Winter in the Valley

So, now that the Holidays are over, usually the weather kicks it up a notch around here.  We usually get a overnight dusting of snow sometime during January or February.  Well this year, thanks to La Nina, we got a little more than a dusting of snow.  We got three days of very wet snow, then 3 days of rain, all in one week.  We woke up Sunday morning to snow on the ground.  The weather prediction had told us it would happen, but there was a few inches on the ground.  

The coffee shop I manage, Coffee Culture Annex, and our Subaru on the far right.

 I ended up having to work that afternoon because one of the girls got stuck in Roseburg and wasn't going to make it back.  Before I had to go in, Dave and I drove up to Fitton Green to see how well the Subie handled the deep-ish snow.  By the way, it is KICK ASS to have a Subaru in weather like this... it was like she was made to play in the snow.

The parking lot and trail head at Fitton Green.  The butt of Subie in bottom right corner, the only other car there was also a Subaru!

Monday and Tuesday we got some nasty snow, then rain, then snow mixed with rain.  Snow by it self: that's fine.  Rain by itself: that's cool too... but both of them together makes for a dangerous time.

The path to our front door from the drive.  So pretty!

 Then, on Wednesday afternoon, the rain came.  And it didn't want to go away.  It rained hard all night.  Usually when it rains, the temperature goes up too... so all that snow melted at the same time at the torrential downpour came down, causing MAJOR flooding all over.  A family in Albany got swept away in their car in a grocery parking lot.  The dad and the older child got away, the mother and baby, not so much.  It took them a day or so to find the bodies... so scary!  Well, for those of you who don't know the coffee shop well, we have a creek right next to us.  In the winter, there is maybe a foot or so of water at the bottom of a ditch about 7 or 8 feet deep.  But on Thursday morning it looked like this...

Sequoia Creek 

 It got about 6 inches from the top of the ditch.  Those of us that were working, were keeping a very close eye on it.  (Barista moment: Customers coming through the drive-thru would look over and panic "Ohmigosh that water is really high!  Did you see the water over here?!"  Yes, of course we did.... Oh and my favorite by far was getting yelled at by a grown man in a pick-up truck because our menu board where our customers order over the speaker doesn't have an awning and he was "getting rained on!"  It was as though he was being exposed to acid rain.  News flash friend: we live in Oregon.  We get an average of 40 inches of rain a year... it's going to be raining and you will get wet.)

We had sandbags bought and placed strategically so that if the creek did crest, we were ready.  Many of the creeks and rivers in the area were flooding streets, homes and schools.  I even heard about kids boogie boarding down Conifer Drive, which was under about 3 feet of water.  (Note to readers: one of the things we learned in the College of Public Health is that flood brings disease.  There is poopy in that water!!!!  Not just that, but parasites.  Ew!  That water is not treated or safe by any means.)  OSU and the Corvallis School district canceled classes on Friday for precautionary reasons. (Lucky for Dave!)

But then, the rain eased, and the city of Corvallis guys came out and did something (I heard something about drilling a hole somewhere... I'm not really sure.)  The creek dropped a few feet by noon.  But we are still keeping a close eye out, because it is still raining, just not as hard.

The Creek from the drive-thru window at the shop.

Anyway, I feel lucky to be living in a nice, warm home up on a hill.  Hopefully all this rain means that spring will be less wet...

A girl can dream right?!

Mountain House and Central Oregon

Hello all!  It has been a whirl wind of holiday time... but with all that winding down, and Winter Term upon us, we decided to take a trip to Central Oregon with our roommates and our friend Sarah.  Sarah's family has a house in Camp Sherman, which is about 15 or so miles from Sisters Oregon.  It is a big house so lots of Sarah's friends came along!  Te boys went up Thursday, but I had to work Friday, so I drove out by myself Friday afternoon.  It was icy and snowy on my way over, so the drive wasn't very fun by myself, but I'm glad I did it.  On Saturday we got up, went for a jog, showered and went into Sisters, then into Bend.  Fun fact: Bend has a Porsche dealership.  We went in to check out the cars they had, and I mustered up the courage to sit in the driver's seat of the Panamera.  They look like this.  It is Porsche's only sedan, but it is HUGE.  It is basically a Porsche for someone who isn't willing to get a regular sedan in order to take their family with them.  It only seats four (the back seat has only 2 seats, the middle has an elaborate cup holder with wood trimmings.)

