St. Baldrick's Event - We shaved our heads!

Well, this weekend we did it!! 

Just a reminder - here is what we drove to Durango for, and why. :)

Taryn and I packed up some things (along with John), got up at the butt crack of dawn on Saturday (her birthday), and drove about 7 hours down to Durango.  It was a beautiful drive - the Aspens have started changing and they were all beautiful yellows & oranges scattered through the evergreens.  It was gorgeous!

We stopped at a tiny diner along the way (I think it was called Rooster's Crow or something), and got some coffee and breakfast, and a cinnamon roll the size of my head.

After breakfast we were back on the road again!

A nice "we still have hair" shot, with our big huge coffee mugs.  It was a bit chilly that morning!

John, contemplating breakfast with a beard scratch.

When we arrived in Durango, we decided to stop for a quick beer and some snacks.  We went to Steamworks, which had some pretty amazing beer!  Taryn even got a free drink because it was her birthday.  Win!  I had their Oktoberfest beer - it was absolutely fantastic.

Then we headed down to the center of town (it was such a beautiful & super cute area - I am now a fan of Durango for sure!), and we found out that it was Oktoberfest that day!  How fun!

John and Taryn - striking a pose at Oktoberfest!

Sisters & sunglasses!

We realized we were pretty pooped, so we got checked into our hotel and took naps.  My dad arrived shortly after (he rode his motorcycle down to spend the weekend with us), and after we all got cleaned up we headed to the Irish Embassy where the big event was going down!  We had to have some dinner first - I got their fish & chips (probably the best fish & chips I've ever had), and we all enjoyed some drinks.

They had an amazing Irish band there that struck up in song towards the end of our dinner.  They were awesome!  They had violinists, a guitar player, a flute player, a woman on the keyboard - and even an accordion!  They were so much fun!

Shortly after that - the head-shaving began!!

Taryn went before me...

John thought she looked like Tank Girl in this shot - haha!  Look at that smile! :)

Just about done! 

My turn!  I was a little freaked out at first - had some butterflies in my tummy, and a moment of "what the hell am I doing!?"  But it was awesome.  And the band played a little jig in the background while each of us were shaved.

Off it comes!

Taking off the last few bits!

Oh my gosh - it's all gone!  Ha!

It was so sweet because he gave us a special little shout out and had us tell our story.  They were thrilled about how much money our team had raised - over $3,600!  They even gave a shout out to our team member that couldn't be there (Megan) - Taryn told the guy that she was our "friend in Derby", and he thought she said "friend in Germany" - so that was pretty hilarious.

Here is Megan's lovely finished product!  She rocks it!

And here are the "after" pictures for Taryn & I!

John's hairier than I am now!  Haha!
He was so supportive of this whole thing - it only made me love him more.  Such a great guy. :)

Taryn got a free car-bomb for her birthday.  It was her first!  And after the hangover, probably her last... ha!

Such a happy girl!

Us with some of the other ladies that got their heads shaved that night - such amazing women!  They were fantastic!

Our new Scottish / Irish / English friend Richard - he told us jokes & stories, and his friend Roy was awesome too.  We had a really wonderful night!

This is one of my favorite pictures of the evening too - before & after!  Ha!

The next day we had some breakfast at the hotel, and made the long drive back to Denver (rubbing our heads in amazement).

All-in all it was a wonderful experience.  I'm so glad I did it, and that we could help such a great cause.  THANK YOU to everyone who made our team so successful, and who supported us in this endeavor!  You are all SO amazing, and my heart was so happy with love that I thought it would burst.

And by the way, showers are an absolute breeze.  :)

What Cat's $20 of Birthday Money got me...

My friend Cat gave me $20 for my birthday.  In the card, she wrote: 

Things you can spend this money on: 
- hookers
- blow
- eyelashes
- eating out

Things you can NOT spend this money on:
- bills
- John's cookie habit
- Groceries

I demand pictures or proof of whatever you get. <3  Happy Birthday!

