LIfe is a beach

I headed over to my sister, Heather’s house so we could car pool on the way to the coast. It was an exciting ride in that my sister tends to tailgate…. I love her but the rides with her are always more fun when she is behind the wheel!

Once we were at the beach we called my little brother, Brandon and his girlfriend, Becky, to get an ETA. They were going to be awhile so Heather and I window-shopped for a while. There were these super cool/cute mosaics along the side walk. These are some of my favorites!

With Betty Boop... no biggie!

I like to get my Grandma post cards of the places I go to so finding the right post card was a drawn out process. It had to be just right! I also wanted to find a store that had sand castle building supplies… ie pail and shovel! I found a store that had all sand castle toys 20% off so I bought a cute set!

Heather and I also had to stop in a shop to get some salt-water taffy. We also stopped at a coffee shop. I got a pumpkin latte and Heather got a peaches and cream Italian soda. Yummy!

I was getting anxious to get down to the water as the annual kite festival was winding down. Once we made it to the parking lot I was all gung ho to get my feet in the sand so I booked down to the water while Heather stayed in the car for a bit to call Brandon and Becky to get an updated ETA.

Something I feel you must know about me is…. I’m ALWAYS prepared! I brought a beach towel, sunscreen, sunglasses, camping chair, water bottle, and snacks. I was the only one in our group who bought items…. more about this later.

Heather and I played in the sand of a bit while waiting for Brandon and Becky to arrive in between watching the kites. 

 

Once we were all together it was time to get down to business and make an actual sand castle. I made a sand compound while Heather, Brandon and Becky made a mermaid that turned into a mummy. Hey Halloween is coming up, right?

 My sand castle... looks like a compound!

Heather, Brandon, and Becky went down to the water while I (whom was prepared!) sat in my chair wrapped up comfortably enjoying the ocean breeze and kite display. Heather, Brandon and Becky were hungry for dinner so we left a lot earlier than I was anticipating. I obviously came prepared and wanted to stay out on the water for a bigger chunk of time then they all did. 

Oh well. I dipped my toes in the water, packed up and we all loaded up towards dinner. 

 We drove to Newport and walked around the boardwalk. 

 All snuggled up!

 I'm 99% sure she is pregnant!

After walking around the boardwalk and making sure to stop by a candy store for more salt water taffy and sea foam for me we headed to dinner. 

 I ordered a draft root beer but the waitress also brought me a very tiny house beer.

 This was as close as the beer was getting to me. It smelled awful!

 Becky and Brandon. I like that they are dating! Becky is just perfect for 

Brandon! They are just so dang adorable!

 Heather and I. We are 100% related but I swear I was switched at the hospital. I don't think we look alike at all. Heather and I have the same dad but Heather and Brandon look just each other. I'm the odd one out! However, I'm lucky to have her as MY big sister!

Heather and I drove down to Corvallis to see Brandon and Becky's new apartment. I'm so proud of them and all of their accomplishments.There new place is cozy and nice. And hey it's probably 10 times the size of my apartment! Oh and Brandon got me Microsoft Office 2011.... I've been geeking out since! 

On the way back home with Heather we got into a heated argument. The topic was end of life decisions. I'm the only in my family that works in medicine so my family doesn't understand where I'm coming from and why I want certain things done if heaven forbid anything should happen to me. I'm sure I didn't present where I was coming from well so I know that didn't help at all. Heather and I have VERY different views on this topic but I hope she knows that I respect her choices and I hope I didn't upset her too much. I feel like I put my foot in my mouth. Damn it! C'est la vie!

Oh Deer

On Saturday/Sunday I house sat once again…. It’s almost become my new job! On my way to the house to check on the animals these ran a crossed the road:

 They look like one super weird deer in this picture.... like 3 zombie deer!?!?

This time I house sat for these black beauties….

This is Gonnit as in 'dog gone it'.... she is elderly and sometimes she likes 

pets from me. Do you see that white tissue on the floor by her tail? Keep reading!

 This is cat, yes his name is cat. That is all.

 Gonnit and Seek (it means black bear in Alaskan)

The owners are Beaver fans so it’s very fitting that they have black colored pets. If only cats came in solid orange…. Wait… they do! Anywhoo the animals were great with the exception for this big brute that decided to take the bathroom trash and scatter it all around the house. That was a fun clean up… NOT! 

