California Adventure

What a weekend. We again had a busy, yet exciting, weekend. This time we headed down to California to have a little fun!

We left on Thursday evening with our friends Brian and Cindy. It was suppose to be 5 of us, but at the last minute our friend Daniel decided he was too overwhelmed with work and school and could not make it. Too bad for him, he missed an awesome trip!

First thing on our agenda was a trip to Disneyland and California Adventure bright and early on Friday morning. We were able to get in right when the park opened at 8am and we stayed ALL DAY! We were able to see and do everything and that was great. We closed the park down leaving at 11:11pm. That was a full day for sure. The crowds were light and the weather was great. It would have been a perfect day it we would not have gotten soaked on Splash Mountain and taken all day to dry off.... oh well, we know better for new time. My favorite part was the fireworks of course! I love fireworks and Disney sure knows how to put on a show.

Saturday we decided we were going to head to Downtown LA for a bit and see Chinatown and also eat at my favorite restaurant ever... Chinese Friends. It was fabulous!!! After a little bit of sightseeing (and a lot of traffic - gotta love LA) we came back and got ready for the main event of the evening. Knott's Scary Farm. This was quite the event. It was so much fun and we all enjoyed ourselves for sure. Brian and Cindy didn't know what to expect but said they are ready to go back next year for sure. There were a lot of people there but it wasn't too bad. We made it out alive, even though we did pass a couple chainsaws once or twice during the night!!!

Sunday we had a great breakfast from our hostess with the mostess and then we drove up to Santa Monica just to take a look around there before we headed home.

It was a great vacation. We are all very tired and sore from all of the walking that we did and you should hear Dan's voice (or lack thereof!) But it was fun that is for sure.

SPT - My 100 things #7

# 7 - My best friend lives in the UK

My best friend's name is Lina and we met in 1993 when I was only 12! At the time she lived in Sweden and had come over to watch her older sister graduate from high school here in America. Her sister had just spent a year living with my family as a foreign exchange student. That was the start of a very long friendship and a lot of crazy mischief....

After the two weeks she spent here with her family we wrote letters back and forth and stayed in touch. Two summers later she came and spent the summer with me and we had a great time. Then and there we decided that she had to come and spend a year with us like her older sister did, living and going to school here. After lots of hard work, paperwork and talking our parents into it, our plan finally worked. During the school year of 1996-1997 she came. It was a great year. We did everything together. We had separate rooms but didn't really need them because it was like a sleepover every night. It was the hardest thing to have to say goodbye and watch her get on that plane to go back home.

The next year I graduated and for my graduation gift I was able to go to Sweden to spend some time with her. It was a great time in that I was able to see her and also see her older sister once again and her parents.

We then didn't see each other for quite a long time and have had to keep up our friendship through emails (thank goodness for the computer). But then we got a call from her sister saying that she was getting married. What an opportunity! My whole family decided it was a great excuse and we all made the trip. This was in 2004, and this time I was able to take my husband. Then in the summer of 2007 she came to visit with her new boyfriend who she had met through work who lives in the UK and we had a great visit. She proceeded to tell me that she was moving out of Sweden and going to live in the UK. How weird? She was always my friend who lived in Sweden. Still a crazy thing for me to get use to.

Well a few weeks ago she called and told me they were getting married next September! So now I will be saving money and next year my whole family once again will be making a trip to visit but this time we are off to the UK.

It is so great to have such a wonderful friend and one that no matter how much time has passed we can always pick up right where we left off. It also doesn't matter the distant we understand each other and are there for each other. She is truly like a sister to me. We have spent most of our relationship apart and that is just how it is. We cherish the time we are able to spend with one another and I guess that makes us more appreciate of one another in a way. Can't wait to see her in 9/09!!!!

Conference Weekend

Another six months has come and gone and we were blessed with the opportunity to hear from our Prophet and his apostles. Dan and I have the calling of being the Stake Technology Specialists (a fancy name for being in charge of taping and recording anything that comes across from Salt Lake), so that means we always get to see all sessions of conference.

These sessions were no different! They left us feeling uplifted and inspired. I usually leave feeling that there was one or two talks that were especially for me and this time the one that sticks in my mind for sure was the talk by the Prophet himself on making sure that we life for today and do all that we can with it. We need to remember the past and prepare for the future, but we need to do all that we can with today. We need to reach out to those who are in need and we need to tell those that we love we are thinking of them and leave nothing unsaid. For some reason this is the talk to spoke the strongest to me. I hope to be able to learn from this and become a better person, a good example and take advantage of the time that I have and do the most important things with it.

The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful. The Steelers won yet again!! Now we have to get ready for a short work week and our trip to California that we have planned for the weekend, YEAH!

Lee Denim Day 2008

Today is Lee Denim Day for 2008... It is always the first Friday in October (so you can remember for next year!)

This is such a great cause and such an easy event and easy fundraiser for a huge program. Click here and you can learn more about what is going on today.

You can support the cause by making a $5 donation (or more of course), showing your supporting by sporting some pink with your jeans today, buying a pair of Lee jeans online and they will do the donating for you!

Whatever you do just remember all of those who have lost their lives because of breast cancer, those who have survived breast cancer (yeah!) and those who we hope will never have to deal with breast cancer due to all of the research that is being done because of the donations and great programs like this....

