Cast Christmas Party

Another Cast Christmas Party found us spending more time in the Park then we had anticipated. At first we just jumped in to get the collectors ornament, which turned into just swinging by to see if they had chocolate covered caramel apples, which evolved into stopping into the Christmas shop, and passing through King Arthur's Carousel, Dumbo, and Small World.

I really can't remember the last time I rode Dumbo. Quite Fantastic. And don't worry, I totally remembered the Disney episode with John & Kate's 8. Nice. I wonder if this is the face Mark would have made if he saw what I was thinking.

Love the Carousel.

Cheers to another Family Christmas party. Of course we walked out with several unnecessary purchases that were at a very discounted cast special. I even saw one of my students there. Its funny since his mom works there, he and I always have conversations about the inner stuff most don't know. Merry Christmas from the Disney Resort. We'll take it.

"I quit yesterday"

I haven't said much about school lately. Mostly because it feels like the same thing all the time. But I have one period every day that really tests my sanity. I changed the seating arrangement thinking it would be the cure all pill; and for all other periods it is! Except fourth period; the period that holds the children from...well, in the spirit of the season, we are all God's children, but these are definitely the...never mind.

The point is Martin. Started out a quiet kid. Didn't do a lot of work, (then again, none of these kids do) so I contacted mom to try and get some outside support. Fast Forward to today. He has 17%. Yesterday he came in after lunch smelling like smoke real bad. Then, to my shock, he came in after school to see if tutoring could help raise his grade. (um...you're asking me now? 5 days before the end of the semester?) I told him no, we had an interesting conversation about how he has turned in blank assignments, and even gone as far as giving me the assignment back telling me he wasn't going to do it and to save paper. Then we had this conversation:

Martin: Its better then last year, all I did was smoke weed before every period.
Me: [stunned] Every Period?
Martin: yeah, but I quit that. Now I just smoke cigs.
Me: Why are you doing that? You know it is a stupid choice right?
Martin: Yeah, but I'm quitting.
Me: That's good. are you on the patch or the gum?
Martin: The patch. I've got two on right now.
Me: That's good.

--at this point, Martin starts to get work to me that he wants credit for which is a whole new story; and he says something to me which made me feel like I had entered a smokers only zone--
Me: MARTIN! Did you smoke before you came in today?
Martin: Yeah. Just a cig though.
Me: and did you smoke before lunch too?
Martin: Yeah.
Me: You told me you were quitting. You've had 2 in 2 hours! That's not quitting!
Martin: I quit yesterday. It was too hard. I'll quit again later.

Nice. Wisdom from a 15 year old with a 17% in world history. Take it for what its worth.

Movie Review & stuff

One word! Amazing.

We haven't really been feeling the movie theater vibe until just recently. Now we have several that sound really good. We just ventured out to see the "Extraordinary true story"--The Blind Side. I may or may not have cried a little. So many great scenes and emotions. Pretty sure I have my most favorite NFL player now. Such a great flick and one we both HIGHLY recommend.

And I must add the topping to this already delicious cake came upon our exit of the theater. We were walking behind some rather old fellows who were also commenting on the film. One turned to the other with his hand resting on his companions shoulder and stated, "Did you see that body? Wow...now that was amazing. She is a looker that is for sure".

He may be totally out of her league and probably her generation, but he is totally right. I bet she doesn't have the privilege of enjoying ice cream.

In other news:

I have been working my hours finalizing the Senior yearbook pages. I have spend so much time doing these it is crazy! If one Senior says anything negative about them I'm going to punch them in the face. And then loose my job but it'll totally be worth it.

We've set out our Christmas tree. That was a delight. Cheers to Home Depot and their simple, tree purchasing process. Although he didn't cut off enough of the bottom so we struggled with leaning tree syndrome until Mark went all manly on it with his pocket knife. If we were stranded in the jungle, we'd totally survive. The magic of white lights on a tree at night makes the cold goodness of winter my favorite time of year.

Mark has been having quite the stories from work recently. A lot of he said, she said high school stuff which makes me laugh. Sometimes I think his lifeguards are younger then my Sophomores. One situation in particular makes us more frustrated then a job should make you. Someone is suspected to have been tampering with the schedule after it is posted. Thinking that nobody would know the difference. Shift hours were switched to benefit one party over the others and who gets the bad end of the deal? US! It has been quite the adventure, and we're certain the benefits of going to the park is not worth the job itself. So--we're ready for another adventure.

