And now a word from Mrs. Hassall

I thought I better update this. It's been a month and a half since we were married...and boy has it flown by! October was definitely a busy month with the wedding, reception, moving, and 6 birthdays to celebrate! I'm still trying to get my stuff organized in the house, but I figure it will eventually get done. I need to work on getting things organized in the kitchen, especially since the new range will be delivered soon! Yippy!!!!!

I'm still waiting for schools to add me to their substitute lists. I can't believe how long it's taking. I've had things submitted to 2 schools since the beginning of September, but one school lost my stuff, and I finally got all the paperwork submitted to the other school. I've also applied at two other schools, which I'll need to check in with next week after the holidays. I don't know why it's taking so long...it never took this long with the schools in the Ames/Des Moines area. I guess I'm just a little anxious to get in the schools...the days are getting a little boring at home. :)

Well, I guess I should do some stuff around here...like make the Pumpkin Maple-Pecan Cheesecakes for Thanksgiving tomorrow! :)

An End and a New Beginning

Today was my last day of work at the DOT's District 1 Office. I'm looking forward to the next stage in my life...getting married! 3 days from now I'll be Rosalyn Hassall. (Ok, here's a fun little comparison of my names. Berrett... consonant, vowel, two consonants that are the same, same vowel, two other consonants that are the same. Now looking at Hassall...same description! I know, just call me strange.)

I am so excited for Sunday to come and I can start my life with Alan. I love that man!

11 Days!

Yep, 11 days until our wedding day! I'm very excited!!!!!

Love you, Alan!

Less than 2 months!

The past month has gone by quickly. It's been busy with wedding planning. Hard to believe in less than 2 months, I'll be a married woman! October will be a busy month with a wedding, a wedding reception, 6 birthdays, moving, and applying for substitute teaching positions. And I can't wait!!!!!!

Here's a picture from our engagement session, taken by my very talented sister!

Greetings from Colorado!

Here's our first picture from our trip! Good job, Alan! :)

More Pictures from South Dakota

These are pictures that Alan took...that's why they're mostly of me. :)

From an observation deck at the Badlands.

See the shadow of the two people...that's us! :)

At the Crazy Horse Memorial.

Me, after "falling" across the room at The Cosmos.

At the Reptile Gardens.

Yep, Sourpuss Ros! This was also at the Reptile Gardens.

Bear Country U.S.A.

Alan and me with Devils Tower in the background.

Me at Devils Tower.

Thanks, Alan!

Trip to South Dakota

Over the Memorial Day weekend, Alan and I took a trip to South Dakota. It was my first time to South Dakota. We also made a trip to Devils Tower in Wyoming, which was also my first time to Wyoming. It was a great trip! I had a wonderful time, even if I did end up with a few boo-boos. :)

Here are some pictures...


Our first stop was the Corn Palace in Mitchell. I can now say I've been there, and I don't have to go there again. :)


Next we drove through the Badlands. Amazing!
After driving through the Badlands, we made a stop at Wall Drug (after all the signs, I was ready to see what the hype was about...in my opinion, it didn't live up to it).


Since Friday was spent driving, we really began sightseeing on Saturday. Our first stop was Crazy Horse.

Next was Mount Rushmore. We didn't actually go in until later that night, but I was able to get some good shots from the road. I didn't take any pictures that night because it began raining!

I had heard about The Cosmos on the Travel Channel awhile ago, and then my sister reminded me of it. So I had Alan stop there. Warning: If you are a bit clumsy, be careful!

This is what happens if you aren't careful!

A drive through Bear Country USA led to this picture of a bear relaxing before I grabbed Alan's video camera.

On Sunday we drove to Devils Tower. Aww...see Alan in the bottom of the picture? :)

One of our last sights was the Thunderhead Underground Falls. This, of course, is not underground. My pictures of the falls underground were not all that good because of the lack of light.

I loved our trip! Can't wait to go out West this summer!!!!! Any ideas on what to see in Colorado (or on the way there)? Let me know!

