Baby Z - the beginning of the story

Well, after a number of weeks of letting the news sink in and digesting it all, we are ready to share the news! We are expecting Baby Z in July (July 25th to be exact)!

Highlights, thus far:
- After a week in DC, I came home and told Scott that our family will be growing. I'm sure he believed me, but we went out and got a pregnancy test anyway (my third), just so he can see the proof with his own eyes.

- Phone call to Mom and Dad Z: After calling them Bema and Papa the entire call (and they didn't catch on), we told them that August would be good time for them to come visit. We will need a baby sitter by then. Bema, voice rising: "A baby sitter? For a baby? For a baby!"

- We gave Mom and Dad Y bibs that say "I love Grandma" and "I love Grandpa". They unwrapped them, said "That's nice" with confused looks on their faces and started to put them back in the bag. Since they didn't catch on immediately, we had to go on and say "Guess what!?"

- First ultrasound, Scott comes with me to the appt. The doctor said that the ultrasound is next, and I start pulling up my shirt to expose my belly. Little did I know, that's not how the first ultrasound is done. Hey, this isn't how they do it on TV!

- We told the family on our trip to DC for Christmas. I gave my mom a framed picture of the ultrasound with a note that said "I can't wait to meet you in July". There were lots of tears and hugs, and it was a great Christmas.

- Erica telling us Leo's birth story (before we told anyone we were preggers), and she said anyone having a baby in July needs to watch out, the hospital is full of residents and interns waiting to stick you and poke you and get some practice in. As soon as we told everyone, she says "The residents aren't really that bad!". I'm scared.

A season of friends and family for Thanksgiving

November completely flew by. Not that we were exceptionally busy, but it just seemed to have gone by in a whirl.

Tricia came to visit around the middle of the month. It was great to see her, to show her where we live, where we hang out (not often enough), and the things we do out here (nothing too exciting). I always think it's strange, with some friends you could go years without seeing them or spending quality time with them, yet the friendship always feels the same. Different things are going on in our lives, our priorities are different, but hopefully our friendship will never be different. We ended up at our favorite vineyard out here, South Coast, and finally joined the wine club. After 3 times of nearly filling out the paperwork and dropping it off, we finally gave into the temptation.

Immediately after Tricia's visit, I had a work trip in DC. I got off the plane, got into my rental car, and got a voice mail from Tricia saying that it was supposed to snow that night. Coming from a weekend of frolicking in the vineyard in shorts and flip flops, to cold weather was not what I had in mind. But the work trip was ok (some of it felt like a big waste of time, but overall the change of pace was good), and I made it back to the warmth of CA safely.

I should say that I luckily made it home! Everyone knows I am the queen of last minute when it comes to airports, and I did not leave enough time to catch my flight. I came up to the rental car return facility with 35 minutes until take off, and missed the exit ramp for National. So I proceeded to circle all the way around the facility one more time, return the car and run to the shuttle bus. I then sat in the shuttle bus for about 10 minutes while the driver had a smoke (the nerve) and made it into the SouthWest terminal at 20 minutes to go. I had a bag that I normally check - loaded with 3+ 0z. of lotion, shampoo, conditioner, makeup, etc. It was a TSA nightmare. But I decided that the cost to replace all of the items TSA was going to make me throw out was worth not having to spend one more night in this 30 degree weather (of course, mine was the last flight of the night to SAN). I put the bag on the belt, and proceed to set off the metal detector. My belt was not friendly, nor was the 3M employee badge I still had hanging from my belt loop. I take them off, go through the detector, and shockingly grab my bags that TSA did not choose to open or enforce the "no liquids or gels" rule. As I am putting my shoes back on, I hear "This is the last call for Colette Zelesnikar at gate B10". I grab everything and run like a mad woman to the gate. I got there as soon as he was shutting the door, and he let me in. I sat down (in a middle seat, of course) sweating, and as I cooled off I realized my pants are kind of loose. Oh no - I forgot my belt and my 3M badge on the security belt. The next day my faith in TSA was restored. I called lost and found at BWI, and when I said I left my belt, the lady on the phone proceeded to describe my own belt to me and happily said she would Fed Ex it to me (with my Fed Ex account number, of course). So I got to keep my lotions and shampoo, and got my stuff back in a matter of 3 days. All in all - a successful trip.

We wrapped up the last 2 weeks of November here at home (home sweet home). Scott's high school friend came to visit for a weekend. Scott and I ran the Turkey Trot again this year, which I definitly tried to weasel my way out of running a number of times. We had my parents over for Thanksgiving. Then Eric finished out November with a weekend visit. We have had a lot friends and company - all things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving season. Next stop: Christmas in DC.

An election for the history books

Yesterday's elections were historic and I am so glad to have been a part of it. All day, I spoke to coworkers and clients on the phone, and everyone had a buzz of excitement in their voice. I have clients in Florida, and they all made sure to go out and vote, knowing that their state would play a big part in the elections. All day, everyone talked about the importance of voting (no matter who they were backing) and I am amazed how polite everyone was to each other (even opposing Prop 8 sign holders on the same street corner). I also think this has forever changed how campaigns are handled. I truly hope the young voters of today become the well-informed, active voters of tomorrow. If they can teach their children in the years to come that their vote counts, democracy will thrive and grow.

