Happy Birthday, Aubs!

Last night we celebrated the birthday
of my old roommate and good friend
Miss Aubrey Penner.

Aubrey has a heart of gold,
a passion for helping people,
a love for traveling, a talent for writing,
and an uncontainable sense of humor.

She is a loyal friend and I love her to pieces.
Happy Birthday, Aubs!

Busy, Busy Bee

For some reason, this week,
well.. this month of July has felt insanely busy.

And with our trip coming up,
my To Do list just keeps
growing and growing and growing.

But really, who can complain?

DSC is back on the air waves starting Monday
We got to celebrate my sister's birthday twice,
once with Prado&Pajama Game
and again with Cheesecake Factory and an ice cream cake.
I saw a lovely sunset over the La Jolla Shores Tuesday night.
OTB has Watermelon Margaritas this summer.
We got to have dinner with Scott&Des this week
I enjoyed Inception on IMAX last night,
with my two favorite men.
Our homebuying project is nearing success.
We've got a pretty fun weekend coming up.
and...

We'll be playing in Maui oh-so-soon!!

Happy Birthday, Lysie!

My absolutely beautiful little seester turns nineteen today.
I thought I'd share a little bit about her.

She likes pretty things.
She is a gorgeous dancer.
Her heart is one of the kindest.
She's an old soul, born in the wrong century.
She makes me laugh harder than anyone I know.
She adores cupcakes, party juice, musicals, and all things New York.
She put up with the torture I tossed out when we were kids.
We always get to do fun things for her birthday.
Taming the tongue is her strong suit.
She shares a birthday with my gram.
She's a fabulous shopping partner.
She's good with babies.
I love her, much!

Happy Birthday, Poona!

Christmas in July

As I listened to 94.1 this morning,
AJ shared the news of Christmas in July.

Because a lot of the retail stores are hurting,
they are promoting another round of
Black-Friday/Cyber-Monday,
but during the summer
This week, in fact.

As it goes with most morning shows,
people called in to voice their humble opinions.
Would you support this?
Do you think this is pushing us to prepare for Christmas
six months in advance?
Or do you think most folks will shop for themselves,
buying things they don't necessarily need,
just because they are on sale?

I started to think about it.
And as much as I love to shop,
the sales weren't what caught me.

It was the Christmas part.

What if we really did spend six months
preparing for Christmas?
What if we spent all year?

(This is where you can feel free to point out
that I'm an over-eager plan-a-holic,
and I DO prepare for Christmas during the summer
by making Christmas cards poolside...)

But seriously...
What if we were constantly preparing for Christmas?
Not by shopping, but by preparing our hearts
for the birth of Jesus.

Holy God as a humbled man.

LWS

What to do when your husband's traveling
and you have Lonely Wife Syndrome?

Shop Joann's and Cool Scrapbook Stuff
Stop by BR for $1 Scoop Tuesdays
Watch girly shows like Gilmore Girls and Make it or Break it
Leave your half-finished crafts on the kitchen table
Sleep with the TV on, definitely sleep with the TV on
Make the bed as soon as you get out of it in the morning
Stay extra late at Bible Study
Remember to bring in the mail he normally brings in
Spend the evenings with your girlfriends
Clean the bathroom and actually keep it clean for a few days
Plan fun dates to go on together once he's home
Take up the whole bed when you sleep
Turn Matt, Meredith, Ann and Al on louder in the mornings
Commiserate with other friends in the same boat
send him lovey texts about how much you miss him.
and Pray for him like crazy!

Perfectionism

Words of wisdom worth sharing on this lovely Wednesday:

"Perfectionism is the voice of the Oppressor."
Anne Lamott

Don't listen.

The Engraving

Speaking of that boy from tennis,
I have "I <3 that boy from tennis"
engraved on the inside of my wedding band.

It reminds me of where we began.
It reminds me of our light-hearted and youthful spirits.
It reminds me of the fun we have together.

It reminds me that God answers prayer,
that He provides faithfully,
and that He rewards those who wait on Him.

It reminds me that God has a sense of humor.
For I always knew I'd meet my husband in "college."

That Boy from Tennis

Dear Jeremiah,

Last night we sat in bed eating snow cones and "Remember When"ing about tennis class, our first date, high school prom, dropping me off at college, and getting engaged. I loved growing up with you. And I'd prefer if you didn't go out of town on business trips.

