Merry Christmas 2014

It's been another wonderful year in the Bahrij household.  As we sit on our back porch and enjoy a beer in the sun, we'd like to take a minute to wish each and everyone one of you a very Merry Christmas!

P52 - Catchup

So many weeks behind... Here's few of the recent catch-up pics

42/52 - Food - Breakfast in NYC.

43/52 - My Happy Place - Ready to go somewhere... anywhere.

44/52 - Me, Myself, and I

47/52 - Colors of the Rainbow - Oranges, beets, sprouts, and more.

P52 - Timeless - 48/52

Chris and I went hiking at Enchanted Rock in the Texas Hill Country today.  I couldn't think of a better representation for timeless than Enchanted Rock itself.  It's been around for millions of years and has been entertaining us humans for at least 10,000.  Timeless indeed.

P52 - 45/52 - Vibrant

I spent most of last week in New York City - for work, I swear.  My room was right across from Central Park.  Who wouldn't love the opportunity to walk amongst the vibrant fall leaves every morning??

Summer 2014

As summer comes to an end in most of the country (although not in Texas!), it's time to look back on a great summer!  All the pictures from the summer are in the Summer 2014 album.

We started things off with a going away night out in downtown San Antonio.  The Luxury is always a good time, and you can't go wrong with giant Jenga.

Lindsey came to town and we all enjoyed a haunted tour of downtown.  We got a special treat when we walked by San Fernando Cathedral. 

Next up was a trip to the top of the Tower of the Americas for one last night with deployer Eric.  We sure do miss having you around!

One of Eric's favorite places was the Beethoven Maennerchor.  They showed all the USA and Germany World Cup games on the big screen.  We joined in the fun for the USA-Portugal game.

While all of this was going on, Amy and I were drowning in our weekly veggie shipment.  We shared, but how do you put a dent in a haul like this?  I think some of those banana peppers are still in my freezer...

Next up was the 4th of July.  I spent the day with friends at the Missions baseball game, then enjoyed the fireworks after the game.  Another shot from this night featured as the P52 picture for Week 27.

Two days later, I was on a plane headed for Atlanta.  I spent most of the summer there.  You can read about my adventures in my post here.  While in Atlanta, I snuck away for a long weekend with Lindsey in Vancouver.  You can read about our fun here.  

I came back to San Antonio for a few weeks in August.  I spent one weekend at our office summer picnic at the river with my silly, water-hating dogs.  See that angry face Roxie has on?  That's because she got a teeny, tiny bit of river water on her ears.

  

I spent the next weekend with a group of ladies at what I hope will become an annual tradition.  You can read all about our Ladies Weekend in Austin here.

The very next weekend, I was on another plane headed for South Dakota.  I spent 10 wonderful days with my family before heading back to Atlanta.  I wrote about my trip to South Dakota here.

On my first day back in Atlanta, I was greeted by flowers from my husband.  How sweet is he?

My travels didn't end there.  I had the opportunity to travel to upstate New York for a project meeting.  It was beautiful!  I'm trying to figure out a way that I can go back while the leaves are changing.

At the end of September, I made my way back to San Antonio.  It was great to see my puppies and sleep in my bed for a change, but I still miss all my new Atlanta friends.

To close out the summer, our group of Air Force friends spent a day in Fredericksburg as a going away for one of the couples in the group.  They are successfully relocated to South Carolina.  Lucky duckies!

With such a crazy summer behind me, I'm really looking forward to a calmer fall.  Maybe...

Atlanta

Kimley-Horn does this really cool thing called "shifting".  Shifting just means that when one office needs help, someone from another office moves in for a week, a month, or more to get the job done.  Shifting is awesome because you get to see a new city, work on new and different projects, and meet great people from around the firm.

I was asked to shift to the Atlanta Midtown office for most of the summer, and it was pretty awesome. Not only were my coworkers a blast to work with, but I had free weekends to explore the city.  I also got to walk to work every day.  That might have been the best part.

So... here's a run-down of my adventures in Atlanta.

Piedmont Park - located a half-mile from my hotel.  A perfect place for a jog or a trip to the farmer's market.  The Midtown office even recruited me to play kickball in the park once a week.

  

The Biltmore Hotel - Home to the Kimley-Horn Midtown office.  Such a cool old building.

Sweet Water Brewery - One of my many adventures with the always fabulous Kate.
 

Anlsey Park - A rediculously wealthy neighborhood between my hotel and Piedmont Park.  I became a runner for a few months because this neighborhood and the Park were such a treat to spend time in.

Atlanta Botanical Gardens - Located in Piedmont Park and home to Thursday night parties in the Garden.

The High Museum of Art - Thanks to the Blue Star Museums program, I spent A LOT of time here - for free.  You may have also seen the exterior in Week 36 - Shapes.  Atlanta attractions also featured in Weeks 26, 28, and 29.

Georgia Aquarium - Probably my favorite attraction after Piedmont Park.  I could have watched the Wale Sharks All. Day. Long.  And... I kind of did.

Centennial Olympic Park - Not all that interesting, but I was in the neighborhood.

Music Midtown - A two day music festival featuring John Mayer, Third Eye Blind, Lorde, Batsille, Eminem, Zac Brown Band, and many, many other artists.  My farewell to Atlanta, Piedmont Park, and Kate!

SD Trip - Fall 2014

In between trips to Atlanta this summer, I squeezed in a 10-day trip back to South Dakota to see my family. And by family, I mean my nephew.  Because he's pretty much the coolest little kid ever.

See what I mean?

I did manage to see a few other people while I was home.  I made a trip to central South Dakota to spend a day with my Grandma.  Thanksgiving 2011 was the last time I'd made the trip to Colome, so it was nice to see the farm and the town again.

I helped Mom and Dad say goodbye to their fridge - an old family friend,

chased the turkey's off Mom and Dad's back porch,

went kayaking with my parents and brother on the mighty Sioux River (it was so mighty, we had to paddle just to make downstream progress),

and enjoyed a few South Dakota sunsets.

But, mostly I hung out with the cute little man and his Momma.

... And now there's two of them!  Hehe.  :)

Ladies Weekend in Austin

Back in mid-August a group of ladies from our company's Texas offices got together for the weekend in this crazy blue house on the lake in Austin.

You might remember this beauty from Week 33 - Random.  The rest of the house was equally random.

And most certainly NOT on the lake due to a severe drought in this part of the world.

 
We didn't let not being on the lake stop us from having a great weekend.  A few of us took a morning to enjoy Hamilton Pool, a spring-fed natural pool.  We were the second-to-last car they let in the for the day... 10 minuets after the park opened.

That afternoon, we met up with the rest of the group for wine tasting and dinner.

All-in-all it was a fun, relaxing weekend with some really amazing women.  I can't wait until next year!