Keystone

This week was so much fun. Because of all of the snow and the bad conditions on the road, we decided to ski at Keystone because it was only 5 miles down the road from our house. It was really nice and there weren't that many people there due to the weather. On day 1, Cody, Ryan, Lindsay and I went to ski (Haddy and Ed went to fly fish). It was about 15 degrees, snowing and super windy but we didn't care. We got separated from Ryan somehow in the beginning so Cody led Lindsay and I around the slopes. He tricked us into going on the backside of the mountain where there were only blues and blacks. This is only the second time I have skied in my life so doing blues is still a little scary. Or a lot scary. Cody would give Lindsay and I about a 5 minute head start and watch us fall from above before skiing to come and help us up. I'm sure he was laughing at us the whole time watching us "ski" cautiously and slowly down the mountain before flying by us.

That night we were all exhausted and cold so we decided to order pizza from a local place. It was delicious and just what we needed after an activity filled day. After eating, we were all exhausted. We put on Superbad but one by one fell fast asleep.

The next day, we decided to ski Keystone again. We went a little bit later because Lisa was coming in that morning which worked out perfectly because we were moving slow that morning. Keystone is great because they have night skiing and the slopes stay open until 8 so we still had plenty of ski time. Ed and Haddy came with us today too which was great. It was Ed's first time to ever ski so we were all trying to give him some tips. On his first trip down the mountain, he didn't fall once and he ended up on a blue to the base of the mountain. We were all very impressed. After an afternoon of skiing we decided we were all in need of an after ski beverage. We sat out on the patio and enjoyed a cold beer before heading back to the house to make dinner.

The Group at the top of the Mountain
Lisa & I on the Gondola Haddy, Linds & I ready to take on the mountain
Ed, Lindsay & I on the Gondola
Cody and Ryan Apres Ski with Cody, Haddy & Linds

Lasagna was on the menu for dinner and we all worked together to get it made. Afterwards, we played some card games and several rounds of flip cup. We also did a bit of sledding down our stairs. The sky was clear and it was so pretty out. You could see all the stars perfectly. I have always thought of myself as a beach or lake type of person but being in Colorado this past week has really made me appreciate the mountains.

The Girls after Skiing It was Ed and Haddy's 2 Year Anniversary
View of Vail from the Plane

The Vail Pass.

Yay for Spring Break 2009 (SB2K9)!!! Yesterday, Lindsay, Haddy, Ed and I flew to EGE (Vail Eagle, regional Airport) for our March vacation. Sadly, Clark was not able to come with us, he needed to get some work done before we leave for DC next week. The flight was wide open so we were all able to sit with each other and we had an exit row so we could spread out. We made nice with flight attendant Teri and she talked us up during takeoff and landing. Teri has been flying for AA for about 30 years. She just seemed really fun and upbeat; kind of just wanted to put her in my pocket and take her with us. Once we arrived at the airport, we rented the car and began our journey to Dillon, CO. Ed pretending to vom in the bag

So, there's this "Pass..." If you drive past Vail on Highway 70 you have to travel on the "Vail Pass." It's this stretch of road that winds around the mountains that is certain to be covered in snow and ice. It was dark and scary. The car was silent providing plenty of concentration for Ed to drive. After about 2 hours of driving in thick snow, we arrived at our house. After dropping off our bags, we went to the Dillon Dam Brewery and attempted to salvage the night. We had a round of soco and lime and some local beer (and dinner) but the night was cut short by the "altitude" (side note, if you are ever anywhere in high elevation, you can blame ANYTHING on the altitude). We were all exhausted and went to bed.

The next morning, we woke up and Ed had graciously gone out and procured some bagels and OJ for us. We ate and then prepared for the day. We ventured out towards a fun outlet that we passed on the way in the night before. The Columbia Outlet was amazing. Like everything was 30% off of the lowest marked price. I would buy a flight just to come and shop here. I bought two fleeces, a ski jacket and some ear muffs...$70. SEVENTY DOLLARS. We were all so elated. After that, we headed back on "the pass" toward Vail for a day of shopping and good eats.

We walked around for a while and then ate at Blu's. It was delicious. We caught wind of the big storm that is supposed to hit tonight and tomorrow so we decided to head back to Dillon to pick up our groceries and get settled in our house. Apparently, we are supposed to get several inches of snow tonight and about a foot of snow tomorrow. That's a whole lot of snow. We are waiting on Cody and Ryan to get in tonight. They were already delayed due to weather at DFW and now they are going to have to maneuver "the pass." We are hopeful that "the pass" remains open for the remainder of the night and are able to make to the house.

So I'm a 15 year old teenage girl...

