Chuck -n- Court

...December...

2012-01-02T16:03:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! Hope the year brings you all happiness and peace to you and your families.

Stepping back a little bit let's recap December...It was BUSY! I was determined to have a nice quiet holiday season and Christmas and I got a quiet Christmas, but not a quiet holiday season. However, it was fun!

We started out our December by going to Utah to visit my sister, her husband, my brother and his family. They had a new addition in October and so we were there to meet the little guy and witness his blessing. We had a wonderful time despite the cold! I now remember why I left Rexburg, ID and came home to California!!!

We played and played and played with my nephews...they even used me as a jungle gym. They are so funny and kept us laughing the whole time!

We were able to attend a session in the Salt Lake Temple. I had never been before and I absolutely loved the experience. I would like to go back again and again and again. I realized this temple's meaning to me too as I remembered I had pioneer ancestors and my Grandmother's Uncle (I believe) worked here in this temple. I felt very close to those who had gone on before me.

We walked Temple Square and looked at the Christmas lights. Boy was it COLD! It was windy and blowing right into our faces. Again, I was reminded why I love California so much...but I did enjoy the lights and the displays.

We were also able to celebrate Chuck's birthday while we were there with family. We had dinner, a Cold Stone Ice Cream cake, and opened presents. Chuck was great and let the nephew's help open his presents. We also ate at a BBQ place for his birthday. Everyone loved what they got, but my food was WAY too spicy to enjoy.

I apparently don't have all the pictures on my computer, I think other's are on my Mom's camera. Here's one more from our trip though...

Chuck with the new baby! So Sweet.

I wound up leaving my camera at my parent's house for a few days and so I don't have pictures of everything. The next event for us was my work holiday party. It was held this year at a beautiful hotel in Berkeley. We got dressed up, mingled, ate really good food, danced a little, chatted with my co-workers and stopped for milkshakes on the way home!

I then had an office holiday party also with good food, good conversation and an ornament exchange.

My sister and brother in law came into town for the week before Christmas and we celebrated my Dad's birthday by going and seeing the second Sherlock Holmes movie. Don't ask me if it's good, I was so tired from work when we went in the evening I really don't remember much from it.

We ate, had good conversation, played games, decorated Christmas sugar cookies (a family tradition) and celebrated Christmas with them early.

Christmas day Chuck and I had breakfast then headed to church for a nice Christmas program. We then went over to my parent's to open presents and have lunch. We then played Monopoly until dinner time. Again, good food and good conversation and good company. Christmas these past few years just hasn't been the same since my Grandfather passed away, but each year it gets easier and more and more enjoyable as we set new traditions.

Chuck and I rang in the New Year together quietly (which is what we wanted since we had been so busy). We had appetizers for dinner, and I had put together a few small "treats" for dessert. We played a game that Chuck got for Christmas and then watched "Crazy, Stupid, Love", kissed at midnight and went to bed!

*Note, we also saw "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" and "War Horse".

Looking forward now to the New Year and all that it will bring for us.

2011-12-23T18:46:00.000-08:00

...May thru November..

2011-11-25T12:43:00.000-08:00

One thing that frustrates me about blogging is the order/formatting of the pictures. These are backwards...sorry.

I'm been seriously lacking when it comes to blogging. Some things take a back seat as I deal with other things. It's been a seriously busy year and I can't believe Thanksgiving is over! So a recap of what we've been up to, backwards!

November:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I have so much to be thankful for, and I know sometimes I get frustrated and complain, but when I stop to think about things, I realize I am very very blessed. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and have a happy holiday season coming up filled with peace, love and laughter!

In September Chuck and I celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary. We decided to get away for the weekend and so we headed down to San Luis Obispo over Labor Day. We drove down Friday and stayed through Sunday. We toured San Luis Obispo which is a nice little college town and we even got to see the Cal Poly campus.

The main event for our Anniversary was our trip to Hearst Castle in San Simeon. I have been dreaming of going to Hearst Castle since I was in the eighth grade when I did a report on Julia Morgan, the architect who designed it. It was absolutely gorgeous and we really enjoyed our time there. We toured the main house (below) and then spent a lot of our time at the Neptune Pool. Oh my gosh, I was dying to jump in! I refrained though. It was a wonderful weekend. Happy Anniversary to us!

In July and August we had a lot of family in town. My Aunt, Uncle and Cousin's from Viriginia came to visit and it was a lot of fun to sit around and laugh together. My sister and her husband also came out and we went to Alcatraz. I love this place. I've been many times, but they had changed the tour a little bit this time and I got to see things I hadn't seen before. I loved it...and I love San Francisco!

My sister and I got married 11 months apart and so when they were visiting we ordered a cake from the place we both got our wedding cakes. YUM!

In July, my Grandfather passed away. While it sad we were able to get together with family from my dad's side, cousins and everyone! My two brothers and their families and my sister and her husband were able to come out also. I think the last time we were all together with cousins was when my Grandmother passed away in 2002 and of course the family has grown since then. It also has been a while since my family has been all together--and again we've grown. I just really enjoyed being together and my Aunt put together a really nice service for my Grandpa.

I love Ventura!

The kids were fascinated by a dead lizard!

The chapel where the service was held.

In May, over Memorial Day, Chuck and I went down to Ventura with my parents to visit my Aunt, Uncle and cousins and Grandpa. I am really grateful we were able to visit because it was the last time we were able to see my Grandpa before he passed away. We were able to talk to him and my Dad asked him about his childhood in L.A. as a boy, and he was able to tell us some funny stories

We had a great time and were grateful to have the experience we had.

Chuck overlooking the Harbor!

I think that catches us up--Cliff Notes version! See you in December!

...Oops!...

2011-10-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

...I am so far behind on this. I keep thinking I'll get to it soon, but soon never comes. I promise I will get to it, I have so much to catch up on...I'll do it soon...oh wait, let's shoot for Sunday! I'll do it Sunday!

...Four Years Ago Today...

2011-09-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

...Back Again!...

2011-07-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the formatting problems...I can't seem to fix them and don't feel like it right now. You'll get the gist.

Sorry it's been a long time! I see it's been since March so I've got some catching up to do...

Brief update. I'm still working, we have been down two people and so I'm also a little overworked. I am now serving in Young Women's at church. It's been about two months now, but I still feel like I'm trying to figure it all out, I had a rough start, I got sick shortly after I got called and missed an activity, then I went out of town, and then I got sick again! Sheesh. I'm enjoying it though and am excited for it.

Chuck finished another semester in May and has started another class for the summer. It's keeping him busy and he's really enjoying it.

In the mean time we've had some fun since March...here's the summary.

We had a pretty sunset one night...

I just liked this picture and wanted to share.

Over Conference Weekend we went back to the cemetery to see the tulips (which weren't in bloom) but it was such a beautiful day...even warm and had an amazing view overlooking the Bay.

He's so handsome!

In April my sister came for a visit and we went with my Mom to San Francisco for the day. I know I always say this, but I mean it every time...I LOVE THIS CITY! It's absolutely gorgeous, and we had wonderful weather that day as we wandered the Farmer's Market...No pictures of it though...Sorry.

We ate lunch at our favorite place...Boudin's. YUM!

I see I managed a picture of lunch though...go figure.

Chuck had a few days off of school in April, so I took a day off and we headed back to SF to go to the zoo. I hadn't been in a very long time. We stopped at got bagels at our stop The House of Bagels, and then made our way over to the coast where the zoo is located. It was overcast and drizzling but we didn't mind because that meant there weren't very many people, and that was what we needed...I won't bore you with all the pictures of the animals we saw, just the highlights...

I LOVED the giraffes. I think they are so pretty and I love how they look so big yet they are so dainty and elegant in how they move.

This was another favorite...I had never seen a black swan before! I love how graceful they are.

We also enjoyed the Polar Bear. He (or she?) was so playful and swimming. We wanted to take it home but then decided against it!

Chuck wraseled with a bear. He won.

We thought the Kangaroo's were pretty cool. They were hopping around...something we again had never seen before. Now I know this is not as cool as my siblings who have actually HELD a kangaroo, but this was as close as I got.

When we were done we drove across the street to the beach and ate our bagels and "Jewish Triangle cookies." I can't remember the name of them but they are yummy! Again, it was quiet and relaxing.

Our view while we ate lunch.

We then got this crazy idea that we could drive to Pier 39 (on the other side of San Francisco) for chocolate truffles. So we started heading back according to the directions. Um...we got lost. Here's a little map of where we were and where we wanted to go...

Easy enough right? Um wrong...It was more like this...

Ha. We were so lost! We drove around a really fancy residential area of SF that we had never seen before with HUGE houses which was kind of fun, we drove through the Castro District (never been before) and ended up at Sutro Tower (point B on the map). We then kept trying to make our way to the water, we knew if we could get there we could find our way. The water to us is like using the mountains in Utah for directions.

We were getting close, we could see the Ferry Building down the street...if we could make it there it was just a left hand turn and we made it. We got stuck in the wrong lane, and had to turn left. Chuck decided to take the next right to get back on track. I was feeling pretty good when all of the sudden I hear Chuck say, "Oh CRAP!" He startled me and I asked what was the matter...He said, "We're going the wrong way!" It was the wrong way, like we turned right down a one way street that was coming our direction kind of wrong way! Oh My...I thought this is it we're going to die!

Luckily, the cars were all stopped at a light about a block down and had just started our way when we realized our mistake. One guy zoomed past us while we were maneuvering out of the way and we see a place where we can turn...the passenger in the car right in front of us pointed us in the right direction. THANK YOU! We turned and arrived at our destination safely a few minutes later.

We stopped in the sports shop for Chuck.

Despite our wrong turn which we laughed about once our hearts started beating at a normal pace...we had a great day!

I'll post May, June and July's adventures in another post...To Be Continued...

...March 9, 2007...

2011-03-09T20:07:00.000-08:00

This is what we were doing 4 years ago today. We were still dating long distance, he was in Southern California and I was in Northern. We decided to take a trip back to Florida to visit his family and we wanted to take a day and spend it at DisneyWorld where we had met the year before. His sister came with us, and I'm so glad she did because she was the one who captured these pictures.

A Few Things I Remember:

I remember that I had a feeling this was coming but wasn't 100% sure. What Chuck didn't know was that if he hadn't proposed during this trip, there was a good chance I was going to give it to him straight--"Do you want to get married because if we aren't I'm moving on." Not because I was desperate, but because I wasn't into wasting precious dating time and it had been a year already. He claims this was his plan all along. Anyway, it doesn't matter because he was smart enough to propose!

I remember that this whole day Chuck kept touching one of his cargo pockets, which I thought was weird but I gathered that's where his wallet was...nope it was the ring.

I remember that the whole day I was thinking, "Now?...or maybe now?" I finally had to tell myself to stop and cut it out because if it didn't happen I would be disappointed and I didn't want to get myself psyched up for nothing...again, it happened so I had nothing to worry about.

We had spent the whole day in EPCOT and as we "made our way around the world" we stopped over the bridge between "France" and "England" to take this picture...

(I think Chuck looks nervous in this picture)

...then Chuck turned to me and said, "I know I should have done this a lot sooner, but will you marry me?"

My response? "SHUT UP!" Classy right? I started crying and said, "No way...are you serious?" Then I made sure I said "YES!" My response makes Chuck laugh every time. He also laughs because I apparently fanned myself like Miss Congeniality. This part I don't remember.

(My favorite picture)

Then we kissed, hugged and laughed--people cheered and clapped for us. It was fun.

Again, I'm so glad that his sister was with us to capture the moment. These are some of my favorite pictures of Chuck and I. We look so happy! We still are.

After it was over Chuck's sister told us that there was a woman walking by not paying attention to where she was going and she almost bumped into Chuck just as he was kneeling. Once she realized what was going on she stopped and said, "OH MY GOSH!" We remembered hearing someone saying that, and I very clearly remembering how weird it was that my instinct was to turn and look but I couldn't, it was just Chuck and me in tunnel vision. Funny though.

We ran through the rest of EPCOT and the Magic Kingdom looking like this...

...it was fun when people asked when we got married and we would say, "No! We just got engaged like a minute ago!"

I can't believe it's been four years already, they've gone by so fast and it feels like so much has happened and we've grown so much more than we ever could have expected. We were laughing today that we don't think either of us really knew what we were getting into, we just knew whatever it was, we wanted to do it together.

...Seriously. March?...

2011-03-05T13:39:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's March already...what happened to Christmas, New Years and Valentine's Day? Needless to say, things have been BUSY! I was thrilled that I was able to sleep in until 8 a.m. this morning. I found a little down time and realized I haven't updated the blog in a LONG time...so okay, let's play a little catch up...

CHRISTMAS!!!

We went to my work holiday party that was held at the Blackhawk Car Museum...Chuck was in HEAVEN!

We went to the Jelly Belly Factory.

We went to the Oakland LDS Temple to see the lights and nativity.

Decorated sugar cookies with Caitlin and James...a Terry Tradition.

Christmas Eve dinner.

I don't have too many pictures of Christmas...we were tired after our little incident Christmas Eve night...after Chuck and I went home after the festivities to finish wrapping presents and curl up to watch "Christmas Story" I went to jump in the shower and as I went to turn it off, it wouldn't turn off! The shower head and the faucet for the tub were both running water and we couldn't get it turned enough to drain, the tub just kept filling up...It was around 11:30 p.m. and we called my Dad came over with some tools to see if he couldn't help us...He and Chuck were able to turn the water off enough for the tub to start draining, but the water was still coming out the faucet...so I had to call our manager. Suprisingly she picked up! She and her son who does some work around the apartments were fiddling with our shower...we're pushing 12 midnight and later now Christmas Eve. I felt so bad that they had to come over, but what could we do? It was decided the problem was the valuve and we couldn't do anything about until the main "handy man" could come in the morning...our manager couldn't turn our water off either because it would have shut the water off for EVERYONE!

