has. Carson, my oldest nephew, is a super fun kid, but he has enough attitude for both him and his brother. My brother and sister-in-law took the boys camping this weekend. Carson was so excited to play outside. At the end of their camping trip, Katie asked Carson if camping was as much fun as he thought it would be. Carson replied back, "NO!"

His newest thing is to call his dad "Collin" (rather than daddy). Collin gets so mad (in a joking manner).
He says, "I am not Collin. I'm your daddy!!"
Then Carson will say, "Where's Kate?"
Collin will say, "Don't call her Kate. She's your mother."
Carson will say, "Well, Collin, you call her Kate so I can call her Kate!"

Carson is super smart. He has an incredible memory and often reminds us of things that us older adults can't even remember. He can give us directions to certain places just by remembering how we got there before. He's going to outshine all the others once he starts school.

We love having Carson in the family. He doesn't let us often take pictures of him, but when he's willing he sure does become the cutest little model. His eyelashes are about an inch long, and his beautiful brown almond shaped eyes can win anyone over. I love you, Carson. I'm so glad you're a part of our family. It just wouldn't be the same without you!

My Favorite Two Year Old

My nephew, Kye, is a blast. I love him dearly, and I can't imagine my life without this little blonde headed cutie. He didn't start talking until he was two, but now he just jabbers away. He loves to repeat everything we say. He doesn't know his colors yet, which cracks me up. I'll show him a yellow banana and ask him what color it is. Confidently, he'll say, "Blue." Not quite!

His newest thing cracks us up every single time. It never gets old.
He loves Uncle Jeff, so he'll say, "Hey Jeff."
Jeff will says, "What, Kye?"
Kye will reply back, "I don't know."
And then he'll keep doing it.
"Hey, Jeff."
"What, Kye?"
"I don't know."
Now Jeff has started doing it to Kye, who finds it hilarious. Kye just laughs and laughs when Jeff does it back.

Kye is also a walking disaster. Everything he touches turns in to a giant mess. My sister, Shannon, has a water purifier sitting on their kitchen counter. The other day, Kye walked over, turned on the switch and just stood there as the water poured out all over the floor. Shan had quite the mess to clean up after that. We let him outside the other night to play in the backyard. Katie, his mom, went outside to check on him and found him covered in grease. He had found his daddy's bike and thought it would be fun to play with the chain.

After ten minutes of scrubbing with soap and lemon juice, his hands were finally clean.

Our family is so blessed to have "Baby Kye" in the mix. He never fails to bring a smile to our face. Love you, baby!

Interesting People

I've been working on my Master's degree for over a year now. The cool part about my program is I have been attending classes with the same group of 12 people, and we've all become really good friends. Let me tell you about them.

Rob-a real Rocket Scientist. He's probably the smartest man I know, and even better, he's so much fun! He's a father of one boy, and he loves his wife so much. Rob is our joke teller and is going to make an incredible teacher. He's going to be teaching science (chemistry, physics, all those smart classes).

Courtney-a stay at home mom of two girls and works at her church part time. Courtney is great. She'll let you know how it is. No BS with Courtney. Her and I are tight. She's really smart with computers and business.

Rich-sells decks. Rich and I have become good friends. He is a father of one cute little two year old boy, Peter, and I've met his wife, Jenn. Rich is the sarcastic one and the best brown noser you'll ever meet. We sit by each other and write notes back and forth during class. Courtney usually joins in, too. Rich is going to teach business and Spanish.

Jen-works at a hotel in Vail. She drives over two hours one way to attend class every week, and she wins the reward for best participation in class. Jen and I have the same degree and we'll be teaching the same thing: English and Journalism classes. She's from Jersey, which you can tell by her accent.

Erin-stay at home mom of three boys and substitute teacher. Erin is also very smart. She's going to be teaching science (chemistry), and she's the quiet one. She's so sweet, and a good person to have as a friend.

Jared-service advisor at Kuni Lexus. Jared is the youngest person (25) in our group, and he's also very sarcastic. He's a lot of fun and got voted the best dressed male in our group. He'll be teaching science classes.