Porsche Panamera Turbo S

But I got to sit in the drivers' seat... of a real one!  It was so elaborate and luxurious on the inside.  This particular one was a dark blue with the tan interior (Dave wasn't a fan of the tan... but I thought it was just beautiful!).  Steering wheel and flappy paddles were aluminum. I just sat in there for about 10 minutes admiring how well everything was put together.

If only I had a million dollars...

The rest of the trip was fun though.  Got to see a pretty sunset or two, and got to spend lots of time with Dave and my roommates!

In the background, The Three Sisters and Three Fingered Jack; in the foreground, Romo standing out of the sunroof of the Subaru, Dave standing outside of the car

Cascades at Sunset, Romo way in the background, taking pictures with his fancy camera, Brian and Dave chatting.

A bit of teaser...

Hello!  Just wanted to get caught back up.  As much as I tried to resist the holiday season approaching, it is now here.  I think it was the day after Thanksgiving, at work, as the girls continued to beg me to put up Holiday decor, that I finally came to terms with it.  I just didn't think that Christmas would come up so fast on us after the wedding.  But... it has!

This week is finals week.  Dave finished his tests last night, and was only half-way relieved.  He still has to grade all the final essays from the class that he is TA'ing for, which is about 70 of them. He isn't too stoked about that.  But he is on campus now, working on it, while I enjoy the complete silence of our house.   Yes, that's right, I said SILENCE.  It is very rare, in a house full of 4 grown people, 3 of which are boys, for silence to occur.  During this last term, I had scheduled myself to close twice a week, since that is what was needed for the shop.  I have found that once all the boys leave for work or school, I can watch whatever I want on Netflix, or just sit and wander the internets in silence.  I have found that this is my favorite.  I am TOTALLY aware that one day, whenever that day might come, that there will be little Spackmans running about, and I will miss this time of quiet, where I can blog in peace, to the sound of the clock ticking. So I have to take advantage (the sad truth is... after I finish this entry, I will use the rest of my quiet time before work posting schedules for the rest of December, since I will be gone for 10 days from the shop.)

Anyway, I have been very busy with work.  We have been consistently more busy this week (try over $1300 of coffee sales a day.  Yes, we sell a lot of coffee), which means that less of the side chores get done while I'm there.  And it is exhausting to have to be smiley and nice for 8 hours straight, even to the mean people.  I will be very happy to have some time on vacation, to re-charge my happy customer service battery.

In the mean time, our wedding photographer sent me some pictures to use for our Christmas cards this year (which have now been ordered!!!)  So i figured I would share them with you...  the others will be here soon!

So now... without further ado...

 ... <3

I'm back!

Yes, yes, I know.  I haven't been blogging.  At all.  Well with the wedding coming and going quickly... and all the events leading up to it, and all the plans we had after it... it was just super busy.  Still is.  I will wait until we get our pictures back to be reminiscent (which should be by the end of the month...)  So until then... here's what is going on...

We had a romantic weekend in Cannon Beach for our "honeymoon" a few weeks ago (it was also to celebrate that a year ago we got engaged... at the beach...)  Our good friends Jody and Brian Page got us the weekend as a wedding gift.  They were in Seaside the same weekend, celebrating their 27th wedding anniversary (it's the day before our wedding).  We spent Saturday night with them watching the Beaver game on TV and going to dinner.  It was super fun!

Dave found multiple items with lighthouses in the bathroom at Brian and Jody's condo in Seaside

Haystack!

The next weekend was Halloween weekend.  I ended up being a zombie "Cheerio" (the cheerleaders from Glee... I LOVE Glee!  I want to be able to bust out in song like they do...)  And Dave was zombie "business man."  We had friends over for a fun little shindig.  I even baked 4 dozen pumpkin cupcakes for the occasion and decorated them all cute!