South Dakota Trip Ideas

Here's a map of possible sites to see!

http://www.batchgeo.com/map/1a10920391229f1b6361a915a9491d59

Summer Vacation

Here are some possible locations for our summer vacation. Now to narrow it down! :)

http://www.batchgeocode.com/map/ee3fd0b685d129304bac42a93e96ecae

Another Update

Well, I've been spending a lot of my free time with someone the last couple of months. And I'm not complaining! In fact, I LOVE IT!!!!! I'm just anxious for the weather to get nice so we can go on more road trips and do more things outside. Being cooped up inside watching movies with Alan is a great way to spend the winter months, though! :) And Bea loves it when he comes over, too. It's just too bad that we don't live closer. I would like to see Alan more during the week sometimes, but I can't complain too much since instead we talk on the phone. Who would've thought? Me...talking on the phone for more than just a quick conversation! I'm glad I have free nights that start at 7:00, free weekends, and free incoming minutes on my cell phone plan! Poor Alan had to change his plan when we started dating, but I don't think he minds. ;)

Well, now you know what I've been up to (or somewhat). :)

Update

Wow! It's been awhile since I've posted on here! Things have been going very well over the past couple of months. Labor Day weekend I met Alan.

I am so happy we met! He is such a nice, handsome, genuine guy. He knows how to make me feel special...something I haven't felt in a long time! This picture was taken just a couple days ago while we were at his parents' house. It was my first time meeting them. We got along very well! As they say, someone will come along when you least expect it! :)

Last night Bea was acting like a puppy (well, she still is young, but she was so playful!). She was chasing balls, running with her squeaky bone through the house, and then came the mirror. She has a ball that talks when you move it. She was playing with it, and it ended up in front of a mirror (I still have to hang that sucker!). I thought at first she was just barking at the "other" dog. Then I realized she was trying to get the ball, but every time she went after it, so did the "other" dog. That's when she would bark. It was just hilarious! I tried to take a video of it with my cell phone, but it was too dark inside the house.

Well, just a short little entry today! :)

100,000

A new milestone was reached this morning. My car reached 100,000 miles! I know, what an accomplishment! It only took 8 years and 4 months! So about 12,000 miles a year. Not too bad!

An Update

It's been awhile since I've posted on here. Not much has happened is why! :) It's finally spring, so Bea & I have been spending more time outside. I bought a 3-Piece patio set that I put together myself. The older ladies at the apartments were surprised that I could do it myself! lol

I also planted tomatoes, peppers and onions so I can make my own salsa this summer! The onions are growing well, but the others haven't grown much yet. Give them time, though.

For the past month or so I've been dealing with a dog with separation anxiety issues. Within the past week she has gotten better, though. I don't know what triggered it, but as of yesterday morning she was acting more like her normal self (waking me up in the morning and trying to get me out of bed by licking my face and arms). It's good to have her back to normal!

The picture that I've posted was taken by my sister...check her out at http://blog.imagingrox.com/. It's an awesome picture of me in my glasses with the dog. Below is a picture she took of Bea that same day...love it, too!

Amano Artisan Chocolate

In December I was a lucky winner from Blake Makes. What did I win? Amano Chocolate! Who wouldn't love to win chocolate????


Just look at that gold wrapper! I felt like Charlie Bucket..."Cause I've got a golden ticket. I've got a golden chance to make my way. And with a golden ticket, it's a golden day."

I received a 2 ounce bar of the Amano Jembrana chocolate. Jembrana is a handcrafted dark chocolate (70% is the minimum percentage of cocoa to be exact!). This chocolate is so god. I just let it sit and melt on my tongue, savoring it as it filled me with chocolaty goodness! And for those of you out there watching what you're eating, 1 square has only .44 Weight Watchers points! A nice treat to savor!


Thanks to Blake Makes and Amano Chocolate for allowing me to try this chocolate...it was a wonderful experience!