Last night we went out to watch the election results. We started the night at Pizza Port, our first time there, and had some great grub an grog. We then headed to the Village Pub, where the final results came in and we saw McCain's speech, and listened to Obama's on the drive home. I must say, the Village Pub had about 10 people in it, and I couldn't think of a better place to end the night. I really like that bar. They had John Stewart (with the volume turned up) on one TV, and CNN on the other TV. I thought it was funny when the final projections came in, that someone said "turn it to Fox news, let's see if they are saying the same thing!". Of course they were, and we all knew the election was over. And personally, I thank God it's over - this has seemed to be the longest 21 months ever, and I'll be glad to stop hearing the Countdown to Election '08 now.

On a sad note - it appears that Prop 8 has passed, installing a ban on gay marriage in CA. I am very surprised with this outcome. I truly believe that this has passed because of homophobic ideas and a lack of understanding that marriage does provide legal rights that everyone should be entitled to. If you can't have a legal marriage, then you can't have a legal divorce. All gay couples do not choose to have civil unions, or the equivalent of pre-nups when they decide to move in together - and if straight couples don't have to think about these things in their relationships (they can just get married), why should gay couples have that extra burden put on them? In the back of my mind, I hope that some of these YES to Prop 8ers end up with gay children, and in the future realize what they have done today.

Happy Howloween!

Almost another month has gone by, and it's already Halloween time.

My mom and I went to see the So You Think You Can Dance tour at the end of Sept.

That was a lot of fun, although slightly on the cheesy side. I was hoping that they would have some new dances, or some things that were not done on the show - but it really was just a 'greatest hits' tour. They threw in some little skits and funny introductions to the dances, but ultimately, if you have recorded your favorite dances it would have been just the same as being there. I must admit though - seeing them perform in person really shows you how talented these folks are. Joshua's jumps were so high, and Katie is just an amazing dancer all around.

Then at the beginning of October, Scott and I went to see James at the HOB in San Diego. We went a little early to eat dinner at the restaurant, which was really good. Their happy hour specials are worth checking out. The opening band was Unkle Bob, and when one song came on Scott said he knew it. I thought he was smoking crack because I have never heard of this band, and they are not the type of music that Scott would listen to on his own accord. But lo and behold, we looked them up on YouTube a few days later and saw that their songs were used in Grey's Anatomy, and they did have some radio play. So Scott - you are turning into a well rounded musical aficionado! Then James took the stage, and it was such a good show. This was my first time seeing them in concert, and I am glad that they got back together for this tour. Tim's dancing was adorable, and it sparked my attraction to bald heads again. I told Scott he should shave his head again, it was a good look for him. Scott asked if I was as into James in their heyday as I am now (I couldn't stop talking about him, looking up vids on YouTube, etc for about a week), and come to think of it I wasn't. I guess I am a late bloomer in this arena, too.

Saturday, Chewie had a howloween party at Muttropolis in La Jolla. It was just for Brussels, and it was fun. She looked adorable (she didn't win any contests), but I think she had a good time. It's neat to see how different BGs can be - she was not the biggest one there, definitely not the smallest one there, but I do think she was the fattest one there. So Chewie's diet continues. After the party, we had dinner with some of the members and their dogs at the restaurant next door, and it's nice to also see that Chewie is not the most spoiled of all the dogs there. I didn't see it, but Scott said that one person took his plate off the table, and put it on the ground to let their dog eat the scraps and lick the plate. In public - how horrific!

Looking forward to a fun Halloween night - and maybe we'll even go out since it falls on a Friday this year. We don't have any costumes - but a couple of beers into the night, I'm sure it won't matter anymore.

And BTW - a note to anyone who actually reads this - go out and vote on Tuesday!!!

Fall is really here

I am having a hard time accepting the fact that this year is flying by. I can't believe it's already October, when it seems like yesterday that I was looking at one of my projects that had a target completion date of July and thinking that is so far away and we still have plenty of time. Needless to say, that project did not complete in July and we are still working on it...

Today, I purchased our Xmas flights to DC - we are already planning Xmas!

I haven't written in a while, and that's because August was a very busy month for us, and Sept had Scott on another business trip for 2 weeks. And now finally all the fall TV shows have started (it's amazing how little things like that can make me happy). Although I was pissed when I found out that Moonlight was canceled. That was my favorite show last year, and it even won a People's Choice Award for best new drama - how can they do that? I hope another network picks it up.

August was the month for weddings:

We went to San Francisco for Charles' wedding. We went a day early and got to tour the city and rode the ferry, typical tourist stuff. It was Scott's first time in San Fran, and I think he really enjoyed it.

We then went to NY for Katie's wedding. We spent a week up there, and spent a number of days at camp on the lake. It was a good trip, other than the bug bites, the wasp sting, etc. We took Chewie with us, and she is a great traveler. She stayed in her bag, didn't make a sound the entire trip, and even weathered the delayed flights, missed connections, and minimal potty breaks very well.

