Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Movie to see

So last night Chad and I went to the movies along with a billion other people! We saw National Treasure: Book of Secrets and loved it! I don't know what the critics are saying about it, all i know is that we liked the first National Treasure movie and we liked the second one too. There might even be a third!!!! Yippee!

FYI: TGI Fridays is open on Christmas Day.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

chad and tommy dancing!!!

During the last dinner on our cruise the wait staff encouraged the guests to dance with them! Here's some video of Chad and Tommy's cool dance moves!

The video isn't working right now...sorry :( Trust me, it was really funny!

Monday, December 24, 2007

Merry Christmas!

My Christmas prayers:

I pray that everyone takes a moment to slow down and pray for someone else in need.

I pray that we all remember the true meaning of Christmas: the birth of our savior, Jesus Christ.

I pray for my loving husband as he is a God loving man!

I pray for anyone who doesn't know the saving grace of God. Specifically that they (whoever they are) accept Jesus as their savior and invite him into thier lives to have a real relationship with such an awesome and merciful God. No matter the sins of the past..he will forgive you when you except Jesus as your savior.

I pray God gives me the words to say to be a becon of light to all who don't know Jesus.

I pray for my Nana health as she is in the hospital again tonight.

I pray for my sisters and their familes...precious Godly children they are.

I pray for chad's family's health and spirt...such wonderful people they are!

I praise God for EVERYTHING I have. I know it's not what this life is about, but God has given it to us for a reason. Thank you oh Lord for I am not worthy of your gifts. I sinned before, but now I'm saved and feel your love in many different ways. You give and take away: you provide just what we need to do your will. I praise you for sending your son to spend time on this earth existing as fully human and fully God. I recognize his birth as holy. I recognize, but cannot even begin to describe the amount of love you have for me to allow your precious son to die for all my many sins. Lord you are a great God and a God of wonders. I love you always and forever. Although tomorrow may not be Jesus' actual birthday...Christmas is a symbol of the birth of our savior. I encourage everyone to accept the good news of Jesus and become saved by his blood. I fully declare that without Jesus Christ I will not go to heaven, instead I will go to Hell. I choose God and heaven because he loves me unconditionally and chose to save me and anyone esle who would like to be saved. What do you choose? Who do you choose?

Semi Functional Rest Stop

Okay, so on the 10 hour ride home from LA, we made many stops. One stop to gas up, and about a bazillion restroom stops! Yesterday (sunday)Chad and I had detox massage and we are only guessing that it contributed to our need to stop every 30 miles (okay so I'm exaggerating a bit...but we did stop a lot) Also, to be honest, we stopped for a couple hours at the outlets too!

Anyways, 99% of the rest stations were standard in functionality and cleanliness. They had working toilets and were resonably clean considering the heavy traffic. However, we weren't so fortunate at one "cafe" rest stop. Because we really couldn't wait any longer, we had no choice but to stop at what seemed like an abandoned town..almost ghost-townish! There were a whopping 2 cars in the dirt parking lot and maybe 5 tables inside. You'd think it were quaint from my description...and it was...until I entered the womens restroom.
Imagine my surprise when I saw in the first of 4 stalls: a dirty toilet, well soiled and almost overflowing. The 2nd stall spared me the mental image of the toilet as it had a sign declaring "out of order". No biggy right..there were still 2 more stalls; I was bound to find a functioning stall. The 3rd stall proved to be manageable even though there was a hand written note on the toilet tank's lid requesting the user to "Hold down to flush-Thank you." Hey, no problem...I use my foot anyways and I have pretty good balance so I could manage in this stall. My curiosity got the best of me because like a train wreck I just had to see what was behind door number 4. I don't think words could actually describe the image or the smell. So, I'll let you look at the pics yourself. Yep, I toop pictures of it because I know people might think I was exagerating. Oh, and to make it even more of a memorable moment the sink was also "out of order" I just had to laugh! Hand sanitizer came in handy after this stop! Don't worry...there are no poopy pictures, I didn't snap a picture of stall #1.

rest stop restroom

Christmas Cruise

So our present to our McDonald family was to spend time together! What better way than a cruise!

Day 1: Drive 8 hours to L.A We stopped a bagillion times for gas, food, restrooms etc. There was so much wind our SUV only got 16 miles to the gallon! Yeah, crazy huh! After wating in the long line (even though we pre-registered online...it still took us 30 minutes) we boarded the boat. Then participated in a mandatory munster drill....that was fun! You'll see some awesome photos of us in our fashionable vests! Whoever said orange was the new pink was seriously disturbed (quick, what movie is that line from!?). We explored the boat...grabbed a bite to eat before our 8:30pm dinner. This is where we were introduced to some pretty cool boat movement as demonstrated by a migrating ketchup bottle landing nearly in Chad's lap! Yeah, it vibrated right off the table...good catch Chad!