Matt-owns his own painting company. Matt is married and a father of one little girl. He's the funny one in the group, and always has a comment to make us laugh. Matt wants to teach PE and be a coach.

Christina-elementary school para. She'll be teaching world history. She doesn't pay attention in class, as she's always on the internet.

Maria-her husband has been in Iraq for over a year, so she is a single mother of four children. Maria is so sweet, and I admire her a lot. She not only is working and raising four children, but she's been working on her Master's as well. She'll be teaching computer classes.

Chris-lawyer and former judge. You can tell Chris is a lawyer by the way he can out talk everyone. If you get him going, he can talk for hours without stopping. He's going to teach social studies.

Tom-ex marine and cop. He's interesting, to say the least. He sure does know his history and can tell you what happened on July 26, 1847, if you ask him. He'll lead his classroom with an iron fist. Enough said.

Shiloh-rents cars at Enterprise. Believe it or not, I don't talk a lot in class discussions. One teacher told me I had great ideas and thoughts but I needed to speak up and voice my opinions. I'm just leaving room for Rich to suck up.

As you can see, we come from all different backgrounds and jobs. We range in age from 25 to 50, and no two of us are alike. Some will make amazing teachers; others will struggle through their first year. The amazing thing to me is that a rocket scientist, a lawyer and a cop (among many other occupations) are all giving up their salaries and comfortable positions to teach the future of America.

We all report to our classrooms in the next couple of week, so good luck to you all. I can't wait to see you in a week as we begin our fall classes.

Ode to Enterprise

I have one week left of work. I've worked for Enterprise for four years, and it's about to come to an end. You have no idea the emotions I'm feeling. On one hand, I've had some of my worst moments working for this company. I've cried. I've sworn never to come back. I've been yelled at by customers. I've been yelled at my some of our accounts. I've washed cars in 100 degree heat wearing a suit. I've worked 60+ hours a week. And the list goes on and on. But on the other hand, I've made great friends. I have a lot of fun memories from this job. I've been well fed by Enterprise. I have some cool Enterprise things. I've had some great managers. And I've learned a limitless amount of knowledge about the business world that will always benefit me.

My world is about to change drastically in one week, and with that thought I am filled with many emotions. As most of you know, I've been working on my Master's degree since last May to be a Secondary School Teacher in the subject of Language Arts/English/Journalism. All that hard work and studying is about to come to fruition. Starting August 7, I leave the business world and enter the life of many high school students. I will become their teacher, their mentor, their friend, their trusted elder, for some their enemy. I have a big responsibility ahead of me.

If you read my last post, you read that I saw The Breakfast Club last night at Red Rocks. If you haven't seen the movie, it's an old movie you should see. It's about a group of five high schoolers who have to serve Saturday school. They are all different: one is the most popular girl in school, one is the most athletic in school, one is the nerd, one is the Goth chick and one is the bully who everyone hates. They have an epiphany moment near the end of the movie where they realize they are more alike than they ever thought possible. They all have pressures that haunt them, they all have parents they hate, they all think the world is out to get them. They all lead a hard life in one way, shape or form. The teacher in the movie does not relate to these students at all.

This movie, while fiction, made me remember why I'm becoming a teacher. No, it's not for the summers off or the long Christmas vacation or the Spring Break. Those are all great things that I will enjoy, but the "real" reason I want to be a teacher is so cliche. It tugs at my heart everyday. It's another one of my passions apart from the MS Society. I want to make a difference. I want to relate to my students. I want to remember what high school is like and help them through that time. I want to guide them to lead a productive, meaningful life. I want to help produce talents that are hidden. I want to reach the Goth chick, or the athletic guy, or the popular girl, or the nerd, or the bully and let them know that I care.

I'm scared speechless about my new adventure. It's hard to put in to words what I'm feeling right now. It actually makes me sick to my stomach when I think about the task at hand. Apart from teaching them English and grammar and spelling and reading and writing, I am teaching them about life. I am going in to Columbine High School as a human being but being looked at as a mentor. I have to be wise at all times, and I pray that Christ is my focus. My desire is that my heart is so lost in Christ that my students will see Christ when they look at me.

