Marissade Taylor Roe

My little brother Andy has made me an Auntie! Marissade Taylor was born yesterday, February 20 at 9pm-ish Germany time which is 1pm here. She was a buxom 8 pounds 4 ounces and 22 inches long. She is healthy and happy addition to the family and we are all thrilled she's finally here.

Brandon and I were asked to be godparents. Which means that if something were to happen to Andy and his wife, Leslie, we would raise Marissadae. Brandon didn't know what it meant at first and niether did Andy, but we are all fully aware now!

Andy is thrilled to be a new daddy. He's gonna do great. My parents are Grandmomma and Papa so they're thrilled and being a new Auntie, I'm THRILLED! I have a new baby to spoil, woo hoo!!!!! The hard part is they are stationed in Germany right now and I won't get to meet the baby until 2009 when they're set to come back to the states. She'll be 3 then, unless somehow I can figure out how to get to Germany or Andy can get home... oh well, we'll survive.

Here's a picture of the newest addition to the Roe family. She's beautiful!

Happy V Day!

Well, it's Valentine's day, National Singles Awareness Day, Love Day... however you want to see it, I think it was thought up by the candy and flower and jewelry companies anyway. Supposedly Valentine's Day was founded by the mysterious St. Valentine... but of course that too is a "mystery".

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men -- his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Now why on EARTH is this an excuse to purchase pretty shiny things for your sweetheart or yummy chocolates or nice flowers... I say again: It's a conspiracy by the candy and flower companies. They LOVE this day.

I've long wondered exactly why one who is not attached should be subjected to this day of watching other people receive candy and gifts and flowers. I remember back to my high school days and how much I hated it then. All the other girls got pretty gifts from their sweethearts and I was always left behind because I never had a boyfriend in high school.

Although, I do have to admit, my Daddy, being the wonderful and loving father that he is, came home one Valentine's Day with a beautiful bouquet for my Mom and a single rose for me. My daddy always made me feel special, and even at that young age, I could truly appreciate my parents' relationship and love and affection for each other that they shared. They've been married for 31 years this July and they still treat each other like newlyweds.

So here's to Valentine's day- a holiday of the heart.....

My Extended Birthday Celebration

Well, my birthday fell on a wednesday this year, which kind of eliminates the chance to celebrate ON my birthday. However, Brandon did take me out to dinner at Applebee's where I had my very favorite: Fiesta Lime Chicken. It was fabulous.

My boss got me a cake. It was dang good cake too, Vanilla with raspberry filling. Yummy fluffy icing and such. It was good stuff. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to me... fun times were had by all.

Brandon and Rochelle are planning a little get together for tomorrow evening down in Las Vegas. My guess is we're going to go sing Karoke at Boulder Station, which is one of my absolute favorite things to do, and probably have a nice dinner somewhere. I'm worth it!!! Honestly though, when Brandon asked me what I wanted to do I told him my birthday is the one day a year that I don't have to make decisions.... so SURPRISE ME!!!

Looking forward to it!

Shannon's Birthday is TODAY!!!!

So today we are celebrating the birth of my good friend Shannon Cobb. She is almost to the hour, one day older then me. It was funny the day I found that out. Here's the story:

Brandon asked me one day how old I thought she was and my response was: "I wouldn't put her a day older then me." Well, the next day Shannon and I were talking and I asked her when her birthday was, she says "February 6th..." I could not believe it! I said "NO WAY!" and told her mine is the 7th. Turns out she was born almost exactly a day before me. It is pretty cool.

She is a great friend and a fun gal to be around. Never a dull moment with that girl! Happy Birthday Shannon! I hope it is a good one!!!

Tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY!

Well, tomorrow I will officially be in my "late twenties"! Another year has come and gone. Looking back, I have done a lot in my 25 years, 364 days, 8 hours and 41 minutes of life.

I served for 8 years in the US Army Reserves. The Army took me all over the world: South Carolina, Ft. Lewis Washington, Germany, Ireland, Amsterdam, Kuwait (the worlds kitty litter box!) And several cities across the USA for training. Although, some of the things in my life seem to have been harder because of the military, overall, I wouldn't trade my time in the Army for anything. I learned my body can go way further then I ever thought it could. I learned that team work really can overcome any obstacle. I learned the value of family and all the wonderful things we have here in America and how lucky we are to be American. Above all else, I served for the greatest military in the world and protected my family! I am proud to call myself "ex-military".

As a kid, I traveled a lot with my family. My mom and I visited Manhattan when I was 13. We went to visit my 3rd grade penpal who lived in New Jersey. Her father was a big wig for Nabisco and he worked in the World Trade Center. I got to go to the top of it, I have a picture of my Mom and I standing at the top of the WTC with the wind in our hair and Manhattan in the background. We saw CATS on Broadway, visited Rocafeller Center and Carnegie Hall. We went to Central Park, FAO Schwartz (the best toy store in all the world). We went through the Lincoln Tunnel, to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. It was a super Sweet trip.

In 8th grade, I visited our Nation's Capital. Washington D.C. was awesome. We got to visit all the memorials, went through the capitol building, and other such tourist places. We saw the Holocaust Museum, the National Money Place, the Changing of the Gaurd at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier..... and lots of other cool places. It's amazing. Definately on my top ten list of favorite places to visit. History Brought ALIVE!

