Friday I'm in love.

These ten things making my life a little more enjoyable RIGHT now:

1 - Pandora Radio. It is awesome, and it is FREE. Makes the old office gig a nicer place. You can set up your own stations, and rate songs as they come on so it can detect your preferences and play the music you like! Love it! One complaint is that they tend to re-play a lot...but I figure if it is a song I like, I don't mind hearing it often!

2 - Idaho Vandals. Love them all the time, but especially right now. They are playing football this season like they mean it, and it has been a true joy to watch a be a part of. Not to mention that I have two degrees from this fine institution that I could NOT be more proud of or more thankful to have.

3 - endless.com. Free overnight shipping, free returns for a year, more shoes than you could shake a stick at. I don't think I need to say more.

4 - Sons of Anarchy. This is a show on FX. Tuesday nights. It is SO good. There are two more episodes left in the second season. I would highly recommend this to anyone, but rent season one and start from the beginning. It is a hamlet re-do. SO good.

5 - Country music. I cannot get enough lately. I grew up in a super small town in Idaho, and kind of rebelled against the "country" way of life, and truly regret it now. It is so cool! I didn't know what I was being exposed to at the time, and was a little "too good" for it, now I think that I should have had more appreciation for the unique, rare, and special way of life that was all around me! I want Brooks and Dunn Number 1s and Then Some for Christmas. Thank you.

6 - My Toyota Prius. Somehow this car gets 50 MPG when the seat warmers are on. How does it do that? Love this car, except, I think that my specific one is a bit cursed. For some reason we can't seem to take it out without it getting all wrecked up.

7 - Diet Dr. Pepper. Um, yum.

8 - Have a Cute Day. I recently discovered this blog, and LOVE it. She is adorable. Some of her stuff, I am like..."eeeeee, maybe I am not sure about that..." but she is pretty dang cute.

9 - Simplify Supper. Yes, I would like to do that, thanks. I don't follow this day to day, but it has some fun ideas!

10 - WISP. Does this seem gimmicky? It is. But I love them. You can brush your teeth whenever, and wherever you want.

Hope everyone out there has a great weekend! It is almost Thanksgiving (I also love Thanksgiving)

A moment

"All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing."
- Edmund Burke

I want to share my thanks with all of the good men and women who did something. Thank you to all veterans past and present for your selfless commitment to your country and the people who live in it. May you live your lives with pride in your service.

Update

Good morning all. I wanted to share an update about my Mother-in-Law. Beth has a touch of the flu and an infection, and because of those two things, her surgery has been postponed for a week or more depending on how she recovers from these things. The Doctors will not operate if her body is fighting an infection, and we are grateful for that. She is feeling OK, but we are still very much looking forward to her upcoming surgery.

The comments, phone calls, prayers, donations, and love we have ALL received has been overwhelming, and so very appreciated! I thank each and every friend out there who has helped in any way. She will continue to need prayers and positive thoughts, and I will continue to provide updates on this blog.

Many thanks and good wishes to all.

Beth

Dru's mom, Beth, is having major surgery on Monday. She has lived a life full of problems with her spine, and has had several surgeries, and is now gearing up to have yet another one. We love Beth so much. She is a wonderful mother to Dru, and in inspiration in kindness. We are nervous for her surgery, and nervous for her recovery, and hopeful that when this is all over she will be a happier and healthier woman.

Because Beth will need A LOT of blood during her surgery. If you live in the San Diego area, and are able, please go to the San Diego Blood Bank and donate blood for Beth. It doesn't matter what your blood type is, if you give in her name, she will get a credit for a unit of blood in her type. You could be helping Beth AND another person in need!

I will be going today to give my blood. Here is the information for the San Diego Blood Bank, and what you need to provide to them to ensure that Beth can get her credit for your donation:

San Diego Blood Bank

When you go to give, please tell them that the donation is for Beth Levendoski, her blood bank ID is "BL05" (that is BL "zero" 5).

I know not all can give blood, but all of your prayers, thoughts, and warm wishes are very much felt and appreciated. We have a lot of very wonderful people in our lives, and feel so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family. Our love to all, and much love to Beth at this moment in her life. It is a big one.

For more information about Beth and her surgery, her sister and niece set up this website.

We love you, Beth.

Have Joy Give Away!

