Happy Birthday Josh!!

I love other people's birthdays! It gives me a chance to honor the people I love and shower them with praises. Today is my big brother's THIRTIETH birthday. I had to put that in all caps in case he were to forget how incredibly old he is.
Let me begin with saying that Josh is one of my most favorite people in the world. He is hands down one of the funniest people I know (he happens to share my awesome sense of humor so sometimes we may be the only two laughing but that's only because no one really appreciates how awesome we are). He also happens to be one of the sweetest, kind-hearted men ever. He is a fantastic dad to little Ollie and he is half of my favorite couple in the entire world!

Josh, Rheanne, and Ollie on Rheanne's Grad day. What a good looking family!

We define cool.

But Josh and I weren't always the best of friends. He certainly did not appreciate my arrival two weeks before his 5th birthday. He was the baby and I was about to take his title (though not for long since Stephen was born less than two years later). To this day, Josh knows how to get under your skin (I just have thicker skin now and a better appreciation of his humor...oh and we have Darin to pick on now). He would be so mean to us! But that all changed when he fell in love with Rheanne (awwww!) Rheanne brought out the real Josh that I saw glimpses of as a kid. One time Josh heard me crying in bed one night when my mom was in the hospital. He came in, held me as I cried and told me that everything was going to be okay and mom would be home soon. Far different from the boy that would endlessly tease me but a true representation of the man he would become.

We're adorable.

Josh and I grew closer as we grew up and realized that we were the most alike out of all the Ekhoffs. Our bond was clearest the day I got married and Josh and Stephen gave the speech heard around the world when they left everyone in tears with their touching speech about what it was like being my brother and having to give me to someone else (I'm choking up just thinking about it!) We all knew Stephen would make us cry but when Josh cried...I lost it..it was unexpected and spoke loudly to what we developed since I graduated high school and moved away. It's because of my dad and my two brothers that I found such a great guy. I always knew I'd have to marry someone that could at least match the humor my brothers had (these guys are seriously funny and set the bar pretty high). Who knew I'd meet someone with a perfect mixture of Josh, Stephen, and my dad?

Stephen and Josh making everyone cry at my wedding.

The truth is...Josh is one of my heroes. He gave up school so his wife could finish and raise a child at the same time. Now that Rheanne has graduated, Josh gets to go back to school and I am so proud of him. Josh is one of the smartest people I know (just ask him..he'll tell you what his AP test scores were...Seanna knows too since he tends to rub it in her face). He's not just my hero. I know he's a hero to Stephen and to his little boy. Josh works so hard for his family and he tries his best to be the greatest husband, son, dad, and brother he can be.
I really wish I could be with Josh as he ages into another demographic (THIRTY!) but this little bloggy will have to do :)
Joshie..I love you and I promise never to throw cereal at you again as long as you promise not to make me eat it off the floor :)

Sweet, simple, date night :)

Next week Brand is treating me to see Wicked and I am so excited. It'll be nice to get dressed all fancy and see a wonderful performance. I've been missing the stage lately and it will be fun to finally be back in the world of theater even if it is in the audience.
But this week Brand and I had a very sweet and simple date night. We finally tried Ron's Drive In which is a yummy burger place near our house. Wednesdays just so happen to be bacon cheeseburger nights which are our fave! And I will have a milkshake at every chance I get so this turned out great. Bonus: their fry sauce is Uh-mahzing!!!
It was super quiet as a bunch of couples of all ages were eating their dinners. Brand and I are not quiet people and we tend to laugh a lot so we had to keep trying to be quiet and it was so much fun.
I think hanging out and laughing and making silly faces with Brand is Heaven to me. You simply cannot beat a good laugh with your best friend. I can't wait until we're parents someday but I enjoy every moment when it's just us. :)
I was also thinking the other day how blessed I must be that I get to fall deeper in love every day. I know it probably won't always be like that because we'll inevitably go through tough times. But, Brand and I have had our tough times already with Brand losing his contract work twice leaving us broke and hungry (praise the Lord for full-time secure employment!!) and our love only grew stronger so it makes me hopeful that we'll be able to withstand anything. Plus when we said forever...we meant it. And I couldn't have asked for a better partner in life.
I love you Brand :)

Mum's the Word

This post may get a little long. I could go on forever about how the following women have impacted my life in their role of "mother" but I'll try to keep it short :)

My mom, Martha, is my hero, my inspiration, my constant support, and my biggest fan. She is definitely a big part of why I am the woman I am today. She gave me the courage and compassion to do what I do, to serve the people that are so often forgotten. She gave me the assertiveness to stand up for what I believe in, even if it is uncommon. She gave me the eyes to see what people are going through so I can love them instead of judge them. She is a woman who has been through so much and takes what could have beat her down and turn it into a positive force. She is currently getting her Masters through Gonzaga online and I'm so proud to be a daughter of someone who believes in the power of learning. My mom's been a stay at home mom but has also compassionately went after a career she believed in. She definitely empowers me to do what I want to do as long as I'm serving the Lord whole-heartedly while doing it. She is a fantastic woman and I am proud to be called her daughter (She also raised three other wonderful kids and I can't imagine that being a very easy job).

