January 21th - January 28th

January 21-  This is a picture of my "Studio" also known as my corner of the living room.  It is usually messy.  It is usually unorganized.  It is usually where I spend my evenings.  I can watch TV with the family and still play on my computer or scrap a little. 

January 22- Tonight we ordered pizza from Papa John's pizza.  They are fairly new in the area.  It was pretty cheap. It was pretty good.  I was pretty impressed.  We will be calling them again.

January 23- We had lunch after church today at Jack's in Old Orcutt.  It is legendary for it's pies. We ordered a piece of the Chocolate Cream pie and I had the waitress set the whole pie on the table so I could snap a picture. 

January 24- Hannah had to draw something representing the Salem Witch Trials (they are getting ready to read "the Crucible").. I think she did a remarkable and creepy job.

January 25- This is a picture of "Mud Lake".  It is a water retention area near our house.  The whole of Orcutt knows where Mud Lake is.  It is a remarkably relaxing and yet noisy place.  When there is water in it, there are frogs croaking and birds singing.  It is lovely.

Jan. 26-  So our psychotic dog, Kiwi, loves to go into Hannah's room and climb up into the window to watch the goings on in the neighborhood.  She spends hours on the window sill behind the blinds (she is SO skinny!) barking her heart out. I snapped this picture while pulling out to take Hannah to school.

January 27-  Ahhh.. my guilty pleasure... Cherry Coke Zero!  This is hands down my favorite soda.  We can only get it in cans here which is probably good.  If it came in 2 liters, I would definitely drink too much.

January 28-  Bekah likes waffles in the mornings.  So I make a waffle for her (I have figured out the recipe for a single waffle.. 1/2 cup Krusteez, 1/2 T. Oil and 3 ounces of water- perfect amount for just one waffle) before taking Hannah to school.

Launch!

Jan. 20, 2011- Living near VAFB we are accostomed to seeing rocket launches.  The low rumble that makes you feel like maybe it is an earthquake.. the pinpoint of light at the end of the rocket and the beginning of the vapor trail. It is spectacular no matter how many times you see it.  So today, there was a launch of a Delta Heavy rocket.  The largest rocket to ever be launched at Vandenburg.  We were all anticipating it. How loud would it be?  How much more rumble? How much more spectacular?  Well... it was kind of disappointing!  We had just finished up work and I was walking back to my car.  My camera was in the car (a few blocks away) so I pulled out my cell phone.  I stood at a good viewing place and waited... the rocket was pretty far up in the sky by the time I saw it.  It had been a relatively silent launch.  No noise, no rumble.  Just a rocket trail.  I tried to get a picture with my cell phone, but the angle to the sun just made the picture useless.  I got back to my car and pulled out my camera and snapped this picture of the vapor trail.

Tim was told that the "noise level" or lack thereof, was due to the rocket using liquid fuel instead of the normal solid rocket fuel.  Whatever the reason, it was kind of a let down.

AMERICAN IDOL!!!

Jan. 19, 2011- Tonight is the premier of American Idol for this season!  We LOVE AI!  I had to snap a picture of the TV screen.. didn't turn out half bad!  Now, I need to get back to watching!

January 14- January 18th

Jan. 14-  Well, yesterday, I took a picture of the view from my desk at work.  So I thought today I would take a picture of the view from my scrapbook table at home.

Jan. 15-  Last night and all day today, I was at the AWAKEN conference at our church. This is a picture of some of my Life Timeline.

Jan. 16-  Tonight, Tim and I went to a movie with Rich and MaryRose Gerardi.  After the movie, we went to dinner at Tanner Jack's in Nipomo.  We had never been there before, but I can promise you we will go back!

Jan. 17- Today was my monthly book club. This is the book we were discussing this month.  I really liked it, but I need to re-read it. I read it about 4 months ago.

Jan. 18-  Tonight was a full moon. I love when the full moon comes up next to the palm tree in our neighbor's yard.  Very California...

Enjoying the view...

