Falling Actually and Metaphorically

So I will admit it I finally fell pray to the charm and hype of Valentine's Day. I know my last post simply pouted about the need to conform to a specific day on which romance is prescribed and not spontaneous but sometimes things happen when you least expect it. My dear Valentine. . . keeps continually surprising me by his ability to overcome my worst moods, fears, and cynicism with patience and a sense of humor.

Despite a fairly disastrous actual Valentine's Day celebration where he still fairly new to my life cooked me a surprise dinner full of things I don't usually eat and wasn't particularly excited about, I think it is safe to say I am falling under his spell. He misses some of the details (like the fact that I don't eat pork) but always gets the main idea and takes difficulty with a great deal more grace than anyone I have ever met when wrong.

All this can be illustrated with my very first day of skiing ever. My Valentine's present from him was a day of skiing at a near by ski resort this past weekend. All those of you that know me in real life, know that I am not the most graceful person ever in fact I fall much closer to the other end of the spectrum. While somewhat athletic, I have struggled lately with bad knees and frustrations with my own physical limitations so I was more than a little worried about skiing.

The first run down the hill proved as disastrous as had feared with somewhere around a dozen crashes before making it to the bottom of the bunny slope. Granted some of these falls were intentional to avoid hitting the innocent children also learning to ski for the first time. He stayed with me the whole time and kept his cool despite me jokingly accusing him of "trying to kill me." By the fifth or sixth run down the hill, I was actually having a lot of fun. My "coach" kept telling me how great I was doing and never once lost his cool. By the end of the day my fear had faded and I knew how great it was to be supported by someone who really wanted me to succeed. He pushed me to keep going when I wanted to quit but without bullying me.

This guy . . .hmmm . . . how do I put this. . .is more than I expected and maybe just what I need.

St. Valentine's Day BLAHs

So it is that time of year again. . .yet another Valentine's Day. I don't really know what it is but I just can't seem to get into the spirit. All week this week I have woken up more tired than when I went to sleep and have barely been able to drag myself through an entire day. SO tonight I am supposed to all the sudden put on a big sappy grin and act romantic. . .just because the calendar says it is Valentine's Day. I'm sorry but it just ain't happening.

After two cups of coffee (which for me is usually enough to put me into orbit) and more sugar than is medically advisable I still don't have the energy. I just feel like wearing black and letting my own personal little rain cloud follow me around. . .I know I will put on a happy face if for no other reason than show but I really, really, really don't feel like it. I can't help but ask myself, Is this symptomatic of a lack of excitement for my boyfriend or simply just bad timing for a down energy week? I think it is simply the latter but all I know what I really want right now is a nap.

Baby Love

So on February 1st, I became an aunt again for the second time. My new nephew's name is Ryan and he has tons of dark brown hair and hazel eyes. He looks a little like my sister and a little like my brother in law.

I was again completely bowled over by how great it just felt to hold him while he slept. Apparently, I make a good nap place because he slept completely soundly for three hours which according to my sister was one of the longest uninterrupted periods of sleep in his very short life.

A Very Vegas Weekend

So like most locals I usually stay away from the "Strip" during my daily life in Vegas but when guests come to town you just "have" to go down there. This last weekend several of my East Coast friends were in town for a conference and two of them decided to renew their wedding vows after two and a half years of marriage in the Graceland Wedding Chapel (http://www.gracelandchapel.com/index.html). The very same chapel where Bon Jovi himself got married. Clearly, this was to be the social event of the season.

It was by far the silliest most fun wedding I have ever been to. The young Elvis decked out in his finest gold jacket walked the bride down the aisle singing Love Me Tender. Then preformed vows in which the bride had to promise to never step on the groom's Blue Suede Shoes and then serenaded the couple with All Shook Up mid vow renewal. The wedding processional was then led by Elvis singing A Little Less Conversation A Little More Action.