So, Chuck and I packed up our stocking and presents, grabbed our pillows and a blanket and headed over to my parents house to stretch out on their couches...lucky for us they had just bought new ones!!! Despite the drama we had a nice Christmas.

NEW YEARS!

I seriously don't remember what we did for New Years...it must have been uneventful.

VALENTINE'S DAY!

We had a quiet Valentines...I bought Chuck some Hot Tomales and an iTunes Gift Card, and I came home from work to find this...

THE BED MADE!!! Just kidding, a box of chocolates and caramels in the shape of a flower. Chuck's so cute!

Other than work, Chuck in school, and turning in our taxes...there's nothing new to report.

I just still can't believe it's March...anyone else?

...Merry Christmas...

2010-12-24T15:21:00.000-08:00

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas

and pray that you and your family may enjoy

health, happiness, and peace in the upcoming year.

Love,

...Books...

2010-12-08T21:19:00.000-08:00

Have you read more than 6 of these books? The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here. Bold those books you've read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started but didn't finish or read an excerpt. I have to say, I was surpised at how many I had read!

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling

5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

6 The Bible

7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell

9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman

10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens

11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott

12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy

13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller

14 Complete Works of Shakespeare

15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier

16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks

18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger

19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger

20 Middlemarch - George Eliot

21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell

22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald

24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy

25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams

27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck

29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens

33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis

34 Emma -Jane Austen

35 Persuasion - Jane Austen

36 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis

37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres

39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

40 Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne

41 Animal Farm - George Orwell

42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving

45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery

47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy

48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood

49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50 Atonement - Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel

52 Dune - Frank Herbert

53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons

54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth

56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt

64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac

67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy

68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding

69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie

70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville

71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

72 Dracula - Bram Stoker

73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson

75 Ulysses - James Joyce

76 The Inferno - Dante

77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome

78 Germinal - Emile Zola

79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray

80 Possession - AS Byatt

81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker

84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro

85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert

86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry

87 Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton

91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery

93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks

94 Watership Down - Richard Adams

95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole

96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute

97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas

98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

...Thanksgiving...

2010-12-04T21:29:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. I started Wednesday night by whipping up some YUMMY cinnamon rolls for breakfast...

I didn't seem to take a picture of the finished result but oh man, they were good!

Then Thursday morning, after sleeping in a little bit, I went for a walk with my Mom while Chuck went off to play football with some of the guys from church. He had such a good time...and no one got hurt. Just a few scratches here and there.

They played with a real football, I just made Chuck pose with our nerf one.

We then went with my parents and Nanny (my Grandma) to see "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." We LOVED it. I can't wait until the second half comes out...

Then it was dinner time!

We didn't do much the rest of the weekend...which was nice. But I did drag Chuck out on Black Friday. His birthday was the following week, and I knew it would be one of the only times I could get out there to do some shopping. I also figured I'd get everyone else their gifts. So up we rose at 6:15 a.m. and we were out to the mall by 7 a.m. We lucked out, as we were pulling in a car was pulling out. BINGO! In and out with some GREAT deals, and off to Target next. Again, as we pulled in, someone was pulling out...DOUBLE BINGO! In and out and a few good deals, and we were home by 9:30 a.m. Chuck went back to bed, I went grocery shopping and snuck in a nap later that afternoon. We said we'd go out on Black Friday agian next year...not only to do Christmas shopping, but maybe a little shopping for ourselves!

Next up...CHRISTMAS!

...NKTOBSB...

2010-11-22T21:14:00.000-08:00

I recorded the American Music Awards the other night to watch the perfomances. Okay really, just to watch the New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys perform...I was not disappointed. So if you're a fan, and want to feel like you're 14 again, enjoy the video! Pardon the crotch grab in the middle...NKTOBSB forever!

I also want to give a shout out to 'Nsync...they didn't perfom but I have love for them too.

...Halloween...

2010-11-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I tried to make Halloween fun this year since we don't ever get trick or treaters, and we had Stake Conference this weekend. So we had our traditional Halloween dinner of "moldy brains with blood wrapped in human flesh and potion to drink." It's just Mushu Chicken and Grape Juice.

We then carved pumpkins...

He's supposed to be winking at you.

Then it was time to watch "Monster House" and have dessert. Dessert was a chocolate cup with a scoop of Orange Sherbet. It's tradition. We grew up eating these at Halloween time.

...UTAH...

2010-10-07T19:25:00.000-07:00

At the end of September we went back to Utah to visit one of my brothers and my sister and their families.

We stopped by Temple Square to look at the Salt Lake Temple.

We were able to go into the Old Tabernacle. Someone was playing the organ, it was pretty cool.

We made our annual stop at Cabellas where Chuck found a hat he liked!

My sister and her husband bought a moped and James was nice enough to give Chuck a ride on it. It was funny, as Chuck was getting on the back James pointed out the handles Chuck could hold onto if he needed. I guess he didn't want Chuck's arms around him...LOL.

Saturday morning we ate breakfast at Burges Waffles and Fries. They are authentic Belgin Waffels and they were YUMMY!

We then went to a place called "Gardners Village" where there are all these crafty shops in these cute little buildings. It was all decorated for Halloween with Witches infront of the stores. Chuck was getting fresh with one of them.

We stopped in this Christmas shop and I found this awesomely bad Christmas ornament. There were a ton of these "mer-man's" and mermaids that were for 20% off. Go figure. This merman was pumping iron...

This was a hippie one. There was also merman hairdresser, rock star, "G", and others. I don't know who in their right mind would put this on their Christmas tree.

We tried on witches hats and had a blast...and took a picture of all the "Terry Witches."

Sunday we visited the "This is the Place" monument.

Ha. My Mom asked me not to blog this picture of us, but it's my blog not hers...I love their faces!

...Fort Point and The Palace of Fine Arts...

2010-09-07T21:28:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post this, but don't feel like typing too much tonight. Plus this is way late.

Chuck and I went to Fort Point and the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco with my folks.

We had such a great time. We made our regular stop and the House of Bagels. YUM!

Here are the pictures...

Oh...San Francisco is G-ORGEOUS!

...I'm Gonna Do It...

2010-07-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

After receiving some feedback, I decided I was going to go ahead with the "weight loss blog." I hate calling it that, but that's what it is. If anyone can think of something else to call it, I'd love to hear it!

Here's what I've decided. I am going to try and post once a week. Just my thoughts, your thoughts, progress, struggles, successes, ideas, tips and tricks. I'm no expert, but maybe we can turn to a few through out the journey, and I'll throw some ideas out there...some for me, and some for you!

I am going to make it "invitation only." I don't want to be "exclusive" but I also want it to be a safe place for myself, and for anyone else who wants to jump in. It'll feel like a little support group (This is a safe circle!)

I would also like to celebrate your successes, and help you in your struggles. If you would like me to post an idea, success, progress, etc. at the beginning of your comment write "PLEASE POST" and I'll turn it into a brand new post and you'll receive the credit! If you want to share but would like to keep your comment private, please write "PRIVATE" at the beginning of your comment and I will not publish the comment.

All other comments will be "published."

So...if you want to join us, even if you aren't interested yourself in losing weight, but want to celebrate with us, or throw some ideas out there, please let me know! I'm collecting email addresses now and will continue to along the way, if you know anyone who would like join. Please send me your email, you can leave it in the comments, I'll just collect them, I won't publish them.

Let the fun begin!

P.S. I will do my best to keep up on the blog, because I want to really do this...however, if it becomes too much and I choose to stop, I'll let you know.

...New Blog...

2010-07-24T08:16:00.000-07:00

I'm debating...I started a new blog to track my journey with weight loss. It will be a blog about, my successes, my struggles, etc. I would also like to open it up to others to share their successes, struggles, ideas, etc.

So here's my question...should I keep it private so it's like a journal for myself, or is it something that others would be interested in reading, and where they can share, etc.

Should I make it invite only or open to anyone? I'm debating and don't know. I've added a poll to the right if you would like to give your input.

...Disneyland...

2010-07-18T14:07:00.000-07:00

In June we traveled to DISNEYLAND!!! My sister and her husband came out for the trip and off we went with my folks. We had such a blast. We were lucky enough to stay at the Disneyland Hotel. Ever since I was a little girl I remember wanting to stay there and my dream finally came true...I guess now I need to find another dream.

We stayed three days and here's what we did...

This has to be one of my favorite parts of the trip. There was a switch for the headboard of the bed and it would play "A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes" and then the fireworks would light up. We left them on the whole time. Right before we would go to bed, we'd turn off the lights and turn the fireworks on. I loved it.

First morning, bright and early we were waiting at the gates to get in. We made really good time on all the rides. Most of the rides we waitied for were approximately 20 minutes or so, and we made use of the FastPasses for when the rides got longer...

We hit Indiana Jones, The Jungle Cruise...

Pirates of the Caribean...

The Haunted Mansion. It was fun to ride this one, because the last two times we have been to Disneyland the Haunted Mansion was decorated for Christmas and they decorate it and change it so it's the characters from "The Nightmare Before Christmas."

The MEN tried their luck at the Shooting Range...I think my Dad won. He usually does.

Onto the Riverboat...I hadn't been on this since I was a little girl. It was kind of nice and relaxing.

We then waiting "3" minutes for the Winnie the Pooh ride. It was a cute ride, we rode in little honey pots!

Splash Mountain was next. We used our FastPasses for this one, and good thing we did. The line was over an hour long and we waited 15 minutes?

Chuck and I ended up in the front somehow and we got SOAKED! It was like a title wave had come into our log and drenched us. True story, I saw it coming our way! We were soaked through. Luckily it was warm and we went from SOAKED to damp in an hour and a half.

We then ran into Briar Bear who was nice enough to let us take his picture. My brother in law, James embarassed him by bringing up the time that Briar Bear got a little "fresh" with my Mom back in when she was younger...we had a good laugh about it though.

We saw Princess Tiana perform in New Orleans Square.

Found Club 33. Very exclusive! Chuck tried to knock but they wouldn't let us in...haha.

Hit one of our favorite rides...Thunder Mountain Railroad!

We rode the monorail a lot from the park into Down Town Disney which was walking distance to our hotel.

That night we ate dinner at Cafe Orleans and had their famous Monte Cristo Sandwiches.

The next morning, we got up EXTRA EARLY to enjoy "Magic Morning Hours." We rode the Matterhorn...

Teacups...our favorite. Then onto the Alice in Wonderland ride...

Onto Dumbo...we also rode the Pinocchio, Snow White, and the Peter Pan ride...

We ran over to California Adventure and hit California Screamin'

Saw some Green Army Men from Toy Story

And waited 120 minutes for the Toy Story Mania ride. This was the longest ride we stood in line for, and we only did it because we were told the line doesn't go down. It was worth the wait!

That evening we watched the "World Of Color" show that is new at CA Adventure. It was amazing. We lucked out and got a really good spot and it wasn't overly crowded for us. After the show we ran back over to Disneyland to ride the Buzz Lightyear ride. Chuck and my Dad have this ongoing competition with this ride, Chuck has yet to beat my Dad. This year James got in on the action.

On the last day we hit some rides we had done the previous days and got on Tower of Terror. They take your picture right before you drop and so I took my camera and took a picture of our picture. James and I are doing the "Japanese Peace," my sister turned into a cheerleader apparently, and Chuck is representing Castro Valley! This is one of our favorite rides. My mom refuses to get on it. She was able to do it once when we were in Florida and she was almost in tears...she doesn't like it.

Moving on...

Our last night we ate at the Blue Byou resturant. It's such a nice atmosphere and was a great way to end our trip.

Let's see...some other tid bits...

We loved the pool at the hotel. It has a slide that we went down a hundred times. We were even able to get my Mom and Dad to go down.

My sister and her husband saw Christian Bale with his family, and my Mom and my sister saw the actor who plays Sawyer on LOST. I missed both...bummer.

We had a blast and Chuck and I have decided we're going to start saving to go back next year.

...Ventura...

2010-05-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

Recently my fathers uncle passed away. In the grand scheme of things, it was a blessing. Anyway, we went to Ventura for his service. Chuck and I love Ventura! It is in such a beautiful setting. It's tucked away from the major freeways, you have the beach on one side, mountains on the other, and the valley is filled with farm land. We went last October for my cousins wedding and were excited to go back again.

All along California are the California Missions established when California was Mexico really. Anyway, they are spaced up and down California's coast one days journey apart (back in the day...not car ride). I've been to a couple of them and find them so interesting and Ventura has one that I had never been to. It was founded Easter Sunday in 1782. It has interesting things to look at in the small museum. Here we are in the beautiful gardens, it must have been about 10 degrees cooler inside here. We were able to go into their chapel and look around. It is very different than our chapels, but very neat to look at how other religions worship...

This was the inside of the chapel. Very colorful, full of replications of Christ on the Cross, and other Saints. I just loved it.

After visiting the mission, we went and visited my Grandpa (father's father). He recently was moved into a really nice nursing facility (reminded us of the movie Cacoon...ha), he too has been in poor health and needs help getting around. He's really mentally with it still and was cracking jokes with us and laughing with us. The nice thing about this place is that one of my Grandparent's oldest friend and my Aunt's Godmother, Martha Frank is in the same home so there's a friendly face for my Grandpa. I don't remember ever meeting her before, but I guess have met her and her husband at another family gatherings. Martha Frank's husband was the one who taught my Dad everything about the outdoors and camping and backpacking and hiking. They never had children of their own and I guess my Dad and Aunt were like their "surrogate children." She was such a sweet lady, I wish I remembered her more.

