Saying Goodbye....

Saying goodbye is not easy. I have never been good at it, and I have never enjoyed it. Last week was very rough for many reasons. I have had to say goodbye far too many times.  

Easter weekend, Andrea’s sister passed away. Roberta was one of the most special people I have ever met. She was beautiful. She was smart. She had an incredible smile that could light up a room. On several occasions Roberta and I spent quality time together. We were stuck in situations where we were the least common denominator in the group we were surrounded by, so we took an immediate liking to each other. On Friday April, 29, 2011, we said goodbye to Roberta. We laid her to rest, and let her be one with God. May you Rest in Peace Roberta.

Another goodbye. My tenure on the Cardinal Health project in Columbus, OH has come to an end. I had the opportunity to come back to IBM last summer, and immediately joined the team. I was on the project for 10 months, traveling back and forth every week from Denver. Often times, this project was very stressful, sometimes working onsite on Fridays, sometimes even weekends. Te extra time at work, meant extra time bonding with some incredible coworkers. My coworkers aged anywhere from 24 – 60, but somehow, we all got along perfectly. I had two going away dinners last week. One with the Customer to Contract functional team (I was the training team representative for their team), and one with the Organizational Change team. It was great being in a social atmosphere with these coworkers, which we rarely get to do. My time on the project was a huge development experience for me, and everyone will truly be missed. Now its time for my next adventure in Waukegan, IL.

And now, for my last goodbye. For the past 3 months I have been dating the most amazing person, S. The basis of why we met, where we met, and the timing of when we met, all didn’t make sense. All put together, it must have been the perfect storm. S lives in Columbus (confusing right?). We have spent so much quality time together the last 3 months, including date night once a week, movies, weekend trips, and sleepovers. I have never bonded with someone quite like this. It was truly an experience to remember. Because I am leaving Columbus, we had to say our goodbyes, however, we fully intend on visiting each other (in whatever cities that may be), and seeing what the future has in store for us.

In closing, life is short. I urge you all to live everyday to the fullest. Love one another. Do not take anything for granted. Enjoy all of your experiences here on this Earth. God made a plan for all of us, so why not live it up?!

This. Is. Me.

So here I am. Posting my first blog in several months. Through the last few years, I have tried my hardest to keep my friends and family up to date on my life through this blog. At times I was very good at updating people, and at times I would take very long breaks. After my very sarcastic brother notified me that my brother mentioned that I ONLY talk about myself, and post pictures of myself, and I am very self infatuated, I let my feelings get hurt, and decided to stop posting.

Through the last year or so, I have been following my very good friend Jenna’s blog. This girl is hilarious. She’s… well, she’s amazing. If you could think of any situation that could help to a 20ish good looking lady, its happened to her. There are a few posts that I was laughing so hard, that I cried. I religiously started reading her blog. About 4 months ago, my friend Lauren talked about her blog. She invited me to her blog. Though we are good friends, I almost feel like it opened me up to a new side of her life. A way for me to get to know her better, I guess you can say. About a month ago, my friend Jen started writing a blog, She writes very fun things, and has some positive posts like ‘What im loving Wednesday’. I plan to do something similar, just have no idea what that is going to be yet.

After reading all of these blogs I have decided, SCREW MY BROTHER, it is about me. If people want to read about me, then let them!

Though I will still post about some of the fabulous trips I take, I will talk about more as well. I will have rants, I will have raves, and I will just talk about whats on my mind. Through the years I have kept a lot in. I have always had fabulous friends to help me through the thick and thin, but, I would still be weary of discussing specific matters. The last few years, I have really come to terms with myself, and who I am, and am opening up.

Thank you to Jenna, Lauren and Jen for opening your lives up to me, and inspiring me to continue on with the blog legacy!

So, like it or love it… here is the new and improved (Thanks to Jen) ‘In Ryan’s Shoe’s’ blog. This. Is. Me.