Love,
That girl from tennis

More Copper Coins

A Seaside Dinner with Ali
Mimi's Muffins with some good friends
An hour-long phone call with Alana
A few hours in the pool
Homemade Snow Cones
Mom's Countdown-to-Maui
A Gorgeous Sunset
1 Timothy 5-6
A Beautiful Hike
Hanging out with the in-laws
DSC coming back to the radio
A relaxing weekend with the hubs
A 15-minute Monday morning commute
1 week anniversary of no Starbucks stops
Spanglish
Summer Freckles
An afternoon nap
Delicious weekend dining
Clean laundry

Homeless: Please Help

While Jeremiah and I sat the Prospect Lounge
overlooking La Jolla Cove,
we looked down to see
this homeless man getting "set up" below us.

He tucked his leather briefcase
under a pile of blankets behind him.
He pulled out a yellow pail,
grabbed a dollar from his wallet,
and dropped it in the bucket.
Then he started working on his sign.

Once he was situated, he sat there
and waited for passer-bys to share the wealth.

And as they did,
he'd wait for them to walk away,
remove the money from the bucket,
and count it before tucking it into his shirt pocket.
Leaving his pail pitifully bare.

Sadness filled my heart.

Weekend on the Coast

I had three goals this sizzling summer weekend:

relax, relax and relax.

So we pretty much did nothing all weekend,
except swim in the pool, make snow cones,
and escape the inland heat
by visiting the coast rather often
and dining like we were on vacation.

[Friday in Del Mar]
Dinner at Americana.
Gelato at Seaside Yogurt.

[Saturday in La Jolla]
Fabulous Fish Tacos and live music at Prospect Lounge.
Gelato at Gelateria Frizzante.
Sunset over the water.

[Sunday Morning in Torrey Pines & Del Mar]
Hiking/Jogging at Torrey Pines Reserve.
Lunch from Pacifica Breeze Cafe on a seaside bench.


[Sunday Evening in Carlsbad]
Dinner at Jay's Gourmet.
Ice Cream at Linda's.

Have I mentioned how much
I absolutely-positively love weekends? :)

On Top of the Clouds

When it comes to flying, I'm pretty abnormal.
Okay, when it comes to most everything,
I'm pretty abnormal, but go with me here...

Like most people, I dislike snoring neighbors
and that zero to a billion, head-back experience of taking off.
But probably unlike most people,
I adore airports, red-eye flights, ear-popping, descents,
and I think my absolute favorite thing about flying
is flying above a storm.

Sure, it scares the bejebus out of me --
One: because of the heights.
Two: because of that whole storm thing,
But there is something so sacred, so majestic
about being able to look down at the storm
instead of being consumed in it.

It's a little glimpse of what God must see,
a reminder of God's perspective.
And of His sovereignty.

The storms (yes, the invisible ones too)
seem so much smaller,
so much more controlled
when I catch a glimpse from the sky.

Thanks for the reminder.

Looking Back

This week has been one of those
extra-long-to-do-list, busy-yet-completely-unproductive,
when-will-it-be-over kind of weeks.

So I think it's about time I pick out
some of the pennies:

Monday was virtually meeting-free
I found a very thoughtful thank-you gift on my doorstep
Early to bed one night
The NL winning the All-Star Game
Great SYTYCDances
Sugar-free Cherry/Lime & Bubble Gum/Grape Shaved Ice
Husband Vacuuming
A delicious gyro
A few minutes to window shop
Warm summer rain
Finding a place to develop my 120
My Newly-Discovered corn on the cob trick
A successful presentation to mgmt
Dinner with great friends
Girls winning Taboo
Bible Study Girls - enough said.
...and the anticipation of a great weekend!

Happy Friday, Everyone!

Story of my Week

"There are moments when,
whatever the posture of the body,
the soul is on its knees."

Victor Hugo

Alice in Wonderland

One of my classmates from Point Loma

styled this absolutely lovely Alice in Wonderland-themed photo shoot,
featuring a friend of mine from high school.

What a small (and fabulously gorgeous) world this wonderland is.Great work, Krystel and Ari!

A Sweet Seven Year Old

I cried when I read this:
http://minivansarehot.com/2010/07/lemonade-for-haiti/

Blonde Moment

So I'm in the kitchen last night....

