School is in session

So today was the first day back to school. ARGH!!! I was so not ready to start, especially since I had to get out of bed early. No more sleeping in!!! So I'm back in the habit of hitting the snooze button. Luckily enough today was a short day so I didn't have students until 3:10, but tomorrow is back to regular schedule. I'm only teaching 5 classes, 2 those being 6th grade classes. I guess that's the perk of being the Athletic Director. It's going to be an interesting year considering all the construction that is going on at school, so wish me luck.

sAnTa CrUz

Doug and I took a day trip to Santa Cruz. The weather was perfect, not too hot/cold and not too windy. We had a nice lunch right on the beach and enjoyed a stroll down the boardwalk and time laying on the beach. I didn't get to far into the water due to a bad experience in San Diego with the waves. It was pretty cold though. I really didn't know what to expect going there, but I will next time I go. It was pretty cool to see all the sand volleyball courts as well. It was no Venice, but it looked like fun. I wanted to get out there and play with them. There were rides there but we didn't ride them because the lines were too long and the fact that I sometimes get motion sickness. They have a huge video arcade there, and if any of you know Doug, he loves his video games. He found a couple that he used to play back in the day, so we had to stop and play. As you can see he was getting in to it. He was playing a game called Track & Field. It was actually pretty fun. He got mad when I took the picture because of the glare on the screen. He was getting his workout though. It was really nice to just go and relax and enjoy the company of the one I love being with.

10 year class reunion

This last weekend, I went back to Blackfoot for my 10 year high school reunion. It wasn't anything special, but it was nice to see old friends and what everyone has been up too. There wasn't too many from our class, which was disappointing but what can you do. Julia and Mo flew in from Arizona, so I was glad that I didn't have to show up solo. When we got there, Julia said she didn't want to go, but both Mo and I wouldn't let that happen. We had a sit down dinner and chatted with everyone. We then had a class group picture and then it was pretty much over. It was nice to see April, haven't seen her since high school. Everyone still seemed to have their little clicks like we did in high school, you'd think after 10 years we would move beyond that but some things never change.

GrOwinG uP in the DeSert

The only time that I think that I really enjoy going to Blackfoot, ID is during the summer time!!! Why??? Well because my parents house is amazing because of all the trees surrounding the house. When we first moved into the house, dad had the brilliant idea to plant as many trees as possible. I said, "Dad our house is going to be a jungle". Now, 15 years later as you can see the product of what we planted. The only bad thing about all these trees is mowing the lawn. I had to privilege this last weekend to mow the lawn. This used to be my job growing up and it wasn't as much work as it is now. I was going to use the riding lawn mower but it had a flat tire!!!! So needless to say 1 1/2 hr later, I finished mowing the lawn with the push mower. I wonder how many calories I burned?????

If you squint really hard you can see one of the neighbors house in the back ground. Yep, that's what you see when you look out the front window of the house.

oLd fRiEnDS

Do you ever wonder what old junior high school friends have been up too?? Well I have always wondered about my old junior high buddies since I left Arco, ID in the 8th grade.

I went out to Arco while I was at home these last two weeks to catch up with old friends. I went to lunch with Brandy (right photo) at the good ol' deli shop and had my usual turkey sandwich. Our family would go there all the time and it's still the same as when I left. The last time that I saw her was 10 years ago at her wedding and now she's got 3 kids!!! It was great to visit with her and catch up.

Marie (left photo), well we had some good times growing up. We even played little league basketball together. Watching those videos are always fun to laugh at. She would come play at my house as a youngster and now that we are adults now, she now lives in the house that I grew up in. With a new makeover to house, the inside looks nothing like it did when I lived there. The yard is pretty beat up due to house vacancy for 4 years, but the inside is amazing. I wish I could show you pictures from then/now. Again the last time that I saw Marie was 10 years ago and her wedding. Like Brandy, she also had 3 kids.

Thanks Marie and Brandy for a great day of catching up and reminiscing of the old days.

sMaRt cAr fOr TwO

So how many people can say that they've got a grandpa that drives a 2006 Mercedes Smart Care for Two???? Well I can say that my grandpa does. It's pretty roomy inside, but I don't think that type of car is made for tall people. Grandpa is always concerned about gas mileage, but keep in mind that grandpa doesn't travel far. He travels to the senior center, grocery store, library, and any resturaunt to pick up lunch/dinner for him and grams.

We went out to breakfast one morning and he let me drive it back home. You don't realize how short the car is until you look out the rearview mirror. To start the car, it has to be in neutral, then you have to put your foot on the break and put it in reverse. The car can either be automatic or manual. It doesn't have a lot of gidup like my Mazda (zoom, zoom), but it was fun to drive. I can now say that I have driven a Smart Car for Two.

P.S. Grandpa also has a street scooter.

Cowgirls

I flew into Boise on July 23, to visit out there for a few weeks. It was KJ's birthday on the 22nd and he wanted to me to fly out for his birthday. Well needless to say he had to wait till the next day for any type of birthday fun. For his birthday he wanted my famous fried porkchops (everytime I come back to Idaho, I always have to make him porkchops) and to hit up Cowgirls in Kuna. It was a good thing it was hip-hop night out there, otherwise you wouldn't have caught either of us out there. We played a few games of pool and then had a great time people watching. It's always a treat to see how people dress and wonder why they thought that looked good and to see how people think they can dance.