As They Always Say........

........... “time flies when you’re having fun.” Well, time sure IS flying for us and we sure ARE having fun! October was a fun and busy month for us - we only had two days on the calendar with absolutely nothing on it! Crazy, huh?

November is looking to be about the same way as well, except with NO days on the calendar with absolutely nothing on it. So far, every weekend, yes, every weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is busy with either a party, or a get-together of some sort with friends and/or family. During the weeknights and weekdays, Jen has gone on about a bazillion coffee and lunch dates with friends and family and has more planned for the rest of this month and next. She is also keeping busy volunteering at church, studying for her boards, doing some Christmas shopping, and keeping up with all the house stuff that needs to be done on a daily basis. (She tells Greg all the time that she’s too busy for a job! LOL) Greg enjoys his time these days after work and on the weekends relaxing and watching football games with friends and family, managing our finances and investments, keeping up with his fantasy sports teams online, and working on various financial projects online. He also volunteers some of his time at church as well and is getting ready to start studying for the next grueling phase for the CFA Level 2 exam. He even had time, in the midst of our busy month, to sneak in a date night for us! We went and saw Changeling and got THE biggest popcorn known to man. Seriously, we've never seen a popcorn tub so big in our lives! It was kinda embarassing...... ;)

December is shaping up to be a very busy month for us too. We’re already planning Christmas outings, parties, and events, and have quite a few things already scheduled on the calendar! We’ve even started our Christmas shopping and have had our Christmas cards done for about two weeks now! All we need is our tree - and we’re ready to get it out! BUT, if we get everything out TOO soon, Bob Collins (a.k.a. the “Christmas Police”) would have something to say about that! =) We also recently just planned a quick Christmas vacation to Arkansas to be with Jen’s Grandparents. Please pray for good weather and for us to stay awake as we will be driving throughout the night.

Below are a few random pictures from November.......

We know it’s all in God’s hands, but we still can’t help how we feel. ;)

Most likely next year we’ll get puppies from this breeder (our Life Group leaders), even though we REALLY wanted these two. You'll have to blow up the picture to see them better..... especially the one that Jen is holding. ;)

Aren’t they BEAUTIFUL!!?? Our parents will just LOVE their granddogs!! =)

Jen and a friend made these for the kids’ TeamKID snack for the Thanksgiving party. WAY cute, huh?

Ziploc Omelet

We recently got a recipe via email from Dad Kelly, and were a bit skeptical at first after reading it. However, when we actually tried it this morning, it was SO easy and SO good! So here we are now, sharing the recipe below with you. As you can tell from the picture, we served it with fresh fruit, and then had OJ, and some of Kyle Collins’ freshly roasted coffee to drink. (Thanks Kyle, it was absolutely amazing!)

Don’t be skeptical, just try it – and then let us know what you think! =) Enjoy!


ZIPLOC OMELET
(This works great! Good for when all of your family is together. The best part is that no one has to wait for their special omelet!)

Have guests write their name on a quart-size Ziploc freezer bag with permanent marker.

Crack 2 eggs (large or extra-large) into the bag (not more than 2) & shake to combine them.

Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onion, green pepper, tomato, hash browns, green onion, salsa, bacon, mushrooms, etc.

Have each guest add prepared ingredients of choice to their bag and shake. Make sure to get the air out of the bag and zip it up.

Place the bags into rolling, boiling water for exactly 13 minutes. (You can usually cook 6-8 omelets in a large pot.) Open the bags and the omelet will roll out easily. Be prepared for everyone to be amazed.

Season with salt and pepper if desired. It’s nice to serve with fresh fruit and coffee cake; everyone gets involved in the process and it’s a great conversation piece.

(Imagine having these ready the night before, and putting the bag in boiling water while you get ready - and in 13 minutes, you've got a nice omelet for a quick breakfast!)

Pack and Pray

“Pack and Pray” means praying for the child who will receive your shoe box gift. This is another one of our traditions here in the Fulkerson household – Operation Christmas Child. It’s the power of a simple gift, and yes, even YOU can make a difference! It’s so amazing to be a part of such a huge plan to share the love of Jesus with children around the world. We’re being a part of something that is colossal!

In a nutshell, Operation Christmas Child is an “event” that sends Christmas to children all over the world who can’t afford it. First, you decide if you want to send a shoe box to a girl or a boy. (In our case, we usually do both a boy AND a girl, or two boys and two girls.) Next, you find an empty shoe box and wrap it up with real pretty wrapping paper; box and lid separate. Lastly, you fill the box with gifts, pray over it, include a picture of yourself if you choose, and send it on its way. It’s such a fun, simple ministry that takes so little time and money, but yet means the absolute world to one child somewhere in this world.

For more information about Operation Christmas Child/Samaritan’s Purse, click here.

