They'll be Coming Round the Mountain

I started writing mid-October and now it's November and I never got around to finishing. October was a busy month and went by pretty fast. Let's recap...

Oct:
I went to a book signing. The author was Richard Paul Evans and he was promoting his new book The Gift. Evan’s spoke for about 20 minutes before he began signing…what an incredible speaker he is. The only thing that I was disappointed about was that my mom lives too far away to have had the chance to meet him too. I have been reading books by Evans since I was in high school and to actually have had the chance to shake his hand and say hello was pretty special. Hopefully someday I will be able to sit down and write my own stories and publish them as well. How amazing it would be to see my name on the cover of a book that I wrote sitting on a shelf in a bookstore.

The Colorado Rockies have also recently given us something to be excited about. They made it to the World Series and got there by sweeping the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2007 playoffs. One thing I have to admit that has been fun about living near Denver is the positive energy and excitement that everybody has out here for their sports teams. I’ve never quite experienced anything like it.

The ski season has officially arrived! We bought our passes just in time to enjoy the first trail open at Arapahoe Basin on the 14th. I still find it hard to believe that we are out snowboarding in mid October. The craziest part is how busy it was. The lift line was packed full of skiers and riders. What’s annoying is seeing all the expensive outer wear and accessories on these people and then seeing them absolutely suck when they get on the hill. It’s crazy how much money people spend on clothing, boards, boots, and bindings so that they look cool, but how awesome are they when they can barely get off the lift and then spend most of their time sitting in the middle of the trail in everybody else’s way because they can barely make it down. The conversations that we overheard were so annoying that at some points it was almost unbearable to stand in line for the 10 minute wait. The trail that was open was jammed full so it made it somewhat hard to enjoy the snow, but I guess I shouldn't complain too much, we have a whole season ahead of us.

Nov:
Has been a whirlwind since arriving. Aunt Gaye and Trina arrived safely in Denver and Mike and I went over to Dan F's for a Sunday lunch to see everyone. We were an hour early because everyone in our house forgot about the time change. I couldn't figure out why all the clocks at Dan's were an hour slow. It seems that I'm the one who's slow! It was nice seeing everybody. We enjoyed the day watching football, visiting, and playing with the little ones. It was a great visit and Mike and I both left with full bellies. You never walk away hungry when you are a part of an Italian family.

Today, November 9, my parents are going to be starting their 3 week vacation and heading west. They will be in CO by the 16th after making a stop in Roswell NM and Santa Fe to see U. Jim and Michelle. I am of course anxiously awaiting their arrival. I can't wait to show them our new place and finally take my dad on the Coors Tour that we unfortunately skipped on their first trip out when they helped us move, which has now been over a year! The parents will be here for a week or so and we will get to enjoy a big family Thanksgiving with Aunt Gaye, Trina, Dan F and Family, U. Jim and Michelle, and whoever else finds their way to Dan's kitchen table. It should be a lot of fun.

The recruiting season has dwindled down to mostly high school visits, but we're now busy in the office getting high school students signed up for college classes and taking prospective students on tours of the campus. How lucky I am to have a job with such great co-workers and one of the friendliest atmospheres around.

The holidays are right around the corner and I've been brainstorming about what to get people for Christmas since October when the stores started putting up decorations. We're already starting to see houses and store fronts decorated with twinkling Christmas lights. As commercial as Christmas has become, I still enjoy the holiday for the warmth and happiness it brings to most. I can't wait to decide on the cookies I'm going to be making to share with friends and co-workers. I'm especially excited for our trip back to NY. It's going to be a long drive for Mike and I, but well worth it in my eyes. A stop in Kentucky to see Micah and then home by Christmas Eve. It'll be nice to spend the Holidays with friends and family. Isn't that what Christmas is really about anyway?