We ended the month with a fishing trip with my dad and his Anglers Club. It was a neat experience, although Scott was the only one who caught a fish (again)!

Then, Scott was in Riverside for a 2 week work exercise. Now it's October, and we are having a heat wave - it was 100 degrees in some North County areas yesterday. Hopefully you can understand why I am having a hard time believing that fall is here, and it is so strange to see all the Halloween items in the stores. We have a Halloween party for Brussels Griffons later this month, so I have to start getting Chewie's costume ready...

What a great weekend!

It was truly a great one - nothing out of the ordinary, but just felt really great.
I think it's mainly because Scott came home on Thursday night, and we had a 3 day weekend to catch up and relax, and do nothing at all.

On Friday, we went to see the new Batman movie. A lot of people had been telling me that it was excellent, and it was. Very dark, full of action, yet it did seem long. About 3 times, I thought it was almost over, and then it continued on. I wonder if Heath Ledger will be nominated for an Oscar for this role? I think he deserves is.

We met a very nice couple who just moved to this area last week, and they told us about a lagoon in Carlsbad that "allows" you take your dogs and let them go swimming. We took them on Sunday, and I think Bear loved it. He drank a lot of salt water - but it was worth it seeing him swim in the deep water and enjoying himself. Chewie did step into the water, but I don't think she liked it much. We are going to be taking her to NY this month when we go visit Scott's family, and we'll see if we can get her to go into the lake. Maybe we should buy her a little puppy life vest and just throw her in. but it seems strange that someone who has only lived here one week is telling us cool places to hang out.

I did something different last week - I went to a belly dancing class through my meetup group. It was fun, although I don't see myself going to any more classes. It is very hard to do - but it seems like you are just shaking your hips and doing rolls for 1 hour. I need something that's a little more stimulating for my brain, involving footwork and remembering the sequence of a dance. But the belly rolls that she was teaching us are hard - you have to separate your lower abs from the upper abs, and move them independently of each other. My big tummy just moved in one direction all around!

On Thursday, my folks and I went to the Del Mar race track. That was fun, too. I did place some bets (just $2 bets) and won on almost every bet I placed. On one, I more than doubled my bet (to a whopping $4.60). Maybe this is what we need to do: start betting thousands of dollars, and if we double our money it's a better day than if we were at work...

Becoming more social, but I am still such a geek

A couple of things have recently made me take a look at my life (and our life as a family) and do some soul searching. Three years ago, we picked up and moved our entire life to a new and strange town, knowing only 2 people (my parents) in our new city. I have found that as I get older, it is harder to make friends. I am no longer single and going out as often, which really did open up the door to meeting lots of new people and friends-of-friends. We are thirty-somethings (although I am still in shock about that, and is the term DINK *Double Income No Kids* still being used), and it seems that most people our age have children and the types of things they do is very different from the lifestyle that we live. They have to deal with babysitters and being home early, having to plan outings in advance, and I am in a way not looking forward to making those kind of sacrifices yet. Moving here and working from home was also not an ideal situation for me, as I didn't meet coworkers and establish those types of relationships which has always led to some of my closest friends. I also think that while Scott was in the USMC, I was in a way afraid of making friends in this area and getting too settled because the job would have us moving in 3 years. I just didn't really make any kind of effort at all.

Well, Scott got out of the USMC and we thought that deployments and long separations were behind us. As it turns out, Scott (not happily) got assigned to work a ship excercise which has him gone the entire month of July. In comparison to an 8 month deployment, this is a walk in the park - but I miss him none the less. But I am actually doing ok without him here (I miss him like crazy, though) and I am using this as an opportunity to try to find the person that I was before we moved out here.

First, back in college I was always a little bit of a tomboy (I liked hanging out with the guys and spent all nighters PC gaming instead of studying). So for my Bday, Scott got me an Xbox 360. I forgot how addicting these things are, and maybe it's a good thing that I don't do drugs because maybe I have a personality prone to addiction. So far, I have purchased (all used, being the frugal person that I am) Guitar hero 3, DDR2, and The Orange Box (which makes me think back to my Doom and Quake days). All 3 games are so much fun and it's amazing how the hours just fly by as I work on perfecting my score. I am still such a geek. At least if we end up ever having sons, I may be the cool mom who plays games with their kids (1 hour limit per day FOR KIDS, I have already decided - that's why it's going to be in my bedroom hee hee).