A Day Amongst The Animals

There are so many stories that could help support the title of this blog. So let's just start out by saying that this was the most spontaneous road trip that I ever taken. Kaylinn just said around 4 pm last Sunday, "Let's go to the San Diego Zoo tomorrow." So, we packed our bags, booked a room and off we went. After a trip to get some Oreo Blizzards (we are sinners, we know), it seemed to be a really quick trip down to San Diego. We booked a package that included pizza and a movie, so we finally watched the newest Harry Potter. Gotta say, I thought it was pretty good, better than I thought.

The next morning we headed off to the Zoo, and I can't explain why, but I absolutely love animals. I felt like I used to when I went to Disneyland (yes, most of the Disney love has moved on...sad I know). We got to the zoo and started our adventure heading to the reptiles. We got to the area with these HUGE Galapagos tortoises. As we were watching we noticed that two of them decided to express their love for each other....I know it is beyond immature, but it was one of the funniest moments we had during the day. So much work for the poor guy. Then two kids came up and said, "Look, he is giving her a back massage!" To which the girl responded, "I betcha she asked for it." We had to do everything we could to not lose it in front of these kids.

After that we went and saw the monkeys and tigers, followed closely by the Panda Bears and Polar Bears. Then to a whole lot of others. The best part about the day, for whatever reason the animals were super active. We got to each area right at feeding time or some other time that they were all just moving around. I have never been to a zoo where the animals were actually moving. So, I guess we will show you a few pictures of what we got to see....and you know I had to include one of the turtles.

Now that is one back massage we will never forget!

Being that these bears hardly move at all during the day, we saw quite a bit of action from these guys. (A few bear shots for our buddy Jason W!)

Now this was incredible, this polar bear (which neither of us have ever seen polar bears in a zoo move before) had a lil' moment with Kaylinn where they kinda just looked at each other for a minute. It was amazing!

I had to add in a picture with this little guy. He was, I must say, cute.

Now, my favorite part of the trip was feeding time for the lions. They did an enrichment activity where the food was put in a burlap sack and they had to figure it out. The zoo-keeper said that he was sure the female would get it because she was the smart one, and the male would try for a while and give up. True to form, the female had it in about 2 minutes and 35 minutes later, the male was still trying to figure it out. Once again, I have never seen a lion move in a zoo, but this was amazing, they are absolutely majestic in every way shape and form. My only regret...I just wish the stupid fence wasn't blocking the photos! But, on the other hand, I was glad it was there so they didn't tear the flesh off of my face. Check out those teeth!

All in all, it was the most successful zoo trip either of us has ever had. Three cheers for my amazing wife and her spontaneous inclinations and for getting me out of my daily routine. Another shout out to Carl's Jr. and their Oreo shakes, absolutely amazing! An all around fantastic trip!

In Recognition

Not that we think she'll happen upon our blog on her day of birth

But we give a roudy shout out to our British/Canadian/American citizen friend.

May you live long and prosper. We thought of you while in Epcot. Too bad you and Buddy weren't free to join us. Would have loved your company!

All. Time. Favorite

"Favorite" is a pretty bold statement. Tonight, I was reminded why the classic holiday film While You Were Sleeping is my favorite film. And my all.time.favorite scene in all of movie-dom is as follows. I'm pretty sure I cry laughing every time. Tessa will attest. So funny!






And I hope all our Holiday Table conversations have someone commenting on the creamy mashed potatos...very mashed!

I'm Thankful

In the Spirit of Thanksgiving, I am Thankful for:

My job: I love the creativity and freedom I have to "do my own thing". I love that the Principal respects me and appreciates my value to the team. I love my paychecks!

Costco: Two words--Sample Ladies. Pretty sure Mark and I have been on dinner dates there a few times. Its delightful, and if you haven't done it you should cuz its pretty dang fun. Pretty sure I use to be a Costco Sample Lady when I was in high school. How did I get that job!??! Katie G. and Amanda B. both worked at Costco and I really wanted be cool like them so I applied. Except I applied to the wrong company. WDS works in Costco, but isn't costco. Whatever. I liked that job.

Modern Communication! Thank you Mr. Alexander Bell, and Mr. Thomas Edison, and Mr. Internet people, and Dr. Martin Cooper. Definitely Dr. Cooper. What was life before cell phones and free long distance. I'll tell you what it was like: USPS=no communication-o. So gentlemen; you are all super blessings in my life.

