Here’s what’s new with us:

• Sam and I rode in the 2011 bike MS: Pedal Los Pueblos charity ride.  It was exciting and lots of fun.  Thank you to everyone who donated and helped us help the fundraiser surpass it’s $125,ooo goal (last I checked, they were close to collecting $150,000!)
• I started my own photography business and have shot a few homes in the Albuquerque area and one in Durango–you can see some of my latest work here.
• I started a new job, working very part-time as a transaction manager for a local real estate agent
• Sam spoke in this years’ Albuquerque Wordcamp conference as a panelist and did an excellent job. It was a great opportunity to meet other web people in our area and I think he made some great contacts. He had so much fun that he is thinking about speaking at other conferences nationally and possibly internationally
• I got accepted to UNM, and am finally going to finish my degree. Go Lobos!
• There is talk of my brother and his wife moving to Albuquerque at some point in the near future–this would be wonderful and we are very much looking forward to them being closer

That’s about it for now.  We are heading into Fall and are looking forward to the weather being cooler for awhile. We enjoyed spending this Summer with our niece and nephews and miss them now that they are back in school!

We are planning a trip to Rockford in November for Thanksgiving, and we’re really excited about seeing everyone there. We will be in town for about 5 days, so let me know if anyone wants to get together!

We spent most of our time in Savannah, with short trips to Hilton Head, SC and Charleston.  That part of the country is just beautiful and we hope to spend a lot more time there in the future.  While in Charleston we visited with Suki, had lunch and a tour.  It was so nice to see her again.  Every time I see her, I wish we lived closer so I could just talk with her for hours about anything.  Charleston is gorgeous and even though I was utterly exhausted and felt like I was about a 1/4 present I thoroughly enjoyed my time there.  The history in both Savannah and Charleston is of particular interest to me, and like I said before, I really hope we can visit the areas again over and over!

Pictures!

Last week, Sam took me to see the musical ‘Wicked’. I read the book years ago (I looooved the book, it’s one of my all time favorites) and have been waiting to see the musical since about 2004, so it was a dream to finally get to see it. It was a touring production playing at Popejoy Hall at the University of New Mexico. It was an amazing night, we had so much fun. The musical is quite a bit different than the book, but as its own entity, the musical was perfect. Sam enjoyed it as well, which made it a fun night for both of us.

We’re getting geared up to take a trip to Savannah to see my brother and meet his wife, Melissa, and I can’t wait! March 16-21 we’ll be traveling and busy visiting with them, and we’ll hopefully get to see Suki in Charleston while we are there, too.

Sam and I have been on a diet as some of you know. We’re using a website to track our calories and exercise, and it’s actually been working–I’ve lost almost 10 pounds in the last 3 weeks, and Sam’s lost weight too! We’ve been pretty dedicated to living healthier lives and I’m proud of us for sticking with it for as long as we have.

St. Valentine's Day

We’re also planning a mini-vacation to Santa Fe on March 3rd, where we will shop and dine and visit art galleries and just relax.  Prior to heading to Santa Fe, we’ll be taking a hot air balloon ride in Albuquerque–pictures to come!

Also, we had a great night tonight for Valentine’s Day–dinner at Garduno’s and relaxing at home.

I don’t know that anyone reads this blog other than my mom, but I would love to hear what everyone else has been up to.

We had multiple run-ins with her from this point on. Some good, some bad. Some really really bad. She made various complaints to the management that we “lived too loudly”, followed by a request to not walk in our bedroom during the day because we make too much noise. She threatened to call the police over the Summer because a friend’s swimsuit top that had been drying in the sun on the balcony had blown off and fallen to the rocks below her bedroom window and Sam was trying to retrieve it as carefully and quickly as possible. We’ve since learned that she is on a great deal of medication and depending on when she last took this medication, she could be really nasty or really nice. At first, I took great offense to her attacks since I had always considered myself to be a kind, considerate neighbor who can get along with just about anyone. It made me pretty angry and hurt. And nervous since I didn’t know what was coming next and if it would somehow reflect badly on our rental history. I didn’t like that the Tierra Antigua Management staff always reprimanded us for stuff we were NOT doing without asking us if any of her accusations were true. She even went so far as to say that we (two non-smokers) had somehow thrown a cigarette butt down into her covered patio and burned her furniture….?? And all of this happened while we were in Boston. A nasty letter from management was waiting for us when we returned from our trip, exhausted from travel, reprimanding our carelessness and reminding us of the dangers of smoking and correct cigarette disposal. Gee, thanks, that will surely come in handy.

One rainy day in October, Sam and I returned from the gym to find our dog, Izzy, on the landing. Soaking wet and barking at our neighbor, who was to her credit, frantically trying to catch Izzy by enticing her with a milk bone. She saw that we were pulling up and said that she tried to make Izzy safe. Izzy had jumped through our second story window, survived the fall and had been prowling around making mischief for at least an hour and a half. That night really made me think. I have since realized that we are dealing with a mentally unstable woman who is basically alone and very lonely. I’ve really tried to make amends with her, understanding that it’s important to just play along with a crazy person who has no real grip on reality. I began treading lightly when seeing her in passing, and trying to make friendly small talk with her while still escaping to the safety of our second story apartment. She often offered our dogs treats when we would return from a nice walk. One day, to really cement the peace that I thought might be growing, I accepted her offer of treats for the dogs. I waited while she excitedly ran into her apartment and returned with two big milk bones, one for each pup. She made them sit, gave them the treats and then showered them with a lot of love. An animal lover–finally, something we have in common.

Now when I see her, I don’t dread it as much. I still get a little nervous because you don’t know what kind of day it’s been for her. I let her see the dogs and chat with her for a minute, and Sam usually knows to fabricate an excuse to get me up the stairs and away from being stuck there too long. I try to commiserate with her about the crappy maintenance & management at Tierra Antigua. I think it’s just better to agree than fight a pointless battle with someone who can’t understand. The next time she feels we’ve been too loud, I’m sure I’ll just apologize. In this situation, I have to understand that I have the intellectual upper hand, and it’s my duty to extend patience and kindness to her–someone who has not lived the privileged and pretty great life I have led with a wonderful family surrounding me.

This morning before leaving for work, at her doorstep I dropped a tin of cookies I made last night and a Christmas card. Hopefully she won’t think we’re trying to poison her and will feel included and thought of during the holidays which can be pretty lonely for someone who has no one. And I really hope she’s not allergic to peanuts!

Happy Holidays, everyone! Please give someone who needs it a little love this year. It could be the best gift you ever give yourself.

Becky

Our Christmas Tree this year!

We’re just about set for Christmas this year. We picked out our Christmas jammies this evening, and my mom will be joining us on Christmas Eve. It will be a quiet Christmas at our little apartment here, and then we’ll spend some time with Rachel and her family as well later in the day on Christmas. We’ll be sending out our annual holiday letter soon, so keep your eyes peeled!