So I am semi-obsessed with this blog: Have Joy
This lady, whose name is Nikki (although for the first several weeks that I read this blog I called her "Joy," has such a great blog. Nikki and I are two VERY different women, however, I always enjoy the things that she has to share, and her view of the world. I also suspect that she helps a lot of people who are struggling in life and relationships. She is really smart, you can tell by her writing, and she is really fun, you can tell that too. Even though we have never met, and probably never will, I feel like she is my friend, and I can't wait to see what zany experience she is going to post about next. She also posts every day, which is super fun, and a current goal of mine. I want to try to start posting every day, even if it is something small...I am going to get there soon!

This week she is conducting a giveaway from the California Caramel Company, and I would LOVE to win it! I love reading this awesome blog, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE caramel apples!

I've been in a funk.

But I think I am coming out of it now!

It doesn't hurt that the Dodgers are in the playoffs, the Vandals are in first place in the WAC, and my fantasy football team finally decided to win a few games! I think my funk is mainly seasonally driven. I miss fall so bad, and I am currently so homesick I could CRY! But I have so very much to be thankful for, I have a job, a wonderful husband, and my health. I am starting to climb my way out of my funk, which will hopefully result in some more blogging! I have a few things to put up on here! Dru is doing so great in school. He has one more mid-term and then hopefully things will slow down a bit for him. He is still liking his new job, and continuing to do well at it!
I probably won't end up dressing up for Halloween this year...so here is a photo of me in a hot dog costume. Why didn't I purchase this??

Go Mighty Vandals

I got in really late last night after going to a wedding in Long Beach. Dru rolled in a little after me after working all day and then spending the evening with the guys. We would never be able to stay up and watch the Vandal game that we taped...or would we??? That is right, we STARTED the game at midnight and watched the WHOLE DAMN THING! Long story short - VANDALS 4-1! I cannot believe it. I was so excited I could barely get to sleep last night. Now hear me when I say, my love of and support for the Vandals has NEVER wavered. I have faithfully watched and cheered, and gotten excited over small victories (like "losing by less than 30"). I have watched every game that I could on TV (which have been few in San Diego), I have even flown to Moscow for a few games (even though I knew we weren't going to win). I have done it all, and have done it all happily because I am a Vandal. I understand that we haven't had a great football program, but I don't think anyone else can understand how happy I am this season for this team I love so much. The University of Idaho deserves a team they can be proud of, they do. As I was watching the end of the game last night (mind you this is creeping into the early hours of the morning), all of a sudden it seamed as though my TV went fuzzy, after a moment, I realized that I had tears in my eyes. Dramatic? Maybe, but I don't care. I had tears in my eyes. I want to be clear, I NEVER find it hard to be a Vandal (even when they are ranked last in the nation), but I have to say, it feels pretty darn nice to be a Vandal this season! GOOOOOOOOO VANDALS!!!!!!!

Will I ever be this cool?

No.

I want to start using this blog for a little more than "Dru and I did this," and "Dru and I did that..." I want to start using this blog to share with people some of my thoughts, and some of the things that I would bring up in a regular conversation if I were to have a regular conversation with a close friend. I also want to start sharing some other blogs that I find interesting, entertaining and inspiring.

I came across this blog that I found in a Yahoo! news headline. This young woman is cooler at thirteen than I can ever dream of becoming. Her insight on fashion coupled with her apparently very high intelligence and a splash of her adorable naivety make this blog my new addiction.

If you are not super or even mildly into fashion, you may not find this blog on your favorites list, but you HAVE to go, at least once, to check this young woman out. She is quite amazing, and a beacon of hope in a world where I am seeing less and less creativity. What an inspiration!!

One Year

Dru and I were married a year ago (our actual anniversary is tomorrow, the sixth). I cannot believe that it has already been one year! We have done so much! Moved twice, bought a car, new jobs for both of us, Dru started school...we have been super busy, but are loving every minute of married life. I love my Mr. Dru and can't wait to be married to him for like a hundred more years!

Goodbye REI

After more than five years with REI, Dru had his last day there on Friday. We are thrilled that he will now be working for a hospital here in San Diego as a CT Assistant, which will be a really great experience for him to have after he is done with school! I know that Dru has just LOVED working for such a wonderful company, and I also know that REI has been pretty lucky to have an employee like Dru. His co-workers always look to him, and his managers have always complimented his work. He is so awesome. I know that Dru is a bit sad to be leaving REI, which has given him so much, but I think that this is the best way to leave a job, with a little bit of sadness...it means he has had a great experience there. PLUS, we met at REI...which means, no REI, no Erin and Dru. For that reason, Dru and I will always love REI, and it will always be a special place for us! Join me in congratulating Dru on a job well done, and good luck with his new opportunity! Dru had a really fun going away party, and lots of the REI crew showed up to see him off, it was really fun. So many thanks to those who came! We had such a great time!Group ShotThe Party CrewThe "A Team"

HILARIOUS

So I totally ripped this off from someone else's blog. Is that tacky? I don't know, and I kind of don't care, because this list is so funny that I want as many people as possible to read it! I don't know who wrote this list...but I know I would like to hang out with them for a few hours! Believe me, I NEEDED a good laugh today!

