My taco sparkles! (Thanks Coon and Sarah!)

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! Just thought I would give a little update on the weeks happenings: First and foremost, Janelle and Josh Carter are officially the proud mommy and daddy to Benjamin Jasper Carter and Olivia Mae Carter who were born on Dec. 22, 2009, weighing a little over 5 lbs. and 19 and 18 in. long!!! Yay!!! :)

We took a family adventure trip to Chicago Tues. and Wed. this week as a little "winter get-away" and had lots of fun! We took the fabulous public transportation to Jenny B's shop and to a fabulous dinner of the famous Chicago style pizza! (Kimmie, you would have been proud!) Wednesday we hit the streets of Chi-town for some good-ole Christmas shopping. Of course the only purchase for the day was a couple pairs of maternity pants for me!! Woo-hoo! :) We trudged through the snow and freezing rain to enjoy the beautiful city at Christmas time, it was worth being cold for (especially when the snow was coming down in big beautiful flakes)!

When we got home Wednesday night, Coon and Sarah came to visit and we hit up the one and only Whitey's Ice Cream and enjoyed an evening of laughs. Which brings me to: My taco sparkles... Coon and Sarah got me the coolest t-shirt EVER from Chuey's in Nashville. It is a pink shirt with a sparkly pink taco on the front and the quote: "My Taco Sparkles" on the back! Thanks guys - I can't wait to wear it!!! :)

I hope everyone has a relaxing and safe Christmas!

16 weeks

16 weeks...not a pretty picture, but you get the idea :)

Is this heaven??

Nope, it's IOWA! :) And we are here! We got in late Friday night and have been busy since, well, busy for a vacation I should say. We've done quite a bit of resting and relaxing too! Eric has started Izzy on her "new years resolution" a bit early and has taken her for a run every day since we have been home. She's done a good job too, though I don't think she made the resolution herself... She does enjoy the exercise and we like her being worn out for a while after they get home! Eric had to pick up some contraption for his shoes today so he doesn't slip on the snow and ice as he's running. His only complaint is how COLD it is!

Then there's me...I've been enjoying my break by sitting on the couch and watching tv! HA! I'll get into the exercise routine in a bit, but I firmly believe that rest and relaxation after a stressful month needs to come first! On the plus side, my doctor said that I have only gained 1 pound since Thanksgiving, which I am pretty sure is less than I gained last year between Thanksgiving and Christmas and I was running almost everyday! Of course, by only gaining a pound, you can imagine that my "baby bump" hasn't grown a whole lot, and you would be correct. Although the baby is growing quickly and is supposed to double in size over the next couple weeks. Hopefully I don't double in size too! HA! What is fun right now is that I can feel the "Lolo" moving around a little bit and in the morning sometimes I can see where she is from the outside of my belly. And now she has little bones in her ears so she can hear things. Pretty cool if I do say so myself!

In other preggo news, my friend Janelle is in the hospital right now in labor with her twins! I've been getting updates all day and am anxiously awaiting their arrival!

For news to be waiting for, I'll post an updated belly picture as soon as my husband will take one, AND we have scheduled our next doctors appointment for Jan. 14th. Why is this important you say? Well, this is our appointment where we get our next and last ultrasound. We will get to see the baby, check out the organs and make sure everything is going well AND we will find out if it is going to be an Eloise or a Henry! Yes ladies and gentlemen, we will FINALLY be able to find out if its a boy and girl. Thank goodness! I don't know how people wait 9 months to find out, its torture enough for me to wait until January!

Did Ya'll Know the Civil War isn't over??

WELL! Those of you who read my post, know it is over, but you couldn't have guessed that if you were at the Battlefield Half-Marathon this weekend! We (Eric, Coon, Izzy, and I) headed down to Chicamauga, GA this weekend for the Battlefield Half-Marathon pasta dinner and race Friday and Saturday and let me tell you....There were folks dressed up in "Civil War" time outfits, playing "interesting" tunes, and both the American flag and the Confederate flag were being used as centerpeices for the dinner tables. Not to mention the cannon firing at the beginning of the race and "Confederate Soldiers" dressed up on race day. Now, I would have REALLY been concerned if they would have fore-gone the National Anthem at the beginning of the race, luckily a man played it proudly on his trumpet!