We had some free time one day, so we stopped by the beach for some sun and swimming. When we got there the beach was COVERED in rocks! Chuck got in the water and it was full of boulders! We were so bummed! It wasn't like this the last time we went to the beach here...not fun. We later found out that they were drudging? the shoreline. Thanks for ruining my beach experience! So we moved on...It was also getting time for us to get ready for the service.

My Great Uncle...Uncle Barney was cremated and his wishes were to be burried at sea. He was in the Navy during World War II and was a Merchant Marine his whole life. So that's exactly what we did. His ashes were put into a rock salt urn and sealed, and when you drop it in the ocean it will sink and disolve within 4 hours. Pretty cool.

We got on the boat, and it was a beautiful evening. Not a cloud in site...we're tooling along the harbor thinking this is so nice...We get past the break water and start to speed up. Not too bad but the further out we get the rockier it gets...I've been on boats...I've taken the ferry over to the city before and haven't had a problem, but I never have been in open waters! It was windy that evening...the captain let us stand at the front of the boat and man we were getting slammed! You could see the waves coming and you go directly into them! You get tossed up and slammed back down. It makes your stomach jump! We were laughing so hard! Over and over, up and down, up and down, over and over...It was doing pretty good...I was white knuckling the railing though and didn't want to move. I don't really get motion sickness either, but after about the 20th wave I was starting the get a headache and a little nervous...my anxiety was starting to rise...you had to go about 3 miles off shore to do this and I wasn't sure how far away that was! We were getting soaked with wawter too! As my cousin said, "I've seen this movie, it had George Clooney and Mark Whalberg and it didn't end well." Yep! That's what I thought too.

Eventually I made my way to the back of the boat which was a little calmer and then we idoled in the ocean to drop Uncle Barney overboard...ha that sounds awful but it's true. My great uncle was a no fuss man. Wouldn't want a big production to be made. So a prayer from a prayer bible was read, and my cousin read a poem as my Dad held the urn...when it was time my Dad's last words were..."We'll miss you Uncle Barney...Hope you make a big splash!" And that was that. I wanted to get a picture of it in the water, thinking it would float for a minute or slowly sink, but no...that think went down QUICK! My Dad dropped it and there was no trace of it left.

The cool thing was though, almost immediately as the urn went over board, a sea lion popped up! My cousin said that Uncle Barney was reincarnated! We also thought maybe we hit the sea lion on the head...ha! It was interesting because the sea lion would come up and look directly at us and swim back down and come up again. It must have followed us for about 10 minutes! It was really amazing.

It was such a fun experience being on the boat and it was very fitting for my "uncle." I think he would have liked it.

Us before the boat really took off...

Chuck after getting soaked...His hair was standing straight up...He looked like Teen Wolf!

We went back to my Aunts house for pizza and hung out. They have an orange tree, and a blood orange tree in their back yard as well as a "Guacamole Tree" (Avacado Tree). I paid a buck fifty for an avacado at the Farmers Market last weekend and Chuck and I picked about 20 off their tree! I love avacados and once they ripen not only are we going to eat them, but I think I'm going to make a facial mask out of some of them.

My Aunt and Uncle have this device that allows you to pick the fruit off the tops of the trees...it was pretty cool...Chuck and I were like kids fighting over who got to pick the next fruit with the "picker."

Chuck with the avacados...

Me with the oranges.

Some other fun pictures...

This was one of the Mission Bells along Highway 101. They are approximately one mile apart and mark the road along the California missions. This picture is a little bit of a joke. We kept pointing them out on the ride home and my Dad suggested we take a picture with one if we were going to talk about them so much...so we kept our eye for one with a sign (some didn't have signs) and up came this one..."THERE!" My Dad practically screeched off the road, and we climbed through weeds to get this picture...Ha! It was funny. I like this picture.

We stayed at a nice motel that was very concerned about the cleanliness of their grounds, so they had this sign with baggies for guests with pets. Ha! Someone probably thought this was such a clever idea...it kind of is. Watch out for Office Poop A Trooper or he'll get ya!

We had a really nice weekend get away and celebrated Uncle Barney and enjoyed our time with family! Hope to be able to see everyone again soon!

(I hate the random spacing, but can't figure out how to correct it...sorry)

...Tagged...

2010-05-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

I got tagged...I had to go into my pictures, the first file and pick the 10th picture and write about it. To my horror, this is the lucky picture.

It was taken in August 2009 in Muir Woods. The nice thing is when our other computer crashed I thought all these pictures went with it, so it's nice to know I have them! It's definately not my favorite picture, but I believe in pictures for posterities sake so I take them. I remember this day clearly. I had just been diagnosed with Depression and was feeling very overwhelmed and needed to get away for the day, so Chuck and I picked Muir Woods. To be surrounded by beautiful redwood trees and to be able to be away from work and cell phones and Facebook and everything else that clouds your life. I was excited to go but also very nervous...along with my depression, I was highly ramped up with anxiety. I was feeling awakward in my new body (weight gain due to the depression) and couldn't remember if I was going to have to "hike hike" or if I could just meander through the woods. I also didn't know what to wear becasue I wasn't sure how much "hiking" we would have to do and nothing was fitting at the time...so I decided on leggings, a sweater and my raspberry shirt. Now I see it would qualify me for "What Not To Wear."

Depsite my worries about the day I was proud of myself for the walking and "hiking" I did and I loved my time with Chuck in Muir Woods. It was beautiful!!! It was calming and was better than I expected.

We then went into the Gift Shop afterwards...when ever we go somewhere we try to pick up a Christmas Ornament or a magnet for our fridge...$40 later we had what we were looking for plus some! We still joke about it today, that we can't go into gift shops...anyway...

I was also really nervous about driving through the city, I don't do it very often and was afraid we'd get hit or lost (did I mention I had anxiety?) Well on our way across the Golden Gate Bridge we came along the Warf and decided to stop at Boudin's Bakery for lunch...One of our favorite places! It was sunny and warm and we enjoyed eating our lunch outside watching the city pass us by.

I hate this picture, but I would definately go back to Muir Woods again...hopefully very soon!

Okay, my turn to tag four people. I tag...Kyra, Alissa, Cecilia, and Emily.

...March for Babies/March of Dimes...

2010-03-01T21:09:00.000-08:00

I'm really excited to announce that I will be participating in this years local March for Babies/March of Dimes. Eden Medical Center and Sutter Health (who I work for) are big sponsors of the cause and participate in the fundraising and walk each year. I think it's a wonderful cause...if you know me at all you know that I LOVE BABIES! I don't have any yet, but I know that I want all Mothers to have the best care and all babies to have the best chance.

If you want to know more about March of Dimes, please go to http://www.marchofdimes.com/. If you're interested in helping me with fundraising, please go to www.marchforbabies.org/courtim to donate. Or you can click on my March for Babies badge on the right...

If you're interested in walking...please let me know and you can join our team! The March for Babies website also has information on walks all around the US if you're interested in getting involved in your area.

Every penny counts! and Every baby does too!

Isn't he so cute!

Date of walk: Saturday, April 24th

...Up and Running Again...

2010-02-25T20:36:00.000-08:00

We did not fall off the face of the earth...I promise. February has proven to be a very busy month for us so far, and we are back on the grid...I have to admit, I didn't mind being out of touch for a little bit. I'm getting ahead of myself...let me start from the beginning and give you the bullet points...

January 31st we came home from dinner at my Grandparents house only to have our key break off in our lock. We we had to spend the night at my folks, and I went to my 8 a.m. meeting at work in my leggings...luckily I got into the room before everyone else and was able to take a seat without anyone noticing...
February 1st our handyman came over to fix our lock and I came home to change my clothes into something a little bit more work appropriate and we had him look at the mold/mildew problem that was taking over our bedroom...we were loosing the battle...come to find out there was a problem with the roof and our new window was never properly sealed...the landloard and the manager decided they needed to take a closer look at things and so we had to move everything out but our bed and dresser out of the bedroom--clothes ALL OVER the living room and boxes in the kitchen!
February 2nd our bedroom wall and window sill were torn out! We spent the next week eating out (no room in the kitchen or living room) and started packing because we had to move out.
February 5th-8th was packing and moving into the new apartment that they gave us...we moved pretty quickly considering both Chuck and I had terrible colds all week.
February 25th sadly I admit that we are still not unpacked...neither of us have been home, things have been so crazy at work for me, the hospital will be surveyed any day now and we are BUSY! It is all hands on deck! Chuck has been busy with school during all of this as well. Nice thing is we've been sleeping soundly at night!

So we finally got our cable and internet hooked back up and we are up and running again! We still need to let a few companies know we've moved and we need to give back our old mailbox key and get the new one, but that'll get taken care of eventually!

Hopefully March will be calmer...I think I just jinxed us!

...Wedding Song...

2010-02-25T20:25:00.000-08:00

I think if Chuck and I had decided to dance at our wedding, I would have chosen this song by Dave Matthews Band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD9CrZODlNA

I can't go back and dance with him on our wedding day, but maybe I'll suggest that we make this our "theme song."

...The Walt Disney Museum...

2010-02-05T21:19:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we went to The Walt Disney Museum in San Francisco. Our first stop in the city was at the House of Bagels...traidional New York bages, boiled not baked. YUM!

Chuck couldn't wait to get his hands on one...or two...or three.

The museum is located in the Persidio...old military barracks right on the Bay. I think it's so beautiful over there. Anyway, this is the outside of the museum like I said and it doesn't look like much but it is amazing inside. No cameras of course...so no pictures of the inside.

We enjoying our bagels and shmear outside. The weather can be iffy sometimes and we've had a lot of rain lately but it was BEAUTIFUL this day! (Apparenlty I need a haircut...).

I love this bridge...I couldn't get enough of it this day...I took tons of pictures from all sorts of views...

I love this city! A view of Alcatraz from the top of the Persidio and sailboats infront of the Golden Gate Bridge.

One of my favorite parts of the museum was seeing upclose all the Oscars Walt Disney won...my favorite one was the special Oscar that was made for him when he won for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Shirley Temple presented it to him. There was the main Oscar with seven mini, one for each dwarf. I love it! It was so neat to see them up close. The museum was worth it. There was so much to look at that you can't possibly read every detail in one day. I'd love to go back. We had a lot of fun.

...Christmas and New Years...

2010-01-03T21:11:00.000-08:00

To kick start the holiday season Chuck and I attended my work party. It was really fun this year and I even got to take home the centerpiece!

Then it was up with the Christmas tree and decorations. My stocking was hand made by my grandmother and when Chuck joined the family, I made his by hand. It is tradition that every member and addition to the family gets a stocking. My mother makes them now for the grandkids and I hope to continue this with our children and grandchildren.

For New Year's Eve we went to dinner at our favorite local resturant Ghenix. It's Asian Fusion and served family style where you order a few dishes and share. YUM! Then it was over to my parents for games with them and my sister Caitlin and her husband James. At nine o'clock California time my Uncle who lives in Virginia calls every year "from the future" since it's 2010 their time, but 2009 our time. We get a kick out of this...this year he found a program on the computer that will generate a "robot" voice and when we picked up a "robot" was calling us from the future. It's pretty funny...Then when the ball dropped we wished each other a happy New Year, kissed our sweethearts, and then headed home for bed (I've had a bad cold and barely made it to midnight). It was a lot of fun!

...January Goal...

2010-01-03T00:37:00.000-08:00

After I wrote my last post and I browsed the web for a while (okay longer than I should have) I decided I needed smaller monthly goals this year of projects I wanted to complete. I feel sometimes if I can't complete it all at once I shouldn't even bother...well we all know that's not true.

So...for the month of January it is my goal to complete the nativity set I have been painting. In October I got all the paint I needed to get going on the project and it was my goal to finish by Christmas...well that didn't happen, I only got two wisemen, Mary and the Baby Jesus completed. It is my goal to have the other wiseman, Joseph, the Shepard and the animals completed by the end of Janauary, fully painted and sealed with finsh. I'll post my final results before or by Janaury 31st. Wish me luck!

...2010...

2010-01-02T20:53:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

I was looking back on what I wrote on New Years coming into 2009 and I talked about having a fresh start and being excited for the unexpected and new begginings, etc. Little did I know that we would have one of the toughest years to date and was glad to see 2009 go and never come back. I think because of this I have been a little apprehensive about getting excited for a new year and setting goals...It's the idea that you under promise and over perform. But not wanting to be a total downer, I can list a few great things that happened this past year and I have slowly started to come around to the idea that setting goals gives us something to do and work on to help us become better people. So I've set some goals...ones that Chuck and I can work on together as a family and personal ones that include setting financial goals, goals based on health--both on my emotional and physical health, spiritual goals...and the like.

So here's wishing for a better year than last year and wishing everyone happiness, health, and peace!

2009-12-24T11:00:00.000-08:00

If you would like to "Mad Men" youself, here's the link: http://www.amctv.com/originals/madmen/madmenyourself/

...Virginia...

2009-12-12T20:04:00.001-08:00

For the first week of December we were in Virginia visiting with Chuck's family. We were all able to be together for the first time since everyone was in Florida, three years ago! We all stayed at his brother's house and had the best time! We stayed up late playing Wii and talking and laughing. We shared the basement with Chuck's sister, Jenny and her husband, Dave and their three year old son, Danny...when we get together with them it's like one big sleepover!