Second, I have decided that I need to become more social and start meeting people in this area. How is this truly going to be our home, if we don't have any close friends? I came across Meetup.com, which I think is truly an amazing idea. For those of you in different towns, take a look and see if your area has any groups. This is a site where you can find people with common iterests and they plan activities (called Meet ups) and it's a great way to meet new people. I always thought of myself as a pretty shy and conservative person, but then I think about how much fun I had when I took a chance and joined my first Dewey Beach group house. Again, I found myself alone, and joining a group of complete strangers who became my good friends. I found a North County Happy Hour Group - which tells you a little bit about my interests - and met 2 friends at the first happy hour. So far I have been to 3 Meetups and had fun at each of them. On Sunday, I plan to go to a Meetup for Brussel Griffon owners (that's Chewie's type of people). They are meeting at a vineyard in Temecula and have arranged for everyone to bring their dogs and an area to let them play while we do a wine tasting (how right up my alley is that, huh?). So I hope that Scott comes home to a new group of people that we can hang out with and get to know. It's about time that we start becoming a part of this community. When Scott gets home, we can look for some hiking or other team type of activites to join in (that's more his type of thing, where as I just want to socialize).

18 days until Scott gets home - I am missing my best friend...

Water Bottle Woes

I just read an article about water bottles and BPA. That's the stuff that has been on alert in baby bottles for a bit. I don't have babies, so I thought I was in the clear on this issue - but alas, it has crept into our lives...

Last Christmas, it seemed that I became water bottle obsessed. I got 2 water bottles (3 if you count the replacement that we had to buy because Bear ate the top to one), and a travel mug for xmas. Scott has had his nalgene bottles for awhile, and I thought it was a great way to get me to try to drink my daily allowance of water (the Hydracoach was really great for that).

Well, it turns out that depending on the type of plastic used to make your water bottles (and pitchers, and Tupperware, etc) you may still have the potential of BPA being present.
Here is a good article, and there are links that you can follow to give you even more information.
Basically, if you look at the bottom of your water bottle, there is a number in the middle of the recycle symbol. Try to avoid plastics with a #3, #6 or #7 (of course, all of our water bottles are #7). This does not mean that all #7 plastics have BPA, but there is a chance. Look for brands that say BPA free. The best plastics are the ones with #2, #4 or #5 recycle codes.
If you have #7 bottles and don't plan to replace them - basically, don't put anything hot in there, don't let your water sit in it and then still drink from it, and don't put them in the dishwasher. Heat seems to release BPA into the contents...

Here are a couple that look good - time to replace all of our water bottles! And I am drinking my required ounces daily, for the most part! Here's a trick to calculate how much you need to drink - basically, take your weight, and half of that number is how much you should be drinking in ounces (for a person with average activity levels).
Camelback - now BPA free
Nalgene - now made with a new Titan material that is BPA free
Klean Kanteen - I think I'm going to go with these - they don't hold odor either...

Starting to feel more like home

The first year here, I hated it. I think it was in anticipation of Scott leaving for Iraq, and all the massive changes that we went through those first months (newlyweds, moving, intro to the Marine Corps life, working from home, learning to drive a stick shift if I want to go out...). I remember our only true big fight out here, which ended with me yelling "I want to go home" and running up to our room for the rest of the night.

We have come a long way since then. And now this really does feel like home, and I can't imagine moving anytime soon. Of course, it all depends where our jobs take us, but as long as I can stand this job I have the luxury of moving anywhere and keeping it. That is a convenient things as Scott continues his soul searching for his true calling.

Kara asked me the other day how the job planning was going, and that she didn't want us to move, since they are trying to get back here in about 2 years. I said "We just got our backyard done, we're not going anywhere anytime soon!" And I truly believe it, because we are enjoying our house so much more now that the yard is not a disaster.

Just last summer, I thought of this house as a place to live and nothing more. I was not attached to it, and I didn't even like it. I was getting tired of it - and we actually talked about renting it out and moving into another house that we liked better. But now that the yard is done, we have eaten almost every dinner outside. And Scott comes home most of the time to me sitting outside reading or playing with the furry kids. I think Chewy loves it out there, and Bear is coming around. I think it might have changed the acoustics because he barks a lot more when he hears people walking behind the house. He barks in the wrong direction though - maybe the sound is bouncing off the walls in a different way. And he can't dig holes anymore! That is the best part.

So, last time I went home, everyone thought that we should do our yard ourselves. We considered that for about a week - and I am so glad that we didn't go that route. We got one company to come and do the pavers, and another to put in the turf. The entire job took about a week (3 days for the pavers, 2 days for the turf) - with lots of jackhammering to remove the old concrete, and sawing to put the pavers in. We kept the sprinkler system live so that we can water down our fake grass, and they put in a new drain in the pavers and moved the sprinkler valves to the front. Overall, I think they did a great job and this project would have taken us a year to finish - if we ever actually finished.

So as we slowly get the house fixed up, I am starting to feel like this is home. I am getting more used to the area, I can drive with confidence, and I love being able to eat dinner outside all year long. What more can someone ask for? Well, maybe for the Weinsafts to come back! Here are picks of the yard, and of K&K's latest visit.

Look Ma, I caught a really bad sunburn!

For Memorial Day weekend, we went fishing in Baja, near Cabo. This was Scott's first time in Mexico (he's never been to TJ, can you believe it?) and my first time going "big boy" fishing. It was a great trip, although the fish were not really biting those days.

