Advent Angel Program

Today our church assembled and delivered approximately 160 Christmas baskets which included food and toys. I have volunteered for the past few years, and look forward to helping each year. I usually help pack the bags of food, this year I helped with the gifts. We were short on drivers this year so Vihaney and I delivered to 6 families. Thank God for Vihaney, she speaks spanish and most of the families are spanish speaking only. Chuck, Corey and Amber usually help, but this year it was only Vihaney and myself. Corey came down with the stomach flu Thursday nite, so he stayed home. He was disappointed -- he said he looks forward to Christmas every year because he enjoys doing this. Next year Corey! Both Chuck and Amber had to work today so they missed out also.

Delivering these food baskets really puts things in perspective. You don't appreciate how much you really have until you see those with less. It's definately a good lesson for kids to be able to see how much they have compared to others. I know it's made mine appreciate things more. May God bless all those families we delivered to and to all the people who helped make the program run smoothly.

Finally! We're Elfed!

I finally figured it out! We've been elfed!



Not too much going on today. Corey and I made rockyroad candy. I made biscochos last weekend, will try to make more this weekend. Tomorrow is my daycare Christmas pary, we'll be making peanut butter cookies and iced sugar cookies.

We Got Elfed!! NOT!!

I don't know what I'm doing wrong, but I can't seem to load my We Go Elfed! video. Everytime I try, it tells me that the upload failed. Any ideas? I have the video on the desktop of my computer, it lets me double-click to upload, but after waiting for the upload I get a failed message. Now I know why I don't post that often -- I get more frustation out of it than anything. Oh well.

A voice from the past!

Guess who I got a call from yesterday? My cousin Albert! It was a surprise to hear from him after about 35 years. For those of you who don't know him, he grew up with me from the time he was about 5 years old until he was 14 or 15. He is my mom's nephew. I didn't realize how much I missed him until his phone call yesterday. I was pretty excited. He seems to be doing well and lives in Pennsylvania. Thanks for the call Albert, you made my day!

Dead Battery!

Last night we went to help Amber with her car at the college. She called and thought the key had been deprogramed because her lights, radio and windows were working, but the car wouldn't start. I had to wait for Chuckie to get home before we could get out there. Luckily we took battery cables, it turned out she had juice in the battery, but not enough. She had been sitting in the car with her lights and radio on -- it sucked up just enough juice so the car wouldn't start.

Amber had class, so she wasn't waiting out in the dark. I'm glad it was something simple!

Tom's Farms

This weekend Corey and I went to Tom's Farms in Corona. I remember going there with my mom, she used to really like this place. We watched a magician, and walked around the pond. Then we ate some irish nachos!



After that I wanted candy so we went to the candy store and bought zots, rocky road, orange heads, a nerds rope and a coconut bar. I remember the coconut bar from when I was younger, it just didn't taste the same. All but the nerds rope was for me. I was definately on a sugar high!

Next we walked around their store and looked at the Christmas decorations. I bought a nativity scene.

LA Marathon

The L.A. Marathon has been moved to Memorial weekend. I haven't been running since the Surfside 1/2 which has been about 6-7 months. I didn't start training for the marathon this year, but now I'm thinking I have enough time to train. I know a couple of people who are running it, so I won't have to start by myself. We'll see -- maybe this time I can do it. I've come to the conclusion that running a full marathon intimidates me! My goal will be to overcome this. I'm not sure how long that will take. Anyway, I'm going to watch what's going on with L.A. They don't have much info on their website, it may change again -- who knows!

By the way, my roof is done and my owl is hanging up there to scare the birds! The wind is blowing real hard, I hope my owl doesn't blow down!

Dumb pigeons!

I haven't written in a long time. I'm going to try to write at least every couple of days.

First of all, we are getting our roof fixed. Corey noticed the paint on the inside of our house looked like the paint was melting. There are no water spots, it just looks like the paint is sagging. We had a roofer come out and he estimated $400 to get it fixed. After they started to take up the tile they realized the paper was rotted from the top of the house to the eave. There is wood rot at the top where the pigeons have nested. The roofer said because the pigeons are living up there, their poop has rotted the paper (because it runs down under the tile and ruins the paper) and at the very top where they live it's down to the wood. Well now our price to get the roof repaied is $1500. We bought an owl and the roofer is going to install it when he's done. Our roofer seems to be pretty good, if anyone here in Cali needs one let me know I'll give you his name. It's a small business, but BBB rates him AAA and he is actually on the job! He doesn't send out a crew and then you never see him again. It's taking two days to get the job done, by the end of the day I'll be drier and $1500 lighter.

