2011's journey

half-a steppin' out {3.27.11}

2011-03-28T10:57:00.000-07:00

Despite a bit of a stuffy nose {perhaps teething}, we were super busy this weekend and of course, Itsy looked adorable all weekend! I forgot to take a picture on both Saturday and Sunday but remembered last night right before it was time to put Itsy in her jammies. Daddy was doing something, so I could only snap a quick pic of Itsy, who was not the most willing subject.

Who says you can't wear stripes and polka dots?

Itsy:

Dress - Target {Geniune Kids from Oshkosh}
Baby Legs - Etsy {Posh Pipsqueak}
Shoes - Converse

steppin' out {3.20.11}

2011-03-20T21:43:00.000-07:00

This week's Steppin' Out edition finds us bundled up! Saturday, we stayed in all afternoon, but Sunday we were out and about.

Itsy:
Entire outfit, including jacket - Target {Geniune Kids from Oshkosh}
Shoes: Converse

Me:
Jeans - Gap Skinny Jeans
Shirt - Target
Jacket - J.Crew {purchased in 2000 at a San Francisco thrift store for $20}
Scarf - Anthropologie
Boots - DSW {Diba}

Here's a closer look at Itsy. I love, love this jacket! I also loved the little sweat shirt she was wearing, but it's hard to see it in this picture.

A couple cute pics from our lunch play date. Itsy loves spending time with older kiddos. She's mesmerized by them and tries to keep up with them, usually stumbling along the way. She's a tough little monkey!

Another older boy crush...

There was a more graphic kissing picture, but it may not be appropriate for the world wide web...

steppin' out {3.13.11}

2011-03-13T21:41:00.000-07:00

So, it's been well over a year since my last update. Not only is Itsy a girl, but Itsy was born and just turned 1!!! I'm not convinced I'll have time to do regular blog updates like I did pre-baby, but I can certainly make time for this new weekly feature.

For the record, we are still going to call our girl, "Itsy" on my blog. Though on Facebook, she's all over my updates, I feel most comfortable keeping her name private to the blog world masses {not that I actually think my little blog is read by many}.

For my {few} blog readers, mostly my girlfriends, I thought I'd participate in the weekly feature, Steppin' Out Saturday {or Sunday, as in today's edition}. My friend, Nanette, has been doing this feature for a while now and I have found myself looking forward to it! I love to see what she and her baby girl are wearing. And really, I thought I would do this to document Itsy. She has the cutest clothes and I love creating her outfits.

Here we go!

Since Itsy is only 1, it's hard to get her to follow directions - i.e., "Itsy, smile!" If I was looking at the camera, then she wasn't and visa verse. She really just wants to explore, not stand still for a picture. She has way more important things to do!

And here's this cute pic, which really shows how cute her little skinny jeans are with the flowers on the waistband. She started running away and we didn't pull down her shirt, which was perfect to get a picture of the flowers.

Itsy:
Pants - Target {Genuine Kids from Oshkosh}
Shirt - Target {Cherokee}
Shoes: Converse

Me:
Jacket - H&M
Pants - {super old} Lucky Jeans
Hat - Target
Shoes - {super old} Payless
Accessories - probably F21

Thanks, Nanette for the inspiration! Maybe next weekend I'll actually do my hair and not wear a weekend hat!

itsy is a...

2009-10-12T19:00:00.000-07:00

Girl!! We're having a baby girl! While we of course would have been thrilled with a baby boy, we are really excited for baby girl Tucker! Though I say I can't wait to dress her in the cutest clothes, I'm more excited to see my sweet and sensitive hubby be a daddy to our little girl! He is going to be the best daddy to our little girl!

To make the announcement, we had a little "gender revealing" party on Sunday with some family and friends. The idea is that we would have a really yummy cake {thank you, Torrance Bakery} and the inside would either be pink or blue and that's how we would reveal the gender.

Each person that came had to make a guess and we gave them either a pink ribbon or a blue ribbon with a plastic pacifier on it. All along, I thought Itsy was a girl and Rob thought Itsy was a boy {actually, he thought Itsy was a boy because I'm such a prissy girl that having a boy would help get me a little dirty}.

Auntie Kristi

Rob thought it would be fun to play a quick game.

We started off playing an egg and spoon race with pink and blue dyed eggs...

But everybody was too good {except me, I was the first one out}. So then it turned into an egg toss {don't worry, I had hard boiled the eggs the night before so there wouldn't be an egg yolky mess at the park}.

People even got physical to catch the eggs!

Little Hunter even wanted to play!

In the end, there were 6 finalists, including 3 grandparents.

But the final two were my dad and brother. They were too good and caught every egg {all those years of playing catch finally paid off}! So Rob thought they should try to throw their egg into a trash can. Turns out they suck at making a basket. Obviously, the rules were very loose. We planned to have just one winner, so my dad let my brother win the Starbucks gift card.

The game pay-off was cutting the cake!

This moment was SO fun! It was like cutting our wedding cake all over again!

Thankfully, there was lots of cake leftover...Itsy will enjoy this cake all week!

One happy grandma!

Itsy even got a cool Beatles gift from her Auntie Melanie! I'm already seeing her in this shirt paired with a denim skirt, funky tights and some cool pink Vans or Converse {my poor hubby}.

After the park party, we continued the celebration with some friends at El Torito.

We had such a wonderful day and feel so blessed that our friends and family came out to celebrate! It was so fun to keep this secret from them for a couple weeks {that's the evil in me}, but I'm loving now being able to share this exciting news with everyone! Bring on the skirts, flower accessories, and dresses!!!

week 15

2009-09-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

Week 15 brought on a couple of very strong cravings...orange juice and hot dogs. Oddly, didn't love either prior to pregnancy. Thankfully, I rarely rely on the Zofran anymore. Only occasionally will I take one, and even then, the nausea isn't like it was during my first trimester. Even more odd, when I am nauseous, a hot dog sounds good. Pregnancy couldn't be weirder, but it really is an amazing experience!

We have our week 16 appointment tomorrow. While I'm of course excited to hear our baby's heartbeat, it's the next appointment we are excited for - when we find out the gender!!!

Off to find a hot dog...

{early} birthday celebration

2009-09-01T13:08:00.000-07:00

I have the very best girlfriends a girl could ask for! To celebrate my birthday {which actually isn't until the 10th}, my girlfriends planned a very special day of brunch and Legally Blonde the Musical. Melanie, Kristi, Jolene, Aylan, Emily, and my awesome MIL Marie joined in on the fun!

We started off the morning at Grub. And grub we did! Delicious food and perfect ambiance for catching up and giggling like little girls.

Auntie Leeney and I {this pic really shows my growing belly}

Mel & Kristi, the planners

The girls were so extremely generous with their {unexpected} gifts, too. I couldn't believe that they all brought gift bags with goodies for me! Spoiled I tell ya!

I really enjoyed brunch, but I was so excited to get to the Pantages. After Rob and I saw Legally Blonde on Broadway in NYC a couple of years ago, I was instantly excited to see the show again. When I found out it was coming to LA, I was ecstatic!

In NYC

The Pantages

The show didn't disappoint! I'm even thinking about seeing it again in Orange County. Maybe my SIL Laura will want to go with me since she couldn't make it Sunday {hint, hint, Laura :)}...

Mel, Emily, Kristi, me, Jolene, Aylan, Marie

Seriously, I really am one lucky girl with wonderful friends who willingly indulge in my guilty pleasures!

hunter's baby shower

2009-08-24T13:43:00.001-07:00

Back in June I threw a baby shower for Hunter, Emily and Joe's precious baby boy. I had lots of help executing the big event and it turned out fabulously, if I do say so myself! Here are some pics:

The invite. It took hours to assemble these suckers, but I think it was worth every hour!

The entrance. This was a last minute addition, but it matched the balloon on the invite. I may have been the only one who noticed...

Proud parents

Proud grandparents

Proud auntie and uncle

Hot uncle :) {soon-to-be hot daddy!}

Rob's mom and dad getting some Hunter love {getting practice, too}

The food spread {which included gluten-free items for Joe}

The dessert spread {it was a cupcake bar with lots of topping options, with a handful of gluten-free cupcakes, too}

"Hunter Hugs" - this was an area for people to take a picture with Hunter and then scrapbook the picture. Many people did scrapbook their picture, others just took a pic and I'll scrapbook for them. We printed 2 pictures - one for the guest and the other for the album. Mommy and daddy will always remember this special day!
Mel, one of my besties came to celebrate!

One the way out, everyone took with them some monkey bread {aka: banana bread}. To make a long story short, Rob and I were up nearly all night making this bread, as the recipe sucked! Thank God for my husband! This is a pic of the bread on our counter, I guess we didn't get a cute pic of the actual set-up.

I had so much fun putting everything together. I absolutely loved coordinating all the details - playing with paper is one of my favorite things to do. More than anything, I loved being able to honor Emily and Joe with a wonderful baby shower. They deserved to have the best shower to celebrate their perfect little guy.

I'm just happy we planned to have the shower when we did. If it would have been even two weeks later, I would have been sick and pregnant, and without the knowledge of Zofran in my life.

itsy @ 13 weeks

2009-08-10T11:19:00.000-07:00

I took a blogging hiatus. It felt like I didn't have anything exciting to share, despite doing some fun things with some great friends. You can read about some of those events on Jolene's blog.

The biggest news in the Tucker world has been the conception of "Itsy". We are 13 weeks, due Valentine's Day!

We are so excited, however the excitement has come with many other pregnancy symptoms. According to the "What to Expect" book series, at the end of my third month, I may feel:

- Fatigue {check}
- Frequent urination {check}
- Nausea, with or without vomiting {check and check}
- Excess saliva {check - which I think brings on the nausea, with or without vomiting}
- Constipation {check}
- Heartburn, indigestion {rarely, thank God}
- Flatulence, bloating {check}
- Food aversions and cravings {check - if you put Asian cuisine in front of me, I'll vomit. If you put cheese or a sandwich in front of me, I'll scarf it down}
- Increasing appetite {check, but only because of the Zofran that doctor put me on to stop the vomiting}
- Breast changes {check}
- Visible veins on your abdomen, legs, etc. {no, thank God again}
- Occasional headaches {check}
- Occasional faintness or dizziness {check, but only once, which led to vomiting}
- A little more rounding of your belly {check - but I'd say more than a little}

Okay, so this list may be a little TMI, however it's the reality of pregnancy that I've experienced. Week 10 introduced us to Zofran, the miracle anti-nausea drug that has definitely taken the edge off. I still get night sickness sometimes, but I'm praying it ends soon. Many women say it ends around week 16. While my summer vacation has been mostly spent on the couch trying to keep whatever food has been in my stomach actually in my stomach, I'm thankful that each day I know our baby is growing. I have read so much about having a miscarriage, and while I did and do worry about this, I have had so many symptoms that I can't help but be thankful for feeling sick.

Rob has been beyond amazing, affirming that this is the perfect time to be venturing into parenthood. It melts my heart when he tells me how much he loves his family - me and little Itsy inside me!

I'm hoping that I'll continue to feel inspired to update my blog...we'll see...

meet hunter

2009-05-13T06:03:00.000-07:00

I'm way late on this announcement...

Hunter Sidney Farrier was born on March 31st {7lbs, 13 oz}. His proud parents, Emily and Joe, are absolutely smitten {and so are we}.

This has been a 4-year journey for the new mommy and daddy and now they've been blessed with the most perfect little boy {well, equally perfect next to Anderson}.

I encourage you to hop over to Emily's blog...talk about a new mommy in love!

Hunter, we've been waiting for you to arrive and you really are a prince. Seeing you in your mommy and daddy's arms makes everyone's heart smile! The joy you bring is endless!

meet anderson

2009-03-30T07:37:00.000-07:00

Thursday, March 19th @ 4:47pm, Anderson Jay Palmer was born. Seriously, he's perfect!

Congratulations, Gabe & Mimi! You'll be wonderful parents to this little guy and I can't wait to spoil my new nephew like crazy!

