Nate and Jill's Post-its

Ireland Trip 2010

2010-10-20T11:42:00.000-07:00

Waiting in the airport

4th of July Boston

2010-08-26T18:20:00.000-07:00

Decided that it was time to do something big for 4th of July, and it turned out that we were in luck. One of the hugest 4th of July celebrations just happens to be on the banks of the Charles River in Boston. It's this all day event with live music and food and (of course) an enormous firework display.

We camped out early in the morning at a great spot under a willow-like tree. Met up with an eclectic group of friends (Becky - new friend I worked with in Nepal who happens to work in New Haven, CT; Becky's cousin and several friends; and fellow intern Aram along with his wife Natalie.) What a great time of relaxation and getting to know one another. We ate a delicious picnic lunch, read books, listened to music, talked about religion and politics and everything in between, and had a great 4th of July. Soooo hot though, and sooooo many people.

Before the fireworks even began, we were dazzled with this sunset...

And the fireworks...wow...couldn't get a photo that could show how awesome it was. We were right on the bank of the river and they shot off the fireworks from barges in the middle of the river, so they were actually directly above our heads! My parents were watching on tv and said it was even incredible from their living room. Yep, that good. :)

Hiking Mt. Tom

2010-08-24T10:08:00.001-07:00

In the end of June a group of my fellow Emergency Medicine interns decided to get together and have a group hike. Mt. Tom is the "mountain" behind our house in Easthampton, and it has a ton of different trails to explore. We decided to make our way to the top. Unfortunately, Nathan had to work, but I brought Jackson along for the day. He loved it and everyone loved him! As it happens, this day was probably one of the most humid we've had all summer. Between the humidity, sunscreen, and bug spray, I was a sticky mess.

Interesting ruins of an old stone hotel, tucked back into the hillside. Nice pose from Nishan in the doorway.

Of course we had to climb to the top of tower... (4 of the EM guys...Matt, John, Nishan, & Tony)

But poor Jackson was so nervous and whimpering very loudly to make sure we didn't forget him. Silly boy. Overall, a great day. Hope to do it again sometime.

Darla's June Visit

2010-08-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

We are obviously behind on our posts, but I guess it's better late than never. Fun times this summer, starting with our move across the country. Just after we arrived on this coast, one of the moms (Darla this time), was awesome enough to help us get all settled in. Of course, we had to fit in some fun and relaxation as well...
We enjoyed taking Darla to the little coffee shop/used bookstore in South Hadley and then walked around the beautiful campus at Mount Holyoke College.

On a previous visit, we had discovered the most awesome little bakery in Northampton called The Hungry Ghost, so we also had to take Darla there as well. When we went to buy our loaf of bread for a picnic, we were joined in the one-room bakery by a French woman and her 3 little French-speaking children. She told us that they walk to the bakery for fresh bread every day. So fun.

When we asked Darla what she wanted to make sure to do on this visit, she said Walden Pond! And we said...Sounds great! So we headed east to the peaceful, isolated pond and quickly discovered that it is actually an incredibly popular, crowded swimming hole. They have a replica of Thoreau's cabin and a little statue of him that everyone takes a silly picture with.
Further towards the pond (I would call it a lake), there is a memorial where the cabin actually stood, and a quote of Thoreau's that is surrounded by stones that people have brought from all over the world.
Interestingly, we learned that Ralph Waldo Emerson and the Alcott family (as in Louisa May) lived just down the road from Thoreau and they all knew eachother. Also down the road is Lexington & Concord and the end of Paul Revere's ride. Lots to see.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #10

2010-06-11T18:47:00.000-07:00

Good-bye Niagara Falls. You are beautiful. Just in case anyone is wondering...we are looking for any excuse to return. If you come and visit, we will take you there to see it too!
Unfortunately it was time for us to move on. Time to get to our new home and start setting up our household. Drove across the state of New York, taking a tiny detour through Buffalo to catch our last of the Great Lakes: Lake Erie. Then drove to the Hartford airport to pick up Darla! Hooray!! Time to move to Easthampton, Massachusetts.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #9

2010-06-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

Tourist day! Niagara Falls is absolutely incredible!! We were on the Canadian side and I would definitely recommend it over the American side (better views). So we had to do all the touristy things that must be done...boat tour, waterpark, golf, walking around the falls, and eating.
Started the morning with the ultimate "must-do" - we took the traditional Maid of the Mist boat tour around (and very close to) the falls.
Nathan was super excited about the American Falls...I think???
And I seemed to have some difficulties getting into my poncho.
We got really close to the American Falls first and Nathan almost got blown out of the boat. Very wet and windy. So much power.