We were also able to go to the temple as a family. It was such a wonderful experience and after we came out of the temple there was a couple of inches of snow on the ground! It looked like a Winter Wonderland! While I don't care for the snow, I will say it was a fun suprise. At the Visitor Center there on the temple grounds they had nativity sets from all around the world. They were so interesting and fun to look at. I've posted a few of my favorites below...

We're so grateful that we were able to see his family and spend a week with them! Thanks for the fun!

This nativity is made out of shells and pearls from New Zealand.

I think this one was from Uganda. I think this one was my favorite.

This was Chuck's favorite, it was from China. Mary is dressed in a kimono.

L-R: Me, Chuck, Sally, Jen, Randy Snr., Randy Jr., Jenny and Dave

Enjoying the snow!

We were back there for Chuck's birthday. Our sweet niece Olivia made Chuck a "Birthday Crown" out of binder paper and colored jewels on it. Chuck wore it proudly at his birthday dinner! Thanks Olivia!

This is what we saw when we exited the temple! COLD!

The Washington D.C. temple in the snow.

Chuck lovin' the snow!

Chuck and Dave playing Wii...I think this night was Madden Fantasy Football.

...Evening Sky...

2009-11-27T23:41:00.000-08:00

Today I managed to survive "Black Friday". Okay I only went to one store and it was later in the afternoon, but still. On my way home it started to sprinkle. I thought, "Okay it's November this is normal. " But the sky was so dark. I took a nap when I got home and woke up in time to hear the heavy rain.

It was coming down in buckets!!! Then all of the sudden I see a flash...LIGHTNING! I waiting for the thunder and almost immediately there it was BOOM! Oooh...cool. Again, a flash of light and then the thunder. Again, a third time! I know for some of you this is no big deal but we do not get lightning and thunder out here and we definately don't get it three times in a row! I was sad when it was over, I loved the sound of it.

When it was over the rain slowed to a spinkle again and the clouds swiftly moved on leaving this beautiful sunset. I was struck by how fast the storm came and how quickly it left leaving something wonderful to look at in it's place. I just had to take a picture!

These pictures don't do the colors justice.

...Chuck...

2009-11-16T01:19:00.001-08:00

Okay, I'm going to admit it, I secretly roll my eyes when other people post about how great their significant other is...obviously they are great otherwise you wouldn't be with them right? Okay, well now I need to take back all those giggles because today I felt like paying tribute to my love.

This year has been kind of rough for Chuck and I. I'm not just talking about like kind of bumpy and we've gotten over it, I mean it's been ROUGH, like I'll be glad to see 2009 go and never come back rough. It feels like we have had one hit after another and while we're down life keeps hitting us. Enough already!

I know things have been rough for other people, believe me, I've talked to some and am grateful I don't have their trials, but for Chuck and I, relative to us, it's been hard. I'll be glad to start 2010 and have a blank slate.

Okay, not my point to gripe, because even though things have been rough, we have been blessed, and my family has been blessed and I can recognize that...

...but this is not my point, my point is Chuck. I really don't think I would have made it through the year without his love and support. I dropped him off at an early morning meeting at church today and on my way back home I just felt such gratitude for him in my life. I have not been the easiest person to live with this year but Chuck has never waivered. I am so grateful for the temple covenants that we made two years ago, and that when we attend the temple, like we were able to this past weekend, I am so grateful to be reminded of that day. It was one of the best decisions we've ever made. When things are tough I know that no matter what we have made that committment to eachother and have the Lord on our side.

Chuck is wonderful. He serves faithfully, has a heart of gold which he extends to everyone, he is funny and makes me laugh, he works hard, and he cares for me when I need him. He has been my rock this year and I hope that I can return the love and support every day and especially on the days he needs me.

Chuck on his first day of school.

...Utah Weekend...

2009-11-16T00:57:00.000-08:00

We are back and up and running again...we've been without a computer for the past couple of weeks and have solved the problem (Thanks to the generosity of others.)

Anyway, not my point.

A few weekends ago Chuck and I went to Utah to take part in the blessing of my new nephew Liam. We were really excited to get away for the weekend and see family. We were sad that my brother Bryan and his family couldn't be there, but we did have them in our thoughts.

We had beautiful weather, played games, played with my other nephew Isaac (Liam's older brother), went to the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake and just really had a great time. My brother blessed my nephew on Sunday and it was a beautiful blessing. We had a really great time and can't wait to go back and see everyone again!

We rode the carosel at the zoo, not as much fun as when we were kids.

This is a baby giraffe. So pretty!

My mom, sister and I.

This is the zoo's new baby elephant, born at the zoo. She was my favorite! She was so playful and so cute. I love that she's a baby but has saggy skins and wrinkly knees like an old lady...not that I know if old lady's have wrinkly knees, I'm just saying...nevermind. She was fun to watch.

Next to her mom.

My nephew Isaac. He is so sweet and says the funniest things. We were eating lunch together and he was sitting next to me, he saw I was eating soup and asked, "You're eating carrots? and noodles? and chicken?" I said, "Yes I am." and took a spoonful of my soup and the noodle dropped off my spoon, Isaac saw this and said, "Oops, your noodle fell! Silly noodle." Ahh, melt my heart.

I also came home with sticky hair because of Isaac. He was eating lunch meat and smushing it in between his hands and then he'd reach over and touch my hair. He was doing this a lot that weekend, eating and then reaching over to touch my hair, and it wasn't until the last day at lunch that I he was doing this and I had gunk in my hair...needless to say I went home and washed it. It was worth it though, Chuck and I had fun spending time with Isaac.

The kids on the blessing day...minus Bryan and fam.

My parents with the grandkids...

The happy family! I love these guys! Wish they were closer.

The reason for going, Liam. I love those blue eyes!!!

...Wedding Weekend...

2009-10-21T19:24:00.001-07:00

Like I mentioned in my previous post Chuck and I went with my parents to Ventura for my cousins wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and we really enjoyed ourselves. Tim and Marie got married at The Camarillo Ranch. On the site there was a beautiful house that dated back hundreds of years. Tim and Marie got married on the grounds with the house in the background. The reception was held in a refurbished barn. There was a great fall vibe. We are so happy for Tim and Marie and wish them many years of love, laughter and happiness.

Waiting for the ceremony to start.

They made these boutinere's for all the men. They were a really cute personalized touch.

The groom and his groomsmen. They each wore brown suits with their choice of ties.

My cousin Jenny. She looked so beautiful and classic. Each of the bridesmaids had the same color dress but each got to pick out the style of their dress. They each got their hair done at a salon that only does "Pin-Up Girl" hair. They all had a very classic 40's look...they looked great!

The officiator of the ceremony gave them each a red rose bud as their first gift as a married couple. She mentioned that a red rose is a symbol of love. They traded roses symbolizing giving eachother their gift of love, and then they handed the roses to their parents. It was a really nice touch to the ceremony.

Tim and Marie...the Happy Couple!

The house. We were able to tour it inbetween the ceremony and reception. It was so cool!

The barn where we had the reception.

My cousin Tim is an artist and has lots of friends that are artists, one who made this one. They were two cut outs where guests could stick their heads and take pictures.

The cake. YUM!

The cake topper. There was a harvest/Day of the Dead theme to the wedding.

Each table was nammed after one of their favorite authors. I hadn't heard of the guy at our table.

My cousin Tim drew each of these. They looked great!

At the table was a little skeleton bride and groom. Sorry for the blurry picture.

My Auntie Robin and my Grandpa Terry.

This is for Caitlin. Marie let me take a picture of her in her dress. Beautiful!

And the back of her dress. I think she said that her Mom made her veil. It was really pretty! Here the couple is cutting the cake.

Oh I love weddings and this was a fun one. Congratulations Tim and Marie!

...Ventura Pier...

2009-10-21T18:22:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we were in Ventura for my cousins wedding. We had some time to kill the morning of the wedding so we headed over to Ventura Pier and then over to a pumpkin patch. Chuck and I fell in love with Ventura. It's on the beach, it's clean, it's beautiful. It is surrounded by orchards of all kinds of things...We had such a great weekend!

...Anniversary...

2009-09-08T21:06:00.000-07:00

I didn't have my camera today so sorry for the no-photos post.

For our anniversary today, Chuck and I both had to work (whoo-hoo!) but after work we went to dinner at Palomares Cafe in town. It is really good and serves Italian and Mediterranean food. We enjoyed the quiet and calming atmosphere as we ate WAY too much. We had potato skins as appetizers, Chuck had the Linguine and Salmon dish (or something like that) and I had the chicken fettuccini. Then as we were leaving Chuck saw a Golden Spoon frozen yogurt shop. You would have thought he had won the lottery with how excited he was! I was excited too because I can eat frozen yogurt but not ice cream...so we don't usually get treats like this!!! We sat and ate some more until I think we could barely move...it's true what they say, "There's always room for dessert!" It was Yummy!

That was our exciting day! We both had the day off yesterday in observance of Labor Day and we went miniature golfing. I count that as part of our Anniversary celebration.

All in all it was a fun night...I'm ready for a shower and my pajamas after all that food!

Happy Anniversary to us!!!

...September 8th...

2009-09-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

Today is our 2nd Wedding Anniversary! It's hard to believe sometimes all the things that have happened in the last two years. The days have flown by at times and seem to have stood still at other times. Some days we can't believe it's only been two years and other time it feels like we've been together for much longer (in a good way...the kind of way that you can't imagine your life without the other person way.)

Here's a quick run down of the last two years:

Wedding Day, September 8th

Honeymoon in Monterey

Multiple weekend trips to San Francisco

A new couch

A trip back east to Washington D.C. and New Jersey

A new to us car!

Chuck back to school

Trips to Disneyland

We've had a busy two years and have some wonderful, fun memories but we've also had our share of trials. We've had a few more tears than last year but laughter has always been there. We've lost loved ones and welcomed two nieces, two nephews and a brother-in-law to the family. We've had new callings and new jobs. Made multiple trips to Utah, and seen about a hundred movies in the theather (and some we wish we could get our money back!)

Two years down and an eternity to go! (plus in two more months we will have lasted longer than Britney Spear's second marriage...I think we'll be just fine.)

They were so charming. I wonder what happened?

...School Daze...

2009-09-02T20:49:00.001-07:00

"My boy is so grown up!!!"

I'm just kidding.

Here is Chuck on his first day back to school.

He's taking an English class two nights a week at the local community college.

It was all we could fit in with his work schedule...but we're excited!

Please ignore my dirty sneakers in the background.

...True Blood vs. Twilight...

2009-08-30T19:01:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know that True Blood the HBO show about vampires is very popular. I actually have never seen it, but I just gotta say from the pictures I've seen, the Vampires from True Blood...a little silly looking. I can't get over their teeth! Their fangs don't look like they fit in their mouth. It looks like they bought their fangs from the Halloween store SPIRIT for $1.99. I probably will never watch the show not only because it's on HBO but also because I can't get over how cheesy their teeth look. Not so intimidating.

Now Twilight on the other hand, I am a big fan of them but if I weren't, I still would love the way they look. I am especially excited for the way the Volturi look in the new movie. I like the modern twist on them but something is still a little off-putting about them. Much better than cheezie fangs.

P.S. Internet Movie Database has some cool trailers for New Moon. I'm excited!

...Black Eye...

2009-08-24T21:07:00.000-07:00

Chuck "sparred" with a co-work of his today on his day off. I came home from work and started talking to Chuck when I noticed his eye. At first I thought it was red from being out in the sun and working out...then as I'm looking at it more I'm noticing it is a little blue and purple and a little swollen. OMG! He has a black eye! His eye lid is a little swollen and underneath his eye it is a little swollen as well. The picture doesn't do it justice...I guess he got clipped today, and the other guy is going to have a huge goose-egg on his leg.

I'll give him a goose egg for hitting my husband!!!

Never-the-less--Chuck is very proud of it and secretly, so am I.

It's tuff

...Muir Woods...

2009-08-22T19:32:00.000-07:00

Chuck had another one of his rare Saturday's off where he didn't have to go to work. So we took advantage of the day and headed across the Bay and up to Muir Woods National Monument. I hadn't been to Muir Woods in about 10 years and we were both excited to spend the day together.

Entrance of Muir Woods.

Surrounded by large and dense Redwoods.

A lot of them had the middles burned out from natural forrest fires.

The creek water wasn't very high but still beautiful.

It was very romantic!

This one was hollowed out at the bottom and attached itself together again higher up. Very interesting to look at.

This tree had bent itself across the trail and into the middle of the other tree. We loved the different ways the tress grew.

The veiw looking up.

Taking a break.

Another stop at a creek on the bridge.

Another view of how tall these trees were.

Ahhh...Boudin's. Our favorite stop at Fisherman's Warf. The best sourdough bread around! We stop here almost every time we're on this side of the city.

Chuck always gets the fresh Clam Chowder in a Sourdough Bread bowl.

I always get the turkey and havarti sandwish on Sourdough bread with a Jones soda for both.

Then we stopped at our next favorite place the Musee Mecanique (or the Mechanical Museum). It's free to get into and it has all sorts of antique and modern arcades. We stopped in and sat down on the Footsie Wootsie for a foot massage (really it just vibrates your feet very fast!) Our feet felt so much better after getting a foot massage! When Chuck was done with his foot massage and mine was still going, he wandered off to play a few arcades.

This place is a good size...I wasn't sure where he went to and it was kind of busy today. Then I remembered. I knew exactly where I could find Chuck...his favorite stop inside the museum...

On the other side of the museum playing Area 51!!!

...Weekend Getaway...

2009-07-30T10:40:00.000-07:00

No pictures with this post...sorry!

