From Oprah - Top 10 Wardrobe Must Haves for Women

I watched a few minutes of Oprah yesterday - Lloyd Boston, a fashion guru was on and gave the 11 essentials to any woman's wardrobe: (without further adeiu)
1) Trench coat - preferably a bright color
2) White Turtleneck/Black Turtleneck
3) Basic Black Trousers
4) Tunic Shirt
5) White Jeans....not overly excited about this idea personally, but I may give it a try if I ever find a pair that fit
6) Black Dress - not necessarily the "little black dress" but one that fits your body
7) Denim Jacket - dark blue or white one - NOT a stonewashed version from 1980
8) Black Skirt
9) Cashmere Sweater - they recommend J. Crew
10) Flat Shoes - in a bright color or leopard print
11) Oversized Bag - in white or a bright color (I won't be using this....I don't have a need to carry around that much stuff)

In final tally - I have 3 of the 11 things.....:) I have a black dress, denin jacket & black skirt. I assume this means I need to go shopping! :)

Total Lunar Eclipse

Tristan & I trekked to the top of the new Atwater/Henderson parking garage to see the Total Lunar Eclipse last night. The astronomy department had multiple telescopes/binoculars set up for viewing Saturn, as well as the moon. Though we froze our butts off (seriously, by time we left I couldn't feel my toes....:), the views of Saturn's rings and the moon were impressive. It was worth the cold! Especially since it won't be happening again until 2010.

Sunday Drive to Brown County

Tristan & I decided to take a quick trip to Nashville, Indiana on Sunday (it's about 20 minutes east of Bloomington). We spent time at the local Brown County Winery, saw the historic covered bridge (see above), and did some window/looking & shoppping at the quaint little shops in Nashville. We had lunch at the Story Inn, a bed & breakfast/restaurant out in the middle of nowhere, which was pretty good (we had beef barley soup & artichoke dip), but by no means incredible (see above for photo of the Story Inn).

IU vs. MSU

The game Saturday night versus Michigan State was unbelievable. We played absolutely awesome. It was a great win for Indiana. I got Tristan seats on the floor for Valentine's Day and we lived it up in the Student Section (we've determined we're definitely too old for all of the hoopla on the floor in the student section....not to mention the stench of shirtless boys painted in red/white with serious beer+body odor issues is not all that enticing!) Regardless, we had a lot of fun and were glad to see an IU victory! Tristan even managed to get caught in a photo that was on ESPN.com late Saturday night (he's on the far right in the IU jersey).

IU Basketball Drama

Unless you've been living under a rock (or you just don't follow sports at all), you've undoubtedly heard of the IU coaching drama with Kelvin Sampson that's unfolding. I'm not going to say a whole lot about it, other than - how stupid (or maybe arrogant) do you have to be to do the SAME thing you got caught doing at Oklahoma. Regardless, I'm pretty sure he's toast at IU. It's a shame too, because we're having a great season. 21-3 to date and in the hunt for a Big Ten title. Very sad. I definitely don't support Coach Sampson, but I do support our players 100%.

A New Ring!!

Kudos to Tristan for a FANTASTIC idea. :)

I recently lost one of my wedding bands - I think it fell off somewhere in our house, but I have no idea where. We went to the local jewelry store (Rogers & Hollands) and I picked out a new "solitaire enhancer" for my wedding ring set. Wow. That's all I can say. It turned out really awesome. I had the enhancer, my enagement ring, and the wedding band I still had all sodered together. It looks great and was an awesome Valentine's day gift from my hubby. It looks quite different from my dual band look. I've had no success taking a picture of it, or I'd post one. It's got four diamonds on each side in decreasing size and is set in a swirl of white gold. :)

The past few weeks....

Let's see:
- Katie & Jon & Grace came to visit! We had a fun weekend with them of games, IU basketball & Bloomington restaurants. See photo above of Miss Grace!
- We went to East Lansing to visit the in-laws. It was freezing cold in Michigan! We did, however, see IU women's basketball beat Michigan State! Go IU!
- My parents come to Bloomington! My mom, dad & Bode came to Bloomington for the weekend in early February. We went to Indianapolis to Trader Joes, TJ Maxx & Homegoods - my mom's favorite store on Saturday. My mom - the great shopper that she is - found prints for our living room at Homegoods. We now have a Monet canvas print of Water Lilies (my favorite) and two map prints (Eastern Hemisphere/Western Hemisphere) gracing our living room walls (see photos above). I think that there is definitely an all time record now set for most pictures/photos hung on walls of a house Tristan & I have lived in. LOL. We went to the IU game on Sunday, watched the superbowl and of course, had my dad do some "fix it" things around our house - hung blinds, fixed the front door, etc. What are dads for? :) Also, it's important to note that I won the Superbowl bet with my dad and he now owes me a Quatro's Pizza. :)
- Tristan went to North Carolina for his Grandpa's 90th Birthday! He flew out for the weekend in early February and had a great time with his grandpa, aunt, uncle & mom in Swansboro/Morehead City, NC.