When I deployed from Ft. Lewis Washington, Brandon came out to visit me over Easter Weekend. He brought my beloved Onyx dog and our good friend Jeffrey. Next to my picture of my Mom and I on top of the WTC, I have a picture of Brandon and I at the top of the Space Needle in Seattle. Pretty cool...

Looking back at my life, I can't really imagine anything I would have done differently. I'm where I am today because of the decisions I made and I'm happy with where I am today! I have a great husband, a nice home, a good job and a great relationship with my parents and siblings. Life is good. So here's to you year 26: BRING IT ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My Puppies

I figured I should introduce my four-legged children. Niesie has been with me since she was 5 weeks old, she's almost 2 now. She's white with the typical brown Jack Russell face and the big spot on her side. Kea (which is short for Hiwakea, Hawiian for "black and white") Is a Jack Russell/ Fox Terrier cross (I think) and she's a holy terror when she gets on a crazy streak.

They are so funny, chasing each other, tug-of-war with their toys and jumping so high you would not believe it! Niesie can jump flat footed into the back of my Chevy 1500 with the tail gate up. It's insane... and they'll both chase a ball until I can't throw it anymore. Here's a picture of my girls.

Brandon's Rugby Extravaganza!!!

Well, Brandon's tournament in Vegas has come and gone and........... THEY WON!!! Both games, it was great fun. The best part however, was that Brandon scored a goal!!! WOO HOO!!!!!!! I screamed and yelled and made a fool of myself, of course that's my job as the supportive wife! I was very proud.

Thank you to everyone that made the trip down to watch: Kevin, Jodi, Jeremy and Shannon, and Wesley and family!!! It was great to see you guys there with your "I <3 Brandon" shirts on. I know it meant a lot to him.

I didn't get any pictures, however, I did video tape the whole thing. As soon as I figure out how to attach the video camera to the computer and pull stills off of it, we're in business. :-)

The next Rugby action for the Sin City Sculls is on February 23-25 in Reno NV which will be a great tournament for the team as they have improved IMMENSELY since the last time we saw most of those teams. The Utah team better watch out, cuz Vegas has a vendetta and I have a feeling it's ON LIKE DONKEY KONG come the end of February!!! GO SKULLS!

Then the next weekend, March 2-4 it's off to Portland OR for Regionals... First four places at that tournament win an all expenses paid trip to Kentucky for the Semi-finals and then off to Nationals. We'll see if that happens, maybe not this year, but more then likely next year!!!!

Thanks for the support !!!

the official countdown

I have several important things coming up worthy of a countdown. Let me list a few:

Brandon's Rugby Tournament in Vegas against Reno is on Saturday, Jan 27th... 3 days, 12 hours and counting...................

My 26th Birthday is February 7th... 13 days, 19 hours and 25 minutes and counting!!!

My Momma is coming to visit on February 24th for my Tastefully Simple Party!!! Two countdowns in one: 4 weeks and counting!!!

So, there are some exciting things to come, expect pictures and such in the near future!

Thats all for today... expect more later!

Just another Drama Filled Monday!

Well, it's been one of those days. Work is crazy. It always seems that way after a weekend. Probably because it's 2 days that I don't have a hand in things! oh well, what do you do?

Otherwise, it was an exciting weekend. The Bears are going to the SuperBowl. My Wesley friend is a life long fan and is really stoked about that. Me personally? I'm just glad the stupid Patriots got beat!

Brandon has a Rugby tournament this weekend in Las Vegas. It's against Reno, which is great because they are pretty terrible and we might actually win a game!!! Go SKULLS!!! I will put up some pictures of that, should be great fun!

Other then that, since I refuse to go into detail on all the drama at work today, I must sign off for now...

Brandon's Rubgy Addiction

My Husband Brandon is a C6C7 Quadraplegic. He was hurt in a car accident in April of 2000 and is now confined to a wheelchair. But he has never let that slow him down...

His latest adventure is Quad Rugby. You can visit their site and learn more about the sport at http://quadrugby.com . The sport is affectionately known by the players (and more recently but the movie industry) as Murderball. Hense the movie of the same title. The season started back in September when we drove down to Las Vegas for his first practice. He was hooked. (and honestly so was I.) It's amazing to watch these athletes whom have been labeled by others as "disabled" blaze up and down a basketball court at speeds honestly quicker then my running in some cases. They slam into each other and push themselves to the absolute limit just like any other competitive team would. It's AMAZING!!! We are traveling to Portland Oregon on the first weekend in March for the Regional tournament. Now honestly, this year (and more then likely next year) is a building year, but these boys play their hearts out and don't let ANYTHING slow them down. I'm excited to see how they do in the tournament.

My Very First Blog!!!

Well, I do have to say this is a new experience to me. I'll find out shortly how much I like doing this every day. Let me explain a little about myself. I am the Administrative Director for a highly progressive Internet Marketing Company called Omni Business Solutions. We specialize in Search Engine Optimization and personal training on building websites. I also double as the President of the company's Personal Assistant, which of course has it's perks, but tends to try my patience more often then not.

My favorite football team is the Oakland Raiders. Yes, I know they didn't do so hot this year, but I've been a fan my whole life and I'm not about to leave them just because we can't seem to win any games!

I live in usually sunny Southern Utah, in St. George. I LOVE it here. The red rocks and the pink/orange sunsets are beautiful... It's definately in the Top 5 of my favorite places to live, and believe me, I've lived in lots of places in my life.

That's all for now! More later-