Keepin' up with the Jones'

Christmas 2011

2012-01-22T17:55:00.000-07:00

This Christmas we were with my family in Washington. We flew up there Christmas Eve and then hopped in the car to go to Suncadia Resort about an hour away from our house. Yes, you might think this is strange leaving our house for Christmas... but to be honest I have only spent like 2 or 3 Christmases at home, that just how the Bussey's do it.

We had a great time and because we were up in the Mountains we even got a WHITE Christmas! I don't have a ton of pics but here is a run down of what we did.

Made this KILLER Gingerbread house!

Opening Santa's gifts Christmas morning

Off The Church...

Paydan with Audrey in her Cute dress he got for her!

SNOW, SNOW, SNOW

Chris and I with our sweet new niece, Audrey

The Gang just hanging out

By the Lodge's Fireplace after dinner in the cute little town of Roslyn

It was a wonderful Christmas. We are so blessed to have such amazing families and we enjoy all the time we get to spend with them.

Happenings from my last post...like 2 months ago!

2011-11-08T20:44:00.000-07:00

So I am a LAME-O blogger. But I am sitting here watching Julie & Julia and her blogging her way through Julia Childs' cookbook inspired me!

So Back in August we made our final Beach trip with our Friends the Woolfords. It was a great day filled with Smashball, sand, shopping and some good BBQ.

Then at the end of August I flew home to Seattle to attend one of my high school friend's, Melinda, wedding. It was a beautiful wedding in Leavenworth and I am so glad I could be there. It was great also to be reunited with the FAB FIVE too! Also, it was great to be home with my family for a weekend too!

The Wieders!

FAB FIVE (Me, Ciara, Melinda, Laura, Alex)

I also started a new job at the end of August. I teach preschool to a group of eleven kids in a private in-home school. It is only half day which allows me to still substitute in the afternoons. It has worked at quite well and I always have funny stories that I come home with.

We Also have enjoyed some Soccer games of our niece and nephews. We have gotten to be with family many other things too. It is so nice to live by family... I am so grateful for that!

GO SAWYER GO!

September is the Month of Birthday for us... both Chris and I only 5 days between our birthday. We enjoyed celebrating together. My birthday luckily landed on a Saturday so we got to enjoy the whole day. We started with breakfast at Kick Back Jacks, yummy yummy! Then also went to Ikea and then to dinner and a movie.

Chris' Birthday Dinner at Benihana's

We enjoyed halloween. We carved our pumpkin (an Angry Bird PIG) and also got to dress up for a party with some friends. Chris was Steve Jobs and I was his Ipad! Then on actually Halloween we got to go trick-or-treating with our ADORABLE nieces and nephews.

The two youngest- Coleman (a horse... not a zebra, according to him) and Libby (Dorthy)

Chris has been super busy with Rotation in Hospitals. Each month he is in a new place, doing somethign new. It can be pretty crazy hours...but he is being a trooper.

Also we had a little addition to the Bussey side of the family... the FIRST GRANDCHILD! My brother and Brandon and his wife Heidi had a little girl, Audrey, on 11-1-11. She is so cute can't wait to see her at Christmas.

La La La L.A. (Los Angeles that is)

2011-09-05T14:25:00.000-06:00

So back at the beginning of August my dad had business conference down in LA so my mom and little brother decided to tag along. So I headed down to spend a few days with them (and Chris came as much as his school schedule would allow).

They stayed in the JW MArriott right in the heart of LA Live (basically the area around the Staples Center). So we took advantage of the things that we nearby.

We went to Manhattan Beach and enjoyed the beautiful weather there.

My Mom, Brother and I went to Universal Studios

We enjoyed the pool at the hotel, ate at a lot of the nearby restaurants, and saw some movies at LA LIVE

We also enjoyed Historic Olvera Street

My parents let Chris and I use the last night of the hotel reservation after they left so we had a fun date night on the town!

Oregon Coast

2011-07-26T13:49:00.012-06:00

So over the week of 4th of July I flew up to Seattle. After a few days there I drove down with my family to the Oregon coast for a Family reunion with my Mom's side (Hafen Family). Unfortunately Chris was in the Throngs of studying for his huge Podiatry BOARD exams and couldn't come :(

Here are some pictures of some of the things we did..
I'll let the pictures do the talking-

(OK I guess this one might need a little bit of an explanation when I was 12 I went to the coast with my parents and Grandparents. We were out on the beach and to help cheer up my grandpa [and I was in a pretty silly mood] I grabbed our table clothe from our picnic and donned it as a cape and the BEACH DEFENDER was born. So I didn't want to let the beach defender be forgotten on this trip- so I sewed this cap and wore it and the beach defender was BACK!)

It was a wonderful trip filled with wonderful memories- the only downside is that Chris was not there with me to share it!

(here is a slideshow of all the photos taken)

Girls Camp

2011-07-26T13:12:00.004-06:00

This year I got to go to our Church's Girls Camp for the week back in June. It was so much fun and brought back lots of memories when I went as a teen.

The theme was F.B.I- Finding Beauty Inside. It focused on self-worth and building our inner beauty. It was an amazing theme and I myself learn a lot and grew as a women.

I got to be a Cabin Angel (or adult Counselor) over a group of First year campers. My Youth Counselors were AWESOME and I had lots of fun getting to know them and also our campers. All the cabins were Natural Beauties of the Earth and we had the GRAND CANYON. So we decided to go with the Indian and desert theme.

I also got the chance to be one of the speakers up at camp- and I was assigned the topic D&C 18:10, which is on the worth of souls. It turned out really good and I was glad that i was able to get my message across to many of the girls. I tied in the Movie Lion King and the part when Mufasa's ghost tell Simba to "REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE".

Also up at our camp all adults and girls after their 4th year get a camp name. Since growing up, my camp I went to did not give names- they had to give me one. Anyway I was given the name TIP TOP, since I guess they think I am always on top of things and in "tip top shape"...who knows, but I love the name.

The week was just incredible and I hope next year I get to go back!

M.I.A.

2011-06-15T11:50:00.005-06:00

yes, I have been Missing in Action from the blog world. Basically it all boils down to this- no pictures...no blog!
I think since I am such a visual person that if I do not have pictures of what we have be doing then I do not want to blog about it.

However it has been way too long since I last posted. So to still be brief with words (and throw in a few lame pictures) I will fill you in.

Chris completed his 2nd year of Podiatry school and made the Dean List
I finished another year of subbing (oh joy)
We spent a night at a Groupon "resort" that we got... but let's just say it was far from a resort..oh well. (who ever their photographer was should be getting lots of money because they made that place look way better than it is)
Celebrated many events with Chris' family
Chris finally got an iPhone
I found a recent addiction... Pinerest!
watching the Bachelorette (with infamous Bentley- who lived on the same floor as Chris his Freshman year)
took a walk down memory lane by organizing my box of pictures. Here is a "gem" I found.. don't you love the perfectly curled bangs, jumper, and of course the SASS?
Chris bought me a long board- so now we can ride together
we had a fun memorial day with friends including Tennis, Frisbee Golf, Swimming and Five Guys Burgers
went a saw Midnight in Paris- I really liked it (but maybe because I love the 20's and my nerdy/history loving self came out)

I promise to try and be better with blogging- I think now with Chris's iPhone I will be more likely to take pictures wherever we go (so I don't have to lug my big camera everywhere)

Spring Break in the Central Coast

2011-04-18T20:50:00.004-06:00

Luckily this year Chris and I had spring break at the same time. So we decided to take a trip up to the central coast of California (which we have been wanting to do for a long time). It was great because Chris took care of all the plans and let it be a surprise on where were we going to stay.

So our first stop was a bagel shop by UC Santa Barbara which Chris has been to years ago with friends. It was a tiny little shop with a TON of bagel choices- from basic to Mexican style ones, to breakfast sandwiches. IT was great!

Then we headed up to a small town call Cambria on the coast. We stayed in a very cute boutique type hotel for two days. While were were there we took morning walks on the beach, strolled down the main street (very small but CUTE), and relaxed.

We also got to go to Hearst Castle. If you are ever in the area it is a MUST see place. It was seriously breathtaking and pretty amazing. Basically, it was the house of William Raldolph Hearst- the Media Tycoon. Back in it's hay-day, everyone from Charlie Chaplin to Winston Churchill stayed there and he used to have the largest private zoo. But most of all the Views and landscape is unbelievable.

Very close to Hearst Castle is a beach were hundreds of Elephant Seals lay out. So we stopped but to check them out. I guess all they do ALL day long is lay out on the beach- what a life!

After our stay in Cambria we went to San Luis Obispo. This is seriously a place I could move to and live forever! It is such a cute, friendly and clean city. Supposedly it is the Happiest City in the United States- and I can see why! I didn't really take any pictures there, except for at the Famous GUM Alley- its pretty gross.

We also stopped on the way to SLO at Morro Bay to take some pictures of the famous Morro Rock.

It was a great trip- a perfect getaway for us to relax and enjoy a break from school and work!

whoa.. finally

2011-02-23T16:08:00.004-07:00

I don't know what it is... but blogging just hasn't been my thing lately. Hence the lack of posts. I have it on my "to do" list for weeks and I just never seem to have the motivation to actually do it. I even got as far as getting the pictures I wanted on the post... but just not typing it up. But today is the day!

So here is what we have done in January and February and so other random thoughts...

My Niece Libby had her 1st birthday which we got to celebrate with her. I didn't get to take any pictures during the party but I did snap some before in her cute birthday outfit. And below her picture is a picture of the doll I made her for her birthday.

We also got to go to a couple of my nephews' (Carter and Sawyer) basketball games. It is pretty entertaining to watch 4 year olds try and keep straight their team and their basket. Lots of the litle guys ended up guarding their own teammates. Also Carter is a little super star... like a white, 6 year old Kobe.

Speaking of Kobe... we got to go to a Lakers game with our friends the Woolfords. We were excited to hear that they had got their hands on some tickets. Chris had never been to a Laker game in the staples center- so it was a dream come true for this die hard Laker fan...and of course the beat up real good on the Jazz!

I had two friend have babies this past month so I had the opportunity to put my sewing machine to use. I treied a new project to give to them... a car seat blanket. It allows you to pull the seat belt straps through the blanket and still swaddle them. Here is one of them (first picture is it opened up- you can see the strap holes. The second picture is it swaddled):

I also got to have some girl time... one night I went out to dinner with my neighbors Tiffany and Michelle for some good Chinese and then another night I got to see my good friend, Lisa, from Seattle who lives down here now. Don't get me wrong- love the hubby but it's nice to have some girl time!

Chris and I were excited to see my dad who was down in LA on business. We drove down and picked him up and headed to Santa Monica. Chris had been dying to try this burger place down there (that was name best burger in his GQ magazine) and it gave us a perfect chance to go with my dad. The place is called UMAMI BURGER and there are like 5 locations throughout LA. (Umami is supposedly your 5th taste- after sweet, salty, bitter, and sour). These burgers really were the BEST! if you aren't a meat eater... maybe not for you but these burgers were sensational. They also mae thier own ketchup and thier siades are SO Yumy too! Chris went nuts over thier smushed potatoes with garlic aoili dipping sauce. GO if you get the chance .
But back to the evening... it was great to be with my dad. We ate our burgers, got some frozen yogurt and walked around Santa Monica a bit. THANKS DAD!

(this is the manly burger which I ate... I don't even think the picture does it justice)

(we also had their yummy tempura onion rings!)

Chris and I have also become addicted to the IPOD version of the Settlers of Catan. I mean I must even admit that I pull it out and play when I am stopped at a red light- I know... I have a problem. But if you like Catan and have an Ipod check it out.

We got to see our talented nephew and niece in their school talent show. Carter did a stand up comedy... or told jokes and Maddie sang "Popular" from the musical Wicked.

This month we have also enjoyed going to the temple, eating at Taco Tuesday @ Tios, watching The Bachelor (yes, Chris loves it too!!!), seeing the movie Unknown with Chris' parents, and much more!

Rose Parade 2011

2011-02-11T11:56:00.001-07:00

If were are in southern California on New Year's Day you can be sure to find us at the Rose Parade- with all of Chris' Family. So of course... this year we were there.

Of course it is pretty impressive to see what they can do with all natural materials to make a float... but I feel like once you have seen one parade you've seen them all. Now don't get me wrong- I still love going to the parade- enjoying the sunshine, gathering as a family, and fulfilling tradition. This year was no different. We had a great time!

And as always Chris' wonderful Aunt Sharon opens up her home to everyone to come over to afterward and she (with the help of many other great people) put on quite a spread! We enjoyed yummy Mexican food and wonderful company.

All SMILES! Coleman, Sawyer and Chris

What a BEAUTIFUL DAY!