This weekend was fantastic. I started off going to Houston Friday evening to meet up with Lecie and some of her friends to go see Taylor Swift at the Rodeo. I LOVE Taylor Swift FYI so it was quite a treat that we got to watch her out of a fancy suite that had a delicious buffet complete with andouille sausage mac n' cheese and ice cream cart (served in pink cowboy hats no less). After watching a couple of hours of Bull Riding, Barrel Racing and countless other activities that Peta would be sure to shun, the lights went out and there was a noise so deafening I literally had to scream in order to "talk" to the person next to me. It was time for Taylor to take the stage. I have never heard anything like it. I think there were about 73,000 people (teenagers) in Reliant that night, the biggest crowd she had ever performed in front of and it showed, not because of her performance, but because of the sheer awe that was broadcasted across her face the entire show. It was completely refreshing to see a young star be so humbled by the number of people that had come out to support her and she did not disappoint. Aside from the excessive head banging/hair thrashing that Taylor was doing the entire time, It was an incredible concert; one of the best I have been to. Here are some pics from the rest of Friday night:

The girls with our Ice Cream Bowls

Lecie and I

While Friday night could have easily been enough fun for me last weekend, upon returning to Fort Worth Saturday morning, I had to immediately prepare for a fun crawfish boil! Late afternoon, we were invited to Susan and Jessica Millers gorgeous house for some mudbugs and libations. Now, I am not a huge fan of the actual crawfish, I tend to stick with the potatoes and mushrooms that are boiled with them, but it was all so good. The best thing I ate that night though were these cream cheese, parm and sausage stuffed and baked jalapenos (350 for 20 minutes fyi). They changed my life and I am a better person today because of them.

We played flip cup for a while and had a dance party towards the end of the night. The weather was perfect and the company was even better. All in all, I think it is in my top 5 of fun nights spent in Fort Worth since moving here. I forgot to take my camera with me to this shindig but Haddy took plenty of pictures. If only she could find her camera now...

Update: She found it! Click here to view Haddy's pics http://doesfwevercrossyourmind.blogspot.com/2009/03/crawfish-boil.html

Who all seen the leprechaun say yeah....

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Last night, Clark and I went with some friends to Fred's for some green beer and the chance to celebrate a holiday dedicated to my favorite color and of course, St. Patrick. Fred's was pretty crowded and we were actually informed that people began arriving around 3. Needless to say, people were already in pretty good spirits by the time we got there. Haddy and I went to order beers from the bar but they were already out of the $1 green beer. Very sad for us. However, the folks from Miller Lite came in with reinforcements and we were able to enjoy green beer after all. Close Call. Anyway, here are some pictures from last night.

Clark

Chad

Haddy

Ed

Me

Sarah and Brandon

Haddy, Whitney, Becca and Sarah

St. Patrick's Day always reminds me of my favorite youtube video. If you have not yet seen this, please watch as soon as possible. If you have seen this, you should probably watch it again as it is hilarious. The first time I saw this I was actually in the parking lot at Felix's in Mobile, AL. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nda_OSWeyn8

In keeping with the green spirit, yesterday was also spent doing a little bit of gardening. Both my Grandmother and my Mom have serious green thumbs and I hope I can continue their legacy. I went to Home Depot and planted basil, thyme, mint, cilantro and some peppers. Hopefully they will do well and I can have a garden full of fresh herbs. Not quite sure what you do with mint other than put it in mojitos but come over and I will fix you one. I also planted some spring flowers. We are getting some quotes to landscape our backyard and create a couple of areas that we can plant. Hopefully once that is completed, I will be able to maintain and plant my own flowers moving forward.

Here we go...

After much consideration and much to Clark's dismay, I have started the Official Rucker Family blog. I feel tremendous pressure in kicking this thing off. First of all, I feel like I need to be incredibly witty and charming in my writing. Contrary to what my mother believes, writing has never really been my strong suit. Clark calls me out frequently for my grammar and for my use of "made up" words. I think at one time, all words were made up. Why can't we continue to increase our vocabulary with additional gems? Second, aside from our parents, I'm not sure if there are people out there that would care enough to read a blog about us. I used to think they were pretty cheesy until I found myself reading through them throughout the day in order to put off working. In that respect, I am really just trying to provide another outlet for people to slack off. You're welcome...

So here we go...All about the Ruckers'.
After a lot of hard work and three years of marriage, Clark and I bought our first home in August and have slowly been putting the pieces together. It is beautiful and everything we ever wanted in a home. We reside with our two puppies, Piper, 5 & right, and Bailey, 11mos & left. We love Fort Worth more than I could have even imagined. We are blessed to have a wonderful group of friends and a fun city to play in as well as jobs we both love. Our family is very important to us and we don't get to see them enough. It is always wonderful when we can be around them in some capacity.

Q: So what does life as a Rucker entail?
A: Weekdays include cooking dinner together in the evenings and a lot of Reality TV. Our favs include Amazing Race (I am dying to be on the show), Biggest Loser, Top Chef, Hell's Kitchen, The Real World (yes, we still watch it), The Bachelor (Clark doesn't have a choice, it's very sad), Idol and DWTS. As you can see we are very busy people. In addition to those, we watch Friday Night Lights, Desperate Housewives and Greys. I cry in every single episode of Grey's Anatomy. Clark makes fun of me and I get mad. Cooking dinner together is something that we both really enjoy as well. We try hard not to eat out during the week.

Weekends are usually spent going out with friends or relaxing around the house with the dogs. We enjoy a good dive bar and Mexican food. I'm occupied with getting the house together on the weekends and have been aggressively getting it together the last couple of weeks which is great. I am not a decorator and thankfully, neither is Clark, so it took us a while to find a vision for what we wanted to do. I really think it is coming along now. Weddings are also fun weekend excursions. Clark should be a professional wedding guest. He is usually the first one on the dance floor, he always eats his moneys worth in food, he is a self proclaimed connoisseur of the wedding cake and he utilizes any props the band may provide him with (see image).


In a nutshell, this is what we are about. I will try to post as often as possible/necessary. Really, I want to use this as a tool to keep people updated on the happenings of our wonderful life. Enjoy!