Since Chuck wasn't able to come to Utah over the 4th he took a different weekend off. We decided to go to Waterworld, USA in Concord. We then decided to make a weekend of it and get away from the house and spend the night up there.

After work on Friday we headed up that direction and stayed at the Embassy Suites. We love the Embassy Suites! We checked in and then headed to P.F. Chang's for dinner. The wait was almost an hour and a half! We decided it wasn't worth it. So we found a California Pizza Kitchen resturant (a favorite of ours) and asked what the wait was. Fourty-five minutes to sit inside, immediately if we wanted to sit outside. OUTSIDE PLEASE! It was chilly but who wants to wait 45 minutes when they're hungry?

We headed back to the hotel after dinner and crashed. I was tired from work that day! Now when we stayed at Embassy Suites in Monterey for our honeymoon we loved it, and we especially loved the king sized bed that was oh-so-comfy! This bed...not so much. I was like a giant slept on one side of the bed. For those of you who are I Love Lucy fans, the bed was like the one they slept in at the roadside stop on their way to Hollywood.

Anyway, the next morning we ate our cooked to order omlets (YUM!) and got ready for the SUN!

We spent all day at the Waterslides and really enjoyed it. Chuck went on the scary Cliffhanger slide, I loved the Lazy River, we both got "yelled" at by the lifeguards at different times for different reasons...we ate lunch, Dippin' Dots, and a funnel cake!

Back to the hotel and crashed. We ordered room service and again ate too much. By this time our sunburns were starting to show up.

Sunday, we drove back home and crashed again.

It was a really fun weekend, and we said that we'd have to "getaway" more often.

To sum up this trip...Too much sun, too much food, and too much TV/lounging around. It was perfect!

...M.A.S.H...

2009-07-18T01:34:00.000-07:00

I found this link to an online game of MASH (you know you used to play it). When the pool was slow my sister and I would play this as we were lifeguarding (of course no one was swimming at the time). Well I sent this link to her along with my "future."

If you want to play, here's the link: http://www.espin.com/mash-game.php and post your "future" in the comments section.

MY FUTURE

You will marry Edward Cullen.
After a wild honeymoon, you will settle down in Orlando, FL in your fabulous House.
You will have 6 kid(s) together.
The family will zoom around in a white Volvo SUV.
You will spend your days as a Baker, and live happily ever after.

...UFC 100...

2009-07-18T00:54:00.001-07:00

Since Chuck couldn't join us in Utah over the 4th we decided to have a speical weekend for him!

Okay, not really...it was the UFC 100 and he wanted to order the fight. I will admit, I do get into some of it with him. Anyway, we had a fun time while watching the fights...

Chuck always wears this shirt when we order a fight.

I grilled beef kabob's (or kebas as it's also known) and pineapple.

We drank Barq's rootbeer (another tradition).

And topped it off with brownies with chocolate chip cookie dough "frosting."

It was a very romantic weekend!!! Tee-hee.

P.S. My favorite fighter is George St. Pierre...

When he wins...he does a backflip!

2009-07-18T00:51:00.000-07:00

The other day the sky looked like this. It was a little humid this day and it really made me miss Florida and I was seriously contemplating moving back. I couldn't come up with a game plan, but I haven't given up yet!

...The Fourth...

2009-07-17T23:54:00.001-07:00

For the Fourth of July weekend my parents rented a house in Draper for us to all gather at. We had so much fun!

We ordered pizza!

Went to the Bird Aviary in Liberty Park in Salt Lake.

Made our annual stop at Cabellas.

At my Grandpa's passing we went through hundreds of t-shirts he had collected from his travels. We each took some as keepsakes but couldn't bare to throw the rest away. My sister-in-law is extremely talented and crafty and suggested we quilt the t-shirts as a keepsake for Nanny.

Alisa's mother pieced the t-shirts into this beautiful quilt. It was a very touching moment and I know Nanny will cherish this forever. It was our first gathering without my Grandpa and it was nice to have this moment where he was apart of our trip.

We went to Colonial Days in Provo and saw Abe Lincoln! This guy was talking to him FOREVER! I'm not sure he knew this wasn't the real Abe Lincoln.

We checked out the tree house by brother-in-law, James is building for some extended family. It was pretty impressive!

We splashed in the pool.

Giggled.

Played with bubbles.

Posed for pictures.

Played air hockey.

Learned to play pool.

Had a waffel bar for breakfast.

Lit fireworks as well as watched them over the valley.

And enjoyed the view.

WAY up on the mountain!!!

...The Little Ship...

2009-07-16T10:30:00.000-07:00

My Mom has been working a lot on our Family History and taking family names to the temple. I've been able to help bring a family together that didn't have the opportunity in this life. I think since my Grandfather's passing it has made it not only more important but more real.

We have been working on his side of the family and have been linking people together. One of the fun things about it is, is that my Grandfather and his mother didn't throw anything away so we have a ton of pictures of the family we've been working on. These people have not only names but faces and personalities and history to them. It has made the it all the more real to me.

As sad as the passing of my Grandfather was for us, my Mom shared a poem at his services that I think eloquently expresses what we've been doing in the temple, what we at times are still feeling on this end but also what our loved ones feel on the other side.

I'm sorry I don't know who penned the poem, but I do know it's titled The Little Ship.

Brig On The Water, 1856
by Gustave Le Gray

I stood watching as the little ship sailed out to sea. The setting sun tinted his white sails with a golden light, and as he disappeared from sight a voice at my side whispered, “He is gone”.

But the sea was a narrow one. On the farther shore a little band of friends had gathered to watch and wait in happy expectation. Suddenly they caught sight of the tiny sail and, at the very moment when my companion had whispered, “He is gone” a glad shout went up in joyous welcome, “Here he comes!”

..Pictures of Craft...

2009-07-01T20:33:00.000-07:00

My friend asked me to post pictures of the craft I talked about in the previous blog entry. I got this idea from my friend Anna who posted it on her blog. She took wood letters from a craft store and modge-podged scrapbook paper and hung them up above her bed. She hung them on a rod with ribbon. It was really cute and we were missing something above our bed...so instead of copying her exactly I did our initials (she did the word LOVE).

I bought the letters at Michael's along with the scrapbook paper. The letters already had a nail hook in the back so that's how I hung them. For the heart I had to add a bracket to hang it. I traced the paper to fit, but like the rough edge look so they aren't perfect.

I also found a plaque at Target that said, "And they lived happily ever after..." I was looking for something to nod at where we met and got engaged without getting too cheesy. So here they are in all their glory...I'm pretty proud of them...Thanks Anna for the idea!

...Fun Finds...

2009-06-28T20:07:00.000-07:00

I was really productive this weekend and found a few fun finds that I decided to blog about.

First. I love painted nails. I love that red is "in" right now as well as blacks, blues and purples. I just really like the look. I've always loved painting my nails. I remember as a young girl always wanting them painted. Even in high school I would experiment with different colors, oranges, greens, blues again...

As I've gotten older and caring what my nails look like (you know, no smudges around the edges...didn't care if they peeled..etct.) and having a job where the dress is a little more conservative I haven't experimented as much. Also probably the biggest reason I haven't painted my nails is because I don't have time to sit there and carefully pain each nail and then try oh so carefully to paint my right hand with my left...I never looks as nice since I'm not left handed and it's frustrating. I also don't have time to sit there while I wait for them to dry. I got things to do. I'd rather pay to get them done, but that's more time and money.

My point. A few weeks ago I had heard or seen (I can't remember) of these "Nail Sticks." It's basically a marker with a paint tip that dispenses nail polish. I've looked at them in the stores and finally this last weekend decided to try them. I was a little skeptical at first, but thought I'd give it a go.

I was in Target and bought Nicole by O-P-I Nick's Sticks in "Carpool Mama" (it's red). I was going out later and had only a few minutes, so when I got home, I thought I'd just try it out on one finger. Well ten fingers later I had beautiful red nails!!! It was so simple! I couldn't believe it. You pump the end of the pen (which I was nervous about, but it dispenses just the right amount) and you just simply paint you nails. The brush is wide enough you just need one stroke, but small enough for your pinky finger. I only needed one coat. I was worried about how fast it would dry but within 5 minutes they were dry enough for me to grab my purse, lock my front door, and buckle my seat belt with little to no smudges.

I was pleasantly surprised! I've found them at Target and Walgreen's. For us Walgreen's has more color options that Target, but I'm sure you could find them in Beauty Stores like Ulta as well. They are a little more expensive than regular Wet -N- Wild Nail Polish, but I will pay for the convenience!

The second thing we found is what I call a "Fancy Fan." Our apartment gets cookin'. Once the summer hits and those few days of heat get going, we are miserable! We get sun beating down on our apartment ALL DAY LONG! We are on the second floor which doesn't help either. We don't have a tree or bush or building in front of us to block us. It's like a slow cooker, just slowly heating up. We leave the back room window open all day and leave the ceiling fans on, but that doesn't help. We both are gone all day so the house just gets stuffy...

We had a few warm days earlier this year and I vowed I would not spend another summer hot and cranky! We were to invest in a "fancy fan." Oh, P.S. No A/C. I doesn't stay hot for long but those few days make it miserable.

Anyway, here we are in the heat and last night while Chuck and I were out we stopped by Bed, Bath and Beyond and found a Bionaire fan that is powerful! I L-O-V-E Love it! We pointed it on us last night when we went to bed and I slept comfortably! This afternoon after church it was getting warm and I was sleepy, I pointed it on me and took a nap...slept comfortably and like a baby! When we got home from dinner at the Grandparent's our house was HOT and stuffy! We opened the door (there was a cooler breeze) and stuck the fan in front of the door, it's like I've got air conditioning blowing on me! It was pricey but worth every penny from here until the end of the summer and every summer after that! I wish I thought of it sooner!

I also hung up some more pictures that I've had laying around since we've been married. Our bedroom was missing something on the walls as well. My friend on her blog posted something she did. She modge-podged wood letters L-O-V-E with scrapbook paper and hung them above her bed. I really like the idea, but wanted something else. So I did our first initials "C" with a heart in the middle. I also found a placard the said, "And they lived happily ever after." Just a small nod to where we met and got engaged...I can't find my camera or else I'd take pictures and post them. Maybe once I find it I'll do it.

We also saw Transformers. Not sure if I'd recommend it. I was a little disappointed in it, there was a lot more sex and language than the first one. Just my opinion...you can come up with your own!

...Happy Father's Day...

2009-06-21T21:59:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd share this story that was shared in Sacrament Meeting today...I thought it was cute...I'm sorry I don't know where the story came from, but enjoy!

A son recently got his drivers permit and wanted to discuss using the car with his father. He approached his dad with the question about the car and his dad said, "I'll make you a proposition...You raise your grades, read your scriptures daily and get a hair cut and we can talk about using the car."

After some time passed the son approached his dad again about using the car..."Dad I did what you asked...I raised my grades and have read my scriptures daily..."

His dad pointed out however that he did not get a hair cut.

His son quickly responded..."I've been thinking about that. You know Sampson had long hair, so did Moses and Noah, and even Jesus Christ had long hair..."

His father's reponse..."Yes son they did, and they walked every where they went."

Happy Father's Day!

...59 years...

2009-06-17T10:56:00.000-07:00

Today is my Grandparents 59th Wedding Anniversary and I love their wedding pictures so I thought I'd share.

They were married in 1950 and I love the retro feel of their pictures. You'll also notice that my Grandmother's wedding dress was not white. It was a soft dusty rose/pink color. I love it! If you knew my grandma you'd know this is very appropriate of her.

Their wedding picture.

I guess they are leaving the reception here...I love how 50's looking this picture is.

Cutting the cake...and the pink dress.

I recently asked Nanny (my grandma) when she first met my Grandpa, etc. She said she was interviewing for a job at the same place he worked (different department though) and he walked through the waiting room where she was waiting and he stopped and noticed her because she had bright blue shoes on that day. They later got to know eachother and at the employee holiday party they danced and he invited her to listen to jazz over in the city (San Francisco) and the rest is history!

...Chinatown...

2009-06-03T21:49:00.001-07:00

In April Chuck had a rare Saturday off so we took advantage of the good weather and headed to San Francisco to explore Chinatown (and we didn't even get lost). After Chinatown we did a little shopping and ate lunch in the Westfield Shopping Center food court. This is not your normal fast-food, Subway, Sbarro's, Orange Julius type of food court. It has all types of exotic food...this day we ate some really yummy Japanese food (no sushi for this girl...I had a bad experience.)

It was a much needed weekend off and we had a great time.

P.S. We also bought $2 t-shirts in honor of James...(Hi James!)

...Welcome to the World Wide Web...

2009-06-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

It's official...We have finally caught up with the times and have the internet in our home. My grandparent's had the internet before we did (they've had it since it dialed up through the phone lines...and my parents still don't have it...but that's okay). If we ever needed to use the internet we'd go to my grandparents house. Now we can use it in the comfort of our own home!!!

...Spiders...

2009-05-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

I would just like to make a note. My husband is awsome at killing spiders! Last night I went into the bedroom to get ready for bed and that's when I saw it...a big...black...scary...SPIDER high up on the wall above our bed. YUCK. All I have to say is "SPIDER!" and Chuck comes running..."Where?" All I do is point and he's there ready to go. I would also like to note that Chuck does not get spiders with a shoe he uses a tissue...(not me, I use a shoe I don't want to feel it crunch.) I get nervous when someone goes to get the spider, I'm afraid they're going to drop or run or jump on someone...it comes from my up-bringing...My mom was never very good about killing spiders because she was afraid of them herself...anyway, I digress, back to Chuck. He NEVER MISSES! Even if the spider runs, he gets it. I don't know how he does it, he must have a spidey sense himself. In the three years I've known him he has never missed a spider. It was just minutes after this encounter in the bedroom that I go to brush my teeth and there is another spider! Same routine..."SPIDER!" "Where?" Pointing. Squish and done.