Dear Lord, I cannot do this on my own. I ask for your wisdom, your guidance, your love and your patience as I begin my new career. You know my students. You know their hurts, their troubles, their family life, their struggles, their joys. Bless them. Love them. Help me to love them.

Film at Red Rocks

Last night my girlfriends and I went to Red Rocks to see Breakfast Club and to celebrate Sonya's birthday. We grabbed Willy's Wings on the way up and enjoyed those while we listened to a live band before the movie started. Kari had made cheesecake cupcakes for dessert, so we sang Happy Birthday to Sonya (it was too windy so the candle kept blowing out). Once it turned dark, they started the movie.

My Most Expensive Friend

One of my best friends from high school, Mike, just arrived in Denver last night from Chicago. He's one of those friends that I know will be my friend through thick and thin. We've been through a lot together, both good times and bad times, but he never fails to bring a smile to my face. I talk to him about boys and get a man's advice. He asks me for advice on girls and dating and other topics. It seems whenever we're together, however, disaster always strikes.

Our first disaster happened on New Year's Eve years and years ago. Bill (another good friend), Mike, another friend and I took a road trip to Denver (when we were all living in NE) for a ski weekend. We stayed at my aunt and uncle's house in Thornton. On New Year's Eve, we headed up to Copper mountain for a day of fun before heading downtown to celebrate the New Year. On our very first run of the day, Mike and I ran in to each other. He was snowboarding, I was skiing and WHAM, my head hit his shoulder and it knocked me out cold. My brother-in-law was also skiing with us that day, so he took off down the mountain to get help. When I finally came to, I didn't really know where I was or what time it was. I was taken down the mountain by ski patrol and ended up with a concussion. No one really cared about Mike by that time, but he injured his shoulder. We spent the rest of the day in the hospital lodge while everyone else was out skiing.

Our second disaster also happened on the ski slope several years later. Again, we ran in to each other and I fell, hurting my wrist. I didn't think much of it until months and months later when a large bump started to appear on my wrist. After seeing a specialist, I was diagnosed was a large cell bone tumor (benign). The doctor said I had probably fractured my wrist when I fell skiing and it developed into a tumor. After a very serious surgery to remove the tumor, I was in a full arm cast for four months and then had to wear a brace for six months. I spent the next two years getting a scan done every three months to make sure the tumor didn't return.

The last major disaster happened years ago when I was still living in Kearney. I was moving from one house to another and Mike offered his pick-up truck to help. He and I loaded a mattress in the back of the truck but didn't tie it down. We were only going a mile, so we figured it would be fine. As we were going over the overpass, the mattress flew out of the back, hitting the van behind us and shattering her windshield. We ended up paying cash for a new windshield for this lady.

My dad says Mike is the most expensive friend I've ever had.

As for me, I think he's a keeper. He's in Denver for the next three weeks, so I'm excited to spend some time with him and catch up.

Homeless People or Scammers?

There's a "homeless" couple that I drive by everyday. They sit at the corner of Colorado and Hampden during rush hour, and they have been there about a month. They play the part exceptionally well; so well in fact, that I almost gave them money last week because I felt so bad for them, but when I pulled out my wallet I didn't have any cash. The guy is probably in his 40s and the girl is a little bit younger, probably in her 30s. They look so pitiful and lost. It's been in the mid-90s for the past several weeks, so that's one of the reasons I felt so bad for them.

Their sign read, "Need enough money to buy a bus ticket to Cody, WY. WE ARE NOT ON DRUGS. Anything helps." But this is the clincher that really chaps me. Yesterday on my way home, I was approaching the corner where they sit. About half a mile from the corner is a golf course with a big parking lot. Pulling out of that parking lot at 5:10pm in a little grey truck was...You guessed it: This man and woman. THEY HAVE A CAR!!! They don't need the money to buy a bus ticket to get to WY. They could get in their truck and drive to WY if they really needed to get to there. What are they doing with other people's money?

I was so upset I almost crashed. I did a double take just to make sure it was them. The man was driving and the girl was sitting beside him. There's no doubt in my mind it was them. How many other people are standing on the corner taking money from other people? Is the Dateline Special about homeless people true? Are these people really scammers? Can we trust anyone asking for money?

