Royal Gorge Route Railroad

Earlier in August, Craig and I flew out to Charlotte, NC to attend the Cameron Brooks career conference. Cameron Brooks is the corporate recruiting company that Craig has been working with for over a year. They specialize in placing military officers in corporate positions after they leave the Army. After months of preparing, Craig went through a whirlwind weekend that included 13 interviews between two days. I tagged along to help him through the whole process, so he could focus on the interviews. Out of the 13 interviews he received 10 yeses for follow-up interviews and out of the 10 yeses he was invited for 4 follow-up interviews out of his top 5 choices. And out of the 4 follow-up interviews he received 4 job offers!!! What an amazing blessing. It was a tough decision since all the job offers were in different locations: Utah, PA, NYC and DC. In the end after days of deliberation- Craig decided to accept a position with Godiva Chocolates in Reading, PA! We're heading home! The location in PA isn't ideal, but it does give us the option to live between Reading and Philly so we can both work out of our respective offices. It will be so nice to live near family and friends again. 

With the anticipation of leaving CO, Craig and I are trying to do as many "Colorado" things as possible. Last weekend, on a whim, we decided to take a ride on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad! It was so much fun! The weather was perfect and the breakfast was amazing! 

The Royal Gorge Train Station

Ordering breakfast in the Sunshine Falls Parlor and Bar Car

Enjoying a delicious Mimini- peach bubbly and orange juice

 The views from the outdoor car

The Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge

 Delicious breakfast!!! Omelets, pancakes and bacon!

 

We're excited to go back to PA, but we are definitely going to miss this beautiful state!

John and Kelly's Wedding Weekend in Cohasset, MA

Over Labor Day weekend we had the pleasure of celebrating the wedding of two very dear friends, John and Kelly. Craig has been friends with John since the sixth grade. They went through middle school, high school and college together. They were college roommates at Lehigh their freshman and sophomore year. John and Kelly met at Lehigh, so we had the opportunity to get to know Kelly over the past few years. They are a wonderful couple and we couldn't be happier for them!

Kelly is from Rhode Island, so they decided to have the wedding in New England in the beautiful seaside town of Cohasset. Craig was the best man in the wedding, so we were able to participate in all the pre-wedding festivities which included a two hour sailboat ride (unfortunately no pictures) and the rehearsal dinner.

It was such a fun weekend celebrating with friends and family!

Rehearsing for the big day!

A little entertainment at the rehearsal dinner from On Tap- Jon's college acapella group

Waiting for the bride

John's older sister, Ann

Wedding time!

Beautiful reading from Amanda

It's official!

Beautiful reception venue- The Red Lion Inn in Cohasset, MA

Me and the best man

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. John Rodgers! Kelly's dress is gorgeous!

First dance

Craig giving his best man speech

Father-Daughter dance

Mother-Son dance

Cutting the cake...it was delicious!!! Each tier was different flavor- vanilla with strawberry/peach filling, carrot cake and chocolate- I tried all of them except for the chocolate. It was all gone by the time I got around to it!

A little photo booth fun with some old friends from HS

More photo booth fun

 After the wedding festivities we had a few hours to spare on Monday before heading to the airport, so we made a quick trip into downtown Boston to see the sites and eat some fresh seafood! I'm deprived living in a landlocked state!

 We visited the history Quincy Market and enjoyed six different types of cookies from The Boston Chipyard- delicious! 

Enjoyed some delicious chowder, fresh oysters and shrimp at the Union Oyster House. A great recommendation from our friend Murphy, a Boston native that lives in CO. 

It was great to be back on the east coast for a few days and spend time with friends we haven't seen in years and Craig's parents. I could've done without the crazy humidity, so it was a welcome relief to come back to the dry heat of Colorado.

Best wishes to John and Kelly! 

First NPC Bikini Competition

A few months ago I decided to compete in a NPC bikini competition (NPC website). An acquaintance mentioned she was going to compete, so I thought I would give it a go on a whim. Little did I realize what a huge undertaking it would turn into. For the first few months, I started going to the gym to lift weights and cleaned up my diet a little bit. I generally eat pretty healthy, so I cut back on a few things here and there. The first competition I signed up for was in June, but I ended up bailing on it because I was not ready, so I signed up for the Warrior Classic competition in August. About 5 weeks before the competition I made the decision to work with a trainer. Enter the Claibornes- Ann and Tony are hardcore competitors in men's bodybuilding and women's figure divisions. They both have medical backgrounds and have trained numerous athletes for competitions with a great success rate. I quickly realized that my current routine was not cutting it- they completely changed my diet and tweaked my workouts. I also worked with them on posing. I had no idea how hard learning to walk and pose would be- the movements look completely normal on stage, but your body is contorted in crazy ways. This whole process was one of the hardest things I've ever done. It took an incredible amount of self-discipline to stick to the diet and workout regimen. But I did it and it paid off! I registered for the Novice Bikini Class A division and ended up winning first place! Novice basically means you're a first-timer or you've never placed in a previous competition and Class A is a height class (A=short). Now that I've placed, I can only register for the Open division...If I decide to do this again. People say you get addicted, but I don't think that's the case for me. It was a great experience, but not something I plan to make a regular hobby. Many factors played into making it happen- working from home for a few months, Craig being on terminal leave to help me with diet prep, Laney and general house upkeep. I would never be able to keep up with the diet or workouts if I was on my usual work travel schedule. I'm glad I didn't give up (even though I wanted to many times) and I'm so proud of this accomplishment. Here are a few pics from the day of the competition:

Working the catwalk

A little spray tan and stage makeup does the body good :)

The trophy- I have no idea where I'm going to put it

Craig was soooo supportive throughout this whole process! I couldn't have done it without him. Love this guy.

Celebratory cupcake(s)!!! I think ate about 6 cupcakes throughout the weekend post-competition.

One of my amazing trainers, Ann Claiborne

Also super thankful for my super supportive friends. I received cupcakes, a care package filled with goodies and amazing gourmet cookies to enjoy after the competition was done. I ate everything in sight for a few days post-competition and it was amazing.

I now have a whole new appreciation for individuals that decide to pursue this hobby. It takes an amazing amount of self-discipline and hard work. Even though I don't plan on doing more competitions (I may change my mind), I definitely plan on continuing the workouts and eating clean with a few treats mixed in. Moderation is key :)