Oh I love him for this!

Okay, on another note, I was thinking about killing spiders last night and how great Chuck is at getting them when I thought about this story...classic.

One night in during my youth (In my teens and before my brother got married?) I was up with my oldest brother Bryan (hi Bryan!) watching TV, when I was ready to go to bed. I go into the bathroom to take a shower when I decide to check the bathtub for spiders. (During the summers we would leave the bathroom window open and spiders would sometimes make their way into the bathroom). OMG there was definately a spider in the tub! I grab my towel and find my brother..."Bryan, there's a spider in the tub, can you get it for me?"

"Just wash it down the drain..."

"IT WON'T FIT DOWN THE DRAIN..."

Thinking I was overexaggerating Bryan picks up the magazine he was reading, rolls it up and goes to get the "little spider." He takes one look in the tub and tells me to find the RAID.

I go into the kitchen to look in the cubbord where Mom kept the Raid (the same cubbord our drinking glasses were kept...I'm not sure who's idea that was...) Not there. I go into my parent's bedroom (Dad was at work that night) to ask my Mom where it was...

"psst...Mom....Mom....where's the RAID."

Mind you this is all taking place around midnight, so asking for RAID at this time of night, is probably a wierd request...

"What do you need the RAID for?"

"There's a spider in the tub and Bryan needs it..."

"Just wash it down the drain..."

"NO MOM, IT WON'T FIT DOWN THE DRAIN..."

Not believing me, my Mom gets up to see...takes one look in the tub and says, "I'll go get the RAID."

Bryan drenched the thing with RAID totally rendering it useless and got it out of the tub. Thanks big brother!

I know everyone exaggerates how big spiders are, but this one...I don't know where it came from, it almost looked like a mini trancula and probably was...GROSS!

I think I showered in my parents bathroom that night and ever since then I habitually check for spiders in the tub.

..."If I only had a brain..."

2009-04-24T10:55:00.000-07:00

This is for Bryan, Kyle and Caitlin:

I was at work yesturday and glanced at the clock on the wall...

"Four o'clock. Only a half hour left and I'm done!"

I do some work, I get up to do something, come back, look at the clock,

"Four-Thirty...Awesome, I'm outta here!"

I close everything down, clean up and go to tell someone I'm leaving for the day. Well no one was around. Everyone was in a meeting. So I lock the door behind me, clock-out and go to wait for Mom who was picking me up (Chuck worked late and we were going to go to the gym and then go over to have dinner with Nanny.)

I'm waiting, and waiting, and waiting. I look at my watch,

"4:45 p.m. Wow Mom's kind a late, maybe I should call her. Oops, forgot my cell phone."

So I wait, and wait, wait. I check my watch again,

"Wow, pushing five o'clock...maybe Mom forgot she was supposed to pick me up at 4:30...I'll give her until a little after five and then walk home...BECAUSE, what's the rule? STAY PUT I'LL BE THERE!

By this point now it's pushing 5:15-5:20 and I'm thinking, maybe Nanny needed her help or Dad had to go to the doctor's suddenly because of his foot and Mom tried to call me but couldn't because I don't have my cell phone...

So I decide to walk home.

At home I check my phone to see if Mom left a message, "Weird, no message..."

That's when I noticed it...

The time on the cell phone read "4:17 p.m."

"OH CRAP! I left work an HOUR EARLY!"

I totally had misread the clock, my watch, everything! I couldn't believe it. I have no idea where my head was at! And the dumb thing was...I was WAITING OUTSIDE THE HOSPITAL FOR 45 MINUTES!!! Haha to me.

That's kind of like the time Chuck and I went to Cold Stone after dinner last week and they have Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in there now...I was getting a Caramel Apple while Chuck was at another register getting a milkshake. I order the apple, the guy asks me if I want it cut and then hands it to me. I asked him if he had a box for it (the last guy gave it to me in a box). He said, No, here's a bag. I took the bag, said "Thank you!" and walked off. I went over to a table to try and get the apple in the box when the worker flaggs me down and asks, "Ma'am did I charge you for that?" OH MY GOSH! I walked away with the apple without paying for it! I apologized, thanked him for flagging me down and told him I promise I wasn't trying to get away with a free apple!!!

Or the time I overflowed the gas tank at the gas station because the tank holds 18 gallons and it clicked off at 15 and I kept pumping until I realized that gas was spewing out of the car!!! YIKES...Chuck gets gas from now on...

Oh my...

...Spring Time in California...

2009-04-06T12:01:00.001-07:00

The weather here has been soooo nice lately, like high 70's low 80's nice (sorry Sara) and we've been really enjoying it!

Since it was Conference Weekend we took advantage of the good weather and in between sessions on Sunday it's tradition to go and "look at the tulips." The Chapel of the Chimes cemetary in Oakland every year plants tulips and they are absolutely beautiful. They also have a arch way with wisteria growing that we love.

My great-grandparents are buried there so we go say hello as well.

But this cemetary is really an interesting one.

It's up in the Oakland Hills and goes on forever! There are a lot of famous people buried there (famous to California, for example Ghiradelli--like the chocolate--is buried there and others). There are also very interesting grave markers. Some look like the Washington Monument, there are a couple of Pyramids, huge mosoleums for families, and last year we found a mini mountain with an elk and it's own flag pole, no joke, it's posted below. They have a huge Asian section as well as a Jewish section. Many of the graves in the jewish section have rocks placed on them. We later found out that it's custom that when someone visits the grave they leave a marker. You see them doing this at the very end of Schindler's List is belive.

Anyway, it's very interesting...and we love looking at the flowers and the view.

I love Spring Time!!!

...Arthur Lee Haubrock...

2009-03-31T13:40:00.001-07:00

Arthur Lee Haubrock

1921-2009

Since January this year my Grandpa has not been feeling well. After many doctor's appointments and tests he was diagnosed with lymphoma. It was very difficult to see him not feeling well. My grandfather was always very active and involved and the cancer really slowed him down. Three weeks after diagnosis my grandfather's only option for treatment was Hospice Care. Then one week after begining Hospice Care my grandfather, passed away on Wednesday, March 25, 2009. I won't go into detail about the last week that we spent with him, but it was a very interesting week, very spiritual and one that I consider sacred to me. I will say that the Spirit was strong in my grandparent's home and I'm grateful for the tender moments I had with my grandfather and the Spirit his last couple of days here on earth.

As a result of his passing we gathered as a family to honor his memory. Saturday we gathered with a few family friends for a graveside service. When we got to the cemetary there was a little league baseball game going on that you could see over the fense. My brother-in-law commented on the poor city planning, but my Mom reminded us that Grandpa loved baseball and now he has front row views of the games.

My grandpa had a tie collection he was proud of. Each of the men were able to pick out a tie or two to keep and in honor of my grandpa they each wore them to the service. Even my three year old nephew Connor picked one out to wear. We found a silk tie that my grandpa picked up in Paris sometime in the 1950's. I think we'll frame it.

My oldest brother, Bryan used to make and fly paper airplanes with Grandpa as well as play with little green army men. He laid one of each on the grave site in memory.

After the service we went to my grandparent's house for lunch. It was a beautiful day outside and we let the kids run around and listened to my grandpa's record collection that he was proud of.

Nanny (my grandmother) and Grandpa travelled extensively. We counted that they had been to 37 different countries, many of them multiple times, went on many cruises (I think 16), and had been to every continent except for Antartica (for obvious reasons) and Australia because Nanny didn't want to take the long flight there. We found over 100 t-shirts that Grandpa had collected, some still had the tags on them. We were each able to take a shirt or two in memory. The rest my sister-in-law is turning into a quilt.

While it was under unfortunate circumstances that we got together as a family, it really was a wonderful weekend and one Grandpa would have enjoyed. He would have enjoyed Connor, Isaac and Deirdre...the music, the jokes, the stories, and the laughter. He is really an incredible man who was always supportive of us. One of the things we found after the service was a list of things he had done during his life time...my brother Bryan posted it on his blog if you're interested (The View From Utah "I've")...

Here are some pictures of my Grandpa and others from the weekend.

Grandpa as a little boy.

Grandpa served in the Army and was stationed in Hawaii during WWII.

With my uncle on the Dumbo ride at Disneyland.

Me and Grandpa in my "Bannana Outfit"

Nanny and Grandpa in front of the Pyramids in Egypt. One of their many adventures.

Playing with sparklers on the 4th of July.

All of his Grandchildren, their spouces and three of his Great Grandchildren.
Apparently I didn't grow out of the Bannana outfit phase...

My siblings.

All of the grandchildren, their spouces, and great-grandchildren with Nanny. My cousin Sara was able to come from Virginia for a couple of days. We missed you Ryan and Kelly!

My nephew Connor in one of Grandpa's ties, his sister Deirdre, and my nephew Isaac.

The whole Terry Clan. All 13 1/2 of us (one is on the way...Kyle and Sara are expecting!!!)

...The Dentist...

2009-03-19T15:42:00.000-07:00

This is what I had done today...

Yes, that's right I had a root canal done today. The picture makes it look not so bad, and it really wasn't, I was just really very nervous. I was afraid that the anesthetic wouldn't work and I would feel pain. I didn't. Well once, but after the endodontist fixed that, I was okay. I don't know why I was so nervous, I usually can get a grip on my nerves but today I couldn't. Things have been extremly stressful around here lately and I just felt like I couldn't go through with this, but I had to. It was either that or I would eventually loose the tooth and I didn't want that either. Once I realized I wasn't going to feel pain I relaxed...just a little though. The upside, I ate frozen yogurt for lunch, not because I couldn't eat solids, but just because I wanted to!

Also I get to get a crown now...

Okay, not that kind of a crown...but its better than thinking about having to go back to the dentist...again.

...New Calling...

2009-02-19T07:09:00.000-08:00

A couple Sunday's ago, Chuck was released from his calling in Primary and called to the Elders Quroum of our ward! We were both a little suprised when the call came, neither of us were expecting it (I don't know if anyone expects it...) but needless to say it was a really neat experience to have him called and then to witness him set apart.

He's really excited about it, and I'm really happy for him. He's working with some great men who I know will be good examples to him and help him grow as he will do the same for them as they all work together!

I really enjoyed being in Primary with Chuck and will miss him there, but I know that this is where he is needed now.

As for me, nothing new. Boring I know.

...Valentine's Day...

2009-02-19T06:57:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

So since being married, Chuck and I have not had the best of luck with our Valentine's Day celebrations. Last year Chuck was working nights and happened to be off on Valentines Day, so we planned a night in with dinner and maybe a movie and just enjoying time together after I got home from work. Well as luck would have it, I was stuck at work in a meeting that went two hours longer than it should have and it was a miserable meeting and it made me miserable, so that's how I went home...in a miserable mood. Needless to say, Valentine's Day last year kind of stunk...

This year we were excited to do Valentine's Day right! Chuck ususally works Saturday's but often is home by 4:30 p.m. Enough time to do something. Well, as luck would have it, he was scheduled to work the swing shift, 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. We decided we weren't going to have another cruddy Valentine's Day so we decided to go to our favorite local diner, "JD's" for breakfast! I Heart JD's very much!!! So we enjoyed our breakfast, exchanged gifts and felt good about our little celebration!

That night when Chuck went to work I had a Gilmore Girls marathon (I heart Jess and Rory together!) and ate my little frozen meal for dinner (I didn't feel like cooking).

Despite Chuck working, I think it was a pretty good Valentine's Day!!!

...Goodbye Facebook...

2009-02-02T16:22:00.000-08:00

Just an FYI if you care...If we were friends on Facebook, we are still friends, I just won't be on Facebook for a while. I have deactivated my account...this didn't delete it...if I choose to come back I can reactivate it and it will be like I never left. That's it. I will still be blogging and still emailing, so I haven't completely dropped off the face of the earth, just Facebook.

...More from the Aquarium...

2009-01-21T09:31:00.000-08:00

This is the art work on the outside of The House of Bagels...and their garbage cans, but whatever it adds to the ambiance..."Just baskin' in the ambiance." (Name that Movie Caitlin!)

This is what the garden roof top with the circular windows look like from the inside. It's the top of the Rainforest. I liked this element of the building.

The bottom of the Rainforest has a "pond/lake" whatever you want to call it, with all kinds of fish in it. The bottom of the "pond/lake" is a glass bottom where you can see down into the actual Aquarium part of the building, and when you're downstairs you can look up and see through to the Rainforest.

Here's my sister Caitlin touching a starfish! We also touched some sea anemone or sea urchant, I'm not sure what it was, but it felt like toothpicks. Kind a cool. But you stick your hand in in this sea water that everyone else has been sticking their hand in and all they have near by are paper towels to dry off. I would have liked some hand sanatizer or a sink to wash my hands off. We had to improvise with the bottled water we had on hand...okay, I digress, back on track.

This was my absolute favorite part of the day. This room was just one big wall of aquarium. They had seating so you could sit back and observe or you could go right up to it and put your nose right on the glass. It was really incredible. There were thousands of fish, and types of fish that I had never seen before. My favorite fish was black, white and hot pink...no joke. They were all so beautiful and fun to watch.

San Francisco from the rooftop of the Aquarium.

The tip of the Golden Gate Bridge from the DeYoung Museum Tower.