We flew into the Cabo airport and took a van to the hotel where we stayed, Rancho Leonero. It was quaint, and perfect and exactly what we were looking for in this trip. The rooms were very nice, and they had a little outdoor patio that we spent the majority of our time on when we weren't fishing, sleeping or eating. All meals were included in the price, and I have to tell you that the food was really good. Every dinner was amazing, and it was the first time that I tried a Chile Relleno (loved it and haven't found one as good as that one since). There were no TVs in the room, which was a nice change of pace. It truly was a place where people come to go fishing, and drink, I guess.

We went fishing 2 full days. We chartered a boat and headed out each morning at about 7am. The hotel packed us a cooler with beers, water and lunch - and when we got on the boat, the bait boats came by and we bought the bait that we would need for the day. The first day we started with some rock fishing (bottom fishing) and caught one Cabrera.. We then decided to try our luck at Dorado (mahi mahi) and Marlin. Almost immediately, a Marlin started to trail us, but we never got a bite. Then, Scott got about a 15 lb. dorado (see pic). The next day, we started out trolling - but things were incredibly slow. We then headed out for some more rock fishing, and brought in about 10 different types of fish. I will admit that the boat captain and deck hand "caught" the majority of the fish, but they let us reel them in and take the credit!

The first day out, I didn't do a good job of applying the suntan lotion. We came in that night, and parts of my legs and shoulders hurt more than any sunburn I remember having. When we got home from our trip, Scott headed out to Hawaii for work and asked about my sunburn one night. I told him that after the hurting stopped, they turned a deep purple color, then they turned black. He didn't believe me, but laughed his head off when he came home and saw that they really turned black. Then they peeled, and now I'm back to normal.

We had a great time, and actually talked a little about the hotel last night and thought that it would be a perfect place for a family reunion. There are only 35 rooms, and our families could overtake the place.

3 Years down, forever to go...

Well, we have celebrated our 3rd year anniversary (yes, this post is a little late).
I can't believe that I have known you for over 5 years - it seems like you have been in my life forever. We may not be the same kids who used to go out partying every weekend in DC and Arlington, and we may not be the same kids who used to get all dressed up for a night out on the town, but I like the people that we have turned into. We no longer have to egg each other on to find out about each other (like I did on our first date), or stress about what the other is thinking and why the other one is upset or distant (I take the blame for that one, too). We have turned into people with the same likes and dislikes, and who know what the other person is usually thinking without having to ask. We have turned into people who don't need the fancy restaurants and who enjoy grabbing a local bite out in our flip flops and shorts (OK, SoCal has a lot to do with that change).

Although it may seem that things have become less exciting, and we have more responsibilities now, things have gotten more comfortable with you. I love doing simple things with you, like grocery shopping. I don't think many other couples take the time to do these types of things together or enjoy doing them together as much as we do. It's a luxury to have you home and near me, to be able to do these types of things together. I love our family with the furry kids, and can't imagine what a life without you in it would be like. I love you, and look forward to all the changes life has to throw at us, as long as you are with me. Happy Anniversary, hon.

Gunter glieben glauten globen

Last week was concert week.
And as I sat through Friday night's concert, I realized how musically diverse I am. Does that mean that I like all genres, and am an educated and well-rounded person? Or does it mean that I can't make up my mind what genre I like, thus listening to a little bit of everything?
I almost asked my self if I am just a trendy person who jumps on the bandwagon when something becomes popular - but then I have to argue the fact that I am not cool and have no idea what is popular these days. The only reason I know Madonna has a new album out is because Ellen dances to it on her show.

Last Saturday, we went to see Def Leppard at Coors Amphitheater (now it's being called Cricket Amphitheater). REO Speedwagon and Styx opened up for them, and although I still don't fully know who Styx is, Scott says he recognized every song they played. I only know the "I'm Sailing Away" song because Cartman sang it on South Park. Def Leppard then came on, and it was a great show. They sounded great - maybe too great, making me think they were lip syncing or that the background vocal guys took voice lessons - and it was definitely worth the wait to finally see these guys in concert (My mom would not let me go see them when they toured back in 1987). Eric and Julie came down for the weekend, and while we tailgated prior to the show the doggies got to spend some quality bonding time at home.

On Friday, we went to see Michael Buble at Cox Arena. It was a good show, and he is very funny. Of course, all the ladies were drooling over him, and he made a couple of funny jokes about not being a piece of meat. Then about 3/4 through the show, he started to let people come up to the from of the stage and that just opened up the throngs of women running down the aisles to get to the front. He then started joking that he needed to change the mood and perform for the men in the audience, and he broke into "Young Man, there's no need to feel down...". Too funny!

So it's been a great week, of concerts and I must say that I truly enjoy the diversity of music that we go to see (aka: that I can talk Scott into seeing with me). He really is a trooper and I will never forget how much you love me, enough to even go to a Cindy Lauper show with me. The only show I couldn't talk him into going to was the Dixie Chicks. I guess you do have your limits!

Just like old times

Last week, I had the rare opportunity to go back to DC for an in-house meeting. With all of the budget cuts and changes in policy, I didn't think I would ever get to go back home on 3M's dime, but they actually approved this training trip and decided to bring all of the PM's in-house.