8 Things Tag

I was tagged by Janeal over at { Enjoying Life } so I figured I would go ahead and play along... Who doesn't love a good tag???

8 THINGS I AM PASSIONATE ABOUT:

* Adoption
* The Gospel
* My husband (my marriage)
* Having fun!
* Scrapbooking
* Blogging (okay, not passionate but really enjoy)
* Helping others
* Organizing (to a fault sometimes)
* My family

8 WORDS OR PHRASES I SAY WAAAY TOO OFTEN:

* Fan-ta-bu-lous
* Ridunculous
* "No stinkin' way"
* "Check you later!"
* "Oh Snap"
* "Daniel" (when I am whining to my husband!!)
* "For real?"
* "anyways..."

8 THINGS I WANT TO DO BEFORE I DIE:

* Be a mom (a really good one)
* Learn how to sew
* Take a photo class
* See a taping of Oprah
* Be a better friend
* Attend an Olympic games
* See my family sealed
* See a Steelers Game in Pittsburgh


8 THINGS I HAVE LEARNED FROM MY PAST:

* People can change
* Learn to forgive, it is worth it
* Patience is something I didn't always have
* Be grateful for what you have and recognize it at all times
* Laugh at yourself - not others!
* Everything happens for a reason
* You have to have Faith!
* Some of the things you learn are taught by those you are teaching.

8 PLACES I WOULD LOVE TO SEE:

* The UK (should be checked off next September!)
* The Eiffel Tower
* New York
* The Sacred Grove
* Australia
* Italy
* Whistler, Canada
* Hawaii

8 THINGS I CURRENTLY NEED OR WANT:

* A baby to call our own
* A new camera
* More time in the day
* To sell our timeshare
* A vacation to anywhere!!!
* A back massage
* More discipline in my life
* A brown Coach purse

8 MORE PEOPLE I TAG!

* Amy W.
* Kirsten K.
* Kim H.
* Rebecca J.
* Kristen
* Holly U.
* Linda I.
* Joanne F.

Date Night

Last night we had a date night and went to see FOREVER STRONG, the new movie out that is slightly LDS related. It is about the Highland rugby team. It was a good movie with a good moral meaning behind it. Not totally LDS but worth seeing still the same.

It was fun to go and also fun to actually be able to see this kind of movie. Usually Utah and Mesa are the places that get these kinds of movies so it was great that Nevada actually got this movie and not only did Nevada get this movie but it was actually at my dad's theater so we got to see if for free!!! What a great date night.

SF Zoo

One of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the SF Zoo. Ellie definitely enjoyed the trip. Besides a little issue with some cotton candy, we had a great day. None of us had ever been to the SF Zoo before and I can't honestly remember the last time I had been to any zoo. (Man we really need to have a baby so we can go do these fun things again!) We were a little nervous to visit the tigers but we made it out okay.

The Beach

On Friday we were able to go to the beach for the afternoon. It was really fun. The weather was a bit chilly for my taste so I did not get into the water like some people. The scenery was beautiful though and it was a nice way to spend the afternoon.

Baby Blessing

We went to San Francisco this past weekend for the blessing of our new nephew Benjamin. It was such a great trip and such a great opportunity for us. We are so glad to be part of such a great family and so happy that we were able to be there to support Mike and Maile and also to be there to see Benjamin (and Ellie too!)

Here are some pictures of that precious baby. He is so good. You hardly heard a peep out of him the entire weekend. Seriously!

Autumn Test

Since we are talking fall right now I took this quiz just to see what it had to say. It was pretty accurate I guess. Try it for yourself and see what you think! Your Autumn Test Results

You are a dynamic, vibrant person. You aren't afraid to pursue your passions. When you are happiest, you are calm. You appreciate tradition and family. You enjoy feeling cozy. You embrace change. You love change. You see change as a rebirth. You find novelty to be the most comforting thing in the world. You love anything that's new or unusual. Your ideal day is spent in contemplation. You enjoy a quiet day where you can take time to think and day dream. You tend to live in the moment. You enjoy whatever is going on, and you don't obsess over the past or future.

The Autumn Test

Changing Seasons

Today is the first day of FALL! You wouldn't really know it around here but I can always pretend. I would love to live in a place where there are actually seasons... Oh to dream! But we get HOT and then all of a sudden it is freezing... That is what usually happens around here. So the few weeks (and I mean few) that we actually have nice weather are wonderful. It is still in the high, high 90s right now and that doesn't seem like Fall to me. But if they tell me it is Fall I am going to believe them and going to start acting like it is. That means the decorations are going to start showing up around my house and soup will start being cooked and the before you know it Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas will soon be here!

WEEKEND WRAP-UP

We really had a nice weekend. Got some rest, got a few things done and were able to just relax and get ready for the busy week ahead of us and the trip we are trying to prepare for....

* Had a great talk with Lina from Sweden who lives in the UK!
* Went to a Celebrate Life party for our friends, who lost a loved one
* Had dinner with friends
* Washed the cars (okay Dan did)
* Did some organizing and cleaning in the house
* Made our Halloween cards
* Watched the Steelers lose their first game (we are still in mourning)
* Watched our Primary Program at church
* Did some work that I hadn't finished on Friday (oops!)

We are now ready for the week and hopefully ready to head out of town on Thursday night! YEAH!!!