December Whirlwind

Wow! It's been a crazy month. So much happened to us in December, and I have a lot to catch you up on. Where do I start?

First, we finally got moved into the new house! But not before we spent several weekends stripping wallpaper, removing bookcases, painting and putting in new countertops. The results are fantastic. I've got some "before" pictures here, including this one of Beau repainting the kitchen: http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?mode=fromshare&Uc=vxgtayh.5u28su8t&Uy=-72y2gf&Ux=0

I'll add more recent pictures of the house soon.

We really love the new house. It's great to have more room, especially for storage. The bigger bathroom and kitchen are favorites of ours, and...we finally got a new bedroom set and a big king-size bed. It is complete heaven! The other day, Beau and I were able to walk to the park near our house. Wow! It's awesome. It has a community pool, baseball diamonds, a playground, two park pavilions, a roller hockey court and a long walking trail. It's unbelievably close to our house. We're very excited about walking there in the spring and summer. Possibly even having some summer parties there.

For those of you that haven't heard, I got a NEW JOB. I'm still with the same company, but it's a promotion to a different division. I'll be leading communications for the vegetable seeds division, which we purchased back in 2005. I'll be covering media relations, internal communications and stakeholder outreach for the business. It's a big step up for me, with a lot more responsibility and opportunity. I'm very excited about the new challenge and working with a different part of the business. The transition has been very quick. I interviewed for the job on a Tuesday, was offered the position on Wednesday, and was told that I would need to go to Santiago, Chile the following Monday. How crazy is that? In Chile, I learned more about the business strategy and goals for 2007. The role is a little bit daunting because there is so much work to be done.

I didn't take very many pictures in Chile (I was basically in the Sheraton Santiago for three days straight). The country seemed really beautiful from the little I could see and very modernized. I was extremely comfortable and would love to go back for a visit. The great thing about Chile is that the mountains are only about an hour and a half from the coast--the best of both worlds! It was kind of funny because the Sunday night before the Monday I was supposed to leave, Beau and I were watching the news. They announced that Augusto Pinochet (the former Chilean leader) had died that day and there were demonstrations in the street. How ironic that he dies one day before I go there. Beau was worried that I was walking into a complete upheaval in Latin America, but I assured him that wasn't the case.

One night in Chile, we were able to get out and go to a winery for dinner. It was gorgeous. The landscape reminded me of Utah. There were mountains in the background, but the land felt more like the desert. We took a tour of the winery. Here is picture of me at the winery that night.

I expect that I may have to make more international trips in 2007. Hopefully, we can work it out so that Beau may be able to join me on some of these. I really hope we can see the world together.

What else? Our Christmas was great. We stayed in St. Louis on Xmas Eve and Day and celebrated with my family. My sister Jenna and her husband Alex hosted both the DeLongs and the Tates on Christmas Eve at their house. Their kitchen has been newly remodeled, and it was neat to see the finished product. I can't wait til Beau and I can get our kitchen up and running as nice as theirs is. Our Christmas Eve dinner was a Feliz Navidad experience as we ate tacos, taquitos, burritos and Beau made his famous margaritas (recipe passed down from his mom Janet.)

On Christmas Day, we opened gifts with the DeLongs. Then in the afternoon, Beau and I flew down to Tampa to spend the week with the Veihmans. Tom & Janet rented a condo near St. Petersburg Beach for the family. We had a great time. Although it was hard for me to let go and relax (thoughts of home remodeling, unpacking and work stuff was running through my head), I was finally able to enjoy the nice warm weather (75-80) and the beach. Beau, of course, found it easier to unwind then I did. This was a nice chance to see all of the Veihmans and the Drews before 2007 gets started.

This was also the first time that we got to see Tom & Janet as "homeless." That's right, they officially have NO HOME. Tom is working three more days at his job in Springfield, IL, and then they take off in their travel van for parts unknown. They were renting a condo, then moved into an extended stay hotel in Springfield, but officially checked out before Xmas. The van is their home. Beau and I are anxious to hear about their travels.

That's all for the New Year. We have a lot of projects planned and will keep you updated as we complete them. Love to all!