A Spook-tacular Harvest Festival

It’s been a looooooooong time since we’ve dressed up or had costumes for Halloween. But this year, we just couldn’t resist. OK, well, GREG couldn’t resist, and Jen didn’t want to be the only one NOT being festive and fun. ;) We aren’t big into Halloween, but this year we had fun with it!
Anyhow, last night we volunteered again to work at the Harvest Festival at church and had so much fun! Not all of our friends dressed up, but regardless, it was still fun hanging out with them. We also went out with some new friends after the Festival (FYI: costume-less) and had such a good time getting acquainted and forming new relationships.
We have pictures below of the evening (of course!) and we KNOW you will LOVE Greg’s costume the best! =)

He's a Cereal (Serial) Killer..... get it!!?? =)

Havin' fun!!

The Cereal Killer and Dr. J. Fulkerson

Engagement Party!

Last night we celebrated Brian and Becca’s engagement by helping Mom and Dad Kelly throw them a party. (They are always THE best at doing fun things for us for exciting times in our lives!) It was so much fun and there was quite a good turnout! We even Skype’d in Becca’s Mom so she could “be there” and be a part of everything that was going on. It sure brought back a lot of fun memories for us as well - doesn’t seem that long ago that we had OUR engagement party......

Here are some of the fun pictures from the evening:

Birthday Girl

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday we celebrated Jen’s birthday. 27 years in fact. (And the birthday fun will continue on into this next week too because now, some of her girlfriends want to take her out and celebrate!) But anyhow, back to the beginning... Wednesday all day and on into the night, Greg had various surprises hidden around the house to make the actual birthday day special for her. That night, Jen also had TeamKID at church and all the little kids surprised her with an awesome round of “Happy Birthday,” balloons and some gift cards. Thursday, Jen wanted things to be “just like old times,” so we headed up to Denver to Buca di Beppo with the Collins Family for her birthday dinner. (We used to do the Cheesecake factory, but her craving this year was for Buca – excellent choice!) After that, it was presents and Jen’s request of homemade apple pie for dessert. Friday, Saturday and Sunday we spent at a little condo/cabin on the river in Estes Park, Colorado, courtesy of Mom and Dad Kelly. What a fabulous week and an excellent way to spend a birthday!

Jen in the “Princess chair” with her Prince by her side

Just like old times..... we’re just missing Kyle..... =(

Happy Birthday!! Guess Greg and Becca were too embarassed to be in the picture..... ;)

Gotta have a caramel apple in Estes Park..... a tradition – Jen’s favorite!

Outside our condo/cabin – our favorite place to relax

Inside Rocky Mountain National Park (at dusk)

Blog Tag

(By Jen)

Tag! I am “it” on this new game called “blog tag.” I have been “tagged” and asked to blog about 6 random facts about myself. I don’t want to be the only who doesn’t participate in this, so I will sit here and hopefully come up with some interesting random facts. Prepare yourself.....

1. I have THE hardest time swallowing pills. I practically choke when I have to take my vitamin and other such supplements every day. It doesn’t matter how small the pill is either, somehow it manages to get lodged in the back of my throat and I cough and hack and carry on like I am dying. Greg always gets a kick out of watching me swallow any sort of pill..... I think he’s tempted to sell tickets, like I am putting on a show or something.

2. I have an OCD about having things neat and orderly and clean around the house. (Basically, just don’t touch my stuff – LOL) I feel that our house needs to always be ready just in case someone stops by unannounced. It would absolutely horrify me to have someone see a dirty/messy house. And what’s funny to me is that I have friends tell me, “Oh that will all change when you have kids.” But you know what? I am pretty sure it won’t. I’ll be one of those “mean” moms who make their kids pick up after themselves and not pull out every toy they own to make messes all over the house. There’s just no reason for messiness. -- As long as we’re on the subject..... it absolutely thrills my soul to organize things and to plan my day by making lists (being able to check things off my list really brings about a sense of accomplishment for me). I love organizing things in boxes or Rubbermaid containers with labels. Our next move is going to be a piece of cake for us! ;)

3. Milk and even the thoughts of it make me gag. But I love chocolate milk. Explain that!?

4. I hate to wash my hands in cold water. I will stand there and wait for as long as it takes just to get hot water to wash my hands with. I also practically scald myself in the shower every morning. I can't help it, I just love hot water!

5. I totally love to give anonymously - that excites me more than anything. I also love birthdays and Christmas (I plan Christmas presents and write down ideas all year long) too..... I just LOVE to give presents! Greg and I have given anonymously for as long as I can remember, and I really feel that it truly blesses us personally, and strengthens our relationship with each other as well as with the Lord. If you’ve never done it before, I challenge you to try it. It’s SO incredibly rewarding!

6. I love it when people leave their blinds open at night. (Just ask Greg..... I make him slow the car down so I can get a better look!) It’s so much fun to “spy" on people and to see how they live and how they decorate and what their house looks like. Now, I always shut my blinds at night because it gives me the creeps..... =)

That’s all, friends. Those are my 6 random, hopefully somewhat interesting, facts. I now tag Brian Kelly, Ali Farmer, Kyle Collins, Laura Moffat, Clare Picker, Jenny Bender, and Beverly Bender.