Well, Cat - I did just that.  Here are the things that I enjoyed (thoroughly) with your investment: 

You bought a DELICIOUS Qdoba dinner for John and I!  I had a 2-for-1 coupon that I used, so it got us dinner for two (for the price of one).  Yay!

photo credit:  Newell Jones + Jones Photography

You got me a $5 ticket to the Accessories Swap!!  Katy came with me, and we had an amazing time.  I got a free glass of wine for getting there early enough, and my purse design won me a FREE PURSE from handbags.com!  So that $5 actually got me wine, 10 awesome accessories (that I exchanged with some of my own), and a free brand-new handbag!  Not too shabby.

A scoop of pralines & cream ice cream, on a beautiful Spring day.

A big ol' bag of TWIZZLERS for the long car ride up to the mountains!

And last (but not least), a delicious beer that I enjoyed while taking a break from a ridiculously fun day of snowboarding at Breckenridge.

Cat, that $20 went a lot longer than I thought it would - and it was a wonderful gift! :)  Thank you for getting a broke girl like me to so many little treats.  It made me very happy. 
LOVE YOU!! 

Some birthday gifts for me!

Yesterday I went to H&M (the first one in Denver - WOOHOO!!) to cash in on some of my gift cards.  I was SO excited, and they had SO many super cute things just in time for Spring!  

 I found these ridiculously awesome striped pants - they're stretchy and stripey and amazing!  They actually are cropped, so they come just above my ankle, but last night it was kinda chilly, so I covered 'em up with some boots. 

They have now been deemed my "Beetlejuice pants".  Haha!  

I also got a pair of ridiculously huge hoop earrings, a pair of jean shorts, and some cropped pants similar to these in style & length, but black with HUGE colorful flowers on them.  I can't wait to wear those too! 

Another birthday gift came from my good friend Katy, who MADE me some earrings out of none other than.....(drumroll).... POGS!!  Yes, you heard that right, folks.  Pogs.  Do you remember those things?  I didn't have very many, and I'm pretty sure I lost all of them during childhood.  But Katy kept all of hers, and she showed me about a jillion of them that she had in a shoebox! 

AWESOME, huh??  She glued the rhinestones on them, and used crafting tape around the edges, then sealed everything with a clear coating. 

These are the other ones she made for me.  I friggin' love them!  Haha!

I'll share my other b-day gifts with you as they come up, but that's all for now!  I just had to share these, 'cause they're pretty rad. ;) 
 

My 31st Birthday (also known as the best weekend ever!)

I didn't think I could top my Epic 30th Birthday Roller Disco party, but I sure as heckfire did!  It was definitely a bit more low-key than last year, but awesome just the same!

Friday night was pretty low-key, but lovely.  I had a night to myself at home, and I just enjoyed relaxing and snuggling with the kitty! 

Saturday morning I used a massage gift certificate that I'd bought through Groupon near the end of last year.  It was kind of the best way to start the day EVER! :)  

I then headed down to Castle Rock to see our old family friend Connie who was visiting from out of town.  I had breakfast with her and my mom - it was so nice to catch up! 

After that, I met up with my friend Korey at Chuck E Cheese's for her 34th b-day party.  It was kind of ridiculous, but kind of fun too.  I love how my friends can still be kids, even though we're all grown up now.

I headed home to get changed, and to get my booty to the Fillmore for the roller derby bout!  My team (the United States Pummeling Service) played the Pikes Peak Derby Dames (from Colorado Springs).  I didn't skate myself, but I did sing the National Anthem! 

  
Dave Wood got a photo of me in action (thanks, Dave!) - I was so nervous, but I tried really hard not to be!  John took a video of me in action... 
 


Pretty cool, huh!?  It was so amazing to get up in front of that many people and just sing my heart out!  Man - what a rush.  

The bout was great - USPS won by a good 200 points.  So it was definitely a blowout, but still fun to watch!  I started rooting for Pikes Peak near the end though - I would've loved to see them come back a bit.  They were fighting tooth & nail, so I gotta give them props! 