Grampy and Libby (enjoying the view)

These are all of Chris' Cousins that were there.. you can see the big range in ages. But it wonderful to get to see all of them!

Christmas break with the Bussey's

2011-01-25T14:05:00.002-07:00

So after Christmas time my Parents, Paydan, and my Grandma came down to San Diego (after spending Christmas at my Grandma's in Central California). With them being so close that allowed us to get to see them too during Christmas Break. I felt really lucky to get to spend time with both sets of families over break!

Here are some things we did...

We went to Mission De Luis Rey and explored a bit around it since it was a rainy day . It was a cool historical places to get to see. Here is Chris, my Mom, Paydan and my Dad in front of the mission.

The Beautiful Mission- They sun came out just as we were leaving!
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We also got to go to the Wild Animal Park (a separate park of the San Diego Zoo). I was cool to see all the neat animals and go out on a safari-type ride. I was also excited to get to use my new camera lens my dad gave to me for Christmas.

Chris doesn't quite measure up to a Gorilla

It was VERY chilly at the park- which we were not quite expecting- so we stopped in the gift shop and this was the lovely outfit Chris put together.

The View of part of the whole park

umm... not quite sure why Chris' hand is on top of my head...oh well

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At nights we either helped my Grandma with puzzles or played games.

the resort they were staying at was the Lawrence Welk Resort. If you know any "old" people they can tell you who Lawrence Welk is or you can look at the wikipedia page here. So they put on shows in the theater at the resort. So for Christmas my parents gave my grandma tickets for all of us to go see the show- "Big Band Christmas". It was actually pretty good and fun to hear all the Christmas Classics- but we were definitely the youngest ones in attendance by at least 30 years!

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The last day we hung around the resort and my dad thougth we should partake in some of the activities the resort sponsors so we did the cookie decorating.

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Then since we only had like half a day we decided to go to downtown San Diego and explore. We were not quite sure what to do when we saw the USS M- a retire AirCraft Carrier that is now a museum.

Paydan, Me, Chris and my Mom starting to explore the ship

In front of one of the many planes on the deck

Aye-Aye Cap'n!

Chris and I are recreating the famous statue in the background

Overall Christmas Break was WONDERFUL. I am so grateful to have such wonderful family on BOTH sides!

Christmas with the WHOLE Jones Family

2011-01-16T18:47:00.007-07:00

(What a lame blogger I am... but here is my weak excuse... first I edited all my like 700 pictures from Christmas break and then lost all the edits, so I had no motivation to sit and do them all again. Finally I finished the pictures and loaded some on to a post- but I forgot about it and haven't added text until today- WHOOPS! Better late than never?)

So this year we spent Christmas with the whole Jones family... which is a rare treat! We had all the three family members that live here in CA but then we had the Herrera's from Texas and the Jones' from Louisiana too! So here is a quick run down of some of the things we did over break.

We went to see TANGLED and I was totally impressed. It was great and I loved all the music. Here is Kallie, Maddie and Brooklyn at the movie.

Here is Chris and Kallie at the Bass Pro Shop (a HUGE outdoor store) that has a Santa's village inside with free activities and pictures with Santa.

We went to Logan's Candy shop to watch them make Candy Canes all by HAND! It was amazing to see the process and was such a cool little shop. Here are some of the Family looking through the glass at the demonstration.

Here are some of the Kids and Grampy with their Candy Canes that they got to bend themselves after the demonstration.

We also did a little Christmas Eve Bowling. So Much fun. Look at Chris' intense form.

Here is my awesome bowling stance

We had a cute Christmas Eve Program with costumes for the kiddos that Katie had.

Here is Coleman, Kristy, Wes and Chris waiting for the program to start. I have to make a special shout out to the stuffed Santa on Chris' lap. It is his favorite childhood decoration and couldn't keep from snuggling it.

Sawyer the Shephard, Maddie the Inn Keeper and Libby the Sheep

Brooklyn as Mary and Baby Ava as Baby Jesus

Collin and Sawyer- To little shepherds (Sheep and "hook" included)

Maddie and Grammy preforming a Christmas Song

The Chaos insues...Opening Christmas Jammies from Grammy and Grampy

Chris and I got Jammies for each other too... These are my WONDERFUL Sock Monkey ONSIE pajamas. Finally me feet don't get cold!
(Chris just got basketball shorts and a new tee shirt for his pj's)

All 13 of the our nieces and nephews! They are all sporting their new PJ's and their "JONES" tees that I made for them.

We didn't want to spend Christmas eve on our own and most of all miss out on the joy of Christmas morning with kids. So we spent the night at Chris' parents house.

Here are the kids ready to run down and see what Santa left them.

Brooklyn, Davis and Chris chrecking out what Santa ate of his treats.

Lily, Kallie and Brooklyn all playing with their cute new dolls!

Chris snuggling with Collin, Kallie and Davis... Can't you tell they love him.. haha!

We also enjoyed a wonderful Christmas breakfast at Katie's house! It was very delicious- thanks for the Nielsen family letting us into their home.

It was a wonderful Christmas, especially being all together with the Jones'

Christmas Festivities with Friends

2010-12-13T22:39:00.003-07:00

Being a Washingtonian I am used to chilly weather with either rain or snow to help get me in the Christmas spirit. So one of the biggest adjustments living in So. California is getting used to the heat in wintertime. I mean I was wearing sandals and t-shirts just like a week ago. (I am sorry I know I shouldn't complain). So I needed some Christmas-y activities to try and help me get in the right mood for the season.

One festivity we partook in was to go again to see the Christmas lights on a street in our town. The whole street is decked out with decorations and LOTS of lights. Its fun to walk down the street looking at the decor. This year we went with our friends the Woolfords and Braziers.

Walking down the street

Chris and Brian posing in the Hawaiian Themed Yard- Chris is looking pretty good in the skirt!

In front of some of the lights

So cute to see Skylar and Boston holding hands... Maybe we should start planning their wedding in like 20 years?

We also threw a small UGLY sweater party with our neighbors. Here are some of the great outfits from the evening. We had fun eating treats, talking, and playing some fun games!

Clockwise from top left: Us, Harries, Braziers, and Woolfords

I am sorry this picture was too priceless not to put in... Chris' sweater was a real FIND at Goodwill- it caption was super creative (not)... it said "Rudolph the Red-nosed Rein-cat"

Hope everyone has done fun things themselves to get them in the spirit!

(oh and I guess I got my wish to help me get in the Christmas Spirit... it has been POURING rain non-stop the last 4 days)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

2010-12-13T22:38:00.001-07:00

I FINALLY PUT UP OUR CHRISTMAS DECOR

So let's just say we are slowly gathering up Christmas Decor as the years go by.. but it is still quite meager. Another reason we have limited stuff is because we (more like Chris) is particularly picky with what he will let put up.

But I am most proud of us finally moving up to a GROWN UP tree... no more tiny 3 footer! It may still be somewhat bare (but thank goodness for my mom sending me a whole bunch of ornaments right after Christmas last year) but we LOVE having a big tree. I get exited to come home and turn on the lights.

can you tell we are excited to have a big tree?

Now what did we do with the 3 footer... well I have decorated it with the hodge-podge of ornaments from Chris' childhood and other random ones- since I won't allow them on our real tree. That is one thing I put my foot down on. I like my Christmas tree to be uniform and with nice and matching ornaments. It probably is because that how it was growing up for me and then we had a little tree to put the funny ornaments on (like the FLINGER... remember that one Brandon?).

Anyway I also have never had my own wreath so I finally made one this year... I used my new Pom-pom maker which i LOVE!

I also made this tree out of a magazine. Maybe it needs a star or some glitter or something?

Thanksgiving

2010-12-13T22:37:00.001-07:00

So for Thanksgiving this year we headed to great Northwest. We flew up to Seattle to be greeted with a couple inches of snow and 8 degree weather... VERY abnormal for that time of year. The next morning we packed up the car with my family and headed to the Blue Mountains in NE Oregon to head to the usual meeting place for my mom's side of the family.

It was great to be with everyone from my mom's side of the family, especially my grandparents who just returned from a mission serving on the Navajo reservation in Arizona. We ate a lot, relaxed, played in the snow, watched movies, played games and just enjoyed being together!

Sorry there are not many pictures to document our time up there (I blame my dad... sorry Pops, because we only brought up his camera). but below are some pictures of playing in the snow and relaxing in the cabin.

I was REALLY glad I got to see some snow- because who know when I will see some again. It was nice to get a break from the 80 degree weather so I could finally feel like winter is here. Nothing like snow and a cabin to get you in the holiday spirit!

Halloween

2010-11-11T17:50:00.003-07:00

So we did some fun things this Halloween

First we carved our pumpkins (which we haven't done for a couple of years)
I carved a "j" for Jones, of course. I had a lack of creativity this year- so I tried to spruce it up some with paint too. Chris did the apple (Mac) sign... but no he is not a totally techie or Mac snob... that is just what he wanted to do- and I think it turned out well. I also baked pumpkin seeds for the first time this year. They turned out pretty good.

We got invited to a Halloween party by our friends, the Woolfords. Chris and I thought all week long what we could be (wothout spending too much)- so we came up with these costumes. Of courase we had to represent the LAKERS! I know I am quite frightning and many people have told me it was a very convincing costume ( I don't know if that is a good thing). I was very impressed with the NBA trophy that Chris made. You will have to google pictures of both Phil Jackson and Sasha Vujacic to see if we did a good job. We had a great time at the party and came home the champions of the Donut game!

Saturday I went to the Ward Halloween Party while Chris was at the USC v. Oregon Game with his brother Wes. I had to go to the party because my Young Women were in charge of a booth- which we did face painting. It was fun thought to see all the little kids in their costumes!

Then on Halloween we got together with Chris' parents and the Nielsens (Chris' sister's family) for dinner and a little bit of trick or treating. It was really fun to see my nieces and nephews in the costumes. Katie made them all! I can't wait til we have kids of our own to dress up and take trick or treating.

Where did September and October go?

2010-10-20T12:17:00.003-06:00

So I have been a fairly bad blogger and haven't posted quite a few things... I sometimes find if I don't have pictures for the events I forget to blog about them... WHOOPS!

So in September my Mom and Brother came down on his 12th birthday to celebrate "California-style". They flew in on a Friday night and we went out to dinner for Paydan's birthday and then headed to Scandia- a little family fun park. I got Paydan hooked on my favorite amusement ride- THE GRAVATRON, rode go-karts, and we played some putt-putt. Then on Saturday we woke up early and headed to the happiest place on earth- Disneyland to enjoy the day for Paydan's birthday. Luckily my dad was in San Diego for a church conference and was able to join us part way through our day at Disneyland. After Church and Dinner on Sunday they left. It was great to have visitors!!!

Chris and I also celebrated both of our birthdays in September (our 25th and 28th). We got to celebrate with some great dinner's out together and with family.

I have been substituting almost every day and Chris continues to be busy with school- with a exam about every other week.

I finished "Mockinjay" from the Hunger Game series (one of my birthday gifts from Chris)

Enjoyed General Conference

So we have been busy... but with somewhat mundane things. We are ENJOYING life though and that's what matters!

GOOOOOO COUGARS!

2010-09-27T11:02:00.001-06:00

So for Labor Day weekend we headed back to the Holy land... Provo for the first BYU game of the season.

We flew in late Friday night... after being delayed and had to SPRINT off the plane in order to get to the rental car kiosk before they closed- we didn't want to be stranded at the airport. But we made it and drove to the hotel.

the next day we woke up and headed to campus to hit up the bookstore to get some new BYU gear. We had lunch at Brick Oven with Katie and Chris and their kids (who were also there for the game). After some relaxing at the hotel we headed up to the game.

We sat ROASTING in the heat in the Washington section (since my dad got us our tickets) but overall it was a great game- especially once the sun went down. It was really fun also to see Jake Heaps play in his first college game. Jake is from my hometown and SKYLINE alum. Also his dad used to be my basketball coach of a team I played with his sister. Additionally it was cool to see all the old superstar BYU quarterbacks come back for the half time presentation.

(Us at the game)

(Chris, Chris and Carter enjoying the game)

(The BYU QB half time presentation)

(check out the score!)

On Sunday we visited my friend/old roomie, Elyse and her Husband at their cute place and also got to have lunch with my Aunt Nikol. It was great to see all of them. Then we flew home. It was a really fun LAbor Day weekend. If only now the cougars could win another game!

Harry and the Bowl

2010-09-06T16:08:00.004-06:00

A few weeks ago (8.13.10) Chris and I went to see HARRY CONNICK JR. and his big Band at the Hollywood Bowl.

We had ticketmaster gift cards for a long time and after watching Harry on IDOL last season we realized we wanted to see him in concert. I had already seen him once and I loved his concert and I wanted to see him again!