Mexicans: I couldn't love enchiladas and tacos and chips and salsa any more. So even though some of their kids in my classrooms are the bane of my existence (Noriel Lopez!) their food is dang BIEN!

Freeways: Can you imagine getting to work side streets. Well, maybe you can depending on where you live and work but I know that I COULD NOT do that! As they say, we measure distance not in miles but in how long it will take you to get there.

Pictures: Thank you world for making pictures easy and convenient and wonderful. They are the only tangible evidence I have of my dad. They hold more memories and life and love and joy and sadness and dear people in all of those photo pages. Thank you Photoshop for making pictures look more amazing then ever. And talented photographers whose skill makes us all look flawless and amazing.

So many good people: Countless individuals. I could not give a shout out to them all for fear of forgetting one. But I couldn't forget Courtney and lessons she has taught me in spirituality, faith, finding joy in life, and pure spunk. Lauren and her consistent spontaneous companionship; not one college memory was made without her. Sara and her friendship, kindness, and wisdom; moving is never fun and I dread life without our date nights. Michael Palo for making work meetings bearable, Bonnie Jacobs for saving me in MoVal and our memories with the Bells', Stephanie Inskeep for convincing me to buy a Disneyland season pass...thank you for the people.

Mark Morrell-What a man of service, love, devotion, support, kindness, and adventure. I admire his will to work, persevere, problem solve, and personal improvement. Life would not be the same without his sound effects, facial expressions, Fast Talk, food cravings, blue eyes, and love of the game. In just 7 months he has cooked countless meals, watched a myriad of shows, edited wedding photos, updated my musical needs, arranged tours of near impossible grander, introduced me to and allowed me to socialize with remarkable friends, and trained for and run a half marathon. All. for. me! I love him and am eternally thankful he said yes!

The Gospel of Jesus Christ-A true foundation to an ever changing life. One place I can rely that will always be the same, produce the same results. Constant direction and guidance. I love the temple. I love what I feel when I go there and what I learn inside. I cherish eternal marriage covenants and blessings. I reverence the blessing of repentance and mercy made available through my Savior. I am truly and humbly THANKFUL for my membership.

The list could be too long for posting, but I truly am a grateful person this season. I pray all our hearts can reflect on the good we have been given; somewhere in the muck we call life.

Walt Disney World

Delightful! Vacation time finally came and we were more then ready. And what better place then on the other side of the country in the land where "Dreams Come True". Because Mark happens to work for the parks, we get some fabulous discounts. We were there for 5 days, how delightful!Just a few pictures to highlight our trip. We must mention our ability to eat! Disneyworld has the most amazing dining plan that had us eating pretty much non-stop. Our best "sit-down" meal was at Ohanas in the Polynesian Resort. Funny thing, for me-the meat wasn't the best part but it the delicious pastas and goodness you get before the meat buffet. I'm just saying!

I'm not much for Roller Coasters but in true theme park support, I rode all the rides. Expedition Everest is the parks most recent roller coaster. I don't love the backwards part of the ride, or the forward part so much either. I guess you can just look at my face, that tells a pretty good story.

Back to the food...pretty sure my favorite part was when we discovered the ice cream station. And I hate to admit it but I totally ate one of these every night; Mark enjoyed a chocolate shake (or two) as well. Yes, we took the "we're on vacation" excuse to the next level.

The highlight of the trip would most definitely be the surprise Mark had planned for Thursday night. We headed back to the Magic Kingdom that evening and I had guesses all over the place. It wasn't until we ventured backstage with a park manager that I put the pieces together. We were headed to none other then the Cinderella Suite located in Cinderella's castle. This room was used for the year of a million dreams but now is used exclusively for high profile guests. And very few tours. Their most recent guests? Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.

James showed us little secrets from the escape window that would stop the fireworks show if it were opened and the Versailles chest taken from the fall off the Versailles Palace during the March. It was seriously beautiful. Smaller then I thought it would be. There wasn't a master bedroom, just one room with 2 queen beds and a pull out queen sofa. So my question: where did TomKat sleep? It was super neat to stand in a room that is so hard to get into. What a treat.

One of our last stops was at Epcot. The newest attraction there was the Kim Possible Secret Mission extravaganza. You get a little cell phone that tells you clues throughout different countries as you hunt for the evil henchmen. Really kinda fun, even for those of us in our late 20s.