I dreaded having to go into the office. Firstly, I don't fit into any of my old work clothes. Yes, it's nice to have an excuse to go shopping, but it's also a little sad to think of all those cute things taking up 75% of my closet that are just a little "too tight" now. Second, I have gotten very complacent working in my PJs and not having to add in the extra time to get showered, dressed and commute to work. Getting up at 6am (East Coast time, no less) to be dressed and ready for work was definitely culture shock. I have gotten used to hitting snooze 3 times, then being able to "be at work" 15 seconds after jumping out of bed. But once I walked into the building - with new 3M signs out front and having to scan a badge to get into the front door - it actually felt kind of nice to be part of society. And it was great seeing my coworkers and finally meeting those team members who I spend hours every week on the phone with, but not knowing what they look like. When I met Tim for the first time last week, he said "Wow, you do sound like the person on the phone!". I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, considering we all hate how we sound on answering machines...

It was great having a reason to catch up with family and friends.
On Monday, I met up with my Uncle Rody and Frank, and got to meet their new dog Castor. He is adorable, and the sweetest puppy I have met in a long time. He is so cheery, that just being in the same room with him puts you in a good mood. Frank and Rody are doing well, too - although I think Rody has too much free time for hobbies than is healthy for him. He has another cut on his hand from a mishap with a drill.

I then met up with the majority of my friends in Pentagon Row on Tuesday. It was great seeing them, and hearing of all the things that have been keeping them busy over the year (most of them now have kids!). As I was driving to Virginia from Silver Spring, I took my normal route from work to my old house - 295 to South Capital Street. As I was coming down the strip with the Capital Building looming at the end, I drove by National Stadium, right there smack on the side of the street. What a big change, and I can only imagine what my commute would be like on game days... But this did make me very nostalgic for the grandiose of living in DC. How many people can say they drive by the Washington Monument and the Capital every day to work? And I really missed the hustle and bustle of traffic - strange, I know. And of course, the endless opportunities to just go out any night of the week and find yourself amidst plenty of people and good friends and food.

I still don't think I want to move back to DC, but this feeling surprised me. I think it was just a memory of the old times, the old friends, and the place that will always be home to me.

Surf Dogs

We have been here almost 3 years, and we have finally taken our kids (Chewie and the Bear)to the beach. On Sunday, we decided to drive down to Del Mar, where they have an off-leash dog beach. This is going to have to become a monthly family outing - it was a lot of fun.

Bear was a little hesitant of the waves at first. But once he got used to it and started seeing all the other dogs in the water, he really got into it. Scott was playing catch with him, throwing the ball out into the ocean and Bear would run after it, jump the waves, swim out to the ball, and bring it back. A couple of times the wave would catch the ball and start bringing it back to shore (now it's behind Bear), but Bear didn't realize it so he just kept on swimming out to where he thinks the ball is. I got a little freaked out, just imagining my dog continuing to swim out in the Pacific in search of the missing tennis ball. But Scott was able to call his name, throw another ball and get Bear to start swimming back.

I was a little hesitant of Bear taking a run for freedom and not being able to get him back. But he was great off leash. He didn't get too far away from us, and would turn around every now and then to make sure that we were still with him. It did take a bit of chasing to get him to put the leash back on and go home, but that's how kids are when you tell them they need to leave the park...

Chewie on the other hand kept us on our toes. I thought she would stay right by us, but she turned out to be the runner. She would head up to anyone and anything that caught her eye, with no regard of how far back she was leaving us. Fortunatley, she tires out quickly and we can catch up with her. At one point, she found a shady spot and dug a hole in the sand and lied down. I had to pick her up to get her back into the water to cool off. She is not a water lover - she saw a wave coming and would run away from it. I think I used to do that when I was little too.

Once we got home, both dogs passed out and remained stationary for the rest of the day. What a great way to tire them out! The 90 degree weather that we had this past weekend didn't help, either. Each year seems to get hotter and hotter, earlier and earlier...

Scott said that Bear was eyeing the kids with boogie boards - I'm sure he was thinking "That's a really big chew toy, I want it".
Next step - surfing lessons for theBear .

Out with Patrick Swayze, Hello Matt Damon (now 35 years old)

After about 10 months of not cutting his hair, Scott had started to look like the Dirty Dancing version of Patrick Swayze - brown waves that move when he salsas.
It got on his nerves.
Now - I am married to the Matt Damon version (much sexier, hon) and my adorable husband turned 35 years old last week.

Scott didn't want to do anything special for his birthday, which was good because I was starting to run out of ideas for surprise get togethers. So we opted to stay at home and have me attempt to cook him a nice romantic dinner. For those of you that know me well, this is a very generous gift as I don't like being in the kitchen much.

Menu:
Artichoke dip as a starter - I forgot the bread, so had to ask the birthday boy to stop at the store on his way home without trying to spoil the surprise menu.
Blue Cheese crusted Fillet Mignon - Scott likes Blue Cheese, so I thought this was perfect for him
Spinach and Onion sauteed
Chocolate Lava cake - which did not come out exactly as I hoped it would, but it was good and we have been eating leftover cake for dessert every night since.