It was my first time at the Hollywood Bowl and it was beautiful. I Love outdoor concerts - especially on beautiful summer nights (which it was). Harry was great! So was his band and even part of the LA philharmonic orchestra played with him. He of course was funny, sang wonderfully and totally JAMMED on the piano. He is so talented!!!

Some of our highlights of the concert was:

him referencing the "Hide your kids... Hide your Wives" Youtube video (if you haven't seen it... do so- FUNNY!)
bringing his little daughter Charlotte out on stage
his trombone player who he brought with him from his home town, New Orleans. He sang exactly like Louis Armstrong and could really play the Trombone!
Harry's great Louisiana dancing... pretty funny!

It was a great night... I highly recommend Harry and his concerts!

Here is some footage we got from the concert... sorry for the shaky camera work- but the sound is pretty good!

"So" a needle pulling thread

2010-08-29T21:29:00.001-06:00

So for my birthday I have been wanting a sewing machine. I've wanted one for a long time and have been dreaming of the possibilities of what one might hold. So I found a really good deal on a highly recommended sewing machine online at amazon.com. I sent the link to my mom... hinting as a possible birthday gift.

Well to sum it up we were worried the deal would go away so my mom got it now and then she didn't want to pay for shipping twice so she had it shipped strait to me... hence a very awesome EARLY birthday gift!!!

So since Chris is back in school full force and I haven't started subbing yet I have had a lot of time on my hands so I have had lots of projects.

First I embroidered (by hand- not machine) this onsie for our friends/neighbors who just had a baby boy- Cohan.

My nephew, Sawyer, was having a Toy Story Birthday party so I made him an Alien stuffed animal with felt and a bag for him to put the alien or other toys in.

I have been very excited about a sewing machine too so that I can start making clothes. My first attempt was to make this skirt. I made another one too in Grey fabric. They were quite easy... but I definitely need to keep working at refining my skills.

This of course has got me back on a Project Runway kick... maybe now I can keep working to my dream of someday being a fashion designer...hah!

Seattle

2010-08-25T12:01:00.002-06:00

After our trip to Canada we had a few days in Seattle so Chris and I:

Meet up for lunch with my friends (We missed Laura!)

Alex, Melinda, Ciara and Me

Stopped in at my Dad's office

Did a little downtown shopping

Played Croquet with the family and ate a delicious bundt (bundkuchen..hehe) from Heidi

Relaxed with my family

Saw the Blue Angels who were in town for Seafair

(Paydan plugging his ears from the ROAR of the planes)

cool formation

Lake Okanogan, Canada

2010-08-19T12:49:00.002-06:00

The first week of August Chris and I went up to Seattle to joining my family on a boating trip. This time we decided to try out a new place which was actually in Canada- Lake Okanogan. It brought back lots of old memories of all the old boat trips we used to take in the summer. It was great to be with my family, enjoy the boat and explore a new place.

HANGING OUT IN THE ROOM

Chris and Paydan both glued to their Ipod games

Dad trying to stretch out his back... PEACE!

Playing SCUM... Chris was the scum this round-hence he had to wear the VISOR of SHAME.

OUT ON THE BOAT

Umm... Don't ask

I love Paydan's devilish grin on his face as he is squirting mom.

Can you tell we are happy to be out on the boat?

Aren't my parents sooo cute!

AHH! Don't Squirt me!

Bust a Move Chris... I am lucky I married a man with such great MOVES!

PULLED BY THE BOAT-THE WATER SPORTS

Me, Paydan and Mom on the tube... of course Paydan is all smiles since he is nice and safe in the middle of the tube.

My Skiing Idol... I wanna ski like my Papa!

I love this picture of Chris... it shows the mxiture of joy and sheer frustration trying to pull off a 360 on the kneeboard!

Wake boarding... don't you love my snazzy florescent wetsuit from the 90's!

Trying to do my 360 again... step by step- but you will notice in the last frame I was unsuccessful that time!

Pure Happiness

I love how my bangs turned out in this picture- haha... let's just say they totally match my 1990's wet suit!

Chris on the Wakeboard

BEAUTIFUL LAKE OKANOGAN!

Raspberries at Riley's

2010-08-10T21:53:00.005-06:00

A few weeks ago we made the journey out to Riley's Farm to stick with tradition (since we did it last year). It's a bit of a trek to get there but it is well worth it... it is a cute farm and colonial styled home, workers, shop, and more.

We got lots of YUMMY raspberries... some of us went home and made jam with their bounty... others (like me) just ATE them!

Here are some pictures:

PICKIN' BERRIES

Kristy and Brady picking just the right ones!

Looks like a good one, Sawyer!

Maddie contemplating her choices

Master Picker Chris

Coleman didn't pick any but he was sure good a looking cute!

Kallie Koo and her basket too!

Libby's First Trip- Hope many to follow!

Grammy coaching the boys on which ones to pick

Brady... What a stud in his cool-guy classes

SHOWING OFF OUR GOODS!

Collin

YUMM!

Carter, Davis and Maddie... good buddies and cousins!

That one looks like a good one Carter!

Nice Picks!

The young ones... so cute!

July With the Jones'

2010-08-08T20:44:00.008-06:00

So let me fill in the gaps of what else happened in July for us...

My friend Tiffany Chopped off my hair for me... I can only last with my long hair for so long. I love it! (here is a picture- not the best of it- so you can get the idea)

Chris went with our brother-in-law Chris to the All Star HOME RUN DERBY at Angels stadium.

Chaperoned a Young Single Adult Dance (yes I know its weird when I am the same age as some of the attendees!) and Koli from Biggest Loser came- he was VERY nice

I taught our neighbor, Skyler, swim lessons

Went to the beach with our Friends Adam and Kennen and saw one fisherman catch a shark (1 footer) and another catch a Manna ray off the Huntington pier

Saw the Movies Despicable me and Inception- both which we liked

Hung out with Heather (Chris' Sister from Texas) and her kids while they were visiting for a few weeks (took picture of Collin from Katie's blog since I didn't have any)

More To Come on....

Raspberry Picking

Trip to Seattle/Canada

Last Day in Kauai

2010-07-27T20:08:00.002-06:00

On our last day we just stayed around our beach/pool. We enjoyed doing our usual beach activities for one last time.

Chris wanted to go back to Brennecke's one more time to try out the waves again, so I walked over with him and watched.

That night we went to Bubba Burgers (kind of like an In n' Out of Hawaii) and walked around this little shopping place.

I had a wonderful trip and really didn't want it to end. It was so wonderful to be with all of my family and to be in such a BEAUTIFUL place together. Can't wait to go BACK!!!

Wailua Falls and Tunnels Beach

2010-07-26T19:48:00.003-06:00

Our next adventure we decided to head to the north side of Kauai. On our way up we stopped at the Wailua Falls.

It was quite overcast and even rainy as we drove farther north. I was worried it was going to be a cold, miserable day... but I was hopeful. But the drive up was BEAUTIFUL. The north side is so lush and green I thought I was in the jungle. All the homes were up in stilts because of the flash floods they get. If it weren't for that and it being farely remote-I would move there in a heart beat!

It was still a bit rainy when we got to our destination of Tunnels Beach, on the the farthest north beaches you can get to without hiking. But after lunch and some snorkeling it turned into a beautiful day!

Us older kids...being very "mature" wanted to TREASURE HUNT for cool shells in the ocean. I collected shells to complete my fish mosaic (see picture above) but Brandon and Chris found some cool shells diving below the waves. Paydan build another sand castle... or pit, as usual and we also saw a crab.

After we were done at the beach we headed to a shave ice stand that can recommended by friends. It was YUMMY and was the first time my shave ice was flavorful all the way through!

Tunnels beach was BY far my favorite beach we visited... it was sooo beautiful!

shipwreck beach- Kauai

2010-07-24T16:11:00.003-06:00

We headed to Shipwreck Beach, which was a little ways down from our condo. It was right next to the Hyatt Hotel which was beautiful! We walked through the lobby which was open and had a huge garden in it with Parrots and other birds!

The beach was lots of fun, Chris of course spent most of the time out in the waves on his boogie board, I alternated between laying on the beach reading and getting in the water. We also played some more smash ball.

We got to see a huge monk seal come up on the beach. Since they are endangered when ever they come up on shore to rest some one from the government (or city?) come and rope them off so they can sun bathe in peace! But that actually was NOT the most exciting wildlife we saw... we saw a SHARK!!!!

We were one the beach and we heard this couple near by pointing and debating whether it as a shark or dolphin they saw. I didn't look at first because I thought no way would there be a shark. But lo-and-behold there was a 5 foot shark swimming in the waves right on the shore! it stayed in the shore area for a long time... needless to say I did not get back in the after much after that.

The funniest thing was that Brandon the whole trip had talked about sharks and wanting to see one... but of course he left the beach like 15 minutes before the shark showed up... BUMMER!

That night we went out to eat and Chris had the best fish of his life... so he says. It was called Monchong- funny name but delicious.

Na Pali Coast and Brennecke's Beach- Kauai

2010-07-20T12:29:00.002-06:00

On Tuesday we headed out early to catch our Catamaran tour up the Na Pali Coast.
The Na Pali Coast can only be visited by either boat or helicopter... and we of course choose boat.
The coast line was spectacular... I totally understand why TONS of movies have been filmed there.

We had a fun boat ride, enjoyed the views, got to watch spinner dolphins( there was a group of like 75 right by our boat), snorkeled a bit, and more. The ride back got a bit bumpy and a it rained a bit. Paydan and Chris braved the weather and rode on top of the nets of the Catamaran.

Since the tour started so early we got back with still a lot of day left... so after a break Chris and I headed with my parents and Paydan to Brennecke's beach. It was a very quick walk from our place and Chris wanted to go because he heard there were good Boogie Boarding waves.

Chris and I even got to see like 5 HUGE turtles in the water. It was so funny because they were just getting tossed around in the waves... it looked like they were trying to boogie board too!

Poipu Beach- Kauai

2010-07-15T14:45:00.003-06:00

Our second day we hung out close to our condo (especially after sleeping in trying to knock my cold). We made a Costco run and got WAY too much food.

We spent the day at Poipu Beach, which you could literally take about ten steps out of the pool and be on the beach.

*Can you see Paydan's large muscles in that sand.. those are courtesy of Chris. And also here we are playing Smash ball, which became a favorite activity for Chris and I and we were constantly trying to beat our record of volleys.

That night we walked to a little restaurant right down the street called Brennecke's.

Waimea Canyon - Kauai

2010-07-15T13:32:00.002-06:00

After arriving in Kauai late Saturday night we quickly grabbed some groceries for the following day and headed to our condo at the Marriott Waiohai Beach Club.

Sunday (4th of July) we woke up and headed to the nearest ward in Koloa. It was funny to see all the tourists filling up the whole back section of the congregation and to hear everyone start their talks with "Aloha".

We decided to take a drive and a hike in the Waimea Canyon... which is like the Grand Canyon of Hawaii. It was a beautiful drive and a nice way to see quite a bit of the island. We stopped at a look out (the first pictures below) to see the canyon in all its glory! It was beautiful and immense.

We took about a two mile hike in to take us to a high point in the canyon. The views from here were stunning also!

Once at the top My dad (with his bad back) and me (with my sinus cold) decided to hang at the top while the others took a small hike down to some little falls/swimming hole, pictured below.

After our hike we came home a relaxed (I napped to try and help recover from my nasty cold). Then we all pitched in to make a yummy dinner.

It was a great day to start off our trip and get to see the beautiful sights, we are so lucky to have such beautiful places on the earth!!!

2010-07-12T16:17:00.002-06:00

We've been absent from the blog for a bit because we have been "occupied" in paradise and busy with new things...

Meaning...

we just got back from a week-long vacation in Kauai with my family- so there will be many posts to come!

I have been busy getting ready for a new calling in my church... I am now Young Women's President. I am a bit overwhelmed but actually VERY excited! I love the girls in my ward and look forward to serving them.

Rest of the Reunion!

2010-06-30T12:51:00.003-06:00

Day 3-
Swimming at Tanner's Pool

Katie, Janelle and I got together in the morning and made headbands... it was so fun to be crafty with them!
Then in the afternoon we went to Kristy's Friends (The Tanner's) pool to swim. It was a fun afternoon with trampoline, waterslide, hot tub and more!

Day 4-
Newport Beach and Celebrating Debbie's Birthday

So we headed to Newport Beach for the day. It was a little cloudy but still a fun day. Unfortunately Chris had to study for a test so he couldn't join us.
That night we went to ShoGun with just the adults to celebrate Debbie's Birthday.

Day 5-
Disneyland

Of course the reunion would not have been complete without going to Disneyland. Chris had to take his last TEST of his first year of school (woohoo!) that morning so we met up with the rest of the family later that afternoon. We enjoyed the day at Disney even though it was pretty hot and crowded. We tried to stay for the fireworks, but the spots we sat in were completely blocked by the trees, whoops!

