Thanksgiving Away from Home

Thanksgiving Day was definitely a different experience being away from our families. I had just seen my parents the weekend before when they came to visit, but we still terribly missed all our family on the holiday. Up until now, living here has kind of felt like being at school, and we would just get to go home for holidays...but we didn't get to go home for the holiday.

But our day wasn't gloomy and sad. We somehow ended up with 4 Thanksgiving invites: my cousins in LA invited us to Temecula, our family friends Lu and her family in Escondido, Josh's great uncle and aunt, and even our new pastor invited us to his home. We felt loved. We thought we would having nothing to do that day, and we were so blessed that so many people reached out to us.

We ended up in the Temecula wine country with my cousins Jill and Jim, their triplets, and Jim's family. It was great to meet some new people, hang out with family we don't often see, and have a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner! We were hoping to have time to stop by Escondido on the way home for some of George's famous ice cream and Lu's hot fudge, but Josh had to work at 11PM. I guess we saved some 1200 calories or so there.

Temecula is about 1 hour north of San Diego, and it is famous for it's wineries. It is situated against the backdrop of beautiful mountainous foothills. It was nice to drive up to north county and see some mountains.

So I guess our first Thanksgiving away from home was a success, though we wished we were home.

And I guess I can't complain that I went rollerblading in shorts and a tank top on a sunny, 80 degree Thanksgiving morning along Mission Bay. Yeah...that part was pretty awesome.

Dogs, Dogs Everywhere

San Diego is one of the most dog-friendly cities in the country. People bring their dogs everywhere. They push them around in their carts at Wal-Mart, they bring them into Walgreens, they tie them outside restaurants and go bring them food. We've even seen someone bring their dog INTO a kabob restaurant and let it walk around to everyone's table. And last week, while eating cupcakes on the outdoor patio at our favorite coffee shop, someone's dog urinated right on the brick patio. (The owner, at least, was rather embarrassed.)

I love this picture, taken at the Padres game (because, of course, a stadium called PETCO Park HAS to have a bring-your-dog-to-the-park day!) I'm pretty sure these people think their dog is a person.

Things Josh Didn't Know About Me #1

When you get married, you think you know the person you're marrying pretty well. However, you immediately start finding out all these little things that you didn't really know about them. Josh and I were talking about this the other day, mostly because of one of the main things he didn't know about me...and he was probably scolding me for it.

I am very responsible...when it comes to work and, well, responsibilities. I always have homework done on time. I'm always thoroughly prepared for presentations (ok, KIND OF prepared). I turn things in on time. I generally respond to work emails on time. If I'm responsible for some type of social or work event, my tasks will be done and done right. I pay bills on time and mail off the rent check well ahead of the due date. I get my oil changed on schedule.

However...when it comes to day-to-day items that aren't exactly what I call "important," I am much, much, MUCH less likely to do them in a timely manner. Meaning, I likely won't do them at all until I really have NOTHING else to do...so I won't be doing them. Examples: I have been saying I will wash may car for about 3 months now. I have been saying I will take a check to the bank for about 5 weeks now. I put laundry off for a period of time which I will not even admit. I have a Wal-Mart return in my car that has been there for over a month. (Once, I returned something after almost 2 years. The store took it back!--further justifying to me that this behavior is okay.)

I think my husband really just does not know what to do with me. Humorously, he is EXTREMELY responsible with all these little chores. When he says he has something that needs done, he usually does it, like, that day. It's crazy! And quite admirable, I suppose. He had his car registered and his driver's license changed in the first month we were here. (I, however, am still sporting my Iowa plates, and no one can ever find my birthday on my still-Iowa ID. I don't have time to go sit at the DMV for 4 hours! Are you kidding me?!)

So, Josh can't take my perpetual non-action on all the things I consider non-vital to the success of my day, and he ends up doing most of them. He goes to the bank and the post-office for me. He does the little things around the house that I will never get around to doing. He was on the ball with taking care of our broken refrigerator situation. (But I'm the one that cleaned out that disgusting fridge! It's not like I do nothing...)

I'm pretty sure, though, that he is silently refusing to let me con him into getting my car washed for me. Darn it.

The Corn State

Following is an excerpt from a Fanhouse article on Hawkeye football, sent to me by Christina. This quote has nothing to do with football; I just found it funny.

"When you're from Iowa, you learn early in life that your home state is going to get ripped on by everybody. You can expect to hear the same stale cracks about corn, pigs, flatness, and winter within about 15 seconds of meeting a new person who discovers you're from Iowa. Unless you're talking to one of those indier-than-thou types, of course; they'll just bring up Slipknot and crystal meth. Eventually you realize that people are actually amazed you're wearing shoes, you use words with two or three syllables, and you haven't urinated in the houseplants."

I do often hear about corn, flatness, and winter. They left out the Field of Dreams. No one seems to know about Iowa's meth problem, however.

Although, as much as Iowans make fun of Missouri, we probably deserve everything we get.

Commuting Craziness

We went to Pacific Beach Alehouse to watch the Hawkeye game tonight. (YEAH HAWKS! Last second win! You can't DO that to me!)

Anyway, we sat with some other Iowa fans that live in Orange County. One of the girls is a PA at a hospital in LA, and she drives TWO AND A HALF HOURS ONE WAY to get to work. What?! For real?! I've heard of people doing that, but I always thought that maybe it was a rumor. I have never actually MET someone that does that. Crazy! That's over 20% of your day driving! I am simply flabbergasted.