Day 2: Sleep in, work out with Julie (we did a yogalates class: mix between pilates and yoga) Then we got off the boat and toured Ensenada and La Bufadora (the blow hole). Oh, and we ate like a zillion churros! Did I mention that is one of the main reasons Chad and I keep taking the same cruize over and over again! They are soooo yummy! We got back in time for formal dinner. After little show by our wait staff (they sang an italian love song), we walked around the boat, listened to some Karaoke.

Day 3: Sea Day! Chad and I got massages (they covered us in sea weed, then wrapped us in a shear tin foil material (all you space people think MLI) and left us alone (wrapped up, unable to move) for about 20 minutes! Then we washed as much of the green goup off and came back for the massage! On the way back to the room, we noticed we still had some green stuff on us! Imagine the Hulk...that's wat Chad looked like! To kill some time, we won bingo, played a game of "What's in the bag/purse?" and then watched the Christmas show where all the little kids on the boat sang Christmas songs! So cute! We weren't allowed to take pictures of it though...copyright law or something. Then we caught another show a couple hours later...Rock n' Roll show...Lynn got pulled up on stage to do the Macarena! At dinner, the waiters invited the guests to dance with them! I have a great little video of Chad and his brother, Tommy dancing!

Day 4: Got up way too early, lugged our luggage off the boat (saved us oodles of time doing it ourselves rather that putting it outside our door the night before so that the crew could pick it up, haul it off the boat, then call off sections of the boat to disembark...this would have taken up the 3 hours!

Overall, we all laughed at (and with) each other...making it a great family vacation! Thank you, Julie, Tom, Tommy, and Ryan for those good times! We're ready for another!

Believe it or not, I did this whole blog during the car ride home. I'm tellin' you, those sea sickness patches work, otherwise I would have been really sick reading and typing! Gotta go...almost home! Enjoy the pics!

McDonald Christmas Cruise

Thursday, December 20, 2007

In loving memory


Her time brief

Her spirit bright

Still no words

It's just not right

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Today we took Melissa to The Farm! It's a small (10 acre) little pecan grove that organically grows all the veggetables used in deliciously quaint recipes in the three restaurants on site. It's located just south of Southern and 32nd St. They even bring the food in picnic baskets and you eat outside in the fresh air on old fashioned picnic tables. Being that it was such a beautiful day today, we met Chad for lunch!

I'm waiting on Melissa to send me the pic of us together with the veggie gardens behind us!

We saw this guy picking carrots! So cool! Melissa took a picture with here handy dandy camera! Then we walked around pointing to all the different kinds of lettuce (wow...there's a lot!).

How cute is this basket-o-food! Love it!

Christmas Party with Melissa and Friends

On Friday (Dec. 16), my friend Melissa came into town to visit family and friends. We had a party in the evening where she invited lots of old friends to get together, eat great food and drink fantasticly yummy apple cider punch while sharing laughs and stories. We all had a really great time and of course they are all welcome at the McDonald's anytime...such a great group!

Melissa made the punch so pretty! Bravo!

Jen and Ryan were also able to make it! Yeah! Ryan gave us all great photography tips and Jen showed off her new car! By the way, I love the roominess of her car and the surround sound too!



Jen laughing at Ryan :)

Ryan with lots-o-popcorn in his mouth!

from left: Sussy, Paula, Kristi, Melissa, Pam, Ashley

Sussy and Ashley in the kitchen bein' goofy!

We did a gift exchange and had a blast! I ended up with this really cute belly dancing kit (symbals included). They all insisted I show them what I learned! Modestly, of course!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Beautiful Day!


When I walked outside this morning around 8am...there it was....fog!!!!! It was beautiful. What a beautiful day that God has given me. Because of the hectic-ness of the season and my uneasy tummy for the past week, each night I've been reminding myself of God's greatness for each day by saying, "the day is done, the day was a gift from God." I tend to go to bed thinking of the things I didn't get done or what I have yet to do. A nice relaxing bath and a simple prayer asking God to help me see the his loving and merciful gifts has really helped me! Then to walk outside and see such an awesome sight...I just wanted to praise and thank God for everything!








Sunday, December 9, 2007

Thanksgiving at Lynn's parents

We all ate an early dinner at my parents house in Cave Creek. There was home-made bread to go around for all!
Angel and Scott
Mom and Dad
Kristel and the kids!
me and my man!
from left: Brendan(4yrs), Emily(4yrs), Ally (17 mo), Andreja (8yrs)


My niece and nephews played in the backyard till lunch was ready. They had a great time!