On Saturday, my parents wanted to celebrate Scott's birthday with us and we ended up at the Greek American Family Restaurant in Encinitas. We ordered the flaming cheese dish, and went through 2 bottle of wine. That's a first for the 4 of us. They didn't have the Tilapia, which is what Scott really wanted, but it was a good night out none the less.

Happy Birthday - and many mooooooooooore!

The world of Podcasting

In the past month or so, I have discovered Podcasts (and ebooks).
I mainly started listening to these with the idea that I could listen to them at the gym. I have ended up mainly listening to them while I am working, and not at the gym (that's another topic, entirely, see below).

Podcasts are kind of fascinating. I have started listening to:
The LOST podcast with Jay and Jack
The Dawson's Creek podcast

Those that know me know that I love D.Creek, and I think it's intersting that this podcast is aired by another D.Creek fan. What's more intersting is that this just started airing last year (even though the show has been off the air since about 2003). That means that there are other D.Creek fans who still love the show, and there are other D.Creek fans who actually listen to this even though the show is in syndication. Amazing, and see, I am not the only freak. Although I may be 10 years older - but hey, it's keeping me young!

I have also realized that I cannot listen to something well, and do anything else at the same time. I'm not counting mindless listening to the radio or humming along to a tune while you do chores. I should have known I would have this problem when I noticed that I cannot talk on the phone and have anyone else talk to me at the same time. I can only listen to one person at a time, and usually the one who is louder wins. But while I have this podcast on - I notice that I stop typing, then I sit back in my chair, and then I realize 20 minutes has past and my screen saver is whirling around. And when I notice that I have been able to keep tying and get some work done, I have not listened to a word of this podcast and must rewind the entire thing. Those people that work and listen to eBooks, how do you do it?

Anyway, I have found another mindless way to pass the time, and I need to start listening to these at the gym - that is my March resolution!
Also , does this mean that any old Joe Bloe can air a podcast? Will there someone in the universe who will listen to any silly old topic that someone wants to talk about? Hmmmm, maybe I can start "A day in the life of Chewie and the Bear"...

A walk in the clouds

This past weekend, Scott decided we needed a weekend away. He just got back from his 2 week business trip, and had a 4 day weekend to enjoy. I didn't have a 4 day weekend, but we decided to kennel the dogs and spend the weekend in Temecula wine country. We have been meaning to do this for a couple of years, and finally made it out there for a tasting.

We stayed the night at the South Coast Winery, and their villas were very nice. I loved how they were each separate rooms with no sharing walls. This means that you had no neighbor's walking heavy above you, or loud neighbors next door (like we do at home most nights...). There was a bottle of wine for us in the room, and Jacuzzi tub.

We started Saturday out with a wine tasting, and it shocked me how Temecula wine country has turned into the bar scene of he SD area. It was packed, and you had to fight for a place up at the tasting bar. There were people drunk, and loud, and just hanging out. Granted, I had a buzz going after our 5 tastings (and the 2 extras that she gave us), but I don't think I would just hang out in there. There is a separate area with tables for Wine Club members, which we were considering (and still are), and I could see myself hanging out there for a few hours on a nice day. If we actually lived in Temecuala (which we did find our dream started home out there 3 years ago), we would definitely be part of the wine circuit.

We then headed over to the restaurant for a little appetizer and a bottle of wine. After relaxing for a bit, we headed back later that night for a superb dinner. Scott had the Lamb chops, and I had veal and beef riggi's. It was excellent, and worth the drive out here for a nice dinner out (more reason to become a club member).

Sunday was our tour of the winery, and it has sparked the dream of having a vineyard in both of us again. We learned a lot from the tour guide, and ended the tour with a tasting and tips about pairing wine and food. We learned that the sweet wines I like (like the white Germans that we always buy) go really well with spicy food. Scott knew a lot of the workings of the winery because of his Gallo experience, and I think we should start looking for jobs or ways we can become active at the wineries in Temecula (it's not that far of a drive).

On our way back home, we stopped at one other winery for a tasting, and in comparison to where we just were, it was on a different scale completely (small, with 2 people working the tasting room, and nothing fancy about it at all) and the wine was not as great in my opinion either (I didn't say, let's buy a bottle to any of them). Maybe I was wine'd out by this point in the weekend, but I wouldn't want to go back there.

The man who owns the vineyard for South Coast bought the land only due to his father's pressure to buy it. It sat there for years, and he saw the movie "A Walk in the Clouds" and thought that his land looked a lot like that setting. So he went out and tested the soil and now has this thriving vineyard (the largest in Temecula).
I think I'm going to go out back and test our soil now :-)

Jan, Feb, March - oh my!

I bought this little planner (pocket size, really) so that I can keep track of the things that are happening, the things that I need to do, etc. I am managing to write things down in it, but then forget it on my desk and end up never taking it with me. But it's a start, and I have 10 more months this year to perfect the idea of keeping a planner (right now, I just know that I need to go to work at 7am, and then my Outlook calendar keeps me in check).

