Babymoon!!

Well, I messed up on the blogs I tried to send while in San Diego - so this is catch-up.. :)

Chad and I decided to take a last vacation before baby and decided on San Diego! We stayed at Paradise Point..a pretty cool resort and spa right in the middle of the marina area.

On Friday, we woke fairly early (not counting the two hour time difference from Austin), ate breakfast, and went to the zoo! My first time at the San Diego zoo..Chad's second. We had a great time seeking out our favorite animals and got to see several very close up thanks to the great habitats the animals were living in.

Friday night we went to a Padres baseball game. Had a great time watching them play the Rockies. The Padres didn't win..but we enjoyed the game, had some good hotdogs, and were excited to see the Friday Night Fireworks.

Saturday was relaxation day.. We went to the spa for a couple's massage, hit Mission Beach for a walk on the boardwalk and lunch, took a 2-hour nap, hit the pool, then had dinner/fruity drinks at Nick's at the Pier. :) Overall a fantastic day!

You can see the rest of our photos on Dropshots.. http://www.dropshots.com/chadandkara#date/2009-07-17

Seattle pics..

Finally posted my pics from Seattle.. I don't see why it always takes me so long.. It's not like it's that hard to drop them over.. :) http://www.dropshots.com/chadandkara#date/2009-06

Nothing much going on right now.. Trying to convince Chad to take a weekend trip away this month. and working. and staying out of this ridiculous heat. I've been successful with work. :)

Day 3..

Wow. Today was a great, eventful, and tiring day! Woke at 530AM to get ready to head to the Challenge site. Arrived by 615 and spent time greeting bikers, eating some breakfast, and chalking the road with inspirational msgs. At 7 the bikers left and at 8 the 5K started. The course was great..good challenging hills, enough shade, and right around the Space Needle. We completed the route in about 50 min walking..not bad. Then we hung around the site.. Amy rode on the stationary bikes (Spin Zone) for 15 miles - she's amazing. :) I bought baby a LiveStrong onesie. And we cheered on the riders coming in. Some of these folks are such an inspiration to me.. They've been through so much and yet they hop on a bike or tie on their running shoes and attempt to truly pick a fight with cancer. I'm so glad I came to Seattle to be a part of this!

We went to the Mariners vs Diamondbacks baseball game in the afternoon. Super fun! We HAD to try fan faves: garlic fries and shishkaberries. The garlic fries were amazing..and words can't explain how covered in garlic they were :) And shishkaberries are 5 strawberries on a skewer dipped in chocolate. YUM. The home team won in the bottom of the 9th which capped off a great game. We then checked out the Pyramid Brewery and Washington State ferry. The ferry was a great break from walking and allowed us to get some great pics of Seattle and the area. We ate dinner at a yummy Asian fusion restaurant and then crashed at the hotel. Whew

Pics are of the Challenge, shishkaberries, Pyramid and ferry. Enjoy!

And we're off!!!

Getting started!!

Live Strong!

Seriously..

530AM and its light outside already. Sun didn't go down til after 930 last night. Seattle is weird. :)

Day 2!

Long but great day! Spent the morning at the Village helping participants check in and get their goodies. Then had a great dinner with Amy and Anabel. Ride and 5K are tomorrow! We're doing the 5K..wish us luck!

Takin the monorail!

Starbucks in hand.. Anabel, Amy and I headed back to the hotel after a long day at LiveStrong Village.

Day 1 in Seattle

Well I made it to Seattle. What a pretty city! I didn't bring the laptop so mass upload of pics will have to wait til I get home.. But I figured I could post a few updates here throughout the weekend.
Seattle is very pretty! Lots of trees.. Non smelly water front.. Clean downtown. And lots to see! I got here late morning and had the day to myself. (roomie #1 will be here early eve) made me way over to Pike Place Market and then did some shopping. Saw the famous fish market (where they throw the fish) and saw the first Starbucks! Then treated myself to a peanut butter graham cracker dunked in chocolate. Mmmmm.. ;)
More news and pics to come!

Running errands with my buddy :)

Forgotten pics..

Pics of the office and master bedroom have been added to the 2009 Home Improvement album..

http://www.dropshots.com/chadandkara#albums/2009%20-%20Home%20Improvement

and I've posted pics from Paul and Michelle Weigand's wedding. :) Congrats again, guys!

http://www.dropshots.com/chadandkara#date/2009-05-14

Broadway Bound....?

Well, the "Orange Beast"...or the orange couch...however you like to refer to it...is no longer residing at Wildwater Way. Making way for Baby Miller we had to start cleaning out what was previously identified as Chad's Room. seriously..does he need his own room? I don't have MY own room..

Anyways, through the wonderful works of Craigslist, we were able to put the couch up as free to the first taker.. It took two weeks, but the couch now has a new home...at Hyde Park Theater! It will make its stage debut in the theater's upcoming production of "Killer Joe". We've been offered tickets to see the production one weekend in June.. We'll let you know if we go and will post a review.

"Killer Joe" and Mark picked up the couch on Saturday and were psyched. "We're pumped that your cat did the roughing up damage for us. Now we don't have to make it look worn!" Thanks Nala...

We'll miss you, Orange Beast.. but wish you well in your new career..

Broadway in Austin!

Well, Chad and I went to our 4th installment of our Broadway in Austin season tickets last night - Rent! It was very different from the other shows we have been seeing lately. More of a rock drama than a comedy. Chad's favorite so far..

Previously, we went to see Legally Blonde, Spamalot, and Avenue Q. Each were so good! Legally Blonde was borderline "get me the heck out of here" for Chad at the beginning - but by the end, we both enjoyed it. When we were in New York City back in May of 2007, we met a stagehand that said Spamalot was soooo very funny - and he was right! We laughed non-stop! and then Avenue Q.. Billed as an "adult version of Sesame Street" it was a riot!

