The holidays just a few days belated..

I feel the need to post about the holidays, traveling, and our last weeks in Wichita Falls. Then I can move onto the epic trip to Oregon that almost did us in and first weeks in "the valley."

Daniel and I have decided that we can't do anything easily. A trip to visit family for the holidays would not be complete without having to pack up the 5th wheel and take it into a dealership for some "work." We always seem to have work/ repairs done at the most convenient time! Each time we go through the process of hearing "Well we may not be able to get parts over the holidays, the factory has shut down. The turn around time is usually 2-3 weeks but with the holidays we just don't know. How about you pay upfront for the part and we will reimburse you." We have learned over the past 3 years, because we are young, we will hear this nonsense again and again and we know the game. So with our "education" to tell the dealership exactly what we want as well as, a time frame and through many phone calls it always seems to work out. This holiday season we were getting a new refrigerator installed only to discover that our bedroom slide has mechanical issues. No these two don't go together but we always uncover a new little issue! Two days before we were due to leave Daniel calls me to say the truck won't "go" and he is on the side of the interstate! YEA! A few thousand dollars later we were able to pack up, drop off the 5th wheel, and head out for an undetermined amount of time for the holidays. We were not sure how long we would be gone as D's company "messed up" on his holiday vacation.

We got to my grandmother's house in Dallas late on Christmas eve eve. We were both so glad to do laundry, spread out, wrap presents, finish up Christmas shopping, and not deal with anything related to the 5th wheel. Christmas as usual was great! I must have been a good girl again this year because my family made me the proud owner of the long lusted SLR camera complete with extra lenses! WOW! Thank you everyone and as expected paparazzi sprung right into action! ;) We had an amazing time visiting with family, loving on Connor, and relaxing. Thank you all so much for the wonderful presents!Daniel and I headed to Austin on Christmas night to prepare for a celebration with his family. We had another great Christmas celebration and were able to get in quality time with the entire family. We met the newest addition to the family..little Jacob. I think everyone enjoyed watching me squirm holding a 2 week old. All the kids are at such a fun age and we enjoy watching them have so much fun!! Thank you for the wonderful Christmas presents! We appreciate all of you so much!

Frock FamilyBoles Family

Another highlight of Austin was meeting several friends for dinner at Chuy's. All I can say it was was yummy! We had a large group with all the couples and kids. We met baby Leo and Aaron assured Daniel and I its easy having a newborn at home! ;) Kropp, Tool, and Shellenberger families we enjoyed catching up with each of you! I hope we can make it back again soon!! (I am sad I didn't bust my camera out.)

We headed back to Wichita Falls on Monday to pick up the 5th wheel and prepare for D to go back to work. The last few weeks in the area were busy preparing for travel, trying to not get sick, and saying good bye.
New Years Eve was very low key.We went to dinner and were back home in time to watch the ball drop. We celebrated with frozen yogurt..I know... wild!

We met up with Jay and his wife for a night of hockey. We had so much fun with them! Thank you guys for a fun evening!!!We also made a quick trip out the lake to close up the cabin for the winter. It was so cold...we were only there for a few hours. I wanted to so much to feel the heat of the summer and jump in the water. No such luck!
The weekend before we left to drive north we headed over to my grandmothers. She was so nice to ask us if we wanted to come over, do laundry, see friends, and run errands, before we hit the road for the long trip. Poor Daniel between the migraines and morning sickness, he has been having to do the laundry, shopping, and attempting to feed himself. It was nice to get caught up as well as, see a few friends, do some shopping, and relax on the couch. It snowed all day on Sunday and we enjoyed spending a day on the couch! Mom and David-Thanks for having us! The babies love running around in the garage!It soon became time for the trip to Oregon. We had planned to leave early on a Saturday morning and arrive on Monday. This schedule would allow for Daniel to rest on Tuesday and start the new rotation on Wednesday. I will say in advance ..it didn't go as planned. Stay tuned.....

It was a busy break..but we enjoyed it!

After the last blog post life got a little hectic to keep up blogging in real time! Ha! Lets see...We ventured over to Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino in New Mexico and spent the day watching the horses run. The day ended great as we came out ahead $200! Daniel had not experienced horse racing so he really enjoyed it! We both had a great time picking the horses but I can't give away our secret! Haha!