Her new husband wants to move back to Iowa, but she doesn't want to because she's from California. If moving to Iowa meant I didn't have to spend 5 hours driving to and from work, I'm pretty sure I'd move to Iowa.

Go Hawks!!

About Loss

I lost my grandpa last weekend. He had been battling heart failure for a while and had recently been put on hospice, so it wasn't completely unexpected. The news still came as a bit of a shock, though. I'm not sure you can ever REALLY prepare yourself for the death of a loved one, even when you know it's coming.

It was definitely difficult to be so far from home during this time. I felt very guilty about not being able to be home supporting my family. I very much look forward to going home for the holidays to give everyone a big hug and bring some closure. My cousin Jennifer tried to keep me as involved as possible by giving me a daily play-by-play of what was going on back home during the visitation and funeral. I am so thankful for her. At the funeral, they played a recording of a song that I wrote about my cousin that died 9 years ago this month. I wanted my family to know that I love and miss grandpa and so wanted to be home with them all. I hope they understand.

I have gone through the passing of some friends and family during my life, but it has always been either sudden and unexpected or someone that was much, much too young to be at the end of their life. It has always been an extremely mournful affair. It was a totally different experience losing someone who had lived a good, long life and who had been physically suffering. Grandpa had come to terms with the fact that his time had come to leave this earth, and he was eagerly awaiting rest from his sufferings. I'm not sure I quite knew how to feel. I am very sad for our family's loss and especially for my grandma, but it is also a relief to know that he is now in a place where there is no more pain and no more tears.

I am so grateful that my grandpa knew Jesus Christ. He had invited the Lord to be the King of his life, and he was visibly filled with a peace that can only come from our Savior. He knew he was going to heaven, and he had nothing to fear in death. We shouldn't be sad for him, but it is still hard for the rest of the family to move on. I would appreciate your prayers for our family and especially my grandma, that they would be given peace ad comfort during this time and that Jesus will use my grandpa's death to bring others closer to Him.

Excuse me?! I have MAD parallel parking skills

People have always thought I am an excellent driver.

Due to 1 or 2 completely random, questionable incidents, apparently people here think I am a "crazy driver."

I am rather offended (okay, extremely offended.)

Josh says I shouldn't take things so personally. I should work on that.

And Californians should learn where the cruise control is.

TV Time Nonsense

So, I always thought that when a show time said "8:00, 7:00 central," it meant that it was on at 8 eastern, 7 central, 6 mountain, and 5 pacific. (though I wasn't really sure how THAT worked either...) But APPARENTLY, it means the show is on at 8:00 EVERYWHERE and at 7:00 only in the central time zone. Weird!

BUT, if it is something that is live and it says the time is "8:00 eastern" and doesn't mention central, then it means 8 eastern, 7 central, 6 mountain, and 5 pacific. Which is why I have to get up way too early on Saturday mornings to watch my Hawkeye football games and stay up way to late to watch Conan.

So confusing!

Anniversary Trip

It has been a while since we've posted. Things have just been so busy! So, while I sit and watch the Iowa game (go Hawks!), I finally have some time to blog about our trip to Arizona!

We decided to take a trip to the Grand Canyon for our anniversary. I had been looking forward to it for so long! The Grand Canyon is an 8 hour drive from San Diego. When I told Josh that he said, "I would drive 12 hours to see it!" So, we took a couple Harry Potter books, and the drive time flew by :-) (Josh may not admit it, but he really likes HP)

I am slightly obsessed with travel websites and finding great deals on things. (If you are looking for a fabulous travel deals website, visit travelzoo.com!) I found a great deal on a Scottsdale resort, so we cut up our drive on the 1st day by staying in Scottsdale. Now, Iowa summers are hot. Really hot. But I'm not sure I've ever been 115 degree weather. It was simply stifling! (I think Elizabeth was trying not to laugh at me when I told her this, as she has lived in Spain and Nicaragua, but we're not used to it, ok!) Anyway, we tried to spend most of our time in the pool.
We woke up early in the morning to go play on the water slides. We were the only people there. If we hadn't been the only people there, we probably would have been the oldest people there.
They made the desert look pretty beautiful.
That's right, I listed my prefix as 'Dr.' when I reserved the room. The person checking me in probably thought I was 19, though. I don't think he knew what to call me. I found it pretty humorous.
We set off the next afternoon for the Grand Canyon!
We saw quite a few elk. This one was in our campground eating each evening.Josh was pretty nervous about getting near the edge (I think he gets it from his dad!), but I still talked him into this sweet picture.
Most of the time, however, he looked like this.
We took a hike down into the canyon one afternoon. It was pretty grueling, but we made it out alive. We had a look-out spot that we were planning on stopping at to turn around. We never saw it, however, and accidentally hiked past it to the NEXT look-out point. Oops. We still dominated it.

Later that day, we found our own secluded corner of the canyon, set up our chairs, and read for a couple hours. It was our favorite part of the trip; the most relaxing hours I've had in months!
We camped at a campground in Grand Canyon Village. It was our first time using the tent we got for our wedding a year ago. It was a great first camping trip for us, hopefully one of many more :-) Josh is a spectacular camp-food-cooker, and he made the best breakfast I've ever had!
It was a great way to celebrate our first anniversary, and we look forward to many more!

P.S. The Hawks just beat Penn State, and we are going slightly crazy. GO IOWA!!!!
My favorite quote from the game:
Reporter: "Coach Ferentz, what were you thinking when Penn State came out and scored a touchdown on their first play."
Kirk Ferentz: "Crap. Simply put, crap."
I love him.

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...