Well anywho, lets just say that the "northern boys" that Izzy and I cheered on at the race gave those southerners a what-for! I was so proud of them both! They both beat their race goal times by at least three minutes and Coon even got an award! Eric finished in 1:55 when his goal was 2:00 and Coon finished in 1:26 when his goal was 1:30. Coon finished fourth overall and SECOND in his age group! Can I get a whoop whoop for the boys? Whoop whoop!! :)

After Coon got finished, we watched Eric bring it in strong, and then Eric escorted me quickly to Battle Academy in full Renessance attire for our Renessance Festival so I could work my 2nd grade booth for a couple of hours. Yes, it was quite the sight....luckily for me there are NO pictures of that part of the day! :) The rest of the day was spent relaxing, watching football, and napping! It was a great weekend but we missed the rest of our usual troop, Sarah and Wrigley, we wish you could have been here!

"Why would you want to reinact a war that you lost?"

-Ryan Coon

Well, hello there friend!

Ok, per the persistent requests of my dear friend Ryan James, I am back! I can't promise an exciting post, but I will do what I can! :) We have been fairly busy over the last week or so, and quite busy since my last post! Eric got back Wednesday night from Niagra Falls and I had a late night at work Thursday. In fact, I left the house at 6:30 Thursday morning and got home Thursday night about 8:30. Way too long of a day for pregnant lady, especially one who is sick 24/7! But on a lighter note, last Thursday (Oct. 29th) we had our first doctor's appointment and not only did everything look good, but we got to hear the little one's heart beating strong and got our first picture of the little bean. We have another appointment right before we go back to the QC for Thanksgiving so we are crossing our fingers that everything is still going well!

Here is my first picture at about 9 weeks. Stay tuned for fatter pictures later...

Its not very clear, but if you can see the little blob in the middle of the picture, thats our little one!

Other news around here is pretty slim, Izzy is doing well and Eric has been busy training for his half-marathon thats coming up next weekend. We were pretty pumped about our Cyclones beating Nebraska two weeks ago, and have faith in our team for the rest of the season and next year too! Anywho, stay tuned for updates, I will really try to blog a bit more often! :) Have a great week ya'll!

It's Raining...It's Pouring...

So, we are day 200 of rain...no seriously, I think its day 10, its terrible! Our lawn, a.k.a "weeds" are taller than our dog, and Izzy FINALLY just came out from under the bed (because of the thunder), good thing it is SATURDAY! :) Eric just got back from a short trip to Chicago, which he loved, and just informed me, "wouldn't mind living there", interesting! I hope he has that same response when he gets back from his next trip which is PARIS, FRANCE! Yes ladies and gentlemen, you heard me right! Lucky dog, eh? I'm still a little bitter and angry. Especially when he was asking me how to say "hello, what is your name?" in French... Unfortunately, I do not get to put my four years of French into action, instead he gets to go to the "City of Love" with a bunch of Rednecks from Roadtec! :)

Last weekend, we went to Knoxville for the 1st annual Volunteer Sprint Triathlon! Woo hoo! I survived another one! I even made a new friend, and finished before her! Of course I should mention, that this was her first tri, and she has only been training for three weeks, because she just got back into her exercises since she had her 2nd child in two years, a mere 10 weeks ago....