My Friday

Work really does get into the way of our fun. We had such a fun weekend planned that it was really hard to work on Friday. Kari, Sonya and I all left work a little early so we could get on the 5:20pm lightrail to downtown. Sonya's roomate, Kelly, met us downtown and we enjoyed Happy Hour Mojito's at The Samba Room. We had dinner reservations at 7:30 right across the street at Osteria deMarco, and Abby arrived just in time for dinner. We decided to order a few things to share and if we were still hungry we could order more. So we ordered meat, cheese and crackers for an appetizer and a pizza for the main course (a small pizza). The guy who delivered our pizza was super cute. He said, "This table sure does smell good." I asked, "We smell good?" He said, "You all smell good. Here I am all sweaty from working." I said, "Don't tell us that!" in a flirty voice. We all laughed and he walked away after cutting our pizza. I immediately had a crush on this guy. I had to talk to him again. I even went to the bathroom, hoping to run in to him. No such luck.
Deciding that we were still hungry after the first pizza was done, and hoping the cute guy would bring us our second pizza, we placed our order again. Dissapointed, a girl delivered our pizza. We ate that and decided we were still hungry. We ordered a THIRD pizza, hoping again that the cute guy would deliver it. But alas, another girl delivered our third pizza. Drastic measures had to be taken, so Kari asked the girl who the cute guy was who had delivered our first pizza. She said his name is Joe. Kari asked this girl to ask Joe to come to our table because one of us girls had a crush on him.

But another guy (good looking as well) came to our table. His name was Bobby, and he was the manager. He said, "I heard someone at this table wanted to talk to Joe. I'm sorry I'm not Joe, but I think he'll be coming out soon to chat with you ladies." Bobby talked with us for a few minutes and then left, saying he would get Joe. Joe finally arrived at our table. Now it was time for me to make my move. I said, "We had to order three pizzas in order to get you back to our table!" I asked Joe what time he got off work. He said 11. I asked him if he lived to dance. He said he did. I asked him if he wanted to meet up with us after dinner to go dancing. He said he would. So he left his number and said to call him. But the story ends here. I called him a few hours later and left a message, telling him to call me to meet up. I never heard from him. Sad :(

But that wouldn't ruin my fun. After dinner, we met up with about ten of our friends at Corridor 44, which is a champagne bar. Then we headed out to go dancing. We ended up at Cowboy Lounge to end the night. While I was sitting at the bar taking a break from dancing, a guy came up to me and said, "Hi, my name is S." I looked at him and told him my name is S. Neither one of us believed each other until we showed our ID's. Sure enough, his name is S. It was the weirdest thing. He said his dad took a Civil War class in college and learned about the Battle of S. During that class, his dad decided that boy or girl, he was going to name his first child S. So that was fun to meet someone with my same name.
It was a late night, and I got home around 3:15am knowing I was only going to get about four hours of sleep before waking up to head to Cheyenne.

My Saturday

After a very late night Friday night to celebrate Kari and Sonya's birthdays, Saturday morning, six of my dearest friends and I headed to Cheyenne, WY, for Cheyenne Frontier Days. Abby, her fiance Corey, Mandi, Amy, Sonya, Kari and I left Denver around 10am in a rented mini van. It took us about two hours to get to Cheyenne, and then the real fun began. We spent the afternoon people watching, browsing the merchandise and looking for cute Cowboys (minus Abby and Corey). We ate dinner at a local bar and then headed back to Frontier Days for the main event: Taylor Swift opening for Rascal Flatts.
Taylor Swift was amazing and a great performer. I enjoyed her music so much. For a 19 year old girl, she has got some talent. While Rascal was setting up their stage after Taylor was done, we realized that we were sitting in the old people section. We could tell we were surrounded by a pretty boring group, but as Rascal began to play, we weren't going to let that get us down. Our group all stood up and started to have fun, dancing and singing to "Life is a Highway." As the song ended, we could hear shouts behind us, "Sit DOWN! We can't see." I wasn't going to let these people ruin our fun, so I told the girls to stand firm and keep standing. More shouts from behind: "You girls need to sit down!" There might have even been a few cuss words. Again, I told the girls that we had every right to stand up and have fun.