Because Lynn works with pre-school kids...



Although I'm not a fan of Halloween, I dressed up minimally this year...for the kids! On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of the week of Halloween all the coaches dressed up and made the kids smile! On Monday I was an angel, on Tuesday the kids laughed at my kitty cat face (shown above), and then on Wednesday, I was a ladybug...antenna and wings included! Good clean fun!
Chad didn't know that I had painted my face so when he saw me he started laughing...he loves me sooo much!





Saturday, December 1, 2007

Victory Day 2007

Every year, Aspire Kid Sports Center hosts a Victory Day for children ages 3-6yrs. It is a time to show off all the gymnastics skills and tricks they have learned in class. All the instructors attend making it an event geared towards making the children smile! Here are the pics from this years Victory Day (Dec. 1st)

Victory Day 2007

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Peach Cobbler


This morning I made an attempt at home-made peach cobbler! I made a judgment call on the baking dish that I estimated to be a 3qt dish...however from the smell of the droplets burning in the oven as they overflowed from the pan....I don't think it was 3qts. Or I could have used too many peaches. But I'm quite the peach lover so I'm not ready to admit that I used too many cuz the peaches were soooo yummy! Either way, I sprinkled cinnamon all over the top and enjoyed my first home-made peach cobbler right out of the overflowin' baking dish!




Friday, October 12, 2007

Cat's tongue

An interesting (and random) fact about Lynn and Chad: we both can touch our tongue to our nose (much easier when we were younger, though). It looks like Daisy is following suit!



One with nature

Over the weekend we camped in Strawberry, Arizona...only about 2 hours north (Lynn's stomach was very appreciative of the short drive!) You have to love Arizona (yes we're a little biased, but hear me out for a sec). You can drive 2 hours North from Phoenix and drop 20 degrees. Seriously, it was beautify during the day (65degrees) and a little freezing during the night!
My sister and her family came up with us; we had so much fun! Emily (4yrs) had her first s'more and we collected lots of acorns and wild flowers...even leaves that were changing colors!!! We even cooked a meal over the fire, like we were "roughin' it." Everything tastes yummy when you're camping!
Emily (above, 4rys) and Ally (below, 15mo) were so adorable. Emily was so excited about s'mores her eyes lit up when we told her we were going to have some hot chocolate around the campfire to warm up from the cold night. She immediately added, "then we're gonna have s'mores!?!" Her excitement was priceless! Ally accidently fell into the mud, but loved every minute of it! She didn't let anything phase her. She just walked around staring at all the cool stuff! She'd fall every once in a while, then dust herself off and go walking somewhere new.
This was the second trip with our camper and it worked out really well! Despite our heater running out in the early morning (causing us to snuggle up for survival...which is the best part of camping...who needs those silly heaters!)
I forgot a sharp knife for cutting the potatoes so we used a really tiny (1") knife that Scott, Angel's husband, happened to have in the car as part of those all-in-one Swiss army style gadgets. Thank goodness for that! Then we found this campfire rack nearby that some previous campers had left behind. It was cool to be able to cook like they did in the old days!


D-Backs playoff fun!

We went to Game 1 of the NL Championship Series and cheered on our D-Backs! While Chad sported the the traditional "rally cap," Lynn kept score during a great game! Yes the D-Backs lost, however it was great just to be there enjoying a night of baseball!



We even contributed our fair share of booing at the interfence call during the seventh innning. Although we didn't participate in the throwing of garbage on the field, it was entertaining to see all the security guards scatter around!







Thursday, October 11, 2007

Gymnastics Bloopers!

So I was surfing the net and came across a video on you tube. Some of them I laughed at because they are typical gymnastics bloopers and others are truly unique. Either way, be prepared to wince as you watch some of the clips!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjNre1yI668

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Yummy Yummy Applesauce!

Oh my goodness....I've found a new dessert that comes in a very close second to dark chocolate! You're probably thinking..."she's not going to say applesauce is she?!" YEP! It's applesauce. Not just any applesauce, but rather... home-made applesauce served it warm with Cinnamon sprinkled on top! Seriously good. If you like the taste of hot apple pie filling, I can almost guarantee you'll be addicted like me! It's really easy to make too! Here are the directions:
  1. Peel and cut apples into quarters
  2. heat apples on stove until soft (I used a pressure cooker...but any old pot will be suffice)
  3. Mash hot soft apples to desired consistency (I like it pureed like baby food!)
  4. Add Cinnamon
  5. Grab a spoon and enjoy!