Family Reunion in Tennessee

Last Thursday the 4 of us flew to Tennessee to meet Chuck and go to his family reunion. This is the first time we have met his side of the family. We only knew his sister and two of his cousins. It was a great experience. We met Chuck's uncles and aunts and about a million cousins. (Well it seemed like a million!) Here are some pics of our trip. We arrived in Tennessee around 11 pm.




This was our view from the airplane on our way to Tennessee.
Chuck took this pics pretty good job Chuck!



On Friday we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame and then over to Cousin Debbie's house we met alot of the immediate family there.



This is Chuck and his family.

On Saturday we went to the reunion and met more of his family. We ate fried chicken, green beans, fried catfish and hushpuppies. The food was delicious!

Afterwards we went to the Grand Ole Opry and saw Vince Gill and the winner of Nashville Star, Melissa Lawson. The experience was great!



Sunday sent us back to Cousin Debbie's house for lunch and more pics. We stayed there most of the day and then went back to the hotel to rest.

Monday was our day to sightsee by ourselves so we took the kids to see the Hermitage which is President Andrew Jacksons homestead and walked along the Cumberland River. These pics are of the bridge over the river and our walk along the river. It was beautiful.



After our walk we drove all over Nashville to look for a Dairy Queen. Our GPS took us to two different locations and they were both wrong. We finally ended up at McDonalds. The best thing about being lost is I was able to see the Parthenon. It was awesom, even though I only got to see if from far away. I'll go there next trip.

On Tuesday, Chuck dropped us off at the airport (10:30am), but our flight didn't leave until 2:50pm. We spent our whole day in airports and airplanes. We arrived Cali at 7:40pm. Boy is it good to be back!

More camping at the beach

Here's a couple more pictures of our camping trip. This is Corey trying to ride his skim board. It's alot harder than it looks!





Corey hasn't quite got the hang of it. WIPE OUT!



There was alot of seaweed washing up on the beach -- I think Corey thought he was the keeper of the seaweed. Or ... maybe he was just dragging it around because he knows I don't like it!



We walked along the beach and found this sea(weed) monster! Cute! Some kid made this one.



The view of the ocean. I want to camp at the beach next year!

Bonnie and family, I hope you enjoy camping at Doheny Beach. Have fun!!!

Camping at South Carlsbad Beach

Our campsite. Bonnie, Corey and I set up camp. It was just the 3 of us, but it was nice, quiet and it gave us a chance to talk. It was great!



The view from the bluff we were camping on. Our campsite wasn't on the bluff, but we were pretty close. The first day was overcast, but Sunday was beautiful!



These are the stairs you had to climb to get down to the beach. We definately got our workout this weekend!



Bonnie and Corey making their way down to the beach.

Camping

Here's a picture of great grandpa feeding Michael's new baby at Yucaipa.





We were celebrating Gavin and Aiden's Birthdays and Aunt Bonnie ended up dumping the cupcakes on Uncle Mike. It was actually pretty funny. As you can see, the cupcakes were turned every which way when we sang Happy Birthday.

My Black Eye

This is a picture of my black eye. It's almost gone, the pics when it first happened are on my phone and I can't get them on my blog.

Corey and I were working out in the front yard last week and we both had brooms in our hands. Corey was barefoot and I saw a spider going towards his foot. I yelled "watch out there's a spider"! I tried to block it with my broom and Corey jumped and swung his broom. (Ouch!) He hit me across the bridge of my nose, cut the crease of my eyelid and my contact lens ended up on my cheek. Next time I'll be more calm and get out of the way. By the way, the spider was only the size of a dime (maybe).

Catching Up

I'm going to try and catch up a bit about our lives.



