AFA

My parents have been season ticketholders to AFA games since I was 11 years old. It is how we spent every fall Saturday...either at the Academy or traveling with the team. It is where my Dad taught us the game.

Me and my Mom...23 years after we began tailgating at AFA games


Nik is married to an AFA grad, and now have the same tradition as we did as kids. Her boys love the games, and they tailgate in the same spot as my parents. Bri and I went down for last nights game and had a great time. It was cool to see the same tradition of fun being passed onto the kids.

I also had to smile that the Mulloys are now part of Nik's regular tailgating crew. Brian came into our lives as a 18 yrs old freshman cadet at the AFA. He fell in love with our favorite other cadet, Julie....they are now parents to 3 and live down the street from Nik. Let's also not forget Nik and I both believe that Julie is one of the funniest people to ever walk the face of earth.

Julie and 4 mo old Connor...who Coop suggested I adopt since Brian and Julie "have two more at home!"





I loves sharing the "AFA Experience" with Brian and can't wait til we can start driving down with our kids for games!

Out of Pocket

So, I don't think this post can do the actual conversation any justice, but I Am going to give it a shot.

Let me set the scene...Jack is my adorable 9 yr old nephew. In Jack's world, making him talk on the phone is the equivalent of torture. If you force him, he will get on the phone, mumble and speak barely audible words. When are you with him and see him talking to Grandma (who still forces him to perform this unspeakable act), he is pouting, shoulder tiled inwards and he looks like he is in physical pain.

So with that said, here is what happened yesterday ....I was calling my sister on her cell phone and quite surprised when Jack answered..

Jack: Hi Auntie B

Me: Hi Buddy, what are you guys doing (assuming Nik is busy and has asked him to answer the phone for her)

Jack: I just got home from the dentist

Me: Really? How was that?

Jack: Awful. Really, really bad.

Me (smiling at the drama in his voice): Why?

Jack: Well, you know those two teeth that are close together?

Me (having no clue what he is talking about): Yes, I know those teeth

Jack: Well, noone told my mom to tell me to floss, so now I have two cavities.

Me: Oh, that is bad news. Don't worry about it though, it won't hurt to fix.

Jack: Well, I know that, but the really bad news is that there it is going to cost $165 out of pocket!

Me (trying to stifle the laugh at the co-pay talk. Does he even know what that is): Really? That is a lot of money.

Jack: And than, guess what else? You know that white thing on Cooper's gum? It grew back and that is $122 out of pocket!"

Me: (Full blown belly laughing) It's a good thing your mommy and daddy work so hard to pay the bills. You need to start flossing.

Jack: I know, I know. Want to talk to my mom?

When he hands off the phone to Nik, she is surprised to hear me on the other end. Turns out she had no clue he answered her phone. I re tell her the story of our talk and she laughs hysterically. Apparently she was telling my mom the story in the car ride home and Jack was listening.

So to all you parents out there, taking about out of pocket expenses and other juicy things, those little ones are listening!

For Hire

BDews are for hire....babysitting, that is.

The requirements are as follows:

1. Your child must be happy, no crying aloud
2. Your child must love me more than Brian (We are one for one in this category..I have Emma Wennberg's vote but Elliotte thought Bri was funnier than me!)
3. Your child must make me laugh

If your child falls into the above categories, and you pay $50/hour. We are in!

A Good Egg

I married a good egg. Kind, thoughtful, generous, loyal and loving. Never before have I been so loved. Never before have I ever felt so secure and safe in a relationship.

Trying to have a baby has been a stress. Even the strongest of marriages don't go unscathed.We've had our rough patches but we always quickly bounce back, a trait that we are both thankful for.


The last 5 month break from TTC has been great for us. It's given us perspective, it's given us time to re-evaluate. We have relaxed, we have had fun. It has given us hope again.


We are getting very close to next steps, and have a well laid plan. But this well laid plan involves another medical procedure, which means my body is going to put through the ringer again. I am getting more anxious about it.

Being the good friend and husband he is, he came to me last night to ask if I wanted to change our game plan. Did I want to go straight to adoption? He explained he realizes what a toll it takes on me and his priority is "us" first, baby second. He wants a baby that is from us, but what he wants more is a happy and healthy wife.

As a wife, I so appreciated the gesture. It will always be "us" first, and I love him for that. Because, without "us", there would be no want for a baby. That said, for "us" I am willing to move forward, I am willing to take the risk of disappointment and heartache...this one last time.

And, if it doesn't work I know we will get through the pain. I know we will recover...we've done it before and together, we can do it again. And if things don't go the way we plan, I will accept the fact that HE has all along had a different plan and HE was just waiting for us to figure it out and be ready.

I love you very much, Babycakes!

You never know ...

So on Monday I was on the receiving end of a sad email and phone call...both revolving around miscarriage and failed IVF attempts. The news is so devastating, I know how it is to not to know how to deal with the disappointment and grief. I know exactly how these two women feel.

As soon as I was off the phone, I declared " I don't even want to do it again!"....just the thought of all of those feelings being stirred up again was enough to make me throw in the towel before we even really began.

As I walked into the kitchen I saw an envelope with the return address of someone in our new member's class at Greenwood Community Church (The BDews become official members this weekend!). In it, was the most thoughtful letter I've ever received. It was from a woman who went out of her way to let me know how much she was touched by our story. How our story affected her and the post partum depression she is suffering from-----which kinda surprised me because how could this beautiful woman, with the cute husband and adorable baby have any problems? She went on to say she was humbled by our story and it put some perspective back into her life. How cool is that?

