The start of 2008

 Time has a way of getting away.... but it hasn't escaped notice from the camera. Here's the first few months of 2008 by pictures:

Jan 1st will forever start with a bang--Cody's birthday!

Managed to get out of audit long enough to make it to Tulsa for Mr & Mrs Nathan Ritchie's wedding in January. 0=)

Trip to Pheonix (above) and Tuscon (below) for Rockies Spring Training. Totally hope to do it again!

Imagine a rain-out in the middle of the desert and that was the trip to Tuscon. It netted a Brian Fuentes autograph though.

Jen came through and took a quick trip with her back to IL and a run through Chi-town.

Opening Day for the 2007 National Leauge Champion Colorado Rockies. Nothing makes one feel more patriotic than a day like that!

1 Year Later

Adjusted statuses:

The “I recently moved here” excuse really *shouldn’t* be used anymore.

Colorado Driver’s license—but not registered voter. Word to the wise, if you’ve “recently moved here” and your local DMV says that the felony registry is down and they can’t complete your paper work that day, they’ll also forget to register you to vote. Just be glad you got this piece of advise before the presidential election yr!

Aunthood! There’s really no way to describe it; you just got to experience it. ;)

Eligible for a retirement fund.

Things I’ve learned—or haven’t:

God is faithful and won’t change.

If I’m not out the door by 7:50am, I’ll miss the green arrow. Better take the back route through a parking lot to the next street light.

Credit and debits are very mysterious creatures.

The Body of Christ is big… learn to appreciate it.

IRS Red forms cannot be downloaded off the internet.

Take one day at a time, and don’t try to figure out the next 14 yrs.

Baltimore City Starbucks mugs do not exist in my world.

Credits and debits have a mind of their own.

Always look at the name and destination city on check-in luggage before dropping off for inspection. The airline just might decide to donate it to another passenger and city.

Tom Brady is the lifesaver for your fantasy football league. He’s a must-draft for 2008!

Oh—did I mention the credit/debit thingy??

The general populous believes there are multiple ways to spell my name: Elisha, Alyssia, Alecia, Elysia…. Elisha being the most popular.

The Memorable & Unforgettable:

Mindy & Anna’s surprise visit

Going around Baltimore Indian style. (minus the speed bumps)

Toilet paper camping fellowship despite a fire ban during rain storms. Seriously Rangers?!?

Shannon’s random questions to keep the office entertained. Don’t worry. I won’t mention them. That’d be TMI.

Getting the insider’s tour of LA… And it’s official: A beach bum would be the easiest habit to develop.

2007 National League Champion Colorado Rockies baseball team.

·        The team of men with character and dedication to Christ who won when the world said they couldn’t because they’re just a bunch of nice guys….

      Media: Please meet ‘ The Miracle on Blake St’ “

·        Sweeping the Yankees & Mets

·        Brad Hawpe’s walk-off home run in July.

·        The game at Dodger Stadium for Morralles’ Major League debut.

·        The Rally Mullets—80’s night at the park when the Rockies came back to win by scoring their most runs ever in the bottom of 9^th.

·        Todd Helton’s walk-off home run again Saito sparking their historical run of winning 20 out of 21 games.

·        Sept 30^th win over AZ & Milwakee’s win over SD sending Padres & Rockies to a playoff for the National League Wild Card. Rockies fans were bigger Brewer fans for a day!

·        The Umpires who couldn’t get home run calls right (Rockies were denied 4)

·        Matt Holliday’s slide across home plate to win the Wild Card playoff game. (btw, there’s no controversy over whether he touched the plate. Barrett dropped the baseball. Game over. ;)

·        Sweeping AZ in the playoff with the final out of Eric Byrnes at first. I guess Tulo must’ve somehow outplayed Byrnes & Byrnes’ mouth after all. Watching Francis raise the 2007 NL Champ flag gave chills!

·        Helping out and attending World Series games and gala events around Denver. Wowzers.

Janna & Amy’s Dove Chocolate sayings to live by.

Finally seeing Atlanta and hanging with Susie & Sheri!

Denver Christmas Parade of Lights. Don’t forget to order your Starbucks drink extra hot!

So, it’s 1 year later… and God has given the blessing of life. Let’s enjoy it! Merry Christmas!

P.S. Seeing as that I haven’t posted in a while, here’s some pictures from the last 6 months.

Above: Beach bums by day, Dodger Stadium by night Below: Camping, Chi-town night lights

Above: Visiting GA... I'm lost--Where's the congestion?? Below: Raising the NL champ flag in center after win, World Series Opening Ceremonies!

Below: Cody up to 10.5 mon old. Look at the personality!

Visuals...

Some people are hands-on, some are audio, some are just brilliant, and others--well, at times I like visual. This is one of them. I'll tell the story of the last month by visuals:

A road trip through previously unknown territories, er--states--with the goal of McCloy hospitality. One evening was spent terrorizing the area on the 4wheeler. =)

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. Enroute home notice that OK state line was just 12 miles away. OK, so I only went as far as their welcome sign, but hey, I was there!

The aunts' first time to babysit Cody. Honest... he was having a blast!! The camera just captured a special moment. (Don't worry, Dawn, he was really squealing with delight. )  

Sarah decided to become Mrs. Carl Kinz, thus a trip to Baltimore with good times and good friends...

Hint, if you're looking for a Starbucks Baltimore City mug, don't be confused by Krispy Kreme's green lettering sign. Just because it says coffee in green does not mean they sell Starbucks mugs. ::sigh::

And the unique picture award: The word combinations in this exhibit at the DC Spy Museum....

Most inspiring... World War II memorial:

Thank you peoples for contributing to this facinating survey! I've continued to ask around, and it's certainly been interesting. There's been results from around 25 people. Out of those with longer ring fingers it wasn't accurate for 5 of them. Conclusion? Well, in mathematical proof language, all who enjoy math have longer ring fingers, but not all those with longer ring fingers enjoy math. Make sense?  Again, my gratitude for all of you who took part in this. If you hear of any further results, please pass them on!

I can't do too many entries without pictures. Here's a flavor of the past month or so...

Chicago & Robertson/Novotny Wedding...

Memorial Weekend & Risma/Bryant Wedding...

The Codster...

Do you have a hand for mathematics?

Do you have a hand for math? No, it does not mean can you count to 10 using your fingers or to 20 using your fingers and toes--besides your toes are not on your hand, so that doesn't count--literally!  So here's how it goes:

There was a report on the radio the other day saying that if your ring finger (that'd be on your *left* hand) is longer than your index finger, you probably score higher in math. We all know not to believe everything you hear, but intriguing!! I wouldn't say I'm great at math, but I certainly don't mind it. My hand? The ring finger is slightly longer than the index. I decided to take the case study further and test it in a math environment--my accounting office. Yup, true there. Of all the people I've talked with, it's held valid on about a 10-1 ratio.

So, peoples, tell me... Is your finger longer/shorter and how do you feel about math? I really am interested to know; it's fascinating!