N is for Not a Jewelry Box

I said in my eloping post I would explain the story of how we ended up with a cat the day after we got married. So here is special little tale of how we acquired Meownt Rainier Barrier.

Husband likes to play this game called "guess the present." I believe I have explained how incredibly talented he is at this game, or maybe it is how incredibly bad I am at lying. Either way, as we were discussing a late birthday/wedding gift for me, he started to give me clues about what he was getting me. Maybe he was trying to get my skills up to his level, let me win the game for once. Didn't work. I was still wrong. Way wrong. Let's go through what he told me, versus what went through my head.

A: "I need you to help me go pick it out, there's lots of options."
K: (There are lots of different kinds of kittens!)

A: "The price range is anywhere from $70-$700."
K: (Kittens have a wide range of prices!)

A: "It could be made of leather, or wood."
K: (...........he's going to make me pick out a cat carrier FIRST! Then go get a cat!)

Yes I know. I am not aware of anyplace that would ever construct a cat carrier out of wood. Outdoor cat house? Leather could have been like a leash and a collar or a variety of accessories! I get a one track mind sometimes.

Fast forward to our romantic brunch after our lovely beach ceremony. Celebrating with a glass of champagne, I was on top of the world, smiling from ear to ear, wanted to tell everybody at the tables around us, we had just gotten MARRIED!

He starts secretly looking on his phone for places in the area where this gift could be browsed for. Let me say I was pretty damn confident up till this point. Secretly basking in my glory of guessing. Then he wants me to tell him what my guess is. I didn't want to do it, I just wanted to wait it out and see if I was right, not hear it! I told him I didn't want to guess. I told him! So he starts guessing for me. Bad move brosef.

A: "It's not jewelry....."
K: (I got my rock.)

A: "It's not a new purse...."
K: (I'll buy that for myself.)

A: "It's not a cat....."
K: (..........................................)

K: *crying at brunch*

I TOLD YOU I DIDN'T WANT TO GUESS!

After a boggled new husband questioned me on how.in.the.world. I deduced that I was getting a cat from the hints he gave me, he got out the trusty phone again, and to save his backside, found the nearest pet store.

For anybody who knows me well, knows that I'm more of a dog lover than a cat person. But some family friends of ours used to have this cat, called Marley, who was an exotic shorthair. A Persian face, but with short hair, so the grooming is majorly cut down. I loved him. He was so....unique! and as I later learned in life, expensive! My need to be "not the average joe" can be costly! AB would never pay such a large price for a cat. A grill or an electronic device, perhaps. Never a cat.

The stars aligned and fate stepped in because this pet store we walked into, just so happened to have a Persian rescue organization based out of it!!!!!!!! I walked in all like......

WHAAAAAAA!?! In my head, still giving AB credit.

K: (He's so smart! He planned it this way as a SURPRISE! He knows these are what I want! Oh my gosh look at the one over there. Any second now, he's gonna point to it and say "That's yours!!")

Nope. A coincidence only. An amazing one though!! I saw Rainy first and was in love. Then I learned she loves to be brushed, which was one of my three requirements of a cat. #1 You will be cute. #2 You will be cuddly. #3 You will let me brush you without attacking my hand. We put in the application that very day, and after some talking, thinking, and phone interviewing....it was decided she would be ours! The next morning we picked her up and its been (mostly) happily ever after since then!

She cuddles with me most of the time, follows me around, and we chit chat a lot. Rainy is a Himalayan, meaning she is part Persian, part Siamese. Siamese cats talk more than any other breed. Who knew! I've gotten used to it, and just ignore her when it's excessive. Sometimes its cute like when she is answering my questions (don't judge, it's just the two of us most of the time!). I don't think she is the smartest of things, on account of she runs into screen doors and jumps off 2nd stories and wanders into empty rooms just to meow at the wall, but she lets me train her because she LOVES food. If I fed her every hour she would probably still try to burglarize her treat bag. If I wandered the streets for weeks, I would probably want to stock up while I could as well.

Here's some pictures of our sweet fur child!

 So fuzzy.

 So not fuzzy.

" I enjoy hammocks!"

 "And boxes."

"My own namesake"

And here are the first few behaviors I've taught her!

Until next time....

Cheers,

KB and MRB

R is for Rustonians

In May we left the big city of Seattle for some new scenery. Our lease was up and with my new job in Tacoma, we were both commuting almost 2 hours every day. Not fun. And not my choice as a way to spend 12% of my day.

So my lovely husband (still adjusting to using that word!) found a quaint little joint in Ruston, Washington. Basically Tacoma. It's a "town" encompassing about 5 by 3 blocks on the shores of Commencement Bay, in the Puget Sound. It also, coincidentally, is right across the street from my workplace, only 20 minutes from base.

