Giggly Girl

This was a fun evening with Marin. By the time that we got the camera, she had actually begun to calm down.

Just chillin' in my flippin' sweet pool!

Home Improvements

Don't worry the stripes are not different colors. They are actually all the same color with a glaze that gives them a really cool color effect.

We decided to add some color into our drab lives. We can't take full credit for our paint or painting choices. We stole the idea from Katie's Aunt and Uncle. But we were inspired by brave souls who went before us, boldly adding color to their homes and lives. The Rooster is a painting that Katie's Dad painted. It's freaking sweet and looks awesome in this room with this red. Check out some more of his cool stuff on the link for Watercolor Backroads (shameless plug) on my friendly people links.

The color on this picture is a little strange it's a good shot of the room, but the rooster red is more the true color. Hope you all have enjoyed this short look into our sweet new home.

Going so green that I bleed spinach

For more than the last year, KT and I have been down to only one car. Something unfortunate went wrong with her car and forced an early demise. However; it was a Dodge, its demise was more than likely right on time. I really don’t understand why the American auto industry is having so much trouble. I’m only one of so many that prefers to have a really expensive product work when I need it to. Since then we’ve only had a Honda to rely on (I know, I’m nervous too. It’s not like it’s a Dodge.) While in Provo things worked out great. I lived a parking lot away from work and just walked so that KT could get to her job and later when Marin came along, she was never stranded at home with no way to get out. Now that we have moved to N.C., work is a little farther than a parking lot away, about six miles farther. We have loved so much only having one car (gas, payments, up-keep etc.) that instead of a new car, I have started riding my bike to work. I feel all responsible, like I’m doing my part for the environment. While that is all nice and good, it actually has nothing to do with it. It’s just a convenient bonus. Sometimes I wonder if I should feel a little guilty about being less than altruistic. Then I come to my senses. The cool thing is that it just happened to become an easy choice for us. In addition to single handedly saving the word of pollution by biking to work, our new home is an energy star home. This means that all of our appliances are working to save energy and money. We don’t even have natural gas piped into the neighborhood because the homes are built to be conservative and eco friendly. We just got our first bills and this seems to be holding true. The home has some special type of insulation that so far has been great. It’s 90+ outside and a cool 70 inside. This remains relatively constant unless we open up all the blinds in the home and let too much sun in. I’m really just blown away by how environmentally friendly we’ve become. Now we can walk around with our noses in the air and snub everyone that is not working as hard as we are to protect Mother Gaia. Just call me CAPTAIN PLANET.

Starting New

So for the last two+ years we have been living in Utah. The truth of the matter is that I am really sad to leave some great friends, but Katie and I both feel like our move to Durham has been one of the best decisions that we have yet made. Our ward is absolutely amazing. We've been there for almost two months now and we still have new people coming up and introducing themselves to us. Katie has been making some new friends by joining a group of girls in the Ward for morning walks twice a week. Last night we went to a small neighborhood BBQ. We met four other couples from the block and had a really fun time. We were the only ones with a child, but that was nothing more than coincidence. Everyone was so nice. We dig our neighbors. The coolest part was that all the ladies at the BBQ are professionals and working in full-time careers. They were all seemingly impressed with Katie for her desire to stay home with Marin. In a lot of ways they were way more supportive than just about any other group of people that we've encountered. It's really cool to be able to enjoy what you are doing and where you are doing it. Not to mention that the beaches are so close. Visitors are always welcome.