Last night I called the city to tell them water was coming up out of the blacktop on the street. When they came out to look at it I asked if this could be earthquake related, and they said it was possible. (I guess I'd better get my earthquake kit ready) This is what they are doing today.

Also, yesterday Corey and I were walking along McKinley St. when a small rock flew past my feet. I thought Corey was kicking rocks, then we saw another fly by and hit a car. We stood there deciding whether or not we should call the police and then this kid's head popped up over the fence. He was probably 9 yrs old. I told him he hit a car and I was going to call the police if he didn't stop. He stopped, but I called the police anyway. I didn't want him to keep doing it and someone get in an accident. The police said they would just scare him a little bit.

Tim and Jenn's Wedding

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Tim and Jenn get married! Hooray! The wedding was beautiful! Congratulations you two on journey together for the rest of your lives!

The wedding was on the Crystal Yacht out of Newport Beach Harbor. We missed those of you that couldn't make it. It was a beautiful wedding.

My Trip to Tennessee

I know it's been a long time since I've blogged, so I'm going to go back a bit.

Friday, May 16 thru Monday, May 19

Instead of having Chuck come home like usual, we decided that I would fly to Tennessee to see him. I was pretty excited! I was a little scared to go on the airplane though. (Actually I was alot scared!!) When Chuckie dropped me off I almost cried. I couldn't even look at him to say bye. I wanted to run back to the van and go home.

What was I afraid of, you ask? I haven't flown on an airplane since Amber was 2 weeks old--23 1/2 yrs ago. I was afraid I wouldn't know what to do going through security. I was afraid I wouldn't know how to get to my plane connections, and I was afraid, of course, that something might happen on the plane. The last fear I left to God -- there isn't anything I can do about the plane once I boarded. I prayed alot on my outbound flights, but on the way back I was okay. I only prayed occassionally, not the whole time. God is great! He took care of me all the way!

Thanks to Tina for her guidance on how to pass security with flying colors! I didn't have a problem. Everything went through and they didn't have to take anything away from me. Thanks again to Tina for guiding me through my flight connections. I made it from flight to flight with no problems. (Well except for what I would consider a close call, but more of that later.)

My flights to Tennessee were great! My connection went through Dallas, Tx and then on to Nashville, Tn. I must say the view from an airplane is beautiful! You can see God in all His glory everywhere you look.


This is the Tennessee River from Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga Tn.


A view of the Cumberland River as we're walking over the bridge to downtown Nashville.


This is the road between Nashville and Chattanooga.

On Saturday we visited downtown Nashville, the Hermitage Homestead (the home of President Andrew Jackson), Ruby Falls and Lookout Mountain. Ruby Falls and Lookout Mountain are in Chattanooga which is a couple of hours away. The Hermitage Homestead was very interesting -- they said about 90% of the items in the house are the actual items used by President Jackson. Unbelievable! Here's a couple of pics, I'll post the rest online.





Sunday we spent at his cousin's house. We haven't met his side of the family, so this was a thrill for us. They were great! We'll be going back in August for a family reunion. Our whole family will attend. The kids are pretty excited.

I flew back on Monday, this time much like the expert. I wasn't afraid, and knew exactly what I was supposed to do. But, like everything, you need to be ready for the unexpected. I left out of Nashville about 20 minutes late. I only had a 1 hour layover in Chicago, but I figured I'd still be okay. By the time my plane landed there was 7 minutes until they started boading my plane. Of course my connection was on the other side of the airport. I did all but run through the airport. I tried real hard not to push people out of my way and breakout into a run:o I arrived at my checkin as they were loading the last of the passengers. Whew! At least my next stop was home. It was a great trip! Thought for the day -- I really need to step out of my comfort box more often!

Jim's 75th Birthday Party!

Bonnie and I went to Jimmy's birthday party a couple of weeks ago. The food was great! It was good to see people we used to visit when we were little. I spent alot of time with Tencha and Jimmy's kids. Here are some pictures.
Debbie and her husband
Rosie, Tencha and Jimmy
Rosie's husband and oldest daughter Andrea
Little Jimmy, his wife Ellen and their kids.
Big Jimmy, the birthday boy! Happy 75th Jim!

Today is February 4th

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFF! Hope you have a great day!