More on Anderson and his arrival soon {although I said that about DC, too. But I do have several drafts started}...

whimsy

2009-03-09T23:03:00.000-07:00

I discovered this necklace on one of my new favorite blogs this morning, Elizabeth Kartchner's Just Us...

I was day dreaming about it all day! Hot yoga was a challenge this afternoon! Every time I closed my eyes and tried to focus, my thoughts went to colorful flowers and pink tulle hanging around my neck.

And then my necklace dreams were invaded by this amazing headband...

These lovely whimsy items can be purchased on Etsy from Miss Ruby Sue. She creates romantic vintage curiosities that are all literally to die for!

I'm in accessory love right now!

up, up, and away

2009-02-27T06:50:00.000-08:00

Here's a pictorial update of our quick trip to Santa Barbara for lunch with friends, Gino and Rebecca last weekend. Gino is a pilot and offered to fly us to Santa Barbara in exchange for some lunch...Sounded good, albeit scary, but we totally trusted Gino.

Walking to the plane at the Santa Monica Airport

Rebecca, the co-pilot pro

Boarding

Nervous - well I more than Rob, he was being silly

Praying for a safe takeoff
In the air and happy

The confident co-pilot, she's done this a thousand times!
The confident pilot

Beautiful, somewhere over LA

On solid ground in Santa Barbara, walking to Beachside Cafe

The nervous co-pilot on the way back home {being silly with jazz hands}

The excited co-pilot helping takeoff

Somewhere over Santa Barbara

The backseat passengers

Camarillo

Preparing to land

Safe and smooth landing!

Back on solid ground again!

Last Saturday was a pretty awesome day! It was crazy to think that we left Santa Monica around 1pm and returned at about 6pm. Not a bad mode of transportation! I can't wait for next time {I won't be a nervous flyer next time, either}.

{belated} valentine's day

2009-02-24T19:41:00.000-08:00

For Valentine's Day, Rob and I exchange DVDs. We've done this for years now and we love this tradition. It's cheap and it creates 2 date nights!

This year, Rob surprised me with the Sex and the City movie. Not only did he totally surprise me with this DVD, but he also gave it to me in DC! While I, the one who is all about tradition, totally forgot to even purchase Rob's DVD! It's not that I forgot, it's just I didn't have time. When we returned, I made it a priority and ended up with the X-Men Trilogy {thanks, Griff for the reco}. We watched Sex and the City in DC on Valentine's Day, so hopefully this weekend we'll start watching X-Men.

I feel so spoiled {em, well cared for}...last year, Rob treated me to the entire series! That was a good gift, too!

I love that Valentine's Day will live on during 2009 in the Tucker home with Sex and the City!

DC pics to come...

dc tease

2009-02-22T08:37:00.000-08:00

We had such a blast in DC last weekend. Here are a few teaser pics...

My Pinocchio

In front of the Department of Education

With sweet Winnie

More to come!

busy busy bee!

2009-02-13T06:00:00.000-08:00

Life has been super hectic in the Tucker world! Now that school is back in session, I definitely have less time to blog. While I sneak in time throughout my day to peruse Google Reader, I find it really challenging to actually update my blog. Not only is school consuming, but so are the other requirements of being a teacher. For those of you educators out there, you know how ridiculously time consuming it is to clear a credential {my GE credential} and student teach {I'm a special education intern} - I'm doing both this semester. On the bright side, I can see the light - I'll be done in May!!!! On top of these responsibilities, Emily and I are trying to grow my juku. We have so many great ideas, unfortunately, we have limited time to follow-through.

Anyway, enough of my complaining. Essentially, I'll be an infrequent updater from now until May. There are two babies {Palmer & Farrier bundles} that will soon color my world with even more love and I can't wait to share those updates in April {or sooner, if the babies are ready to enter our crazy world early}.

Though I don't comment much anymore, I'm still a lover and an avid reader to every one of my daily reads...

Photo courtesy of Flickr

year 2 as mrs. tucker

2009-02-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

Rob and I celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary on Tuesday {2.10}. It really has been 2 years of wedded bliss. We have been so blessed with a great friendship that continues to grow each day. Simply, we feel lucky to have one another and are excited for our future.

I can't believe that just 2 years ago we said our wedding vows. These pictures from our wedding day make me smile:

Walking hand in hand and arm in arm is my favorite!

Tuesday evening we went to Ristorante daVinci in Long Beach. The last time we were here was the night Rob proposed to celebrate our engagement {side note: after Rob proposed, he took me to daVinci and then surprised me again by inviting some friends and family - an incredible evening}.

That stain on Rob's shirt is from earlier in the evening when I spilled my ice cream on him. Little did I know that a few moments later he would ask me to marry him.

Our anniversary dinner:

Our {cotton} t-shirts are a pair from Bold Loft. His spiderman is capturing my spidergirl in a web of love - totally cheesy, but Rob is a big Spiderman fan. We leave for Washington, DC tomorrow afternoon - that's our real anniversary gift to one another {courtesy of Rob's mom who gave us two Jet Blue tickets that were about to expire}.

Rob was super sweet and went to two different Old Navy stores to buy me this jacket {but in army green}:

Funny though, we were actually at Old Navy together on Saturday where I bought this jacket. He was right there when it was placed in our bag! I wore it all weekend, too. When he arrived home on Tuesday to pick me up for dinner, he was so excited to give me my {cotton} anniversary gift. It was hysterical when I was wearing the jacket when I opened up the jacket. It was a great laugh and of course I wondered, "what else can I get away with..." :) I love this man! He always keeps me laughing!

And because we loved our wedding cake so much, we ordered it again this year. I think it's something that will be ordered every year - a new anniversary tradition that makes us very happy!

When we returned home from dinner, we watched our wedding video. Of course, the minute the music started and our wedding party began walking down the isle, I started tearing up. It was a great way to end an absolutely lovely day!

Looking forward to many more years of fun anniversaries!

the miss becomes a mrs

2009-01-19T21:15:00.001-08:00

This weekend, I had the honor of being in my friend Jen's wedding. The bride was ridiculously gorgeous in her Monique Lhullier and the groom, Bryan, was clearly smitten! Every detail at both the ceremony and reception were perfectly personal. The best part however was the genuineness of the couple.

Ick, I have chubby arms! But my hair and make-up were awesome - thanks to the pros that Jen hired for us!

I think we were all giggling at the 2 1/2 year old flower girl barely making it down the aisle

She made it - and then she earned some Pez candy :) Her wings were such a cute touch!
The glowing bride and her proud pappy!

Sealed with a kiss

The first dance was so romantic

Rob and Liv gettin' down on the dance floor

Shayna, another bridesmaid, and her fiance, Eric, gettin' funky

Shayna, Sandee, and I - 3 of the 6 bridesmaids

Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Haigh!

erin condren

2009-01-19T13:52:00.000-08:00

I recently discovered a new stationary designer {thank you, Liv} that I'm absolutely in love with, Erin Condren! Her designs are so fresh, happy, and colorful. Not only does she have great designs, but she also has a breast cancer awareness line, which is where I purchased my thank you notes for my 3-Day donors. Check her website out...

These cuties make me what to write personal personal notes to all my friends!

Enjoy!

day 3

2008-12-28T14:04:00.000-08:00

Finally, day 3! This is officially the last blog update about our 3-Day walk, I promise!

It was another early morning, except this time we had to pack-up camp.

Our guardian angel, who hugged everyone each morning as they left camp.

A view from the route of camp.

A view leaving camp in front of us.

And another behind us. Walkers everywhere!

And of course, one of the Harley crossing guards.

After 5 miles on day 3, we saw this sign, which brought a smile to our faces. We were still limping, our feet were still aching, but it was the last day, so the energy was different than day 2. There was a bright light at the end of the tunnel that was so close!

By day 3, we were all wise to this lie...the next pit stop was really 2 miles away. But I loved the little pink sign attached, "It's kind of fun to do the impossible." Walking 60 miles seemed impossible at the start, but by this time, we knew we could do it.

Amber and her blue monkey buddy.

While we wore basically the same outfit each day, some girls got creative. I think the gentlemen on the walk appreciated this little number.

The support on day 3 was as great as ever! This was perhaps my favorite cheering family. Wouldn't this be a fun surprise if you were these kids mom and this guys wife? So supportive and so creative!

I'm not sure I've mentioned the San Jose Police Department. There were about 5 police bikers who took personal time off to join the San Diego walkers along the walk route. I'm not sure if they had a specific job other than being police cheerleaders. Each day they rode the 2o miles with the walkers, and actually, they probably rode twice that each day because they'd back track to cheer everyone on. Some had little portable CD players on their bikes and others had mini medicine cabinets on the back of their bikes, but they all were full of fun, spirit, and encouragement. Seriously, without them, it would have been really hard. I say this about every single person who donated their time to cheer us on.

Here they are dancing on their bikes.

We had to take a picture with them. They were the hit of the walk!

And then, the LONGEST 3 miles of the walk - the last nature walk of the weekend. No joke, this was the hardest part for me. My feet hurt, but worse, I had to pee so badly and there was not a porta-potty in sight and wouldn't be for 3 more miles. I think as soon as we left the previous pit stop, I had to pee again. The bushes were lookin' pretty darn good, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Everywhere you looked, there were walkers and the freeway was on the other side of us. I decided to suffer through.

Occasionally, I'd have a break to keep my mind off my bladder.

As soon as we entered the city again, I used a hotel bathroom. I've never been so happy to see a toilet! And on the other side of the nature walk, my family joined the cheerers!

Then, it was through a beautiful neighborhood in Old Town. The young and old supported. It was around this time that we met up with our new friends.

This guys sign says, "I'm a breast man"

Finally, lunch, and our last couple bags of Lays.

This was another classic sign!

This little girl doesn't just look cute, but she also is a future professional cheerleader. She had the best cheer of the weekend! We saw her and her family throughout the route on the last day.

In Hill Crest, the honking hit an all-time high and the cheering outfits were pretty awesome, too!

A sign that made us giggle! There were clever signs like this all through the route.

The hookers were in full force on day 3.

The final few miles, Amber finally got a hold of a sign that perfectly represents why she was walking.

3 little singing angels that brought tears to all of our eyes.

The last several miles were incredible! Beginning in about Balboa Park, the streets were packed with people cheering the walkers on, several rows deep. It was so amazing! I can't even describe what it felt like.

Walking the last mile in downtown San Diego, this is what the street looked like.

Finally, the sign we've been longing for!

Again, I can't describe was it was like entering the holding area. This is where the walkers and volunteers waited for the closing ceremonies to begin. As we entered the holding area, we were surrounded by the other walkers cheering us in and giving us high-fives. After we picked up our victory t-shirt and took a few pictures, we joined the rest of the walkers cheering crew. Absolutely incredible! I actually walked back through so I could video the experience. Lots of laughs and tons of tears!

Someone celebrated their 60-mile walk by dumping their walking shoes.

Happily picking up my victory shirt. Walkers received white, survivors pink, and volunteers grey. At this point, we were often thanked by some men and women who wore pink and in return, would say, "thank you and congratulations." What can you really say to a survivor?

Our final curtsy.

Our friends.

All of us.

This was what it looked like cheering everyone in. Crazy, happy, madness!

A couple different pcitures of everyone in the holding area.

The closing ceremonies were just as emotional as the opening cermonies, if not more so, since we actually completed our journey. We walked into the closing cermony area in rows of 7 with looped arms, symbolizing what we had just accomplished together.

And as the survivors walked in together, we raised a shoe in honor of the journey they have all experienced.

Finally, the signs that were carried throughout the weekend, that made their debut during the opening ceremonies, were waved as we said farewell to our new friends and congratulated one another on accomplishing the impossible.

We were reminded during the closing ceremonies that once we left and were reuninted with reality, we would no longer be cheered on or honked at as we walked through the streets or we wouldn't be escorted while crossing the streets. It was funny, but very true. For 3 {long} days, we lived in the perfect world, almost what I imagine heaven to be like, where everyone unconditionally helped and supported one another, encouraged those who appeared weak, and smiled and high-fived strangers. There were no fights and rarely did we see the homeless {and it's not like the homeless don't exist in San Diego}. It was literally the perfect world.

