Zach proposed over the weekend!! We went to Galveston for the weekend and he proposed while walking along the beach on Saturday morning. He got down on his knee and pulled out the most beautiful ring I've ever seen! We're both very excited and looking forward to what lies ahead!
We took some family photos a few weeks ago in the park near our house. The wildflowers were too pretty to pass up! 
Wow, well I truly can't believe that it's been 10 years since I've left Aggieland! We had our 10 year reunion a couple of weekends ago so Zach and I traveled to College Station for the day and met up with Laurie and Kevin to celebrate. It turns out that only around 100 other classmates showed up out of our class of nearly 9,000! It's surprising to me that more people were not there. The planned activities for the day were a BBQ and baseball game but it was extremely windy and cold so we left the game early and decided to walk around campus and reminisce instead. The town, campus, and students seem to have changed quite a bit since we've left. I couldn't help but think about my Grandpa while we were walking around campus...I can see a difference in the 10 years I've been gone, can you imagine how much it's changed since he was a student?? His dorm was demolished while we were students leaving only an empty field. Now 10 years later a brand new shiny athletic building sits in its place, wiping out any sign that anything else ever stood there. Time most definitely marches on!
Here's some pictures from our walk around campus:
Laurie and I with the 12th Man statue in front of Kyle Field.
View of Kyle Field from Olsen Field
The Century Tree - this was one of the first trees planted on our campus and it's the site of countless marriage proposals. 
Students leave pennies on the statue of Sul Ross hoping for good luck on exams. I can remember leaving a lot more than just a penny!
I've neglected the flowerbeds all winter, but you would never know because flowers are blooming left and right! The first bloom of the season appeared last week on our rosebush and so far 12 of our cannas from last summer are popping up again. Spring is an amazing and beautiful time of the year!!
Some friends of ours recommended a great place for Katie to visit when Katherine and I make short out of town excursions. I guess we could let Katie stay there for longer out of town trips, but Katie prefers to go to Grandma and Grandpa Ulrich's house in that case. Anyway, DogBoy's Ranch is the place to go if you are looking for a great place for your pup to stay while you are away. This place is not your standard "kennel". They've got really nice dog runs, part of which are inside and part outside. But the coolest thing about DogBoy's is that they dont really stay in the dog run except at night! They have a 15 acre spread with about 20 different fenced off play areas for the dogs to play in during the day. They evaluate each dog and keep pooches with similar temperaments and energy levels together. They had no problem with Katie's newfound special needs (insulin injections) and other meds. They also take the dogs out for hikes during the day! We could tell that every employee at the ranch truly cares about dogs. Rebbecca took care of Katie for us on one of the days and we noticed she had a tattoo of puppy paws around her wrist! It's obvious they only hire real dog lovers out there!
What happened to the "Dell dude"? Katherine and I recently purchased new computers. It's weird. We live in Round Rock Texas, the HQ of Dell,Inc. Michael Dell himself offices here (sometimes), yet when we ordered our computers I'm sure they were shipped from somewhere overseas. When we call Dell, we talk to somebody who claims to be called "Kenny" but I'll bet he lives closer to Bangalore than Round Rock. Oh well. Our computers are cool. We love 'em. They are dressed and ready for Christmas! (not intentional, I promise) Katherine's is newer than mine and looks a lot more modern, but they are only about 6 months apart! Geez...we're pretty nerdy to blog about our new computers!
Katie has not been feeling well as of late. We noticed a few major symptoms a couple of weeks ago. She was drinking LOTS of water. Like a whole bowl at a time. That led to her having an issue controlling her bladder which is no fun for anyone! And finally, we noticed she was just not acting herself...a little lethargic. So, we took her to see the Doc at Forest Creek Animal Vet Clinic. He evaluated her, poked, prodded, tested her blood and pee and about 500 bones later (no pun intended!), we went home with some antibiotics, a box of syringes and a bottle of insulin. Yup. Miss Katie Marie is a diabetic dog. It's crazy to even write the words "diabetic dog"! But, it apparently can happen and is not uncommon. She takes her two daily insulin shots like a Champ. We are in the process of several follow up visits to make sure her glucose curves are in check. The good news is, once we get her on the right dosage, the old Katie should be back and she'll be able to live a normal happy life.
No long story here. A picture is worth 1000 words. Below are some of the great recipes we've made in the new Vita-mix.
If you are a Texan, you don't need me to tell you that this is fresh Salsa. This one is Katherine's creation. Tomatoes, candied jalapenos, garlic, cilantro, fresh lemon juice, red onions and salt. Delish.
I love this stuff. You are looking at a bowl of freshly ground Almond butter. Yup, just a few minutes prior, those were whole raw almonds. So creamy and fresh. The bread came from a great bakery in Marble Falls called Brothers Bakery. An old high school buddy of mine is the chef and proprietor. 
The "Green Smoothie". Spinach, Soy Milk, Pineapple, Grapes and Ice. It tastes incredible. You don't taste the spinach, it's just yummy, creamy, and fruity!
Yeah, I know...this one has already been blogged about down below. But, this is a post about all the great things we've made so I had to include it.
Zach and I were tourists in our own hometown today. We decided to start the day by checking out the "Artisan Stroll" in downtown Round Rock. We found out it was not quite a stroll down Main street like we had anticipated, but more like 10-15 tents set up in the park for the local artists. We were not disappointed though, and we'll go back the next time they're here. The "stroll" is the 2nd Sunday of every month. Next we headed next door to grab a burger at Junior's, a local bar & restaurant. We drive by the place all of the time, but we've never bothered stopping in. But I'm glad we finally did! This place is like a "Cheers" for the locals of Round Rock! We're planning on going back this Thursday to check out some live music. 
This is a gas station down the street from our house. With these prices, I think it's time for a road trip!!
We took Katie to the park and got some photos of her modeling her Halloween outfit. 
So we found ourselves alone and unsupervised in a classroom on the campus of UT. I turned around and in those few seconds, Katherine had found a way to leave her mark! The funny part of this is that this was taken a couple of days before the Fall semester started; Imagine the look on kids faces when they walked into class!
You gotta see our newest kitchen addition! Ever heard of a Vitamix? You've probably seen one at your local smoothie or coffee shop. It's incredible. So far we've cooked soup in it, made a delectable strawberry frozen dessert (see pics!), smoothies galore, and all natural, fresh, homemade almond butter! We love this thing.
Geez...look at all the nutrition just waiting for our tummies!
According to a study at the University of Toronto, this machine actually breaks open the cell walls (with the help of it's 2HP motor) to deliver "maximum nutrition" from the fruits and vegetables we put in it! I know, I sound like that obnoxiously loud TV infomercial guy, but we are really excited about the Vitamix. It actually does have a really great reputation for making healthy, great tasting smoothies, soups and all kinds of other stuff from whole foods. Stay tuned for upcoming posts about "Green Smoothies!"
In the mean time, check this out...made from frozen strawberries and Soy Milk! So creamy and delicious!
