It seems like only yesterday ....

So, my birthday was yesterday ... yes, I am now 28! I know it doesn't sound old, but it seems like just yesterday I was 21-22 and enjoying all the perks of college at WKU. We would stay out late at night and waste the weekends away (out of bball season, of course). Now, it is all I can do to stay up past 10:30 pm and I find myself doing chores on the weekends (cleaning, yard work, errands, etc). I have officially hit adulthood!

My birthday weekend was fun. Not too crazy, but it was enjoyable. Eric's mom, Eva, came to visit so I was able to spend some time with her. I took her for her first mani/pedi and got her make-up done professionally. I think that she had a great time and we were glad to have her come visit. It was the first time we have had anyone come stay at the new house! I also got a few phone calls from family wishing me happy birthday ... I think that they award for the cutest message goes to my nephew, Eli. I am going to save that one for awhile!

I will be heading to IL this weekend for this first time since June. Eric will not be able to go with me because of work, but John and I will be heading back to BN on Thursday night. I am looking forward to a nice weekend at home in IL with my family! It should be fun ... I just wish Eric could go :( I know that he needs to make these weekends count as Fall has now arrived and there is no telling how long the weather will cooperate.

Happy Friday!

It is pretty quiet here today. Many of the coaches are out of the office and I have been able to get a great deal of work done already today. I feel like I have caught up and got ahead on several things, which is a great feeling!

Eric's mom, Eva, will be coming to visit this evening. She is going to be staying for the weekend. She is our 1st official overnight visitor in the new house. I have threatened John that he MUST clean his bathroom -- toilet and all (you are WELCOME Eva!) He said he would get it done so we will see ;)

No big plans for the weekend. We will be hanging out with Eva and then probably head to the FB game on Saturday night. Not sure what else the weekend will hold, but it is sure to be fun. I will make sure to update you!

Wet Tuesday!

Man, is it pouring here!!! We have not really had a "storm" in a few months so this rain is definitely needed. Hopefully we can get some green grass again and it will stay cooler like last week. We are back up in the high 80s, low 90s, so I am ready for it to get cool and stay cool.

Not too much going on in the world of the Capps'. We are anticipating the arrival of Eric's mom on Friday night. She will be here for the weekend to help celebrate my birthday :) Eric already got me my gift ... a rocking chair for the front porch! I think that we have the perfect porch for rocking chairs. We will add to the collection ... probably another single and then a double rocker as well.

Basketball season is just around the corner (kicks off on Oct. 12th). We already have lots of reservations for the weekend of "Late Night." It will be a fun (and busy) weekend as there is always lots going on. We are finally getting people to come visit us so we are excited.

I've Got Mail!

Alright ... this post is mainly for Bumpy! I got home yesterday and found a large envelope on the counter from KU. It was my diploma for my master's degree. I thought dad would enjoy seeing it as they won't see me for a few more weeks ... here ya go!

TGIF!!

It's Friday! It has been a great day ... nothing really has happened, but it is Friday, which means no work tomorrow and it is chilly out here today, which means Fall is just around the corner. I love the fall months!

I guess today is also a great day because our friend, McKenzie Rave, turns 21! She will be celebrating with her friends and family tonight (after class & work). She is bound and determined to get in 21 shots, but I don't see that happening. I can only imagine if it did ;(

Anyway, Eric (John) and I are continuing to settle into the new house. We got all the water softener stuff straightened out and our fence is up. Huey was let loose in the yard for the first time this morning to check it out and it looked like a horse racing around the track. He just took off around the perimeter like he was chasing a rabbit. He would come to a "gallop" every once in awhile, but for the most part he just ran. There are lots of sticks out there from the older trees so he has enjoyed "eating" them all....guess he is getting his fiber!

Not much going on this weekend ... we will celebrate with the Rave's tonight and then go to the football game tomorrow and then enjoy the calmness that Sundays usually bring (when there is nothing going on).

Here is a recent picture of Eric and I. It is our "family" shot for the media guide this year. Dogs were banned from the pics (they got hair in the studio last year) so Huey did not make it :(

OK, last thing. No one ever leaves comments on here, so I am trying to figure out if anyone ever looks at this thing?? You can comment at the bottom of each post .... you don't have to sign up or anything ... just post a response ... you'll show up anonymously :) You don't have to comment, I would just like to get an idea if anyone reads!

Thinking of you, Wayne!

Many of you were privileged to know Eric's dad, Wayne Capps. As we all know, we lost him much too soon and he is missed very much. Not a day goes by without a thought of him and today we celebrate his should-have-been 57th birthday.

Please make sure to say a prayer....both for Wayne and for the family he left behind. Wayne, we know you are watching over us now and we miss you very much! Happy Birthday ....

Cairns, Australia

Ok, so it has been nearly a month and I have yet to make the last entry regarding my trip to Australia ... sorry :) So, here goes the last of 3 entries regarding my AWESOME trip!

We left Brisbane and flew farther up the coast to the small town of Cairns (pronounced CANS). We landed at the airport and immediately loaded the charted bus and headed to A.J. Hackett Bungee! We went deep into the rain forest to get to this place. It was very cool and we were surprised at how warm it had gotten (considering it was winter). So we get to Hackett's and everyone is in awe at the view and the surroundings of the area. It is beautiful!