-I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.
-More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.
-Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.
- I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?
-Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.
-That's enough, Nickelback.
-I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.
-Is it just me, or are 80% of the people in the "people you may know" feature on Facebook people that I do know, but I deliberately choose not to be friends with?
-Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.
-There is a great need for sarcasm font.
-Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.
-I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.
- How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
-I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.
-I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.
-The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.
- Was learning cursive really necessary?
- Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".
- I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.
- Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.
- My brother's Municipal League baseball team is named the Stepdads. Seeing as none of the guys on the team are actual stepdads, I inquired about the name. He explained, "Cuz we beat you, and you hate us." Classy, bro.
- Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".
- How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?
- Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm...Goonies"
-What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?
- While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.
- MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood..
- Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.
- I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.
- Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.
- I would like to officially coin the phrase 'catching the swine flu' to be used as a way to make fun of a friend for hooking up with an overweight woman. Example: "Dave caught the swine flu last night."
- I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.
- Bad decisions make good stories
- Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!
- Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year?
- If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.
- Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....
- You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.
- Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.
- There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.
- I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.
- "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.
- I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'
- I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? ), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?
- I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste..
- When I meet a new girl, I'm terrified of mentioning something she hasn't already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.
- I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.
- Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...
- As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.
- Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.
- It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.
- I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.
- Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it..
- My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the heck do I respond to that?
- It really ticks me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.
- I wonder if cops ever get ticked off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.
- I think the freezer deserves a light as well.
- I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.
- The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel fat before dinner.

Another day at the office...

A couple of weeks ago my work took us to the Padres game for a little staff appreciation. It is always nice to be appreciated, and it is always great to spend a day at the ballpark. especially Petco Park, which is so nice, and tons of fun! We had really great seats. The Padres welcomed the Atlanta Braves. The Padres lost. I love baseball, and I really love living in a city with a team, it is so great to be able to go to the park and enjoy a Major League Baseball game! It is especially great when the Dodgers are in town!

The Girls

My sister and her boyfriend have had his two daughters, Taylor and Addison, here for the summer. We didn't get to see them a whole bunch, but were able to squeeze in a few visits, a beach day, a bbq. It was a lot of fun to see them, and I think they had a lot of fun here too. Yesterday we went shopping for some new school clothes and had such a blast! Thanks for having me along ladies! Today they are going back to Utah and will be starting school next week. I am thinking of safe travels for them today, and can't wait to see them again soon!Tabetha, Taylor, Addi, and Trace

The Chef

Snowball

Dru and I have officially made our first MAJOR purchase as a married couple...and we are still married! We were able to take part in the government's "Cash for Clunkers" program, and we traded in Dru's Toyota 4Runner for $4500 toward a 2010 Toyota Prius. We just love it so much. We live so far away from San Diego now, and we were finding ourselves spending a lot more time than we wanted to at the gas pump. I mean seriously, we were filling up like every two days. With our Prius we are now only filling up once a week...so AWESOME! Her name is Snowball. Yes I name my cars, and I beleive she is a girl...so sue me. Snowball is so wonderful in every way. She has everything you could ever want in a car and more. We are so excited about our car, and can't wait to drive her for a looong time!

Little side shot there.

Inside.

Happy 36th Anniversary to my Mom and Dad

Today is my Mom and Dad's 36th Anniversary! I love watching them, and their relationship. I love the respect that they have for each other. I love how their kids are the most important things in their lives. I just love everything about both of them. I don't ever remember a time that my parents ever let my sister or me (or anyone else for that matter) divide them. They are seriously the most amazing team I have ever seen. They are a wonderful image of marriage, and what it means to work together to make a wonderful life together. I utilize the tools that I have gained from them in my own marriage everyday, and know that my own life will be so wonderful thanks to all they have given to me, and thanks to the priceless lessons I have learned from them. Love you both, Mom and Dad! Way to go!

Mr. Dru

Dru is busy busy busy studying for his finals this week! But even still, he has been able to find a little time to help me make dinner! He is cute and wonderful! Join me in wishing Dru good luck on his exams this week! Can't wait to wrap up this first semester and get it under our belts!

Happy Birthday, Beth!

