Musicfest highlights...

So, there's a little music festival every January here in Steamboat Springs called Musicfest featuring Texas country artists. My brother first told us about it in late 2010, but it had already sold out for last year as it apparently always sells out rather quickly. We were ready though when reservations opened up for this year, and we were all excited to check it out. It turned out to be a great value and offered something extra to enjoy beyond just the usual skiing on these trips. We caught some great shows by folks that we probably wouldn't have seen otherwise, despite the fact that many of them play in Austin on a regular basis. The crowd was undoubtedly a Southern crowd looking to have a good time-lots of cowboy hat and boot wearing, beer drinking fools. Like Shooter Jennings said last night, it's like being in Texas vicariously through Colorado. Here's some highlights via pictures:

Kevin Fowler acoustic show

Cody Johnson joined Kevin Fowler for a few songs

Charlie and Bruce Robison

The crowd went wild when Shooter Jennings joined the Robisons

Acoustic Jack Ingram

Shooter Jennings rockin' out

Jack Ingram and band played an afternoon outdoor show at the base of the ski area

Success on the mountain!

What a difference a year makes (remember this?)!

We flew into Denver yesterday afternoon and met my brother and his girlfriend at the airport then headed toward the mountains. We hadn't made the drive to Steamboat before, so we were a little uncertain about what to expect. Thankfully, the road conditions were good and the route K chose was the least scary option (taking the pass up to Winter Park wasn't even an option without some Xanax!). But, it was still a long drive and we pulled into town just before 9pm.

Everyone else headed over to pick-up their equipment rentals bright and early this morning, while I was able to catch a few extra zzz's since I have my own gear. We hit the slopes a short while later, and I was definitely unsure of how things were going to go especially given our last outing a year ago. But, I definitely wasn't in freak-out mode, so I think I had a better handle on my anxiety this time. We started off on a short "preview" run, and I knew pretty much instantly that my ankle was okay. Whew! With that out of the way, we headed further up the mountain, but still hanging mostly on the green runs to get started with a few blues thrown in. I definitely felt that my ankle was stronger this year and I had better control of it. For the most part, I would say that I was nearly back to my pre-fracture ski level (which was never really great technique anyway). But, I was definitely not going to push it today, especially since we're here skiing for four days. So, I packed it in after lunch, since I know that I'm always more tired anyway after lunch and more prone to make a mistake.

While the others enjoyed some afternoon skiing, I checked out a few of the early acts playing for MusicFest in different venues around the resort. Later we grabbed dinner downtown then tried to head up the gondola to see one of the nighttime shows on the mountain, but the venue was maxed out. So, we ended up ducking into a few shows here and there and heard some good music. And, we get to do it all over again tomorrow...and the next day...and the next day.

Goals for 2012...

Let's not call them resolutions. I like "goals" better. As a psychologist, I know all about the importance of goal-setting, so I will take the opportunity of January 1 to set some goals for the upcoming year and put them out there for greater accountability.

1. Say "no" more often in my professional life (at least for the foreseeable future).
2. Say "yes" more often in my personal life.

Let me stop here and explain. I have been working waaaay too much in the past 4 months or so. While it's great that my practice has taken off so well, I am working far more than I want to be working, especially considering how it has negatively impacted other areas of our lives (see goal #2).

3. Nourish relationships with others - old and new.
4. Visit at least 3 new countries.
5. Run trail again. Run a trail race (doesn't have to be big distance).
6. Get to the start line of the New York marathon healthy and well-trained in November (provided that my ankle can handle the distance). I have a guaranteed entry this year, so this will probably be my only shot to run it.
7. Train with a group again.
8. Fit into my size small running shorts.
9. Get some of my house projects completed (paint the front door and window shutters, take better care of our front flower garden, get all of our pictures framed and hung, finish "unpacking" the garage).
10. Have a party in our "new" home.
11. Share more-email, call, blog, etc.
12. Procrastinate less (mainly with writing psych reports).
13. Organize our photos. Finish the photo book from our Europe trip last summer.
14. Learn how to use our "nice" camera and take better pictures.

I like KJ's idea of choosing a word for the new year. "Reconnect" is mine...reconnecting with my social side and OCD-cleaning style, trail running, training with a purpose, and balancing everything better.

Welcoming in 2012...

We welcomed in 2012 in Dallas this year. It was a far cry from our London adventure last NYE, but the familiarity of home was nice in its own way.

We drove up to Dallas on Friday afternoon in time for a nice dinner at Victory Tavern before the Mavericks vs. Raptors game at American Airlines Center. The game itself was pretty underwhelming for what you'd expect from the NBA champs, but it was still fun (and, yes, Khloe K. was in attendance).

The new championship banner

On Saturday, we had lunch with my mom, aunt, and cousin. It was great to spend time with family.

We started out the evening at Highland Park Theatre for an intimate Jackopierce concert. Those boys are one of my few ties to the culture of SMU and tolerating the fan base is always a challenge for me. As K observed, it was "trophy wife central" from 15+ years ago.

We watched the ball drop in NY then made a quick dash over to Beauty Bar in the Knox-Henderson area for midnight.

We had lunch today with great old friends from my Dallas days. It had been too long! It was wonderful to catch up on everyone's lives and enjoy the familiarity and comfort of old friends. K even observed that there's obviously a lot of history between us.

2011 in review...

2011 was very good to us, so it's somewhat bittersweet to see the year end and welcome in a new year filled with possibilities.

Since I clearly haven't posted much this year, here's our holiday card for 2011 for a year in review:

It's been another great year for K & m that found us enjoying more travels around the country and the world. We started the year off with a big bang in London! We then had a few visits to Ohio in the Spring for weddings of Kurt's childhood friends. We were also excited to welcome Melissa's brother to Austin in March for South by Southwest, a popular musical festival. In April, we enjoyed a getaway to one of our favorite locales in California to run the Big Sur Marathon Relay with a friend. We headed off to another favorite destination, Colorado, for Memorial Day where Kurt got his first taste of Pikes Peak and decided he was up for the challenge of running it in August. We had an enjoyable day of rafting on the Royal Gorge while there, even though Kurt nearly took a spill into the chilly waters after hitting the rocks on the aptly named rapid, Wallslammer. We headed back to Ohio in June for a vacation with Kurt's family in Hocking Hills. Then, we took another grand summer vacation to Europe where we visited 7 cities in 4 countries over the course of two weeks. While there, we watched the final three stages of the Tour de France since Melissa got hooked when we went last summer. After a few weeks of getting settled back in at home, we took off for Colorado again so that Kurt could run up Pikes Peak, certainly one of the more challenging things he has done. While there, we were lucky enough to see another professional bike race, which Melissa enjoyed. Shortly after that, we went to visit Melissa's dad in southern Florida where he recently moved and celebrated our third anniversary together. We just returned from a holiday trip to Barcelona and are getting ready for a pre-birthday trip to Seattle.

It's not all play and no work though! Kurt has taken on more responsibilities in his position at AMD, and Melissa's practice has continued to grow in her second year of independent private practice. We're still getting settled into our new house, even though it doesn't feel quite so "new" anymore after moving in last year.

Melissa has slowly made a comeback to running after breaking her ankle last year. It's been tough for her at times, but being active together remains an important foundation of our relationship. We're looking forward to running a half marathon together in Houston in January. There might also be a triathlon in Kurt's future, as he has recently added swimming and cycling to his repertoire.

We are already busy planning our travels for next year. Wherever the road may take us, we are excited to approach it together. And, if the road ever finds you in Austin, then please let us know as we'd love to see you!