Now, we wait for August for the final show..Wicked! I'm SO jazzed to see this one.. It's been getting rave reviews in NYC for a few years now.. and since I grew up watching the Wizard of Oz..it will be fun to see this other side of the story.

Separate from our season tickets - I'm hoping to get tickets with a few girlfriends to go see Annie in June! Unfortunately, we probably won't be getting season tickets next year.. We're not as intrigued by the overall line-up. Though I DO want to see Fiddler on the Roof and A Chorus Line. You can check out more information at: http://www.broadwayacrossamerica.com/austin

Why I suck at blogging..

By Kara L Miller ;)

Yes..it's been a long time. pathetically long. But I DO have a good excuse. I've been FRIKKIN busy. Got a new job about 6 weeks ago and it has me very busy. LOVE that..but I'm real busy..and unable to take the time to blog. Sad..

SO, I'm going to try to remedy that. We'll see how it goes.

I moved to the Services organization at Dell and am supporting our Global Network and Telecom team. It's the team that keeps our internet running, phones working, email flowing.. and I'm really enjoying learning all about it. I'm managing a cost savings program for the team..pretty sweet. Chad is eyeballs deep at BearingPoint, too. The project he's been working on for years is deploying right now. And he's probably going to be working for Deloitte by the end of the month. So it's exciting on the work-front in the Miller house.

We've been continuing our organizing and cleaning of the home.. Landscaping will be finished this weekend.. Office was re-modeled (thanks Ikea!) and looks fantastic! and we're having a community garage sale this weekend. Hoping to get rid of a lot o' stuff.

Mom & Dad came to see us a few weeks back. As always it was a weekend FULL of great food. Chuys, Salt Lick, Mighty Fine Burgers.. and Chad and Dad out-did themselves grilling lobster on Saturday night. W-O-W. Thank goodness for that walk down Brushy Creek and laps at Ikea..

Other than that, things have been pretty low key. We're going to see the third installment of our Broadway in Austin season this weekend - Avenue Q. Should be pretty good according to the reviews.. Looking forward to some good laughs.

Alright - that's it for now. I'll try to get some pics of the office up soon. mmm..and from lobster night..

Is it snow?

Nope..just a bad hail storm I had to drive home through.. Ugh

Birthdays..

With February being in full swing, we're knee deep in birthdays from both sides of the family.. Smith: Memaw, Jessica, Audra.. Miller: Chad, Gerry, Larry, Chris

We went to Oklahoma over Valentine's weekend to celebrate Memaw's 90th. WHAT a day. Memaw was ALL smiles all day long - a blessing to us all. She really seemed to enjoy the company, the food, seeing her great-grand-daughter.. The only thing to make the day better would have been to have Jessica and Russell in attendance.. But unfortunately, work pulled both of them away. We ended the weekend with a lunch fundraiser at the UMC in Walters to raise money for the church's mission trips. It was a great opportunity to catch up with a few old friends - my 3rd grade teacher, my middle school principal, a mission trip buddy, a couple classmates..

Chad's 31st birthday was celebrated with dinner and a movie. We caught a showing of Slumdog Millionaire in preparation for Oscar's weekend. What a great film! drama, comedy, romance, documentary..all rolled into one. I encourage everyone to see it when they have a chance. It will open your eyes to the amazing and complex Indian culture.

Jessica is traveling to Denmark later this month! I wish I could hide in her suitcase and go along.. I can't wait to see pictures and hear stories of her adventures to see Miss Bella.

Unfortunately, I left my camera at home and didn't get pics from the birthday party. Hopefully Audra will send a few from her phone soon.. But I can share a couple pics of Chad and his new grill.. makin' ribs for Super Bowl.. :)

Vegas Skyline..

Tonight we're celebrating Jason's 30th birthday. At Ghostbar. Fantastic view. Bottle service.. And good friends. Can't ask for more!

Going to Vegas!!

Partying with Jason this weekend in VEGAS for his 30th!

Home Organization 2009

So here's what's been going on at the Miller house in January.. Organization. I'm on a roll and thankfully not ready to stop, because there is still more to be done! (does it ever REALLY end..?)

I started with the master closet. These built in shelves were getting WAY too crowded. and if we're not buying furniture soon, something else has to be done. Enter the Container Store's annual Elfa sale!

Then I wanted to tackle the linen closet..but before I could do that..I REALLY needed cabinets in my laundry room! I previously only had one single barely reachable shelf across the length of the room. (plus a wire shelf that Chad installed shortly after we moved in that we used very rarely for hanging clothes) Now check us out! All the cleaning supplies have been moved, I have cabinets with shelves I can reach, and you don't SEE everything!! :) Chad did all the handy work here, including demolition, spackling, painting, assembly, and hanging. though I did help with holding the cabinet in place while he attached to brackets. :) Thanks Chad and IKEA!!

NOW, I can really start on the linen closet.. A few trash bags, a run to Goodwill, and a couple bins from Garden Ridge later and check it! I've actually got EXTRA SHELF SPACE again!!

Now to start on the garage.. uh oh..

Sooners & Gators Takeover Miami..

(I have GOT to do a better job of keeping up with this blog..)

SO, as you saw in the previous update, Chad and I went to Miami! We met up with Mom and Dad, stayed two nights, and attended the National Championship game between Florida and Oklahoma. We had a blast - all except for the final 5 minutes or so of the game. But the trip in all was a success. :)

Here's a link to all of our pics: http://www.dropshots.com/chadandkara#albums/2009%20-%20Miami%20-%20Natl%20Champ

Miami..here we come!