Big News

I have 2 big updates for everyone! The first is that we found out today that are permits have been in for 2 weeks (more bad communication with our builder) and the slab start day is today!!!! We are now talking to the "higher ups" within KB about the problems in communication with our sales associate. I wonder how long it would have been before they contacted us! Anyway, we are happy things have begun and are hoping that communication will improve from here on out! Immediately after I got off the phone with this gentleman I jumped in the car and drove to our plot and sure enough, there was a frame for the concrete pour with a huge pile of dirt in the middle. When I was there taking pictures a worker came on a tractor of sorts and began leveling the dirt! At this point things should start to go much faster! We'll probably drive by everyday now so we can keep up with what's going on! We will obviously keep all of you updated!

The second piece of news is that I got a new job! There are no opportunities for moving up at the zoo right now and I was having health problems too. In addition, they pay zookeepers so little that it was hard to justify staying when we are building a house and hope to start a family soon. Of course I love the zookeeping field and am going to have a real hard time leaving, but I know it's the right thing to do right now for us! I will be starting my new position as Communications Manager (basically an assistant manager) at Petco on the 14th!

Update...

I don't have much of an update, just some randomness I thought I would share.

We still don't have the permit for the house, but there are 11 coming in this week. We should be one of them! If that's the case, we'll have a meeting with the construction manager next week and things can get started. I've talked to a lot of people who say that they are not surprised that it is taking so long. "It's the city"... is the most common response I get.

On Sunday, Dave had this wonderful idea to plan out the whole day! We started by dropping Fenway off at a friend's house. It was kind of like taking our child to daycare for the first time...it was weird to leave him. Then we went to the Houston Museum of Natural Science to see a temporary exhibit of Leonardo da Vinci! It was amazing! They had prints of his drawings and art and models of tons of his inventions! They were just incredible! All of them were way ahead of his time! It was fascinating! After walking around the rest of the museum we went to lunch at one of our favorite sandwich places, PotBelly Sandwich Works. I'm not sure where they are all located, but if you have one near you, you should definitely try it! Oh and their ice cream is to die for...so save room! After lunch, we went to the theater to see Juno. We've been meaning to see it for awhile. We really loved it! It had a great message, was very entertaining and flowed extremely well. The main actors were wonderful! I loved Ellen Page as the very believable character, Juno! It is an inspirational comedy! I recommend this movie highly! We will be adding it to our collection when it comes out! Following the movie, we went back to our friend's house to hang out for the rest of the night. We watched some tv, played a couple games, consumed some adult beverages and played with the 3 dogs (they have 2). It really was a wonderful day! Thank you honey for planning the whole thing!

Although Dave's birthday isn't for a few months, I wanted to treat him to something special and I have no choice but to give him his present early. I bought us tickets to a new show called, Walking with Dinosaurs. It is a live show at the Toyota Center in downtown Houston next week. I got tickets for the opening night! The show consists of life size dinosaurs and a ringmaster who guides you through the daily lives of dinosaurs, as well as the years of their existence. Dave has always been fascinated by dinosaurs and really enjoyed seeing them at the museum this weekend. I've been thinking about this as an option for his gift, but when I saw him staring up at the models of dinosaurs on Sunday with a look of amazement and this child like fascination, I knew it was the right gift. He chose to not be surprised, so I told him yesterday! Anyway, check it out and we'll let you know how it is after we see it next Wednesday.