At the Stove,
I'm boiling orecchiette pasta on one burner,
and browning some lean ground beef on another.

At the counter,
I'm mincing garlic, cutting asparagus,
slicing french bread and whisking a homemade sauce
pretty much all at the same time

The buzzer goes off. The pasta is done.
Oh, and so is the pancheta that's crisping in the oven.

I strain the pasta
and quickly grab the pancheta so it doesn't overcook,
setting the cookie sheet on the stove

The pancheta's sizzling as pancheta does.
The smoke detector goes off.
So I turn the oven fan on high.
as I move the pancheta to a cutting board.
The cookie sheet is still sizzling.

I finish preparing the meal
and we sit down to eat.
The oven fan is louder than loud
and we can barely hear each other talk.

Jeremiah looks over,
that darn cookie sheet is still sizzling.
And it's then that he notices...

The burner was still on.

Oops!

Little Letters

Dear Jugga, thanks for cleaning up dinner, watching a pathetic excuse for a tv show, and talking like grown-ups with me last night. You're handsome. And I like you. A lot.

Dear Delta, thanks for showing Office re-runs during our flight. Bomb.com idea.

Dear Slice of Havarti, I enjoyed you more than you will ever know.

Dear Time and Calendars, I'm fascinated by you.

Dear Stinky Self, I think it's time we buy a refill on the perfume.

Dear Monday, thanks for treating me well.

Dear Little Apartment, you're in desperate need of a deep cleaning. Perhaps this weekend?

Dear Chipped Nail Polish, you're coming off soon. You look tacky.

Dear Maui, bring it on baby!

Dear Uncle John, you will be missed. I'm praying for your family.

Dear Sharpie and Post It, I'm still obsessed with you. Yup.

Dear 1 Timothy 3, I think there are a lot of leaders out there that forgot to read you.

Dear Future Children, is it weird that I think about you a lot?

Dear Kruegers, we're excited for you to come over tomorrow night. No card games, we promise.

Dear Jugga, I decided you should get two letters because, well.. you're my husband. And because I love you to little tiny pieces. (Ancias)

The Portraits

Sometimes it's just nice to
get away for the weekend

To see the sites
To slow the pace down a bit
To celebrate love&marriage
and to spend time with friends and family

Jeremiah and I walking down the Embarcadero
Kristin and I at Pier 39Dinner with Vanessa at QSunday Brunch Double DateAt the Golden Gate Bridge with the in-Laws

Mr. & Mrs. Tony Cooney

So the whole reason we went up to the bay area
was to celebrate as Jeremiah's cousin Tony
married his beautiful bride, Lenna.

Here's a shot of the bay from our hotel room
On the shuttle to the ceremonyThe church
Here comes the bride...
The orthodox ceremony

The part you can't practice at the rehearsal =)
Jeremiah and I at the beautiful reception
Jeremiah's cousin Teresa and her fiance Gary
Lenna's family is from Palestine,
so they hired a Palestinian dancer
to put on a little show
And the bride and groom in all their glory
Congratulations, Tony and Lenna!!
It was so fun to be a part of your special day.

Saucy Lee Toe

Time: July 11
Place: Sausalito, CA

Strolling the streets of Sausalito with Ice Cream Cones in tow.
Sail boats to the right and gorgeous lush hills to the left.

City Sights

Time: July 9 & 11

Place: San Francisco, CA

Downtown Market

Pier 39 Carousel
Alcatraz
Union Square
(from the Cheesecake Factory)

Powell StreetThe Painted Ladies
(from Alamo Square)Downtown San Francisco
(from Twin Peaks)

Simply Lovely

If I got married again
(to Jeremiah, of course)
and had to pick a new dress,
It quite possibly would be this one
So lovely!

Kids?

If you saw
the sidewalk chalk,
the toys,
and the bicycles
on our porch,
you might think we have kids...

But nope,
we just have neighbors.

On the road again...

Err... in the air again?

Remember when
we went to San Francisco in October?
well, we're headed back there this weekend
to celebrate the wedding of
Jeremiah's cousin and his lovely fiance!


We're so excited
to spend some time with Jeremiah's family,
to see the city sites that never get old,
to visit Brendan at his new apartment (?)
and to dine with Vanessa
who I miss to itty bitty pieces.

Enjoy your weekend!