And then I about got into a fight. I have mentioned that my life is pretty drama free, but the drama began right about now...Someone behind us threw their beverage on us. I ignored it the first time. Stay cool. And then they threw even more, soaking our backs and hair. I don't normally have a temper, but I about lost it right then and there. I whipped around and a lady was sitting behind us with her two daughters. She was screaming at me, telling us to sit down because no one could see. I yelled back, telling her we had every right to stand and enjoy the concert. And then I made a decision that I am pretty proud about but took every ounce of Christianity that I had in my soul: Rather than dumping my beer on her, I turned around and we all sat down. The people behind us cheered and clapped, yelling that it was about time we sat down.

I was so angry, as were my friends, that I was shaking with rage. It's one thing to ask us calmly to sit down. But it's a completely other thing to throw a beer on us and yell and scream. So cliche, but I had a real "What Would Jesus Do" moment. I came about ten seconds from dumping my drink on them, but I had to make a conscience decision to not let them get me down. It would have been easy to let them ruin my night, but I decided that I would still have fun, even with them behind us egging us on. I shook it off and enjoyed the rest of the night. Rascal was amazing. It was a great show and we were so happy to be able to see them live. For the last three songs, my friends and I jumped down into the standing area (we should have done this from the beginning) and enjoyed the finale from really close to the stage.

It was a long two hour drive back to Denver, but Kari was a trooper and stayed up and chatted with me while I drove home. Everyone else was sleeping in the back, and we all got home around 2am.

My Sunday

My weekend was such a fabulous, fun weekend that I'm going to have to do it in segments, starting with Sunday. My brother, his wife and my two nephews drove down from Loveland Saturday night and stayed with me and my sister (we live together with her husband and my other nephew). Sunday morning, we had breakfast together and then we went to Pirate's Cove for a day of fun in the sun and water.

Carson

KylerCase

My brother and meWe came back to the house later in the day and took a nice long nap. Then the boys played in the bouncy toy before going to dinner at Rib City. What a great day to end a busy weekend.

The Men Who Come Flockin' I Don't Want Them Knockin'

I work with a gentleman from Serbia. Slobodan is the nicest person you'll ever meet. He moved to America after his high school sweetheart, Beba, also from Serbia, went through a nasty divorce. He came to be her support. He had always loved her, but she finally fell in love with him after he moved here. He's worked very hard to become an American Citizen, and sadly enough, he probably knows more history and knowledge about America than I do.

I've been training him, and today he asked me a question regarding work. I answered it and he replied, "How can I ever repay you?" I chuckled and said, "You can find me a man." He replied back, too eagerly, that he had a man in Serbia he could set me up with. He said he was a hard worker, a good looking man and he would be dedicated to me entirely. Sounds nice enough. My first thought is: Does he speak English? My second thought is: Will he move to America for me? My third thought is: Is he rich?

I play along with Slobodan and tell him he sounds wonderful. End of conversation in my mind. BUT THEN Slobodan says, "If you want, I can get in contact with this guy and you can talk to him." (He must speak English) "No pressure," he says, "but he can come visit you. And if you two click, he can move here for you. Let me know if you're interested and you two can chat on the internet."

WHAT? Oh no, what have I gotten myself in to? Do I want to date a Serbian? Can he handle this white chick? All I ask for is a man who speaks English, lives in Denver (or less than 20 miles) and knows how to dress nice. Is that too much?

150 Miles on a Bike? Are You Crazy?

Everyone has a strong passion about something, right? For some, their passion can be as shallow as designer clothes and purses. Or it can be as selfless as helping stop world hunger. My passion has only just developed in the past three years, sadly because my dad was diagnosed with MS. For the first 24 years of my life, I knew nothing about MS and honestly I didn't really have a need to know anything about MS. But I remember the day like it was yesterday. It was Christmas and my parents set us kids down because they had something to tell us. My dad, unable to stop his tears, told us he had been diagnosed with MS. The rest of the story from that night will remain unwritten, as that's something between my family and me.

