Alright, alright...I know it's been a while but that's mostly because I haven't been in one place for too long. Here's what's been going on in my busy life...
There's been a lot of bouncing back and forth between T.O. and SLO. Melissa, Derek and Grady stopped by on their way up to Napa. We had dinner with Jeff's aunt Linda, and his cousins Adrian and Dawn and their daughter Hanna who were also out visiting from Colorado. The next day I took them to the Avila Valley Barn, and Grady loved all the animals. Then Jeff joined us for lunch before we wished them well along their way. It was great seeing them, and hopefully one of these years we'll have a place for them to stay!
Jeff and I went house/apartment/condo hunting since we'll be moving at the end of August. Well, more like he'll be moving since I won't be in the country. Convenient, huh? We'll be moving into a 2 bedroom/2 bathroom condo in Atascadero that's only 3 years old. A major bonus: it comes with all the appliances which is very difficult to find. Are we excited about moving to Atascadero? Not exactly. But the rent is more affordable. So we'll be adjusting to a new city on the other side of the grade.
So while trying to tie things up in SLO, I also needed to get stuff ready for Africa back in T.O. I can't believe we're leaving in a little over a week! Which has meant trips to REI, Eddie Bauer, Target, and other miscellaneous stores in search of everything we need. I'm pretty sure I have what I need, but we'll find out when I pack everything up next week.
While down in T.O., I helped my friend Jocelyn for a couple days. She is still recovering from her c-section and isn't supposed to lift her older daughter Abby. So I came down to help out around nap time, and also got in some cuddle time with Ellie. Always fun hanging out with the Wharton girls.
Last weekend, Jeff and I headed up to the Bay Area to attend our friends' (and Jeff's former roommate) house-warming party. David and Jeanette have been gutting, re-wiring, re-piping, re-flooring, and pretty much every other re- you can think of on their house for almost 8 months. And now that it's finally finished, we got to help warm it up! They did some amazing work, and it was really great to see them.
Jeff's parents are arriving today for the weekend. On the schedule...well, not much besides showing them the wedding site. And perhaps a trip to farmer's market. It'll be fun having them up here no matter what we end up doing.
Hopefully I'll get in another post before we leave for Africa. Enjoy the warm sunshine of July!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Getting my baby fix...
I'd like to welcome to the world Eleanor "Ellie" Sidney Wharton. She was born on July 1st to my dear friend, and proud mama, Jocelyn and her equally proud husband Shaun. And we can't leave out big sister Abby, who isn't quite sure what to think about the whole thing.
Sorry the pictures are so dark, but she wasn't too fond of bright lights yet so I didn't use my flash. I went to visit on the night of the 1st, and let me tell you...there's nothing quite like holding a few hours-old baby. I was in heaven. I also went back on Saturday to bring some home-cooked food for everyone to eat. I ended up staying for quite a few hours, just mesmerized by Ellie. I already love her so much...I can't imagine how her parents feel. And hopefully now that school has calmed down, I'll be able to spend more time with the Wharton girls. Being an Auntie is fun! :)
Congrats again Wharton family! I'm so excited to be a part of your beautiful family...thanks for letting me spoil your little girls!
Sorry the pictures are so dark, but she wasn't too fond of bright lights yet so I didn't use my flash. I went to visit on the night of the 1st, and let me tell you...there's nothing quite like holding a few hours-old baby. I was in heaven. I also went back on Saturday to bring some home-cooked food for everyone to eat. I ended up staying for quite a few hours, just mesmerized by Ellie. I already love her so much...I can't imagine how her parents feel. And hopefully now that school has calmed down, I'll be able to spend more time with the Wharton girls. Being an Auntie is fun! :)
Congrats again Wharton family! I'm so excited to be a part of your beautiful family...thanks for letting me spoil your little girls!
Friday, July 2, 2010
Our Trip to Hawaii...
...and some other stuff too! Warning...this will contain a fair amount of pictures and could get quite lengthy so you might want to grab a snack, or at least get comfy.
