Al's St. Patrick's Day Party

Al and her friends, Ashley, Lilian, and Lizzie, decided to get together to have a St. Patrick's Day potluck dinner where everyone would bring a green dish. Allison decided to make a green jello salad the night before using my Mum's recipe. The next day she took her jello salad with her (along with some green vegetables just in case it didn't turn out). She had a fun time, had some great food and came back with positive feedback on her jello salad. Now, either she is lying to me about her lack of abilities in the kitchen and she can cook, or I owe her friends something green (ie: money)!

The Shins in concert

So Monday I'm sitting at work and I see that the Shins are playing that night at Constitution Hall in downtown DC. After a quick search of Craig's list I had two tickets in my hand and we were off to the concert. We grabbed a little dinner-to-go from Subway and ate in a great little park on E and 18th st. We then headed inside and enjoyed the warm up band, Viva Voce, after which The Shins put on a great show. "See, we are fun".

Visit from Mom

We loved having Elaine in our home as she was passing through on her way back from a wild week in Philidelphia with her old soriety sisters from UGA.

Love you Mom.

1st Anniversay Celebration

We made it through our first year of marriage. To celebrate we decided to visit Keswick Hall which is just outside Charlottsville, Va. I took some time off work and we drove down Thursday afternoon, grabbed some lunch in historic downtown, and then caught the last tour of Thomas Jefferson's home Monticello. We had great weather and loved seeing the home in the late afternoon.

We then went to the hotel and got ready for a romantic dinner at Fosters, the restaurant at the hotel named after one of Jefferson's chefs. We had some fabulous food and enjoyed the time together as we reminisced about our first year of marriage.


The next day we enjoyed sleeping in before heading off to the spa for a massage. It was great to finally get a pair of hands on my back for longer then a couple minutes. I forgot how much I love massages (hour long ones). All relaxed, we packed up and checked out. Just down the street we found a nice trail for a hike and decided to spend just a little more time in the warm sun before heading back to DC. All in all, we had a great time celebrating our anniversary and I can't wait to do it again next year.

Spring Break in AZ

So, if you had a choice to celebrate your first anniversary with your husband or go to Arizona and spend spring break with family, what would you do. If you're my wife, Allison, the choice was easy. It's Arizona all the way. I give her a hard time about it but it just happened to work out that her Mom, brother Kevin and Bryan, all went to visit Amanda and Aaron the same weekend as our anniversary, which was March 4th. I learned early on that the key to being happy was making sure my wife was happy. Thus, I not only let her go, I encouraged it. And of course they all had a great time in the Arizona sun.


They all went for a hike in a nearby desert and enjoyed plenty of milkshakes.

I was glad she decided to come back to the unseasonable cold East Coast. We spent the rest of her Spring Break relaxing and doing a little traveling. We decided to celebrate at Keswick Hall, a little hotel resort just outside Charlottsville, VA.

Mardi Gras in Arlington

You don't have to go to New Orleans to enjoy Mardi Gras, in Arlington Mardi Gras comes to you. Unfortunately it had snowed days before and it was raining the night of the parade so it was cold and wet, but it didn't stop us from catching our share of beads.

Where did January go? Bring Sexy Back

So it's now February and it feels like yesterday that we were bringing in the New Year. Time flies when you're having fun, or mabye just busy. Anyway, we did do a lot around the house and I love how it's starting to look. Allison has me doing something every weekend and we're making progress. To start with we have curtains in the bedroom. A big thanks to Al's mom, Lynne, for helping make the curtains, and for her dad, John, in helping me hang them. It's been almost 6 months since we had curtains hanging in the bedroom and I haven't heard any of our neighbors say anything, but I think they miss the free entertainment every night.

After a month off of school Allison started back up mid January. It was a tough adjustment waking up with me, but she's finally accommated to the early hours. Again she's taking a full load but it doesn't seem to be quite as challenging as previous semesters. We have even had time to enjoy some more concerts. As part of her Christmas gift from our brother-in-law, Aaron Coleman, we went to see Fall Out Boy at the 930 Club. Her brother, Kevin, joined us for the night out on the town. We had a great dinner at Old Ebbitts Grille and then headed to the club. It was a packed house and we spent most of our time squished down front with the die-hard fans, but we had a blast.



And just when you think we couldn't possibly have more fun - we did. We wanted to know who brought Sexy Back, so we went to see JT (Justin Timberlake for all of you that are not up on your pop culture) in concert at the Verizon Center. Once again, Kevin joined us for a night out on the town. This time he brought a date, well almost, he brough his good friend Cy. We had a nice dinner at the swank Oya and then headed to the arena. Allison and I started off in one suite but couldn't see all that well, so we joined Kev and Cy in another suite on a lower level. JT put on a good 2hr show. I was impressed with his stamina, but then again he doesn't work 10hr days like I do.




