20 Week Ultrasound

Last Wednesday, we had another ultrasound. Very exciting! We were hoping he or she would show us if he or she was a boy or a girl, but no such luck. Hopefully we'll find out in January. Here are pictures of our little baby...

We Have an Announcement!

It's a big one too! We're expecting our first child on May 8, 2010!!!

Dia De Los Muertos

Mom and Pop are out for a visit, so we decided to take them for a train ride to Olvera Street for Day of the Dead.

Dia de los Muertos is celebrated throughout Mexico and the Southwest states, and coincides with the Christian All Souls and All Saints Days. On November 1st and 2nd people remember those who are deceased. November 1st is considered the Dia de los Angelitos—the day to remember children that have died, November 2nd is the traditional Dia de los Muertos (day of the dead). Pictures of the deceased are placed on Dia de los Muertos altars (ofretas) with their favorite food and drink. Candles to light their way home, and soap and water to freshen-up after their long trip back are also often placed on altars. Trinkets they were fond of, symbols they would understand, and gifts are left to communicate to them that they are always in the hearts of those they left behind, and that they are still part of the family even though they aren’t physically with us any longer.

Families often spend time at the cemetery with loved ones, bringing food and drink along with all the other necessities for a picnic. However, at this picnic the deceased is the guest of honor. Dia de los Muertos is a time of joy because we know that we are surrounded by those that we love—both living and dead. People often compare Dia de los Muertos to Halloween, and while at first glance there may appear to be a similarity, in truth the two celebrations are quite different. Halloween is a European holiday that is based on their concept of death, which is vastly different from the original Aztec meaning. The Aztecs beliefs were very similar to the Aboriginal beliefs of Australia. This life is considered to be a dream and when you die, you awake to your real life. Halloween, on the other hand, is celebrated with witches, demons and monsters and none of these are shown in a positive light.

October

This month, Dan did the Race for the Cure with the neighbors. We introduced our survivor Deneen to the race three years ago, and it's something we try to do every year with her. Unfortunately, I came down with a cold and couldn't make it, but Dan went to represent our house!

Jeanine, Dave, Dan, Mike (co-survivor), Deneen, and Jesse.

Mike and Deneen on the course...

Jesse, Dave and Dan on the course...

September

In September, we went to Vegas again. Ciara and I were very excited to go see Brittney Spears in concert at Mandalay Bay. It was a pretty good show, her dancing is fantastic.

August

In August, we went to McGrath State Beach to camp with Ciara's family. Denise, Andrew and Ciara stayed with us in our camper. Jen and Ben came down with Nate, we were so glad they could make it. It was Nate's first camping trip!

July

In July, we went to the Colorado River with our neighbors, and later we went back to Morgan Hill for my 16th High School Reunion.

Dan and I out on the River...

Out on Lance's boat...

Jenny and I on the way to the reunion, after a stop at Rob & Colleen's house...

The girls, Me, Colleen, Jenny, Ginger, Dawn and Erica.

June

In June, we went to Las Vegas for Ciara's 30th birthday. Later in the month we went to Morgan Hill for my 30th Dance Reunion Recital. Yep, I danced in front of a full San Jose Center for the Performing Arts, twice!


Ciara and Denise on the way...

Denise, Melissa and I at the Hilton...

My old audit team member Dwayne met up with us at the Hilton, it was so great to catch up. He had just moved to Vegas for a job with Harrah's/Caesars. This is the guy Dan saved from a foul ball to the face at the Boston Red Sox game at Fenway a few years ago.




On to the recital...Here's the artwork for the Dance Recital. This was on posters all over town to advertise the big event.


Jenny and I started dancing in 1978, when we first met. We were some of Lana's first students, and were so happy to be there for the 30th!

This was most of the alumni group that performed...

This was the venue....
Jenny and I before the second performance of the evening...

Our age group...

Top Row L to R: Jimene, Sarah, Me, Lana, Jenny, Christy, Pauline

Bottom Row L to R: Lottie, Jenny, Danielle, Leilani, Masumi

My Gosh, We've Been Neglecting This!

Sorry for the lack of posts since April! We haven't fallen off the face of the earth. Here are a few things you've missed since the last time we updated!

MAY

We went to Alaska with our parents in May...here we are, all piled in the rental minivan driving around Seattle.

The dads, Bob in his blue coat and Pop in his hat. Both very prepared with their backpacks.

Mom & Pop on the White Pass Railroad in Skagway.
Here are all six of us in Ketchikan...
Mary thought that was "just the neatest idea"....

Dan's Birthday Weekend

We went to Lake Skinner this weekend with the neighbors for Dan's birthday. It was a beautiful weekend, it looks like summer is almost here!

Here's the new camper, Casa Tres. We really enjoyed it, everything worked great!

Dan and the guys did a bit of fishing, but Kevin was the only one who caught anything (a large mouth bass).

I finally flew my elephant kite that Dan bought me while he was in San Diego a while back. It was a lot of fun. I had forgotten how much fun that is!

We hooked Chico up to Cody so they could run around on the trails. It was so funny, Cody would lead for a while, then they'd stop and Chico would lead for a bit.

Dan and Mike took the kayaks out for a sunset paddle.

Easter Festivities

We had a fun time over at Mike & Deneen's, where we spent our Easter. Look at this wonderful spread...it was all excellent.
Our lovely hostess with the most-est, in her kitchen where she works her magic.

They have the best back yard set up, it's the most inviting, welcoming space. We're so lucky to have such great friends and neighbors. I'm sure I've mentioned that before, but it's just so true.

Weekend in Phoenix

This weekend we went over to Phoenix. Our friend Ciara had to go during the week for a conference, so she invited us to come for the weekend. We arrived Friday night and went to dinner at Zen 32 for sushi. Saturday morning we slept in, then went to lunch at an Irish pub downtown, and then spent the rest of the day by the pool. That night, we went to ASU to check it out. Good times with good friends, as usual!

Our New House....On Wheels!

We love camping, and this weekend, we found a great deal on Craig's List for this camper. Dan can use it for his office, and we can use it as a guest room when we're not camping in it. It's a 22' Fleetwood Mallard. Here it is, parked out back.

Here's the view from the master bed. To the left is the bathroom, and a vanity. There's a curtain that divides the master bed and bath from the rest of the camper. You can see the kitchen here, pretty big refrigerator and freezer, stove, oven, and sink.

Here's the couch, it converts to a bed. The camper sleeps up to 7. The 7th has to weigh under 150 pounds, to sleep on the bunk bed.

The dinette is down, making a bed here, but you get the idea. You can also see the master bed and bunk, and the door to the bathroom.

We're excited to use it, and can't wait to take it out with our family and friends.

Our New Photo Wall

We've wanted to have a photo wall in our house for a while now, and it's FINALLY done! We did 12x12 prints of some of our favorite pictures that I've taken over the course of the last year (and one from our wedding - taken by Daniele Rose). We love it!

Camping at Silver Strand

This weekend we went camping at Silver Strand. It's a little strip of land that connects the island of Coronado with Imperial Beach. We went with the neighbors, as usual! It was such a great time. We got down there on Friday and spent the evening out by the fire. Saturday we rode our bikes to Coronado, past the Hotel Del Coronado, up to the Coronado Brewing Company. CBC is one of our favorite places to eat in the San Diego area, and their beer is great. I'm a big fan of Neptune's Nectar, and Dan likes Mermaid Red.