So, I guess you never know how you affect other people. I was just telling my sob story and had no clue it would affect someone else enough to write a 1 page letter of thanks, prayer and support.

It felt good to the soul.

Glenwood Springs, CO

Our day and night away in Glenwood was even better than I imagined.

We arrived in Glenwood Springs around noon, checked into our cool hotel and grabbed some lunch at the local brewery. We decided to take a quick ride up the gondola, a first for Lisa. It was turned out to be a great decision because at the top not only was there a beautiful view, but also a lot of fun things to do (like drink a tasty Coors Light to try to build the courage up to ride the steep alpine slide!)

After our mountain adventure we headed back to do some soaking in the Springs.

That night we headed out for a night on the town and had a wonderful dinner full of good laughs.

I am very thankful to The Hartford for bringing me such a great friend in Mrs Cecchini...I can't imagine my life without her! And, I suppose it doesn't hurt our hubbies really enjoy one another too!!!

On Sunday we sadly headed home...but not after a stop at the Outlet Malls...thank goodness we didn't go away for more than one night- we were packed to the gills!

The weather was great, the fall trees were beautiful- I can't tell you how many times we all declared "We are never leaving Colorado!". So, thanks Glenwood Springs for giving us such a great weekend of friendship and fun! I sure do appreciate it!

What are we doing this weekend?

Thanks for asking, we are taking advantage of Colorado living, that's what we're doing!

We just so happen to have amazing weekend plans with these people:

We are heading here:
Staying here:
And visiting these Hot Springs, among other things:

Should be a great weekend...a nice get away with hubby and good friends!

Born in the Heart

Those of us who struggle with infertility often wonder "How many more times can I do this?", and that answer is definitely different for everyone. And, once you've decided that that answer is, you have another tough decision.....than what?

For some, they stop trying, for some they move onto donor eggs, and for some adoption.

Adoption has always been on my mind, I've always loved the idea for as long as I can remember. I have always been perfectly ok with taking the adoption route, but for Brian it has been a bit harder to stomach the fact that we may not be able to have our own genetic baby. He always seemed to wrestle with it a bit more than I did.

Around the time that the adoption talks really began in the BDew house, our good friends Andy & Anita were approved to adopt from an agency in Castle Rock. Three weeks after their approval, and much to their shock & excitement, a gorgeous baby girl was placed in their home.

Brian and I have really enjoyed watching their family grow...albeit literally overnight. It has been amazing to see how their lives have changed by this one sweet little girl. We were all together on the 4th of July, and after they left Brian said "I could do it. I could adopt. Elliotte belongs to them, no matter what! Andy is so happy. I want that!"

So, Miss Elliotte, not only did your change your Mommy & Daddy's life, you also confirmed to The BDews that a family can be created in more ways than one. It was a pretty cool gift you gave us.

We were super excited to celebrate Elliotte's official adoption day (10.8.10) with a great dinner at Miyama! We got her a cute little Snow Globe with "Now I lay me down to sleep..." prayer on it and had the date engraved on it.

Here's to families that are born of the heart!

Today is a good day in the world!

...cause it marks the birthdays of two of my favorite people.....

Dad- Happy Birthday. I love you so very much. You continue to fight the good fight and I admire you so much for that.

And to Ella, Happy 2nd Birthday! We miss you and wish we could be there to help celebrate!

Zachey Poo Dew

I love all my dogs for different reasons, but there is something special about a rescue dog. They know how bad it can be, so they really appreciate how good they have it, which is the case for Zach aka Zachey Poo Dew.

Sadie, Bobbie & Deacs have been handed the world on a silver platter, and while they would die for me, they don't "get it" like our sweet Zachey does.

I adopted him when he was 2 ( or so we guess). He had a large open gaping wound on his chest and the white of his fur was stained yellow from dirt and urine. Anytime I picked up a broom or shovel, he would immediately fall to the ground in fear. After I adopted him, he became a total wild man with no manners. I distinctly remember having a bit of buyers remorse. But, I committed to him and commit I did. I got up 20 min earlier every day so I could wrestle him into a crate. I patiently stood in the yard while he jumped and jumped and jumped on me with his talon nails running down my back and waited until he was calm. I didn't' freak out when he ate all of my cookbooks. After 6 months, he woke up one day and had reigned in his wildness.

Zach is so sweet and special. He has tons of medical issues, but I absolutely adore him.

Last night I was sitting on the ground with Deacon and Zach decided that it was he who should be on the receiving end of my affection and sat square in my lap. Bri and I are always worried about his health and quirky behavior, so it was nice to see him act like a regular lap dog...even if my legs went numb.

.

Fall Drive

I love Fall. I love taking drives to see the changing leaves. This is how a conversation went when Brian and I first started dating...

Me: "I love Fall. We need to take a drive up to the mountains"

Him: "Have you been to Mt Evans? Want to go?"

Me (totally joking): "Not if this is the place where you take all your girls."

Him (in total seriousness): "Ok, I will think of someplace else!"

Turns out Mt Evans was romantic spot for a few of him and his past lady friends, and almost 4 years later we finally made the drive ourselves. It was gorgeous.I highly recomend a drive, and dont forget to pack a picnic lunch!