After the walk, the Tucker family took me to dinner in downtown San Diego and that was my abrupt entrance back in reality. Nobody looked at me twice as I crossed the streets {still wearing my pink gear and tutu} and we were immediately asked by a homeless person if we could help purchase their medicine. It was really hard for me to adjust, but it also was a wonderful reminder of how incredible my weekend was. I smile when I think about participating next year.

Thank you, blogging buddies, for your love, support, and prayers! Especially, thank you, Amber for asking me to do this with you. It was such an honor!

merry {belated} christmas

2008-12-26T10:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a great Christmas filled with {more} family and food! After our Christmas Eve service on Wednesday, we hosted dinner for Rob's family, which was also great {the company and the food, if I do say so myself}. I'm not a cook, but I made homemade rolls, fiery chicken chili - thank you, Rachel Ray, and chocolate pecan pie courtesy of Domino Magazine. This is the second year I've made this pie and it's the new family favorite!

The service was especially touching with the song Rob sang. At the last minute before leaving our house, I decided to grab my camera so I could record his song. I'm glad I did...he did an amazing job, but I may be biased.

Merry {belated} Christmas, Blogger friends! I hope you've had a magical season!

day 2

2008-12-22T21:36:00.000-08:00

Day 2 also started off bright and early.

Our humble abode for 2 nights. We had a great tent location - very close to the toilets and far enough away from the food area so we wouldn't hear the super early risers. As we took this picture on day 2, we were still limping from day 1 and we weren't really sure how we'd get through the day with all our aches and pains. All we knew is that we would need to walk slow and steady. Our goal was to not get on the Titty Taxi.

Amber hitting the pavement around 7:30am.

As we started the route, we saw this dude and his chaps. He protected us the entire weekend from cars as we crossed the streets. A Harley Davidson group volunteered and not only did they deck out their bikes, but they also dressed to impress...or dressed to give us a much needed giggle.

A house across the street from camp.

Crossing the first bridge of the morning. Still very hazy and chilly!

Here's the guy that followed the route all weekend and each time we saw him, he wore a different themed costume. We always knew it was him because of his Jeep.

And this guy was a charmer, too.

And another charmer as we walked into the first rest stop of the day.

At the rest stop, we ran into this beauty of a t-shirt. They became our favorite team name and also our walk buddies along the route.

Heading into Ocean Beach. The first "nature walk" of the day. The nature walks became really long, boring, and dreaded! Because there was nothing much to look at, I tended to really notice the pains in my feet and left knee.

Fortunately, there were some cheerers to get us through, though.

Bored out of my mind and only able to focus on my pains. Next time, we are totally going to have a small stereo attached to our backpacks. Music would have definitely helped!

But, as bad as we hurt, we never took the Titty Taxi!

Or the Snaggin' Wagon.

And just when we needed inspiration, we'd see something like this {thankfully, neither one of us got any blisters}.

And who can resist tween cheerleaders!

My absolute favorite outfit from our walk buddy! His sign said "Free Mammograms, No Waiting."

And there were tons of furry friends on day 2. This one was my favorite. She was beautiful!

Seriously, these ladies were totally necessary and their outfits carried you to the next mile.

Come on! Stop the war in my rack!!!

Another Harley Davidson crossing guard in a tutu.

This sign was hysterical and then 500 feet up we saw...

Some booby lovin' guys chillin' with cocktails and cheering on the walkers. They were so generous - they were even handing out some Bud Light so we wouldn't get dehydrated.

We saw these ladies earlier in the day. It's incredible how people dedicate an entire day to cheering and making the walkers laugh. It makes me get teary-eyed just thinking about it...

I walk for...

The Smile Guy. Where's Little Grin?

And, our friend in his Pirate costume.

By this time in the walk, we started thanking the cheerers for being there after they thanked us for walking.

Mission Beach. It was so nice of people to open up their homes for us.

Some shoe decorations Amber captured as I used someone's bathroom.

A survivor taking a cocktail break and holding out the "That was Easy" Staples button.

Had to stop to support the firemen.

The creativity was non-stop!

Mission Bay was fun, but still very long and hard. It was about 15 miles in and we still had 5 to go. We are so glad we ran into the "Yes We Cans" team. They were awesome and encouraging! We walked with them the final 5 miles into camp and even joined them for the evening festivities.

For the foodies...

There was entertainment both Friday and Saturday nights. Friday night we went to bed right after dinner and didn't stick around for the fun. Saturday night though we didn't want to miss anything. This woman was our host and reminded all of us of Ellen DeGeneres. Hysterical!

Friday night there was a talent show {participants and volunteers could enter} and Saturday we voted for the winner by cheering. I can't remember if he won, but he was really good.

After the talent competition, the guys got on stage to dance.

Then it was the ladies turn.

After some fun, we wanted to take some time before bed to remember why we were there. We visited the "Remembrance Tent" where walkers could sign a white tent in memory of a loved one who lost their battle with breast cancer. The white tents signed by walkers from all of the other 3-Day cities lined the entrance. It was very emotional.

Amber signing the tent in honor of her grandmother.

The view from the top of the hill.

One last photograph before heading to bed...

Day 3, our last day, up next...

day 1

2008-12-18T10:01:00.000-08:00

We were up bright and early Friday morning, thanks Laura for the ride to the Del Mar Fair Grounds!

As we walked into the expo area, we saw lots of inspiring and encouraging signs {and seriously, who knew how important cheering would be as the weekend progressed}.

We received lots of comments about our adorable skirts.

And we saw lots of fun and festive outfits, too.

As we continued our walk through the expo area, we started seeing some hysterical team names, that kept us giggling throughout the weekend.

Then the festivities began, and the teary water works, too.

And we were off!

Thank goodness for the kindness of complete strangers who kept a smile on our faces all weekend long with high-fives, stickers for our lanyards {seriously, we became sticker hookers that weekend}, cheering, dance music, and ridiculous outfits!

We saw this guy all weekend long, and each time he was dressed with a different theme. I wondered each time I saw him what his story was...And then I'd cry wondering how he was affected by breast cancer...

Who doesn't love a hooker for hooters?

And there were tons of furry friends all weekend. Each time I saw a dog, I thought of Emily...I can't wait to experience this walk with her next time!

A quick pic in Del Mar, this was maybe 1 mile into the walk - still fresh and excited!

We almost had to brawl for best tutu...

Our fairy crossing guard grandmothers...

We saw this grandmother and granddaughter duo all weekend. Again, what was their story?

The first rest stop! I barely made it to those porta-potties! This was just the start of our rush to the toilet weekend! When one has to pee so badly, achy feet begin to not matter as much! This was also the start to our eating bags upon bags of Lays potato chips.

Each day there was at least one hill. At first, we were concerned about the hills, but as our feet and other leg muscles began aching, the hills became something we longed for as they required us to use different leg muscles.

After the first big hill of the weekend, entering Torrey Pines.

Really, when will this guy be able to wear this shirt again? It was so perfectly appropriate for the 3-Day Walk weekend!

Amber's first tattoo...

"The Smile Guy and Little Grin." They also appeared on the walk route all weekend. Sometimes, Little Grin would hand out stickers or give high-fives and then other times she would be so over the walk and be playing with her dolls ignoring all the walkers, all the while her dad, The Smile Guy, was enthusiastically giving high-fives and cheering us on.

Finally, lunch! Our first day, lunch was along the beach in La Jolla.

Lunch was not only a time to eat, but also air out our feet, change our socks, and yet again, stretch. Oh, how good it felt to sit down!

Grabbing the calf stretch at every opportunity! This is about when I realized I pulled the muscle in the back of my left knee. Turns out, there's no real stretch you can do to help that muscle.

Finally, camp!!! At first, we were so excited! Then, as we walked and walked, we realized that the camp sign "1 mile back" was totally wrong! It had to have been 2 miles to camp. 2 miles, right? That's nothing! Except when you've walked 18 miles already, you're starving, yet nauseated, and you have to pee {again}!

Even though we were in a rush to get to camp, the sky was beautiful, and pink! The perfect color for the weekend!

Amber crossing the finish line!

Thankfully, there were Girl Scouts to put our tent together. If it were up to us, we just may have slept on the ground, sans tent. We were so weak at this point!

As we were waiting in line for dinner, we saw the last walker arrive. They honored the last walker with a flag ceremony.

And for all you foodies, this was our delicious dinner!

We never slept so soundly after a day of walking 2o miles! Day 2 up next!

'tis the season

2008-12-15T07:17:00.000-08:00

Every year at Christmas, I struggle with giving in and going all out, like when I was a kid. Spending hours upon hours at the mall to purchase gifts for friends and family. But in recent years, I've come to realize that the hours spent at the mall and the hours wrapping gifts do not equal happiness for me. In fact, I often felt guilty. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing I love more than to stumble upon that perfect gift for that special someone. But finding the balance is what I've been searching for.

A few years ago, Rob and I started making donations in place of the money we would have spent on purchasing massive amounts of gifts. We still buy a gift for our immediate family members, however the pressure to buy and buy for family and even friends has been relieved. We don't {or I don't} design cute Christmas cards, we buy Christmas cards from a non-profit organization, usually benefiting children or special needs children. Perhaps when we start a family, a cute family photo will be added to the mix :)

To us, the season is not about the shopping, the gifts, the cards, or the decor {I will note that decorating is my favorite part though}, but it's about giving to those who don't have what we have and celebrating that Christmas is actually about the birth of our Lord and Savior. It's also about taking time out each day to do something together and/or with others {pictures of our Advent calendar to come}. With the limited amount of time that Rob and I already have, or don't have, if we were to spend that precious time shopping, we wouldn't be able to celebrate the season together.

So far this season we've:
- crafted with Emily
- purchased our Christmas tree and decorated our home with Joel
- went to the Christmas parade with Matt
- went to a friend's Christmas concert
- traveled to Redland's for one of Rob's Christmas concert
- celebrated the "holidays" with my school co-workers
- sang Christmas carols to the elderly at our church who can no longer come to church
- been to Irvine for another Christmas concert for Rob

And according to our Advent calendar, we still:
- need to sign, seal, and deliver our Christmas cards {even some Hanukkah cards}
- need to finish shopping for our family
- have one more Christmas concert for Rob's school
- will attend the annual AMA Christmas party, hosted by the lovely Jolene and her hubby Gerric
- will host dinner for the Tuckers on Christmas Eve
- spend time with Gabe & Mimi {both on Christmas day and at their Holiday Open House party}

When December arrived, I was concerned that we wouldn't have many festivities to attend to, turns out this season has been more festive than previous years. So far, the highlight was definitely yesterday as we sang to our elderly church members. The joy in their smiles as they sang their favorite Christmas carols was priceless.

If you have just over two minutes, check out this You Tube video on the Christmas season, it's great!

the day before day 1

2008-11-30T20:11:00.000-08:00

The day before day 1 of the 3-Day, Amber and I both hopped on the train {she in LA and me in Anaheim} and headed to San Diego. Laura, my wonderful SIL, picked us up in Solana Beach and prepared a carb-filled dinner for us. Jeff, her BF, helped in the preparations, too.

Without getting into details about the lack of support I received from my administration at school, I thought I should at least get the support from my students. The week of the walk, I spoke with my students about my upcoming weekend. Most were really excited for me and interested in the cause, it was only a couple boys that giggled when I said "breast" {they are 12 year olds}. The students created signs for me to post on my doors and walls.

If I had to pick a favorite, this would be a contender

I left school a little early on Thursday {luckily, I didn't have students last period that day} and I totally felt the need to literally sneak out, not wanting to ask for any additional time off, thank you for your generosity, Mr. Principal. The week of the walk, I had a huge paper at school due, which left little time for packing and other preparations. Thankfully, I squeezed in just enough time to pack and run errands, which was very stressful ensuring I had all the necessary items.