I will say that I am not a fan of high places, but I would not consider myself scared of heights. I have never jumped before and I probably would not have done it anywhere but Australia. Myself and a few other brave soles from the staff signed our lives away and headed up the tower to the top where we would jump! The players were not allowed to jump b/c our KU administration feared someone would get injured ... you think ?!? So, most of the players (and Bonnie, our head coach) opted for the Minjin Swing. It was neat ... 2-3 people could go at one time. You are strapped in and basically lay down and get pulled to the top of the trees and then just swing like Superman. So, they enjoyed that and then really loved watching us all scream like girls. I was one of the last to go ... not a great thing for the confidence, but I could get some pointers from watching the others go. When it finally became my turn, they called me over and strapped me in to a safety harness. Now, this harness went around our stomach and rear end. I thought this would keep me safe should the ankles straps break, so I had that sucker as tight as it would go. Probably too tight looking at some of the pictures ;( I get to the seat where they start strapping you in and these guys are going through all of the directions. Basically, they strap you in by your ankles ... you penguin walk out to the plank ... smile for the camera and swan dive 160 ft into the lagoon below. So, I have watched the others go and I get ready to go our to the end of the plank. Just as I get out there, I feel something loosen around my ankles. I look back to the guy and tell him and he proceeds to tell me that it was my backup strap and that I will be fine so just go. Uh, hello? I need all the backup I can get. So, I waddle my way back in and tell him to fix it!!!

KT swinging in the clouds!

He does and I proceed to try again. This time all works fine and I dive quickly as I know that if I wait I will start to freak out because of the height. I can honestly say that it was the biggest high dive ever! I hit the water and got dunked about to my hips and then came flying back up. It was a rush and I am so glad that I did it!

Once everyone had bungeed or minjined, we headed back to the hotel. It was beautiful and very unexpected in this tiny little town. I was pooped ... so I took a shower and fell asleep. I woke in time for dinner and had a meal of kangaroo (tastes like steak), crocodile (tastes like chicken) and barimundo (fish). It was very good! We hit the bed early that night as Monday was going to be a big day!

We got up early on Monday so that we could get a good breakfast before boarding the bus to Port Douglas. We traveled about an hour from Cairns to Port Douglas where we boarded the Quicksilver Wavepiercer. This boat took us 90 mins out into the ocean and we landed at the Great Barrier Reef. I can tell you that it doesn't look like much from the boat. But Quicksilver is a company that specializes in tours of the Reef so upon arrival, the boat docked against a platform and we were able to spend the day there on the water. The first thing we all did was get our snorkel and fins on and head to the edge of the platform. I put my face in the water and lost my breath ... one because the water was a tad bit cold and two because the underwater was gorgeous! We were able to snorkel for nearly four hours out at the Reef and enjoy the day. The fish and the coral were amazing! Later in the afternoon we headed back to Port and called it a day. We were all very tired from the water and the sun. Overall, it was a great day ;)

Can't see much of the Reef from the surface!

Tuesday was our last full day in Australia. We had the day free and we were able to do last minute shopping and just enjoy the area. Cairns does not have much to do ... other than the Reef and Hackett's so I ended up at the hotel pool and finished my book. I got a great tan that day too :) That evening we all met up so that we could play our last game of the tour. We won easily.

On Wednesday, we had 2:3o am wake-up calls and were out of the hotel by 3:00 am. We headed home to the states and it was a LONG trip! We traveled from Cairns to Sydney (2 hour flight), Sydney to Los Angeles (13 hours), LAX to Dallas (1.5 hours) and then Dallas to KC (2 hours). We left Cairns at 3 am on Wednesday and arrived into Lawrence at 7 pm Wednesday night ... we lost an entire day in there because of the int'l dateline so needless to say, it was a long trip. It was an amazing experience though ... and I am so thankful that I got to go. I am looking forward to our next trip ... four years from now .... Italy has come up a few times in talk :)

As they say in Australia ... No Worries!

You're Invited!

Ok, if I talk to one more family member or friend about visiting our home out here in Kansas and they respond, "We haven't been invited," I am going to scream! For the last time ... we have an OPEN invitation at our home :) No need to wait for us to call and BEG (some of you) to come visit ... JUST COME! We love having people for the weekend (or however long) and can't wait for you all to come see our new house. Granted, it is a little empty, but we have lots more room!

Eric and I are starting to boycott those who have not been out (within the last year). If you don't come see us, we are not coming to see you! You know who you are ;)

So, in conclusion, no need to wait for an invitation ... just call and let us know when you want to come out. Most everyone knows that my schedule is hectic (especially during bball season), but we will make it work. All we ask is for 24 hours notice (especially at New Years!)

Happy Wednesday!

Year #2

Tomorrow will make our second wedding anniversary .. crazy, huh? It seems like yesterday that we were all in Bloomington getting ready for the Big Day. I loved our wedding and would do it all over again if Eric would let me spend the $$ :) I have often told him that if I make a career change, I am going to go into event planning. I love doing things like that ... especially weddings as they are always very sentimental.

Anyway, we don't have any big plans for tomorrow. We are going to have a low-key day at home and then head into KC for dinner. We got a "gift" for one another already ... it arrived yesterday afternoon. We got a king-size bed!! It is great and we joked when it was delivered that it has only taken two years for us to need a bigger bed so that we don't have to touch when we sleep (Bumpy will like that :) We were able to move our bed upstairs so we have a bed once again for guests (come one, come all!)

I will end by saying that I am a very lucky girl! I have a GREAT husband who loves me very much and would do anything in the world for me! We have had a wonderful two years of marriage and I am so looking forward to what God has in store for our future. I can honestly say that I married my best friend and I am blessed that he has put up with me for these past few years.