family dinner

NYC

This past holiday week we were fortunate enough to have Crystal parents brave the cold , and journey up from San Antonio to visit. They spent one evening here in Philly before heading up to NYC to see the sites and experience the transit strike. Thankfully the strike ended after two days and they were able to enjoy the beautiful NYC subway system. Pictured are Crystal and here parents on their fist subway and first trip to NY. We enjoyed seeing them again. The first time I had seen them since the wedding!! They finished off there trip with a great meal at Tratorria Vivolo and midnight mass before flying back to warm SA on Christmas day.

Finally a tree

We finally have a Christmas tree. That's right, after 4 Christmas' together in 3 states Crystal and I have gotten our first tree. The rightful place to display all of the ornaments that Crystal has been collecting over the past few years. It definitely puts us further into the holiday mood. The smell of fresh cut pine is a wonderful natural air freshener.

Moving!!!

So the move has been made. Crystal and I loaded up this snazzy little 26ft truck, attached my car to the back, and drove about 2200 miles from Denver to Chattanooga ( for the wedding) and then up to Philadelphia to our new home. Quite a drive. Crystal took control of the directions ( so that we would not get lost) and I took over all of the driving ( so that we would not crash) and now here we are..In our new home in Philly.

Congrats to Jess & Shane

It was a beautiful wedding that we attended in Chattanooga, TN. Jess is a great friend of ours who was Crystal's Maid of honor at our wedding and Shane though we have just started to get to know him, is not too bad.

PHILLY!

That's right y'all Crystal and I are in the process of relocating to beautiful Philadelphia. I have accepted a job as sous chef at the Philadelphia Downtown Marriott. Crystal has also accepted a job there as the Front desk Manager. Currently all of our worldly possessions are in Denver while we live in the hotel and look for a place to live. Once we get set up, and moved I will be updating the site with some pictures from our road trip. Until then........

Dalia Vivolo

Meet Dalia Vivolo, Dean & Odelya's beautiful daughter. I have the honor of being her god-father. So while we were up in NY this weekend we got some time to hang out with her.

VT weekend

Took a trip up to Vermont this past weekend to see our friend Melissa get married. It was a great outdoor ceremony and the weather was beatiful. That's Melissa being held up by Dean Sam and myself in the lower picture and us in the upper picture with our better, more sensible halves. They went to bed at a reasonable time and didn't end up with bruises and rugburns from amateur wrestling night.

Some more of Alaska

ALASKA

Seattle Underground

On our trip to Seattle, at the advice of a good friend, we took the Underground tour. Quite interesting stuff. Parts of Seattle are actually built one story above where old Seattle once stood. The picture of Crystal is taken at the same spot. The first is at street level standing on the "skylights" and the second one level down under the "skylights". A definite tour to take when y'all make it out that way! www.undergroundtour.com

Seattle trip

So Crystal and I have arrived back from our cruise to Alaska and visit to Seattle...finally after a day and half of standby flights at the airport...not so fun. Anyhow while in Seattle we explored some of the local sites, The Space Needle, Pikes Market, caught a Mariners game and saw some not so famous sites such as the " gum wall" pictured above and took a tour of the Seattle Underground, quite cool stuff. The Pike Street Market had tons of fresh local produce and seafood and tourists. As well as some unique veggies such as the Broccoli Romanesco pictured above. While the gum wall was not so tasty looking. Scenes from the Alaska crusie to follow shortly.

Crystal's 25th

That's right! Crystal turned 25 on the 1st of August and to celebrate we headed down to Pueblo for the evening for a very romantic dinner at Janes. ( Crystal got the fried chicken while I chose the Chinese) In Pueblo on a Sunday evening it was about the only place open beside the Bingo hall, where we wound up after dinner. The Bingo hall was packed with many retirees and quiteter than any church I have ever been too. Many were looking to change there fortune with draw of the ball. Unfortunately we never got to yell BINGO!!! To make it up to her the following day we went white water rafting on the Arkansas river. It was a beautiful 7 hr trip down the river, and if y'all ever get out this way you should check it out.

Mile High!

Finally after living in Denver for almost 16 months now Crystal and I have become "official" members of the Denver Mile High Club. That's right, last night we attended a Rockies game and sat in the purple row. The row of seats that measures exactly one mile above sea level, thus inducting us into that prestigious club. The Rockies lost but we had a great time. After spending some time near the top of the stadium we ventured down to some better seats and enjoyed the game. It is truly a different experience seeing a game here than at Yankee Stadium or fenway Park where most of the games are well attended. Here the stadium only reaches about 1/8 capacity. But it does make it easier to walk around the stadium and find alternate seating.

Garden Of The Gods

Crystal and I had the day off together so we decided to venture south to Colorado Springs and check out the Garden of the Gods. GOTG is a state park that is composed of numerous natural rock formations. Although we are unsure of origins of the parks name I know that if I were a "god" I would be sure to populate my garden with loads of exotic fruits, vegetables and herbs, not rocks, but hey that's just me. Regardless, the park itself was beautiful, and after a brief visit to the welcome center Crystal and I went on a 5 mile hike though the park and took a number of pictures, some are featured here.

