Lisa and Michael

Lisa and I just got back tonight from our five-day jaunt in Colorado. We had a spectacular time (although very little snow), and a part of us was sad we had to come back. We loved it so much we figure that someday it will be our new home state. The small mining towns really captivated us, we especially liked the Victorian town of Ouray located over the mountains near Telluride.

Scratchy in front of the Ouray County Courthouse

It was a bit shocking to find that the cost of living in this tiny 900-person town was well above the national average. Heck, the gorgeous house next to the Ouray County Courthouse alone was listed at $1.5 million. Ouch. That certainly won’t deter us, though, since there are still some very affordable places around Colorado we’re interested in.

Stay tuned as I’ll be posting more pictures of our short stay soon.

P.S. Made it to the mall in Castle Rock around 6 a.m. on Black Friday. Since they opened up at midnight, it was pretty deserted by the time we got there. Very nice! We got nearly all of our Christmas shopping finished that day, and the stores there are very dog friendly. Puppy enjoyed all the attention, but was quite pooped by the time we were done.

This is day two of this vacation and it is the greatest! It is so relaxing to travel to places I have never been and see the world. I’m enjoying listening to Christmas music, football games and other things on Sirius radio while catching up on some reading. I am so happy we bought a new Jeep for sure. All three of us have plenty of room and we will need that room for day three which will bring Christmas shopping in Castle Rock, Colorado. The malls here open at midnight. I’m usually out pretty early on black Friday, however I doubt I will be out that early. Maybe I can persuade Michael and Puppy to take me to the mall around 5ish??

Lisa and I are off to Colorado for the next five days. Here’s hoping we see some snow since all we have had is record temperatures for the past month. Feels like spring, not fall.

Of course Michael refers to the new Jeep as Scratchy because Lisa had a small accident the first week we had it. The original name of the vehicle was Screamer. This name originated from the scream that Michael let out at the dealership while negotiating the price. I too am so looking forward to next weeks adventure! No Cheerleaders and no job related issues—just us! Hopefully, we put up our Christmas tree this weekend and bring back all of our wrapped presents with us so that we can enjoy the upcoming Christmas holiday.

Lisa and I are heading off to Colorado for the holiday next week. We’ll be spending five days roaming around the mountains in Scratchy with the puppy, taking in the scenery, the snow, an outlet mall on Black Friday, and just enjoying time to ourselves for a change. We certainly need it, what with all the stress of coaching cheerleaders and weathering reduction-in-forces at the office. Blech!

Look for some pictures of our journey sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Scratchy

P.S. The About page has been updated.

I don’t know why I get all uptight visiting car dealers, I guess it’s a gut feeling I get that they’re all out to screw us, Joe consumer. One of the many reasons why I love Lisa is her desire to save money, a quality both of us share. I think a major key to our great relationship is that we’re very open about money, something that tends to get in the way of a lot of other couples. It’s also great that the girls (usually) like to hear advice in that area. For example, I give Shari a lot of credit for deciding to take part in her 401(k) at her job. To think if I had started at 18 like she did. Wow!

It’s open enrollment time at PNM this week, and with all the changes taking place next year, I have some work to do in deciding how to set up my benefits. The contrast between PNM and APS (Lisa’s employer) are astonishing, it’ll be a big source of savings for us in 2008. But that’s another post.

Try screaming sometime. It may save you thousands.

P.S. Added links to Our Wedding Site and the Kitchen Remodel.

The one and only time I have ever witnessed Michael scream in public was when we were purchasing our new Jeep a few months ago. That scream, as surprising as it was, saved us so much money! When Shari requested that Michael come help with the purchase of her first new car this past weekend it was a request that took Michael away from football for one whole day. However, the results were positive for both Shari and Michael. After abruptly leaving one dealership to go to another and a little advice on the side from Michael, Shari got a great deal and actually saved money. We both even got a thank you out of her… Just one more example of how the girls have learned to trust Michael and his money saving advice.

But the good news is it’s under warranty and will be fixed soon! Still, it’s been nice spending quality time with Lisa. She just needs to fall in love with the Cubs and Bears, too, then we can enjoy watching them in high definition.

(As an aside, I don’t actually watch Lifetime…)

Because Michael was always in front of it watching baseball, football and other sporty types of things. Now, Michael is in the master bedroom watching TV and has also moved his MAC in there as well. It is nice to see him more often now. He will even watch Lifetime TV with me or even Desperate Housewives too!