going, going, gone

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

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

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

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

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!

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

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.