My mama and me on my wedding day.

Now my dad is pretty awesome and that could not have been possible without the wonderful job my grandma Louise did in raising him. My grandma is 89 and has raised three children, has 7 grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. And she has been to all our high school graduations, my college graduation, our weddings, and even my younger cousin's high school graduation in London, England. She is small but inside resides a great woman. Her husband died over 40 years ago and to this day she wears her wedding ring out of deep devotion. It was just last year I heard her talk about how it wasn't fair that her husband was taken so soon. This woman loves deep and is fiercely loyal. But don't let this deepness fool you, she can kick it with the rest of the crazy Ekhoff crowd. Playing Scattergories with her is one of my favorite things. Some of my favorite responses from her: Rubbers (things in your purse...these are condoms in case you didn't know), Napkins (again, things in your purse..these are feminine hygiene products), and A Tale of Two Titties (book titles). In my line of work I see lots of people that remind me of my grandma: her Irish stubbornness is pretty evident (still pulling weeds at her age...), her fantastic sense of humor, her incredible devotion, and her tenderness. It's no wonder I miss her so much (I'm hoping to go home and see her very soon!)

My Grandma Louise and me.

My newest mom in my life is someone I owe my life to. She gave me the greatest man in the world to share my life with. My mother-in-law is quite the character and can be a bit intimidating when you first meet her. But that's just her self-confidence and trademark assertiveness. This is a woman who, like my mother, has taught me to stand up for myself to get what I want. Also, thanks to her, Brand can handle a woman with many ideas, thoughts, and opinions (because boy do I have them!) She is also a cancer survivor (in remission!). She is also someone who knows the importance of learning and a great education. She has a fantastic sense of humor as well and cracks me up all the time. She welcomed me into her home and family with opened arms. I'm so thankful that I am blessed with two great moms.

My wonderful in-laws.

I have another mom in my life thanks to marriage. My brother made the best decision of his life by marrying Rheanne. Rheanne is hilarious, sweet, understanding, artistic, and as of December 18, 2007 a wonderful, fantastic mom. I admire Rheanne quite a bit. I love seeing her with Ollie because they get into their own little world. She loves that boy with all her heart. Everyone around Ollie feels we are so incredibly blessed to have him in our life but I think we all know that Ollie is so blessed to have Rheanne as his mom.Ollie is incredibly special and only deserves the best and man did he get it. Rheanne will dance to The Killers and Passion Pit with Ollie, will play cars with him, imagine with him, be creative with him, read to him, discipline him, and just unconditionally love him. I think I love watching Rheanne with Ollie because its a great picture of how my mom was with me when I was that young, how my grandma was with my dad, how Rose was with Brand, and how my grandma Bert was with my mom.

Rheanne with the most amazing little boy in the world.

Also, a little note regarding an honorary mom. My sister Julie. Julie thank you for stepping in when you need to so I didn't miss out. Thanks for teaching me to read in my head, for teaching me my colors, spending endless amount of time playing Barbies, giving me that foot's width of space for the door to be opened so I wouldn't be scared, and for always being there. I'm not sure if it takes a village to raise a child but I know that sometimes it takes a big sister's help.

Me and Julie. Yes we were THAT adorable :)

Also, on this day I can't help but think of my Grandma Bert who passed away 8 years ago. I miss her so much. She was a Navy Vet, a teacher, a principal, and a devoted volunteer until her passing. She raised four children on her own after my grandfather died when my mom was five. She was an incredibly strong woman and was the driving motivation and reason for my success in school She died one year before I graduated high school and I was so mad that she could not be there to see what she did. But when I graduated magna cum laude from EWU I knew I made her proud and I knew I could not have done it without her teaching me how to read and encouraging me in school.

My Grandma Bert with me apparently eating her arm. (As cute as I was it's no wonder I was her fave bahaha)

Basically, I've had a lot of moms in my life and I wouldn't be where I am without them and I love them dearly. And I know when I become a mom myself, that I'll have an incredible team of support  from different generations. Basically, I have no excuse to fail with these ladies by my side :) 

I love you guys more than you can imagine.

Happy 64th Birthday dad!

