happy birthday, daddio!

my mom found this old letter in a box under a bed some time ago and emailed it to me. it's a letter i had written to my dad while he was on cruise one year with the navy. it is dated august 12, 1995. i was 14. it's amazing that 13 years has gone by. in the blink of an eye...

now don't get me wrong, he hasn't been the easiest person to have as a father. call sign "sarge". as in Sargent. as in don't mess with me and wear ear plugs. my childhood friends still joke about the intensity in the kiggins house growing up. i mean, who plays revelry at 6 am to get everyone up to go to six flags magic mountain?! "line up, hogs!", the great tontini (in honor of one of his favorites, "the great santini"), why yes, i fly, falling asleep to the star spangled banner, and of course, the 'top gun' soundtrack playing all the way back from base are just some of the fond memories of growing up.

all military set aside, he was also known as the craziest dad around. i can remember a field trip in middle school that he participated in as a chaperon. everyone wanted to sit next to him and watch his magic card tricks. all the neighborhood kids would come running over so that they could have a turn being swung by their ankles. he let us jump off the patio roof, promising not to let us fall. he taught me and my brothers how to shoot a gun before we could drive.

now that i'm older, i appreciate all the wisdom he embarked on me as a child. even though i didn't want to answer "what did you learn today that you didn't know yesterday?" for the 80 billionth time. he has taught me so much. he taught me how to ride a bike, how to catch a fly ball, how to drive, how to fly, how to move across the country and away from friends, how to make new friends, how to appreciate family, how to honor our country and those who fight for our freedom. he taught me how to succeed in school and then in the business world. he taught me how to stand up for myself. he taught me to never settle for second best. he taught me to be the best person i can be. he taught me that family is number one, always. he taught me how to love unconditionally.

i've been told a number of times that my family is unlike any other family. that our love and support of each other is priceless. this is all because our parents decided they were going to make it work and make it work to the best of their ability. my dad played half the role in this and for that, i am forever grateful.

so here's to you daddy...as the letter says, "no matter what age i get, where i move to or who i get married to, i'll always be your little girl and forever your sweetie pie."

happy birthday, momma!

we spent last wednesday celebrating mom's birthday! she flew out to seattle with my dad that morning and we were fortunate to spend her special day together. my dad, flying the plane, was somewhere over kansas and came over the loud speaker, "...honored to have one passenger who is celebrating a special occasion...delivered at 38,000 feet from the bottom of my heart while flying over the heartland of america..." and the flight attendant delivered some flowers to her in 14D. too cute! and much more appropriate than the time i was on one of his flights and he announced that i was single and available and sitting in 23B. the funniest part of that one (and no, it wasn't the announcement despite his opinion) were the little old ladies walking by on their way out telling him he was gonna be in trouble for pulling that stunt.

so we celebrated with some mexican food at our favorite joint and cake afterwards (homemade by yours truly). we then spent the evening reading "what your poo is telling you" (a gift from payton).

mom and i got to do a little shopping and completed some more organizing in the house. i love when she comes out. everything seems a little cleaner and more organized. guess it's a mom thing. ;)

i miss her so much all the time. i guess i am fortunate that she gets to come visit so frequently but i can still be selfish and want her to stay just one more day when it's time to leave. it's hard to be away from someone who means so much to you. i've been out of the house for 9 years now and can probably count on one hand the number of times we missed a day talking on the phone, but i still miss her. she is my best friend and i am hers. she has been there for me through the toughest times and through the best times. she is the perfect role model and i strive to be half of what she is. she is beauty on the inside and out. she is the best mother i've ever known. she has supported me through everything and she'll never know quite how much her love means to me.

so happy birthday, momma! thank you for everything you've given to me.
ilyttmab

my boy

so i'm sitting on the couch with a full tummy, watching sunday night football. we just had tacos-yum! luke and payton are still eating..guess they like my cooking. ;) it's been a busy weekend, which included birthday gift shopping, hiking middle fork trail (on the snoqualmie river), cleaning up our backyard (what a mess with weeds as tall as me!), cleaning the house (mom, aren't you proud, i even mopped floors!), football, soccer games and more football (including fantasy teams!)...i am exhausted to say the least!

we're having a wonderful little indian summer out here in the pacific northwest...75 and sunny today-surely can't beat that for mid-september. we haven't hiked enough this summer, but made up for some of it yesterday. it was the perfect day and although only 48 degrees when we arrived (and yep, boys were in shorts), the sunshine warmed the trail nicely. i managed to snap some good shots including a new favorite of my sweet boy.

ah, my sweetness...we celebrated a year together recently. it's hard to believe a year has gone by already. where does the time go? i've been the happiest in the last year. because of him. he said this line to me when we first met...that he felt a gravitational pull toward me that he couldn't explain. it's been my favorite line, something i think about often. and it's true. we were meant to be together, i knew it from day one. i know there will be bumps along our road, but he's the one who owns my heart.

i love you my sweets.

let the games begin...

yay for another start of the sports season! florida state won their first game of fall 2008-go noles! i wish i could say the same in the nfl world, but both the bucs and seahawks lost today in the season opener...however, i am currently beating luke in fantasy football, so that's positive! ;) yep, he talked my family (plus a few extras, including his son, uncle tom, cousins casey and kevin, anna and even her dad) into playing in "kiggins bowl 2008"! the funniest part about this is that my MOTHER is the most hyped up, printing out her roster to check who's on her fantasy team is playing in sunday morning football. hilarious, but hey, go mom!!

with the start of football season, soccer season also began today. luke's men's team and payton's fall team both played today and i captured a couple moments from the game (including payton's cousin who's a cutie!). he played well-looking more and more like his dad and dominates the game they both love so much. :)

other news, my good friend and sorority sister, lorie got engaged labor day weekend and i couldn't be happier for her and jonathon. i look forward to the celebration and of course, the bachelorette party!

enjoy the pictures and hope everyone is doing great! go NOLES! go BUCS! go SEAHAWKS! man, i love this game.....

the gorge in george..

so i've been hearing of this venue for some time now and finally got to experience it. it's amazing how different the scenery is just a few hours east of seattle. we drive over the pass and everything turns a desert shade of sandy brown. the mountains disappear and the rain is nonexistent. it's kind of nice and reminds me of driving cross country on different moves i made as a child. i actually told luke that i wished we could just keep driving east. at least to montana, where the beauty is unbelievable. but for now we'll land in george. yep, the city of george, washington. i snicker everytime i hear that now.

so back to the story...we park out in this huge field and walk for a while to the entrance gates. then we climb a small hill and i stop dead in my tracks. the scene is picturesque...almost fake. so this is why people make this trek to see bands play.

we saw jack johnson last weekend and despite the drunken crowd of people, it was an amazing show. he has become one of my favorite artists and completely worth seeing should you ever get the chance. this past weekend luke and i saw dave matthews band..also a great show. we actually went over to see oar (of a revolution)-my favorite band. yes, jason, be jealous. although short, it was a great time.

i must admit that i feel i've outgrown the concert scene a little. intoxicated people falling all over the place doesn't do it for me anymore (not that it ever did)...but live music will never get old. especially when you spend it with your sweets.

so thanks, luke, for introducing me to the gorge and protecting me from the crazies.