Day 6-
Back to the Beach!

We did one more quick beach day and this time Chris got to come. Of course we hit up the new CAFE RIO that is close to the beach! Another great day!

The reunion was lots of fun. It was great to be all together as a family and get to do so many fun things!

Going Wild at the ZOO- Reunion Day 2

2010-06-26T11:26:00.002-06:00

The next day of the reunion we headed to Irvine Park- which is actually not in Irvine, but in Orange. We started with a picnic lunch, and the kids quickly moved on to climbing trees.

Then we headed to the Zoo there in the Park. It is small, but nice zoo. The kids loved getting to pet the goats, search for answers to the zoo pamphlet questions, and looking at all the animals.

(pic from Katie)
I just love this picture of Sawyer Chasing the Free-roaming Peacock.

There was a sign at the front booth about a "teacher kit". So I asked if I could check it out. The kit was full of cool animal skulls, furs, feathers, and footprints. The kids loved looking at them with me.

(Pic from Janelle)
As we left the zoo the kids got ZOO BADGES for filling in the whole Zoo Pamphlet question (although the adults did most of it!)

It was another great day being with the family!!

Playing in the Park- Reunion Day 1

2010-06-23T11:33:00.001-06:00

A little over a week ago we had a JONES FAMILY REUNION.

This time we just stayed in California and did all the fun things living around here has to offer. Chris' oldest brother, Jeff, and his family flew in from Texas and the rest of us live down here already. (Except we unfortunately were missing Chris' oldest sister, Heather's, family...BUMMER!).

So after picking up Jeff, Janelle, Brooklyn, Tyler and Lily from the airport we just kind of hung out around "Grammy and Grampy's" house. I took the kids to the nearby part to entertain them. Brooklyn, Tyler, and Lily were my wonderful "MODELS" and let me take LOTS of pictures of them. Brooklyn and Lily even became like my assistant photographers/directors and was suggesting all the great places to take pictures and poses to make.

I had lots of fun with these kids, especially since I rarely get to see them...HOORAY!

(many more reunion posts to come)

Dodger Game

2010-06-20T14:59:00.002-06:00

We were invited to the Dodger Game by our friends Whitney and Ryan in our Ward a few weeks ago. It was a beautiful night and it was great first experience for me at Dodger Stadium. It is actually a cool stadium nestled in the hills with some great views of the city.

Don't worry I tried a DODGER DOG too!

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-02T22:52:00.006-06:00

We had a fun Memorial Day Weekend... we decided to be TOURISTS in our own city!

Friday night we went with Adam and Kennan Tullis to Griffith Observatory. We saw a show in the planetarium, enjoyed the STUNNING night skyline with a beautiful FULL moon (pictures don't do it justice), and walked around the observatory. Unfortunately we barely missed the times to look through the HUGE telescope...next time.

We then headed down to "Hollywood" to see the stars and footprints, Grauman's Chinese Theater, and the other things down there. Since it was pretty late there were not the usual "performers" down there but we had fun anyway.

Saturday we headed back to LA again with the Tullis' to the Fashion District. Now the name makes it sound a bit more glamorous than it really is. Basically its like an area of glorified NY street vendors, San Fran's ChinaTown, or Little Mexico.

There were tons of knock off purses and sunglasses, lots of cheap clothes and more. Chris and I got some sunglasses, Kennan got a new purse and shoes for her B-day, and at the end Adam did some masterful bargaining for a guitar.

(I don't know if you can tell but I thought it was soo funny... all the pant mannequins had EXAGGERATED butts! I guess it was more appropriate for most of the clientele).

Then on Monday we just got a lot of stuff down and ran errands. Then we met up with some of the family to celebrate Brady's birthday. Below is part of the gift I made for Brady. I painted this t-shirt for him since he is in LOVE with CARS the movie- especially Lightning McQueen, who he calls "Ka-Chow!"

Swing Batter, Batter!

2010-05-25T17:14:00.005-06:00

Last night we got a chance to go to our nephew Carter's baseball game. We went to one earlier in the season and it was fun to see how he has gotten better... and this time I brought my camera.

It is so cute to see Carter play... they are all just so small! It was great to also see Maddie and Sawyer play (and snap their pictures) and hang out with little Libby!

Here are some pictures:

I actually got a few good pictures of Sawyer... who is usually the elusive and tricky one to snap a picture of.

I bribed him with gum to sit and take a picture with me.

I love this picture of Chris with Libby. I can't wait to see him in action with our own kids in the future.

Maddie... man she is growing up fast- they all are!

Sawyer playing around on the playground.

Carter up to bat... he his a double!

Chris, Maddie and Katie

Chris and Libby Lou!

How can you not LOVE that face!

I am so glad that we live close to them and get to be a part of their activities and watch them grow up!

...152 insights into my soul.

2010-05-20T14:40:00.003-06:00

...This was said by the insightful and "enchanting" Kathleen Kelly about NY152... her true LOVE. Well my 152 insights to my soul come from the movie it is quoted from- that's right,

YOU'VE GOT MAIL!

I am not a person who usually loved to watch the same movies over and over again... but one that I can is You've Got Mail. And I am one lucky girl because I feel like it is played every weekend on one of the cable channels like TBS or TNT. Well I recorded it last weekend and with not having to work today (even though I should be cleaning or doing something productive) I decided to watch it today and it made me realize that this movie does have those 152 insights into my soul!

I love all romantic comedies... but I think it just shows how wonderful this movie is because the one I like the most BY FAR has the least attractive male role (Tom Hanks) of all rom-coms! Even with his funny curly hair and not-toned physique I still love his character Joe F-O-X! And who couldn't love Meg Ryan (at least her pre-plastic surgery days).

Here are some of the "insights to my soul" this movie offers:

If I ever have a dog I think I would have to name it Brinkley
The only "Godfather" movie lines I know are from this movie... "going to the mattresses" or "Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday"
I hope and pray that I can TWIRL with my daughters in the future.
Kathleen/Story Book Lady reads an autobiography, "BOY", by my ALL time Favorite Children's author Roald Dahl. See...she totally is on the same wave length as me!
I have a strong desire to write almost "poetically" like they do with each other in the movie.
Most of Meg Ryan's outfits in the movie I would still LOVE to wear today- even 12 years later. You can never go wrong with cardigans. But most of all I want the outfit she wears in the last seen in Riverside park- what a cute dress!
Above all else- I want to be Kathleen in this movie because she has my dream job. If I am ever rich and have money to spare I want to open my own "Shop Around the Corner" and sell children's books. I want to be able to share my LOVE of children's literature with others. If you know me well you know I always have my bedside table FULL of at least 5 children's book that I want to read (before I have to return them every few weeks to the library). I want to be creative and get to set up cute and charming displays in the store front. I want to be the "storybook Lady" and get to read books out loud- with silly voices too- and have no one judge me for it. I want to put all the purchased books in cute tote bags like in the movie. I want my customers to be "regulars" and know me by name. Some day....

If you EVER are in the mood to watch one of the best movies ever (jut my opinion I guess) feel free to call me us cus I will never turn down the offer!

*** The only other movie that is on the same level with me, that I could watch over and over again, is Little Women!

Laker Love

2010-05-05T18:38:00.006-06:00

In the Jones Home we wear our Purple and Gold Proudly!

Since my poor Sonics were stripped away from Seattle a few years ago I have slowly converted over to be a Laker Girl to join my man. Chris is an AVID fan, and has been for years. I sometimes worry that he will turn out like the guy in the movie below (you have to watch... this guy is hilarious!).

So of course with the NBA playoffs we have had basketball on around the clock. I am such a supportive wife that I have allowed my husband to erase my set DVR recordings so that he can tape the "Lake Show" as he likes to call it.

We have even got to join together with other Laker fans on several occasions to watch them play.
Here we are at Buffalo Wild Wings with some of Chris' fellow POD students. It was a fun night and of course the Lakers won. Chris' dream of making a fellow student's (Jackie) photo album which he has been vying for all year.
(Pictures Curtesy of Jackie Pham)

We also got to watch last Saturday's game at our Friends the Jacksons' home with some other friends in the ward, which was LOTS of fun.

Heres to a Laker Win tonight... as I am typing this post- and then on to another CHAMPIONSHIP!

Bonfire at the Beach

2010-04-22T16:06:00.001-06:00

So last weekend we finally got to do a beach bonfire. I have always wanted to do one, especially since I was in high school and used to watch the kids on "Laguna Beach" do it (haha). We invited some podiatry friends, Hannah and Josh, and Kennan and Adam.

Chris and I got there first to scout out a fire pit. The two of us enjoyed a yummy TK burger then relaxed on the beach, reading and playing catch with our baseball and gloves. Once the others got there we got the fire cracking (well Josh did) and then we roasted hot dogs (well not me since I have a fear of hot dogs) and s'mores!

It was a really fun night and hopefully there will be many more beach bonfires!

I'm proud of my Papa!

2010-04-22T15:25:00.002-06:00

So let me sum up my spring break week with my family (but unfortunately without any more pictures). My mom and dad left on Wednesday that week to fly to SLC for our church's general conference and because my dad said he had special meetings for him as a stake president to attend.

The rest of the week I got to hang out with my grandma and Paydan (and Chris) at Newport Coast. We went out to eat, made puzzles, Played the game of LIFE, ate out, hung out at the pool, and Chris and I even took Paydan back to Disneyland on of the days. It was a lot of fun and it was nice to get some sibiling bonding time with just my little brother!

Back to what my parents were doing...
We thought it was a little strange that my dad HAD to go to SLC for these meetings and that my mom had to go too. I had asked him what exactly they were, but never got a super clear answer. Chris even grilled him on what they were all about. But I didn't really think much of it.

Well Friday night, my dad texts me and says make sure to watch Saturday Afternoon session of Conference and to keep him in our prayers. Hmmmm? What's up with that?!? So of course we begin spectulating what it is and then on Saturday we listen and we hear this:

(sorry the quality isn't great... and volume is low)

So my dad was called as a Area 70! I guess the one time it is okay for someone to mispronounce you name (Bussey, my maiden name) is when an Apostle does it! I am so proud of him and I am so grateful for the wonderful example he is to me in my life. I know he will be great and will be blessed!

Overall I had a FABULOUS spring break and I am so glad I got to spend that time with my family!

Laguna Beach with my family

2010-04-20T12:41:00.004-06:00

On Wednesday of Spring Break, and the last day before my parents had to fly to Salt Lake (more on that later) we decided to go to Laguna Beach and see if we could find any tide pools.

Some of the cool things we got to see

The whole gang! Can you tell that Chris is Excited to be there!

This is kind of an awkward picture because Chris looks like a giant...oh well!

Paydan trying not to get wet... but of course later on he did!

Right before Chris had to leave to go to class.

After Chris had to leave for class, my parents, Paydan and I went into the heart of Laguna and ate lunch and looked at some shops.
Another great day of Spring Break!

Disney and Dad's B-day

2010-04-11T20:27:00.002-06:00

What better way to Celebrate a birthday than at the happiest place on earth. So for my dad's, ummm... "31st", Birthday we spent the day at Disneyland. It was fairly crowded since it was spring break time but we lucked out much of the day and got on a lot of the big rides. We even talked my dad into getting and wearing a birthday button!

About to watch Captain EO... yes its BACK! I just loved watching everyone try and reach out a grab the little furry creature with wings!

Me with Paydan and the Pops waiting for Matterhorn

Whole Crew (unfortunately Chris has a mandatory class that day).

It was a wonderful day, I loved being in one of my favorite places with some of my most favorite people!

Newport Beach with my Family

2010-04-10T15:56:00.002-06:00

So on Monday of Spring Break we went to Newport Beach. It was a beautiful day and we had a good time playing in the sand, Chris and I braved the COLD water, reading, talking and even a run in with a dead sea lion ( I know... very sad)

My wonderful parents! I hope I can look as great as they do when I am their age.

Chris and I enjoying the beach

Me, Grandma, and Chris. Grandma was a bit chilly (like usual) and we wanted to make sure she was protected from the sun, hence the towels

Paydan and my dad working on his sand "castle"... or more like PIT... I thought he might dig all they way to CHINA!

Here is a Seal we say swimming in the water, so cute!

Now, although this looks like a peaceful sleeping sea lion, he unfortunately is dead.

Earlier we had seen something out in the water which I just thought was someone's flippers. Well Chris was swimming and got talking to a guy on his surf board and they saw that the "flippers" we actually a sea lion's. He looked like he was struggling, but the surfer cautioned Chris, saying they can be very mean and not to get to close. Like a half hour later, we saw a group of people a little bit down the beach and it was the Sea Lion washed up on shore. It seemed as if he was sick and maybe even a little bit food deprived. It was quite sad, but it was neat to see a Sea lion up so close.