It was a 300 meter pool swim, 7 mile bike, and 3 mile run. I got to run right by Neyland Stadium, which was pretty awesome, but very hilly! It was a good race. I finished my swim in 8 minutes, my bike took around 30 min. and my run was about 33 minutes I think. Overall, I was pretty happy with it. Even though my times weren't great, I felt better about it than I did my first one. Hopefully they will get better as I do more. I have decided that the sprint tri's may be as good as it gets for me, but I'm okay with that. Its more than I was doing last year at this time! Maybe I'll be inspired to do more after we watch Coon do his Ironman Wisconsin next September...I doubt it, but maybe! :)

Other than my tri and Eric's traveling, things are pretty boring around here. Work is going good for Eric, obviously, he's going to Paris tomorrow...and school is going great for me. I have a great class that reminds me everyday why I am a teacher, so thats pretty awesome! I hope everyone has a great weekend and week ahead! Here are some pictures from my race!

On the bike

With my furry cheerleader :)

Sunday Fun-day!

Well, I don't know how fun my Sunday will be, but I thought the title had a nice ring to it! :) We arrived safely on Monday night from our trip to Florida to find our pup safe, sound, and happy as a clam with her grandpa. Our trip was fabulous, but it was nice to be back home. Well for a little while....Tuesday my dad went back home :( and then I had planning until 5:30 Wednesday night, got home about 6:30, Math Night Thursday night, and got home around 8:30, THEN dinner with my Brown Academy Ladies on Friday night, got home about 9:30...WHEW! It was a good thing I went to the beach :)

I can also proudly say that I did two training swims this week after being at work for 12 hours on Tuesday and Wednesday and I even swam farther than I will be swimming next weekend! I'm headed off for a bike ride this afternoon. Sound like a Sunday Fun-day yet? ;)

Eric is at a golf outing today, so Izzy and I are hanging out, she's sleeping, and I am doing school stuff. The weather couldn't be better today, it is sunny, with a cool breeze, and only about 80 degrees. The heat/air natzi is thoroughly enjoying having my windows OPEN and my air OFF today! :) Sorry for the boring post, I'll end with some pictures of my pooch looking out over Chattanooga from her new favorite walking spot. Have a great week everyone!

Our new favorite vacation spot!

So, here I am. Sitting on my hotel room bed, Eric is running 12 miles on the beach, Ryan is doing some weird roll-y thing to help his knees, and Sarah and I are watching the Today Show: What.A.Life :)

From my bed, I can see the ocean, the beach, and can hear the waves with our sliding door open. Where am I you ask? We are in Destin, FL, which is our new favorite beach vacation place, it is AWESOME! On one side of our hotel is the beautiful ocean that we are literally steps away from, and on the other side of our hotel is a golf course, with a pedestrian walkway that we can run endlessly on!

We arrived a little after midnight on Friday night and have enjoyed every minute! Saturday morning we got up, hit up the Outlet Mall and a GREAT breakfast place called "The Donut Hole". Did ya'll know that the mullet is still alive and well in Florida? Well, it is! No worries, we not only have pictures, but C0on has also been taking video coverage! After some great food and shopping we headed down to the beach, got ourselves an umbrella and some chairs and RELAXED! After reading books and drinking frozen tasties, we ventured out to dinner and then quickly to bed. Vacationing is exhausting!

Sarah and I on our balcony

Yesterday we woke up early, Eric, Coon, and I went for our scheduled training runs and then headed to "Another Broken Egg" for another amazing breakfast! Then back to the beach for another afternoon of fun in the sun. Sarah and I have made some great progress in our books and Coon and Eric worked on their football skills in the ocean. We ended our night with a wild dinner at the "Crazy Lobster" and then a riviting game of Putt Putt and a dangerous Go Cart Race! Overall, it was probably our best "Coon-Baker Vaca" yet. We all love Destin and can't wait to come back! As I look around the room this morning, Coon complaining about what he doesnt want to eat this morning, and Sarah is packing up, I can't help but feel so lucky to have such great friends. Friends that can share a hotel room and spend morning, noon, and night with you, and STILL want to see you again :) Thanks ya'll for a great trip!