Then we spun around underneath the Horseshoe Falls and I felt like I was going to get blown out. Much crazier than it is depicted in movies. Our heads were kind of soaked after all that.

Had to spend some time at North America's largest indoor waterpark after that. Hardly anyone there either, so we went down the 8 main slides repeatedly. What a work out walking up the tower of steps!
Next Nathan really wanted to play at Oak Hall Par 3 Golf Course. Beautiful grounds and clubhouse!

Look at that great shot off the first tee...
And how about those beautiful putts...

Unfortunately, by Hole 14 I was done...

So we ate some dinner and then enjoyed Horseshoe Falls at night once again.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #8

2010-06-09T17:58:00.000-07:00

Yet another long day of driving. Hermione started and ended the day curled up on a hotel bed.

Left Sault Ste. Marie and crossed the International Bridge into Ontario, Canada. What a dreary day!

Drove through hundreds of miles of moose country without spotting a moose! Drove along Lake Huron for awhile, but couldn't see much through the rainfall. Everything seemed so gray. Tried to stop and get coffee at a gas station, but they only had a half a pot of coffee that looked like the store worker had brought it in that day from home. Ate on the road b/c without stops the drive was going to be 10.5 hours. Eek. Wanted to take one of the ferries, but it only left twice per day and would have added another 2 hours to the day! Sooo, we drove and drove and the rain finally stopped when we were almost to Toronto. Drove through the city, but continued on to the Canadian town of Niagara Falls. Caught a look at Lake Ontario as we drove across one of the local bridges. It was so eerie when we arrived because there was low-hanging fog and we couldn't see the falls initially. It was also so silent and the still ponds poured into a rushing rapids and then just dumped off the edge of the world. We thought we were at the bottom of the falls, but we were actually at the top! Also illuminate the falls at night, which added to the creepy quality of the scene.

Both the animals were so needy and exhausted by the end of the day. They love Nathan!

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #7

2010-06-08T16:36:00.000-07:00

Lots of fun places to walk and explore on our way from Green Bay to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Started out by checking out the Packers stadium of course. We were surprised by how close you could get to Lambeau field.

Next we drove along the Green Bay and walked around a little park to make sure that we had a good view of Lake Michigan. (I really wanted to see all of the great lakes on our "little road trip").
Stopped for a tasty little picnic lunch on the lake shore and enjoyed our leftover pizza from the evening before. Kinda chilly weather.
So it turns out that the Michigan "U.P." is pretty remote. Very pretty and forested, but filled with random little small towns. Good thing we had our road atlas! No cell phone reception. Also, Nathan HAD to stop and enjoy a milkshake from a local shop.

So we had decided earlier that we wanted to make a detour and see the Painted Rocks National Lakeshore up on Lake Superior. What a great place! Jackson really wanted to hike to the Munising Falls and then really wanted to view it from every possible angle. Sooo, we humored him.

Also, we drove out to Miners Castle (this cool towering rock formation). What was most amazing was the color of the water. It looked like the Caribbean!

It was amazing to experience some of the optical illusions there too... or maybe it's just the crazy difference in height between the two of us...

Spent the night in "the Soo", or Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and enjoyed a game of minigolf (with a view of the Canadian border) to finish the evening.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #6

2010-06-07T08:48:00.000-07:00

So sad to leave Minnesota and all of the beautiful lakes and fluffy clouds.