I want to put up a quick post to wish my Mother-in-Law a happy birthday today! Beth has had a very successful year this year, and Dru and I are so proud of her! She won the SELF Magazine 2009 Women Doing Good award for her work with the Tierra Miguel Foundation, and has been featured on many news programs as a result, including the TODAY show. I am just so amazed by the things she does and how hard she works for a cause that she is so very devoted to. She is just wonderful. Besides being a remarkable woman in the world, she is also about the best Mother-in-Law and Mom anyone could ask for. She is so good to her son, and to me as well. No matter what we ever do, I just know that Dru and I will never be able to express to Beth how much her kindness and generosity make our lives easier, as well as inspire us to be kind and generous as well. To read about all the work Beth does, you can click here: http://www.tierramiguelfarm.org/
Happy Birthday, Beth! We sure love you!

90 Years

Remember a few blogs ago when I said that I couldn't wait to blog about my Grandma's 90th Birthday party? Well...here it is, a week later, and I am barely getting to it. I guess I could wait. Actually the reason for the delay of this post is not laziness. Every time I have started to write this post, I just haven't been able to do it. I think the reason is that there just are not words to describe how I feel about my Grandma. She is my absolute hero. I am so serious about that. She is an amazing picture of triumph over adversity, hard work, devotion to her family, devotion to her faith, devotion to her health, and just plain old all around good person-ness. When I look back on my life, many of my fondest memories involve my Grandma. She has never been a sappy kind of lady, but she has still always made me know I am loved. And possibly one of my favorite things about my Grandma, and one thing that I know I will ALWAYS remember and hold dear is the way she always makes me know that I am "special." She is something else, and 90 does not seem to have her in check quite yet! I think my Grandma had a great party last Saturday. In attendance we ALL four of her children, and MOST of her grandchildren. Possibly the star guest was my cousin Mandy's brand new little girl, London, who was born on Tuesday, and made the trip from Arizona to Idaho to be at the party on Saturday. It was a big surprise and I think that it made my Grandma's day to get to meet little London. This post will not be complete until I give a major round of praise to my Mom and Dad who planned, coordinated, and financed this party. They worked their faces off to make a special day for Grandma. I hope that someday I can be as good to them as they are to all their parents. They are just wonderful kids, and parents for that matter! Alright, enough is enough. Happy birthday Grandma! I love you!My cousin, Mandy, Grandma holding baby London, and my Aunt Jan

FOUR generations! Pretty awesome!Aunt Jan, John the Dad, Grandma, Uncle Jerry, Uncle Kevin

This is Grandma with all her kids!
This is all of Grandma's kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids who were at the party!
(Tabetha! You're not looking at ANY camera!)Grandma's cake...which I made!

Love this guy!

Our friend Matthew was visiting from Canada (without our other friend, his wonderful wife, Mona :( although we miss them so much we take what we can get and are delighted by it!). He was only here for a short time for work, but we were able to get an evening out with him, and we had so much fun! First stop = Super Sergio's for some burritos. Second stop = O'Brien's Pub for some beer and burgers. That is right, burritos AND cheeseburgers. Did I mention that our time was limited and we love Matthew?? Well, I will spare you every detail of our evening and get on with some photos, but it just made our week to get to see our friend who we miss so much! Next time we want some Mona too! We hope to get to Canada sometime in the somewhat near future so that we can see some more of those Canadians that we love so much!

What have we been up to?

Oh my lord! It has been a while since my last blog, but not because we haven't been doing anything! We are been going non-stop since we returned from Seattle. Work has been busy for me, and Dru is keeping a little too busy between work and school. He has so much on his plate...I really do not know how he does it all.
Last week we went to an Incubus concert. It was a really great show. We had dinner with some friends last night and it was so fun to see them and catch up! Now that we live so far out of the city, we just don't get to see much of our old pals :(
We have also been looking at a new car, and if all goes well, you will be seeing us driving around in a new car soon! With how much driving we do, we have been looking at fuel efficient vehicles. I cannot wait to post as soon as we get our new ride!
Other exciting news is that we will be heading to Idaho on Thursday to help my Grandma celebrate her 90th birthday. I am giddy. I love any opportunity to go home for a visit, but I am extra excited this time to be able to catch up with extended family, and to celebrate with one of the most extraordinary women I have ever known, my Grandma. Here is a photo of her and me at my wedding. I will post photos of the celebration when we return. I just love her to bits!

