Extra Jalapenos Please!

Who knew? Today when I went to Subway and they asked me if I wanted jalapenos I said, "Yes, extra jalapenos please." What? Where did that come from? Am I just getting old (are my taste buds dying off and need an extra boost of flavor?) or has that yummy taste been there all along?

My favorite is when the spicy of jalapeno taste mixes with the sweet flavor of the sweet onion sauce on the teriyaki chicken sandwich. Mmmm, oh ya!!

What has gotten in to me? When I got married I didn't even want to eat peperoncini peppers on anything. And heaven forbid if the salsa was any hotter than "mild". Brad laughed at me and labeled me as stubborn (probably a fair label). Finally out of sheer embarrassment (a grown woman picking peppers out of the Olive Garden Salad), I ate a few. And low and behold, they were quite tasty indeed. That was the limit though. Jalapenos were WAY over the line. They were ugly, had an unappetizing crunch and they were definitely TOO HOT! Somewhere along the line (I'm not even quite sure where) of my biweekly trips to Subway (someday I'll give a full account of my addiction to Subway) I acquired a taste for them. And today I ordered EXTRA! Miracles never cease!

Hmmm, just thought I'd share.

You're welcome!

Mission 10

(game face)

Well, I did it! Yesterday I ran the 10 mile run here in San Juan Bautista. I really didn't ever see myself doing something like this. It was a super nice day (maybe a little too nice, I prefer running under a cloud cover)! It started and ended at the historic Catholic Mission (beautiful venue) and went out into the agriculture area surrounding it.

(only about 100 meters to go)

My Stats:

I came in 22 out of 31 in my age group

My time was, 1 hour, 46 minutes and 26 seconds

Andy Chatham, Caroline Anderson, and, Loren Dickson from Hollister ran it too.

I love that Loren and Andy are giving all their energy at the end, to finish the race and then there's Fan - Andy's Dog (who also ran the whole 10) looking like she sees a cat off to the side that she might have to go chase for a while.

And Ben and Carolina Reed came down from Morgan Hill.

I love this picture of Ben and Carolina - such cute people!

It makes such a difference to have friends there with you.

There was also a 5K race going on too. Brad and Brady chose to do this one. I think next year Brad'll choose to do the 10 mile... but he may not be as goofy at the finish line.

Kelsi and Afton (and Macy) came to cheer me on, I was surprised and happy. Aren't they cute?

(this is such a cute photo! I love it!)

(Macy's the only one that didn't mind the sweat - in fact, she kinda liked it)

Really! I totally, totally enjoyed it. Such a sense of accomplishment and I felt so good afterward. Mile 8 was hard. I was ready to be done and I was pleasantly surprised the the song "Down By the Lazy River" by the Osmonds was the song that came on to get me over the hump... seriously it cracks me up that is was that song. (My regular power song happened to come on during a downhill stretch, miles before, oh well.)

Who knows I might even try a 1/2 marathon next time. Right now that extra 3 miles sounds like torture, so we'll see.

Here's the parting photo. This guy ran in a kilt. I think he knew it would be a chick magnet. He was right!

Mothers and Kids

I remember when I was a kid and it was Christmas or Mom's birthday and we would ask her what she wanted and she would reply with a irritatingly boring (read; hard, or next to impossible) answer like, "I just want my kids to get along with each other." or "I want everybody to be happy and healthy." I always thought it was just a line, another way to jab at us, a phrase to remind us that we hadn't been getting along, or at the very best, a way to nicely tell us that what she really wanted was out of our price range so just suck it up and be nice to your sister. But you know what? Now that I'm a mom, I've realized that moms mean stuff like this. When acted upon, it means the world to our seeming unmaterialistic lives.

Case in point. After church a couple of weeks ago I went up stairs to change my clothes and there was note on my mirror written on a post-it note. All it said was "Thank You." I recognized the writing as Brady's. I asked him what the thank you note was for. He looked embarrassed and acted like he didn't write it. I persisted. He half admitted to writing it but still wouldn't fess up about the reason. I told him, with a wink, that it didn't matter, that I'll just take it as, "Thanks mom for EVERYTHING you do. I know you work hard for us and I really appreciate it." After a few guffaws from nearby siblings he ended the torturous spotlight and said it was thanks for me giving him a hand massage during Sacrament Meeting. Aww, be still my heart. This was the sweetest thing. I was melting inside but gave him a high-five and said, "Well you're welcome, anytime." After all I didn't want to get too mushy, he might never leave me another note. I went straight up to take a picture though so I'd have a memory of it incase the high-five showed too much motherly interest, and therefore deterring any further post-it note communications. Of course, even 10 days later that note is still stuck to my mirror. I love looking at it and thinking about it.

