Friday

Snow Falling & Picture Editing
Sent from my iPhone

Date Night

Sent from my iPhone

Introducing....

Nathan Picard. One of the most talented musicians we know. Nathan has been the leading force behind a couple bands over the last decade. Now, he is stepping out on his own. We are so excited! Now we believe that we will be able to see more clearly the honesty and depth behind his music. Check out his website. Disclaimer: Nathan may be our brother-in-law, but this review is unbiased.

New Kicks

It's been a few years, but I finally pulled the trigger and got a new
pair of shoes. I'm pretty sure multiple family members have given
money for new shoes for Christmas or a birthday for multiple years in
a row now, but their generosity never beget footwear. The day has come
and many thanks to those who gave :). What do you think?
Sent from my iPhone

They're Engaged!

(taken with an iPhone) Nate and Amy. Nate is one of the greatest guys I know. He asked Amy to marry him over Christmas break. She said yes and we went and took pictures yesterday to celebrate it. So excited for them!

Our Current View From the Kitchen

And in case you can't tell... there is beautiful snow falling!

A More Mature Birthday

Our good friend Missy had a birthday yesterday. It was just her 30th. So we had her over for some authentic Mexican food, gave her a gift, and then headed into the Burgh with Mr. Ryan Holt.

The Gift: A popcorn maker! She was quite elated as you can see.

The whole reason for going into Pittsburgh was to go to the Melting Pot. Joanna and I had been only once before and this was Missy and Ryan's first time. She declared it a more grown up birthday celebration and that cakes will no longer due.

Ryan, always one to take it up a notch, decided to try and "roast" the marshmallow over the burner. It worked. He said it better that way.

Mmmm... a much more mature birthday ;)

A New Gold Standard...

Today was our last day for our old Gold Card. Personally, I will miss the 10% it saved us whenever we visited our "third place". Well... a new year, a new gold standard :).

My "Office" Window Today

Colorado So Far...

We were blessed with a white Christmas!

Seriously...that's not even a postcard. That's just a quick picture out the passenger side window! We love Colorado.

The Armstrong side of our family surprised Joanna with an impromptu Birthday Dinner, complaining they never get to celebrate with her when it's her actual birthday. You may notice the "cake" is actually Starbucks Ice Cream.

This time of year around the Lorenzen house is always full of season inspired scents. Not the least of which is Laurie's infamous candied pecans!

We took a trip up to Copper Mountain with our friend Missy. This was Joanna's second time ever attempting to snowboard. She had not tried in six years and it may be another six till the next time :). But what a view!

The calories burnt off snowboarding were quickly put back on when we grabbed a bite at The Rio. All three of us were moving quite stiffly at this point (not to mention Missy got pink eye!).

Upon our arrival to the Lorenzen residence, Laurie shared the good news that a cat had adopted the house as his own. Joanna loves cats...I could do without them, so it's fun to have a temporary one while we're here. (For those who have known Joanna for a while, doesn't that cat look eerily similar to Joseph? We are assuming it's one of his many long lost illegitimate offspring :D)

A romantic evening Lorenzen style.... a warm fire and your mac.

Joanna and I, along with my sisters and her parents returned to the church we got married in for a Candle Lit Christmas Eve service.

Jon and Kari drove 17 hours with Irelynd and Haidyn and the two dogs and got here late Christmas Eve. We miss our other nephews and niece and their parents, but it has been great to have the San Diego Lorenzens here.

Christmas Day was split between The Armstrong side and the Lorenzens and I took most of the photos with the actual camera...those will come later. This is the only photo I took of Christmas day with the iPhone. It's quite Christmas-ie and she is quite beautiful.

This is Colorado So Far...

Nueva York

We headed up to New York State this past weekend to do our final wedding of the year. Sarah Taylor (now Lincoln) planned it on this date so she could specifically get pictures in the snow. So far it has been a pretty mild winter though and even when we woke up on Friday, there was no snow on the ground. But Sarah had been praying and the further north we got, the more snow was coming down. The ended up closing the interstates and we took side roads the whole way. It was beautiful! Big snowflakes coming down, everything covered in white! And the next day...the day of the wedding...it was completely sunny. There were a few adventures on our trip, but the wedding went great, and in the end we had a wonderful time together.

The Interstate

Jamestown, NY

At one point during the reception, we set our cameras down to get a little slow dance in. When we looked down, our cameras were getting a little friendly themselves :).

On Sunday, we took a little detour to go visit our friends the Kirkseys who live in Houghton, NY. It was freezing rain the whole way there which is just gross. But half of the way there we had our own personal escort. The cop kept us at about 35-40mph on the interstate and just stayed in front of us in the middle lane. We're kinda of a big deal you know.

Basketball Champ...Once Again!!!

I just want to brag on my wife a little...she's amazing for many reasons, but tonight she and her intramural basketball team took on a bunch of young rascals and took home the gold. I love watching Joanna play. She still goes after it and plays some mean ball. So Sweet!

Go Ducks!

Representing the Pac-10 out east today! The Ducks will face the Ohio
State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl.

Time in AZ

Happy Thanksgiving

This is how we start off Thanksgiving in Yuma :). Happy Thanksgiving
Everyone.

Friends that can craft!

I love having creative friends! All I have to do is buy cute fabric,
send it to Portland, and in a few weeks I get a designer apron and
kitchen towels! Thanks Callie! Now, what should I cook?

First Gift

I'm pretty sure no one reads my blog that doesn't read my sisters.....but just in case, I want to make sure that the word gets out. Tomorrow is a big day. Before the holiday season starts, lets put our hearts and money in the right place.
"Every day, 4500 mothers bury their children due to contaminated water. They are forced to sustain their families with a diabolical liquid that contains both life and death. This lack of clean water is the leading cause of death in underdeveloped nations. And it just doesn't have to be! So as we gear up to scurry through department stores and browse endless catalogs in search of new jeans, Tonka Trucks, gadgets and dolls....we are pausing. We are pausing. And today, November 13th, we are buying water. Clean, life-saving water. $10 will provide one person in Africa clean water for 10 years. It will literally change and possibly save someone's life. A mother. A child. A brother. A grandfather. We are rallying together for a cause. Clean water. One day. $10. Asking everyone to let this be their first gift. Let water, let life be their first gift of the season."
Tomorrow, Nov. 13th, go here

It's about water...

bottom line....it's about water! But I can't help but be so proud of my sister. She does not to do it alone! But I know that she carries a heavy weight, it keeps her up at night. I look at these pictures with amazement. She was willing to enter someones nightmare and in return her story is one worth telling.

A Retreat

I've taken my staff and we've gone to the country. It's more than I
expected. A quiet morning, a little football this afternoon, and a
beautiful sunset. I'll be home tomorrow;)

Missy Davis

Our friend Missy invited us to her place last night for tacos. Missy
just moved here from Denver. We have really enjoyed our time with her.
I brought over homemade apple pie from scratch for dessert. Be
impressed:)