From that time, my family has learned a lot about MS, its side affects, what it means for my father, his painful shots he takes three times a week, his inability to do things like he used to do, etc. We started doing the MS Walk in Denver, and this year we participated in the MS Walk in Kearney, my hometown. My parents are amazing people. My dad has never complained about his diagnosis. He takes his shots and tries to live his life as normal as possible. My mom is the rock, always there to help my dad. She's a nurse, both physically and emotionally. They stay active, and while dad can't physically last as long as he used to, he still rides his bike, goes on walks, hikes, camps, plays with his grandsons and (his most favorite thing) plays on his 4Wheeler.

My passion was put to the test in February. I received an email from my company stating that they were forming a team to ride in the MS150. This is a two day bike ride covering 150 miles of northern Colorado. I received the email and forwarded it to my good friend, Kari, whose sister has MS. I said, "This is crazy. Can you imagine riding 150 miles on a bike? Too bad it's not shorter because this would be fun to do." She wrote back and said, "Let's do it." I wrote back and said, "I can't ride 150 miles on my bike in two days." She wrote back and said, "Sure we can. If we train together and ride together, we can totally do this. What an amazing accomplishment. Your dad and my sister would be so proud to have us riding in honor of them." I wrote back and said, "Let me think about it."

So that's what I did. I thought long and hard about it. I told my brother and brother-in-law about it, hoping they would want to ride with us. My brother really wanted to ride but couldn't afford to buy a bike for the ride. My brother-in-law told me I was crazy. He said, "150 miles?! Do you realize what that means?" I said, "I totally understand the implications of what that means. I understand that 150 miles is not an easy task. But I also understand the cause." I emailed Kari the next day and said, "OK, let's do it."

So our training began. We started off doing spin classes. Once the weather was nice enough, we started riding outside. Our first long ride was 30 miles and I thought I was going to die. But then 30 miles turned into 40 miles and before we knew it, we were riding close to 80-100 miles per weekend. We usually rode from 7am-2pm on Saturday's, which was about 65 miles. Sunday mornings, we would get up before church and ride 30-40 miles. It was no easy task. People were amazed at us riding 150 miles in two days, but they seemed to forget about the miles we rode before even getting to that point.

Finally, riding day was upon us. This is what we had been training for. The morning was a rush of excitement. My parents had driven to CO to see us off and greet us at the finish line, so they helped us unload our bikes at 5:45am in Westminster. They helped us load our luggage on to the FedEx truck and dad was our official photographer. Our Enterprise Team left Kari and me before we were even ready to go, so we were hurrying to get on the road. At 6:40am, we were finally going through the start lane.

As we passed through the gates, there was a woman in her 40s with advanced MS. She was in a wheelchair and had a breathing tube in her throat. She was positioned right in the middle of the road, where every single biker had to pass in order to start the course. She was the only person there, and as each biker passed her, you couldn't help but remember why we were all riding. As Kari and I passed her, she mouthed the words, "Thank you," to us. It was life changing. Kari and I burst into sobs at that point. Here we were, about to ride 150 miles for our passion, and we had to remember that we weren't doing this for us or for our glory. We were doing this for my father and her sister and everyone else we know and love who has MS. As we were sobbing, we prayed as we began our journey. We asked God to protect us, to guide us, to give us energy and strength to finish our ride. We asked Him to be with Amanda and my dad, to bless them, to give them strength and energy to finish their journey, which will be a lifelong journey. We were riding for two days, they were suffering for a lifetime.