The view from our balcony

Last but not least, I really have to thank my wonderful dad for taking care of our "babies" for the weekend so that we could take our annual "Coon-Baker Vaca". He has missed the Iowa game, gotten soaked golfing, and had to go on a cannon search soaking wet this weekend. Dad, we really appreciate you and could not have done this without you. Thank you so much, I know that Izzy and Wrigley had a great time and will probably not want all of us to come back because you've been so good to them! Love you!

Whew...

What a week! :) Sorry it has been so long since I posted last! After reminders from Grandma, mom, AND Coon this week, I got the hint I had not been updating often enough... :) So, since I last posted we have had A LOT going on! Eric's birthday came and went, and shortly after we had visitors for the weekend and a BUSY Sunday. Eric's birthday was on Thursday, and on Friday, my mom and Grandpa came to visit!!! Yay!! Grandpa was making his first trip to Chattanooga to see our house, my school, and all the sights of the city! They had perfect timing to see the "World's Longest Yard Sale" too! So we stopped for some sweet tea's at McAllister's and headed up Signal Mountain to check out the sights...HA! We took lots of pictures....

Anything you could want...

I want the umbrella!

Hot dog, anyone?

A "yard sale junkie" we couldn't help but take a picture of!

The lady again...I think her box is bigger?!

For those of you who are thinking, your mom and grandpa drove 12 hours and all you did was take them to this "yard sale"?! No worries, we tried to keep them entertained for their visit, this was just ONE memorable experience. Coon and Sarah came up later that afternoon and we went to one of Coon's favorite Chattanooga eateries... :) Yay for Tony's Pastaria! I had to carbo-load for my Sprint Triathlon that was Sunday morning. My swim was 1/4 mile, 8 mile bike ride, and 2 mile run. Nothing like the races Coon does, but I have to start somewhere right? Even though it was the most physically demanding thing I have EVER done in my life, it was great and I am signed up for my next one Sept. 20th! Here are some pictures from my race...

Trying to intimidate my competitors... HA!

I had to swim out to the white boat, around it, and back.

I'm the one in the pink cap (thanks Coon). My motto at this point: "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming" -Dorey (Finding Nemo)


Out of the water, running to the bike!


Puttin' on my shoes!


Running to the finish line!!

I made it!! Izzy and Wrigley are ready to congratulate me!

So, once the race was over, we had just enough time to grab a bite to eat downtown, head back to our house and start getting ready for the next endeavor of the day....GRADUATION!!!

Look at me with a Master's Degree!!!

Our busy day ended with a trip to Bruster's for some ever-so-tasty ice cream and a delicious steak and corn dinner straight from Iowa! It was a great weekend, with awesome family and friends. Thank you photographers for documenting the day, and everyone for their support, ya'll are the best!!

Oh, yeah, and school has started back WITH kiddos and I think it has been the best start of the school year I have ever had! You will be hearing lots about my new little friends this year! :)

That's all for now, but I will try to be better at posting from now on!!

Happy Birthday Eric!

Today is my hubby's birthday!! Happy birthday Sugarbritches! I hope you have a great day, love you!

Schools Back in Session!

So, after a full day of professional development, I am OFFICIALLY back at school for the school year! And look at me, I'm posting a blog! :) Not too busy yet, although I do have to read two math books and write a reflection about my PD today... Eric can't believe I have homework already, BUT I don't have any grad school homework!! YAY!!!

Went out and bought my cap and gown on Friday, and am anxiously awaiting my LAST grade to be posted on the 6th. I am hoping that the fact that this day is also Eric's birthday that luck will be with me and I'll pull in one more "A" to close out my masters degree, we'll see! Everybody keep your fingers crossed!

Eric and I had a great weekend in Chattanooga this weekend. I'll say it was nice to just be home and not have a whole lot going on, we seem to have had something going on just about every weekend this summer! On Saturday did our usual weekend errands but finished off the day going for a training open-water swim for me (thank you Trainer Coon), then a bike ride and two mile run. Eric did a three mile run and THEN rode my bike while I ran. See y'all, I share :) It was a nice afternoon and we missed nasty storms by literally 10 minutes! whew!