Slacking off.....

Yes, I know, I've been slacking off BIG TIME in regards to the blog. However, I think I have a valid excuse - Series 6 and Series 63 exams for work have been consuming my life! :) I passed the Series 6 on Friday with flying colors (90%!) and the Series 63 is in about 10 days. However, I'm about to post a GIANT update from the past month. Stay tuned.

Weekend in Chicago

Tristan & I spent last weekend in Chicago! We went because Tristan really wanted to see the Maps exhibit at the Field Museum and we needed a quick getaway. The maps exhibit was fantastic - they had over 100 of the world's rarest maps on display. Well worth a visit! We did a bit of shopping (Tristan discovered Jamba Juice smoothies....) and had a great weekend downtown. We were also able to visit Tristan's cousins Jen & Dennis and their kids. They just adopted a little boy from Guetamala (Javy) and have a 3 year old daughter (Hannah) - photos of our fun weekend are posted above!

The Romans Are Coming....if you want to wait for 4 hours

On Saturday, Tristan & I drove up to Indianapolis to the Indy Art Museum to see the exhibition on Roman Art from the Louvre. It was the final weekend of the exhibition and we bought our tickets online earlier in the week, only to find out that there was a 4 hour wait to get into the show. That's right - 4 hours and about 1800 people. Needless to say, we didn't end up waiting to see the show. We did, however, have a fun night with our friends Sandy & Noah (Sandy & I were roommates when I was an Abbott Labs intern). We went out to dinner at Pizzeria Uno, played Euchre (Noah & I beat Sandy & Tristan), & played some intense games of ping pong. Sandy's having her first baby in February (I think she's going to have a leap year baby!). Tristan's suggested the name Thor to them if it's a boy....a cute little viking baby - I doubt it makes the final cut, but we all had a few laughs about "Baby Thor" all night!

The Story of the 4 year, 4 month quilt in process....

First off: This post is for my Aunt Alice who lives in Pennsylvania!

As most of you know Tristan & I were married in August 2003 - what you probably don't know (unless you are my mom, my aunt Alice, or Hilary) is the story of the quilt for my wedding. :) My aunt Alice is a crafty person who decided to make me a quilt for Tristan & I so we could "wrap up in love" for our wedding. Well, we're going on our 5 year anniversary in 2008 and the quilt's still not done! I've given Aunt Alice a few opportunities to back out (I told her she could just make me a small wall hanging, or even a set of potholders...), but she said she's going to finish my quilt sometime! (I just hope it's one of her new year's resolutions for 2008!!). But, seriously, the quilt will be beautiful once it's finished.....and I'm prepared to wait...I think the traditional 12th anniversary gift is for linens...perhaps she's aiming for a 2015 completion date!! Aunt Alice - I'm just giving you a hard time - don't worry! The material that's being used is show in the photo above - red & white to go with our red & white themed wedding!!

Happy New Year 2008!!

This New Year's Eve marked the first IU Football bowl game in a VERY long time (last time was 1993). The Hoosiers jetted off to Tempe to play the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Insight Bowl. Since we couldn't go, we did the next best thing and hosted a small IU bowl watch & New Year's Eve party! Nick & Sheena & Christan & Todd (and Tristan's parents since they were down here for New Year's) came over for food & football (chili & bbq chicken from Smokin Jacks Rib Shack, mexican layer dip, fruit tray, deer sausage, cheese cubes, cookies & rice krispy treats - needless to say we didn't starve...). Unfortunately, IU didn't play quite up to par and lost...but there were a few shining moments (our kicker, Austin Starr, ran for a first down on a fake field goal!). We rang in the new year with the ball drop in NYC on TV & toasted 2008 with champagne! Best wishes to everyone for a fantastic 2008!