It took us about five minutes to get control of our emotions, and that wasn't the first time we were overcome with emotions during our journey. There were times I cried as we went up long, steep hills due to the physical pain I was enduring. There were times I cried on long, flat parts because I was thinking about what I was doing for my dad. There were times I cried because I didn't know if I was going to make it to the end. Giving up was NEVER an option for Kari and me. That's why we made such a great team; we were in this together to the very, very end. But there were definitely sections of this course that made us focus on the cause to get us to the end. Oh how sweet that finish line was, not only because it was the end of our long ride, but because our family members and dearest friends were there waiting for us. We had barely crossed the finish line when I was so overcome with emotion that I was shaking and trying not to sob. Kari said, "Let it out, Shi, let it out." And I saw my parents coming toward me, my dad trying to hold back his tears, and we all lost it. Kari's parents came toward her, and her mother was crying. Kari started crying. We were all hugging. Our dear friends, Katie, Abby and Sonya were there taking pictures and crying. My sister, brother-in-law and nephew were all there. My brother, sister-in-law and two nephews had been there throughout the journey. Kari's sister, Amanda, had been a presence to us during our ride. We had more support than we could ever imagine and it meant the world to us to have everyone there.

Even as I write this blog, I am overcome with emotion. I know this is long, but I hope you can feel my passion as you read. It's sad that my dad had to be diagnosed with MS for me to gain a passion for something. With your help, I was able to raise almost $1500 to contribute to the MS Society. With that money, they will hopefully one day find a cure for MS. And what a sweet day that will be when my parents can set us kids down because they have something to tell us. I can picture us now, all crying with tears of joy because my dad can say, "I am cured of MS because of family and friends who were willing to donate money to help find a cure." Every time my family walks in the MS Walk or everytime someone rides in the MS150 or everytime someone contributes money to find a cure, we are that much closer to having a world free of MS.

Team Kari and Shiloh is set to ride again next year. Our team is growing. It's gone from two people with a passion to several people who have that same passion. Oh how fire spreads.

Do I Look Funny?

As most of you know, I recently rode 150 miles on my bike for the MS Society. But before actually riding 150 miles in two days, we had to ride a lot of miles to get up to that point. I probably put close to 400 miles on my bike in just a few short months. Since I have short hair, it usually looked pretty messy after taking off my helmet. One day in particular was hot, hot, hot and we had ridden a lot, lot, lot. So I decided that since my house was just three miles away, I would keep my helmet on while I drove home.

So I'm driving down Littleton Blvd, and I got stuck at a red light. I'm sitting there, minding my own business, when a car full of high school girls pulls up beside me. I glance their way and see that they are all giggling. And then I notice that there's a cell phone sticking out of the passenger side window and it's pointed at me. The light turned green, so I took off hoping to leave these girls behind me. But they were speeding to catch up with me, still taking pictures. So I slowed down. And they slowed down. I sped up, they sped up. And I can see that there's about three cell phones pointed my way. So I decided to play along. I started to wave and smile at the girls. I gave them a thumbs up. I rolled down my window and waived as I drove.

And then I turned the corner and took a different way home because I was tired of being made fun of by a bunch of high school girls. So if you happen to go to youtube.com, you might see a video of me driving me car with a bike helmet. What if those girls are my students when I start teaching. That would be embarrassing.

Inside Shiloh's Head

My birthday is September 11. I turned 21 on that day in 2001. What are the chances of that? Out of 365 days out of a year, why did those two planes have to crash in to the towers on my 21st birthday? It made for a pretty crappy memory.

I love peanut M&M’s. I could eat them all the time. I always make sure to pack them in my “Bag of Fun” whenever I travel.

I usually win "Hardest Butt" Contest. That's right, I have a firm rear. My mother would be so proud.

My boss is a spazz. She is out of control, and I figure if she can find a man and get married, then I can, too.

I have a crush on a man I’ve only met once. I call him Mr Church Man, as I met him at church. One of these days I’m going to make my move. Watch out Mr Church Man, I’m coming to charm you in to liking me.

I have really cute friends, so I figure I must be semi-cute.

I dated a guy I met on an airplane. I was working my game that day because I made the first move. Within thirty minutes of talking to him, I had his phone number in my hand. How’s that for GAME?

I worked for a rental car company for four years. Who figured my Journalism/English degree would have me renting cars?

I have an elephant on my foot, a starfish on my ankle and a star on my back. When my grandma, who totally HATES tattoos, asked me if my tattoo was real, I said, “Which one?” I kind of got myself in trouble for that comment. She had only seen the one on my back. Now she knows there’s more than one.