And our last special treat was to meet the characters from the movie Up! which is one of our new favorites. Carl and Russel were uber cute. Carl even lent Mark his walker/cane thing. Super cute. So here is our standard Disney character shot.

A few other trip highlights (less photos):

• Analyzing WDW lifeguards. They failed.
• The couple on Splash Mountain. I promise he was late 30s, she was barely 20...if we're being nice.
• Mark's introduction to and conquering of Sudoku
• Christmas Lights in Hollywood Studios
• Running into old friend Ben Parkes and expecting wife.
• Peter Pan ride: so much better then California.
• Birthday guy from Jungle Cruise. "Many more to come...for both of us" said while shoving cheetos and a pickle into his mouth.
• German dinner with awkward tablemates.
• 50% holiday cast member discount on merchandise
• Food, Food, Food. Perhaps the additional lbs gained were not so good.
• Trip to Downtown Disney (about 1 hour travelling time) to purchase "must haves". Later realizing they were in the shop at the hotel. Nice wasted trip.
• $6.00 DirectTV purchase on flight home. Totally worth it.
  

What's up with them?

I have been wanting to update for a while now but really feel that we are lacking blog worthy events in life. Mostly, we're just doing the same stuff. It IS my favorite season: fall. Disney brings out all their colorful stuff and I just love it. Minnie was wearing the cutest little dress that I had never seen, it was just adorable I had to wait in line to snap a shot. And then I fired the "character escort" for such a bad photo. Seriously, I did so much better back in my day.

Halloween came and went without much of a notice in the Morrell house. I did dress up for the ward trunk-or-treat but only because I had been roped into working a booth. Most of the ward didn't notice me which was funny. Few said hi-which was funnier. I was a little embarrassed when I took on the role of managing the air-bouncy-slide thing the ward had rented. The kids had taken over and were being very rowdy so--I couldn't help but kick into teacher/crowd control mode and whip it into shape. To many comments later, I kinda regret it. But on the other hand, I LOVE that power when people listen to you. Hence why I love Disney Crowd Control. Good days.

this is me with my dear friend's kids. If she weren't around, I would literally go crazy with Mark's schedule. Abby didn't want to take a picture, but I promise she likes me.

Not much other news here. We're packing to go to Florida; a much needed and anticipated vacation. Surprising to most, this was a joint decision for vacation locations. Some would judge that I was getting Mark to go here but honestly, Mark has been very excited to go. Five lovely days without dealing with our lives here. It will be so lovely.

And for a final random note: the neighbors are crazy foreigners who we've decided speak a new language named "Panjabi". Downstairs from them are the Garden-of-Eden/Dog Owners who make the entire world smell like their Dog's waste mixed with cigs and old garbage. Mark has interesting stories about co-workers being serious druggies, overdosing, coming to work, and then basically running away from the hospital so they don't get fired. I have stories of 4th period and 6th period being the end of my teaching career. And one kid in particular who has taken an awkward liking to me; today he called me mom as he followed me all the way to my car

Recollection

I've been teaching 5 years now. FIVE YEARS. That is crazy. Especially since 5 years ago I didn't think I would be anywhere near here.

Five years ago I was...

• Living in a townhouse. Cute one too. Biggest room upstairs which was really swanky. Loved it.
• Serving as RS President. Huge calling. Especially when the girl from the ghetto apartments in our ward had her abusive boyfriend drive from who-knows-where and beat her up. Yeah, that was interesting.
• Teaching at Springville Jr. First year! Hated it. Hated my students, and had no clue what the heck I was doing. Pretty sure I went several weeks without even seeing the sun. Seriously wanted to QUIT my job every day. The last day in May I vowed I'd never teach again. Guess my word means nothing.
• Driving my brown Honda Accord. I liked that car. Even if it didn't start all the time. And my license was suspended. And Lindsey, bless her heart, would come and pick me up and drive me to school.
• On my 27th roommate. One was from Mexico. One was a dancer. One lived in the basement and tried to get me to apply to the Bachelor. We did. We didn't make it. Good thing!
• Obsessed with 5 Dollar Hot 'n' Ready. And Pipeline. This was after my Costa's obsession. That was a good obsession.
• Crushing on a short boy. And a different taller boy. Both didn't like me. Although the taller boy made it seem like he did. He didn't. The short boy was from Texas. I don't think he even knew I existed. Good thing. All boys liked my roommates. They were Beautiful.
• Went on a "married" date to get free food. (Only married people were invited to the event) The food wasn't that good. We learned about Fire Saftey. It was wierd now that I think about it. That boy is still single. He shouldn't be. He's amazing.
• Went on a lot of walks and talked about another different boy. This one I didn't like. We just talked about how weird he was. We still do.
• Driving to church even though it was 2 blocks away. But 1 of those 2 blocks was a steep hill. And it was snowing. So it was justified.
• Knew a girl 2 doors down who shared my name. Never had that before. Or since. Really liked her.
• Donating Plasma. Still. 20 bones each time. It was worth it. Helped with the entertainment costs of life.
• Watching VHS on a little TV. We were college students. It worked then.