French Lick Resort & Casino

Tristan & I and our friends/neighbors Christan & Todd took a road trip to French Lick, Indiana to the French Lick Resort & Casino on Saturday night (12/30) to start off the New Year with some gambling & fun times! We had dinner at the 1875 steakhouse (great, but a bit pricey....) - the best part was my creamy 5 onion soup served in a bowl made from a cored out onion. It was fantastic. Tristan played craps & Todd played roulette & slots! They both came out in the black for the weekend....Christan & I - not so much - I think we both lost a few dollars to the slot machines! We gambled until the wee hours of the morning on Sunday & stayed over at the hotel (Tristan had a coupon for a free room!). On Sunday, Christan & I got massages at the spa (which was way more fun than gambling!!). It was a great overnight getaway & we had a blast!

Christmas 2007

We spent the weekend before Christmas & Christmas Eve morning at my parents house in Vergennes. Tristan's Uncle Mike (his dad's brother) came to our house in Bloomington on Friday and we all drove over for the festivities! Highlights included:
- Saturday Tristan & Mike went to the SIU vs. Western Kentucky game and the Fager Family Christmas was held at mom & dad's on Saturday night. Lots & lots of food & and a wild & crazy game of spoons! (I can't seem to find the camera card with those photos on it....but they are priceless!)
- Sunday Started off the morning shooting clay pigeons in the back yard. I'm not a very good shot to say the least (but neither is Tristan). Tristan & Mike went go-karting with Jason & Wendell (my cousin Hilary & Laura's husband/boyfriend). And we ended the night at Jason & Jill's for my dad's side Christmas festivities. Again, lots of food (including chicken & noodles & fried pies...yum, yum) and some entertainment via the game Guesstures.
- Monday We had breakfast with my mom & dad & opened gifts (Thanks Mom & Dad for the new silverware, toaster oven & clothes!) and then headed back to Ellettsville. Tristan had to work the day after Christmas so we wanted a day without travel before he had to go back. We had a great time in So. Illinois & it was nice to see everyone!

IU Basketball (Georgia Tech & Western Carolina)

Tristan & I had seats on the court at Assembly Hall for the Georgia Tech game (Big Ten vs. ACC Challenge). We were surrounded by wild & crazy undergraduate students and wow - we felt old. :) However, the game was fun & IU won, so all is well in Hoosierland! We also took at photo with the Chick Fil A Cow....who was cheering on the hoosiers at the game (perhaps IU should consider a cow as the mascot....lol)

We also went to the Western Carolina basketball game in December with Tristan's parents & Aunt Jenni & Uncle Rich (from North Carolina) who had decided to visit us in Bloomington (I think they just wanted to see some snow!). We had a fun weekend and it was great to see them!

SIU vs. IU Basketball Game

In early December, Tristan & I drove to good ol' Southern Illinois to cheer our Hoosiers onto victory in Carbondale at Southern Illinois University - home of the Salukis! We were decked out in our Hoosier gear and luckily pulled out a victory! You can't believe how bad we were heckled at SIU! We were booed & even had a few towls thrown at us! However, the IU Hoosiers were victorious (Thank goodness or we would probably have never heard the end of it from my entire family....)

Thanksgiving Recap

Tristan & I spent Thanksgiving in Florida! We flew to Orlando and visited old friends, and then treked down to the Keys, Everglades, Miami, & Fort Lauderdale for a few days of sightseeing, beach time, & seafood consumption! We had a great time with Ellisa & Erich, Jaime & Paola, and Josie & Kevin (friends/co-workers from FL). I even stopped by my old stomping grounds at Hewitt for a short visit (what a completely strange experience...I didn't know hardly anyone!) Highlights of our trip included:
- Parasailing!! We parasailed in Key West! What a blast!!
- Sitting on the Beach in Miami & Fort Lauderdale!! Beautiful & Peaceful!
- Seafood & Key Lime Pie!! We love crab cakes & grouper & mahi mahi! Topped off with a trip to Grills in Port Canaveral - our favorite Florida seafood restaurant! And of course, fantastic key lime pie.
- Fort Lauderdale Boat Cruise! Great way to see the ridiculously huge homes of famous people with way too much money. Wayne Hyzinga (owner of the Miami Dolphins) has a 28,000 square foot mansion on the waterway.
- Driving through the Keys! Tristan's always wanted to do this. We determined we would definitely go back to Key West! It's a watersports lover's paradise!
- Disney's Blizzard Beach!! Fun times at the waterpark! We rode Summit Plummet (a 12 story waterslide....)

Long Time - No Post....

I think one of my New Year's resolutions will be to try and update the blog weekly....since Tristan & I actually kept our 2007 New Year's resolution, this may actually happen!!

Our 2007 resolution was to keep the same physical address for an entire calendar year - something neither of us had done since we came to college in 1999! I'm going to go ahead to do some posting of old events (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's...) to try and catch up!!