Rob was a critical element that week in keeping me calm! Here he's loading all my junk in his car

Once in San Diego at Laura's place, Amber and I caught up with Laura and Jeff and organized all our stuff. When we first tried on our skirts, made lovingly just for us by my MIL, we were so excited at how beautiful and comfortable they were!

Then it was off to sweet dreams of pink tutus and walking shoes decorated with pink curly ribbons, excited for the experience ahead...

the hungry cat and m83

2008-11-30T18:54:00.001-08:00

Last night we had the pleasure to hang with some friends up in Hollywood. We dined at the The Hungry Cat, a seafood and raw bar, and then we walked over to the Fonda Theatre to see M83, a "shoegazer" band that totally engaged us with lots of cool sounds and bright colors. M83 reminds me of my brother's band, Innaway, another rock shoegazer-type band with cool keyboard and drum sounds.

At The Hungry Cat, our table ordered a 2-tier seafood platter with all kinds of seafood I've never tried: oysters, mussels, clams, and caviar. It also had shrimp and lobster. Everyone ordered something very exotic with fancy seafood and I thought I was playing it safe by ordering a burger...

The remnants of the oyster and mussel I tried

Rob enjoying some caviar

And then some lobster tentacles (not really)

M83 at the Fonda

But a couple hours after we all digested our dinner and were enjoying the show, I started feeling waves of nausea. We all walked out together and the fresh air helped, but only for a few minutes. I thought I was going to lose it right there on Sunset Blvd {I was seriously afraid people would think I was one of those drunk girls who can't handle her liquor intake}. Thankfully, we made it home but only to spend the night on the bathroom floor. Rob was a seriously amazing husband and hung out with me while I was shaking with chills like a mad woman on the cold tile. Feeling better this evening, after sleep, 7-Up, applesauce, and bread...I would definitely still recommend The Hungry Cat, just stay away from the red meat. But one of the other couples raved about the burger, so maybe take your chances - the french fries were incredible. Their speciality is certainly in the area of seafood, though. Everyone else is fine today, a sign that it was just me...

3-day walk preview

2008-11-25T05:19:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of preview pics from our 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk weekend. Amber and I both took tons of photos, so we are in the midst of exchanging all of them. To sum up our weekend: incredible. I'll be back next year!

Our home away from home

A frequent {necessary} activity along the walk : stretching

Check out our adorable skirts...my wonderful MIL made them for us. The compliments were endless throughout the weekend! You'll find me wearing mine around the house {often}.

More to come...

60 miles...really?

2008-11-18T22:07:00.001-08:00

Well, it's down to the final few days before our big 60 mile walk and I ask, how far could 60 miles really be? I'm feeling:

- underprepared
- overwhelmed
- excited
- anxious
- stressed for the last few things I need to do before Thursday afternoon when I board a train for San Diego

I'm really looking forward to taking in each and every moment this weekend. From Friday morning when we arrive at 5am for the opening ceremonies to the Sunday afternoon closing ceremonies. I hope this experience will be profound...

And cross our fingers we see lots of this for endurance and laughter...

And not experience much of this...

If you're a praying friend, we'll take plenty those and if you're a thinking good thoughts friend, we'll accept lots of those, too!

photos courtesy of flickr

new techy love

2008-11-08T10:20:00.000-08:00

It's love, me and my new little girl, it's already love...

Apple says it's: Redesigned. Reengineered. Re-everythinged.

To me, it's simply beautiful! I feel so lucky that I got her {she's totally a girl, since I name all my inanimate objects). Seriously though, I feel blessed that we can delight in something so luxurious.

I have SO much to catch up on!!!

going, going, gone

2008-10-19T17:32:00.000-07:00

It's pretty pathetic when 3 new mommas update their blogs more regularly than I do! But then again, California Girl, Nanette, and Kay have much more to blog about than I do!

Truth be told, as I blogged a few months back, my beloved iSaac officially called it quits in May. Then recently, our desktop decided to quit, too, leaving us with one laptop, which is typically attached to Rob's lap. I'm told a new laptop just came out that's calling our name. Until then, I take {or steal} whatever time I can get with our lonely laptop.

Tons has been going on, but mainly, lots of school stuff. Here are a few hightlights:
- my juku is seriously kickin' right now! We are even thinking about hiring another teacher and/or aide so we don't turn kids away and to offer Emily and I some relief
- I have more homework that I have time for
- My students are awesome and I love working with them {even the real naughty boys, usually anyhow}
- I absolutely love my new classroom and am making some new friends with neighbor teachers, which definitely makes the school day more fun
- A baby is on the way! Not me, my SIL, and I couldn't be more excited to officially be an auntie! I am ecstatic for my bro and Mimi! My brother is drummer, so they will totally have a stylishly talented little musician babe
- I reconnected with one of my best friends from high school, Sarah, whom I've not seen in nearly 8 years! Our "break-up" was a sad time for both of us and we are so happy we've reconnected! Holly, Sarah, and I met up for dinner and the following weekend, Sarah made the hike to Long Beach to hang with Rob and I. It was the first time she's met Rob, so for me, it was a special weekend. We enjoyed some sushi, fro-yo, and shopping!

Sarah, Holly, baby Joanna, me

- I've been having some uncomfortable pain in my left foot since April and with the 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk quickly approaching, I have been trying to get to get it taken care of, but after several doc appointments and random tests, there are still unanswered questions. Though the other day they did suck some juice out of the giant cyst on the bottom of my foot, which will hopefully make the pain on the top of my foot go away. That was Friday and today is Sunday, still have pain...

That's about it. Boring, but extremely busy! I really miss blogging. I'm thankful for Tallulah, my iPhone, so at least I can read up on all my blogger buds!

I'll leave you with a ridiculous conversation I had with my hubby the other day:

Me: Thanks for coming with me to my doctor's appointment today, honey.
Rob: We're married, so it's "our" foot now
Me: Ahh...That's so sweet!
Rob: You're going to blog that I said that, right?
Me: I shouldn't but I will, just because my blogging buddies can relate to these crazy coversations.

Sadly, there was a time when every picture I took would end up on my blog. While I still take tons of photographs with the best intentions, it just hasn't happened lately due to lack of time and lack of computer time. Blogging is cyclical, right?

birthday weekend

2008-09-21T17:44:00.000-07:00

Rob and I celebrated our birthdays last weekend in Catalina. We had been planning to go away for the weekend, but Rob decided to keep the destination a surprise until the last minute. This was the first time Rob surprised me with a weekend away and I loved it! {Honey, you can surprise me with a weekend away anytime!}

Here's our birthday weekend in pictures:

Ready to sail away (we totally didn't plan to match)

Our bed & breakfast
Our first roam around the island

Arcade time...

"I lost"

More roaming, except Rob wouldn't walk on the dirt with his new Jacks

Sunday, Rob's birthday, we rented a golf cart and explored for a few hours.

We hung out at this point for a couple of hours, just reading and relaxing. It was perfect! The view and weather was awesome!

Rob reading his iPhone

It was my turn to take the wheel...

Thirsty birdy

We left in peace with ice cream in hand

Final photographs as we sailed away...

Until next time, Catalina. We really enjoyed your beauty and it was the perfect way to ring in 31 and 36!

cutest {and happiest} kids EVER

2008-09-21T17:25:00.000-07:00

I'm really behind on blogging. Here are some photographs from a recent dinner with the Malouf family. We always love hanging with them - there's never a dull moment with a 3-year old and a 1-year old!

Daniel's 1!

Model shot #1

Model shot #2

Sarah isn't shy at all!

It's crazy how they feed off one another - tons of giggles!

The whole gang

Pretending for a moment what it would be like to have 2 kids

Sarah loves her Uncle Rob-O

Ken, Sarah, and Kelly

Beautiful Sarah

Disclaimer: We have lots of friends with kids and we think those kids are also the cutest {and happiest} kids ever, too.

31 flavors

2008-09-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

Is the 31st birthday as random to you as it is to me? It's just kind of a miscellaneous age. Nothing terrifying or sad about it. It's just sort of boring. I'd like to think that with each passing year, my experiences and accomplishments help to make me a more colorful person. To ring in 31, I thought I'd create a couple of lists {a favorite pastime of mine}:

Accomplishments made in my 30th year & Accomplishments I'd like to reach in my 31st year

Here it goes...

In my 30th year, I {in no particular order}:
1. celebrated a first wedding anniversary
2. taught a full school year, with a contract
3. saw Legally Blonde on Broadway in NYC
4. discovered the courage to take {conservative} boudoir photos
5. bought an iPhone and learned how to work it
6. realized I have the innate ability to help my mom, despite a rocky history
7. signed up for the Breast Cancer 3-Day
8. went to Maui
9. threw a surprise party for my hubby
10. led a group of motivated 8th graders to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation
11. became a business owner! officially launched my juku
12. went on a girls' weekend trip with a couple of my besties to Sonoma
13. joined Weight Watchers {and actually lost like 10 pounds}
14. weened myself off of Weight Watchers {and gained back the 10 pounds}
15. cut my hair super short
16. got stitches in my finger
17. rob and I celebrated our first married Christmas with a Christmas tree
18. met more blogger friends face-to-face
19. made eye contact with Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes in the lovely city of Telluride
20. created wedding albums for our moms
21. finally visited my Arizona relatives
22. watched the entire Sex and the City DVD set, with the commentary {can't wait to do it again}
23. made it through my first year as a middle school teacher
24. joined Facebook
25. went to my first Bat Mitzvah {thank you, Liann}
26. enjoyed my first summer vacation
27. dabbled with cooking using meat
28. ran a 5k
29. started scrapbooking {I think, this may have actually been during my 29th year}
30. reconnected with the Glombs

In my 31st year, I would like to {in no particular order}:
1. create a wedding album for us
2. make curtains in place of having no closet doors {though we do have very organized closets thanks to Closet World}
3. edit and finalize our wedding video {a collaborative effort}
4. install shower doors in the master bathroom {since 2003, only the guest bathroom shower has been used. Totally wasteful!}
5. get a new passport with my new last name
6. finish school, once and for all!
7. get up-to-date with the scrapbook I'm currently working on
8. start our anniversary scrapbook/album
9. cook more
10. revisit how good yoga makes me feel
11. actually complete the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk
12. travel to Italy
13. see Legally Blonde on Broadway in Orange County
14. go on another girls' weekend with my besties
15. continue working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation
16. go fully {or mostly} organic
17. learn new teaching strategies on how to manage my really behaviorally challenging students
18. continue repairing my relationship with my mom
19. accrue more hours to become Gate certified
20. celebrate a 2nd wedding anniversary
21. sell our condo and buy a house/townhouse {basically, something with lots more space}
22. help to make our finances/investments more efficient
23. run a 5k {perhaps the Turkey Trot again}
24. watch the entire Gilmore Girls series, plus the commentary
25. go to a professional baseball, football, or basketball game {I don't know why, just seems fun}
26. learn how to play the tambourine well enough so I can play on Sundays at church
27. be consistent with Weight Watchers
28. become a better daughter-in-law and sister-in-law {more regular phone calls/emails/visits}
29. take a calligraphy class
30. attend a professional ballet performance
31. grow my hair

Here's to a fabulous year complete with continued unconditional love, growing friendships, warmth and compassion, self-discovery, meaningful experiences, acceptance and peace, and simple accomplishments!

good-bye, party in the back

2008-08-30T11:56:00.000-07:00

I've been waiting since June to get my hair cut and today was the happy day when I finally said good-bye to the mullet I've been rockin' this summer. I'll admit, I loved how easy it was to put my hair into little pigtails and throw on a hat {something I'll still likely do on weekends and maybe lazy Fridays), but I'm really excited to have my grown-out shag properly shaped into a bob. I've been waiting until the very last possible minute before school starts so my hair is as long as possible to work with.

Before: no more business only in the front

After: a blunt bob

Now I'm officially ready for school to start!

i'm walking!

