for byron:

hmm ok new post, special request from byron (whose pain i can feel after looking frantically from updates of fellow bloggers during my boring times at work). since last time, andrew, melissa, and i headed back up to boone for the "last trip" to pick up the last of our belongings and clean. unfortunately, as i predicted, not everything fit in this load, and the cleaning didn't get done. andrew will make the real last trip tomorrow... if stuff doesn't fit, i guess he'll have to throw it out or something... sad![melissa looking like lillie][my two favorite girls in the world!]

we went to the asu band competition on saturday and had a really good time. i love that andrew wanted to attend, as it was a big part of my high school experience, and i do some of the stuff he loves (like climbing and hopefully soon, mountain biking), and he has recently been a part of me riding (horses) and of the band comp. - i guess i forgot to mention that i got to ride the other day with jessi. the horse's name is chance, and he's really cool! anyway - i was proud of jordan's guard, as they did a really good job, and proud of the band because they're still a force to be reckoned with. panther creek (mr. robinson's new band) did well for their age. they are young and it showed, but they are growing, and improving, and that is always positive. in a way i missed that part of my life, but i also feel that my best way to stay involved now is to be a spectator perhaps... i don't know, i just think i might be done with actually working IN the process stage. andrew made the comment that he didn't know how popular i would be when we went to see jordan's kids. i thought it was kind of a strange comment, but i guess it makes sense since i graduated from high school in spring 2001. being involved in that program has been something i've taken pride in for a long time, and it was both exciting and a little weird that andrew didn't already know how much a part of the program i used to be.

like i said though, we had a great time, and the bands did great. after that we went back to spend our last night in our little boone house. it is a little sad! today we packed as much as we could, i cleaned like a fiend, and we made our way back to town. andrew and i went to a late dinner with byron and jackie to the grape, a really cool wine bar with excellent food and quite the wine selection. it's a tad pricey (though not surprising for the type of establishment it is), but we all had a great time and enjoyed a delectable palate sensation. jackie and byron each had some white wine, while andrew had a merlot, and i had one glass of a merlot rose and one glass of a chianti that was supposed to be like a sangiovese... if anyone knows the difference between the two, or what makes a sangiovese, please do share, because i like them! we have also deduced that the mac murray ranch russian river valley pinot noir is ONLY good in the 2003 vintage, and the 2005 is terrible! 3 out of 3 critics agree (those three being andrew, jackie, and me). along with great food, great wine, and great friends, we also had a great dessert! some chocolate mousse thing, i have no idea what, but it was awesome and involved fruity compote and hazelnuts.

now i must be off to bed to join my poison-ivy-riddled husband! tomorrow shall include waiting on the cable guy again, unpacking our houseful of stuff, and planning for my classes that i'll begin teaching a week from tomorrow! eek!