Long day driving across the rest of Minnesota and through Wisconsin. One highlight: CHEESE! Drove through cranberry country and cheese factories (unfortunately not as many as in the south of the state). Even had to take a few detours across county roads due to lots and lots of road construction.
Finally made it into Green Bay, Wisconsin and had a nice "date night". We went out to Sammy's Pizza (a famous pizza joint near the stadium where the Packers play) and then went to see "Get Him to the Greek" at the movie theater.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #5

2010-06-06T05:06:00.000-07:00

Spent an awesome day of activities with the Berthelsens. Great to have another "rest day". Jackson spent most of the day rolling around and playing in the backyard and Hermione slept on the comfy guest bed (looking out the window longingly), most of the day.
While Uncle Steve was in the OR early (repairing 2 hips), Nathan and I slept in and then shared a delicious breakfast with Aunt Bobetta. We even got a tour of the town, including "prairie dog town". Next we played 18 holes on a beautiful golf course in Fairmont. I did not play very well as usual, but Nathan and Uncle Steve were neck and neck, but Nathan ended up winning (92-94).

Then we hurried home to pick up Aunt Bobetta and the kayaks! Took a great evening paddle through one of the many lakes and into the slough...even went through a tunnel. What a great way to end the weekend.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #4

2010-06-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

Traveling day... Drove across South Dakota and into Minnesota. After leaving Rapid City, SD with Starbucks in hand, we made our first stop in the town of Wall at the famous Wall Drug. We shared a delicious homemade cake doughnut with maple frosting.

Then we decided to take a scenic detour through the Badlands National Park. It was so prehistoric looking. I kept humming the theme song from Jurassic Park and checking over my shoulder to make sure a TRex wasn't following us. Nathan just kept making that chirping noise that the Velociraptors used. Fortunately or unfortunately there were no dinosaur sightings; however, we did see a few Bighorn Sheep crossing the road in front of us. I also got yet another stamp in my National Park passport :)

Drove the rest of the looong drive through the prairie listening to praise music and enjoying the huge puffy white clouds. Finally made it into Minnesota and pulled off into the town of Fairmont. We were very fortunate to be able to stay with some family friends (Steve and Bobetta Berthelsen) for two nights. Tasty snacks on arrival and several games of Sequence followed. Very nice to see familiar faces.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #3

2010-06-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

Sight-seeing day! The animals were able to rest in the hotel room while Nathan and I became "ultimate tourists" and I finally got to see MT. RUSHMORE!!! It was everything that I had every hoped and more :) I was almost giddy as we were walking up the pathway with all of the state's flags. Then I made Nathan take a picture in front of the same walkway where he looks like a little boy in his Wolverine shirt. We even found our favorite state!

Took a walk around the Presidential Trail Loop to get a closer view of the sculptures. It was there that we realized that Nathan seems to resemble a certain somebody on that mountainside. Can you guess who?

Next we checked out the Crazy Horse monument. Since Nathan visited the park as a kid they have managed to complete his face (this was slightly more exciting than the armpit that Nathan remembered seeing back in the day).
Took a scenic drive through Custer State Park next (within the Black Hills National Forest) and saw some antelope and buffalo. Nathan decided to stop at a little creek to munch on his chips and salsa. The entire park reminded us of being in Yellowstone 2 summers ago with our families.

Custer State Park turned into Wind Cave National Park and we stopped again for a scenic view (where this time I had some tasty blueberries).

Next we checked out the town of Hot Springs (the hometown of Nathan's Grandpa Schmunk) and explored the Mammoth Site. They have uncovered bones from 56 young adult male Columbian and Woolly Mammoths in this former sink hole and give tours at the actual dig site. Pretty cool.
We were confused about the next fossil though. Supposedly this was an extinct giant bear (larger than a grizzly), but we didn't remember this bone from anatomy class....were the archaeologists just messing with us?
Ate dinner at the Firehouse Brewery. Tasty buffalo brisket and cheddar beer soup. Delicious.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #2

2010-06-03T05:08:00.000-07:00

Woke up in the morning and spent a little quiet time on the deck of Krystal's grandfather's house, just enjoying the view of the mountains surrounding Heber City.
Filled our bellies at the local diner, aptly named "The Hub" and ordered a scone which turned out to be more like an enormous funnel cake! Then we set out to explore northeastern Utah on our way to Wyoming. We visited the local crater in Midway that is open for scuba diving (unfortunately, it was closed when we passed through). We also enjoyed checking out the enormous houses and golf courses on the way to Park City.
The rest of the day was spent driving across Wyoming (on the I-80 and then up through Casper and then Lusk) and then on into the southwestern corner of South Dakota. Beautiful country. We decided that it would be a geologist's heaven! God is an amazing Creator.