Our Dirt is Still Just Dirt

Unfortunately, we have nothing to report on the new home! Why am I blogging about nothing you ask? Because we're incredibly FRUSTRATED!!! We are not doubting anything. We are still very happy with our decision, however, it is hard to stay excited when there is no progress. Let me explain...in mid-January we went to the studio and picked out all our features and upgrades for the house! It was tons of fun! After that was completed we were told that they could apply for the permits and then the building would start. The permit process was only going to take 2-3 weeks. Well, do the math...it is 6 weeks later and we are still waiting on our permits! It's not that they won't be approved, it's just that the city is bogged down with lots of permit requests right now. Or at least that's what we've been told. The builder is doing a better job at keeping us updated since we complained a couple weeks ago and they said that it shouldn't take more than another week or two. We'll see. So, to keep our excitement elevated we have started making some purchases for the house. We have picked our decorating themes for each room and bought several pictures for our new Antique French style bedroom and Naturally Organic living room and kitchen!!! We're pretty happy with how we think it will turn out. So, today we will be looking at paint! We want red for the bedroom and master bath, sage for the living room and kitchen and a very pale yellow for the downstairs powder room. All other rooms will stay white for now.
Well, cross your fingers that we get a permit soon!

Going bald

Boomer, the Siamang, may look innocent, but he has a very bad temper at times. He's a tricky animal to figure out. He's cuddly and lovey dovey one moment and the next he's ripping your hair out...literally! Yes, Boomer grabbed a handful of my hair and ripped it out at the roots! I have a small patch of hair missing right behind my bangs, and let me tell you...it hurt! Luckily, it's not that noticeable. Although, I have to say that I am a little worried about when it grows back and is spiky!!! :( Anyway, Boomer is a great animal and I don't blame him. Someone he doesn't like at all was in the vicinity and everyone figures he just took it out on me. I told him I was mad at him that day, but I've since forgiven him and have gone back to grooming him regularly. Hopefully, this was a one time deal...I will certainly be more cautious of the environment around me when I am near Boomer in the future. Bites, scratches and bruises come with the job...I've even had surgery once due to an animal injury; but this one is a first for me!

Wedding Album

After almost 8 months, we finally have our wedding album! The photographers mailed it earlier this week and I obsessed about tracking the package!!! I was very disappointed when it was running 2 days behind, but nonetheless we got it!!! It's huge and everything I ever dreamed! It's a perfect summary of the day and I can't wait to show all of you!

To Those of you who find it hard to make it through the work week...

http://www.glumbert.com/media/baddayoffice

Enjoy:)

I love my Green Bay Packers!

Well, it's the morning after the loss, and Laura and I are waiting for our muffins to be ready. I, myself, am ok with the loss last night. There are two ways that I look at the situation; 1. I did not expect the Packers to have a season like this. At the beginning of the year, I thought they were a 9 win team, AT BEST. What they did this year with the young team that they had really gives a lot of people hope for next year. There is no denying that something special happened this year with the way everyone came together, and there is no reason to think that they won't build on that for next season. Favre will be back, they will undoubtedly draw some interest from top-notch free agents, and the "youngest team in the league" will be a little older and little wiser. 2. I've learned that by putting your entire heart and soul into sports, you can't dwell on the losses. When I was younger (and I'm not trying to say that I am old by any means), I used to take losses so hard. When the Packers would lose in the playoffs, I would be depressed for a couple of weeks. When the Yankees would beat the Red Sox every year in dramatic fashion, I wouldn't talk to anyone. But I've learned that there is always next year, and that there is some light at the end of the tunnel. The Packers had an amazing year, and that gives a lot of people hope, like myself, for next year. So, while I must say adieu to my beloved Packers for a couple of months, at least it's not a couple of long, cold Wisconsin months. Besides, pitchers and catchers report in only 24 days, as of this posting. You can smell the grass, the cold beer, and a good hot dog in the air!

