I gotta get outta this town!

I've decided that one of the funnest parts of taking a vacation is the actual planning. I've been looking at places to stay, sights to see, restaurants to hit, people to visit, and deals, deals, deals...it's going to eat me alive before I can even go! This will be the LONGEST vacation I've taken (possibly comparable to my honeymoon).

I'm SO excited to know I'll get to spend some time with my hubby! Especially with his schedule being as nuts as it's been. A nice, long road trip sounds like just the solution.

Sorry, I won't publish the details of when/where until after the trip (so you've got a while) because I'm not one of those crazies who want the entire internet to know when they'll be gone so they can break into my house. :)

Feliz Navidad & Cumpleanos

Since I wasn't doing particularly well at posting last year, I decided I should probably update with a summary of our Christmas fun...and, of course, Rob's birthday. Guess how the fun started! The first gift of Christmas...a COLD!

Unfortunately, I shared the misery and gave it to Rob for New Year's, as well. :(

His & Hers laptops...LOVE awesome deals!

Speaking of deals, here's our Black Friday specials...a new TV (which won't be up until probably sometime in February, if I'm lucky) and a Blu Ray player. The best part was that I had to work (which really sucked) so Rob had to camp out all morning by himself (which sucked for him, but I'm thrilled I didn't have to go freeze!).

Here's the highlight of my season - my new Kitchenaid food processor! I was SO excited. Now I'm just playing around with it...have a food processor cookbook on the way to make it even more fun. :)

The highlight of Buddy's Christmas was his gift from Uncle Bruce & Aunt Pam...no we didn't let him eat it all at once. He was very spoiled this year. Another favorite was a stocking full of goodies - including a new Kong - from Aunt Toni's family.

We took a trip the day after Christmas to visit my parents in Idaho. Then we headed to Logan...we really enjoy staying there. However, as you can see below, it was a chilly visit. But not too chilly for a visit to the Pepperidge Farm Outlet and Gossner's Cheese Factory. Yum!

Other than being sick, it was a pretty fun holiday. :)

Anyone Else Eager for SpRiNg???

New Job...Oops!

In catching you up on all I missed last year, I forgot on CrUcIaL piece of information! Rob got a new job a few months ago! He still works in the sleep lab one night each week, but his other 2 shifts are as a Respiratory Therapist. This Spring he'll get his Bachelor's Degree and pass his Respiratory boards to become registered. I'm SO pRoUd of him!

Then it's off to the Masters Degree. What and where? To be determined...

BaCk To ScHoOl...

Well, it's that time...again. Rob started back to school last week. Here's an example of one week:

Mon - school all day, clinicals all night

Tues - sleep all day, work all night

Wed - teach a class in the morning, sleep (ha!), clinicals all night
Thurs - sleep, then get to see his wife for the first time all week (other than possibly in passing)

Friday - school all day, evening at home :)

Saturday - work all day

Sunday - work all day

YUCK!

Granted, this isn't what every week looks like - sometimes he's working on different nights, or clinicals are on different nights, etc. Basically, it comes down to I feel like I'm single for the next few months - other than the still need to clean up after, cook for, and do laundry for my invisible hubby. SO SAD!

Oh well, it'll pay off someday, right? .......Right?

I Know My Savior Lives

2010 brings with it a new theme for Primary - I Know My Savior Lives. This week in Sharing Time, the children were taught that they are children of God. What a simple and beautiful message! The leader walked around with a mirror and each child said "I am a child of God" as they looked in the mirror. She told them to say that everytime they looked in a mirror this week.

When was the last time you reminded yourself that you are Heavenly Father's son/daughter? That he loves you? When you're having a rough time, do you turn to him? And do you treat those around you as though they're also children of God?

What a great way to start a new year - with a sweet and simple truth!

Surprise!