Now you all know what to get me for my birthday - a simple yellow, sticky paper with 2 short words written on it. (of course it may not have the same impact this one did - no offense or anything, I just have this feeling)

SIDE NOTE: While I was there I took a couple of bathroom reflection shots, that I seem to have an affinity for. Here's two I liked. I was having trouble with the focusing due to the bright windows behind me and the toothpaste spots on the mirror (see, not to proud to admit it). I didn't try too hard on this particular day cuz I was hungry and I knew there were pot stickers cooking downstairs. I'm gonna have to practice again another time after I clean my mirror, put cords away and have my blood sugar at a respectable level. Something about the blurry is a bit appealing to me though. It seems raw and unplanned I guess. I think I even like the toothpaste spots... hmm, or maybe it just a way to procrastinate actually cleaning them off.

Favorite Photos of 2009

What makes a favorite photo for me?

It could be any number of things

here's a list:

• makes me say "awwwww"
• makes me smile
• makes me laugh (smiling and laughing at a photo is totally different)
• makes me say "oh ya, remember that?"
• makes a warm spot in my heart
• has good lighting
• has good color
• has good composition
• captures a mood or a personality
• random (I love randomness)

(a combination of any of these is just GRAVY)

classic Dumb and Dumber Pose

I have looked at this picture a thousand times and I still laugh out loud each time

How true that is - totally random

My baby boy, with good lighting and for some reason I love that old t-shirt he has on

Bahahaha! This is the "Dressing Room Nazi". She worked at the Marshalls in San Francisco that we went to when we went to see Wicked. Let's just say their percentage of shoplifting is probably VERY low.

Cute Hubby! He rarely gets animated for a picture. He's cute here, and he just makes me laugh.

I don't even need to comment on this one do I?

They were being silly, but it is a precious moment to me

I like to call this photo "Epiphany". I was getting on Brady's case about coloring all over his expensive Tony Hawk skater shoes. Then I realize those shoes were pretty much on their last leg anyway. Also I felt like doing something like this is totally "boy" and Brady thought it was sooooo coool! Who am I to argue. I still don't condone coloring on expensive clothes, but in this case this image will stick in my mind forever. This is typical of Brady at 11 years old, not to mention the colors and setting are nice. And I love the little weed in the foreground.

A rare opportunity to spend time with Mom. Great lighting, great colors, sweet memories.

This picture makes me feel patriotic. Not to mention the lighting was fabulous and it shows Afton's blue, blue eyes (ooo, part of that patriotic feeling).

This picture, and the next one are of Afton getting ready for her first Stake dance (a big event around here) For some reason I love bathroom, mirror reflection images this one just came out great. I don't know if I like it better in black and white or color though. You choose for yourself.

Aaaaaa! Fabulous composition! This may be my favorite picture of the year. I can't explain it. I think it has most of the elements of my aforementioned reasons.

This turquoise wall and these cute people make me very happy.

Family Rocks! The Beach Rocks! Nuff Said

I call it art

This is one of our very first pictures of Troy - I didn't know at the time I was capturing his personality on film.

Good times! Good times! Laughing! A picture says a thousand words.

Chinatown. The color and composition here make me feel warm and fuzzy. (Side note: I almost got hit by a taxi to get it.)

This picture has been on my blog before as a photo I love. The color, the composition, the little bit of movement in the bottom left corner, school spirit, my baby girl.

These aren't the only pictures I enjoy from 2009, but they are my pick for the top spots. It makes me excited to see what pictures I'm going to capture this year.