I Did It!!

I completed the Surf City 1/2 Marthon. Let me tell you it was tough in the beginning. Corey and I got there and it was raining, windy and cold. I almost went home. Corey convinced me to stay :) We were bused to the start and then I took Corey to the hotel across the street and arranged for him to stay there and have breakfast while I ran. They were extremely nice and accommodating. Huntington Beach Hilton you're the BEST! Amber and Mauricio came by to stay with Corey for awhile, but they had to leave just as I was finishing. Sorry I missed you guys, thanks for coming!

This is what I was wearing: 2 shirts, a plastic poncho, shorts and a visor. The wind and the rain made it hard sometimes, especially when it was right in my face.

I ran almost the whole way. I stopped 4 times: 1st time to GU -- 3 1/2 miles. 2nd time to GU -- 7 1/2 miles. 3rd time I fell and had to stop by the first aid tent -- I got a couple of spots on my hand with gravel embedded in it. My knee was scraped a little, but my knee brace kept it from getting worse. (I didn't realize my knee was scraped until we were back at the van.) And my last stop was about mile 10 to call Corey and let him know I probably had another 1/2 hour and I would be done.

My chip time was 2:18:58. Pace 10:26. That was a better time than Disneyland.

I got my medal -- was it worth it? YES!! I finished, I didn't quit because the weather was bad.

By the way, I think the spin classes made a big difference in my stamina. I didn't start to crash until mile 12.5. I'm going to stick with the spin classes!

To Run or Not To Run?

This Sunday is my 1/2 marathon. Unfortunately, it's supposed to rain. I'm not sure if I'm dedicated to running enough to run in the rain. I guess I'll just have to see how hard it rains. I don't like the cold. If I could be warm until we start...but for the 1-1 1/2 hours I have to wait out in the cold before my run, that doesn't sound to appealing. We'll see. This is the medal I get if I finish.

Two More Weeks!

Two weeks until my half. I figured I'd better put in some mileage, so today I did 9 1/2 miles. I haven't done a long run in quite awhile. It wasn't too bad. I feel tired, but I'm not sore. I should be able to make it okay. I'm really starting to like my spin classes, so it's hard to decide whether to run or spin. I also want to find time to put in the stair climber.

By the way, is anyone out there doing any running?

Sorry to hear about Pepsi. It's hard when you lose a pet. I know you guys really loved him.

Still Spinning

I've stuck with my spinning classes. Now I look forward to them, but I still have a sense of dread when I go to the class. It's a great way to burn off calories and it seems like my legs are getting stronger. I ran yesterday, 5 miles in the wind, I walked more than normal because the wind made me feel like I wasn't getting anywhere. I still managed to come in under my 11 minute mile. My legs are sore today though.

Two more weeks for my 1/2 marathon -- not sure if I'm going to be ready for it.

We spent most of the weekend in the hospital, papa went in Friday night because he said he has been blacking out. The tests didn't show anything, and when the doctor came to talk to him has said he didn't blackout, he just lost his balance. So, papa is home now with conditions -- he's not supposed to drive and he's supposed to use a walker. He already wasn't listening when Bonnie and Sammy got him home. Say some prayers for him so he doesn't hurt himself (or someone else).

Update

It's been awhile since I've written. Let me quickly go over some things we've done. We had Christmas Eve at my house -- I sent everyone pictures through Ofoto.com. Jeff, I don't have your email address, send it to me so I can put you on the list. Christmas was quiet with me, Chuck, Amber, Chuckie, Corey and Vihanney. I slept most of the day. Christmas was real nice this year -- I enjoy having the family around. We missed those of you that couldn't make it -- Hope you had a great Christmas. :)

Now for my running -- I haven't done much. I have a 1/2 marathon in February and I can only run about 4 miles right now. I am going to have to really start training to get my mileage up. Needless to say, I won't be doing the marathon. I don't have enought time to get in shape.

I have been to about 4 spin classes. Last night was the latest. It's still real hard, but I'm doing better. I still dread the class. I can't wait until I get past that feeling. I know it's a good workout so I'm going to keep trying.

My New Year's resolutions this year:

1. To work out in some way every day

2. To devote time morning and night to reading the Bible