Spring Break!

2010-04-05T17:07:00.002-06:00

So this past week(s) were spring break. Unfortunately Chris' schools break was two weeks ago but my work (with the school district) had spring break this last week. So Chris enjoyed most of his break by himself... since I was working most days. He was just glad to have a break from the endless studying and also to get a chance to lay out by our complex's pool. We did manage one day though to head down to Old Town Pasadena together!

However, it was good I had this last week off since my parents, little brother Paydan, and my grandma were coming! We had a great week together and there will be many posts to come on it!

My family (Minus Dad- taking picture)

All ABOARD!

2010-03-16T18:11:00.002-06:00

Last Thursday our friends Jordan and Lindsey Scott invited us to join them.. "sailing"... well not quite, let me explain.

Lindsey's dad owns a sailboat that is docked out in Long Beach. The Scott's wanted to have a kid-free night and so they decided to spend the night on the sail boat (and were so nice to invite us). Since none of us are sailors, we just hung out on the boat and spent the night while is was still in it's slip (docked). We could care less if we were moving or not on the boat, we just enjoyed the wonderful company and something that was out of the ordinary to break up the monotony of life.

So we drove down to Long Beach (near the aquarium) and put our stuff on the boat. Then we took a nice walk to Chili's (which is pretty much tradition when we get together with the Scott's since the boys LOVE it). After dinner we got on the boat and enjoyed playing cards, a game called Up the River-down the River, which Lindsay won. After talking some more, we called it a night and slept on a TRUE water bed (hehe).

The next morning we got up and enjoyed some breakfast out in the sunshine on the boat deck and then headed home.

Thank you so much Jordan and Lindsay for inviting us!!!

Podiatry PAR-TAY!

2010-03-13T16:46:00.002-07:00

On Monday Chris' program had a BBQ at one of the other student's house, the Leavitts. It was fun to get together with most of the students. I finally got to meet (officially) a lot of the students...it was nice to be able to put faces to names. It was also great to see many of the wives again!

It was a fun night of socailizing and eating. I also had a good time getting to hold baby Ruthie (Craig and Melissa's new daughter). And most of all we were excited that Jackie (fellow student) was there with her great PHOTO skills to document the night.

A lot of the Wives... comparing notes on what it has been like supporting a Med Student!
(Back: Kristen, Baby Ruthie, Me, Laura (our gracious host), Kennan. Front: Kim and Melissa)

Chris and I

Libby's Blessing

2010-03-12T17:19:00.003-07:00

Last Sunday we got to go to Libby's Baby Blessing and then got to hang out at the Nielsen's home with other family.

It was a great day getting to be with family and enjoy celebrating Libby and her blessing. We had great food that Katie had for us and Debbie made some delicious cupcakes (so yummy!). I also took it as an excuse to make some sugar cookies and practice frosting techniques (see picture below). I tried to make a baby swaddled in white and then the L and N are for Libby's initials.

But we are so glad to have our new niece and have really enjoyed getting to hold her and fuss over her! (it has also given us some baby practice for some time in the future).

New Project

2010-03-09T18:10:00.003-07:00

So I have decided to try something new... a "crafty" blog. For the past few months I have been storing Ideas (crafts, recipes, decor, tutorials, etc) on a private blog so I could have the great ideas saved and indexed from all the HUNDREDS of blogs I follow. That way I could always have them handy. I have used it a TON already!

Well I figure I should make it available to all if I am getting so much use out of it. So check out my new blog: My Inspiration Index.

There are not a ton of post on there yet because I need to go back and re-work all the posts (from my private one) in order to give credit where credit it do... meaning link up to and use proper blog etiquette (since before on my private blog it didn't matter). But I will try to update it often (like three times a week) with great ideas from the blogosphere.

Who knows... maybe this will turn into a business for me... but for now it just way to store great ideas for myself and ANYONE else who cares.

Confessions of a Med School Wife

2010-03-06T13:29:00.008-07:00

Yes it is true... Chris is a slave to school..haha! So these past three weeks Chris has had a test EVERY week (compared to the every two to three weeks). Hence, since they are usually on Mondays, I have had to try and entertain myself the past three weekends. So Here are some things that I have done to try and keep myself busy:

Watching a lot of girly TV shows and movies

Cooking and Baking...tried a great new recipe for these Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Balls that Chris loved since they reminded him of a treat he would always buy in Chile on his Mission
Going to the temple with my Sister-in-law, Kristy

Having some fellow med-school wives over to hang out
Made a lot of hand-outs and planned a bunch for Young Womens

Added many blogs (especially Craft and Cooking ones) to my Google Reader after doing some blog hopping. From this I added a lot to my growing list of things I want to make!

Followed through on some of those things.... (see below)

Made These Sock Monsters. They were lost of fun to make.. I wish I only had a sewing machine so that I could make them a WHOLE lot faster. I plan on making a lot more!

Here is a Felt Flower Headband I made for my niece Libby to wear when she has her blessing

Some more Headbands I made for a baby gift

This onesie and pants I used fusing to attach the cute paisley material on and then hand stitched around it. These are to match the head bands.

So hopefully Chris won't have to many more long stretches like this without a break... for his sanity and MINE!!

Go USA!

2010-02-20T21:31:00.002-07:00

We too have been watching some of the winter games, especially the highlights for team USA!
I usually only make an effort to try and watch figure skating. But a past few winter Olympics I added speed skating since everyone in my hometown of Seattle had OHNO Fever, soul patches included, for our fellow Seattle-ite Apollo Anton Ohno.

Chris, however is a bit more of an active view with the games. He gets into learning about all the sports and their players/teams. He made me realize how cool it is to watch these people do amazing feats and especially to see TEAM USA bring home the golds.

However, there is one sport in particular that Chris has fallen in love with. I was bit taken a back when he started showing interest. You would never guess which one he loves.

No- it is not the dare-devil, gravity-defying half pipe...

Neither is it the glitz and glam and DRAMA of men's figure skating...

Not even the super G, skeleton, luge, or biathalon.

His new favorite sport is one that involves: ends, hits, hammer, shot rock, the house, and a hog line. Got a GUESS?

CURLING

Yes, Chris thoroughly enjoys (no joke) the sport of Curling. I thought he was joking when he said it intrigued him, but soon realized that he wasn't when he gave me the play by play of what was happening today when we watched it... using all the correct terminology. If I was explaining the sport I would have said things like "those big scrub brushes" "rock with a handle" and "shuffle board on ice", which is far from what it truly is.

Chris loves it so much he made time to watch the whole men's match today, even though he has a HUGE test on Monday and had not stop to watch really any other television. He even mentioned that he wants to try curling someday.

So who knows... maybe 2014 will include a new participant on the USA men's team... JONES!

Family Time at Disney!

2010-02-13T21:36:00.004-07:00

On Friday I was able to enjoy my favorite place... Disneyland! Chris' parents, Katie and her kids and Kristy and Her boys were all able to go since they did not have school that day. Unfortunately Chris was busy at home STUDYING away and couldn't come. But it was a beautiful day with the sunshine out. We were worried at first that the park would be packed, but it wasn't too bad.

I most of all just enjoyed being with family. Disney is SOOO much more fun when you have little kids around. I loved being able to ride the rides with my nieces and nephews, take lots of pictures, hold baby Libby and chat with the girls! I feel so blessed to have such wonderful in-laws and too live so close to them so that we can do so much together.

I felt honored to be there for Libby's first trip to the Happiest Place on Earth at one month old. I am glad she was introduced to Disneyland by going on the best ride there is... Toy Story Mania! So cute in her hip yellow 3D glasses!

Left: Maddie with Minnie (say that ten times fast). Right top: Carter and his Baby Blues... he LOVES the camera and is ALWAYS willing to stop and pose. Right bottom: Tal and Coleman... what a good Grampy!

(I really enjoyed taking pictures during the day! I got to test out new camera tricks I have been learning!)

It was fun to go on some of the kiddie rides (like the bug's life ride above) since usually when Chris and I go alone we skip right over those.

An update so you can keep up with the Jones'

2010-02-03T18:09:00.012-07:00

Home

So I have been in the crafting mood lately, probably because of the hundreds of crafty-type blogs I follow. So I have been trying out some new recipes and made some Valentine decorations (since I had none). So here are some things I have made...

*made these yummy taquitos the other night...delish!

Also, we had a replay of our honeymoon this past week... and NOT in a good way. For those of you who don't know, on our honeymoon Chris got DEATHLY ill the 2nd night and eventually had to spend the night in the ER. Well Chris woke up at 4 am the other day to...without being to graphic... violently throw up! This continued about every half hour for up until about 2 pm. Luckily I was able to keep him somewhat hydrated and he finally broke his fever later in the day and was doing okay. It must have just been an awful 24 hour bug, but BOY it brought back some "wonderful" memories!

School
Chris has been working his tail end off in school. I believe this is going to be his hardest semester. He, along with his fellow peers, are trying to get used to being the guinea pigs for the administration, since this is the first year of his program. It is a bit frustrating at time, but he is hanging in there. He also was asked by the faculty to be the California Podiatric Medicine Association (CPMA) Chair person for his school. He gets to fly to Oakland this weekend to go to a conferences for it!

Work
My subbing had finally began to pick up in the Upland School District. Some weeks are better than others. I have done everything from 1st to 8th grade. It is always an adventure each day being in a different school, grade, and classroom. However, I have not had any terrible days and have actually really enjoyed many of my assignments. At times I miss my old class SOOO much!

Church
Chris and I are feeling settled into our new ward. We got to speak a few weeks ago, which always helps people get to know you better. I also just got called as the Young Womens 1st Counselor... so all you that have served in Young Womens PLEASE let me know so I can pick your brains for advice.

Family
We have got to spend a lot of great time with Chris' family lately. We have loved all the wonderful Sunday dinners at his parents' and Katie's house. We also have become an Aunt and Uncle AGAIN when Katie had her 4th child, Libby Jean. We have enjoyed being around Libby and getting practice with newborns...let's just say it is making us baby hungry! Also, I got to go see Maddie perform with her grandpa (my Father-in-law) at her school Talent Show. Here is a short clip below of their adorable song!

Wait... are we in Provo?

2010-01-26T14:37:00.003-07:00

So this weekend we did some things that reminded us of our college days and felt like we were back in good ol' P-Town!

On Friday night our friends, Jordan and Lindsey, invited us to join them to make the trek down to the new Cafe Rio in Lake Forest. It was quite a drive, about an hour, but we think it was worth it. Chris was in gastronomical heaven as he relished each bite of his pork salad. We also felt like we had stepped into a Mormon Colony, since I am sure about 90% of the packed eatery was LDS. It was lots of fun to spend time with Jordan and Lindsey (and their cute baby, McKenna) again!

On Saturday night we kept the trend of BYU activities and also LONG distance driving by heading down to San Diego to watch the mighty Cougs (ranked 10th in the nation) take on the SDSU Aztecs. We got to carpool down with Darren and Laura, a fellow Podiatry student and his wife. We had a fun time together and were happy that the team pulled out a "W".

I won, I won, I won!

2010-01-17T18:17:00.004-07:00

Hip-hip-hooray... I finally won a GIVEAWAY!

So I occasionally enter some of the many great giveaways on some of the "craft-y" blogs I follow and this morning I found a email in my inbox saying I won! I was thrilled, especially since the prize is soooo beautiful. I cannot wait to write lovely notes on such beautiful stationary.

I highly recommend you check out the site I won from, Good Gravy!

I love being 3 years old!

2010-01-13T17:02:00.002-07:00

...in MARRIAGE that is!

Chris and I celebrated our 3rd Wedding Anniversary on December 30th. Since it is around holiday time we are usually with family (which is just fine) so we never make to big of a to-do out of it. We enjoy a laid back anniversary, since (watch out here comes some major CHEESE) everyday to me seem like a day to celebrate with Chris.

So this year we went on a morning walk in the fresh snow (in Sunriver) with my family. Then we traveled home to Seattle that day. Luckily we got home in the late afternoon so we were able to go out. We both voted to go down memory lane and drove up by our old apartment in Issaquah and visit the fabulous pizza place, Zeeks, that we lived right above. So after enjoying some yumy pizza and breadsticks, we stop by to get some cold stone and then went back home to just relax. We really appreciate Paydan relinquishing his dominion on the Bonus room upstairs for one night so we could enjoy relaxing in there together.

I Love You So Much Chris and I can't wait to see what this year of marriage hold for us. Here to 3 and MANY, MANY more (well, really eternally more)!

"Don't Rain on my Parade"...

2010-01-11T16:43:00.002-07:00

We had another wonderful, sunshine-filled day at the Rose Parade. One of my favorite parts is watching the kids get so excited. This years high point was seeing all the Asian parade-watchers literally RUN to follow a float that was carrying Jackie Chan...HA HA!