For all you sports fans out there, here is something to wet your whistle until next year. Enjoy!
16 Reasons to Root Against the Patriots

New Home

Dave and I hoped that this would be the year we would invest in our first home! Little did we think that we would find what we wanted so quickly! We searched the internet for hours, as did our realtor, and we kept coming up with one particular community. After going to see it twice and driving through the neighborhood several times, Dave and I signed some paperwork and begun the house buying experience! The community we picked is a build to order community. That means we get to choose everything that goes in to our new home, from the door knobs, to landscaping, to flooring and window coverings! There is literally an upgrade for every detail of the house! We will be going to a studio on the 17th for an orientation/class on how to choose the upgrades that our right for us! We'll then browse the studio once or twice and make another appointment to officially choose all our features! Prior to that, we will be finalizing the loan. Once these things are complete, the construction will begin! It is a 6-7 month build time, so we are looking at June or July for a closing and move-in date! We can't wait! To give you some idea what the house will look like...it is a 2 story, 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath, 1 car attached garage home. The downstairs consists of the living room, kitchen and dining area and the 1/2 bath. The upstairs has all the bedrooms including a master with master bath and 2 large closets! The lot we picked is the largest on the block, which is 125 feet from front to back. The back and side yard will be completely fenced in, which will be perfect for Fenway! The community is located right off of 288 in Houston; a couple exits before Pearland (where we are now). There will be a huge, new development called the Water Lights District (kind of like the San Antonio Riverwalk) going up by the end of the year which will be great for our property value! It will only be 2 exits away! We really feel that we made the right decision at the right time and can't wait for everyone to come visit! :)

New Year's 2008

We spent this New Year's at our place with many friends! We played games, drank more than our fair share of alcohol and laughed all night! A good time was had by all! Everyone got home safely, or spent the night, so all in all, the night was a success! Thanks for all who shared it with us and we hope 2008 finds everyone happy and in good health!

Vegas

I don't know why I find it so hard to keep up to date with our blog. Anyway, Vegas actually happened before Christmas, but better late than never, right?

Matt and Lynn, Don and Jenny and Dave and I all flew to Vegas to surprise Dave's mom, Yvonne, for her 60th birthday! Her and Ron were already there and Yvonne had no clue her kids were on their way! We arrived on friday morning hungry and tired from early flights; although, somehow Vegas has a way of waking you up! We checked in to our hotel, got some lunch and secretly called Ron to set up the surprise. It didn't go exactly as planned, but the important thing was that Yvonne was indeed surprised! The rest of the trip consisted of lots of shopping, eating, sight seeing and more shopping! Oh, a little gambling too! It was my first trip to Vegas, so Dave made sure we had time to walk the strip a little! We saw Paris, New York New York, MGM, Bally's, Planet Hollywood, Caesar's Palace and of course, the Bellagio, where we were staying! I had a blast hanging out with Dave's family! It was a wonderful 4 days that I will never forget!!!!

New Toy

So, in addition to the great gifts listed below, we also got a Kodak digital picture frame from my brother!!! We checked it out the night we opened it, but we just got all the pics we want on it today! It's soooo cool! We don't like a lot of clutter and we don't have a lot of room, so it's the perfect way to display tons of photos without taking up space! We have family shots, parties, vacations, our wedding and much more! We have over 100 pics on there right now that play as a slideshow! We can even add music if we want!!!! I highly recommend investing in one soon if you haven't already! Anyway, thanks Mike and Traci!

Christmas

Dave and I had a nice, quiet Christmas this year. We stayed home on Christmas Eve, as Dave was under the weather. We opened our gifts to each other and were very happy with the results! We both completely listened to each other and got exactly what we wanted! I got Dave 2 video games (including Guitar Hero II which he hasn't stopped playing since that night), 2 movies (The Departed and The Bourne Ultimatum), cologne and some other small stuff. He got me a new coat, the Pink Razor (I've wanted it forever), a massage gift certificate and 2 gift cards (Old Navy and Kohl's)!!! The only thing missing from our Christmas was family. This is my fourth year without family on Christmas, and Dave's third year! I swear I will get home next year! Although, we didn't have our real family with us, we did spend Christmas Day with friends who have become our family. As Tyson said in our before dinner prayer..."we are thankful to be with our Houston family". We have made some amazing friends here, and we are indeed thankful for that this Christmas!
I hope the holidays have been good to everyone! Have a safe and happy New Year!