Yesterday we cleaned the house to get ready for our full house this coming weekend! :) We even hung some pictures we have had since who knows when! It was a very productive, yet relaxing weekend - definitely the best way to spend the last weekend before "School-Year Courtney" is back in full force. I was back last week, but just set up my room, organized my closets, and got my room ready for kiddos. I am sure y'all are not surprised to find out that I am not a last minute gal when it comes to setting up my room...

To close out my first post of the school year, I thought I would attach some pictures of the summer in review! Enjoy :)

Coon and Sarah get hitched! May 24th, 2009


Izzy enjoying a ride in Ruby!

I got a new car!!


I got my bike so I can do my first triathlon in August! (no it is not still in my living room!)

I hope everyone has a great week!

Hey there ya'll!

I know, I know....its been awhile since my last post, but I've been busy! Excuses, excuses...I'll try to do better from now on! So wanna hear whats happening with us these days? WELL! Since my last post I have been enjoying my last couple weeks of summer, which are now OVER :( Coon and Sarah came to visit for one of Ryan's many triathlons! This one was the big one in Chattanooga and he did great! Eric, Sarah, and I enjoyed cheering him on too, of course the starbucks in our cups helped pump us up a little too! ;) After Ryan and Sarah left, we had one more weekend before Bix so Eric and I headed outside to train a bit! We went for an open-water couples swim at the state park near our house and then I went for a bike ride while Eric ran! Impressed eh?

Well, after that weekend, I met with my advisor ONE LAST TIME to finish up my research project!!! My adviser even had me sign a release so I could be published!!!! I have submitted my paper, and now I just wait for it to be graded and plan for graduation. My adviser sent me an email today and told me that all I have to do is pick up my cap and gown for graduation!! Yay!!! 2 1/2 years later I have a master's degree and a 4.0 gpa! Who knew I was so smart? HA!

Anywho, we made another trek back home for the big Bix weekend last weekend and just got back on Sunday night. It was a great weekend! We got to hang with friends, family, and RUN! The race went fabulously! Eric ran his FIRST Bix and finished in 1 hour and 2 minutes! Pretty awesome for 7 miles, and I finished a mere 20 minutes after him. Heck, I was just glad I made it! No worries tho, I posed for a picture seconds after passing through the finish line! (See pictures below)

I headed back into school on Monday morning for my first day back and have been working hard to get my room set up and closets cleaned out and organized. My room looks great and I even got books and supplies out for the first day of school! Registration is a week from today and the kiddos come back two weeks from today, so everyone cross your fingers for a good class and some fun names!! :)

Long Time, No See!

Well, hello there! Long time, no see y'all! Sorry it has been so long since I posted last, we've had quite a bit going on over the last week! First of all, I know you all have been anxiously awaiting the name of my new car.....drum roll please................RUBY! I hope you all like it, I think it fits her the best. But thank you to EVERYONE for your suggestions, all were fabulous, it was a very tough choice! :)

So I just got back to Chattanooga this week from a wonderful week-long trip back home! I was able to spend lots of time with my mom and dad. I had some great dinners with friends and a very enjoyable lunch with Grandma and AJ. I got to lay out at "The Club Pool" a couple days and soaked up some rays! There is not a whole lot I love more than hanging out with my family, so my trip was perfect! After a couple of days of just Izzy and I hangin' out, Eric flew in for the weekend and we continued our fun! We got to meet Mr. Jackson Wahlig on Friday night who is ADORABLE and the first baby born from any of our friends! We got to hang with Eric's parents one night and then got to spend part of the 4th of July at the Cripe's house. I think Eric would agree that it was a great trip!

Eric and I also did the Firecracker Run in East Moline on the 4th. Eric ran the 10k and averaged 9 min/mile and I ran the 5k and averaged 10:44/mile. Both were good runs for us, a rainy run, but good! Thanks Mom for bringing Izzy and cheering us on!