Here are some of Chris's cousins that were at the parade... notice the age variations between them! It was great to then go over to Chris' aunt and uncles house to enjoy delicious Mexican food and great company. We are so blessed to have such loving family...who throw great parties!

Sunriver

2010-01-10T22:47:00.001-07:00

After our time at the Blue Mountain Lodge we headed to Sunriver, OR to spend a few days with just my immediate family. Like mentioned previous, we used to spend Christmas here every year until we outgrew the space, but I haven't been back for like 10 years.

While there we enjoyed lots of things, such as:

Reading "the Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown
playing games
watching movies (and I DO NOT recommend the movie "Land of the Lost")
working out
having the wonderful lodge's brunch
reinstating the tradition of CRAZY DINNERS... it was a MAJOR success. Let me explain. When we were younger we would sometimes on vacations have a night where everyone would get one dollar and got to spend it on whatever they wanted to and then contribute to make up the dinner. We would end up with everything from cheetos, tic tacs, to fish sticks. Let's just say it was defiantly not the healthiest meal, but that was not the point. Well, due to inflation we raise the monetary amount to 5 dollars and to ensure a bit more of a balanced meal we assigned categories. We ended up with actually a pretty tasty dinner. We had mac and cheese with hotdogs (courtesy of Brandon and Heidi), Fruit parfaits (from us) and then some cheese cake and ice cream (from parentals and Paydan)
Watching Crazy Raccoons. See... we did not have a freezer or much fridge space in our condo so we placed our crazy dinner cheese cake left overs in a covered pan outside to keep it chilled. Well later we heard some noise outside and saw that we had unexpected dessert guests. There were 3 raccoons who had pushed the lid of the pan and were going to town on the cheesecake. We watched them for quite a while and even watched the raccoons' hierarchy system as one alpha male? pushed other ones away. In about 30 minutes they had licked the pan CLEAN!
Going for walks in the FRESH 6 inches of snow

Chris holding our new toy.. the FLIP

In front of the Lodge

My cute, sassy Mama!

I LOVE fresh snow, especially kicking, playing or walking in it!

Paydan and I racing to the end of the bridge

Skiing at Mt. Bachelor

Christmas Morning

2010-01-10T22:06:00.002-07:00

So luckily I was able to sleep through the night on Christmas Eve, which usually is not the case since I am always giddy like a 2 year old child. But having young children still present at the cabin meant that the call time for opening presents would be early, 7 am.

The "beloved" (it is in quote to denote me being facetious) stairway pictures was taken before we could be let loose on our bounty from the man up North. We were given some great gifts by Santa, Family and each other. One of my favorite gifts was my new FLIP camera Chris gave me in our stocking.

It was a great day and I can not wait til the day when we can share these memories and times with kids of our own.

Blue Mountain Lodge- 2009

2010-01-10T21:51:00.000-07:00

So here is a quick recap of our time spent up at the Blue Mountain Lodge. I had sooo many pictures, hence the collages to fit more in!

Here's a little history: In my side of the family Christmas is always been spent... AWAY (Gasp!) from home. I have only spent like two Christmases at home that I can remember and they were kind of weird for me. We usually pack up all our stuff and head out to a cabin with my mom's whole extended family. I love it since it has always been TRADITION, although to most it seems very strange. Let's just say it is an adventure to pack all the Christmas things in a car and ride for hours. So for the past years (since we outgrew the first cabin in Sunriver, OR) we have spent time at the Blue Mountain Lodge, out in the BOONDOCKS of NW Oregon.

We had lots of relaxing fun being with family and enjoying the snow, holiday and food. Since there is no internet, much phone service, or even a grocery store near by we make our own fun by:

Cooking and Enjoying food
Watching lots of movies
Playing Games (like our new favorite... Up the River, Down the River)
Going for daily walks in the WINTER WONDERLAND

Sledding on our usually sledding hill (but we wished we would have gotten some nice fresh snow)

And of course celebrating Christmas (more in a later post)

Tis the Season in Seattle

2010-01-06T15:12:00.008-07:00

This year it was our turn to go to Seattle for Christmas. We had a few days in Seattle before we left for our traditional stay in the Blue Mountain Lodge (more to come on it later). So here are some things we did.

We got to see "White Christmas" the the 5th Avenue Theater. It was a great way to get into the Christmas mood. It was great, but not quite the same when there is no Bing Crosby crooning away.

The we fulfilled the usual Bussey Family tradition and headed to downtown Seattle to see the lights, ride the carousel and look at the gingerbread at the Sheraton.

(We took pre-wedding pictures with our photographer 3 years ago in front of this star)

What a great looking couple! I love my PARENTS!

In front of the Carousel

Zoom!

You are NEVER to old to enjoy the ride!

Us "racing on our horses"

Hi Paydan!

(click on the picture to really see the details in the gingerbread houses)
The theme this year was Christmas Movies

I also got to finally get together with the FAB FIVE... my best friends from high school. We enjoyed pedicures, some dinner and hanging out together. (My friend Melinda has the pictures)

The Happiest season of ALL in the Happiest Place on Earth

2010-01-05T16:51:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our Season Passes we got to enjoy Disneyland at Christmas time! Chris and I had a great time spending the day at Disney and just enjoying. We got to try some new things, like talking with Crush the turtle, the Blue Sky Cellar (so excited for the new CARS land they will be building) and the Mali-boomer. Also we loved the lights and getting to see the tail end of the Christmas Parade.

WE LOVE DISNEY

Christmas Festivities

2009-12-09T22:32:00.002-07:00

I was in the baking mood and I had just bought some cute CHEAP cookie cutters, so I made some sugar cookies! (p.s. the dollar store has some great finds!)

Last Friday we headed with Wes, Kristy and the Kids to see the lights at the Mission Inn in Riverside. It was fun to walk around the Inn, see the lights, sip hot coco/cider, watch Brady's dance moves, and enjoy the holiday spirit. It was so nice to actually have crisp cool winter air in California to truly put me in the Christmas spirit!

We also ventured to see a local neighborhoods INTENSE light display with our friends Cory and Christina on Saturday, which continued to put me in the mood.

So the Jones' are officially in Christmas mood and are counting down the days til Christmas! WE hope you are enjoying this "Most wonderful time of the year" too!

Update

2009-11-27T13:53:00.006-07:00

So I have been a lazy blogger... been busy doing other things but here is a run-down of some recent happenings:

Moving in

So our move went quite smoothly, except for having to haul everything up our tight stairwell. Thanks to Chris Nielsen and Chris' Dad for helping! Everything has a spot and we feel pretty settled. I feel like I can be a full-fledged homemaker in our new place. We just need to do some more hanging of pictures on walls and slowly fill some of our furniture needs. Since I have been a lazy blogger I have yet to take any pictures of the place.

Jobs

So I have continued working as a tutor for the past little while. At times it doesn't seem worth it for the few hours I work but I will say it has been amazing to see how these struggling students have blossomed. ALSO I have since been hired by Three other Districts as a SUBSTITUTE...however with all the paper work and processing I am waiting to get cleared and start getting calls to sub. I can't wait to get back in the classroom...even if it is not my own.

My trip to Arizona

My parents and little brother were planning on going to their timeshare in AZ before thanksgiving and then go on to visit my grandparents serving their mission on the Navajo reservation further east. Well so awhile back they asked if I wanted to join them for a few day in AZ (while Chris has to work hard and home to study). I of course happily accepted. So for a few days last week I spent with the fam in AZ just relaxing. We got to relax by the pool, watch lots of movies (including NEW MOON... which has converted me to TEAM JACOB), and eat a lot (esp. my mom's addiction to Paradise Bakery cookies... which I think is rubbing off on me)! I felt bad though since one of the days their my dad suffered from food poisoning all day. Also I really missed Chris and our new home while I was gone. And I felt bad that I missed my niece, Maddie's, Baptism.

Maddie's Baptism

Like I mentioned I missed Maddie's baptism and felt bad to not be there. But the re-cap from Chris was good... I got to see pictures of her cute (hand made by Grammy) baptism dress, hear Chris' Baptism Talk he gave, and so forth. We are sure proud of Maddie's decision!

Thanksgiving

So Chris was soooo excited to finally have a Thanksgiving at his parents' house since it had been way to long. We got to celebrate the day with his parents and Katie and Chris' family. It was a delicious spread of food from Chris' mom who always out does herself. We appreciate all her hard work! Then after pie and letting our food settle we headed to the movies. We saw Blind Side, which was EXCELLENT! It was a very positive and funny movie. Highly recommend it!

It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home. ~Author Unknown

2009-11-10T11:58:00.004-07:00

So today Chris and I are finally moving into our own place. We have been living for that past months with Chris's parents who have been so generous to let us stay. We have been saving money and trying to find the right HOME for us. We stumbled upon this townhouse on craigslist, not really even in the area we were mainly looking in. However, when we went to look at it we new it would be a great fit for us and just felt right.

I can't wait to set up our home and build many memories there. Wish us luck with our long day of moving.. and then let the unpacking BEGIN!!!!

-pictures will follow as soon as the place looks presentable-

The Big Nubmer 1

2009-11-10T11:54:00.006-07:00

We got to celebrate our nephew, Coleman's, 1st birthday last week. I can't believe he is that old already!! It was so fun to be able to take some pictures one his big day... he is sooo cute!

Saturday Soccer!

2009-11-05T15:26:00.004-07:00

Last Saturday (Halloween) Chris and I went to see our niece, Maddie, and our nephew, Carter, play in their soccer games. It was a beautiful sunny day and was so fun to watch them play. It is so fun to live close to Chris's family so that we can go to all the things like this.

As far as Halloween.. we had a nice homemade chicken noodle soup before heading out to go trick-or-treating with Katie's Kiddos!

When Chris studies...

2009-11-04T16:46:00.005-07:00

I Travel!

Or at least I did in this one case. When Chris has MAJOR tests he locks himself in a room and studies 24/7. I am proud that he can work this hard... but it's a bit lonely. So my solution on his last test was to travel back to Seattle to be with my family for a long weekend.

So I went from a Thursday to a Tuesday (thanks to Southwest's cheap flights) and here is my recap:
(sorry not a great variety of pictures showing all I did)

THURSDAY:
I flew in early in so my mom picked me up. Dad at work+ Paydan at school= Girl time! So my mom and I went to the mall! I actually have not been clothes shopping with my mom in a loooong time and it was great. It was nice to window shop and also catch up. We then had a yummy lunch while continuing to gab away.
After Paydan got home from school we all drove up to Suncadia (a mountain style resort) about an hour away to meet up with my dad who was at a business conference there. It was a BEAUTIFUL drive up with all the fall colors! Then that night we went to the closest town (population like 100?) and ate a mom n' pop Italian place.
a view from our room at Suncadia

FRIDAY:
After a quick workout and swim at Suncadia's pool we packed up and headed home. Had a nice, relaxing day at my parents. Then we had a neat experience that night, that I was so glad I was visiting so I could be a part of it. My Grandfather Bussey passed away last year and his work was all cleared and ready to do at the temple. So My Brandon, my parents, and myself had a nice dinner at Outback and then headed to the temple. After a little mix up with the paper work, everything was work out. I began by doing family names for baptisms and then my brother got Baptized by my dad for our grandpa. It was sooo neat and I was glad I was a part of it.

SATURDAY:
I got to meet up with a good high school friend, Yeng, for a bit. It had been a long time and it was so great to catch up. Took some pictures of the beautiful fall (which is the main thing I miss here in CA). Then we had a nice dinner at home and my mom, Paydan and I got in the Halloween Spirit by watching Hocus Pocus!

SUNDAY:
I lucked out to be visiting on the week of the Primary program in my parents' ward. I love the programs and it was fun to see my mom put her great Chorister skills to work and see Paydan in his LAST program. After Church just hung out with family and relaxed and had a nice dinner.

MONDAY:
I had the craft itch and since my mom has her new remodeled CRAFT room I wanted to put it to use. So after looking through some old wood my mom had (back from her Craft Show days) I got a vision and we headed to Michael's. I decided to make Halloween Blocks. So I painted them black and then on the front Mod-Podged on some cute Halloween paper to spell out BOO and two pumpkin faces. Then I also slapped together a frame to match out house. After dinner we headed out to see Brandon and Heidi's new place!

TUESDAY:
Flew home at the Crack of DAWN and was reunited with my wonderful HUBBY (who was free from massive studying!)

Fall and Miscellaneous Pictures:
I love this FIERY red from the Japanese Maple

These pumpkins were from Paydan's garden!

What STUDS going for a Harley Ride!

BYU v. SDSU

2009-10-19T21:55:00.002-06:00

So we ventured down to San Diego for the BYU game with our friends Jordan and Lindsey (and their adorable baby girl McKenna).