The beginning of January it was 70 degrees and I went golfing one day. The end of January and the first week of February have been bitter cold. But that didn't stop Kevin and me from standing in the cold for two hours to watch the arrival of POTUS (Pres. of the US), W, or 43 as we call him, land on the south lawn in his helicopter, Marine One. It was fun to watch but our toes were frozen by the end. It'll be spring and 70 degrees before I do that again.

New Year Resolutions - Check one off the list

We got an early start to the New Year and finished one of the goals we had for the house by putting up some long awaited curtains. While Allison's sister, Amanda, was in town, they, along with their mom, sought out and found some of the best deals in town on curtains. In a matter of one day, we had everything picked out and purchased and ready to hang. All that was left was for me to pull out the laser level and drill and figure out how to hang them. Thanks to one extra day tacked on to the holidays for Pres. Ford's funeral, I was able to check this job off the long, and ever expanding, to-do list. Here are the before and after pics. I say, Job Well Done.

2006 End-of-the-Year wrap up.

We finished off 2006 in the a cold drizzle in downtown Baltimore.
We drove up around 11pm, found a spot to park in the Fell's Point neighborhood, and brought in the new year at DuClaws Brewing Company.


We watched the fireworks, which were actually really impressive, and then grabbed a quick bite to eat before driving home. As low key as it was, it was actually really enjoyable.

We started off the day by speaking in church. Allison gave a great talk on trials and finding comfort through the Atonement, while I spoke on all the opportunities we have to start fresh spirtually, just like we do with temporal goals and new years resolutions.

It was quite the year for us as we celebrated a lot of firsts as a new family. We started last year in Florida at Disney World and ended it in the cold rain at Baltimore's inner-harbor. We made a lot of changes to our house as we cleaned out the bachelor pad and turned it into a place where any woman would feel at home. We have made many new friends, including 10 little three year olds we've had the opportunity to teach each Sunday in nursery, and look forward to making the most of 2007.

PS. An All-Points-Bulletin for everyone to be on the look out for Allison's camera and i-Pod that was stolen when someone broke into her car in late October. She's having a hard time letting go and refuses to give up hope for their safe return.

Sick of all these Birthdays

December is a busy month around here as many different family members celebrate their birthday. Our niece, Noelle Coleman, starts us off on the 19th, Allison's brother, Kevin, is on the 20th, her Dad is on the 25th, and Allison, her sister Amanda Coleman, and my Grandmother Brown, all share the 27th. We don't have pictures of each one, but they were all very exciting. We had a breakfast dinner for our niece,Noelle, after which her mom, Amanda, became ill with the stomach virus. The next evening we all had dinner at Cheesecake Factory for Kevin, after which Allison, her Dad, her brother Bryan, and nephew Lincoln became ill with the same stomach virus.
Thursday night me and her Mom caught the virus, followed by her cousin Alex a day later. We thought we were finished with the virus until the following Tuesday, Amanda's husband, who had only been in town a couple of days, fell ill too. At least Christmas day we were virus free. Monday we made homemade pizza's for her Dad's birthday, but unfortunately it was overshadowed by Christmas, which barely beats out the birthday. Wednesday, Allison and Amanda were treated to a morning at the spa and a facial, then some shopping, and finally a dinner at McLean Pizza. As you can tell, pizza is a family favorite. Thankfully after this dinner, no one got sick.

Allison and Friends make their Dream House, then eat them.

Allison had a fun time with her friends by getting into the Christmas spirit and decorating gingerbread houses over candy and cider. Lillian hosted the crew at her house and helped lay out a great spread. Everyone contributed candy and ideas, as can be seen in the final products shown here. Ashley, Lilian and Allison had a great time catching up and intend to make a habit of monthly activities.

Christmas in Alexandria

This last week has begun to feel more and more like Christmas should. The weather dipped into the 30's (that was the high on most days) and we brought the decorations out of storage. We attended our first holiday party of the year on Thursday night at the firm of Quinn Gillespsie and Associates. One of the associates happens to be a good friend and I've had the opportunity to work with many of the people there over the years. We had a great time and enjoyed catching up with people over mini hotdogs and hamburgers. The National Christmas tree was also lit that night but it was too cold for us to walk down and see it. Friday night we went to a movie and afterwards decorated our tree. It didn't take long to find the right one since it's only 2 feet tall and was in our attic. Maybe next year we'll try the real thing (doubt it). So, 15 mins later we had it unpacked, decorated, and set on one of our end tables. We left the music on a little longer just to get through the rest of the playlist we had going. All in all, we had a good time and we are now ready for Santa to visit (look for our placemark on Google Earth).