When we got back to Chattanooga, I anxiously awaited my road bike that I ordered for my first triathlon and it came on Tuesday! Her name is Wemberly (a children's book character)! I have been using a bike trainer (that Coon is letting me use to practice my biking skills) for the past couple days and its going well, besides the butt bone that is a bit sore from the seat! :) Isn't she a beaut!?

Also, Eric and I just celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary yesterday, July 9th! Time flies by huh?! We enjoyed a nice dinner and went to "The Proposal" movie afterwards to celebrate!

Well...I better get up of my steuss and get cleaning! Coon, Sarah, and Wrigley are coming down for the weekend!! Coon is doing the BIG Chattanooga Triathlon this weekend and we are going to cheer him on! Have a great weekend everyone! :)

One More Time

No y'all, I am not trying to go back to my high school days and reminisce about my senior class song...HA!

You can just now post your vote for my new car's name! So, if you voted before last night, try again please! :)

I'm off for a run in the 62 degree weather! Where did summer go?

Heaven!

Here I sit, on my parents couch, watching TV, while dad sleeps in his chair and Izzy sleeps on my leg...ahh...gotta love it! Since I have been here, I haven't done too much, but thats the idea right?! Mom and I ran errands and went to the BEST grocery store ever on Sunday, she even skipped church to take AJ and I to breakfast! Shhh...don't tell the big guy :)

Then yesterday, I started back into my running routine which was tough, but much needed and I felt good once I was done. Then Dad and I headed over to the club to lay out at the pool, which was awesome, and AJ even met us over there when he got off work! The day was finished off with a BLT pizza from Happy Joes and a relaxing night at home with mom and dad.

Today, I got up early and went for another run, even longer today than yesterday! Whoop whoop! It seems to be getting easier each day, hopefully that continues... :) Then I took the bro to Coon's favorite hometown restaurant, the one and only GANZOS...and it was DELICIOUS!!!! I think I'll take Izzy to the dog park this afternoon and then I am meeting up with Janelle this evening!

All in all, it has been a fun-filled week at home so far, with only more good times to come! I'll keep everyone posted on my daily happenings, because I'm sure thats EXACTLY what y'all wanna read right?!

Everyone keep your fingers crossed for Eric who is off in Philly for the next two days trying to sell some Spray Pavers....c'mon honey - show me the money!!! :) Then he is headed my way to spend the holiday weekend here with moi!

Vote!

You should see a choice on the left side of the blog screen that has to do with an online survey. I created the survey to vote for my new car's name, since everyone had such super ideas! So, if you would like your vote to count, you can click on the name you prefer, or add in your own. I will wait until the end of the week and count up our tallies!! More to come later...

I am headed to the pool! :)

Ahhhh...Summer!

Found this joke online, and couldn't pass it up...

Over breakfast one morning, a woman said to her husband, "I bet you don't know what day this is." "Of course I do," he indignantly answered, going out the door on his way to the office. At 10 a.m., the doorbell rang, and when the woman opened the door, she was handed a box containing a dozen long-stemmed red roses. At 1 p.m., a foil-wrapped, two pound box of her favorite chocolates arrived. Later, a boutique delivered a designer dress. The woman couldn't wait for her husband to come home. "First the flowers, then the candy, and then the dress!" she exclaimed. "I've never spent a more wonderful Groundhog day in my whole life!"

Ahahahahahaha!!!!! Funny eh?

So, just a piece of info to everyone, my husband has started following in my mom's footsteps and has started researching and developing our family trees on Ancestry.com...and as I was sitting next to him last night with my mom on speaker phone, and him on this website talking about Josiah, Wilbur, Hattie, Benjamin Franklin, etc, etc....I couldn't help but laugh to myself. And while I got quite the kick out of it, I know my mom and Eric thoroughly enjoyed themselves with the "research"!

