my new pumpkin pan!

My good friend Amy was so excited about the birthday gift she was giving me, that she gave it to me today, even though my birthday is over a week away. I was so excited when I opened it-- it is an awesome cupcake pan with pumpkin shaped-tins. I am thinking of all of the things I might be able to cook in it. Let me know if you have some suggestions!

megan's tennis match

Megan invited my mom and I to come see her last home tennis game on Tuesday, so we gladly sat in the heat to watch her play Woodbridge. Megan was my student my first year of teaching and I have a special love for her. She, in fact, made me a cape out of her old book covers that I just showed the kids in my class today. She used to hide in our classroom cupboards and we would play tricks on the other students. Oh, the memories... Anyway, it is really fun to watch her grow up and really into who she is. She has a natural skill for tennis & a good competitive side too (she was visibly upset that they only won one game). Love you girl!

may His wonders never cease

This sunset that I could see from my front yard reminds me of how much God calls us to Him through his beauty. May His wonders never cease.

bob's birthday

I love birthdays. I think it is because I always felt so special on mine growing up. I usually extend my birthday for a week and am sad when it's over. To Bob, a birthday is just another day that you happened to be born. You can probably visualize the hardship this created when we first got married. I tried to spoil him on his birthday, he didn't really care, my feelings got hurt. My birthday is a holiday (Veterans Day) so I always got it off of school/work, but Bob still feels like he should work that day, my feelings get hurt. See the pattern. I think he is starting to learn how meaningful this is to me and he has done some great things to celebrate me in the past.

Anyway, this year for his birthday, I cooked him a feast of his favorite food (Thanksgiving items), we got to go to Disneyland (thanks Barbi Relock) and our parents came over for dessert-- Chocolate Motherload cake from Claim Jumper. My mom even brought a singing candle that my brother brought home from China. This crazy candle wouldn't even stop singing when it was put under water. We enjoyed ourselves and now Bob is anticipating the surprise trip I am taking him on this weekend.

do not go to Costco on a full stomach!

For the first year of our marriage, Bob and I had a Costco card that we rarely used, so we decided that we didn't need to renew it again. I missed the visits to Costco though since it is such a fun place to spend time. The church that Bob is working at gave us Costco cards, so we are able to visit again. Yesterday, though, was not such a good day. You may think it bad to go to Costco on an empty stomach because of all the junk-- I mean samples-- that they offer you which of course cannot be resisted. Well, let me assure you that going on a full stomach is even worse. We made the mistake of eating lunch before we went and not letting it settle for two hours before we jumped into Costco. And if you love food as much as I do, you cannot say no to a FREE snack, even if it doesn't look THAT great, or if you are not hungry. Like I said before, Bob and I are not really Costco shoppers. We don't eat the same thing for dinner 7 nights a week, so we can't really justify buying 10 lbs of something. We also like to try new things but are not willing to commit doing so at Costco since if you don't like it, you basically have wasted lots of money. Anyway, yesterday was just another reminder to us that our hearts lie at Trader Joes (not Costco) when all we walked out with were a box of feminine products (the guy at the checkout was trying not to laugh) and immensely full stomachs. Well, I guess it was a free dinner since we were still so full by dinner that all we had was popcorn. Anyway, if you are afraid you are going to eat too many samples at Costco, don't try what we did by going on a full stomach, because you will eat the samples anyway, and will feel much worse. Let yourself splurge and go on an empty stomach!

it's not jaws, but...

Yesterday we went fishing at the beach (again) and Bob caught a shark! I am not sure what kind it was, but I am continually amazed at God's creation.

I even decided I wanted to fish today and baited my own hook, thank you very much. I screamed the whole time as I stuck the live sand crab on my hook and my brother said, "Sorry little guy", but I still did it. I don't have anything to brag about unless catching seaweed counts, but we did find a fin in the rocks that Tyler took home to use body surfing.

Anyway, here is a picture for you to see how amazing it truly is!

outdoor ed

I just got back from spending a week with my 6th graders at Pine Summit Outdoor Science School. We had a really good, exhausting time. Some of the kids' favorite activities were the ropes course, the archery range, the climbing wall, and the zipline. Those were the fun ones. I promise that we had science classes though, too. Here are a few pictures of the kids having a good time.

blast from the past

Bob's dad sent us this picture yesterday and I thought it was so cute that I had to share. This is actually the same street we live on now. In case it wasn't obvious, Bob is the adorable blondie in the front.