After the bout we headed to Goosetown for drinks and libations.  I had a bit too much to drink (of course - ugh), but still had a super fun time.  We headed to Rockbar for a minute, then John and I headed home. 

The next morning I had a bunch of friends over for brunch!  It was WONDERFUL - and totally kept within my Spending Fast guidelines.  I made a couple of casseroles, and everyone was gracious enough to bring food & drink to share.  I'm so glad we did it this way too, because more people could come, and we had tons of food!  SO awesome. 

    
OH and John gave me my birthday gift!  His aunt made this CUSTOM for me - isn't that awesome??  The silverware are garden markers, and I think they're just adorable.  I can't wait 'till we have the garden started and we can actually use them!  :)

Sean actually had a story about getting that shirt for free the night before when we were at Rockbar... it was pretty hilarious!  I guess he saved a guy's iPad from landing on the sticky, disgusting dance floor.  Way to go, Sean!

Meredith holding Nikki's little bundle of joy, Nico!  Isn't he just the cutest!?

My derby wife, Megan (below with the scowl - she's so silly) that I started this blog with, brought the Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch pictured above, and a 1/2 gallon of milk.  I gotta say, it was one of the best things I've ever had someone bring to a brunch!  LOL!

Me & Cat A Combs!  She rocked it at the bout the night before - she jammed a bunch of times, and did an amazing job!  She's such a rockstar. :)

John sure does love his Blackhawks...

Katy is in love with her juicer as much as I am - this is one of her concoctions!  It's apple, carrot, ginger juice - but she puts WAY too much ginger in it for my liking. ;)  She's a spicy gal, so she likes it spicy!

Daddy & baby.  Nico is so cute!!

Me and my birthday twin!!  Ryan and I have the same birthday - just 1 year apart.  We've known each other since High School, and we celebrate our birthdays together every year!  Pretty awesome.

I couldn't resist putting these pictures together... Bill is totally crazy about our kitty, Fudge.  So it's him & Fudge, and Me with Nico!  Haha!

It actually even got warm enough for us to take the party outside - how awesome is that?? It was like 65 degrees and sunny - SO beautiful.  We played frisbee, and the guys played bags.  It was great!

After doing a quick clean-up, John and I enjoyed some down time on the couch watching TV, and checking email.  I took a 15-minute nap, that was perfect!  Then I got a call from Korey (her b-day was at Chuck E Cheese's the day before) - she said they were going for a bike ride.  Of course, we had to join! 

We went to the park, we stopped and played on a swing set AND a see-saw - it was hilarious!  Kind of the best bike ride ever.  :)  We kept getting into giggle-fits. 

That night, my family took me out to dinner at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Company!  I wanted to go there because I wanted CRAB LEGS like nothin' else!  And I sure did get what I wanted.  In case you're wondering - "hey, aren't you vegetarian?  Or vegan or something?" - well, I'm kind of all of that.  Technically I'm Pescitarian (a mostly vegetarian that eats fish), but I try to eat vegan at home as much as possible, I eat vegetarian all other times, and every now & then I enjoy some seafood.  I hope that clears things up a bit! 

I kinda love this picture of my parents with John.  Hilarious!

It was so wonderful to see Deb too - our family friend of many many years.  She's so hilarious - I love her!!  And Taryn's haircut looks absolutely adorable too.  She's making me want to cut my hair off! ;)
 

John had some fun with playing with his food! 

And I got my ridiculously delicious & buttery crab legs.  They were everything I hoped they would be!

After dinner, John and I came home and watched I Love You Phillip Morris.  I actually really enjoyed it!  It certainly wasn't what we expected - I didn't realize that it was based on a true story, and that Steven Russell had escaped from prison so many times.  Kind of crazy! 

Ewan McGregor was absolutely adorable, and I think they both did a great job of portraying a gay couple.  There's a scene where they're dancing in their cell when they're in prison together, and it's a really tender moment.  

It was sad, funny, and overall really fun.  Definitely check it out!   


All-in-all, my weekend was totally amazing.  I have the best people in my life, I swear.  :)  I felt so loved and special, and I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.  Yay for another awesome birthday!!