Ellie's Blessing Weekend

We had a delightful weekend, highlighted by Elise's baby blessing on Sunday. Paul and Ang came out for the occasion, and we had the opportunity to host people for the first time since moving to Cali.

We started with a trip to the city.

Our first time on the famous Lombard Street:

Not bad pics, considering that we were moving (at a whopping 15 mph). These are with our new camera!!! (Our old camera would get blurry even if we were standing still WITH a tripod.)

These tourist enthusiasts gave us a chuckle. They were especially entertaining to watch as they crossed over a curb.


We walked the Piers, checked out the wharf, ate fresh shrimp coctail and sourdough pizza, and soaked up a few rays next to the colorful tulips.


The boys considering the two men who escaped from Alcatraz: Did they make it? Oh, they think so! How? Always love the mystery!


We checked out the Golden Gate Park, and the views from the other side of the bridge. Did you know the bridge can withstand 120mph, and was built by Brady's current company?

No blog post would be complete without a shot using the camera's flower function.

Saturday evening, we nearly (read "I still smell the burning three days later!") burned out our clutch on the hills trying to meet up for dinner with the rest of the gang--Cory and Kristen, Kristen's parents Randy and Claire, Kristen's grandmother, and Brett and Shireen (pictured below). I want to point out that no pictures of food were taken that evening (whew).

Sunday, we joined Cory and Kristen for the baby blessing. Here's some of the boys who participated.

The photo session afterwards was precious.

Rachel has started making out at a disturbingly young age.



We topped the weekend off with Kristen's yummy Cafe Rio-style pork salad for lunch. It's always sad to look forward to these weekends, and realize they are over, but hopefully we'll see family again soon! Remember, you are all welcome to come visit!

California in February

Yesterday, we walked a few miles around a lake, through green grass and beautiful blossoms. It became pretty here seemingly overnight. Paul and Ang, you're going to love it!

VDay

It's been almost a month since our last entry, so any occasion merits a blog post at this point. I know some of you are anti-Valentines, but a few years ago, someone (Cory and Kristen?) told us to take turns doing the anniversary and Valentine's for more fun (and less cash), and we agree.

This year, I get the anniversary, so it was Brady's turn today. I got home from my run, and this is what awaited (these images are the first to emerge from our new digital camera):

I had a "marathon trail run" of Dove dark chocolate...

At the "5 mile mark," I was surprised with my favorite energy bar...


...the 15 mile mark brought me extra protection on my jogs through our dangerous neighborhoods...
...and the finish line held a great prize--a CamelPak! I've wanted one to hold my cell, snacks, and of course water while I train for the San Francisco Marathon. I'm sure that sounds whimpy, but hey, I don't have water fountains every few miles here like I did in Utah. Staying hydrated, baby.
Happy Valentines Day, all you lovebirds!

Christmas '06 Highlights

Having two families within hours of each other is very convenient and cost effective, but also makes visiting a juggling act. Thankfully, we both have parents that are understanding and happy to have us regardless of how long we can stay.

This year, we flew into Columbus on the 23rd, and headed to Michigan on the 24th right after church. We arrived in time for a yummy traditional lasagne dinner and a reenactment of the nativity. My favorite parts included Blake using his sheperd's cane as a gun, and Cory flying around like a crazy man during his angel scene.

Christmas morning came early for all of us still on California time. Here's a man recovering from jet lag, and while Blake is clearly faking his sleep, Brady is completely out.

There is really no such thing as "time off" for a mission president and his wife, but Mom and Dad worked hard to make time for us! Mom's cooking was fantastic, and Dad had great stories as always. While there, we saw Christmas lights (sort of--it was raining and the windows were quite foggy), went to P.F. Changs, toured the ritsy neighborhoods, played games, and talked, talked, talked.

We also played football, with Brady's favorite Christmas present this year. Ryan got me throwing a spiral (maybe 50% of the time--an improvement!), and we enjoyed the 50 degree weather and blue skies we had for most of the visit.

This doll was clearly Rachel's favorite Christmas present--at least for the time we were in MI.

Ryan was fun to hang out with, as always. We wish the rest of the family could have made it as well, but enjoyed talking with them on the phone and through a camera on the computer.

Mom and Dad are halfway through their mission! To celebrate, we grilled dinner and Kristen made her famous cake. We served everything in halves--half a plate with half pieces of cake...

...half cups with half percent milk...


...with half forks (although we needed more than half napkins). We definitely ate more than half the cake, though.


After their "hump day" celebration, we returned to Ohio. The next morning, we took our family pictures, opened presents, and played more football.