2008-08-29T10:41:00.000-07:00

I'm walking the Breast Cancer 3-Day! I've always wanted to participate in this extraordinary event, but never seriously pursued it until Amber recently asked me if this is an event I would consider doing. Without hesitation, I excitedly replied, "Yes!"

The Breast Cancer 3-Day is an event where participants sign up to walk 60 miles over 3 days while raising money that goes to support Susan G. Komen for the Cure and The National Philanthropic Trust. While many participate to support and honor a loved one, I have actually never been directly affected by this terrible disease. According to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, more than 200,000 American women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, and nearly 40,000 will die from the disease. This is why I'm walking - I hope to never be affected by this disease.

I am so excited to honor those who have been affected and also support the research being done that will hopefully lead to a cure one day. Together, Amber and I have formed a team named "Bloggers for Healthy Hooters". We'll celebrate our hope for a cure and our love for pink {in tutus, no less} for 3 exciting and inspiring days in San Diego in November.

As Amber mentioned on her blog, training and fundraising go hand-in-hand. You'll see to the left that I'm keeping track of the number of training miles I've walked {at this point, I've only walked about 5 miles; clearly, I've got a long way to go}. In addition, if you'd like to make a monetary donation, you can click on the 3-Day widget also to the left and it will guide you directly to my/our fundraising page.

Lastly, if you or a loved one has been affected by breast cancer, please let us know and we'll honor them with a pink ribbon that we'll add to our 3-Day walk gear.

Thank you in advance for your support as we embark on this very exciting journey!

arizona

2008-08-21T20:05:00.000-07:00

Alas, the final road trip post. I'll try to make this more photo heavy than word heavy.

After the good 'ole Grand Canyon, we headed for beautiful Sedona, AZ. It was seriously hot!

Elk jerky anyone? What about buffalo jerky?

After a few hours exploring Sedona, we headed to Avondale, AZ to visit with my family, the Clydes. My Uncle Dana and Aunt Pat let us stay with them for a of days. It was even hotter in Avondale!

The kids: Ashlee, me, Kim, Kayla, Austin

Uncle Dana and Aunt Pat (yes, that's a giant pile of nachos in front of them...it was an appetizer for the entire table)

My cousin Kim and I

Just for fun, my cousin Kim and I back in the 80s

After some quality time with the Clydes, we were on our way to Bullhead City, AZ to hang with the Tucker side of the fam, except they are the Martins.

Ethan, Charles, and Gillian

Initially, the kids were really shy. Then, they were all over us!

And then Gillian wanted to try on my rings...Oh boy, those parents are in serious trouble with this little one!

On the last day of our road trip, we hit the lake with Charles and some friends.

And then, a rock got stuck in the engine and we were stranded for a couple of hours in the boiling heat, without cell phones, food, sunscreen, and barely enough fluids to survive.

About 2 hours later, we were saved! I devoured my first double-double cheeseburger and washed it down with fries, and chocolate shake. I walked in totally famished and I barely rolled out.

After lunch, we said farewell to the family, packed up our stuff, and downloaded a few more songs for the drive home.

We slept in this trailer in Bullhead City. It was cozy, but hot when the power went out in the middle of the night.

We were so happy to enter familiar territory upon entering the 909...this is our absolute favorite Mexican food place, Miguel's. Whenever we're in Corona, we grab lots of burritos to enjoy for the week.

And that does it for our road trip. It was only a 12-day trip, but the way I've been blogging this summer, it seems as though it was an all summer road trip.

miscellaneous updates

2008-08-12T18:37:00.000-07:00

Here are some random miscellaneous updates, bullet point style:

- First, I'd like to thank you all for your kind words of encouragement! I am happy to report that my mom is much better this week. She's still in pain, however, she's slowly feeling better each day. My mom and I have not been particularly close in the last 15 years, but when I took her to the doctors last week, we actually had a good time and even laughed {which thankfully took her mind off the pain}. I can't remember the last time I actually laughed with my mom. I'm really happy she's back in San Diego recovering. I hope she stays strong and continues to heal and live a healthy life. I want nothing more than to have a great relationship with my mom again. There was a time when I was growing up that I would say she was my best friend.

- I can't believe my summer vacation is almost over! With the class I'm taking at CSULB and the craziness of the last few weeks, I feel like I've not even come close to accomplishing what I set out to accomplish at the start of my summer vacation. My chore to-do list grows each day, but I'm appreciating the lack of Virgo-ness at the moment with completing that to-do list. I think what's most important right now, is cherishing the opportunity to relax and enjoy my time off {in between homework}. The wall cleaning, fireplace painting, CD organizing, and other mundane chores will still be there when the cold icky weather arrives. On the other hand, my fun to-do list includes more scrapbooking, organizing my closet, buying new plants for our balcony, reading at the park or beach, visiting with friends, and riding my Julius cruiser {I've had her a couple of years now and believe it or not, I'm struggling with finding the perfect name for her. Any suggestions?}. Riding my bike brings me tons of joy, mostly because I think the bike brings others joy. I get so many smiles and compliments when I'm on the road.
- To help with the relaxing, Rob and I are heading to Dana Point tonight to stay at the Laguna Cliffs Marriott. Rob is speaking on a panel tomorrow morning and the company offered us a hotel room, so I get to enjoy the fruits of Rob's hard work. While I'll need to do some homework, there's nothing wrong with doing it while lounging by the pool, or after a massage, if I'm really lucky {and Rob's feeling generous}.

- I received an email this morning from a friend who is newly engaged and she asked me to be a bridesmaid! Her intent was not to ask me via email. In fact she has beautiful card that was supposed to be mailed to me, but it was returned to her {actually, I think I neglected to give her our unit number}. I am so thrilled and completely honored! Jen has been waiting for her prince charming for way too long and I'm so happy she found him {or him her}. I can't wait for all the wedding festivities to begin! The big day is January 17th. They have a really romantic story that I look forward to sharing at some point.

- We got my first AT&T bill...turns out I like to text message now that I have a real keyboard on my phone. I guess we didn't think I'd send/receive more that 200 text messages when we created my plan. I went over by 428 texts! This seriously increases the charges! Yikes! Must switch to unlimited texting ASAP!

- Seriously, I know it doesn't matter at this point, but I haven't completed blogging about our road trip. Our family time in Arizona is what is missing. For some reason, it's important to me to complete that. Perhaps next week...

- As posted on Nanette's blog, Kay's baby shower was a huge success! I loved helping Jolene plan the day. Anytime planning a party is involved, I'm there! Especially when it centers around pink and honoring a really great person! Check Nanette's blog for photos...Jolene and I were so busy we didn't take a single photo.

- I just want to thank you again for your kind comments and emails over the last couple of weeks. It's really awesome knowing I have a community of supporters via blogging!

love is...

2008-08-02T14:15:00.001-07:00

Over the last 48 hours, I've been reminded about what unconditional love really is. I experienced this love from the amazing family I have (Tuckers and Palmers) and the incredible friends I've been blessed to know. My mom was {kind of surprisingly} released from the hospital on Thursday evening, creating some moments that I would never wish upon anyone. Here are some moments of grace that I'll carry with me during the coming weeks as we manage my mom and her healing.

- Crying to my husband that I'm way overwhelmed with my mom's situation and I can't do it alone. He offered to drive from Santa Monica to San Diego to help me. Instead, we decided his mom would be a better support {I felt like I needed a mom} and she was also about 2 hours closer to where I was located.

- Rob's sister helping to locate their mom, despite her preparations for her performance {she's in a local production of Music Man}.

- Rob's amazing mom dropping her life Thursday evening to rescue me from what I thought was equivalent to hell. She has been an instrumental role while managing this situation, and without her, I would feel mother-less.

- My brother answering his phone Thursday night whenever I called to give him updates and moral support, even at 4am when I could barely speak because I was so upset. He's so awesome and loving, I'm thankful that we're in this together. When he arrived Friday afternoon to take over, some really heavy weight was lifted off my shoulders.

- My husband answering his phone whenever I called, despite being super busy at work.

- The doctors at Scripps Green in La Jolla who counseled me through my hysteria when I told them how my night was with my mom. They listened to me and hugged me and offered support.

- One of my best friends, Melanie, telling me that she and Kristi would change their Friday night plans to be with me in San Diego if my brother wasn't able to take on mom duty. We had a slumber party planned for Friday night to celebrate Kristi's birthday. They carried on with the celebration, while I needed to be home to decompress with my husband. Melanie even offered a drop-off "cocktails and cake" service if we needed it.

- Me making a tuna sandwich for my mom...this reminded me of the unconditional love that I have for my mom {I hate hate tuna sandwiches; next to throw-up, tuna is my least favorite thing in the world}.

- Coincidentally receiving a 25% off Gap/Banana Republic/Old Navy coupon on Thursday night from a friend who is not even aware of what's been going on. Perfect time for some retail therapy!

These are only some moments and some of the people who helped me through Thursday night. I am just so thankful for my support system. Thank you for your kind comments, emails, texts, and prayers from my last blog update. My brother and I {and by marriage, Rob and Mimi} are in the midst of a serious transition that will hopefully result with a healthy mom that we can experience life with. I'm still accepting positive vibes and prayers...

grand canyon

2008-07-31T10:22:00.000-07:00

I feel like we returned home from our road trip weeks ago {two weeks to be exact}, so blogging about it seems outdated. On the other hand though, if I don't finish my road trip updates, I'll feel like a task was left incomplete. The Virgo in my won't let that happen.

I was on a roll updating and then some unexpected, well actually, it was pretty expected, family novella occurred. My mom was admitted to the hospital on Friday in San Diego, so I've been back and forth since then. Unfortunately, the hospital doesn't have Wi-Fi, so I'm limited to completing homework for a class I'm taking this summer at CSULB and reading another Jodi Picoult novel {The Tenth Circle}. I'm not comfortable revealing too much about what's going on with my mom, but if you could pray or think positive thoughts about our family situation, that would be awesome. I'm a little anxious about what the future holds and how we'll deal with what's going on with my mom, more so, how she'll cope and manage her own health. Thankfully, Rob has been amazing and his family has been incredibly supportive too, and of course, my bro and Mimi are awesome and totally involved.

On to the Grand Canyon...

Is it completely un-Americana to say that this was my least favorite portion of our road trip? The Grand Canyon was spectacular and completely crazily massive, but those feelings lasted for a few minutes and then we were ready to move on to the next activity. It was a total National Lampoon experience!

Rob slept for a couple of hours en route to Flagstaff from Telluride, he missed New Mexico and some of Arizona.

We arrived very late to Flagstaff, so there isn't much to share other than our dinner/midnight snack at Denny's. We were up bright and early to catch a train to the Grand Canyon.

Do you see the train guy's bow tie? He was only the start of the train experience cheesiness. We were told that this was a fun ride with some silly Wild West reenactments. Boy where they right-on describing this ride with the word "silly". For me, it was an opportunity to not sit in the car. The train took us to the South Rim where we had about 4 hours to explore the beauty.

I love this picture of Rob!

Taking it all in

Okay...let's go

Desperate to escape...

I'm somewhat joking about my boredness. It views were spectacular and our pictures surely don't showcase the actual feeling of being in complete "awe". We would like to visit again one day: probably the North Rim, with little Tuckers in tow, and without the train experience. Not that it wasn't fun to be part of a pretend robbery...

The train station was located in Williams, AZ, an itsy bitsy town with lots of country western charm.

The town had a "shoot-out" with some live Revolutionary War-style music played by some high school kids. After watching the entire town watch the shoot-out, we ate some delicious BBQ at a little cafe called Cruiser's Route 66 Cafe.

They had a giant BBQ!

That's it for Flagstaff, Williams, and the Grand Canyon. Up next, a quick drive through Sedona and Avondale to visit my family.

scoot pink

2008-07-24T11:27:00.000-07:00

When I recently posted this picture from the Boulder part of our trip, Crystal from Scoot Pink asked me to email her this photo of me in front of the pink Vespa.

I thought since I was at it, I'd also send her this picture from our New York trip in 2006.