A Real Runner

(Well, here I am. This is a mildly embarrassing picture Brad took of me wearing the new running outfit he got me for Christmas. I don't think he did it on purpose, but it ended up matching my new Nike running shoes - see, I'm all about the "cool")

So the other day I posted something about running onto my Facebook page and Janet (my sister) commented on it. What she said got me to thinking and reshaping my attitude a little bit. This is part of what she wrote. "So how's running going? Are you ready for your 10 miler at the end of the month? Do you love it? Are you addicted yet? Why do you love running?"

Now, while I've seen benefits from running and I don't hate it (shocker) I think in the back of my mind I kept waiting to enjoy it until I became a "real" runner. I don't know what a "real" runner is or does, but I was just a beginner, a rookie. I'm not very good and I still looked at it as something to "get done", and something that took up a chunk of my day. I liked it, I guess but I certainly wouldn't say I was addicted.

With some suggestions from Janet, I think I can think of myself as a "real" runner (I ran 8 miles, non-stop yesterday, for heaven's sake) I started looking at it from a different point of view. I might have to wait for that addicted part, but here are some things that I enjoy very much about running.

1. It's easy (and also necessary) to let your mind go.

2. For me when my legs are moving my brain comes up with interesting solutions and creative ideas (one of my favorite things to think about is blog entries - maybe you'll see some of them here one day. Oh, wait! You already have, this is one)

3. I live in a beautiful area - I get to see it up close and personal.

4. My 2 favorite birds Quail and Chickadees. I see lots while I'm running.

5. I like the way my breathing feels later in the day

6. I feel accomplished

7. It's a good way to stay in shape.

8. It helps me de-stress

9. It's measurable. - It's easy to track milage, calories burned etc.

10. I find I make better food choices

11. It warms me up (on cold days) and cools me off (on warm days - you know, the sweat)

12. Sunrises (hmm, at least when I make it out early enough)

13. I love my running play list on my iPod. (some people like to run without music, saying they think better. I like running with music because my feet can keep the rhythm while my brain is thinking about something else)

14. It smells good outside (except when I pass the skunk bush)

15. I feel more cheerful

16. I feel cool - not temperature-wise (that's not a bad thing right?) I feel like I'm defying my age.

17. I've conquered something that I've always professed to hate

18. I get to buy cool shoes and clothes (apparently my life is wrapped up in being cool)

19. I learn "positive self-talk". And the good news is it works in other areas of my life too

20. Knowing I can do this helps me realize I can do other hard things in my life.

So there! There are 20 things! That alone should prove that I am a "real" runner.

And just as a bonus I'm including my top 6 running songs

(in no particular order)

1. Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne

2. Woman - Wolfmother

3. My Life Would Suck Without You - Kelly Clarkson ("Since You Been Gone" is right up there too)

4. Here it Goes Again - Ok Go

5. The Ultimate You - Lindsey Lohan - Ha! Go Figure

6. CrushCrushCrush - Paramore (other Paramore songs are awesome too)

Honorable Mention -

Money Money Money - ABBA- actually the one I have is from Mama Mia (So funny huh? Not necessarily my first pick, but for some reason it always seems to come on at some point during my run - I guess I've just gotten used to it.)

Matchy Matchy Christmas

(This is us on Christmas Eve with our new jammies and our puppies - if you look carefully you can see Troy on the lefthand side)

We made a haul this Christmas! I think everyone was pretty happy with their stash. The funniest part to me though was, how, for some reason, we all seemed to match our gifts. I love when random things like this happen.

This is my favorite matchy picture. Afton just matched her gifts all the way around. She had a very pink and turquoise Christmas. And Cousin Joe was totally inspired to wrap the gift he gave her in paper matching her new jammie pants.

And you just have to see what was in the package from Cousin Joe!

Platform Slippers! So Afton... so perfect and of course, so the right color!! (just as a side note, with them on, she is almost as tall as Brad)

I matched twice. Weird...

Packaging on a gift from Kelsi.

And on a hat from Brady and a Zebra Blanket from my sister, Janet.

For Kelsi not being a "pink girl" she got pink jammies and a "Barbie" DVD from Brady, in what other color, than pink. (The story on the Barbie videos is a subject for some other post)

Brad had the most matches - not just in color though.

He got this Cramer T-shirt from Afton.

Brad identifies on many levels with Seinfeld and the characters therein. TOTAL MATCH! (sorry about the blurriness)

He also matched with the subject of another t-shirt he received from Brady.