One of the best surprises I've ever had came on November 19th. I was having one of the worst weeks ever, but knew it was at least a short work week because Rob had made me take off that Friday - not telling me why. I came home that Thursday night on my cell phone with my friend/coworker, Mari-beth. When I walked in the door, my sister Toni jumped out from my hallway and yelled, "Surprise!" From what I'm told, screaming into your cell phone (including some minor profanity) is not a good idea for the heart of whoever you're talking to. Mari-beth was thinking I'd been attacked or something until I told her my sister was here - which I'm pretty sure confused her.Toni's husband had asked her what she wanted for her birthday and her reply was to go to Utah...leaving her 2 boys at home with Dad. He agreed and the conspiracy began...she and Rob were little sneaks! Poor Rob had to clean the house and get it ready for company all by himself. What a GREAT Hubby!

She got online and purchased tickets to:

But really to:

So, what a WONDERFUL surprise - my BFF sister & Jacob...I mean Twilight. We decided that we're torn in the books between Edward & Jacob...and maybe even leaning towards Edward, but that it's NOT possible to NOT be Team Jacob in the movies.

With a couple of stops at some of her favorite places to hit while in Utah:

Saturday was her HaPpY BiRtHdAy!
She and I rented a car, packed a cake and headed for Idaho. My parents moved up there this year and bought this:


They call it the "Ugly Duckling." It's definitely a project, buy my Dad is AmAzInG!!! I don't think they know how to buy anything that doesn't need massive work. Their last house was unlivable for almost a year - literally, they rented a house while they were working on the other. He stripped it down to basically the studs. By the time they moved, it was probably the nicest house in Malad. Give him time to work his magic and this one will be fabulous, too!

We had to hit our most favoritest place :

This is a tradition that dates back over a decade - actually when Toni was pregnant with her first son. She craved concretes and I benefited. It helped that she lived right down the street from Nielson's. Now she lives in California and has to catch them about once a year when she makes it this direction. Her favorite concrete is the Caramel Cashew, while mine is Bumbleberry, YUMMY!!! We did behave and split one, though. ;0)

She flew back home on Sunday, and it was super hard to see her go. I LOVE MY SISTER!

CaLiFoRnIa in OcToBeR

I flew out on October 17th to visit my sister and her family. I was SO excited. Flew into San Diego - WoW! Love it there!!! The temp was wonderful and the view spectacular.
This is where we stopped for lunch after I landed. There were birds flying around inside the restaurant. We walked along the harbor a bit, too (see the picture above).

Birds of paradise are one of my sister's favorite flowers.

Meet Spaz. No she's not being choked, Toni is holding her still cause all my pictures were turning out blurry...quick racoons! Spaz is adventurous and likes to get out and explore.

Meet Fatty...need I say more? She's over 40 pounds. She's much more shy than her sister.

When we took the boys to school in the morning, I got to see what my nephews call "zombie fog". The shortest route to school is through an old naval yard, so it made it even creepier.

Yes, I went to Disneyland for the first time. My favorite was the Haunted Mansion. They had spiced it up for Halloween - themed around the Nightmare Before Christmas. Amazing!

My sister and I shared a teacup because she thought the boys would be to wild. She couldn't walk straight after the ride was over - I outspun the boys. We had to have the teacup that was pink with hearts - Toni's obsession!

Here are the boys...James, Jonathan and Thomas.

We went on several rides, but this was one I wouldn't recommend. The bobsled ride was so rough! My butt was killing me!

After Disneyland, we feasted at a little Italian restaurant - Restorante Genovese. If you're ever in the neighborhood, it's FaBuLoUs! ...and not far from Disneyland.

The next day (21st) was time to go home. Before heading to the airport, we stopped in Old San Diego for lunch at the Cafe Coyote - the best homemade Mexican food! The lady in the yellow shirt w/ the apron was making homemade tortillas. People could walk up to her from the street to buy them. We dined in and, again, it was delicious! Highly recommend this joint!

Here we are at the Cafe. I LOVE my sister!