Dave said this picture was really scary... :)

As many of you know, I am the manager of a local coffee shop, which keeps me extra busy.  It was an honor to find out that readers of the Mid-Valley Newspapers voted Coffee Culture as "Best Coffee Shop" in all the land!  The sign below is now proudly posted in our front window.  (Side note that might make you smile:  we are now serving eggnog.  I tried to resist as long as I could.  I had a sweet older woman ask me today... "Do you have... well, I guess it may turn to scrambled eggs, but could you make an eggnog steamer?!"  It was the customer quote of the day.  And the answer is yes, we can make them. No, it won't turn into scrambled eggs.  Yes, it is delicious, especially with whip cream on top.)



Dave and I have made it to a few home football games.  Lucky for us, we know people.  Lots of people.  For the Stanford game, we were given really close seats on the 50 yard line.  It was a great game, even though we should have won. :(



Finally, the Subaru has been fitted with new "shoes."  Instead of the playful, summer-y gold wheels that were on before, she now wears these WRX, gunmetal grey wheels, equipped with winter tires and black lugs.  Some of you may have heard that I sold my car (BIG sad face).  I knew it was time to give her up, and we only need one car right now anyway.  So now Subbie is my daily driver and Dave gets to drive... I mean ride... his bike to class.  I did, however, get him some really nice rain gear with the money I got from selling my car, and I let him drive whenever we go anywhere together.


So that's what's up.

I also had the idea to start a barista blog... just to catalog all the crazy things that happen to me every day... we will see... I can barely keep up with this one!

Okay... here we go!

After 11 months of planning, a few minor breakdowns and frustrations, the day is almost here.  Looking back to the day we got engaged, I have no idea how much work and effort I was going to be putting into our wedding day.  Now it's only 11 days away.  CRAZY!
My dress is bought and paid for.  It is at my Aunt Candy's house, where we will be spending a few days before the wedding.  Dave's suit is almost done.  We went to pick it up yesterday and it still needed the pants shortened just a bit.

All the decorations that I have made myself are almost done.  I still need to finish the escort cards (they tell each person which table we would like them to sit at), and but some last minute touches on some things. (And I have to make 2 more table numbers because we are at maximum capacity for the barn, 120 people.  I had to ask that the girls from the coffee shop not bring dates...)  I don't want to post any pictures yet... I want everyone to be in awe of my work at the wedding ;)

Daddy and Jackie will be here in 8 days.  They are driving up to Portland next Tuesday, and picking me up along the way, along with all my baggage, decorations, etc.  I'm really excited that they will be here so early.  I need them to keep me calm and distracted.  Then, Tuesday night I'm picking Lissa up from the airport!
Then Wednesday, the flowers should arrive at my Aunt's house.  We will probably arrange the centerpieces and give all the flowers some food.  Then Lissa, Jackie and I will go get mani-pedis.  Then the bachelorette commences, I really have no idea what's in store, but I have been told to start hydrating ASAP.

Thursday will bring a busy day.  First off, recovery.  Then Dave will drive up from Corvallis (he has orientation and paperwork for school Wednesday and Thursday morning).  We have rehearsal at 4 and rehearsal dinner at 6.  Gotta get all cute for that!  Then off to the hotel I will go, and Dave will go spend some time with his family at his parent's house.

Then the BIG DAY!  It will be jam-packed with things to get done, but at least I'm ready for it all.  Everyone keeps asking if I'm getting nervous or if I'm ready.  I have had numerous people tell me "You look so calm!"  and one friend told me, when visiting me at work, "And you're at work right now?!"  All this just makes me more nervous.  I told Dave last night I think I have an ulcer.  It's probably not true, but every time I ate yesterday, my stomach started cramping immediately.  Although, I just had some scrambled eggs and my usual soy vanilla latte and no cramping yet.  This week I really need to be careful of what I eat so I don't upset my tummy.  So, Jamba Juice will be seeing a lot of me this week.  I LOVE that Jamba!  So delish and so healthy.  I'm sure, with all the craziness going on, I won't be able to post until after the wedding.  But hopefully there will be LOTS of pictures!

Yay!  Wish me luck!