Halloween

Halloween goes way too quickly! My family knows it is one of my favorite holidays! I used to decorate the whole house weeks in advance. It was only complete when we had a graveyard on our lawn, a coffin in the garden, webs everywhere, nooses hanging from the gutters and stuffed clothes with ketchup scattered throughout the yard. Gruesome, I know, but very fun!!! Right now I am looking at the 3 Halloween decorations we have and am remembering the good ol days of decorating back home. Either way, I still enjoy the day. This year, we were pretty occupied with our new puppy, but we still made it to one party!!! We both went as referees. Dave as a fat one and me as a normal/sexy one. Our good friends, Vicki, Tyson and Mandy, went as Three's Company! It was a great time...and the jello shots had nothing to do with it! :) he, he!

Fenway

Right now we are watching the Boston Red Sox win (hopefully) the 4th game of the World Series. We are also cuddled up next to the newest member of our family...Fenway! For those of you who don't know; Fenway is the name of the park where the Red Sox play. The Red Sox went to the World Series the first year we were dating, in fact they won the World Series during one of our first dates! And now they are in the World Series again, the year we were married! Dave is a huge Red Sox fan and now...so am I! Anyway, Fenway is a 12 week old Boston Terrier and he is the cutest thing that I have ever seen! He stole our heart right away! We have had him for roughly 24 hours now. He is a very good puppy! He plays hard and sleeps hard! He's quickly becoming a mama's boy, but definitely loves taking naps with daddy. Here are a couple pictures of our boy!

Sleep Study

Well, for those of you who don't know, I have been having some sleep issues lately that I am desperately trying to resolve!!! I have very little energy, take tons of naps and fall asleep when driving. Basically, I would rather take a nap than do almost anything else! So, I had a sleep study done Monday and Tuesday. I arrived at the center at about 8pm on Monday and was shown to my room, which looks much like a small hotel room. A large bed, cable t.v. and a big bathroom. Soon after, I was having 20+ wires attached to my body; legs, chest, shoulders, behind my ears, all over my face and my head. I looked like half machine, half woman!!! I was allowed to watch t.v. for a little while before going to bed. So, I watched the Red Sox lose game 3 of the series! :( On a side note- Dave has definitely gotten me to love the Red Sox!!!! Anyway, I went to bed very tired, but somehow it didn't matter. I laid awake almost all night. At 2 points in the night, I felt completely claustrophobic and wanted to rip all the wires off and go home!!! There was one wire/tube that really bothered me! The wire went right under my nose and had 3 sensors attached to it. One went into each nostril and the third hung right in front of my mouth so they could tell if I was breathing from my nose or mouth. There was also a tube that followed the same path (under my nose, across my face and wrapped behind my ears) that was intended for oxygen just in case they discovered I had sleep apnea, they would have turned it on during the night. Anyway, these 2 were very uncomfortable and made it hard to breathe. During these times of claustrophobia, the nurse came on the intercom to make sure I was ok. It was nice and freaky to know that someone was watching me so closely. I finally fell asleep for about an hour before they woke me up at 6am. Tuesday was a whole new ballgame. They thankfully took a couple of the wires off, including the ones under my nose! I was required to stay awake for 2 hours and then I could take a nap. I had 5 naps all together...at 8, 10, noon, 2 and 4pm. Between these I watched lots of boring daytime t.v. It's funny how some days I would do anything to be able to be that lazy, but when you have to, it's really annoying and frustrating!!! They give you 20 minutes to fall asleep. If you do, they allow you to sleep for 15 minutes. If you don't fall asleep they wake you up and the nap is over. I didn't sleep for the first 3 naps, although I was right on the verge each time the nap was ended!!! The fourth nap I slept for 1 minute! Ooooo, refreshing!!!! Sense the sarcasm? The last nap, I didn't feel like I slept, but they said I did. By 5pm, I was wire-free and on my way home! I will find out the results on Monday. I just hope all this was worth it! Now, speaking of sleeping...goodnight.