It was wonderful weather (especially since we were in the shade in the stadium), wonderful company and a "wonderful" game (wonderful is in quotes for Chris since although the cougs pulled a "w" he believes they didn't play the best).

update...

2009-10-15T20:57:00.002-06:00

*We went to Disneyland the other Friday night with some couples from Chris's podiatry class. Since Disneyland has been doing all these new Halloween things it made the place PACKED. The signs outside were saying "Disneyland is VERY busy" and it was! But we still had fun and got to go on some rides and enjoy the new Halloween Fireworks.

(us waiting for the fireworks)

*We spent last Saturday in Chino Hills looking at some possible housing options. We really like that area and are going to continue to look there. I am ready to get our own place and get all our stuff out of storage.

*On Tuesday night we went to a BYU Ballroom Performance at a local high school with Braden and Talicia (a couple from school). IT was an entertaining show and was fun to get some "culture" in our lives. It made me wish Chris and I could dance like that together.

*Chris is still very busy with school but is doing well and I am soooo proud of him.

* I am excited because I have planned a last minute trip home for next weekend. I am so excited to see my family and be back in Seattle for a bit. I came up with the idea after I realized that on weekends before big Exams, Chris just locks himself in the spare room all day/night! So I thought I would check if flights were cheap the weekend before Chris's next big test and they were....CAN'T WAIT!

Happy Birthday to... CHRIS

2009-10-05T14:32:00.006-06:00

I picked Chris up from class and we drove out to the ONLY close Pei Wei for lunch. He is the birthday boy with the yummy honey crispy chicken!

I took Chris back to classes (after he changed into his "business attire") and I had him quickly open his gifts in the car... so anti-climatic. Here is his new laptop case.

In order for Chris to apply his FREE birthday ticket to his Disneyland Pass I got Chris after work and we zipped over to the Happiest Place on Earth. It was closing in like an hour, so we decided to hope on Space Mountain since it was closed when we went on my b-day. We had to wait in the looong line but it was fun!

Here is Chris trying to impersonate a "ghost" to fit in with the new Halloween Space Mountain Ride. (Can you spot the matterhorn in the back?).

Waiting in Line...

I love Chris's face in this picture... it makes him look like he was really scared and I look "great" with my eyes closed... I wasn't scared but my eyes were watering like crazy from all the cold air being pumped out.

I want my wonderful Husband to know how much I love him and am so glad that he was born 27 years ago!

A GOLDEN BIRTHDAY

2009-09-26T13:23:00.005-06:00

Ok, if you really know me, you know I am a kid at heart... I love children's books, I choose to watch Wizards of Waverly Place over like Grey's Anatomy (or some other adult show), I enjoy playing with kid's toys with my nieces and nephews, and I LOOOOVE Disneyland. So of course naturally, all I wanted to do for my birthday was go to Disneyland!

Also, we wanted to go because you get in FREE on your birthday... any if you buy a season's pass they will credit your FREE ticket to your price pass. So I am officially a Disney pass holder again! So I will probably be a frequent visitor of the Happiest Place on Earth.

So it was a VERY hot day...but because it was a school day and coupled with the heat it was not crowded... SCORE! We were able to hit all the major rides in California Adventures in under two hours. The longest we waited in line all day was like 10 minutes. The only bummer was the Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain were closed so they could get it ready for "Halloween".

Of course the first matter of business was to get my BIRTHDAY button! I have always wanted to wear one.. but never had the chance. It is so great, all the Disney Workers (cast members) said "Happy Birthday" to me throughout the day, it made me feel special.

So many people know about the Mission Tortilla Tour at California Adventures where they will give you a free tortilla... and if it is your birthday they many times will give you a whole bag of tortillas (which I got!). Well right across from the tortilla shop is the Boudin Sourdough Tour. Well, if I could only live off one food for the rest of my life it would be SOURDOUGH! So we had to check out the tour. Well as we walked in they gave us a small, tiny slice of bread. You sit and watch a movie on the history and process. I almost walked out... but I am so glad I didn't at the end of the tour there was a Cast Member handing out WHOLE loafs of Mickey-shaped bread. Chris and I BOTH got one. I was in heaven. So next time you are there check it out!

Here are some of the cute Halloween Decorations they have put up. Chris is enjoying the Candy Corn Cactus! So CUTE!
So Chris's highlight of the day was finally beating me at Toy Story Mania ride (which is our FAVORITE!). On both toy story and Buzz rides I always get a higher score... so finally he beat me. Yeah... you would think a good husband would let his wife win on her birthday... think again!!!

Check out the Small World Tower in Chris's Glasses!
(I love the happy feeling I get after this ride... cheesy I know... but go world unity!)

Chris was very upset that I blocked his face in the Splash Mountain picture...especially since his pose was "so funny"... I guess he was pretending to yawn. By the way... we got SOAKED!

But after hitting all the major rides we were ready to go. We strolled through Downtown Disney. We didn't want to drive home in rush hour traffic so we decided to head for the beach for dinner. We ate at BJ's (our traditional stop) at Huntington Beach and also made sure to stop by Jack's.

It was a great day... at wonderful way to celebrate my "golden" birthday (24 years old on the 24th). I appreciate all the birthday love I got too!

high expectations...

2009-09-23T16:18:00.002-06:00

...with a lot of disappointment.

So we journeyed to BYU for the FSU game like mentioned before. I won't go into the heartbreak the game caused... like for many, but it was a quick trip.

the Alma Mater

a cinnamon lollipop- a pre game snack thanks to Brick Oven

My stud of a husband! Can you guess if this was pre or post game... with a smile like that you would think pre-game...pre-disappointment.

Us enjoying out seats at the TOP of the stadium! Literally, it was the very top row!

Lisa Leonard Designs Jewelry GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-09-22T13:07:00.000-06:00

Lisa Leonard Designs Jewelry GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

These pieces of Jewelry are BEAUTIFUL... I hope I win.

it's GaMe time!!!

2009-09-18T13:12:00.004-06:00

So I have to make a quick blog about some major football happenings that are relavent to my life.

First, tonight my Alma Mater, Skyline High School (in Sammamish, WA) is playing a HUGE game that they are actually showing on ESPNU!

They are playing Christian Oakes from California, both teams are nationally ranked and the QB's are both ones to watch. Also, people in my home town are stoked becuase they are hoping for CELEBRITY sightings since Will Smith, Wayne Gretzkye and Joe Montana all have sons on Christian Oaks and are "supposedly" coming. For you avid BYU fans you may wanna check out the game since Jake Heaps, the Skyline QB (who is in my home ward and I played B-ball with his sis) has signed with BYU and he is the "next big thing".

Speaking of BYU, Chris and I are leaving in the next hour to make the trek to the MECCA of college football (in Chris and I's book)...PROVO. WE just had to be there for the Coug's first home game against FSU and when our B.I.L. Chris said he had extra tickets we hopped on it! I am so excited to see the COUGARS play, especially since they are doing so well and also since I have grown more fond of the sport this year. Also I am excited to head back to P-town and campus... I hate to admit it but I miss it! I am hoping to also possibly catch up with friends too!

yummmm.....Recipes

2009-09-17T18:34:00.005-06:00

So, I can't remember if I posted this before but the girls on Chris's side of the family started a recipe blog. Let me tell you that my sisters-in-law are quite talented domestic goddesses and can cook up a storm. We hadn't updated it in a long time, but I asked my S.I.L Katie to send me the electronic copy of her mom's "infamous" Red Book Recipes.

So I just added all of these recipes to the blog so feel free to check them out. There are some great ones to try. Chris loves like ALL of the main dishes from his mom, especially Chicken South of the Border and we make Chicken Stroganoff all the time!

ALSO...
If you have any quick, CHEAP, dinner recipes that are a HIT in your house... email me the recipe!! I am definatly in a recipe RUT!

This is what podiatry school does to you...

2009-09-13T21:55:00.005-06:00

Chris's face explains it all here!
Let's just say that Chris is a bit burned out on studying... but man can he tell you a lot about your innards!

He has now learned to utilize his parents' whiteboard to draw diagrams of various body parts to help him memorize things... isn't he such a little artist! This is you inner organs, from the heart to the small intestine... with a lot of mumbo-jumbo I don't understand.

My little studier working hard!

Yes, Chris even has a COLORING BOOK to study with... but unfortunately it is not cute little ponies or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... just boring body stuff!

THE BONE BOX....

(since I was bored this weekend I started snapping pictures of Chris's bone box)
Each pair of students gets a box full of bones to help them study. We have had the privilage oh having Mr. Bones at our place for awhile.

I wish I was a tech geek...

2009-09-12T12:36:00.009-06:00

So yesterday while Chris was studying away for his next exam on Monday-there went our weekend :)- I spent some time figuring out some more things for on our blog.

I hate to admit it but I wish I was a HTML/java script guru so I could totally do what every I want to my blog. I wish I wasn't such a slave to other people's genius! So from browsing a site I learned some more tips. Now to some of you this may seen meager... but I felt pretty good about figuring some of this stuff out.

For example... I was able to find the EXACT COLORS for my fonts, etc. to match our header. I was also to adapt the line breaks between posts and sidebar, and take away the boarders on the header and pictures, instead of either having all or nothing with it. Lastly...my FAVORITE addition is the icon in the internet browser. So instead of the blogger symbol next to the http it is out "J" from our header!

In another life maybe I would have been a tech geek!

a day to remember....

2009-09-11T12:15:00.005-06:00

I can't believe it was 8 year ago when our country faced such travesty. I remember I was on the way to Seminary with my neighbors and on the radio came some news about a plane hitting a building. I was a little "out-of-it" from being up so early so it didn't really sink in what that meant, or what was happening. Once at school it all came together for me and I learned more and was heartbroken. I remember all us teenagers who had lived in a time of peace were all wondering what would happen next.

But today I want to remember all the heroes of that day, those who passed away and also the unity that was felt in our nation at this time. I hope we don't forget how powerful unity of our great nation can be.

Here is a neat clip of faith and hope and perspective that came from this day.

Here comes the bride... and groom!

2009-09-08T21:10:00.008-06:00

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Brandon Bussey!
I am so glad we got to fly back to Seattle to attend the wedding. It was great to be home and with family, even if just for a few days!

So the wedding turned out great...however we were all at a high stress level leading up to the event. Why?... because, of course, the RAIN!

The day before and all the morning of the wedding day it was raining, or wait let me take that back... POURING! We tried to make all the proper adjustments since the reception was being help in my parents BACK YARD. So we got extra umbrellas, rain mats for the floor, and even a Camo tarp hidden in the tree to protect where the Bride and Groom would be standing. And of course worry-wort Cathy (my mom) was just saying things like "BUMMER" and "they say it might even snow".

However we said a family prayer for the day to be the best it could be and to hold off the rain. As I headed down to get some last minute wedding things, the SUN was peaking out quite a bit. Well it just got better from there! The rain stopped for the rest of the afternoon and dry out most of the soggy-ness of the yard and so forth. It turned out to be a GREAT day!

We are so Happy Heidi is part of the Family now and that she is there to keep my brother in line! Congrats and a happy marriage to them!!!!

The WHOLE Fam! (minus the grandparents who were on a mission or just had hip surgery :( )

Chris, Me, Brandon, Heidi, Dad, Mom, Paydan

The girls! I guess this was the first time I had been a bridesmaid! Don't you love the purple dresses?! Good Pick Heidi.

Brandon's friends who travel to the wedding. Don't you love the mod pose!
Dean, Andy, Jordan, Brandon, Oliver, Austin

Only Brandon would make sure he had SOCKS to match his wedding colors and his bride's shoes!

Heidi's sister trying to get Paydan to smile... since he LOVES pictures sooo much.

The Handsome Boys

A Collage of the reception... courtesy of Austin's pictures (since I forgot to bring my camera)

Also you can go here to see some FABULOUS pictures by the photographer on her site.

off to watch a wedding!

2009-09-04T14:50:00.003-06:00

So we are heading out for the weekend to Seattle for these two love birds wedding:

That's right my big bro is getting MARRIED (sorry this picture ins't the best, but this is all I had on this computer)! I am so excited for Heidi and him. We are just hoping for no RAIN...keep your fingers crossed!

Have a wonderful Holiday weekend!

A Mighty Mickey Celebration!

2009-08-30T22:01:00.002-06:00

So on Saturday the family all got together to celebrate Sawyer's 3rd birthday! It was a Mickey Mouse theme, complete with mickey music, cookies, figurines and more. It was great to be with family, relax, and watch Sawyer open his presents (oh the joy little kids have with presents... OH WAIT I get just as giddy as a three year old when I open presents too!).