So before we left for Hawaii I had mentioned about a little project we were going to be working on. We Masons don't believe in packing days ahead of time, because where's the challenge in that?! Starting on Thursday, my mom and I laid down new flooring in the dining room and living room. We ripped up the nasty old carpet (although we found remnants of even nastier stuff underneath...think rusty orange shag), took out the tack strips and baseboards, scraped off the glue, put down the plastic liner and foam pad, and then went to work on laying down the flooring. I will say that the project, although very time and energy consuming, was not too difficult. We ended up finishing around 9 pm on Friday night, leaving a little time to pack for the trip. Would I want to do it again any time soon? Not a chance. But here's a major pat on the back to my mom and I! Here are some pictures of the before, during and after...
Saturday morning we woke up much earlier than I ever care to and headed off to Hawaii. Jeff and I got to ride on the new Hawaiian Airlines airbus. We got the bulkhead row, which had so much leg room, I could straighten my legs out in front of me without touching the wall. Sweet. You also got your own screens with games and movies, and there were screens that continuously cycled through with updates on our whereabouts, the outside temperature, how much longer we had to go, etc. That was entertaining enough for us! Oh yes, and neon pink, purple, and blue lights glowing above the overhead compartments. We got to the Big Island around 1 pm and were definitely ready for a week of relaxation.
On Sunday, we took a drive around the island with multiple stops along the way. First stop...Tex's for some malasadas! They're a Big Island must! YUM!
Next stop, Akaka Falls, the biggest waterfall on the island. It was so lush and tropical in there, and we know why. We started to get rained on during our hike! We were on the wet side of the island after all...
After a stop for lunch, we headed into Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. We walked through the lava tube, looked down at some of the craters and steam vents, and stretched our legs out a little after being in the car for so long. A part of Crater Rim Drive is closed because the sulfur levels are too high, so we couldn't do the whole loop. And in order to see the lava during the day, there's an 11 mile hike roundtrip. No thanks! Still very neat to think about how active the earth is underneath us!
Our final stop on our trip around the island, was the black sand beach. Okay, there are lots of black sand beaches on the Big Island, but this is more sand-like instead of chunks. There were even 2 turtles resting there. Don't worry, no sand was stolen, even though Derek really wanted to. No ticking off Pele and the tiki gods!
On Tuesday, I babysat Grady while everyone else went sport-fishing. It was great getting to hang out with my little nephew, and he took extra long naps for his Aunt! We had lots of fun finding the geckos, reading books, taking walks, and of course I used some PT techniques to help him learn how to get on and off the couch safely by himself. I can't help myself...it's a disease!
Wednesday night was the luau. Grady wasn't too fond of the dancers and noises...they were a bit too intimidating! But the rest of us had a good time!
Thursday and Friday were spent relaxing, shopping, walking around downtown Kailua-Kona, and kayaking at Captain Cook. Saturday we had to leave the house we rented. Melissa and Derek went surfing in the morning. Then we all smooshed into the van with all our gear, had lunch and headed to the airport. Jeff and I spent an extra night up along the Kohala Coast at the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel. It was gorgeous, and had a white sand beach...my favorite! It is rated the best swimming beach in all of Hawaii. And the place we stayed was amazing. 5-star service all around...almost a little creepy when they know your name everywhere you go. Jeff took me out to Roy's for our last night. I can still taste the lava cake! And on Sunday, Jeff and I flew home. We got the airbus and bulkhead again...what luck!
And here are just some other random shots...
Thanks Mike and Becky for an amazing trip! It was so nice to get away and relax!
Since being back on the mainland, I've been at my ortho review at school. We've been meeting every day to discuss topics and practice our skills. Not that bad, just very tiring. I haven't felt this exhausted in a while. Today was the last day, and I shouldn't have to go back to class until our board review course in October. Woohoo! For this weekend, I'm planning on resting up, finally unpacking, organizing, and getting ready for a busy July. Happy 4th of July everyone!