Jan. 13, 2011- my job at times can be stressfull.. deadlines, difficult customers on the phone, more work than I could do in my 5 hours.. but the setting is so tranquil it balances everything else out.  We are situated on a golf course (not just ANY golf course but the country club!).  My desk looks out at the T box on one of the back nine holes (I think).  I watch golfers T-off.  I watch them drive the little carts.  I hear them talking (when it is nice and we have the doors open) and laughing.  I have seen it all.. seriously.. one day I looked up from my desk and a golfer was relieving himself on a tree out there! Ha!  Anyway, since I spend a fair amount of time at this desk.. and since I had my camera with me today.. I took a picture of the view from my desk.

January 11 and January 12, 2011

January 11- Today  the sunrise was really spectacular.  Now if the saying is acurate, I should stay off of boats! (Please tell me that you know "red sky at morning, sailor take warning. Red sky at night sailor's delight".. do you?  My mom can't be the only one who knows every saying and phrase, can she?  )

Jan. 12-  Hannah got her official driver's license in the mail today.  She now has a valid form of ID besides her passport card or birth certificate (which we frown on carrying around on a daily basis)... Recently, California started making underage driver's licenses vertical instead of horizontal.. and if you hold a flashlight to the back of the card and look at the front of the card you can see a bear made out of tiny pin holes.  Pretty cool.. and true to every other woman driver in history, she hates her picture on the driver's license!

Hallelujah!!!!

Jan. 10, 2011- This morning the kids headed back to school after the 3 week Christmas break. It was 30 degrees when Hannah and I got into the car this morning! I know some people think that complaining about 30 degrees is being whimpy.. but this is the CENTRAL COAST! 30 is COLD! So anyway, Hannah started complaining that leather seats are cold when a lightbulb went off above my head (I really think it did!) and so when we stopped for Starbucks, We looked on the side of the seats and saw THIS! SEAT WARMERS! We have seat warmers!!!! I think I heard angels singing! :)

My New Project... Project Life

In 2011, I am going to participate in PROJECT LIFE.. basically, it is a photo a day.  Pictures of my ordinary daily life kinds of things with lifes special moments throw in as well.  For instance, on Sunday, our lives pretty much revolves around church.. so you might see pictures of things at church that we see every week and take for granted.  So come along on my journey and see my life through the lens of my camera.  I will try to post at least once a week, but maybe more.

January 1- Happy New year!  We had our freinds the Hoffman's come over from Fresno to celebrate the new year with us.  We have been celebrating with them for several years now.. so it is our "tradition".  Here are the girls, Kelsey, Kirsten, Bekah and Hannah just after the ball dropped on Dick Clark's Rockin New Year's eve...

January 2-  Kiwi loves the Christmas tree.  She loves to hang out under it.  I am not sure what the appeal is, but it becomes her favorite spot while it is up.

Jan. 3-  We get our children every toy and electronic thing known to man.. so what do I see when I look out the kitchen window?  Bekah and her friends.. sitting on the curb playing in the mud... really?

Jan.4- My friend Julie gave me these slipper/boots for my birthday in November.  I am really enjoying them during the extra cold winter days.. well ok, so in California "extra cold" isn't extreme but I am freezing on the days it doesn't make it to 60 degrees!

Jan. 5-  This year, I am the PTSA Auditor for Orcutt Junior High School.  I am responsible to check the books 2 times this year to see if all the i's have been dotted and t's crossed and that the books balance.

Jan.6- Today a miracle occurred!!! I had to got to the DMV to look into my renewed license.. I was in and out of the DMV in 15 minutes flat!  Our DMV is notorious for 2 and 3 HOUR waits.. so I felt very blessed indeed!

Jan.7-  Just before Christmas, I saw a perfect dining room set at Costco.  I talked my husband into going to buy it after Christmas, but they were sold out.  Last night, I called Costco and they were back in stock.  We went to buy it.. but I don't know what we were thinking!  It was 5 huge boxes and only one would fit in my little SUV.  We called on our friend Greg to come with his small pickup and help.. but only 3 boxes would fit in his truck!  So Tim and Greg made one trip to our house while I stood out in the parking lot with the other two boxes and read a book.. it was FREEZING and DARK!  I got several weird looks and an offer to help... today we rearranged stuff and now my new dining room set looks FABULOUS!

Jan.8- Kiwi loves to sleep in a sunbeam.  She goes out of her way to find them.  Today, I found her in the dirty towel hamper which happened to be in the sun!

Jan.9- Today Bekah and I were at church getting ready to watch the toddlers.  I noticed that Bekah matched the Zebras painted on the wall!