Incredible Vacation

I had an incredible opportunity to go visit my best friend Heather, her husband Michael, and their 2 year old Son MJ in Italy. This summer, they moved to Aviano Air Base in Italy, for the Air Force. On my vacation, I was able to see Polcenigo, Venice, and Rome Italy, and Munich Germany for Oktoberfest. This was one of the most amazing vacations I have ever taken.

The vacation had many different highlights. In Munich, we attended the Oktoberfest Festivities. The culture, the food, and especially the beer, was some of the best ive ever been around. I was able to bring back some souvenirs, nic naks, and even some injuries. All in all, it was a fantastic time and I cannot wait to go back!






Immediately following Munich, we flew down to Rome. We stayed at the incredible Westin Excelsior, which was right next to the US Embassy. We took bus rides around the city. We saw the Colosseum, the Vatican, and many other sites. The food was delicious (yet pricey). I could not believe the culture and the history of this city. The people were very friendly.







To Be Continued.....

Halloween 2008

Some friends and I had a great time in Downtown Denver for Halloween. The weather was so amazing that we were able to hang outside... in October! Here are a few pictures from that night.

My Very Very Crazy Summer

As most of you know, I had a crazy summer of traveling. I was home in Denver for I think a total of 13 days all summer!

I started the summer with a trip to visit one of my best Alpha Kappa Psi buddies in Morgantown, West Virginia. I drove from Detroit to Morgantown. The road took me down Michigan, through Ohio (West to East), through Pennsylvania (North to South), and into West Virginia. She had just graduated from WVU, so I went to celebrate with her and her family. Here is a picture of her and I.

LeeAnne and I

My next adventure took me to Chicago. I met up with some old coworkers from my Nissan Project in Nashville. We really just hung out in the city all weekend, went shopping, and ate some fantastic food. Here are a few pictures of Chicago (one of my favorite cities!)

Jen scared of the ride....

Chicago at night.. Gorgeous!

The Famous Wrigley Field

I think one of the best trips of the summer came when I treated my mom to a trip to New York City. It was her birthday, and I figured since I had a lot of points saved up, I would treat us to a great weekend. After flying First Class to New York, and taking a Lincoln Towncar to the Waldorf Astoria (where we stayed the first night), the first night was spent to watching the Steve Miller Band at Radio City Music Hall! (My boss' husband is their Tour Manager and he got us 3rd Row Tickets!!!). After the concert we got backstage passes and drank a few beers with the band members and "their crew."

My mom and I with the stage in the background

Steve Miller!

Mom Backstage

My boss and I backstage

The next few days were spent sightseeing throughout the city, we went to a few broadway musicals, saw the Statue of Liberty, The Met, and a ton of other place. We had so much fun and it was fantastic to spend time with my mom!

New York from the water

Front of our second hotel.. Renissance in Times Square

After New York I went to San Francisco for the first time. My friend from college, Eric, is in law school at UC Davis. For the summer he took an internship in the city, and he wanted me to go up to see the city with him. We visited several vineyards, and explored all around San Francisco.

Golden Gate Bridge

Eric and I at a Winery in Sonoma

I was able to make a few more trips, but no pictures were really taken. Those pictures were Las Vegas (the big one), and New Mexico for UNM's football game vs. Texas A&M

Cruise!

A few weeks ago I went on a cruise with my Uncle Larry, Aunt Denise, Cousin Erica and a few of their family friends. We had such a fantastic time on the cruise! Wanted to show yall some pics!

Great Concert.... Great Venue!

On May 10, My brother Robert and I had the pleasure of going to a concert at the Red Rocks Ampitheater in Morrison, CO (about 20 minutes from Denver). We went to see Sugarland and Pat Green. If the performers werent amazing enough, the venue was awesome! Here are a few pictures of the night.... The place was just so cool, I thought it would be "Blogworthy". There was a very very very steep hill that we had to climb from the parking lot to the stairs, then just over 300 stairs to get to our seats... Wasnt that fun....

Jennifer Neddles of Sugarland

Me with the Red Rocks in the background

From where our first seats were, you could see the whole city of Denver... it was cool

We moved down a few (about 32) rows, and this was the view from where we were.

Once I get the videos loaded, I will try and add one to this.