On the other hand, while Eric is busy researching our roots, I am planning a trip to the pool! I have been productive for the last three days, and it's time to relax again. Before any of you even think it...I DESERVE my summer and its NOT long enough, no matter what anyone thinks! :) Once I get back from my short trip to Nashville and my nice long week in heaven (a.k.a Iowa - that ones for you Sarah)...I will begin to get back into the swing of things and start to be productive again. I'll be officially back at school in ONE month!

Not to worry though because we still have lots of fun stuff to look forward to for the next couple months. We are celebrating our 4th wedding anniversary on July 9th, Coon and Sarah are coming down the weekend of July 10th, I graduate and do my first triathlon (bike pending) on August 9th, AND we head down to the REDNECK RIVIERA for Labor Day for our annual Coon-Baker Vacay!!!

But for now, Izzy and I will veg out, I'll head to the pool, read a book, finish up a research paper and just relax....It's one of those perks of being a teacher! Hope ya'll have a fabulous Thursday and for those of you at work, try not to work TOO hard, its SUMMER :)

Summer? What Summer?

OK, seriously? THREE full days of standards training this week? How in the world can you spend three full days learning about new standards? Hmm....I guess my pool time will have to wait until AFTER 3:30 this week! :) Although, you know how you go to trainings and meetings and you always have that ONE person who never shuts up? Well, we have one of those in our group this week and she NEVER stops talking. I truly wonder why she didn't volunteer to teach the damn class herself! I started keeping a tally sheet to keep track of how often she talked (as a way to entertain myself really) and would you believe she talked 21 times in ONE hour? I KNOW....we could have been done with the training an hour before we were if she would have just shut her yapper!

On another note, our dog....crazy thing that she is! The last two nights she has exhausted herself to the point that it takes her an hour to stop panting! And for what you say? BIRDIES!!!!! Eric and I decided tonight that if, god forbid, our "normal" neighbors were to see her flailing in the air at the bird feeders that they would think that she (and us) were a little lulu....

I know, I know...the dog is not the only indicator that we are, in fact, a little weird. But our neighbors don't know that yet! That reminds me that I need to get started baking those cookies....thanks mom!

Oh, ya know that the venza is kind of a "ruby red" color; maybe Beula would be an appropriate name...I'll run it by the name nazi, also known as my husband... :) Have a good Monday everyone!

Weekend Warriors

Well, so much for weekends to be a time to rest and relax...we have been busy, busy, busy this weekend! We have mowed the grass, both the front and the back, and if you know what we are having to mow, you know it is quite the task! Eric spent his Saturday finally planting some azaleas that we have had for about a month, and picked weeds like no one has ever done before! We even put the new car to work and picked up some much needed mulch for the flower beds....and if you thought that was enough, you are mistaken, because Eric even cleaned out the garage today so that we had some more room for the cars! WHEW!

Of course, I just sat in the house and twiddled my thumbs...JUST KIDDING! I helped too! I was the one that mowed most of the yard! :) I will say though that it is nice to get some things done on the weekend, and it sure is nice to have the hubs home...especially since everyday is a weekend for me these days! Can I get a whoop whoop for summer? Well...I don't get a whoop whoop from Eric either... no biggie! :) I do have to go to an all day standards training though for the next two days, so I will have to do SOMETHING constructive!

Oh, just a side note to Coon...Eric won't let me put up the pictures of our tattoos, but if anyone is interested, just let me know! They really are priceless!

I have been trying to convince Eric that he needs to start adding to the blog, because I am already struggling to keep up, but it may take some more coaxing. Hopefully you will see a post from him soon!

I will end this little post with a picture of the new car WITH air conditioning that we have spent the weekend enjoying! Hope you like it!