Crystal posted these pics on her blog today! Thanks, Crystal for the shout out! Oh, how I'd love to one day pose in front of my pink Vespa!

Check out her great website, Scoot Pink!

converse(red)

2008-07-23T14:00:00.000-07:00

Rob graciously gave me a Design-Your-Own-Converse gift card that he received for Christmas from a vendor. I was waiting and waiting to decide upon the perfect Converse to design. I just wasn't inspired by the color options. I really wanted fuchsia, but that's not an option, it should be though, shouldn't it? I ended up forgoing the Design-Your-Own and decided to give back with some cuties from the Product (Red) line.

telluride, co

2008-07-22T19:06:00.000-07:00

This post, which details our experience in Telluride, is very photo heavy. Telluride was definitely my favorite city! While I would love to live in Boulder, I would love to visit Telluride annually.

Sometime after we left Denver, we drove through the desolate city of South Park, CO. Evidently, the television show is loosely based upon this little city.

Then we drove through a mountainous region with snow still on the ground.

And then we drove through a tiny town that forgot to put the second golden arch on the McDonald's sign.

Finally, we entered the lovely city of Crested Butte to have lunch with the newlyweds, Brent and Andrea. This tiny town was so perfectly {oddly} cute. In fact, it felt more like a movie set rather than an actual lived-in city.

Rob, me, Andrea, and Brent

Somewhere between Crested Butte and Telluride, we drove through some amazing scenery. The sky was so vibrantly blue and the green so freshly green.

Our first impression of Telluride...So gorgeous!

Our first evening in Telluride was awesome! We roamed the town and ate at Rustico, where I think I drank the best wine I've ever tasted. My taste buds may have been skewed though as I thought I landed in heaven once we arrived in Telluride.

We actually stayed in a little lodge in the city of Mountain Village, which is around and up the mountain from Telluride. At first I was disappointed that we weren't staying right in Telluride, but then we were informed that there is a free gondola that travels between the two cities.

Our first full day in Telluride started with the gondola ride. Oh my gosh, it was the coolest ride ever! The view was incredible! We took pictures, but they don't do the views justice at all, so I'm not posting them.

Excitedly getting on the gondola!!

After lunch, we walked by a guy that was giving city tours on Segways. We decided that would be a fun, nerdy way to see the town.

This humble home could be yours, for only $8MM - turns out property is not cheap in Telluride

I love this picture, the scenery and Rob's helmet placement :)

After our city tour and a little nap, we went for a hike.

We ate dinner at a great sushi place {can't remember the name} and then had ice cream at the Sweet Life, which is where we ran into TomKat, certainly one of the highlights of our road trip! Once back to our hotel room, we video chatted with Rob's family. I had to take a picture because I couldn't believe we were chatting with Rob's parents in San Clemente and then Rob's sister in San Diego. Rob even figured out how to share pictures. Technology is crazy!

4th of July was out last morning/afternoon in Telluride. Our plan was to go to the town parade and then the BBQ. This was the perfet 4th of July Americana celebration. Everyone was dressed in red, white, and blue and ready to celebrate the purpose of the holiday.

I loved how the town honored their veterans.

This was our Segway tour guide

This little guy was my absolute favorite parade participant

This elephant had an accident right in front of us...the crowd loved it!

After the parade, the entire town walked to the park for a BBQ put on by the fire department.

We had to wait in line for about an hour, but Rob was happy because there was a park wi-fi

On our Segway tour, we learned that these two homes {now valued at a couple million dollars} were once the homes of the town prostitutes

Saying farewell to the ridiculously beautiful city of Telluride...

Leaving the beauty of greenery and entering desertland...

denver, co

2008-07-17T12:08:00.001-07:00

After our Celestial Seasonings tour, we headed for Google to have lunch with a co-worker Rob has never met face-to-face. We thought it was so perfectly convenient that Google was located in downtown Boulder...

Turns out, it was a little too convenient. The Google office we were looking for was half way between Boulder and Denver {about 30 minutes}. Once we arrived, we had a quick tour of the office and had lunch in the cafeteria. Wow, hands down, best cafeteria lunch ever! While I enjoyed fresh salad, Rob opted for the veal. Yes, veal! All this is free to employees and their guests too. We skipped the dessert bar, but I left with a cup full of Google-colored M&Ms .

A bit jealous of the pink Beetle in the Google parking lot...fun in theory, a bit OTT in reality

After lunch, we decided to continue on to Denver, since we were almost there. Other than Red Rocks Amphitheatre, I hadn't heard much about Denver. Coming from beautiful Boulder, I was slightly disappointed, however we only spent time in downtown Denver. I'll leave my opinion at that. We were only planning to spend one night in Denver, but when we realized that Stevie Wonder was in town the following evening, we opted to stay for two nights. We had a nice experience at the Hyatt, partly because upon inquiry for a recommended dinner location, the hotel manager escorted us to the 27th floor to have a complimentary cocktail and appetizer at the Peaks Lounge. Not a bad way to start our experience in Denver.

On Tuesday, the 1st, after sleeping in until nearly noon {very unlike us} and going for a walk, we were pumped and very well rested for Stevie!

We actually arrived a little late and missed a few songs, but what we saw could definitely be considered one of the best concerts either of us have ever attended. Such fabulous energy from the entire band and all the songs were awesome! I knew way more songs than I thought I would, which was fun.

We sat really far away on the lawn, but if you look close, you can see Stevie near my head

He sang "Isn't She Lovely" to his daughter (a song he initially wrote for her). Totally sweet! And when she cried, I bet most of the women in the audience also cried.

That's Denver in a nutshell! Next up...a brief lunch with Brent and Andrea in Crested Butte, where they mini-mooned, and Telluride...

tallulah

2008-07-17T12:04:00.001-07:00

Tallulah Tucker is the newest Apple addition in our household. And, oh boy is she lovely! Similar to Tater, we picked-up my new iPhone from the South Coast Plaza store, however we waited in line on Saturday for over 3 hours. We definitely didn't expect to wait in line, but we were happy to do so. My Razr died {or I may have thrown it and broke it in half out of technology frustration one day when the LCD screen decided to stop working for the 9,458 time} and I've been using one of Rob's old phones, so I was in need of a new one. I brought along a book, thankfully, and Rob had his iPhone {he now calls it OG, for original as opposed to 3G}.

The first sign of my entering into a truly nerdy morning was when we were walking to the Apple store and Rob busted out his newest geeky iPhone application, the lightsaber. No freakin' joke! He loved it and was so excited to show it off. I almost turned around and walked back to our car. I wanted nothing to do with a device that would have an application as super-geeky as that. But then I remembered that I don't have to be that geeky with my beloved device.

The waiting in line time actually flew by! Initially, we shared the duty of standing in line while the other sat on a bench, then Rob made friends with the people in front of us and they totally started geeking out and talking about the specs of the new iPhone, which was my cue to roam the mall a bit. Rob was definitely redeemed when the wife of one of the guys in line mentioned her husband playing with his new iPhone lightsaber. I spent a fair amount of time at Paper-Source and H&M - my two favorite stores at South Coast. Like Tater's experience, the Apple folks offered coffee and water, but unfortunately Ruby's didn't offer any milkshake or fry/onion ring specials. My favorite nerdy conversation as we approached the front of the line:

Person #1: What color are you going to get?
Person #2: I don't know yet. Whatever color is more "gangsta".
Me: Hey guys, we're talking about the iPhone. Is the iPhone really "gangsta"?
Person #2's wife: Thank you!
Me and Person #2's wife: Hahaha!!
Rob: {whispering to me} I think you may have offended him.

We finally made it to the front of the line and we were all so excited!

Our iPhone friends

Anxiously awaiting the arrival of Tallulah

Me, Tallulah, Nathan, and his little guy

To make the afternoon even more over-the-top exciting, it's official, Legally Blonde is coming to the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Sept. '09! I need to catch up on MTV's Legally Blonde the Musical: The Search for the Next Elle Woods.

I'm in love with discovering the perks of Tallulah. My favorite part is the instant gratification of sending/receiving email!

My Denver update is coming soon...

boulder, co

2008-07-17T08:01:00.000-07:00

The purpose of our road trip adventure was to attend Brent and Andrea's wedding in Boulder, CO on June 28th. We landed in Denver late in the morning with what should have been plenty of time to drive to Boulder, check-in to our hotel, freshen up, and head to the wedding venue. When we arrived to the rental car facility, we waited in line for 2 hours...yes, you read that correctly. 2 hours!! This lengthy line left us with very little time to freshen up for the wedding and drive to the venue. Rob didn't want to go to the ceremony at the risk of being late, but I was set on attending, late or not, since this wedding was the entire reason for our trip. We literally walked to our seats right before the bridal party walked down the aisle. Rob was humiliated and thought that everyone was staring at us and I was relieved that we would witness the wedding vows.

Nature called while we were in the middle of nature...

The ceremony was gorgeous! You can see from the pics that the setting was unbelievable. We were surrounded by nature while at the Sunrise Amphitheatre. It was a schlep up, but once we arrived, it allowed us to see all of Boulder just before sunset. Very picturesque!

After the ceremony, we headed to the reception which was in downtown Boulder at Rembrandt Yard. This is about when I decided that we would have to move to Boulder at some point in our future. Boulder is the perfect combination of "granola" and "metropolitan". Back to the reception...Brent and Andrea rented an art museum for the festivities. The entire day perfectly represented the couple. The ceremony was beautiful and outdoorsy while the reception was modern and simple. To top off the perfect afternoon, instead of cake, they had an ice cream bar!

The Dailys

Rob, Brent, and Chris (they met while at Saatchi)

Sunday was our first full day in Boulder. We woke up late to recover from the eventful day before and headed to the downtown area to meet up with our new friends, Rod and Beth. Rob reconnected with Rod at the wedding (they used to work together) and we all got along really well. We ate at Mountain Sun Brewery where I officially had the best ranch dressing ever! After lunch, we rented some bikes and went exploring. This creek is just a couple streets off the main road in downtown Boulder. See, the perfect combo of nature vs. metro.

Beth and Rod

I love how this pic shows Pearl St. with the mountains in the background

Had to take a pic with the pink Vespa. I think I need one!

We spent the rest of Sunday roaming around and eating a crappy pizza dinner at a Colorado chain, Old Chicago. We were looking for another pizza place that was Yelp recommended, but couldn't find it anywhere. Either the address was wrong or it didn't exist anymore. By the time we strolled by Old Chicago, we were headachy hungry. Luckily, I was able to top off the evening with a delicious Nutella crepe.

Monday, sadly our last day in Boulder, we headed for the Celestial Seasoning's Factory with Rod and Beth, perfectly located on Sleepytime Drive. We had a tour of the factory and inhaled all kinds of very fragrant teas. With each step near a crate of boxed herbs and spices, the scent literally changed and filled the area. The Peppermint Room was perhaps my favorite. I have a new appreciation of tea!

We had to wear hair nets while walking through the factory

After the tour, we said our good-byes to Rod and Beth. They were heading home to Orlando and we were heading to Denver...In my mind, Boulder was already my favorite city!

home, sweet home

2008-07-11T07:15:00.001-07:00

We arrived home late Wednesday evening. We are so happy to be home! After 11 days and nearly 1,900 miles on the road, I was really happy to sleep in my bed and drive around a city I don't need GoogleMaps for. Rob's back at work and I'm back on my summer vacation {maybe that's why coming home didn't seem like such a drag for me}. As soon as some personal crap is organized {doctor appointments, laundry, juku, etc.}, I'll be all over recapping our road trip. I also can't wait to read the over 250 GoogleReader entries!

Sedona, Arizona

blogarazzi

2008-07-03T20:34:00.000-07:00

Road trip sneak peak...Currently in Telluride, Colorado.

Brief backstory: We almost didn't make it here because Rob saw a recent Oprah episode where she interviewed Tom Cruise at his home in Telluride. And with Oprah having a home in the Telluride area {I think}, Rob {jokingly} thought that's why I wanted to come here. I'm really not a celebrity stalker, just very easily star struck. I've actually had Telluride on my list long before I knew Oprah and Tom had property here. When I worked at Saatchi I helped plan a Toyota event that took place here and never had the opportunity to attend.