So before we left for Hawaii I had mentioned about a little project we were going to be working on. We Masons don't believe in packing days ahead of time, because where's the challenge in that?! Starting on Thursday, my mom and I laid down new flooring in the dining room and living room. We ripped up the nasty old carpet (although we found remnants of even nastier stuff underneath...think rusty orange shag), took out the tack strips and baseboards, scraped off the glue, put down the plastic liner and foam pad, and then went to work on laying down the flooring. I will say that the project, although very time and energy consuming, was not too difficult. We ended up finishing around 9 pm on Friday night, leaving a little time to pack for the trip. Would I want to do it again any time soon? Not a chance. But here's a major pat on the back to my mom and I! Here are some pictures of the before, during and after...
Saturday morning we woke up much earlier than I ever care to and headed off to Hawaii. Jeff and I got to ride on the new Hawaiian Airlines airbus. We got the bulkhead row, which had so much leg room, I could straighten my legs out in front of me without touching the wall. Sweet. You also got your own screens with games and movies, and there were screens that continuously cycled through with updates on our whereabouts, the outside temperature, how much longer we had to go, etc. That was entertaining enough for us! Oh yes, and neon pink, purple, and blue lights glowing above the overhead compartments. We got to the Big Island around 1 pm and were definitely ready for a week of relaxation.
On Sunday, we took a drive around the island with multiple stops along the way. First stop...Tex's for some malasadas! They're a Big Island must! YUM!
Next stop, Akaka Falls, the biggest waterfall on the island. It was so lush and tropical in there, and we know why. We started to get rained on during our hike! We were on the wet side of the island after all...
After a stop for lunch, we headed into Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. We walked through the lava tube, looked down at some of the craters and steam vents, and stretched our legs out a little after being in the car for so long. A part of Crater Rim Drive is closed because the sulfur levels are too high, so we couldn't do the whole loop. And in order to see the lava during the day, there's an 11 mile hike roundtrip. No thanks! Still very neat to think about how active the earth is underneath us!
Our final stop on our trip around the island, was the black sand beach. Okay, there are lots of black sand beaches on the Big Island, but this is more sand-like instead of chunks. There were even 2 turtles resting there. Don't worry, no sand was stolen, even though Derek really wanted to. No ticking off Pele and the tiki gods!
On Tuesday, I babysat Grady while everyone else went sport-fishing. It was great getting to hang out with my little nephew, and he took extra long naps for his Aunt! We had lots of fun finding the geckos, reading books, taking walks, and of course I used some PT techniques to help him learn how to get on and off the couch safely by himself. I can't help myself...it's a disease!
Wednesday night was the luau. Grady wasn't too fond of the dancers and noises...they were a bit too intimidating! But the rest of us had a good time!
Thursday and Friday were spent relaxing, shopping, walking around downtown Kailua-Kona, and kayaking at Captain Cook. Saturday we had to leave the house we rented. Melissa and Derek went surfing in the morning. Then we all smooshed into the van with all our gear, had lunch and headed to the airport. Jeff and I spent an extra night up along the Kohala Coast at the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel. It was gorgeous, and had a white sand beach...my favorite! It is rated the best swimming beach in all of Hawaii. And the place we stayed was amazing. 5-star service all around...almost a little creepy when they know your name everywhere you go. Jeff took me out to Roy's for our last night. I can still taste the lava cake! And on Sunday, Jeff and I flew home. We got the airbus and bulkhead again...what luck!
And here are just some other random shots...
Thanks Mike and Becky for an amazing trip! It was so nice to get away and relax!
Since being back on the mainland, I've been at my ortho review at school. We've been meeting every day to discuss topics and practice our skills. Not that bad, just very tiring. I haven't felt this exhausted in a while. Today was the last day, and I shouldn't have to go back to class until our board review course in October. Woohoo! For this weekend, I'm planning on resting up, finally unpacking, organizing, and getting ready for a busy July. Happy 4th of July everyone!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)