The most SPLENDID part is that traffic noise...Light Rail dings....earsplitting mariachi music....and unsolved shootings, are no longer a part of our every day lives! Our former apartment complex was lovely, don't get me wrong. Brand new. Great amenities. A couple blocks from Lake Washington, and our favorite, Seward Park. But NOW! What a difference! We sit with the windows open all the time, no longer in fear of our neighbors getting upset that our TV is up loud, because, God forbid, we should be able to have fresh air and watch Wheel of Fortune at the same time. Our balcony at our Ruston abode is about 4 times smaller than our Seattle deck. We've already spent 29438732 more minutes on it, because who needs all that space to listen to car horns and cursing drivers when you can have less space and look at the water in perfect serenity? We live in a park yo. Or very NEAR a park. Parkside.

 The Waterfront of Ruston Way

 Shoreline of our "backyard"

 Rhododendron Garden

 Iris Garden

 Miles of running trails

 That's us!

 Pleasantvilley

That last one is our baby balcony. Complete with a cat fence and hammock. Truth: There is no room for chairs on account of the gargantuan grill table Andrew made, but there is always room for hammocks.

Since we last spoke through this little bloglet, we have completed deployment #3. As well as very recently started deployment #4. I kind of wear those numbers like a hidden badge of honor, but come on, back to back is not how I planned on rackin them up! It is what it is, and we shall persevere like we always do. I just wanted to do the whole husband and wife thing for more than 2 weeks at a time. I suppose now is not our time. An email marriage it shall remain for the next couple of months. If the military was a person, sometimes I would slap it across the face.

Until next time. Don't worry, next time will be sooner than 2 months from now. Not like I have husband hang outs to go to or anything!

Cheers,

KB

Cheers

E is for Eloping !

It wasn't a destination wedding. It wasn't a secret. It was simply what we wanted to do.

Just the two of us seemed like the most romantic way to become husband and wife. So we did it.

After a whole month of being engaged, we got married on the shores of Puget Sound, in front of a lighthouse. The morning was quiet and peaceful.

We were alone on the beach with the exception of a few kayakers...and a park ranger....who almost put a large kink in the day by letting me know, despite purchasing a way overpriced permit, we were not in a permitted marriage spot. Sorry lady, but there will be a whopping five people here. In the scope of your life, this 15 minutes means absolutely nothing to you, but to us, it is the rest of our lives.

Apparently, there has to be at least one thing that goes almost terribly wrong on wedding days. I'm lucky my "one thing" looked the other way for a few minutes. I'll stop blabbing and let the pictures tell the rest of the story...

 Rings and red shoes, what else do you need? A husband.

 A wine box with love letters we wrote to each other, to be opened "in case of emergency," or on our 5th year wedding anniversary

 It is official!!

 Super cheese!

 Our sweet officiant, AnnMarie

The amazing witnesses and great friends



 And they lived happily ever after....

 Kansas Blvd told us it was meant to be that we got married at Discovery Park

:)

Until next time....

Cheers,

KB

May Favorites.....Mayvorites

Let's do this. I should have millions of favorites because I missed March and April! Woops. I'll try to catch you up.

• Herb garden. Either we're getting old, turning into cheapskates, or being super Washingtonians. Not sure. But growing our own herbs, and someday when we have the room, vegetables and junk, suddenly seemed like the most amazing idea EVER. Dude, you don't have to buy them if you grow them. Genius!!! We already killed one batch, so I'll keep you updated on round #2.

• I am obsessed. I'll tell you more about how we got her in the wedding blog. But it makes the HUGEST difference having a little furry to come home to when Mr. Husband is gone. Yes I talk to her. She definitely talks back. Sometimes when I don't want her to like at 5am. However, she cuddles with me, and lets me brush her (she thinks its better than catnip in fact) and those were my only requirements for a cat. When we first got her I, no joke, looked at her and said, if I love her this much already I wonder how people feel about babies?!?

• Toddlers and Tiaras. Yes it's trashy. Yes it's addictive. Yes it's like watching a train wreck. I had no choice before the new season of The Bachelorette came on. I feel as if Andrew leaves me no choice when we have no cable. He drew the line at Bridezillas. Ok, that makes sense. For some reason I feel like I would have been really good at child paegents! Mom, why didn't you dress me up like an 18 year old in a 5 year old body so I could be Miss Tiny Kansas??

That's all I can think of at this moment, but I am sure June's favorites will be a doozy. I know you're already anxious.

Until next time....

Cheers!

KLB

U is for Uncommonly Contentful

So I'm not sure if contentful is a word but I feel full of content, therefore, I made it a word.

Today is Wednesday, aka "Sunday" in Kelsey's world. There is no such thing as a Saturday/Sunday weekend in the zoo world, those are the busy days! I actually enjoy having odd days of the week off work: stores are quiet, the park is not full of people, no weekend hustle and bustle.

Third time's a charm, right? Hopefully. Our third deployment as a couple commenced earlier this month. I have kept SUPER busy with work:

 a new child :

acclimating to a new town/organizing all our junk in the new condo:

and exploring our new surrounding wilderness:

(That's a trail I now run on regularly. So secluded, quiet, peaceful! LOVE.IT.)