Brad is our resident Grinch. He doesn't hate Christmas, but he's not into the "experience" like the rest of us are... he grumbles about putting up the tree, stresses about the amount of money we're spending, complains about how much fudge and junk food we all consume and the list goes on and on. In the end he's really a good sport and it's just fun to tease him about it.

I was also happy that this t-shirt matched his new jammies. Santa searched high and low and couldn't find a suitable one in the correct size. I think his new jammies are cute, now if we can just convince him that they are "low-rise" pants and they really DO fit him.

Here's his color matching gift. Pretty good since he basically only got one. Have I mentioned how hard he is to buy for?

Poor Brady didn't really match any gifts, this was as close as he came. But really, who wouldn't match Lego Rock Band? We've been having a great time with it. Thanks for sharing with us all Brade.

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On another note: We had Christmas Eve dinner with 4 of the missionaries from our area, The Oelrichs (from the ward) and the Fabelas (our neighbors)

It was yummy and fun. These people are great! Our funniest part of the evening was trying to get the above picture of whole group before dinner. I had to set-up the camera, start the timer, run down the stairs, get to my seat and look up and smile before the camera flashed. It only took 3 tries... whew! Brad took this video of the ordeal.

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Also, I couldn't help myself... I bought these t-shirts for the Elders. I had to get one for Brady too, cuz I liked them so much. They say,"I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am!" They humored me and wore them over to our house yesterday (p-day) to show me. I thought I did pretty good on getting the right sizes. (And thanks Michael H. for being the delivery boy.)

All in all it was a really great season, despite the fact that I never got my tree decorated (hey at least it was up), the lights never got hung outside and I never got gifts made for my friends. Shameful, I know. These are things I'm really bugged about but have decided to just let go.... Instead, I can feel blessed that I was NOT stressed this season even though I had tons of extra stuff going on. I can be happy that we were mostly healthy and that we got to spend so much time together and that everyone was happy. We totally missed our families but really, we could get used to this whole "being alone on Christmas thingy". We got to hang out in our jammies ALL DAY and eat lots of junk and enjoy our gifts. Now I've just got to put together my new puzzle and I can feel that my Christmas 2009 was a success.

I'm including this last picture because I love it and I think Brad is a babe (messy hair and all)!

19

(can you believe it? we didn't even get a picture of us - but this was taken a few days ago - we still look pretty much the same)

Yesterday was our 19th anniversary! I have to say it was an awesome day. I love Brad so much and it just keeps getting better.

I am so blessed to have someone so talented, nice, concerned and beautiful. I am glad he is into me (his wife) and us (his family). I'm glad he has a good head and a good heart. I'm glad we had the chance to be together last night to bond, to reconnect and to hold hands. It's hard in this crazy world and at this busy time of year to remember to do that.

At first I was excited about the prospect of going out last night, but as time got closer I was realizing how much stuff I still had to do before Christmas and I was cursing ourselves for the billionth time, for choosing to get married at Christmastime. Just one more added stress. Not to mention I had to think of a another present to get for Brad. I mean, come on now, Christmas is hard enough.

But... it was a perfect evening!

We went to dinner at the Chart House in Monterey. We ate overlooking the ocean which we hardly glanced at because we were having such good, engaging conversation, we connected, we ate Chocolate Lava Cake! It was AWESOME! Brad gave me a brand new orange iPod. 16G with a video camera and FM radio. He also made me this cutest video, set to music called "California Girl" - sung by Chillawack (a Canadian band) - are you seeing some deep meaning here? It was so sweet. I really enjoyed it even though it was mostly just a bunch of pictures of me -lol (later he made that comment that the video was really a present for him)

After dinner we went to see the new movie Avatar. I was skeptical. But WOW it was so, so, so well done! It was 2 1/2 hours and not once did I wonder when it was going to end. It has definitely set the bar for CGI and future movies of this type. We made the comment that it is the Star Wars of 2009.

All together it was a special and bonding night. And thanks to the configuration of Brad's new truck I actually got to slide over and sit next too him as we drove around. Just like the good old days. Really, it felt just like that (only better)

Here's the photo montage Brad made for me! You'll have to pause my playlist (down on the right sidebar) so the music doesn't conflict