Sawyer with his Mickey Balloon

Coleman...loving on his bottle

Brady and Saywer making funny faces

This is the "giddy" face I am talking about!

Yo Gabba Gabba! Chris and I thought this avid YO GABBA fan needed the robot PLEX for his present

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E... Mickey Mouse!

Carter

The Birthday Boy!

HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY SAWYER!

The Happiest Place on Earth

2009-08-29T13:40:00.002-06:00

So thanks to my sister-in-law Katie, I was able to end my Disneyland withdrawls.

Katie is a veteran Mystery Shopper and will occasionally get mystery shops at Disneyland. She had an extra ticket so she invited me to tag along with her and the kids. It was BLAZIN" hot but in a way that was good because it made the lines short. The longest we waited all day was 15 minutes! In between our "shopping" we got to ride the Monorail, Small World, Buzz Lightyear, Matterhorn, teacups, Alice in Wonderland, Pirates, and Jungle Cruise. She even had a mystery shop at the Blue Bayou Restaurant so we got to have a yummy dinner there, watching the "Pirates" ride by.

THANKS KATIE for inviting me on such a fun day!

Katie and Sawyer on Buzz

Shoot those "z's" Maddie

Carter trying to protect the universe

Carter and I spinning away on the teacups (I was glad I had a buddy to ride the teacups since Chris won't)

The Kids after dinner at Blue Bayou

Sawyer!

Carter spinning away... Look how strong he is!

... I'm Alive and well...

2009-08-28T15:15:00.002-06:00

So this past week I have had a lot of time to ponder on adversity, in between a Relief Society lesson on it, studying for next weeks gospel doctrine lesson and other ways. I just have some quick thoughts...

first this talk by Elder Eyring is AMAZING! I highly recommend reading it. But overall I have learned that we should be grateful for adversity, these are the things that give us experience to grow. Also it is a testament that our Heavenly Father loves us and wants us to be more refined. Additionally, we should think of trials almost as a COMPLIMENT from our Father in Heave, meaning that he has faith enough in our abilities to give us the trials. But most of all we should ENJOY THIS JOURNEY and count our BLESSINGS!

Lastly, today I was driving to the gym and this song came on. I have heard it before but never really listened to the lyrics. (I love how music can have such an amazing impact). It is by Kenny Chesney w/ Dave Matthews called "I'm Alive". I have put the lyrics below and also a clip fo the song. It is Beautiful... take a listen!

So "darn" easy to say that life's so hard
Everybody's got their share of battle scars
As for me I'd like to thank my lucky stars that
I'm alive and well

It'd be easy to add up all the pain
And all the dreams you've sat and watch go up in flames
Dwell on the wreckage as it smolders in the rain
But not me... I'm alive

And today you know that's good enough for me
Breathing in and out's a blessing can't you see
Today's the first day of the rest of my life
And I'm alive and well
I'm alive and well

Stars are dancin' on the water here tonight
It's good for the soul when there's not a soul in sight
This motor's caught its wind and brought me back to life
Now I'm alive and well

And today you know that's good enough for me
Breathing in and out's a blessing can't you see
Today's the first day of the rest of my life
Now I'm alive and well
Yeah I'm alive and well

EMPLOYED!

2009-08-24T20:25:00.003-06:00

So I got a job today!

I will be tutoring part time for a local school district in the early evenings. I am just happy that I finally have some sort of employment so that we can have some sort of income (even if it is meager). I will probably start sometime next week.

I am now just looking for another part time job, preferably at an elementary school, during the day to rack up more hours. I have another interview tomorrow...cross my fingers

The Red Balloon

2009-08-21T12:32:00.004-06:00

So today I watched the French movie: The Red Balloon

What a darling movie! It was made in the 50's and is only like 35 minutes long. The little boy in the movie is adorable, I especially love the way he runs. It is such a simple movie... no big flashing add ons... just a boy and his balloon and their sweet relationship. I miss good old movies like this. I highly recommend it!

Here is a sweet lil' clip... ENJOY

Swimming in Corona

2009-08-20T19:57:00.006-06:00

About two weeks ago we were able to have a fun day at the pool. Some of Kristy's (Sis-in-Law) friends from her ward were kind enough to let us swim in their pool for the afternoon. It was so nice to relax, chit-chat, and just be with family!

White Coat Ceremony

2009-08-17T00:00:00.002-06:00

I am so proud of Chris!
For those who do not know Chris is now attending Podiatry school at Western University of Health Science in Pomona, CA.

So last week Chris got to participate in his White Coat Ceremony. It was a neat event and was nice to hear some encouraging words before he starts out on this long journey. Here are some facts about school:

This is the INAUGURAL year for the Podiatry School at this University
There are about 35 students in his class (of 2013)
School is 4 years long (after which he will participate in a 3 year residency)
He attends class with Students in the other colleges - such as DO (same as MD), Dental, Optometry, PA, and more!
There are about 10 LDS members in his class (which is wonderful to instantly have a network of friends!)
They take their classes in BLOCKS...so until Halloween all Chris will take is Gross Anatomy.

I am so excited for Chris, but I know this will be a long, and sometimes difficult, road. Everyone who met me from the Faculty said something to the effect: "Oh.. good luck, you won't see you husband for like 7 years!". WHOA! But I know we will make tie for each other and make sure their is balance in our lives.

Pick Your Own!

2009-08-13T12:04:00.006-06:00

Last week I was able to go with Katie and Heather (my sisters-in-law) and their kids to go pick our own raspberries. It was a beautiful day (not too hot) and the place we picked was so fun! We went to Riley's Farm and it is all in Colonial Fashion. All the employees were Colonial clothes and everything else fits into he time period. They supposedly have fun Dinner/Dancing parties every so often and do great field trips.

But we had a great time hunting for the very best raspberries. It was so nice because we had the whole thing to ourselves. We got a great bunch of them and ate a lot while we picked.

The cute Colonial House (it supposedly has a restaurant in it)
The Kids ready with their baskets

Kallie

Carter

Maddie and Davis

Sawyer

Cruisin'

2009-08-12T21:24:00.002-06:00

So to wrap up the Cruise posts, I thought I would just share some other tid-bits...

First here is a link to my facebook Album with most of the good pictures.

It was great getting to spend time with my dad's side of the family... it had been a long time
WE enjoyed the novelty tricks each night of our Dining Room server Marcello
Can't complain about never having to worry about what I was going to eat and go each day
The day's at sea were filled with sun bathing, reading, dips in the pool, trips down the waterside, listening to live music, playing trivia and frequent stops to the food and soft-serve ice cream station.
Gotta love the nightly shows in the Theater. The best night was the night our cruise director tried to tell us a bed time story with participants in the audience. The director had no clue what his picks for volunteers got him into. Let's just sum it up with a "damsel in distress" who riped her dress and tackled the director, a swearing Asian (with his large tourist camera and all) and an 80 year-old man named Willie Banger!

It was a great trip and perfect way to relax before Chris has to start school!

Jamaica... Mon!

2009-08-12T21:11:00.002-06:00

(click on collage to see pictures bigger)

Stop Three: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

So for our last stop we headed to Bob Marley's home of JAMAICA. Our Excursion here was to hike Dunn River Falls and then spend the rest of the afternoon and a private section of a beach. Now I was thinking before that we would just be hiking on a trail along side a waterfall and then maybe get to stand in it or something. However, these falls were more like a river going down all these rock steps. So we actually hiked THROUGH the falls/river. It was fun to kind of be in the jungle and trek through the water (which actually had a strong current sometimes).

Then our little guide, with her thick Jamaican accent talked us through our bus tour as we headed for the beach. The part that we drove through was definitely not the nice resort part of the island. At the beach we enjoyed Music, Dancing and some Jamaican food. It was nice to enjoy the beach for a bit. However Chris thought it was a bit boring since it didn't have "waves" to ride and play in (I guess he is not the relaxing type).

On the ride back to the ship our guide quizzed us on the things she told us on the tour. Well you combine my competitive nature, my teacher-side and my love of "trivia" I DOMINATED and won myself quite a few Jamaican coins. Our whole family dominated actually... I think we were the only ones sober enough from the beach to answer!

Overall, I think Jamaica was the most lush and beautiful with it mountains and foliage, however it was the most "sketchy" too.

Grand Cayman

2009-08-12T21:02:00.004-06:00

( click on collage to see pictures better)

Grand Cayman was our second stop on the cruise (after a day at sea).

For our excursion on this island we did the ever-so-popular String Ray Swim/Snorkel. We went way out in the middle of the ocean and the water all of the sudden became crystal blue. We stopped our large boat and anchored in this Sand Bar (literally in the MIDDLE of the ocean). We got out and all of the sudden saw these large grey masses gliding below us. After a quick safety lesson (we didn't want any "Steve Erwin's") and with the fish food out the large String rays came out to play!

These are such interesting creatures, they are like the gliding vacuums of the sea. We would hold some raw squid in our hands like an ice cream cone and these rays would come right up and SUCK it out. Chris even got a little bit of like a hickey from the ray sucking! We also got to pet them (just like lil puppy dogs) and take pictures with them- which my mom still has. It was pretty neat. I learned that the Female Rays are MUCH larger than the males and that their stingers are actually in the middle of their tail, not the end... who knew? After this we went snorkeling a little way off. This was much better snorkeling than in Key West with lots of variety of fish and coral.

After some lunch in the rowdy Jimmy Buffett Margarittaville (which had it's very own WATERSLIDE), Chris and I took a stroll to the Havaiana's store (the Brazilian Flip Flops) and got ourselves a pair. Overall it was a great stop, just wish we would have had some more time to explore the island.

Key West

2009-08-11T14:44:00.001-06:00

(I decided to break our cruise up into a couple different posts... so here is the first)

Our first stop was KEY WEST.

Key west was a cute little place with fun little shops, cobblestone streets and quite a bit of character. However, we did not spend our time in the city... we spent it on the OCEAN. Our "excursion" this stop was spend the day on a large Catamaran. We first made a stop to snorkel, which wasn't the best but Chris and I did catch a glimpse of a nurse shark. We then ate lunch and lounged on the boat while they drove us to the next stop. Here their was a dock (out int he middle of the ocean) that had ski-doos, water slide, water trampoline and a banana boat thing. We had fun just playing on all the things, the boys especially like wrestling on the tramp and throwing each other off. Chris and I went on the ski-doo which was fun but when we stopped it to switch places... it stalled on us. We were temporarily DESERTED at sea! But the highlight of it all was we got to PARASAIL. I have always wanted to do this and who better to share this adventure with than my husband! It was actually quite relaxing being up there so high, I loved it!

Beach Day and Balboa

2009-08-10T23:05:00.001-06:00

So back in mid-July, the frist week we got down to California, we went to the beach with Katie (sister -in-law) and her kids. It was a beautiful day and in my opinion the perfect temperature. Chris of course loved it becuase he got to be back in his cold, Pacific water that had waves that he could be "pushed" around in. I had a great time just relazing, working on my tan, and most of all collecting sea shells with the kids. Chris even found a real live clam!

We also headed to Balboa after we finished at Newport. Even though I have been to Newport quite a few times, I have never been to Balboa Island. It is a quaint little place, famous for Frozen Bananas. All I could think about down there was the Frozen Banana Stand from Arrested Development...if only GOB would drive up on his segway and try and do some magic (I mean Illusions)!

What a great way to kick off moving to the Sunny State of California!

2009-08-07T13:22:00.001-06:00

I promise to post soon....

of all our adventures the past few weeks. Such as:

Newport Beach, A CRUISE, Starting Podiatry school, Moving, and Job Hunting!

We Made It!

2009-07-19T10:40:00.002-06:00

So after a grueling 20 hour drive... we made it to our new home in California. I still feel like we are just on vacation here... hasn't quite sunk in that this is now our home (for at least 4 years). We are currently staying with Chris' parents til we get settled (with school and work?) and find a place of our own.

Celebrating our Country...the 4th!

2009-07-07T17:14:00.003-06:00

We had a nice fourth... we decided to pretend like we were tourists in Seattle (even though I have lived here basically my whole life) and we did the "DUCK" tour. These are fun-filled tours in a bus looking vehicle that not only works on land but also SEA! So we got to enjoy the Streets and also the Waterways of the town. It was a BEAUTIFUL day and we were able to also see the set up for the city's big firework display. Even though I have lived here so long I still saw things and learned things I had never seen/learned before.

(us, at the start of the tour)

(the "needle" and EMP, of course altered on the computer)

(the view from the water)

Then we had a nice dinner at The Rock Bottom. The original plan was to watch the fireworks from my Dad's new office downtown, but other building blocked the view. So we opted for the low-key celebration of lighting off some simple fireworks (which of course 10 year old paydan loved) and then watched the big firework displays on TV (in my parent's new remodeled Bonus room!).
It was a great day filled with family and fun! I love our country!