But it's nice to see the things that we have done, and the things that are coming up this year. Now, there is no excuse for forgetting to put key events in Scott's Xmas letter. I will proof read his letter with my planner in hand.

After our great trip to NYC, I got sick - the worst sick I've been since moving here. I blame it on the East Coast weather, which is why I am even more adamant about not moving away from SD :-) It knocked me out for about 2 weeks, and I spend a good number of days in bed.

I was still slightly ill, but recovered enough to head over to a NFL Playoff game (to watch the Giants win) and then we headed to the House of Blues to see Social Distortion. It was a sold out show, and I was glad to see the mix of demographics in the audiense. I didn't want to be the oldest in the crowd (which we definitely weren't since this band started when I was 2 years old), and we weren't the youngest either (since they can still sell out every show). It was great, and Scott really liked them. I wasn't sure how much he would enjoy it, since he didn't know them too well, but he is now a big Social D fan.

They have Reastaurant Week here in SD, which they also had in DC and we used to love it. Basically, restaurants put together a fixed price 3 course menu, so that you have the opportunity to dine at some really nice places for a reasonable price (although one of our restaurants still came out to a $200 dinner with wine). We ate at the Hotel Del, 1500 Ocean Restaurant. It was very good, and we each had a wine sampler which I think was the best part. We each left dinner that night with 3 glasses of wine, and I have a new favorite Chardonnay. At the end of the week, we went out with some friends to Pacifica Del Mar, a seafood restaurant in Del Mar. It was highly recommended, and the food was excellent. My only complaint is that I thought it was going to be right on the water - but the pictures were deceiving and we were actually off the 101.

We decided to throw a Superbowl party at our house, and went all out with over 100 wings, pizza, lots of munchies, and Giants decorations. I think it was our balloons and good mojo that sparked the win. Way to go Giants!

The week after the game, Scott left for a 2 week business trip. You know, 2 weeks seems like nothing now, and it's actually kind of a nice change of pace to have 2 weeks to myself (with dogs, who slept on the bed with me of course). I lost 4 lbs that trip - I think it's becuse Scott wasn't home to cook for me. But by Wed of week 2, I was definitely ready for my hubby to come home. while Scott was away, I drove up to Santa Monica to meet up with Tricia who was in town for the Grammy's (I know, how do you get her job, right?) and I caught up with Steven, who I hadn't talked to since our wedding. Needless to say, we had lots to catch up on!

That pretty much takes us right into March, and I can't believe how fast time is flying! We ended the month of Feb with my parents over for dinner, and Scott made his (now becoming a fav) lamb stew. My parents then left for a trip to Alaska, and I can't wait to hear all about it when they get back.

Having a planner is coming in handy - and it is making me plan lots of fun things for us to do! We've got Def Leppard coming up this summer, and hopefully many more fun things to come.

Happy New Year! a little late, I know

I know, but better late than never, right?

To catch the 1.2 people who read this blog up to date - we spend New Years in cold New York city. It was soooooo cold, but a very fun trip! We got to see lots of good friends and family, we ate spectacular food, and overall it was a great way to bring in the new year (although no one wanted to play Singing Bee with me).

Day 1 and 2:
We had a very easy and drama free trip for San Diego to LaGuardia. Poor Keith and Kara just got back from their cruise that day, and this was their second trip to LGA which was the most crowded I have ever seen it. That's what you get for flying on a holiday, huh?
The next Day (New Years Eve) we toured around Queens and Garden City. We then celebrated the New Year at Casa de Weinsaft. Kara made an amazing dinner that night (which I still need the recipe for).

Day 3 and 4:
On New Years Day, we recovered from the night before, and then headed out to see Jeff's apartment near Mid-town. It was very nice and very small. Just yesterday, Scott and I were in a hotel room (I will post details of that shortly, not to worry), and said - Man, I think this hotel room is just a little bit smaller than Jeff's apartment. We concluded that as a single person, we could live there and get rid of all of our earthly material possessions. But married, no way in hell would we fit. That night we headed to Chinatown and had another great dinner with Bryan.
The following day consisted of walking around NYC, and finding the Saltena place in Queens. Mixed into our sightseeing was Keith's cupcake break - yummy, although when did cupcakes get so popular? We ended the night at Gotham Bar and Grill for dinner, another great meal.

Day 4 and 5:
The following day was the coldest day that I have experienced in about 3 years. It was miserable. And of course, that's the day that we walked all over the place in NYC (Pomme Frites was our wonderful break!). We had real coal over NY style pizza for lunch at Lombardi's, and ended the night in Brooklyn for dinner at Peter Luger. OMG, this was the best steak I think I have ever had, although it might have been the 2 drinks in me altering my perception. This was totally our kind of place, and we took the T-Bone home for the dogs to enjoy. They are big Peter Luger fans, too.
The next day we flew home (again, hassle free) and recovered from the trip and picked up the doggies from the kennel. Then, it was back to work and the start of 2008.

We'll have to see what kind of surprises 2008 has to bring - although it's been a very low key year so far (knock on wood).
Happy New Year!