Cross Country Roadtrip Day #1

2010-06-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

Well we are off on our roadtrip to move across the United States. Loma Linda, California to Easthampton, Massachusetts. You can't get much further than that! We were so anxious to get started on our journey that we left Tuesday evening instead of Wednesday morning as originally planned. Stayed the night in Las Vegas and Hermione had her first taste of staying in a hotel. I think she got used to it...

Ate a tasty breakfast at The Hash House in Vegas, where we tried the party hash (pastrami, chicken, and corned beef) and were overwhelmed with the massive variety of jellies and jams! (I had watermelon and orange, Nathan had apple jalapeno and reg. jalapeno).

So with full bellies we headed towards Utah. Stopped for an amazing couple of hours in Zion National Park, took Jackson for a little walk, ate a picnic lunch, and got a stamp in my "National Parks passport" (I think this might be made for kids, but I really like doing it too!)

The rest of the day was spent driving and driving some more. Hermione started getting used to her new kennel too! We stopped for the night in Heber City, Utah which is just north of Provo. Krystal was kind enough to arrange for us to stay in the bunkhouse next to her grandfather's house. A great beginning to our trip.

Further adventures with friends in SoCal

2010-05-09T14:30:00.000-07:00

So we are trying to experience everything that Southern California has to offer before we move to Massachusetts in 3 1/2 weeks. It's funny that we could have both lived here for over 8 years and still not visited all the must-see places.

On Friday we headed out to Venice Beach. I had an appointment with Du Japon Salon to get my hair cut and a wavy perm, but we started out by visiting a funky coffee shop on Abott Kinney Blvd. This coffee shop, Intelligentsia, looks like a modern laboratory. We shared a couple of tasty muffins and a pot of green tea. After breakfast I went to the salon and then we met my high school friend Yuko for a Thai food lunch. Spent a little more time wandering around Venice Beach, amazed by all the medical marijuana shops and the episode of Californication being filmed, and then traveled through crazy traffic to Disneyland. Fun times as usual with Trevor and Leah...we even checked out the newly renovated It's A Small World and watched the fireworks from the Storybookland boat.

On Saturday we woke up early and drove with Byron and Tracy to Ventura. None of us had ever visited the Channel Islands, so we had planned on taking the ferry to Santa Cruz Island for a day of hiking and adventuring. Unfortunately, Tracy had a terrible episode of seasickness on the ferry-ride over. So terrible. We were still able to hike on several trails with gorgeous views of the ocean, cliffs, and wildflowers. These same flowers (we think) gave Nathan and Byron terrible allergies. Nathan 's eyes got all puffy and red, his nose was running out of control, and he had hives all over his neck. We hiked out to Cavern Point and then along the cliffs to Potato Harbor. A tasty sack lunch followed and then we spent the remainder of the day cowering against different cliff-edges along the beach, trying to hide from the freezing wind! The ferry-ride home was fortunately much less eventful for Tracy, but we did see an enormous pod of dolphins and a humpback whale! Rounded out the day with a dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory (don't get the Chicken Marsala...it sucks...awesome waiter though who didn't charge us for the icky chicken...good customer service and a reminder to ourselves that you should JUST GET SPAGHETTI at a restaurant called "spaghetti factory") haha. Great weekend.

Intelligentsia

Yuko and me with full bellies from Thai food

Us with Byron and Tracy Poblacion
Potato Harbor

Cavern Point

Camping in Death Valley with Cory and Krystal

2010-04-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

For a quick weekend camping trip we decided to head off to Death Valley since none of us that were going had ever been there. The ladies got to the camping area before Cory and I and so had the tent and a campfire already up and ready (which Cory and I agreed was awesome), but by the time that we showed up it time for a quick hot dog snack and off to bed. The whole weekend we spent checking out all the landmarks that make up Death Valley. We ran up and down sand dunes, checked out rock formations, looked down old mine shafts (that are everywhere by the way), explored the old Borax plant, drove 26 miles through Titus Canyon, and visited the lowest spot in North America which was located on the salt flats. We ate good, explored a lot, and all in all had a great weekend.

