Preppy Shoes and Annoying Phrases

Josh is wearing flip-flops and bought a pair of shoes at Aldo. I used the phrase "No worries" when leaving someone a voice mail today. Uh oh. I think we're getting Californianized.

Yay for Family!

My parents and sister came out to visit us earlier this month. I had been sooo excited for them to come out. I was jumping around the house all week in giddy hyperactivity. (Really, I was SUPER hyper. And my poor husband had to put up with me.)

It was such a fabulous time! It was a great week for them to come out as far as my work schedule. I was able to go in early and be off by early afternoon everyday.

We went to a Padres game right when they got here. It was a beautiful day for it. We got gelato after the game at a place we like right next to the stadium. Yum!

Monday, they went to the zoo. Josh and I met them there later after work. We love the zoo! There's always something new to see: like when my parents saw a lion urinate on some girls that were standing near the fence in the "spray zone." There's always excitement at the zoo!


My dad loves to sail, so of course one day we went sailing on Mission Bay, very near our condo. We rented a catamaran and tooled around the bay, trying to avoid other sailboats and windsurfers, and making sure my dad didn't achieve his goal of "sailing out to the open sea!"





I'm pretty sure nothing scary enough happened on our outing that warranted this terrified of a reaction. I must have just caught my mom at the right moment. She'll love me for this pic :-) I can't stop laughing at it!
It was Josh's first time on a sailboat, and he was a total pro!
On one day, some family that lives north, closer to LA, came down to hang out. They went to the beach and had a blast [while I was working :-( ] but I met up with them later. It was so fun to hang out with lots of family that we hardly ever see! And the triplets always keep things exciting :-)

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On their last night here, we went on a dinner cruise around the San Diego harbor. It was so cool to see the city from out on the bay. We saw some fireworks being shot off of a boat, and we danced the night away to the band's music! (Ok...I could only get people to dance with me for like 2 songs. Something about "everyone's watching me!"-in Josh's whiniest voice.)





Now that they are gone, our condo seems so empty! I was used to the way things were before they came, but now it is lonely around here. I already knew I missed family and home, but now I'm reminded of how MUCH I miss everyone! Things will get busy again, and we'll be fine. But we are lucky that we both have families that are so great that we miss them when we're gone!

I guess it was a successful trip! And I think Kelli wants to come back soon...

Coyotes

There's a sign in our condo complex to let all residents know that there have been many coyote sightings on the hill behind the complex, pretty much right where Josh parks his car. The sign warns to be careful walking back there with children and small animals, so Josh should be alright. Except that I'm pretty sure if Josh saw a coyote, he would probably go try to pet it. He might be in danger after all...

What's With the Yellow Lights?

So, all the grocery stores here have these yellow lights to light up the parking light. They are like normal parking lot lights, except they're YELLOW. I don't know why. But they're also WEIRD. They make things look different colors. It is quite bizarre. They remind me of these 'blue-blocker' sunglasses that my mom had, and one day I was wearing them and eating M&Ms. It was when there was some promotion where if you found a gray M&M you won a million dollars. Well, I freaked out because I found a gray M&M, but it was really yellow and only looked gray with the crazy glasses. Anyway...

I have a maroon-colored car. In these CRAZY yellow lights, it is gray. And I mean, IT IS GRAY. I feel like my mind is playing tricks on me. I have stared at that car every-which-way under those lights, trying to see the red color, and it is just not there! You see the problem this creates. I walk out of the grocery store, looking for my new maroon car that I am not all that used to anyway, and it is not there. This is just a really long way of saying that I couldn't find my car in the parking lot tonight, because it changed colors on me.

Verdict In, The Camry Passes!

California has this crazy smog law, and cars have to regularly pass a smog test and an inspection in order to be registered here. If you don't pass, you have to get repairs or have an expensive catalytic converter installed. Needless to say, we were a little nervous about our good ole' '93 Camry and the smog test. Let's just say it hasn't exactly been a low-maintenance car for Josh over the years. But...she passed with flying colors! And she now belongs to California.
New California plates, but still sporting the Cubs license plate holder!

It's Legit!

It is finally official.

I am a pharmacist.

Is it because I just today found out that I passed my Iowa Law exam and am now a licensed pharmacist in Iowa? No, not really (even though I did). I mean, I GUESS that means I'm a pharmacist now, but what I'm really referring to is...THE LAB COAT! That's right, I now have a full length lab coat embroidered with MY name! I have been waiting for this day for oh so long. No more short, student-length lab coat with no personalization whatsoever. I finally feel like a professional! And Sharp paid for it, because my residency program is awesome :-)

My fabulous husband humored me as I made him take a dozen pictures.
That's right, Rachael Doebel, Pharm.D.
Disclaimer: I am still not officially a pharmacist in California, because the Board of Pharmacy hates me and keeps losing the transcripts I PAY to send them. Thank you California.