Well, it’s been awhile since I last blogged, and talking with Karla (Dan's step-sister) last night inspired me to post an update…. plus we are sitting on the plane from DEN to EWR-Newark with not a whole lot to do).
So we are just headed back to Jersey to finish up working some claims from Hurricane Irene. On Thursday, 9-1, Dan started driving from Colorado Springs to Paterson, NJ for work. His mom, Betty, agreed to make the drive across country with him since I had accepted an offer to work on a project by project basis with Wilson Electric and had to head straight to Houston. The project that I am going to be working on for the next 6 months is a hospital called TOPS in Houston, TX – not my favorite city, but a great opportunity to do some work on the side. Anyways, Dan and Betty had to drive across the US WITHOUT air conditioning since it had gone out just before they left – not fun, but a huge THANKS to Betty for being such a trooper through it all – we hope she knows how helpful it was to have her there. I was only in Houston for a day, so I then flew up to Jersey to meet Dan. We’ve run about 10-12 claims a day up until last Tuesday, 9-13 when we flew to Denver. Oh, and we took off 9-10 and 9-11 to spend some time in New York City, which was quite an experience. We saw the 3,000 flags in Battery Park and saw the new black building from a distance; the memorial was closed off to family members of the victims only.
The claims have been working have been relatively “easy” in that there isn’t a whole lot of total devastation – mainly $2,000-$5,000 in damage per claim with a few $10k-$20 claim totals mixed in. There is definitely a lot of flooding, but Dan and I don’t estimate flood damage. The people in New Jersey are interesting. In general, they are not friendly on the phone or when you first arrive at their homes, but most tend to warm up after a few minutes when they realize that you’re there to help. Lack of A/C in the van has been trying, but we are hoping for some cooler days this coming week. It’s not worth the money to get it fixed, so we’ll be toughing it out.
The picture below shows some of the typical damage we've seen.
Now let me recap our trip to CO for Ben and Lauren’s wedding (Dan’s step-sister and new step-brother in-law). We flew into Denver late on Tuesday and drove straight up to Breckenridge. I dropped Dan off at the Bachelor Party and then met the girls at the house to crash. We woke up early on Wednesday to head to Lauren’s brunch in Vail. The brunch was beautiful and it was great to meet new people and see some of Lauren’s friends again. After brunch we went to get mani’s and pedi’s and then checked into the hotel for the next 2 nights. While the ladies were getting pampered, the boys played disc golf in Beaver Creek. We all met up for the rehearsal at 3pm and enjoyed getting a glimpse of what the big day was going to look like for Ben and Lauren. The “venue” that they chose was Piney Lake – a beautiful lake in the middle of some amazing mountains just outside of Vail. The road to get to the venue was a 10 mi bumpy, dirt road, but the scenery was absolutely worth the drive. I was a little disappointed that the aspen’s are JUST starting to change colors – it will be a sight to see in a couple weeks. It started to rain right at the end of the rehearsal, so we spent the rehearsal dinner at a park near the hotel under cover where we enjoyed each others company for a few hours, and then headed into town to go bowling. The night ended relatively early since we all had to be up early the next day to get ready. The wedding day was rainy and freezing, but the ceremony was so amazing that I don’t think any of us really even remember how much we were shivering or how our teeth we chattering away. Lauren was an absolutely gorgeous bride and the scenery made everything even more magical. Jeff (Dan’s brother-in-law) officiated of the ceremony and did such a phenomenal job of bringing everything together. Even though Dan and I are not yet married, I was still included in the ‘immediate family only prayer’ as well as some pictures with Ben and Lauren and the rest of the family. I felt very honored to be included and really enjoyed every moment. Everything flowed well from wedding to pictures to cocktail hour to dinner to dancing. It was truly a great day and we all continue to wish Ben and Lauren well on their new journey in marriage together.
See picture below of Piney Lake...Dan is very proud that his wife to be still fits in her senior prom dress! :)
Here we are headed back to Jersey now. It was definitely a little sad to leave CO today as it feels as if our trip was a complete whirlwind. It was great to spend time with the crazy Price/Swintz/Bruecker crew, but anther day or 2 would’ve been REALLY great. We’re hoping to have about a weeks worth of work left before we can pack up again and head out. Tomorrow morning we start bright and early with a full day of appointments. I fly to Houston for a jobsite meeting on Tuesday and then back to finish up the week helping Dan. Karla (Dan’s step-sister) and her boyfriend will be in Manhattan later this week so we hope to catch a night in the city with them. As for what comes next, we’re not sure. We still need to get all of Dan’s stuff out of storage in Colorado Springs, and I will need to be in AZ for my bridal shower on 10-1, but other than that, who knows?!?!
I’ll try to post more regularly… As always, lots of love to you all!
Oh, and wedding planning is coming along well – hopefully all of you have received our save the dates by now! When you have time check out: www.danandtrishaforever.com