Approximate prep time: 10 min

Approximate cook time: 6 min for 6 apples in pressure cooker(more time if cooked in a regular pot)

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Demolition Time part 2

Phase 2: Renovate bathroom! This was so much easier to do than we thought it would be! Chad and I got our tools out, we hacked away at the cabinet, sink and mirror, then hualed it away! Of course, there were a few holes we had to patch up afterwards, but all in all, it went well! There was a perk to having wood floors in the bathroom...the paint (that we dripped in numerous places) just peeled right up! Sweet! Pictures to come!

Friday, September 21, 2007

Demolition Time

So it seems that we have the demolition/renovation itch! We are in the process of having new flooring installed and renovating our guest bathroom! We'll post some before and after pics for you to enjoy! In the meantime, the house is really dusty and unorganized! Literally, our couch is in our kitchen and den!

Phase 1: Rip up carpet, layout flooring in living room and hallway, run and slide across hallway like Tom Cruise in Risky Business, slide on our bellies on the floor (not as fun as you'd think!), watch cats loose traction and bump into walls (don't worry, no animals were injured in the installation of this floor.)









Monday, September 10, 2007

Chad's on TV!!!!

Chad's business was featured on ABC 15's Home Show. It will air on Friday at 7pm on channel 15. We're gonna try to put the 5 minute promo on the blogspot...but it may not work. We'll see.

We posted it on his company website. It might take a few minutes to load up. Let us know if you have any issues loading the 30 sec. commercial or the 5 minute video.

30 sec. Commercial
http://www.safeandsecurefence.com/media/Safe_and_Secure_Fence.wmv

5 minute Home Show Segment
http://www.safeandsecurefence.com/media/Movie.wmv
As exciting as it is to be on TV, the really emphasis is on what the Lord has provided! He has blessed us tremendously and we only hope to reflect as gracious servents of Him in all that we do.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Another day at the ballpark!


We went to the Diamondbacks games over the weekend! D-backs won the 3 game series (2-1) over the Cubs. Yeah! On Sunday, we sat in the party suites in left field courtesy of California Lutheran University. Chad's brother, Tommy, plays football for Cal Lutheran and we were very appreciative of the tickets! The food was great and the company was even better! Chad's parents and coworker, Mike, and his family were all there to enjoy the afternoon of baseball! We also met a lot of great alumni from Cal-Lu!

New York Trip

We went to central park on our first day in New York! It was wonderful! This picture was taken on a bridge in the park close to some softbal fields. What a beautiful day for a stroll in the park.

Central Park even had a merry-go-round that Lynn just couldn't resist. After making sure adults were allowed to ride and some minor begging on Lynn's part, we decided to ride it! It was so much fun; what a memory this will be!

Chad was a little unsure about the whole merry-go-round idea, but Lynn took his picture anyway to capture the moment!

On our last day, we went back to New York and took a carriage ride around the park. It's worth the $40 bucks to sit back and relax. Our carriage driver even gave us tidbits of interesting facts as he led us around the park. For example, the merry-go-round we rode on is the oldest working merry-go-round in the world (100yrs old)! Wowsa!


Lynn snuck a kiss in while taking a photo at Central Park!

On our first night we met up with Liza and her boyfriend, Jordan, for dinner and a stroll to Times Square. We ate at CJ Clarks, a really yummy restaurant with outstanding burgers. The whole night was a blast!

We went to ESPN zone to goof around. Chad couldn't resist the race car experience!

This HUGE dinosaur fossil was at te entrance of the Museum of Natural History. We spent the afternoon walking around the museum!



On Tuesday night, we went to Yankee Stadium for a great night of baseball. It was neat to be in a stadium with such history. And yes, Yankees won 16 to 3 over the White Sox! We had great seats, it was a cool experience!

We went to Rockifeller Center and NBC studios. This pic was taken outside NBC studios..thought it was kinda funny in an "office" way!

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Cat Frenzi

In May, we were proud to have a new addition to our family! Chad found an abandoned 2 week old kitten under a shed at his work. We named her Miss May and bottle fed her until she was about 6 weeks old. Our other cats have welcomed her into the family and we even caught Miss May snuggling with Bubba (our lovable 7 yr old 15lb cat). We also caught Daisy (our friendly 2 yr old flower nibbling cat) playing in a box. Here is our kitty photo collection!
Bubba looking at something to attack!
Daisy trying to sleep...a little annoyed at us!
Miss May discovering steps at 6 weeks
Bubba and Miss May cuddling on the office chair while Lynn edits the blog.
Daisy playing in a box(this occurs regularly)!