Me and Beatrice

OH, I almost forgot! I need to enlist the help of our faithful readers (don't know why I made that plural, I am pretty sure Coon is the only one who actually reads this!). Even though, I am a car naming expert (self-proclaimed, of course); my dear husband does not like the name "Beatrice" for my beautiful Venza...SO if anyone has any ideas of a better name, or thinks the name I came up with is superb, send me a note! I will consider changing it if no one likes the name...I said CONSIDER... :) Love y'all! Thanks for reading :)

Au Revior Bessy

As most of you probably know, Bessy (my Chevy Blazer) means quite a lot to me, a very special lady in my heart for sure! :) Well, some sad news for Bessy is that she will be going to a new home in the next couple of hours and will be leaving me behind...The good part about that is that she has lived a good life with me and has always been there for me in good times and bad, while she will be missed terribly, we both will move on!

In her place, Beatrice will be entering my life, which I am very excited about! Beatrice has big shoes to fill so I hope she steps up to the plate! For now though Bessy, I say good-bye! I will miss you, and in your honor, I have made up a little tune....

Izzy and Bessy - favorite past time

Oooooooohhhhh, once there was a blazer,
Her name was Bessy Lou
She drives me round and round,
AND through and through, and through....
She drove through lots of snow,
in Iowa and more
She took me down to Tennessee
No matter how she wore....
She was so great to me,
She could have carried a tree....
Oh, Bessy.....my sweet Bessy....
You were so great to MEEEE......

Well Hello There!

Hello All! I am starting this blog so friends and family can keep tabs on us since we live so far away from everyone. Hopefully this summer will give me the time to get our blog started so we can keep it up throughout the years! So, since this is our first post, I will catch everyone up on our happenings! :)


So first off, I (Courtney) just finished my fourth year of teaching and my first year at my new school. It is the best place to teach and I have made some great, lifelong friends there. I am teaching 2nd grade at Battle Academy which is located in downtown Chattanooga, right across the street from the Chattanooga Choo Choo (insert song tune here). Eric just passed the five year mark at Roadtec which brought us to Chattanooga in the first place. He is still the Marketing Manager there and really loves his job. It has been a great place for him to work for and has allowed him to visit many great places and given both of us some great experiences.

Eric has visited most of the states in the U.S. and has gone to Canada, Mexico, China, and even Russia since he started working there. I am still holding out for the Paris and Australia trips though and think I have found luggage big enough for me to fit in! :) We have been able to go to a couple Tennessee Vols games and we have even ventured down to Alabama for a Crimson Tide game! Lots of fun for those of us who are big college football fans. Don't worry, our hearts are still with our Cyclones!

We have just celebrated our third year with our dog, Izzy, who we adopted for my birthday three years ago. She is our "baby" who we wouldn't trade for anything! You will see many pictures of her on this blog.

Eric and I have both taken up running over the last year, and while he is definately better at it and much more dedicated, I am trucking along! He just ran his first half-marathon with our friend Ryan aka "Coon" and has run some 5k's and the 5 mile Turkey Trot in Davenport last year. I have run some 5ks and the Turkey Trot as well, but no half-marathon for me (no matter what Coon says! :) We are both training for the Bix right now and then I am training for my first triathon in Chattanooga on August 9th.

The same day as my first tri will be the day I graduate from grad school! Whoop whoop! It only took me 2 1/2 years and LOTS of money, but it is just about over! I had my last class last night and I have a research paper that I need to finish up! Then I may just be a normal person for once and might be able to relax every so often and just "hang" with the hubs and the pooch! I can't wait and I am sure Eric and Izzy are excited too! :)

Oh, one more thing, just have to do some shout outs to some fabulous people in our lives: Our friends Coon and Sarah who live in Nashville, if it weren't for ya'll and our "Coon-Baker Travel Adventures" I may not have survived living so far from my family and I know Eric is very appreciative for ya'll and your friendship! We definitely look forward to future visits and a lifelong friendship for us, and Wrig's and Iz! :)

Also, my family who has shown so much support for us even though we live so far. Welcoming us into your home whenever we want, hugs when we need them, and taking the time to visit us whenever you can. Words cannot express how much we love you and appreciate everything you have done for all three of us! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Alrighty then, most posts won't be so sappy and I will try to update as often as I can! Enjoy! :)