I absolutely adore our new place. We hope to stay here for the remainder of Andrew's assignment. Our Seattle place was brand new, nice, close to public transportation, a 20 minute ride to downtown.....had constant traffic noise and/or gangster rap music, an hour commute for Andrew, a building with 200 other residents, and a cost that took up the housing allowance.

Needless to say, we are so thankful to now live where we: are within walking distance of my job (which is in the middle of a giant, forrested park full of trails and beaches), have a 20 minute ride to base, within walking distance to Puget Sound, have a view of the water, on the edge of the cutest Pleasantville neighborhood, and oh my lord the biggest difference is HOW QUIET IT IS! We noticed we have already sat outside on our small balconey 10x more than we EVER did in a year on our ginormous Seattle deck. Andrew even installed a hammock :)

(I am sure a blog ALL about Meownt Rainier Barrier will be in the making on my next weekend)

That's about all that my life has been as of lately. Wedding (blog soon to come!), getting settled, entertaining a cat, and working on deployment goals. Oh, for those of you who don't know, or have not experienced the suck of a deployment. Husband and I always like to make goals for ourselves (or each other?), and that gives us something to focus on besides being apart. Pretty smart I think :) Here are a few of mine:

1. Teach Rainy at least one trick. I know she's not a dog. But the animal behaviorist in me can't help myself!
2. Get the condo in order. Yes it is a large task. We currently have the "2nd bedroom" as a "put-everything-in-here-and-close-the-door room." Got to fix that.
3. Reception plan. Obviously. I hope this is on Andrew's list too....
4. Write the companies I use most, that are on the RSPO and thank them for using sustainable palm oil. Yea yea, it's my new thing. I'll let YouTube explain it for me. The Northwest majorly emphasizes Kelsey The Conservation Biologist :D
5.Work out/Run 5 Mile Loop. This is always on my list haha It is a good thing to pass the time with, not that I'm terribly obese or anything. But you don't want your husband, wait, new husband, coming home after x amount of months to a squishier version of your former self. I signed up for 6 weeks of yoga and am taking full advantage of the running trails in Point Defiance (the park). Let's hope his homecoming doesn't make him want to go back to the desert.

Haha, you've got to love fat, happy post-wedded bliss.

Until next time!

Cheers,

Kelsey B!

O is for Oh My I'm a Terrible Blogger

Pardon MOI! Life has gotten SEVERELY in the way of writing any blogs. I've missed TWO editions of monthly favorites, a blog about the aquarium, my new job, mom and sister's visit to Washington, a pair of new road bikes, a Napa Valley weekend trip and random everyday adventures of Kelsey. Do not fear, nothing too exciting has gone on in my life lately...

 

Kidding, that is the opposite of true.

 

Here's what my life's to-do list has recently consisted of:

 

End of internship, aka find a job

 

Find a new place to live

 

Move

 

Not too bad right? Then Andrew threw a nice little element in there, and we GOT ENGAGED!!

 

So now, my to-do list is a little bit longer:

End of internship, aka find a job CHECK

Find a new place to live CHECK

Move CHECK

Unpack, reorganize, make a home DEFINITELY NOT A CHECK YET

Get married

Plan a reception


Mind you, each of those new tasks has about 92389 additional details within it. Change your name, buy a dress, find a venue, decide on a date, get military friendly, send invitations, make a guest list, don't go broke, get a marriage license, contemplate having Subway cater to save money, taste cakes, buy waterproof mascara, and the list goes on. and on. and on. As the list continues to grow, I just have to keep telling myself "I will not be a bridezilla. I will not get an ulcer. I will not take Xanax."

 

 

So. That is where I have been. And despite that list, here I sit and a Starbucks (because, of course, our new condo has no Internet yet), JUST to fill you in. Yes that's right, this latte is for you. Cheers.

The trip to Napa Valley was not only amazing because Andrew proposed, but SUPER AMAZING because we got to share it with two of our very best friends. The weekend was filled with a very special vineyard tour, a rained-out bike tour that turned into a private shuttle tour (just as fun, less soggy), LOTS of yummy food, purple teeth, 9 bottles of wine, visits from Oklahoma friends-turned-California friends, and of course, laughs and fun.

 

 

Other than the amazing engagement, our new condo is close to Tacoma, and saves both Andrew and I about 2 hours of commuting each day. My newest career adventure is a temporary biologist at a zoo in Tacoma; doing just what I did for my internship, but getting paid! The temp title is common in this field, although that doesn't make it any more comforting, because in a few months I'll be right back on the job hunt. Perhaps I'll just start my own business so I can avoid the stress of job searching/starting over each time we move stations.....food for thought....

My latte is getting cold, so until next time!

 

 

Cheers, x's and o's,

 

 

KLM not for long!