2010-04-27T13:51:00.000-07:00

Road Trip to Massachusetts

2010-04-03T20:12:00.000-07:00

View Larger Map

Joshua Tree

2010-02-21T09:16:00.001-08:00

We invited Cory and Krystal to go hiking around Joshua Tree. It was
clear skies and beautiful but a cold enough wind that we needed our
coats. Sadly Jackson had to wait in the car since he wasn't allowed
past 100 ft. away from the road.

2010-02-21T09:10:00.000-08:00

Up in the snow, boys day alone.

2010-02-14T13:56:00.000-08:00

Valentines Day Gardening

2010-02-14T13:52:00.000-08:00

GO DUCKS!!!

2010-01-01T11:51:00.001-08:00

Christmas Time At Disneyland

2009-12-20T06:28:00.001-08:00

We took our last chance before Christmas to go see all the lights, the
fireworks show, and to watch it snow on main street.

Tomatoe soup with chickpea and pesto

2009-12-09T15:44:00.000-08:00

Parsley Pesto

2009-12-09T15:36:00.000-08:00

Cuisine:
Italian
Mediterranean

Philosophy:
Vegan
Vegetarian

Dish:
Sauces/Salsas/Spreads

Main Ingredient:
Greens
Nuts

1 cup De-stemmed Italian Parsley
2 tbsps. Lemon Juice
0.25 cups Pine Nuts, toasted
1 Garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. Olive Oil
0.25 tsp. Sea Salt

1) Heat pine nuts in a dry pan on medium heat until browned, being careful not to burn. Cool on a plate.

2) Remove parsley leaves from stems.

3) Once pine nuts have cooled, combine all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth.

4) Serve.

A Christmas Carol @ El Capitan Theatre

2009-12-09T13:29:00.000-08:00

Our 3-D glasses

On Saturday night we drove to LA to watch Disneys "A Christmas Carol".
We got reserved tickets a head of time that came with popcorn and
drinks. We even got to see a little broadway show put on by Disney
before the movie. Afterwards we went and got crepes with French press
coffee and then we headed home.

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-29T06:01:00.000-07:00

October in Sunriver, OR

2009-10-28T06:36:00.000-07:00

2 weeks ago I was able to make it up to Sunriver to spend time with my in law's and brother in law for about 5 days at their condo. The weather was great (nice and cold) and the trees were turning color. We managed to ONLY golf about 4 times, and on our last day Joel and I stuck to Pat and Leanne at Widgi Creek Golf Club (www.widgi.com). Made it into Bend for an evening and dinner with a nice walk along the deschutes. Breakfast and coffee on the patio, bike rides, a little PS3, we had a great time. Sadly Jill was not able to make it up there : ( , that whole work thing got in the way. Next time.

So serious... but the coffee was good

Golfing and on the move at Quail Run

Deschutes River at the Old Mill District

The matching family

Taking picture to send to Jill

Delicious breakfast

Breakfast at Village Point Market

2009-09-16T08:44:00.001-07:00

We had gone here a week ago and just stuck our heads in but also
managed to get out the the door with homemade crackers and a goat
cheese spread.
This morning we came for coffee and brunch, really good queche,
lattes, fruit salad and a rasberry scone.

Step 2 boards (prelude)

2009-09-08T14:19:00.001-07:00

August 9th 2009: The day before Jill had to take her step 2 boards in
LA (August10th) we decided to make our way to LA but with a couple of
detours. Pasadena, Forest Lawn (Glendale), and then El Segundo for
dinner at the Farm Stand before going to bed and jill's big day. I'm
posting this late but still thought it would be cool to share.

2009-09-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

A North Carolina Sunset

2009-09-05T11:17:00.000-07:00

Goose Creek State Park

2009-09-03T07:29:00.000-07:00

Went for a hike in a state park yesterday, beautiful trees and forest.
We encountered occasional swamp land and black water (stagnant swamp
water). Ended up in a restaurant at Washington, NC on the inner banks
with live music.

Sunday in the park

2009-08-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

Listened to bluegrass music Sunday evening in the Greenville park.