What were YOU doing 5 years ago? Are you where you thought you'd be?

Behind--Catching up

1) We went to Medieval Times for FHE this past week with some of the neatest people on the planet. (Seriously, afterwards both of us just couldn't get over how much we like the Wallaces. How lucky we are to call them friends). It was beyond fun. Highlights include:
-- "Three Waves for Tom" followed by flag waves in unison. Totally unplanned.
-- Eating without utensils. Something about the mug made me feel like a Barbarian. Weird.
-- The horse dances and actual Jousting. How do people get that job? Do they see the show and think, yes, I'd like to do that. Our "serf" had been doing it for TWO YEARS! Wow.

2) Other dear friends the Marcum's visited town Saturday and we got to spend the day in Disneyland with them. Mark took the day off so it was Disney from sun-up to sun-down. And I must say, when Mark and I do Disney, we tend to spend more money then we originally plan. But it is so delicious! And I love it. Highlights from that trip included
-- The Hunt of the Army Man. Such a cute tradition. I must boast, I did find the placement for the newest addition.
-- Delicious Salad bowl and Mexican food.
-- Seeing Fantasmic...twice.
-- Jack Skeleton? Weirdest costume ever.
-- The "hands belt" invention
-- For the record, I totally rocked everyone on Toy Story Mania. I don't think I am even that good, but I do love it.

3) School has been funny today. Discussions include:
-- Why do you scratch your leg?
-- Do you have those clear braces right now? Or is it just a lot of plaque?
-- Are you going to Couples Therapy? (when I told them I had a thing after school that I like to look nice for, which led to a meeting with my husband, which led to couples therapy? Don't ask)
-- "I prayed to my friend to win! And I did! I'm so happy!" (we draw tickets for "free quizzes". You prayed to your friend? really?)

4) I'm insanely busy. I realized last night that I have NO TIME for anything. I don't have time to mail my sisters Only me October package that has been in pieces on my floor since mid August. I haven't talked to my distant friends in weeks. I barely see my husband. All my time is dedicated to school, tutoring, grading, sleeping, church responsibilities, meetings, hosting guests, more school, and an occasional catch up on my favorite shows: Amazing Race, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, ANTM, 18 Kids and Counting, House Hunters, Top Chef, Toddlers & Tiaras, and a few Biographies.

5) I'm beginning to really like the look of the yearbook. Finally. I was uber excited about it in the start, and then I felt like it just wasn't jiving. Recently, I've added some color effects and wa-la: it is looking better. This is very likely my last year doing yearbook becuase I don't have an English Crediental and they can only excuse me so long. That and I may-or-may-not be an employee here at all if we have a move in our future.

I'm pretty sure I ask Mark several times a week when are we going to retire and just enjoy life! I think we've put in our time. No? All in favor of early retirement and a life of luxery and fun say I. (or say nothing--as most of you do since our comments are minimal. Another thought, how do people get 14-24 comments or more per post. Really? I always knew I wasn't the popular girl! This just confirms it :) hahahaha)

Thank You

I'd like to thank the man who was swearing like a sailor at the park today.

While waiting for parent/teacher conferences to start, I usually head over to the local city park and lay out my blanket for some reading and nap time. It is usually quite relaxing. Today, there was a man who was extremely opinionated about the affairs of the country and our president. Kudos to him and having an opinion. I just don't think everyone wanted to hear him. And I'm pretty sure he was talking to himself. The problem wasn't that he had a loud opinion, it was that his language was RIDICULOUS! Seriously, Every. Other. Word! He just sounded stupid. We're talking the BIG four swear words.

As I was trying to enjoy my afternoon nap under the shade of a tree, I finally got tired of listening to his jargon, so sat up to leave. Literally TWO SECONDS after I sat up, a bird pooped on the very pillow which I rested my head. I kid you not! I was SAVED by the swearing.