Caribbean vacation

November 27-29, 2006
Somehow I got lucky, or maybe I'm just living right (patience has it's virtues), because i was able to accompany Allison's uncle Chris and his son, CJ, to St. Thomas, USVI, for three days. CJ moved down there to work for 6 months as a crew member of a parasailling business, and asked for someone to go with him as he moved down there and got things set up. It just so happened that my good friends, Dave and Lynlee Boyd, had just moved down there this last summer as Dave was stationed there by the FBI. It also just worked out that CJ would be living in the same part of the island as the Boyds. Being the good cousin-in-law that I am, I went down there to make sure they could meet - and also to help CJ get settled. Everything seemed to work out perfectly. We got to spend some time with the Boyd's (they live 1.5 miles from eachother). We got CJ settled in and supplied. Uncle Chris and I even had time to take the ferry to St. John and spend the morning before heading back to the continent (local terminology for those of us in the states). I can't wait to take Allison back.

Thanksgiving in Dixie

November 21-26, 2006
This year we spent our first Thanksgiving together with some of my family in Alabama. My dad surprised my Mom and sister, Jen, by flying her in early for the holiday. Jen's husband, Darin, and her almost two year old son, Gavin, came the same day we arrived. We flew into Atlanta, rented a car, and drove into town. The weather was beautiful during the day and cooled off at night. We had some great games of pictionary, a family favorite and holiday must-play-game, that saw match-ups of couples and then men v. women. Al and I got a little lucky and won the couples game and a couple days later I happened to champion the men to victory as well. I'm sure there will be a rematch sometime soon. As for now, the men hold a two match winning streak.


Thanksgiving was amazing. We ejoyed great food and shared a lot of stories. Lil Gavin was the center of everyone's attention as he was into everything. We also got to spend Friday with Grandma Brown and Carpie, my mom's sister, in Atlanta. Everyone had a nice visit and Grandma looked really well.

Saturday saw the long awaited golf match between Tyler and his arch foe, Dad. Darin participated in the action but was never really in contention for the coveted prize, the Golden Putter, but still enjoyed the round. Dad played well, even pulling one stroke ahead on the first nine, but he couldn't stop the train from coming down the tracks and gave up that stroke, plus a few extra, as he lost the match AND the putter. I had to get it specially wrapped at the airport to bring it home. Allison just rolled her eyes.

Mid-Term Elections . . . ouch.

November 3-8, 2006
The mid-term elections are never really that big of a deal because not much ever happens. Except this time. As a faithful appointee I saved up annual leave, signed with the RNC to be deployed, and left my new wife for 5 days to go support the cause. It's kind of a fun time because it can be exciting to see where you get sent. I wanted to go somewhere I had not spent much time before but I also wanted to be with people I knew and enjoyed being around. A friend of mine who helped me find a role during the 2004 convention in NYC introduced me to a great group of people. Much of this group ended up going to Wisconsin a couple months later. After that we became part of what was to be called Team Lampkin. We ended up staying in touch the last couple of years and when the chance to go to Ohio with Team Lampkin came along, I couldn't say no. We were sent to Columbus to help the state wide and local candidates turn back the Democrat tide. It turned out to be a tsunami. I can't say the GOTV/72hr program was all that great this time but, regardless, we got spanked pretty bad. Not only in Ohio, but nation-wide. I feel bad for my brethren on the Hill who are now looking for work, but it's not like there won't be another big election in two years where everything could change again. I was just glad to come home to my lovely bride.

We've been busy!

These last three weeks have just flown by. Allison has been busy with school and with helping her sister, Amanda Coleman et al, move to Arizona. Allison even flew out to Mesa for four day to help unpack and organize the new house. It was hard to say goodbye but we are able to video chat with them often.

I have been assisting Al in her studying and have been busy with work too. I spent 4 days in St. Louis, MO, helping my bosses at USDA organize and run the Advancing Renewable Fuels conference. I had a great time and learned a lot. There is a picture of me at the St. Louis Arch.

While we were in town, Al and I have been to museums and parks and have really enjoyed the beautiful fall weather. Here is a picture of us in front of the Smithsonian on our way to observe ancient Egyptian artifacts for one of her classes. Here is another picture of her at the Building Museum where we observed how to make your house "Green", or more energy efficeint. It was really interesting and we left insipired.

This last weekend we were able to pick up some pumpkins with Al's family, the Toskovich's, just down the road from where they live. We carved them Sunday night and as always, it turned into a competition of who could carve the most elaborate pumpkin. Showing good form, I let her dad win.