The view from the DeYoung Museum Tower. You can see all the way out to Point Bonita. We went there about a year ago and it was foggy! There's a white lighthouse at the end of the cliff, and we could actually see it. Again, we had a rare day in San Francisco. You don't normally get views like this. Super Super clear!

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2009-01-19T16:30:00.001-08:00

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2009-01-19T16:26:00.001-08:00

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...Christmas Pictures...

2009-01-18T19:04:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning at our place.

Our Christmas After-math.

Chuck opening a present from my parents.

Chuck got a weight lifting belt...it was his favorite gift!!!

...Up Again...

2009-01-14T14:07:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I was having trouble with the blog yesterday but we are back up and running!

...California Academy of Science...

2009-01-12T13:49:00.000-08:00

The day after Christmas, my Mom, Dad, Caitlin, James and I headed over to San Francisco's Golden Gate Park to the California Academy of Science (also known as "The Aquarium"). Poor Chuck had to go back to work and couldn't come with us. Anyway, "The Aquarium" has been around since 1853 and was recently remodeled and reopened October 2008. We first stopped by our favorite joint, The House of Bagel's which is a little local shop that makes traditional bagels by boiling them. They are YUMMY! Here are some pictures from the day...

On a side note, my brother-in-law, James is an Architect major and had all sorts of interesting insite on how the building was done and why they remodeled it the way they did. Some of the stuff he knew just by being an architect major, the other stuff he knew by reading the exhibits...I guess you learn things when you read...Anyway, the building is VERY GREEN and Eco-Friendly and pretty cool.

Here's the website to the museum if you're interested... http://www.calacademy.org/

I thought I had more pictures, I guess they're on another camera...more to come!

"The Aquarium" from the top of the DeYoung Tower.

The DeYoung Museum from the top of "The Aquarium." Okay, this one I know. They recently remodeled this museum also. The building is made out of copper and the tower too...well everyone thought it was really ugly at first, but the idea is that it will turn green over time and eventually blend in with it's surroundings in Golden Gate Park. There is an observation deck at the top of the Tower and I love going up there. On this day we could see past the Golden Gate Bridge out to the coast, and if we looked the other direction, we could see out to Mt. Diablo across the Bay (apx. 40 miles away)...Needless to say, it was a perfectly clear day! (Is that proper English? I don't know...)

The top of "The Aquarium." It's a "garden" on top that blooms in the Spring. They put a"garden" on top for two reasons. The first reason is so that when you view the park from the air it'll blend in with it's surrounding. The second reason is because it helps with climate control inside the museum...the circular windows on top open and close, and this helps. James says it's the same idea with roof-top gardens. Pretty smart if you ask me...but nobody did so moving on...

There was an albino alligator. He was real, I saw him move.

This is a picture James took. It's of the "Rainforsest" inside the museum. It was a half hour wait to get into the bubble, but it was worth it. It had all sorts of exotic plants and insects and butterflies, and exhibits. It was probably my favorite part of the museum...but boy was it HUMID inside there!

Mom and Dad inside the "Rainforest."

Caitlin and James inside the "Rainforest."

Myself, Caitlin, Mom and Dad in the "Rainforset." There's a wicked shadow across all our faces...I swear we're not a family of vampires!

This was how crowded it was in the morning. We got there about an hour after it opened, and it took us ten minutes to get through the doors. We bought our tickets online and it was a good thing we did. They shut the doors at capacity (4,000 people) and as groups left they were letting people in. It was a two-three hour wait once they hit capacity. We got in okay because like I said, we had tickets ahead of time. It was crazy at first, and confusing, and there was no crowd control, but once the crowd thinnned out, it didn't feel as crowded and it was a lot of fun.

...Merry Christmas...

2009-01-12T13:37:00.000-08:00

I know that Christmas has long since passed, and I'm bothered that some people still turn their lights on...but...here are some pictures from Christmas. Chuck and I had our own little Christmas in the morning and then went to my parents to have Christmas with them and my sister Caitlin and her husband James. James cooked breakfast for everyone and I was impressed! It was really good. We played Mega Monopoly and in the evening went over to my Grandparent's house for more Christmas and dinner and games. Merry Christmas to us!

Okay, so I thought I had pictures of Christmas but I don't have them right now...Pictures to come!

...Happy New Year...

2008-12-31T15:48:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year! I was telling Chuck the other day how much I love new beginnings because it mean the possibilities are endless! We'll keep everyone who's interested posted on what 2009 brings the Michauxs, and we will be excited to see what it brings you!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

...It's a little early, but...

2008-12-22T16:15:00.001-08:00

I probably won't get to it in the next few days, so I thought I'd do it now. I just wanted to wish everyone a very

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We hope you all have a safe and wonderful Holiday Season and a Happy New Year!

Love, The Michauxs

...Scared of Santa...

2008-12-18T10:49:00.000-08:00

I was browsing the Today Show website and found this slide-show of scared kids with Santa Claus. In the name of Holiday Spirit, I thought I'd share it with you...I got a pretty good laugh out of some of them. Here's the link:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28224373/displaymode/1107/s/2/framenumber/13/

...Disneyland 2008...

2008-12-11T09:27:00.000-08:00

We went to Disneyland last year around Halloween and really enjoyed the decorations, so we decided "for Chuck's birthday" we would go again this year to see the Christmas decorations. We spent two days there and we had a perfect run! The longest line we stood in was 30 minutes, and the rest we either got there right in time to walk on the ride, got a Fast Pass, or a cast member let us through the "handicap" line because my Dad had a cast type boot on his foot. It was really pretty all decorated for Christmas. Each of the different "lands" was decorated to fit the theme. New Orleans Square had a Mardi Gras feel to it, with feathers and masks, and beads, but it still felt Christmas-y. Frontierland and Critter Country were decorated with a country flair, and Main Street was decorated traditionally. We had a really great time and are already planning on going back next year!

Oh, okay. So since we were there to celebrate Chuck's birthday, we got him a birthday button (see picture below). Well, we stopped to watch the Christmas parade in the afternoon, and Chuck and I were standing on some steps towards the back of a crowd and as Mrs. Claus floats by she's talking to the crowd and she looks over to wave, points to Chuck and wishes him a Happy Birthday! It was a great "magical moment!" We were excited and thought that was pretty cool!

Chuck with Fro-Zone.

Mr. Incredible, Fro-Zone, and Chuck.
This was pretty cool, to get them all in a picture,
The Incredibles is Chuck's favorite.

We love this ride!

This hot-dog stand is called Award Wieners.
I thought it was pretty hilarious.

Merry Christmas!

Main Street.

Sleeping Beauties Castle decorated for winter.

Happy Birthday Chuck!

New Orleans Square.

With my parents.

"Man this thing is heavy!"

"Really, really heavy!"

Love, Minnie Mouse.

Sleeping Beauties Castle lit up at night.
Really pretty!

...Happy Birthday Chuck...

2008-12-11T09:03:00.000-08:00

December 3rd was Chuck's birthday. We went out to dinner with my grandparents and my parents (I know, sounds like a hopping crowd right. Well actually it is, and the fact that I used "hopping" to describe it tells me I'm a little outta touch...sad.)

Anyway, we went out to dinner at our favorite Vietnamese Resturant, Pho An Hao. Then back to our apartment for presents and cake. It was actually a lot of fun. After everyone left, Chuck and I settled in for a little TV time...poor Chuck, I was asleep in front of the TV at 9:30 p.m. I guess I'm the party-pooper. Sorry. It was okay, because we were going to Disneyland that weekend for his birthday.

Pictures are posted below of the "hopping" party...okay I'll stop using that word.

This was my first attempt at decorating a cake. Pretty good I think.

...Magical Bus Lady...

2008-12-01T13:28:00.000-08:00

Chuck’s sister, Jenny and her family (Dave, Danny and Gwen) were in Southern California for Thanksgiving. I got a call from Jenny on Friday saying that she and Dave were thinking of driving the family up to Castro Valley to see us! We were excited. We love our family, and we love Jenny and Dave! It was a great excuse to “spring clean” the house which I had been working on, and I’m glad they came because it forced me to get it done. Sorry, I digress.

Saturday afternoon our family was in town. We went and picked Chuck up from work and then took BART over to San Francisco to go to dinner for Chuck’s birthday. We got off at the Embarcadero station and walked down to Pier 39 to show Danny the Sea Lions. Man, was that a walk. I forgot how long it takes! The weather was nice that evening, I had a jacket on and actually took it off and just had short-sleeves on. I love California!

We walked through Pier 39, looked at the sea lions, it was a little too dark to see them, but we could hear them! Then we wandered over to Boudin’s (I love Boudin’s) for dinner. On the way we saw a street performer who was going to do some kind of fire dancing. We stopped to watch the show but after 15 minutes of this guy lighting his torches, splashing himself with water, playing with his CD player, lighting other torches, fixing his loin cloth (seriously, the guy had a loin cloth on…no pants. He would roll it up a little bit then tug on it in the front. Memo to fire guy: If you don’t want your loin cloth to be too short in the front...DON’T roll it up. Common sense folks.) Anyway, we thought he was about the get the show started, he started talking the crowd, trying to get us fired up (no pun intended) only to go through his OCD rituals again (nothing against OCD, I have tendencies also) up with the loin cloth, down with the loin cloth. Turn up the music, turn down the music, light the torch, soak the other torch in gasoline. It was at this point that we realized we could be there all night and never see the show.

We made our way over to Boudin’s and had dinner. It was really nice the sit outside and watch the city go buy and talk. Chuck hasn’t seen his sister since the wedding so it was nice to catch up.

As we left Boudin’s to make long trek back to the BART station, we decided we’d try and short cut. We made it to Powell Street and I realized there was a Powell Street BART station. We decided to start walking and quickly realized we were not in the right spot. The station I was thinking of is called Powell Street but it’s really on Market Street. We realized this after about 20 minutes of walking up a dark residential street. Oops. My bad! There were bus stops along the street and we stopped to look at a map to see where we were and where we needed to go. We were lost. There was a sweet young woman at the bus stop who tried to give us directions and told us which buses would take us to the BART station. We thanked her and continued to walk to the bus stop that had three lines that would take us where we wanted to go. And walk we did. We must have walked for another 30 minutes, and saw a 9x bus (one of the ones we wanted) go the opposite direction. Bummer.

Another 10 minutes passed and here come the 9x bus we wanted. Jenny and I both pointed to it exclaiming “There is is!” Jenny asked if we thought it would stop for us anyway, and as I doubted it, all of the sudden the bus stopped, opened the doors and the bus driver invited us in! Okay, she opened the doors, asked if we were lost and where we were trying to get to. I told her, and she said get in. I stood there trying to pay for the tickets, thinking $1.50 per person, four adults, how much money is that? She looked at me and said, “Girl. Go sit down.” She let us on for free! Oh, bless you magic bus lady! We said she’d drop us right off at the BART station and let us know when we were there. Good thing we didn’t try to walk, it was bout a 10 minute bus ride, can you imagine what it would have been like walking? Miserable! We got to our destination and thanked the magical bus lady and she handed us free transfer tickets if we needed to get back on the bus later that night.

I was so grateful for her kindness that night, to pick up four lost adults, and two children wandering the dark, scary streets of San Francisco! Okay, not so dramatic, but I was grateful for the young woman who told us about the busses and for the bus driver who picked us up. I had a moment of anxiety as we were “lost” thinking we were never going to get out of here, and I would have to call my parents to pick us up. But we made it and I have prayed every night since then that these two women would be blessed for their kindness. If they happen to be reading this…THANK YOU!

It was quite an adventure and I’m beginning to realize that whenever Chuck and I wander over to the city by ourselves, it’s exactly that. An adventure. If you heard the Coit Tower story that is another example. I will say though, my life is very exciting since Chuck has entered it. He’s not afraid to get lost and see what’s out there. It’s one of the things I love about him.

We had such a blast with the Sasser Family and hope we can see them again soon. Unfortunately, their camera batteries died, and I couldn’t find mine, so we have no pictures to document our adventure..only a memory of the 9x Magical Bus Lady!

...Christmas Tree Time...

2008-12-01T13:19:00.000-08:00

Now that it’s officially December, all you crazy folks who think it’s okay to pull out Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving are now off my pet peeve list! Anything after Thanksgiving is okay in my book.

Okay, not what this post is about. For YEARS now my family has been going to a Christmas tree farm to cut down a Christmas tree. It’s my favorite. This year unfortunately because of schedules, and upcoming weekend vacations (Disneyland…WhooHoo!) we could not make it to Mountain Charlie’s Christmas Tree Farm.

This year we went to the Rowell Ranch Christmas Tree lot that is in between Castro Valley and Pleasanton to get our tree. It was actually a lot of fun. I love the mountains because the trees smell so good, well they did here too! I love the chilly weather in the mountains and being bundled up. Well it was a chilly evening at the Rowell Ranch also! There was no cutting down of the tree, and no carrying down the mountain to your car, but there was a guy who carried over to the check out and netted it and put it on top of your car and tied it down for you! Okay, not quiet the same, but very convenient. The thing I did enjoy about the Rowell Ranch is that they played Christmas music over the speakers. It was very festive and very fun!

Oh yeah. I also cut my hair.

Please note this is not our tree. Ours is a bit smaller.

...Bond. James Bond...

2008-12-01T13:13:00.000-08:00

So this is a little late, but here we go. In November, Chuck and I attended my work Holiday Party. It was for the staff of the hospital and it was a dinner dance. The theme was To Eden with Love a James Bond theme. It was held at Wente Vineyards in Livermore and it was really a lot of fun. We were outside in a tent, it was decorated in red and black, and it was fun to see everyone dressed up.