So thank you Swearing Sailor man and your loud opinion that disrupted my nap under the tree in the beautiful autumn weather. I can now meet all my parents without bird poop!

Our Morning Jog

WE DID IT!!! Life goal #1--check. Done and Done.

Saturday night we decided to stay in Long Beach to save us a few more hours in sleep knowing we had to be up bright and early to get to the starting line. Funny story about our hotel, it wasn't exactly the Quality we were paying for and the first room we were given was a smokers room that was...really bad. So the only upgrade they had was a 2 bedroom suite, complete with kitchenette. Was it really that much better? No, it was just more ghetto in one space. Nice!




Race day came bright and early. We were out the door by 5:30 for a start time of 7:00. Parking wasn't as bad as we thought but the line to the portable potties was terrible! We soon found ourselves in the sea of people stepping onto the starting line. Wave 3--we were off.



Mile after mile, we didn't stop. We both felt that miles 8-12 were the longest. Although the beach was pretty, the path was thin and it just kept going! By mile 10 they had "power balls"--aka donut holes which was a bit funny. When we hit mile 11 both Mark and I picked up our pace just a bit to finish off the race for my dad who would have joined us if he were here. Our shirts defiantly got some comments too. Many in fact. We had them made just for the event with "Team Morrell" on the front and 2 runners. Mark's back said "if you can read this I'm either still running or Dead!!! Please respond accordingly". Mine said "shoes...$, Registration Fee...$$, Completing a Life Goal...Priceless."

We crossed the finish line together; even holding hands! (ah for cute). Malissa met up with us there! Such a great cheer team to congratulate us on our accomplishment.

Pretty sure the rest of the day and all day Monday we were so sore, simply standing up and sitting down was way more work then it was worth. If it wasn't within our reach, we chose to do without.

Team Morrell
13.1 Miles -- 2:22:33

Once Upon a Time...

I use to have time. Time to eat lunch at my desk without feeling guilty that I wasn't catching up on grading or work. Time to sit and watch my TV shows. Time to call my dearest friends and see what is up in their lives. Time to read a book, or sit by the pool, or take a run, or clean my house, or do my laundry.

Once upon a time, I use to sleep plenty at night. And would got to bed after 9; not falling asleep on the couch at 7:30. I use to make it through an entire day at work without feeling the need to sit while lecturing, or sleep between bells.

Once upon a time, life was simpler. I went to work, came home, relaxed, and had a life. I didn't tutor until 4 everyday. I didn't commit 60-80 minutes running. I didn't have mutual nights, or house guests, or basketball games.

So I'm sorry to those that feel I have neglected them. I haven't really. Someday I'll call you, or hang out with you, or see you. Someday. Just not today.

Family

When it comes to in-laws, I'm pretty sure I got the jackpot! How many people can say their sister-in-law calls just to check up on you, and you actually enjoy talking to her. And your brother-in-law thinks to bring you a computer game that is funner then it sounds like its going to be. Mark seems to think they talk to me more then they do to him! I don't think thats true, but I must say, the Morrell's are a fabulous family to be married into.

Sunday was Malissa's birthday. As a surprise, Tom flew in and Mike came down after I practically begged him to. We had dinner at Tortilla Joe's over in downtown Disney and then the next day headed into LA to have an afternoon and dinner at the home of some of Mal's dear friends. Can I just say---I was next door to Casey Affleck, and I'm pretty sure Ben and Jen stopped by since it was Sunday, and I'm pretty sure I was sort of a stalker and peered into their open garage. The home we stayed at was beautiful and historically charming. Built in the 1920's with all the Hollywood history to make my history heart flutter. Wally gave us a marvelous tour with the detailed stories of the old house and the updates and the old owners. It was as magical as an ice cream parlor. (and if you know me, thats a really big deal!) We were fed non stop with delightful cheese and bread and chips and pigs in a blanket and of course a full meal to boot. Such a glamorous birthday hoo-ra-ra! I need friends in Hollywood.

The boys stayed with us. They all bonded with Little Big Planet and Plants vs Zombies.

Of course, spending time with my love is the best spent time of my week. I couldn't be luckier to be married to a man who sacrifices so much for me. Lets be honest, what other husbands would run 13.1 miles with their wife just to be supportive of a life goal. We're running on Sunday; keep your thoughts on us! :) And it may be lame but we totally got personalized race shirts. Again, supportive husband! Love him!