Seek was the guilty one for the trash scattered all over the house.

On Sunday I got a call from my friend, Brittany, asking if I could help with a photo shoot. The photo shoot was basically photographing Brittany’s husband, Kevin, in his doctor coat for his upcoming graduation in June. Part of the photo shoot involved photographing Toby (my love bug!) in some of the pictures as well as Thomas, one of their cats. It was a lovely morning in the park with lots of great sun light and pretty views of the creek.

Later in the day after the photo shoot and after checking on the animals that I was house-sitting for the weekend I headed over to my sister’s house because we were headed to the beach…. Stay tuned for the next post!

October First Friday

Today was .... dare I say it  ..... a pleasant day at work! Gasp! I haven't had one of those in a long time! The day went by quickly and for me at least uneventfully....which is always good... oh except I forgot to mention that I won a gift certificate! It's from a walking challenge that some of us participated in. I had won other gift certificates a few years ago for a similar competition and hopefully I now have enough to get a new pair of danskos (super spendy work shoes).

After work I went to Brittany's house and took care of her animals. Let's face it I love Toby and I wanted to see the little bugger! I then went back to my house and put some jeans on before heading out to first Friday.

Every first Friday of the month the stores stay open late, their (is that the proper there/their?) is live music and yummy food all throughout downtown. My co-workers and I try to get together and have dinner. We always end up laughing way too hard and having too much fun!

Vicky, Diana, Denevae, and Rhett. 

Karina and I. She is pretty freaking awesome! 

Karina's hubby, Steve and his awesome self portrait. 

Everyone decided that his picture needed to be displayed..... 

this was after everyone else had a lot of drinks! 

Buddies! 

This how they ALWAYS behave!

There was a guy who went up the jute box and selected three songs..... ALL OF MY FAVORITE SONGS! Just so you know I listen to music 24/7 except for work. Music is my life! I couldn't find him but I'm telling you he was marriage material! Just kidding..... seriously though he had the exact songs that I LOVE!

After dinner and after some people went home the group continued to the chocolate store down the street for dessert. While at the store I got a dark chocolate truffle that happened to be shaped like a kitty. When I went to take a picture of the chocolate kitty the owner decided that we need to plate the chocolate.... what a sweet lady! 

 My dessert and I. 

Close up of the chocolate kitty. 

 Close up of the chocolate kitty.

After we got our chocolates Nikki, Karina, Steve and I headed outside. I was going to eat my chocolate kitty but Nikki kept making meow sounds and said that I was going to eat a cat. 

We were all laughing so hard. I laughed so hard I was crying! A woman whom happens to walk her therapy dog, Charlie, by my house every day and whom I wave to every day walked by just as Nikki said that I ate cats. The woman hurried into the art gallery with Charlie. I approached her and told her that we were talking about the chocolate I had just purchased. She looked puzzled and pulled Charlie closer to her. Awesome. Now she thinks I actually eat cats. Oh goodness! We all had a good laugh about it and I ate the chocolate anyway!

Nikki was cracking up the whole time!

What a fun way to end the day! How was your Friday?

Prayer

I've been having a tough time with some things in life and recently I've been praying about the issues seeking comfort, guidance and direction. I find that I'm blessed in that I feel like get my answers/reassurances fairly quickly and clearly... most of the time.

Growing up I was taught to pray every morning, night, before meals and throughout the day. Honestly, for me anyway, that is a bit much. So, I pray whenever I feel like it. Sometimes it's daily or it can be monthly. Sometimes it's when I'm walking down the hall, washing dishes or actually kneeling. Just depends.

Sometimes my prayers are more of a pleading nature and rarely they are of utter sadness/disappointment. Most of the time though it's me just asking for guidance. I need that extra help in knowing what I'm supposed to do.

On Saturday when I was driving home in that horrid rain storm I pulled over and prayed for safety and sure enough I made it home safely. I know some people would say that it was just luck or destiny but I think any extra help is always welcomed!

So, right now I will be sure to pray tonight and express my gratitude for the additional guidance/reassurance/comfort I have had recently. 

Do you pray?

*** All photos are from my trip to Temple Square 
in Salt Lake City Utah May 2009***