My brother told me I have stumpy legs. Which I do, if truth be told. But I just rode 150 miles on my bike while he followed me around in his car.

I once gave up shopping for 40 days. But I actually didn’t make it to the end of my goal. About 20 days in, I found some cowboy boots I just had to have. So I had to start over. About 10 days in the second time, I found two lamps that were fabulous. After buying those, I had to start AGAIN. I finally gave up trying to give up shopping. It’s not for me.

You know how you get an idea in your head that sounds fabulous until you actually try it? I had that problem with running. I thought it would be a good idea to run. And then I pictured what it must look like to other people to see an out of breath girl pounding down the street. Probably not so pretty.

And then I thought it would be a good idea to ride UP Lookout Mtn. I was getting shouts of encouragement from people. “You go girl. You can do it. You’re almost to the top.” They must have thought I was going to die.

Middle Child Syndrome

I am a middle child. Like most middle children, I believe that I am the least favorite child of my parents. First, there's my older, more responsible sister, Shannon. She is the "responsible leader," and never does anything wrong. Then came me, another girl. Sure, I was cute. Actually, I was more than cute. I had white blonde hair, bright blue eyes, a bubbly personality. But I was just another girl. But oh joy, then they had my younger brother, Collin. They were so excited to finally have their boy (mom lost two boys before Shan was even born). Collin is the baby of the family. He's the performer, always searching for attention.

I did a little research on middle children, and I discovered why I am the way I am.

If you’re a middle child, you can probably tell stories about your family photo album. There are around 300 pictures of your oldest sibling, about 100 pictures of your youngest sibling, but only 10 pictures of you, right? Some middle children say their parents even forget their names from time to time (my mom called me my brother's name all the time!).

Because middle children can feel overlooked at home, they often go outside the family to find acceptance. They are often the social and popular members of the family. They are well-liked because they are friendly and they accept people. Because middle children need to get along with the youngest and oldest siblings, they may become good peacemakers.

Secretive – Middle children often keep their hurts to themselves. They won’t tell you how left out they feel when you unwittingly overlook them, but if you are attentive you will notice their inexplicably sullen or sad behavior.

Flexible – Because they are born in the middle of everything, they have had to learn to adjust. Some are more laid-back than others, but most of them know how to adapt to situations and people. They are a bit more realistic about problems and solutions.

This is pretty accurate. I am very social. I am the most popular family member :). I am very friendly. I do accept people. I am a good peacemaker. I am flexible. And I am secretive. I'm not very eager to share my feelings unless you dig it out of me.

Now you know a little bit about me. I blame it all on being a middle child.

Follow the Leader

Yes, I am a follower. At least in blogging. I have several friends who have a blog, and then Katie signed up last night so I got to thinking that maybe I need one, too. I must admit, I'm working right now (well, obviously not "working" but at work). I haven't had much motivation to work for about a month now b/c I will be quitting my current job at Enterprise Rent A Car (ERAC) in three weeks and will begin a new career. This new career is something I have been working toward for a year and a half. I've been working on my Master's since last May, and I'll graduate in December with my teaching degree. That's right, I will be a high school English and Journalism teacher and it scares the crap out of me. But that might be a topic for another blog entry in the near future.

For now, I want to talk about myself. That's what blogs are all about, right? An easy way to share the good, the bad and the ugly about your personal life so those closest to you can read the drama. I hope I don't dissapoint anyone, but my life has very little drama and I would like to keep it that way. I don't have many stories that grab the attention of my collegues, but I like my life and I'll try to make my entries as cool as possible.

Another blog entry that will come soon is about my bike ride that I did with my dear friend, Kari. During that ride, Kari and I wore green and white ERAC jersey's. They were actually really cool. A fun part of that ride was having my family follow us through the country side. My little nephews were able to see "Aunt Sioh" ride. I talked to my brother last night and he told me this cute story about my two year old nephew, Kyler. They have been watching the Tour de France on TV, and Kyler saw a guy in a green and white jersey. Kye walked up to the TV and pointed to the jersey and said, "Sioh? Go, Sioh, go!" Is that not the cutest thing you've heard all day?

Ok, more to come later. I guess I should get back to "work."