We also headed back to Ruidso, NM to hit up the slopes. This time I was much more confident and even went with Daniel on several runs. I am not going to say in the least I kept up with him..but its fun to attempt some of the same runs! Love you Daniel and you know you secretly love getting off the lift with me! ha We can't wait to go again!
We left on Christmas eve afternoon to head to Dallas to celebrate Christmas with my family on Saturday. Mother nature however, had other plans for us and around Abiliene we hit snow. Daniel's mom called to say the interstate was shut down and we might have to spend the night on the road. When she called the road was clear however, as we continued east and finally when the interstate trooper told us the road was closed we had no choice. Luckily we were close to Daniel's cousin and Aunt Martha and they lovingly opened their home to us and our doggies. It was so cold we were more than grateful to have a place to stay as all the hotels were booked! Thank you so much Aunt Martha for letting us stay with you.
We awoke on Christmas morning with the interstate still closed so we played in the snow a little! Aunt Martha got between 12 and 15 inches at her house! WOW and FUN! After taking a very long detour totaling 5 hours in a distance that should have taken us an hour and half we arrived. Needless to say were were happy to be in Dallas!
Christmas this year with Connor was fun..but next year is going to be a blast! We all had a lot of fun having a little on around this year! Ben and Ann..you guys have a little charmer on your hands!
This year we did something a little different (to help out my grandmother) and stayed at a hotel. I am only saying this because they put this on our door (because of our dogs) and it disturbed me a little We had so much fun seeing my side of the family and always love the time we have together! I can't believe the holidays are already over! It seems just like yesterday we were excited to be leaving the cold of Omaha and looking forward to 09!
On Sunday we headed down to Austin for a week of fun with family and friends. The week did not disappoint as we were on the go!
We started off the trip by celebrating Christmas with Daniel's family. Its always a lot of fun with all the kiddos and this year all of them were old enough to really dig in and rip up the paper! (I know what to expect from Connor next year!) Ha! I love watching little ones get so excited!
We had a great evening with Daniel's family and as always enjoyed getting to see and catch up with everyone! We do not make it to Austin often so when we do we are always amazed at how much the kids have grown!
On Monday we started getting together with friends in between spending time with both families. My parents came to Austin to spend some more time loving on Connor! ;) Daniel was able to meet up with a few old friends and yes they acted like boys! I know Daniel, Calvin, Shelby, my dad, and brother were a sight to see acting like fast and furious on the track! Ha! It sounds like they had a great time playing lazer tag as well!
This trip was great as we were able to see so many people - Mike and Brandon met us for lunch. We had a great time catching up you Mike and can't wait to hear all about the half Iron Man Tri this year! We are so proud of you!!
We stopped by Suzette's house and were able to visit with her family for a while. It had been almost 3 years since we had really been able to catch up. Suzette set Daniel and I up on our first date! Ok well kind of.... she asked Daniel if he would like to go to a party with me and I just happened to walk up while she was asking! We love her so much and always try to make it a point to go see her!
We were also able to visit with Cara and Orlando at Little Woodrows early in the week. I used to work with Cara at a sports medicine clinic and we always have some great stories to keep us laughing! It was great to see you Miss Karob!
We continued our meet and greets with Marie and little Fletcher. Marie and I worked together at the gym and I always love catching up with her. She is so much fun, we laugh the entire time, and I miss seeing her every day! Doesn't she have just the cutest little 2 yr old? I can't believe how Fletcher has grown!
We also met up with Rebecca and Rob. We miss them so much and enjoy getting to hang out with them anytime we have an opportunity! They are such a fun couple! We always start laughing as soon as we get together and don't stop until its time to party ways! We miss you guys and seeing you often!
New Years was low-key beginning with a late dinner at McMorick and Schmiit's with Casey and Calvin. It was super yummy and fun to have no real plans except for catching up and having fun! We got rowdy (ha) and Calvin and Casey's house for a little Rockband! We had a blast and loved that it was so low key! We had a great time with you guys and love hanging out. You are a great couple and I am glad we are cousins! Ha!
On New Years day we planned for my family to have lunch with Daniel's. Its always hard to get everyone together when we are in town. We met at Chuy's (my favorite- YUM_O) and could not have had a better time! I love the pictures! Everyone had a great time so we will have to do it again!
We enjoyed so much getting to see everyone as well as spend a lot of quality time with family!
Mary thank you so much for letting us stay with you this trip! Ben and Ann thank you guys for letting us come by anytime so we could visit. It made our trip much less stressful! We had a great time and hope to make it back again soon! We better because little Connor is going to keep growing up! On that same note..I guess we both must have been a good again this year because Santa was great to both of us! I really appreciate everything and can't wait to get my creative juices flowing. Daniel is in heaven with his gifts and has already been showing them off!

With all the traveling and getting stuck on the road I am horrible friend for just getting around to this.... Christmas day is also Happy Birthday to one of my best friends! Jill I am so lucky to have a friend like you and treasure our friendship more than you even know. Happy Birthday Jillsie and hope we can see you guys soon!! We miss you!!
And just for you....


To Everyone: Your welcome for making your day...you know you all love the song! Oh sorry that it will now be stuck in your head for the rest of the day! ;)

ALSO a Big Christmas Holiday Surprise..A BIG CONGRATS to Shannon and Jason who got engaged! We are so happy for you both and could not be more excited!!
As you can tell we had a amazing holiday season and hope you did as well! 2009 was great however just like you, we didn't enjoy the unexpected bumps during the year! We treasure all the new experiences and adventures, the wins and losses, traveling, welcoming babies, making new friends, our health and happiness, our family and friends health, and growing stronger as a couple! We are very excited to experience all this year has to offer! Here is to hoping 2010 is a great year for everyone!!!!

And Finally - Update on our next location...drum roll please..we are headed to Santa Fe, NM! We are both really excited about all the town has to offer and the snowboarding! I am personally excited about all the art in the area but not about the cold..its currently 13! We only have a week left in El Paso and can't believe it! We have loved this rotation and have met some amazing people! With all the nervousness we had about coming to El Paso (being so close to Juarez) I am so glad we did! This last week is going to be busy looking for that one thing for our home someday to remind us of this city as well as goodbye dinners..Oh the joys of living on the road! Its an experience that I can say we will never forget! The plaque in our 5th wheel says it perfectly "Wherever you go, go with all your heart!" Come visit us in Santa Fe!!!

Ta ta for now!
Daniel and Melissa