GOTG con't

Family Reunion

this past weekend we gathered in Sevierville, TN for a family reunion for my mothers side of the family. We could not have done it at a better site, a 14 bedroom cabin along side a swift flowing river. The kitchen was beautiful, allowing a meal for 26 to be prepared seamlessly. The first photo is of much of the clan on our final morning, although a few members had already left to catch early flights, and the second is of me with my cousins Katie and Patrick. During our stay we went white water rafting, lit off many fireworks (where I was thanked by the adults instead of being grounded), spent late nights on the porch catching up with family, and enjoyed a few apple fritters with breakfast.

another New Yorker!

Our third New York visitor in as many weeks, Ms. Debbie came out for the weekend. On her first night we ate an obsence amount of food at Maggiano's, one of the best italian restaurants in town( although it cannot compare to Trattoria Vivolo!) Debbie played a vital role in our final kickball game of the season. Although, the true reason for her visit I believe , was to check out the Dew Action Sports tour that was in Denver, where she met her true love, Dave Mirra( world famous professional BMX'er). Quite an action packed weekend. It is always great to re-connect with old friends. Pictured are the three of us enjoying a few after the kickball game, and the other is crystal, debbie and dave

When squirrels attack!

Our final game of the kickball season was this past Saturday, and unfortunately we lost in the opening round. To add insult to injury this little bastard pictured to the right stole my cinnamon bun. So be on the lookout, he is a wanted felon with a sizeable reward for whomever captures him and brings him to me...dead or alive. you can check the wasa link for game day photos.

alanis

at my wifes request we went to see the Alanis Morissette acoustic tour. just a wee bit different from the concerts I take her to, where the music is loud and the mosh pit is fierce. This was a bit more mellow and one of the first concerts where we actually sat in a seat for the duration. We had a great time and since we were not frisked nor patted down I was able to get my camera in and take a few pics.

Happy 4th

For the second year in a row Crystal and I spent our 4th of July out at Red Rocks for the Blues Traveler concert. Thanks to Mr. Jeff King we not only received complimentary tickets but also VIP/All Access passes. Quite cool. Overall it was a great concert and the passes came in handy allowing us to use clean hippie-free bathrooms as well as dine backstage from the elaborate buffet set up for the band and crew. We enjoyed part of thier set sitting on the stage to the left of the band. We also got to view all of the fireworks from the surrounding counties from the top of Red Rocks which was an amazing sight.

New York Visitor #2

Well aren't we lucky! After traveling to Carbondale,Co to move a friend, Lara (dean's sister) decided to stop by for a day, and although i will not go to the gym with her again it was great seeing her and hanging out. this pic is the three of us at dinner.

New York Visitor!

my roommate, jack from culinary school came out for a few days to visit Crystal and I. This is the two of us out at Coors field watching the Rockies get crushed 5-12. not too bad for a self-photo. It was his first time out west so we checked out a couple of the local sites: downtown Denver, the Coors brewery in nearby Golden and Red Rocks amphitheater ( the best place to see a concert at.)

KICKBALL!!!

So to help occupy our time when we are not working and to keep us out of trouble, crystal and I joined a kickball team about a month and a half ago... thats right kickball!! It is loads of fun. We play every Monday night and so far our team is kicking a** our current record is 5-1. I know there are some skeptics out there, but trust me, it's cool. would I lie??? You can click on the attached link to check out our team photo. and yes the color on you screen is correct we are in pink, not my first choice but you get what ya can right?
http://www.wasasports.com/Kickball%20Spring%2005/photos/M_S_W1_KS05%20018.jpg
the league site is
www.wasasports.com we are Monday Night South Kickball TeamsThe "Freakin' 12 Guage" Division

happy couples

happy couples
Originally uploaded by johnandcrystal.

so this past weekend we were down in Florida for my cousin Ryan's wedding. we had a great time with the family. For those of you who didn't know my little baby sister recently got engaged to the second luckest guy around ( after me) Mr. John Hyland. This is the four of us at the reception. they will be getting married next august up in New Hampshire.

1 yr

anniversary dinner
Originally uploaded by johnandcrystal.

Crystal and I spent our one year anniversary in Aruba relaxing and catching some sun. This is our anniversary dinner with the top of our actual wedding cake that i had sent down as a surprise ... and it ending up sitting in customs for 4 days, completly melting and was "reconstructed" by the chef at our hotel . not to shabby! and very tasty!!!

Colorado livin'

up at breck
Originally uploaded by johnandcrystal.

So after a few wonderful years of living in San Antonio, getting married and buying a house we decided( probably against our better judgement) to move out west to Denver. To say the cold was a shock to my lovely bride is an understatement, but we made it thru the cold winter and got into snowboarding. this is a photo of us on our first day out a few months ago in Breckenridge

John & Crystal Baker what's going on!?

Well y'all we are following in the footsteps of my little sis. Starting our own blog site. Figured that since we live so far from everyone this would be a good way to keep y'all updated with whats going on in our lives. hope y'all enjoy!!