Seattle

We are back from Seattle, and we had a really great trip! Even though we were only there for a few days, we sure did get a lot done! Thursday night we got to have dinner with my friend Jake. Friday we went to the expo for the marathon, and then we were able to do a little sightseeing around Seattle. Saturday I ran the 1/2 marathon, and then we were able to spend some time with Dru's dad and step-mom. The 1/2 marathon was really fun. It was a great little course, really flat, and pretty easy, nice and cool with lots of shade. Sunday morning we said goodbye to Dru's parents and headed to downtown Seattle again to visit Pike Street Market. That is such an amazing place! Here are a few photos from our trip!

A BIG congratulations to my friend Karla for finishing her first half marathon!Ron, Dru, and Judy after the race.Ron, Dru, and Erin after the race.Erin at the Expo.Almost there!Erin and Jake

Here we go!

I really wanted to get a blog in before leaving for Seattle today, so here it is. This one is going to be short and sweet. I am heading to Seattle this afternoon with my AMIGA Karla. We are running the Seattle Rock and Roll 1/2 Marathon on Saturday! Hopefully running it, that is! We have both been sick the last couple of weeks, which has really put a wrench in the old training! I am sure we will do great! Can't wait to get to Seattle, run the race, see my pal Jake, and get to spend some time with Dru's parents. I will post many photos when we return, however, for today, here is a random photo of Dru and me from the last time we were in Seattle (last Thanksgiving). Dru will be joining us in the great northwest tomorrow!

Stone Offerings

Dru and I had so much fun last night! Dru picked me up from work, and we went out for dinner, and then went to a book signing/presentation for the book Stone Offerings by Mike Torrey. Mike Torrey is a photographer who specializes in architectural photography. This book portrays his journey to Machu Picchu. He was there taking photographs during the June and December solstices...and the photos are just amazing. This is a really beautiful book. If you are interested in history, photography, architecture, geography, or any other number of subjects that this book addresses, you will love this book. We were able to get it signed by the author. It may be a little difficult to read, but he wrote to us "To Dru and Erin, I hope you make it to Machu Picchu someday soon." We hope so too!

Super Proud!

Dru just finished his first semester mid-terms this week, and he did SOOO great! Dru is a really good student, and is so good at studying, even when people (mostly me) try to tempt him to have fun instead! I am really proud of him, and cannot believe that half of the fist semester is already over. At this rate this program is going to fly by! Keep up the great work Mr. Dru!

Wild Animal Park

Today I went to the Wild Animal Park with Dru's Mom, Beth and Dru's Cousin, Jack. We had tons of fun, and even rode the zip line! I love the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. We have been members of the Zoological Society for a few years, and I always enjoy going and seeing the beautiful animals. The Wild Animal Park is especially cool because the animals have TONS of space, and they re-construct their natural habitats as best they can right here in San Diego. They also focus on re-introducing endangered species into the wild. Pretty cool stuff. The zip line was pretty cool. I have to admit I was pretty scared on the tower (1000 feet above the park) before the lady pulled my trigger! There was a nice couple who did it with us who got a photo of me, and promised they would email it to me...if they do, I will post it.














These little guys are kind of hard to see...but they are three brand new baby CHEETAHS in their little incubator.

Sick Day

I have a horrible sore throat and a gross cough, and stayed home from work today to rest. I slept in, watched some daytime telly, napped, ate soup, drank fluids...all the stuff you do when you are sick. I watched "No Country For Old Men" which was WAY better the second time, and basically just relaxed all day. It looked like it was maybe going to rain (since I moved to San Diego I have learned to really appreciated ANY change in weather) but it never did...maybe tomorrow. Sick days would be super fun if you didn't have to get sick to have them.
While I was home resting Dru had a long day at school. He is working on his mid-terms and is doing GREAT! I am so proud of him!These photos I took outside the house when I thought it was going to rain...it was my big "outing" for the day.

Date Night

Since I am a newcomer to blogging, I am not yet used to always having my camera with me. I will get better, I promise. In the meantime, the photos from our date night are not the best quality since they were taken with my phone. Oh well...you will get the idea. Dru and I went for a date at an AWESOME place here in San Diego called Stone Brewery. If you live in San Diego or are coming here for a trip you should really check this place out. The atmosphere is just so cool. The building is amazing, very industrial in style, and the outdoor area is beautiful. The food is pretty good (according to me) and great (according to Dru), and there are a lot of great beers to choose from. Besides the Stone selections, they also offer a lot of other brands. YUM! Dru and I had a lot of fun, and will for sure be going back soon!

Hello

Hello everyone. We have been thinking about starting up a blog for a while now, and have finally decided it is time. For Dru's parents who live in Washington State, and Erin's parents who live in Idaho along with our other friends and family we thought it would be fun to be able to share what we are up to. This "first post" is just a test...there will be much more to come!