Happy 64th birthday to my wonderful father!!!
Here's to many more years of snowboarding, skateboarding, fathering, grandfathering, witnessing to everyone you come in contact with, and just being my constant support and hero.
Thanks to my dad (and to my brothers) who showed me what a real man is like so that I may find one of my own.

I can't wait to celebrate your 65th next year with you!!

Love,

Your Ally Gal :)

My dad giving me away on my wedding day. Looking handsome as ever :)

A Royally Awesome Birthday

My 25th birthday was very special. It was very different than last year which was also very special in a different way.
Last year, my birthday was less than a month after Brand was laid off from SMERC. We were broke, disheartened, and fighting a losing battle to get his last paycheck. I knew my birthday celebration with Brand would be modest but I was pleasantly surprised to see that my gift from him was a single rose and a dollar bill with a promise of better days written on it. It was the best present I ever got: his pure love and affection. I don't mind big gestures but its the little ones in the toughest of times that mean more than anything in the whole world. To know that we had each other was the best present.

Fast forward a year later and it's an entirely different story. For two months Brand has been working his butt off as a contractor for Gravity Jack. The 60 days were coming up and we were just hoping they would take him on as an official employee. Meanwhile, Brand and my best friend Mollie had planned my party secretly. The only thing I knew was that we were going to Texas Roadhouse (my favorite restaurant ever that recently plopped itself in Coeur d'Alene) and that afterwords we would be doing something active. Now Mollie planned my really fun Harry Potter birthday last year so I knew it'd be a lot of fun. Brand had already surprised me at midnight with my gift: two tickets to see Wicked. The Lion King came to Spokane last year and we decided to go. But after Brand lost his job that was out of the picture. When I found out that Wicked was going to be here in 2011 I asked Brand that no matter what our financial situation was if we could go: he promised that no matter what we would go. And he made good on that promise :)

So after a day of lounging, watching movies, and reading Jane Eyre...the friends gathered at my house and we all went to eat some delicious grub at Texas Roadhouse. Thankfully, my friends respected my wishes and did not tell the waiter that it was my birthday because I would have had to saddle up with a giant cowboy hat as they yee-hawed at me...
Then we went to the next surprise where the rest of my friends were waiting for us...Sky High. Sky High is a trampolining facility and it was SO much fun. I got to bust out some old tricks from  my gymnastics days and got to watch Brand be a 14 year old boy with the rest of the guys which was hilarious. Even though my back hurts today, it was so worth it! It was quite the birthday with the best people.

Oh and the other GREAT news of the day...Brand was brought in to sign his W-2 and become an official employee at Gravity Jack. All his hard work and patience has paid off. Which means a full time job and benefits..and we won't have to pay as many taxes next year :) I am so stinkin' proud of him. And today I got to treat him to some surprise breakfast in bed as a thank you for a great birthday, a reward for a job well done, and as a celebration of where we have come in the last year. Our marriage has been wonderful and we've already dealt with the sickness and health and the richer or poorer and I love him more today than I did the day I said I Do. I love my best friend :)

In other news....this little wedding happened on my birthday. You may have heard of it. Prince William married commoner (and college educated) Catherine Middleton. Since I decided to take my birthday off of work, I stayed up for the wedding and it was really pretty. I loved it and I don't care what anyone says :)

Guinness!!!