Back to the sneak peak: Rob was convinced from a friend that Telluride is gorgeous and worth the visit. Our friend, Brent, actually the groom from the wedding in Boulder we attended last Saturday, was absolutely right! Telluride is so lovely and picturesque. We happened to stop in a sweet shop this evening to grab an ice cream cone after dinner and guess who walked in? Tom and Katie! No freakin' joke! Even funnier, Rob was trying to convince me that we should get an ice cream cone tomorrow, not tonight. I just love the irony in this stroy! I can't believe that we saw them and Rob can't believe that he couldn't escape them!

Telluride is an incredibly beautiful city! The other highlight thus far was seeing Stevie Wonder perform in Denver. He's actually going to be at the Hollywood Bowl on the 7th. It was perhaps the best concert I've ever been to (behind Jack of course).

More to come soon...

congratulations, epc youth!

2008-06-28T00:06:00.000-07:00

In March, the youth at our church participated in a national video challenge sponsored by the Presbyterian Foundation. The youth (or tweens as I like to call them) had to create their own video based upon the Micah 6:8 scripture verse, “Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with your God”. Tons of youth groups submitted videos from all over the country, most of them from churches five or six times our size - we literally have maybe 30 members and 5 tweens. Well, our tiny little Belmont Heights church won!!

If you have a few minutes, watch their video entitled, "Coming Home". It's really an awesome video with some pretty rockin' music!

award

2008-06-26T16:54:00.000-07:00

I was surprisingly given a very prestigious award at the end of the school year on behalf of the 6th grade students...

Most Stylish Teacher

Who needs to be Teacher of the Year or Best Teacher when you can be voted Most Stylish? All those years learning to be a teacher really paid off!

Okay, I'll be honest...I was totally excited! My students were really proud of me, it was sweet actually (even the rough-around-the-edges students were excited for me). It was also a great way to end the school year on a celebratory note with my students. I'll have them again next year as 7th graders, so I guess I should be refining "my style" this summer for the '08-'09 school year!

introducing...my juku

2008-06-24T21:26:00.001-07:00

I'd love to officially introduce, my juku. Emily and I are legitimate business partners! This tutoring business has been in the works since last summer and we finally lit that little fire under our behinds and did it!

Before I go into the details of what my juku is, I'll explain what my juku means.

Juku, pronounced "joo-koo", comes from Japan circa 1980. In addition to attending regular school, Japanese students often attend a private after school program or "cram school" known as Juku.

my juku is:

- small group learning focused on providing students with tools they need in order to succeed in school
- "cram sessions" for test preparation
- reinforcing standards-based classroom learning for academic enrichment
- cultivating the value of goal-setting and intrinsic motivation

I believe what sets my juku apart from other tutoring businesses, aside from the fact that Emily and I are involved, is our focus on not simply academic achievement but also personal enrichment.

Ashley Gass, a friend and fabulous designer, created our logo, flyer, and business cards. We absolutely adore everything she created!

If you visit our website, you'll see that it is very simple {thank you, Joe & Emily for building it}, however our goal over our summer vacation is to attend some website development juku sessions of our own to make it a bit fancier.

If you know of any tweens in the Long Beach area that would benefit from some juku'ing, please send them our way!

backtracking

2008-06-23T11:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a very long time since I really provided a meaty update. Pictures say 1,000 words, right? I'll let the pictures do most of the sharing for this update:

In early April, we finally got together to celebrate the birthdays of my best girlfriends. We selected the always classy Sharkeez for the event.

Mel loves giraffes, so we adopted her one! We named him Randall.

Also in April, Jenny & Victor came to visit us from Maui. They were in town for a wedding and were really busy with wedding events, but it was such a great treat to spend a lovely evening with them in Long Beach. We of course took them to Sushi Studio and Yogurtland. They brought along some of their visiting friends from Mexico City, who actually didn't speak a word of English. Victor spent the evening translating for all of us.

Kristi joined us for Sushi...she speaks Japanese, so her translating skills didn't help much...

In May, Karen, Jeff, and their daughter Katie came over for an evening of pizza and catching up. I however enjoyed every minute of playing some sort of Disney Princess game where jewels and a crown were the prizes. Katie won most of the gems, but I won the crown! Should I have let the 4-year old win the crown?

I boxed my wedding dress. I wasn't planning on doing this, but the woman at the dry cleaners, Happy Hanger, talked me into it. She assured me that I can still try it on occasionally if I feel the desire and she will re-box it for me. It's at the Tucker's house in San Clemente, so unfortunately I can't lounge around in it this summer.

At one of the middle schools I worked at this past school year, I created a Kids 4 Wish Kids organization on campus. We raised over $2700 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation! Our final fundraising event was a "throw a pie-in-the-face of your favorite teacher". I had about 5 pies thrown in my face that afternoon. Only for sick kids would I do this. Seriously, I smelled of sour milk after a couple hours. It was disgusting, and that puts it lightly!

The mess...

In May, we finally had the opportunity to meet little Nathan Flores, Rick and Julie's son. He's absolutely perfect and so precious! A perfect combination of the his mommy and daddy. We look forward to catching up again with the Flores family!

The drool is too darn cute. And his little smile melts my heart!

Just a couple weeks ago, we headed to my hometown of Encinitas with our friends Lauren and Jeff to see Switchfoot play a free show at Moonlight Beach. The show benefited the youth organiztion StandUp for Kids. I really enjoyed watching Switchfoot play some of my favorite songs in our hometown!

Last weekend we spent the early afternoon celebrating Sarah's 3rd birthday. I can't believe this little thing is already 3! She's definitely the most opinionated 3-year old I've ever known! We ate junk food as the toddlers played in the yard. For someone approaching the era also known as "baby fever", it was heaven!

Sarah's little bro, Daniel. These Malouf babies are gorgeous!

Then my baby fever miracalously disappeared as we headed to the Playboy Jazz Fest at the Hollywood Bowl. I love this venue! It doesn't matter who is performing, so long as there are appetizers and wine, it's the perfect evening! The Playboy Jazz Fest however provided some pretty awesome people watching. Thanks, Brian and Natalie for the great evening!

How romantic, I'm right in the middle of Brian and his GF, Natalie.

Those are the highlights from the last couple of months! We are in town until early Saturday morning when we will head to Boulder for a wedding. We are renting a car in Boulder and will casually make our way back home, stopping wherever our hearts desire, well, we have to be back on July 9th.

Thanks for reading!

jack

2008-06-19T07:01:00.000-07:00

Serendipity? Maybe...As our alarm went off this morning, I was simply trying to get my lazy, already on summer vacation self out of bed for my last day of school when Kevin & Bean were promoting the upcoming Jack Johnson shows! I moved quicker than I thought I could this morning to score 2 pre-sale tickets to the UCLA show on August, 31st.

I nearly accepted {sadly} that Jack wasn't going to play any local shows this summer, so whatever it was this morning, fate or serendipity, it's making my heart skip too many beats per minute right now! This will definitely be the perfect way to end my summer vacation!

Thank you, Jack for making my day! Well, of course my husband made my day first {he had the perfect response when I told him about the shows}, Jack second...

Hooray for summer vacation {which also means I'll be back to blogging}!

farewell iSaac

2008-05-02T18:13:00.001-07:00

iSaac, my little iBook G4, bit the dust last week. Not only is the motherboard bad, but the hardrive may be bad also. While we also have a desktop, nothing really replaces the convenience of a laptop. Rob has a laptop. but that's usually attached to his lap. I did all my blogging, emailing, and homework on the couch or in bed with iSaac on my lap. It was a surprise that he bit the dust, but we've had him since 2003, so he lived a good and productive life. Thankfully, after a few prayers, he turned back on long enough for me to grab my latest resume, my thesis, and some teaching stuff. He hasn't turned on since. While this isn't totally an excuse for my absence, it kinda is. At school, I can get on Google Reader, but pictures don't load and I can't comment. Like I've said before, by the time I get home, I'm beat and don't want to sit at a desk and be online. I guess the latest version of some iBook is launching in June, according to the AppleInsider website, so that's when I can return to blogging, emailing, and doing homework on the couch or in bed.

I have even been taking pictures to share with hopes that I'll get back to my semi-regular blogging, but I can't figure out how to upload the pictures on Rob's desktop. There are so many wires coming out of the monitor area and the camera USB thingy doesn't fit in any of the wires. So, I'll have to wait until he gets home, which by then I'll be over it. This sort of makes me sound like a dumb redhead, but I had it all figured out on iSaac.

Anyway, the one picture I can show is the one I downloaded of my new Nicole Miller eyeglasses. My favorite part...they're called, "Little Black Dress".

To all the blogs on my blogroll: I am reading daily or at least every other day. Just not commenting as much, which I know is lame since that's the best part about blogging. I'm still a loyal fan...but a busy loyal fan and squeezing in my reading before school, during school, or when I should be doing homework.

Have a great weekend!

In Loving Memory
iSaac Tucker
October 2003 - April 2008
A reliable friend, a creative outlet, and a good machine

gone readin'

2008-04-21T20:14:00.000-07:00

I've gone missing again...This time thanks to the incredible book, My Sister's Keeper. As many in the blogsphere have said, it's an incredibly touching story. So moving and engaging that any spare moment I had, I read. Alas, I completed the book the other day and now it's in Emily's hands. Now however, I have homework piling up and more importantly, almost 100 Google Reader posts to peruse through. I have two big assignments due next Wednesday, so my reward will be blogging. In the meantime, if you haven't read My Sister's Keeper, you must! I'm looking forward to picking up another Jodi Picoult novel.

Hope y'all have a great week while I'm doing homework in my spare time (insert a sad and tired face).

think pink

2008-04-05T21:23:00.001-07:00

I love pink! But even more, I love that a couple recent pink purchases benefits breast cancer research.

Here's to shopping with a cause! I can't feel guilty for that!

I hope these sneaks stay pretty for the 3-day Breast Cancer walk in November! I guess it depends on how much I use them...I'm breaking them in tomorrow morning at the MS Walk. I'm actually hoping to run the 5K. Wish me luck!

maui revealed, our last day

2008-04-02T21:44:00.000-07:00

Monday, our last day in Maui, was nearly perfect, of course the airport experience would screw it up, right? After hearing about the Aloha Airlines debacle (thank you, Marie for the info), we checked-in online immediately, did some packing, and then went for our final hike at the Tree Growth Research Area near our cottage. This time though we brought the camera along to capture the beautiful greenery. Unlike the alleged dry greenery at the beach the other day, this greenery was fresh and vibrant.

This tree was a perfect balance beam for my Mary Lou Retton impersonation

Rob climbed in one hole and...

...came out another

Before we left our cozy nest for good, we wanted to take a few more pictures. If you're headed to Maui, you should definitely consider staying at this Maui Spa Retreat in Olinda. Ahh...I miss it tremendously already.

This is the entrance

This is the view from our room upstairs...spectacular!

After driving away with tears in my eyes (well, not really, but it left a hole in my heart), we headed to Lahaina for one last lunch with Jenny and Linda at Kimo's. Again, the food was delicious, but come on, anytime you dine right above the water, how bad could it be?

Linda invited us over to her place to share some old photographs with us. I saw photos of my parents when they were just 18 and totally in love. It's was great to see photographs that I've never seen before and while I see the resemblance of my brother and I in my mom and dad today, the resemblance was so incredibly obvious when they were young and free-spirited in the 70s. And boy did we hear some stories...

Maui wanted to grace us with one last memory...a rainbow! Literally, as we were getting ready to hop in the car and drive to the airport, it started to rain and an incredible rainbow appeared.

It was a beautiful way to say good-bye to great friends and a breathtaking city.

Our airport experience was terrible. I'll just leave it at that...