Hair

Well, I promised pictures of my new hair, so here they are. You could see it in the pics from mom and dad's trip, but here you can see it down! It's weird having short hair again after trying so desperately to grow it out for the wedding. Despite that, I really like it and have gotten lots of compliments, so I guess this will be my style for awhile!!!

Ugh...can't breathe!

Is this really happening? Am I going to have to say goodbye to my Great Taste, Less Filling drink of choice!?
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=673035

Parent's Visit

Well, my mom is on a plane back to Milwaukee right now. It was very hard to say goodbye, but we both agreed that we did everything we wanted to do this vacation! It started with Old Town Spring; a town about a half hour north of the airport. We walked around all the shops and had a great lunch! We then came back to the apartment and fished in the lake and grilled out! It was wonderful! It was a great start to the trip! I won't go through every detail of the vacation, but here are some other things we did:
Brazos Bend State Park
Kemah Boardwalk
Dinner with Ruben, Martha, Dana, Ruben and the girls
Behind the Scenes Tour at the Zoo

After my dad left:
Shopping
Dinner with Vicki and Mandy
Shopping
Scrapbooking
Movie - The Brave One (very good by the way)
Shopping
Museum (including a movie at the Imax and the Planetarium)
Shopping
Oh, and lots of eating!!!!

It was a great time, but now it's back to work tomorrow! :(

Well, I know we haven't written anything for a while, but there really isn't too much new. My parents are coming on Friday, which I am very excited about!!! We don't have many plans at this point. We plan to do a lot of relaxing! I'll be taking them behind the scenes at the zoo in elephants, lions, african wild dogs and orangs, which will be lots of fun!!! We also have a dinner planned with Martha, Ruben, Dana and Ruben on Saturday! Other than those things we have nothing else planned.

The only other new thing would be my hair. Yes, I changed it again! When Dave and I went to see The Bourne Ultimatum, we both really liked Julia Stiles' hair! Dave told me that he would love it if I would get my hair like that, so yesterday I did!!!! It is now a little shorter than shoulder length and brown with blonde and red highlights! It looks way different, but very fun! Oh, I also have bangs again!!!! I'll try to take pictures soon!

The latest

We finally can see our wedding pictures on line!!!! All of you can view them as well. Just go to www.edwardfox.com and click on "view an event". Then enter the password edwardfoxkoch to see all the pictures!!! We are very pleased with how they turned out! You can also order prints! I tried cheating by saving the pictures to the computer, but this one is the only one that would work! I was shocked I was even able to get one. Anyway, enjoy!

In other news, Hurricane Dean is on his way. We just went through some major flooding from Tropical Storm Erin, so people are pretty worked up about this storm. It recently gained strength, but also shifted direction. As of now, we should only get some rain; Mexico will be hit hardest. Although, these storms are very unpredictable. Updates are on the news and running across the bottom of the tv all the time. On my way to work today, I passed several signs on the freeway that said..."Hurricane forming in the gulf. Keep gas tank full". And of course people are buying generators, bottled water and plywood already! We should know more in the next couple days. It's supposed to hit on Thursday. I'll keep my gas tank full, but I don't think all those other precautions are necessary yet. And for those of you not in Texas, please keep in mind that the news by you only shows the really devastating effects of any storm. My poor Mom will watch the news and think we are completely under water, when I may or may not have even seen one flooded road. Not to down play the storms, but they always make it look worse than it is. Erin, however, did allow me to see the worst flooding so far in my 3 years here. The zoo was almost completely under water. Although no buildings flooded, almost all the public pathways and outdoor exhibits were under water. At one point I was wading through a street in our employee parking lot with water past my knees. 3 hours later when I left for work, there was no more than a few large puddles. Many freeways were closed, which made it take an hour longer for me to get home. All in all, we weren't affected too much. The power went out at Dave's work, so he actually got to come home early. Well, we will continue to keep our eye on the storm and we'll keep everyone updated.