Today I finally had a glass of Guinness. I have been craving it since my yummy taste of Guinness at the Brewery in DUBLIN BABY!! Anywho, I've had Guinness before, liked it, yummy, move on. But man oh man is it different in Ireland and it's even better fresh from the Brewery. It was like a cold glass of refreshing water but Guinness yumminess instead.
I miss Ireland. I can't even really explain it. Yes the country was beautiful, the rich history, and the people were great. But I didn't make lifelong friendships or anything with some real Irish people. I just miss it. I really feel as if something, a part of me belongs there. I felt totally at ease walking hand-in-hand with my fellow Irish husband down the streets of Dublin, Cork, Killarney, and Galway( he is not as Irish as I am...the truth is we are both very German..like so German we're from the same Jewish group of people in Germany "Ashkenazic") . Maybe it was because we had just been bitten by the world-traveling bug and we settled in easily.  But I really think it was the country.
Brand and I have been dreaming our whole lives to go to Ireland. We separately had a dream to visit this beautiful country and together we got to experience that dream. That was really special. Even walking around Paris was great and I was so excited to be in the city of love with my love (kissing under the Eiffel tower was beyond surreal and romantic) and it was great for those four hours but Ireland felt almost like home. Like if God told me to pack up everything and move to Ireland...I think I could do it. Not because I wouldn't miss my family, my home, American TV, driving on the right side of the road, or Taco Bell (or any Mexican food for that matter...Ireland needs to get with it). But because it would make sense. It feels right.
I felt this when I was in a pub in Dublin watching the England vs. Ireland Rugby match. The pub was beautiful and filled with people (standing room only) cheering on their fellow Irishmen who were playing mere miles away at the stadium in Dublin. I was standing, drinking my pint of Guinness of course, listening to everyone join in singing a traditional Irish song when I realized how much I loved the place. This was our second to last night and it really hit me that I was in the country of my dreams. Amazing chocolate, my pick of violent sports (hello Gaelic football), and a diet made up of lamb, beef, potatoes, and Guinness...its no wonder I'm so drawn there. (Just then I actually put "here" instead of "there", guess I got swept away and was dreaming I was back in Ireland).
I think another thing that made me fall in love with the country was Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. This was our last day in Dublin and we had to see it. We walked an hour and finally found it and it was totally worth it. The Blarney castle, the Cliffs of Moher, and Christchurch Cathedral were all awesome and wonderful and unforgettable but Kilmainham Gaol (Gaol=Jail) touched me deeply. We learned about how the Irish persevered through many failed revolutions and of course the famine. I felt connected to these people. I thought that if I was faced with famine or the choice to flee to America, which would I choose? Would I choose to send my children to steal so that they'd have a bed at the jail? Or would I try and be honest but risk starving? I felt the connection with the revolutionaries. As they continued to fight (and lose) against the British for their rights. Being within feet where they were executed was surreal. Being in the chapel where one was married ten minutes before he was executed was heartbreaking and then visiting the wife's cell of that revolutionary where she would live after her own political protests and to see the painting of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus in her cell was breathtaking. I...love...these...people. They were true underdogs, just like US (see what I did there?), and then finally gaining their independence from England. No wonder I love them so much!
I will go there again. Maybe when Brand and I have raised our children. Maybe when we're old and wrinkly. We'll go back. It'll be different. We won't be walking an hour to get to that jail. We won't be running to see the sights of the majestic cliffs. Maybe we'll never come back. Maybe we'll settle in one of the quaint Irish homes, take up the harp, and drink Irish tea anytime we want. I don't care really, as long as we get back there...because I'm running out of Moro bars, they don't sell Cadbury Mint Crisps here, and I'm sorry but the Guinness truly flows much better in Ireland...

Blog name change and a little update...

So my year of pictures was...unsuccessful. I actually did take a bunch of pictures but just never found the motivation to put them in here. They weren't good anyway....
So here I am...a new name to make it more generic and broad. Because who doesn't like things generic and broad? The "thing" these days is to blog and to name your blog after your last name. I've seen some pretty neat blog titles with people using their last names. I know someone with the last name Boboth and her popular blog is called "The Boboth Blogoth" pretty clever huh? Then there's Erica Tweet with "It's a Tweet Life After All!". Well aren't those convenient names! I grew up with Ekhoff which there is no way to make a creative blog title from that. And now I'm an Adams. So naturally..the Addams Family was what I thought of when thinking of a clever play on my last name. Sure they have an extra D in there...but we are fairly similar...

We LOVE dead things. Whether it be meat or zombies..we do not shy away from the morbid. When I was little, I wanted to be a teacher sure but what I really wanted to be was a homicide detective. My hero was Detective Munch from Homicide: Life on the Street. I also originally wanted to be a forensic scientist but my not-so-natural knack in chemistry told me to do otherwise. And to this day, my dream job would be a coroner. So I may not be cutting off the heads of roses but I do have a few dried/dead roses in a vase...so who knows. Plus, we could totally pull off the Morticia and Gomez look...

Us on our first Halloween married, the costume choice was obvious to us.

 

 

I'm not sure what this blog will contain. Because here's a quick update of our very exciting life.
1.) I'm addicted to my netflix. And...they're alphabetized. It totally plays to my neurotic, to-do list, ocd side. I love that there's order to it :) So I spend my days getting through that.
2.) I'm also addicted to reading. I have a library card now and have been reading like a mad woman (in between working, watching my netflix, watching my beloved TV, playing with my dog, and hanging out with my awesome husband).
3.) Brand has also been reading. Our X-box is broken so he's been reading...a lot....
BUT
4.)We did go to my dream vacation spot to Ireland in March and it was beyond amazing. I hope to post about how meaningful it was to me. And how I can't stop craving Guinness and Irish tea.

I'm excited to write. I like writing. I'm not good at it. But now that I don't have the guidelines of this picture ordeal, I can write about whatever I want. Movies I've seen, books I'm reading, shows I'm addicted to (Parenthood and Parks and Rec for example), oh and my oh so important opinions on Dancing with the Stars. Maybe I'll throw in some heartwarming stories that are seeping from my bleeding heart.