Here's The Mail!

I guess it's what I should expect from living in what used to be a retirement community. I received mail from Senior Care Services. First, it was addressed to "Resident" and I'm not a senior. I opened it anyway. The top reads "INCONTINENT SUPPLIES REQUEST FOR MEDICAID RECIPIENTS" and in the middle of the page there are pictures of Depend underwear and Poise pads. Um, nope, I don't need those! If you would like the request form, just let me know! :)

Happy New Year!

I won tickets to the Downtown Countdown at Embassy Suites in Des Moines, so I asked Sherrie if she'd like to go with me. We had a fun time listening to music and people watching. (Sorry about the picture quality...all I had was my cell phone.)

While in the bar, Doozie's, we saw Craig, who we work with.

This picture is what I looked like at the end of the night...definitely not as bad as all the people getting drunk!

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Possible Glasses

I went to the eye doctor yesterday. It had been about a year and a half since I went. I've noticed that it's been more difficult to read things farther away lately. He did the eye exam, and said that I have 20/25 to 20/30 vision. I've read that in order to pass the driving test, your vision has to be 20/40. The doctor did give me a prescription for glasses, although he said I should still be find without them, but they might be helpful when driving at night or when my eyes are acting up. Working on the computer and reading are fine without glasses. I asked about how much they would cost, and a pair would be about $130.00. Not too bad, but I'm going to wait for a while to get any. My eyes are fine otherwise, and like the doctor said, I don't need them for reading or working on the computer, and I can drive without any.

Fertile Soil

Well, come spring the soil in the flower bed around my place should be pretty fertile. It's the only place Bea will potty now with the snow! She'll walk on, lick, and eat the snow, but she won't potty on it! She had been using her puppy pad for a couple of days until last night when she finally went in the flower bed! YEAH! Now if she'd just poo outside! I took her for a long walk the other night when it was warmer, but she didn't want to go on the snow. Grrr...stubborn Dachshunds! :)

And on another note...STUPID DES MOINES REGISTER DELIVERY GUY!!!! This morning I was outside with Bea a little before 6:00. I try to make her stay quiet, and if she barks I tell her no. Well, she heard the delivery guy walking, and barked at him. I told her no, but then the delivery guy started barking back at her! I took her straight inside before he walked past my place. I've talked to him before when he's walked by, but the last time we saw him he started barking, too. It just gets Bea worked up, and I don't want to wake everyone else up! So I decided we'd just go inside until he left. What a MORON!

Ring the Bell!

I've been looking at buying a training tool for Bea that goes over the door knob to outside. When the dog needs to go out, she's supposed to ring the bells. Well, when I saw the price on them, I couldn't justify buying it (they want around $17.00 for one...and it's just a piece of ribbon with "Christmas" bells attached). So what do I do? I make my own of course!

Now according to the website, the bells they use are "special." WHATEVER! I bought a spool of ribbon, some snaps, some Christmas bells, and grabbed some extra key chains that were just sitting around. I set off to work and in just a few minutes I had one made up and ready to go! Bea hasn't been outside yet since I've finished it, so I'll try it with her when we go outside before bed. It will be awesome if she figures it out quickly!

Bang! Bang!

I've been shot!!!!! Ok, so maybe not in that sense. I went and got my flu shot today. Of course when I got dressed this morning I wasn't thinking about the flu shot...I was thinking about warmth. So when I tried to push up my sleeve, the stitching right at the wrist area wouldn't budge up much past my elbow. Luckily for me, the shirt I was wearing had a few buttons down the front, so I just slipped my shoulder out. Yep, there I was showing everyone skin! lol

Now that I've been shot, I know how John feels. He was shot yesterday. I hope the crumminess won't last too long! I was getting a little warm right after the shot, but that's gotten better. I just have a case of the blahs now. At least I have something to think about that I'm looking forward to that will keep my mind busy! It's gonna be a great day on Saturday! :D