Time alone...

Well, if you cannot tell by my sudden lack of blogs, I have been a very busy lady. Since it is summer time, the shop itself isn't busy, but everyone is taking time off for vacations. Not to complain, but when the other girls go off, especially when going on trips together, it means I get to be the one to pick up that slack. For the last month or so I have been working 6 days a week, but have been able to keep it under 40 hours somehow. I usually leave early and don't do anything work related when I get home. I have also been trying to finish up wedding things, but being at work all the time, then coming home exhausted and not wanting to move from the couch doesn't help get anything done.

Dave and the boys went to see their friend Tyler and help him celebrate his birthday this last weekend, and since I had to work, I had to stay home by myself. Friday night a few of the girls from work came over and we ate brownies and watched a movie. It was nice to have the company.

Even though I didn't get Saturday off, I only worked a few hours in the morning, then I had the rest of the day off. I wasn't really sure what to do with myself... so I just started doing the things I wanted to. (I realized at the end of the day, that this is what I did all day, and it was WONDERFUL. I didn't have to do anything for anyone else, eat what others wanted to eat, or entertain anyone but myself.) So I ate. And ate again. Watched some Netflix while eating. Then I took a nap. Then I showered (with the door open). I called my sister. I got ready to go see a movie by myself, but I ended up driving to the coast. I watched the sunset by myself. Drove back from the coast, following the light of the BIG FULL MOON. Ate fast food while driving. Watched more Netflix until I fell asleep on the couch.

I totally needed that time to myself. I wasn't lonely at all... I was a little bored though. It's not often that I have time alone to spend doing things for myself, instead of working or cleaning.

In a few weeks, Dave will be gone backpacking with his dad for a week, so I will be alone again (but I am scheduled to work six days and OVER 40 hours that week). Should be good. :)

Wedding Shower

On June 25th, our good friends, the Page family, hosted a "couples" bridal shower for Dave and I. When we had been engaged, Jody immediately expressed that she wanted to host a party for Dave and I. She wanted it to be a couples' shower so that everyone could come and be together. It was mildly stressful for me, because both my parents were coming, plus extended family, plus Dave's family. I began to think of it as a "run-thru" before the actual wedding. Jackie and my mom came up on Thursday before the shower and stayed with Dave and the boys and I. Then we all headed up on Saturday morning for the party!

The first family photo in a VERY long time... I made sure that we got one though.

Dave and I with my Mom and Dad.

Me and my beautiful rehearsal bouquet. I had no idea that this was a thing... but Jody and Aunt Molly brought Jackie a paper plate and with the ribbons from the presents we received that day, her and my friend Ali put this together for me. I LOVE all the colors and can't wait to use it for the rehearsal! (And it's hanging on the wall in our room right now with all the cards we got... including the one from my Dad that made me cry in front of everyone :))

Opening presents. We got the BEST ones! Dave has already made bread with our bread maker (and it was delish!) and we have made waffles every morning this weekend (thanks Dad!) And we have used all the BBQ gadgets that we got too!

Love this photo!

It was so fun! The girls took me out to the bars in downtown Portland after the party... and when we got home around 1am, all the boys were up making waffles and nachos! We had a REALLY good time. I felt so lucky to have so many amazing friends and family that came out. We have the best family and friends EVER... and we are even more excited (if at all possible) for the wedding and having that whole group plus some together again! <3

It was a great break from the stress that has been building up in my system... and after having a nice long chat with my boss about how things were going, I felt reassured and refocused on my duties as a manager. I know it doesn't seem like a big deal... but sometimes it's hard to keep track of everything. Especially after the shower, I can focus back on work and doing my best everyday, instead of worrying about what I need to get done when I get home from work.

Speaking of which... since Jackie has been here, I've put her to work, helping me with the wedding invitations. I won't give anything away but they turned out AMAZING and I can't wait to send them out to everyone (Abby... you're lucky you get to see it before ANYONE else!;))

Happy Independence Day everyone! Jackie and I are headed to the beach! It's supposed to be really nice! Dave and the boys went on a mountain bike ride on the Mckenzie river... so we will see them tonight!