Brady and I have never really seen Columbus, and neither had the family. We spent the next day touring the city. Here is a statue of good-ol' Christopher himself.



A replica of the Santa Maria...


Here is the original Wendy's. It was fun to see all the newspapers and decor inside.

Perhaps the best part of touring the city was walking into OSU stadium. We were much more excited about this before their disasterous, 86-yard bowl game.

We also went bowling, where I scored a mere 181 points, with 5 strikes (4 in a row). Before getting too impressed, you should know that in my very next game, I scored 80 points.

Anna has the best poses at bowling alleys. (See last years "flexing.")

We also scored Chinese at our favorite take-out. This Chinese tradition only started a couple of years ago, but it is definitely a keeper! Yum.

My sisters are all so much older now. The first night back home, I told Brady that our visits are no longer "magical" to them. By the end of the trip, they warmed up to us again. I just adore them.

Janece sent us home with some homemade Christmas tree decorations for next year.

I also learned that every person in my family goes for the most "technically correct" Apples-to-Apples card. None of this, "pick the funny card" business for them. "Technically correct" in some cases was completely wrong when the card was picked by someone like Anna, but that's how it goes when you're 6.

One of my favorite times of the trip was playing rotating ping pong with the entire family. It got pretty competitive (imagine that), but everyone was nice to the three girls, and they held their own.

Of course, it was also great to see Kevin after 2.5 years. He was good enough to run with me 3 times--including a longer run. I thought that he would putter out after a few miles, but he's in excellent shape. It is difficult for me to keep up with his 6'4" frame.

Like father...
Like daughter.
No trip to Ohio would be complete without visiting a few friends. We went out to dinner with Christina and Ryan, and Jill and Eric, and caught up a bit. Brady had to take off for work on the 1st, but I was also able to head to Cincinnati to spend time with Jill and Eric later that week. We visited the art museum, went to lunch, and drove around looking at views. I really loved Cincinnati--it has a lot of history (and two of my favorite people). I also love their new house and interior design skills.

I always get the post-holiday blues when returning home, but it has been nice to return to work and a schedule. It was also nice that we never left CA time the entire trip. Instead, everyone we visited took on our time. Very convenient, and it is nice that we don't feel like we need a vacation from our vacation.

Bring on 2007.

The Nutcracker

Magical.

The Nutcracker exceeded my expectations, especially for having the cheapest seats available. I feel like I understand the words "grace" and "composure" on a new level. My heart was racing throughout the entire production, and I left feeling like I couldn't get enough ballet and Tchaikovsky. Beautiful.

This is the War Memorial Opera House, and if you look closely, you can see the gigantic nutcrackers between pillars.

Right outside the Opera House.

This is City Hall. It was so pretty lit up. It reminded me of a lot of the sites we want to see in Europe.

If you come to the city, you have to see the San Francisco Ballet. Definitely worth it.

More Pics from Thanksgiving

Things I Learned in Boise, Idaho

1. Kids from CA think that 60 degree weather is frigid. "Mommy, my hands are so cooooollllld," says Blake to Kristen.

2. Easton has some pretty great faces.

3. So does Ryan.

4. And Cory and Kristen.

5. Natalie can complete about 10 tasks at the same time, including pulling off a fantastic and coordinated Thanksgiving dinner with a newborn.

5. When it gets late enough, even the cup game sounds fun.


6. I can pick up a bag with my teeth to beat a bunch of guys and a pregnant woman. (I must gloat at this victory, because I'm convinced that Kristen or Natalie will claim the prize next time around...although Scott and Cory put up an impressive run.)

7. I appreciate suburbs--their fountains, sidewakes, entry arches, private park/playgrounds, the whole bit. I am a suburb gal. Running through the neighborhoods reminded me that I want to live in a suburb. (I do think I would like living in mid-city with a studio apt, but Brady thinks I'm all talk when it comes to that. Probably right.)

8. Our camera is pretty terrible. As you can see from above, it may be time to dip deep into the pockets for something a little more reliable. This is the best we've got! I don't even have a clear picture of my sister Natalie, who also made the trek up to Boise.

Good times, good food, good company.

Christmas Music

We are in the Christmas mood, and need some tunes. What are your favorite Christmas songs? Include the artist and title, and we'll be downloading it for our (currently small) collection.

Here's some of our favorites: "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" (Barenaked Ladies), "Christmastime is Here" (Charlie Brown Christmas), "O Holy Night" (Josh Groban), and "White Christmas" (Bing Crosby).