The dinner was pretty good, the dessert was better. There was dancing and gambling, and mixing and mingling. We had a good time. We stayed for a few hours, but you can only dance for so long (unless there’s alcohol involved, then I believe you could go all night) and since we don’t gamble, we sat outside for a little bit enjoying the nice weather and the lights and then headed home. It was also on a Saturday, so there was the issue of getting enough sleep to make it through church on Sunday.

Chuck had worked all day and so when we went home we were exhausted. We woke up Sunday morning, and both felt like we had been hit with 2x4’s. Apparently we are not partiers! I don’t know how people do it all the time, and we did it sober. I couldn’t imagine waking up with a hangover like I’m sure some people did.

Speaking of drunks…I think my favorite…or my least favorite part about a “work” party is you really get to see what people are like outside of work. Some people embarrass themselves pretty badly…and I’m someone who will never forget how you acted! Every time I see some of these people now, I have images from this night burned into my brain. I saw one employee “dancing” wildly with everyone…and another couple making out right behind us…and they were going at it! Gross. Chuck and I weren’t sure where to look so we tried to move. And…might I add, some of these people are OLD. Not old like Grandparents old, but like in their 40’s I’d bet. I’m really careful about the image I portray at things like this because I know I have to see these people again and again and again, and I don’t want people remembering me a certain way or doing something embarrassing, .like making out on the dance floor. And, might I add…I hate seeing anyone “grind” on the dance floor, but I especially get grossed out when I see old people “grinding” on the dance floor. Barf. Get a room. All in all we did have a good laugh about it.

Pictures are posted below of our sober, non-grinding, totally enjoyable evening!

...All Done...

2008-11-20T12:25:00.000-08:00

I finished the Twilight series this past week. Since about August I have immersed myself into the books (poor Chuck) and really enjoyed them. I'm going to miss them. I'm glad though that it's not completely over. Now I have the movies to look forward to! I think that the first two books were my favorite. What about you? I've posted a poll to the right if you care to weigh in.

Bella + Edward = Forever

Just Kidding.

Oh. P.S. I'm on Team Edward!

What about you? (Poll to the right)

...7 Things about Me...

2008-11-11T13:12:00.000-08:00

So I just found out I have been tagged (like back in October)…I didn’t even know it! So here it goes. I am supposed to reveal 7 things about myself...

1. I have Nyctophobia…that is a fear of the dark. I’m paranoid of the unknown. I don’t know what’s lurking out in my living room after I turn off the lights and shut my bedroom door…and I’d rather not know. I have gotten a lot better since I’ve gotten older, and it’s a lot better now that Chuck doesn’t work during the night. But because of this phobia, I do not look into mirrors in the dark. I think it stems from the “Bloody Mary” game you play at sleepovers. I don’t ever remember being the one to say “Bloody Mary” in a dark mirror but I remember being afraid for others who were doing it. Also, because of this phobia, I will turn on the lights in the house, start at the furthest room away from my bedroom and begin turning them off in succession until my lamp by my bed is the last one on. I also will turn on the lights this way in the morning if it’s dark. I also pause first thing when I open my bedroom door in the morning and the living room is dark so I can see if anything is out of order from how it was left the night before.

2. I don’t go anywhere without my Chap Stick. If you have lived with me you can attest to this! I have more than one chap stick at a time too. I am also known to “adopt” others chap sticks…well Chuck’s. Poor Chuck, he’s had two different ones that I’ve adopted as my own. I am constantly using it, and therefore constantly loosing it, therefore, I always buy in packs (packs of 3). I also am very picky about my brand of Chap Stick. I will use other brands if necessary but I am brand loyal to my Chap Stick! If I leave home without it, lip gloss will suffices but only if it’s for a short amount of time. Otherwise I will buy myself a new Chap Stick wherever I am. If I am out and have forgotten it, I start to feel like my lips need it and they need it now. It’s like an American Express card…I don’t leave home without it.

3. Chuck and I don’t have the internet and neither do my parents…How do you keep up on your blog do you ask? I use my grandparent’s computer or I update it on my lunch break. Shhh—don’t tell anyone! Just teasing. But seriously, we don’t have the internet. The main reason is we don’t have a computer. I had one from college that pooped out on me, and I think Chuck’s laptop did the same. These computers are so outdated that it’s not worth fixing them. We decided we will save our pennies and one day buy a computer and get the internet.

4. I only sleep with a comforter. I have the fitted sheet that goes over the mattress, a pillow case on my pillow, and I’ll make the bed with the flat sheet, but when I climb into bed, I only use the comforter. I hate the flat sheet. I just don’t like it. I toss and turn in my sleep and get tangled in it. I don’t know, I only use the comforter and that’s how it will always be. However. On cold nights I’ll still only use the comforter but I will throw another blanket (not sheet, but blanket) ON TOP of the comforter for extra warmth. I know…but these are my quirks.

5. I’m a sucker for Reality TV. Not all reality TV, but most. I don’t know what it is, I get hooked! Some I will proudly admit that I watch…Survivor, The Amazing Race, Project Runway, America’s Next Top Model, UFC Fighter with Chuck, and a few others. I love good healthy (or unhealthy depending on your opinion) competition.

Some I’m not so proud I watch, but will admit it here…Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, I Love New York, Rock of Love with Bret Michaels, Flavor of Love Charm School, Rock of Love Charm School, The Bachelorette, sometimes the Bachelor (when the Bachelor isn’t sleezy or pervy). I always want to know who is going to be picked, or who is going to make the biggest change…OOO---I forgot one…The Hills. I hate Heidi and Spencer!

P.S. I do get out and get fresh air.

6. I get distracted really easy. My mind goes a mile a minute, and I’m always thinking and always observing…Oh I’m sorry what were you saying I was thinking about this one time…Just kidding. My family constantly comments on the fact that I get distracted very easily. I will be in the middle of one story and point out something that is going on around us mid sentence. Someone will say something that will spark a memory or a comment I have to share. It almost a fault to a degree because I don’t know how to turn it off….I’ll lay awake in bed thinking, or I’ll wake up early before my alarm my mind will start going and it’s really hard to turn it off and go back to bed. Because I’m always thinking and observing it turns me into a worry-wart and I begin to obsess about things. See, I just got distracted, I began talking about how I get distracted easily and I ended up talking about how I over-think things and obsess…not quite the right word, but those who know me, know what I mean.

7. I’m a slow reader. It takes me forever to get through a book. I know when I’ve found a good book because I finish it quickly (for me). I have family members who will finish books in hours, but for me I could never do that (I get distracted). Part of it is when it’s a good book, I want to make it last, but the other part of it is that it takes me so long to read…because I get distracted…I have to re-read paragraphs and pages because I don’t have a clue what I just read. I’m not ADD or ADHD, I just am always thinking and always observing. That’s why in college I chose a major that was based on projects, not reading and tests. I could never keep up in my reading assignments.

*A few bonuses about me…I’m not a big shopper, but I do splurge, I like tomatoes but dislike ketchup, I don’t eat mayonnaise or drink milk (it makes me sick), I prefer chicken over red meat (poor Chuck), I have a huge sweet tooth which could explain my huge butt and I don’t like to make left hand turns while driving unless it’s at a light or 4 stop intersection (got into an accident while making a left hand turn once)

If you want to play, I tag you! Don't be shy, you know you want to!!!

...Hobbies...

2008-11-07T12:49:00.000-08:00

I love my job. I feel like I've learned a lot from it, I like the people in my office, I'm good at it while it's still challenging for me. It's not the same thing everyday, I don't have to commute, etc.

BUT...

I come home more often then not stressed out. It is an exhausting job. I have tried really hard to separate home and work. I don't bring work home because I want my home to be a sanctuary, but when I get home my second calling starts. I feel for my loving husband who has a stressed out, sometimes cranky wife who goes until she crashes.

Yesterday wasn't a particularly hard day, but it drained me to the point of tears. After coming home from the gym (which helped a little) I made Chuck go out with me. He was off all day yesterday and did a great job at cleaning the house! Thank you! I knew we just had to get out, we hadn't been out in such a long time. We used to go out to Best Buy and Barnes and Noble all the time to just look (and sometimes splurge) and we would have fun!

So after dinner at La Salsa (my favorite) Chuck and I went and spent a couple hours in Barnes and Noble and it was there I had my epiphany.

I NEED A HOBBY!

It hit me like a tun of bricks. That was my problem, I was doing "two" jobs and taking no time for myself. I go to the gym which can be fun, but I go because I HAVE to which is fine, but I need a hobby, a creative outlet. I have one idea, but I'm curious...

What to you do to de-stress (that's my problem)? What are your hobbies? Any ideas?

(Something inexpensive, allows me to be creative, something I don't have to take a class for (I don't have time) something I can teach myself, and I don't have complete access to the internet, so I either need to already know how to do it, or it needs to be simple enough I can print something off and take it home to do.)

...Yes We Can...

2008-11-05T08:54:00.000-08:00

In case you live under a rock and haven't heard, Sen. Barack Obama is now the President-Elect.

I have to say I was so moved by his speech last night and wish him good luck as he sets out to clean up the mess previous leaders have left him. Despite what you may think of him, you have to enjoy the moment for it's historic nature on more than one level. Some thought that they would never see the day when we would have an African-American president. I told Chuck last night that this is something we will tell our grandchildren about and I am grateful to have witnessed it.

I also think it's pretty impressive what Mr. Obama did. He really reached out to groups of people that don't vote. The African-American community in the past has been a hard one to reach. Also the younger generation of first-time voters, college students, etc. don't turn out to vote and they did this time. I speak for myself, but I think that CHANGE is coming to America and am excited to see what Mr. Obama does. He has a long road ahead of him and I hope he lives up to the standards he has allowed everyone to set for him.

I also have to commend Sen. McCain for his gracious speech last night. He was humble and classy as he spoke. I appreciated that he asked for respect from his crowd when they boo-ed Obama. I think he deserves recognition and respect for his actions last night and wish him the best in what he chooses to do next.

As for Palin...there's always 2012! (Just teasing)

Also, in case you were wondering, it looks like Prop 8 has passed. It was very close last night but this morning the results are--Yes: 52% No: 48% with 95.4% precincts reporting. I have to admit, I'm glad it's over, but I do pray that we will be Christlike to those who disagree with us, I pray that we will treat each of God's children with respect no matter their opinions or beliefs, and I pray that hearts on both sides will be softened and we can agree to disagree. Maybe only in a perfect world, but then again I am an optimist.

Love, Court

P.S. When I started this blog, I intended it to be about The Michauxs. A place to catch up with old friends and to find out what's been going on with us...not a place for MY political opinions. Now that the election is over, I can get back to it. So if I turned anyone off, I'm back and Welcome Back!

...Christmas Cards...

2008-11-04T09:43:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry to bring up Christmas when Halloween was just last weekend, but I need to start planning ahead.

I am going to TRY (key word here) to send out Christmas Cards this year and need to update my addresses. If you would like a Christmas Card...if you have recently moved...if I don't already have your address, send it to me and I'll send you a Christmas Card.

**I do moderate my comments before I post them, so for your safety I will not post your address if you leave it here in the comments section. If you're not comfortable with that, let me know and I'll give you my email address and we can do it that way.**

If you don't get a Christmas card, it's not that I don't like you, it'll be because I get caught up in other things and don't get them out...so don't take it personally.

...We Voted...

2008-11-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

Chuck and I woke up early this morning to go and vote. I love voting! I always feel so patriotic...and I love the sticker they give you.

I don't normally get all "rah-rah-shush-boom-ba" on such a "public" form like a blog, but I think this election is going to be pretty exciting. I think it's pretty incredible that we are so close to having the first African-American president. We are also very close to having a woman in the White House. Love them or hate them, you have to admit we're watching history here!

I'm curious on who you THINK will win today? Obama? McCain? I've posted a poll, if you feel up to it, go ahead and vote on who you THINK will win...I'm excited to watch tonight and see.

Today we also had the vote for Prop 8 here in California (the one on marriage) , you can probably guess where we stand on the issue but I would like to say that if the outcome is not what we hope for, we will not loose faith but rather trust that the Lord will work things out in the end. We believe in being good citizens and living the laws of the land (Article of Faith number anyone?) but we will not apologize for how we feel or for what we believe to be the plan for ALL God's children. We will also continue to be Christlike to those we meet no matter their beliefs, opinions, etc.

Please note: I encourage dialogue, I'm okay with differences in opinions, but I will not stand for nasty comments (not that I think anyone will leave one) sorry Free Speech, but I do moderate my comments and will delete yours if I feel its mean spirited.

THE POLLS ARE STILL OPEN...DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!

...Your Opinion...

2008-10-31T15:19:00.000-07:00

I need some help. I've changed the look of the blog obviously and I'm not sure which look I like better. The Black and White design or this new one. If you would like to weigh in on the topic, please vote for which you liked better (poll is to the right). You can base your vote on anything...one was easier to read than the other, you don't like brown and blue, you love black and white, vise versa...one was harsh to look at, the other wasn't...etc. You get the idea. Let me know what you think by voting. If not, it's okay, I totally understand that there are more important things to think about right now than the background of my blog.

Speaking of which, I'm not going to tell you how to vote November 4th, that's your own personal business...I just VERY STRONGLY ENCOURAGE you to vote. I believe we have an opportunity to voice our opinion and to make a difference, especially as a woman, we have a powerful and unique opportunity in America to vote...

P.S. If you don't care enough to vote, I don't care enough to hear you complain for the next 4-8 years. I don't care if you don't "like" either candidate, pick a couple of issues that are important to you and vote for the candidate that you agree with. I'm done.