The fantastic news: Jenny and Victor are coming to San Diego in April for a wedding and they are going to stop by Long Beach. We can't wait to take them to Sushi Studio and Yogurtland!

maui revealed, day 6

2008-04-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

Sunday, our last full day in Maui, was filled with church, food, friends, and even some beach action. Rob and I wanted to really bask in God's beautiful creation while we were in Maui, so we hit up Calvary Chapel Westside in Lahaina. They have a weekly service on a lawn overlooking the ocean. It was a wonderful service with great contemporary music and a meaningful message. Nothing beats listening to God's words while enjoying all He created.

Is this not the raddest Sunday School for kids? A little hut overlooking the ocean. So cool!

After church, we met up with Jenny and Victor and ate brunch at the Plantation House in Kapalua. We originally had dinner plans but we heard the views are more spectacular during the day. The food was great and the view was awesome. Definitely glad we dined during the day to really enjoy the views. We didn't have an opportunity to spend time with Victor on Friday during lunch since he was working, so it was great to catch up with him finally.

Before heading to the beach, Jenny and Victor took us to see the grounds at the newly renovated Ritz-Carlton. I guess they had to renovate because dead bodies were found buried underground. Kinda creepy. But if someone required me to stay at a luxury resort while in Maui, I guess this one would do...but actually, with the dead bodies and all, maybe not...

Finally, it was beach time. Still a little windy, but we weren't going to let that get in our way. Rob and I finally did some snorkeling too, thanks to Victor for hooking us up with some gear.

Jenny and I were kind of picture happy

And because we wanted to look like uber-tourists, we took this pic...

Linda joined us for dinner at Hula Grill, where we dipped our toes in sand while enjoying some incredibly delicious food. Again, the company was priceless.

I like to call these two Salt & Peppa

It was sad and exhausting driving back to our little cottage, knowing it was our last night in beautiful Maui...

maui revealed, day 5

2008-04-02T17:52:00.000-07:00

Saturday was our 5th day on holiday. It was an open day with no solid plans. We woke up and went for a hike near our cottage rental and then we headed to the coastal town of Kihei. Rob has a work friend whose brother owns the new pizza joint, Pizza Madness, where we ate gobs of delicious pizza. We were hoping to go snorkeling after lunch, but I guess because of the high winds, it wasn't a good day for snorkeling. After talking with Kirk, the pizza owner, about our failed plans to snorkel, he hooked us up with a sunset cruise aboard the Alii Nui. A pretty good alternative if you ask me!

We had a couple of hours to kill before we had to board the sailboat, so we went to the Grand Wailea Resort and enjoyed a couple of $17 cocktails and a beautiful beach view. While at the resort, I felt very thankful that we did not do the whole resort route this vacation. I loved that we rented an incredible peaceful cottage in the middle of nowhere, tourist-free.

Obviously when we left that morning, we didn't plan to take a cruise at sunset, otherwise I wouldn't have worn a flowy sundress. I was just thankful I brought a jacket with me that morning. It was so windy, but the sunset was absolutely incredible!

Each time the captain blew the seashell, we would see a whale. It was spectacular, but we were too slow with the camera to capture the whale action.

These pictures definitely don't do the actual sunset justice...

It was another beautiful day in paradise...

back home

2008-04-01T23:53:00.000-07:00

Boo...we're back! Our flight landed this morning at 4:45am, so I've just been sleeping and getting reacquainted with reality. Rob did some work today and I return to school tomorrow. As much as I love vacations, I really dislike the coming home part. Particularly, the laundry part.

This pre-school picture of little Corbin makes me smile so I just had to share it. How cute is that face?! Not even 5 and already a charmer.

More Maui to come...days 5-7...

maui revealed, day 4

2008-04-01T23:04:00.001-07:00

Day 4 of our vacation was perhaps my favorite day! There is nothing better than reconnecting with old friends. To make a long story short, my family (the Palmers) and the Glombs have been friends since the 70s! As a child, they were like our extended family and a perfect match to our family of 4. The Glombs were even in my parent's wedding (well, Pooky, Linda, and Johnny. Jenny wasn't around yet). Pooky and my dad surfed together, Linda and my mom did mom stuff together, Johnny and my brother also surfed together, and Jenny and I loved Madonna together. Actually, my brother and Jenny also teased me together when I was younger (they are closer in age than Jenny and I). We shared holidays and vacations together and eventually became neighbors in Encinitas. Somewhere in the late 90s, the Glombs packed up and moved to Maui and that's when we lost touch. I always thought about them and often wondered how they were and what they were up to. As our trip to Maui approached, I Googled them with no luck. When we arrived I had the bright idea to check the yellow pages and wouldn't you know it, Pooky was listed! I eagerly called him and was thrilled when he answered! They all live in Lahaina, over an hour from where we were staying, so we weren't that close to one another. We arranged to meet on Friday (day 4) for lunch and then again on Sunday for a day of beach fun. Jenny and I talked for over an hour and were so happy to reconnect. I was so excited and wanted the time to fly by, yet since were on vacation I also wanted to the time move slowly. We met up at Aloha Mixed Plate, where Jenny's husband works. The food was delicious, but the company was priceless.

Pooky and I

Me, Jenny, and Linda

After lunch Jenny had a ballet class she was signed up for. Kind of ironic: when we used to hang out all the time back in the 90s, she didn't really understand my passion for ballet. The table has completely turned and now her dream is to open her own dance studio in Lahaina. Rob and I went to see where Jenny currently takes and teaches ballet and crazily, at the last minute, I decided to join her for class. I haven't taken a ballet class in about 2 years, and before that 8 years. Wow, was I like a heavy beached whale...but I guess the cocktail, giant lunch, and dessert wasn't a proper preparation for ballet class. I still loved it and am definitely inspired to find an adult beginning ballet class to start attending locally. I am so happy that Jenny has found her passion in dance.

We relaxed a bit and then headed to Feast at Lele, a Polynesian dinner show recommended by Gerric and Jolene. We ate a 4-course meal on the beach and watched some incredible dancers perform traditional dances from Hawaii, New Zealand, Tahiti, and Somoa. We have never been to a real Hawaiian Laua, but from what we heard from the locals, Feast at Lele is the way to go. It was awesome!

The fire after dessert was my favorite part!

Star struck by the man who lit himself on fire...

Our fourth day was absolutely the best! I'm still smiling from our lunch with the Glombs!

maui revealed, day 3

2008-04-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

Day 3 of our Maui adventure consisted of lunch at Mama's Fish House and some beach action. Mama's Fish House was my favorite meal of the trip! From our fruity cocktails to the zesty shrimp appetizer to our mouth-watering main courses to the decadent dessert, the entire meal was absolutely perfect. Expensive, but delicious.

As we made our way down from Olinda, the city where our condo rental was located, we drove through the quaint town of Makawao and saw some playful horses that we had to stop and gaze at. They were so beautiful and content, with their view of sugar cane fields and the ocean. Rough life...

On our way to Mama's we literally took the road less traveled. According to our Google Maps directions, we had to spend over 3 miles on a bumpy dirt road. While on the dirt road, which by the way took us through beautiful views of sugar cane and the ocean, we saw randomly placed stop signs and the remains of Maui High School. I still giggle when I think of the few stop signs we saw on this road. We were literally the only car on this road, but thank goodness there were stop signs though just in case another car joined us on the wide dirt road.

While at Mama's we conversed with some other tourists traveling from the Chicago area. They were spending two weeks in Maui...ugh, heaven! A cool factoid that this restaurant shares on the menu the actual fisherman or fishing boat that caught the fish.

After lunch we headed to the beach to digest. The blue water was gorgeous, but the wind took a little of the Hawaiian beach dream away. We stayed for about an hour and then couldn't take it anymore. The water even felt chilly!

Obviously, we're not big on the whole tanning thing...

As we were reading and relaxing, a local surfer dude walked past us and suggested that we "water" the greenery because it's really dry. Then he proceeded to pee right in front of us...I guess when you're stoned, all inhibitions disappear.

When we arrived back to the condo, we made some dinner and watched Rendition. We both loved this movie! The night before we watched Dan in Real Life. We loved this movie too, and love Steve Carell, he's hysterical!

Aloha!

meet sam

2008-03-30T00:50:00.000-07:00

Our friends Davis and Tammy Kent welcomed their new little guy, Samuel Davis Kent IV into the world early Saturday morning at 3:43am.

Congratulations Kent family! We're so excited for you guys and we can't wait to meet him! Sam is absolutely beautiful in his first photographs!

maui revealed, day 2

2008-03-29T23:47:00.000-07:00

Day 2 was the "bike ride down a volcano day". We left early and headed to the city of Paia where Aloha Bicycle Tours is located. When we first started discussing the idea of doing this excursion, I was really excited. That is until I read what our Maui Revealed book had to say, which then totally freaked me out. The book was very honest about the safety risks, however we decided to throw caution to the wind and go for it. There are several different companies that offer this activity, but what enticed us about Aloha Bicycle Tours was the "at your own pace" concept.

We left the bike shop with about 10 others and headed for the Haleakala National Park, reaching a summit of just over 10,000-feet. We had some time to peruse the area before they shuffled us back in the van to prepare for the bike ride, leaving us on our own to cruise down about 8,000-feet. To say I was Nervous Nelly would be an understatement. The brakes on my bike squeaked the entire way down and the palms on my hands from the hand brakes are still sore. Not to mention it was freezing as we biked through the clouds. That being said, it really was an incredible journey down the mountain.

By the time we arrived back to our condo, it was the perfect time to watch the sunset from the hot tub. Before dinner, I also squeezed in an impromptu yet totally necessary massage. Funny story: when we arrived to the bike shop earlier in the morning, I bent over to get my backpack out of the back seat of our car and seriously strained my back. We hadn't even gone on the darn bike ride and I was already injured. I thought for sure it was some sort of sign to abort our plan. I didn't want to be a wimp, so I persevered through it. Despite having a hard time walking, or even sitting up straight for that matter, I'm really glad we did it. I'm even more glad we made it through alive.

At the volcano:

To the right of me is top secret NASA stuff...

Getting ready for the big ride:

While on the ride, we saw...

A fruit stand

A pretty blue house

Magnum P.I.'s house

Oprah's house (seriously!)

horses, goats, cows, oh my!

Aloha!

maui revealed, day 1

2008-03-27T11:39:00.000-07:00

I've seen about six other tourists holding this guide book so far all sticky-noted up, including ourselves (thanks Joe & Emily). I'm sure there are countless others hiding this gem in their fanny packs too.

With the exception of our flight being delayed over two hours at LAX, our holiday in Maui has been incredible. Joe and Emily recommended renting the cottage they rented back in August, and oh my gosh, it's beautiful! We arrived to the cottage close to midnight on Monday, so it was too dark to see anything. When we woke up early Tuesday morning, we woke up to this breathtaking view from our room:

The agenda for our first day in Maui was a helicopter ride covering all of the island, buying over-priced groceries, and relaxing at the cottage.

I took a walk around the property at sunset, during Rob's four-hour nap, and snapped these pics:

This is a view of our place from the pool area

Day two sneak peak: a volcano walk around at 10,000 feet, a bike ride beginning at an elevation of 8,000 feet, and a massage.

fro-yo never tasted so good...

2008-03-27T11:13:00.000-07:00

Rob and I gave up frozen yogurt for the season of Lent. Immediately following the Easter service, we drove to the nearest frozen yogurt shop, YogurtLand. I'm already craving more, but we haven't found any frozen yogurt shops in Maui yet...

We hiked down to the beautiful city of Carlsbad to spend the afternoon with Rob's parents and their ukulele friends. It was a good preview for our week ahead.

Like father, like son

Laura sang a couple songs and wowed everyone

Even Laura's bf Jeff got in on the fun...

The talented Tucker fam, minus Rob who was being modest

The poser...

Aloha!

spring has sprung

2008-03-22T16:33:00.000-07:00

Oh, how lovely it was this morning to slip on these little flip flops for enjoying the beautiful warm day...

Perhaps these cuties will go on sale before summer ends...