Grocery shopping

2009-08-30T14:09:00.001-07:00

Went and got groceries at this gourmet market in Greenville called
Fresh Market, very nice produce and deli section. We ordered
sandwiches, delicious.

Off to North Carolina

2009-08-29T06:03:00.001-07:00

Jill is a little nervous...

Sunday morning

2009-08-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

Jackson wanted to go to starbucks this morning, he loves his pikes
place.

Cafe de Schmunk

2009-07-23T07:29:00.000-07:00

Our new morning ritual in the garage, because the house is so hot.

Hike up Mt. Lassen

2009-07-15T17:31:00.000-07:00

Lavender Festival (Cherry Valley, CA)

2009-06-20T15:13:00.000-07:00

Took grandma Cottrell to the lavender festival and enjoyed a lavender
latte, live classical music, and walking the lavender fields.
Beautiful day to sit and jus relax in the shade.

The reason I'm in North Carolina

2009-05-07T09:42:00.001-07:00

Mr. Potato head

2009-05-07T09:14:00.001-07:00

In a cafe in NC Sidney loves it because the quesadillas are good and
they have a play area.

Golfing in Pslm Desert

2009-04-29T17:23:00.000-07:00

Golfing at Shadow Ridge with aunt Bonnie, John, and uncle Martie.

Riding bikes in Pacific Grove, CA

2009-04-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

Birthday weekend road trip

2009-04-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

2009-04-10T22:47:00.000-07:00

Tonight Jill and I walked over to the Re-Live upper room at the Loma Linda Church and watched The Passion of the Christ. I had first seen it when it was released and not since, and Jill had not been able to see it till now. Once again it was amazing to watch, probably one of the most powerful movies I have ever watched. It's interesting to see how the battle between good and evil is portrayed and the sacrifice that was truly made at the cross. Have a wonderful Easter everyone.

Our First Time to Mammoth Mountain, CA

2009-03-13T11:57:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Jillian and I went to visit our friends Trevor and Leah in Mammoth, CA. They moved from Loma Linda 6 months ago to Mammoth and we finally found a weekend that we could go up and visit them. Of course the snowboards had to be packed just in case there happened to be some snow up there. We ended up being there on the best day ever, 2 days before it had snowed 15 inches one day and 18 inches on the next, and the day we went was blue sky (as you can see). The powder in the tree's was awesome, we covered as much of the mountain as we could.

A California Adventure with the Poblacions

2009-03-10T06:21:00.000-07:00

To start off the month of March Byron and Tracy invited us to go to California Adventure with them for the day (really I think they just wanted to use Jill's season pass that has free parking), just kidding. We had a good time, we all took the single rider line on the grizzly rafting ride and Tracy won for getting the most wet. Later on I went again while Jill, Byron, and Tracy went on the tower of terror. I know, I am a big weenie. We did get corn dogs at the Corn dog King Castle and an ice cream in the old Zephyr train car. Later we watched the Pixar parade with all the characters from the animated movies (to bad the light parade wasn't going that day). We were surrounded by little 12-13 year old girls all day because apparently we went on the day that Disney was hosting the national junior cheerleader competitions, which made the crowds even crazier.

The Amgen Tour of California

2009-03-08T21:18:00.000-07:00

In February Jill, Byron and I went down to Pasadena at the Rose Bowl and watched the riders of the Amgen Tour of California finish there stage 7 from Santa Clarita to Pasadena. Vendors were out from bike company's to herbal life (Byron and I enjoyed a nice shake) and we picked up as much free stuff as we could find. The riders finished the stage at the Rose Bowl and did about 5-6 circuits of a final loop before the race ended. We got to see a number of break aways and a lot of world renowned riders in the main pelaton.

Lance Armstrong's time trial bike (his backup)

Byron with the Liquigas team girls

The Pelaton

Team Astana, that's Lance in the black and yellow helmet with Levi Leipheimer his teammate right behind him who actually won the tour.

George Hincapie in the lead

The last snow storm in southern CA

2009-03-03T21:20:00.000-08:00

This is my first blog post from my iPhone, trying it out.

1 Year Anniversary Trip

2009-02-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

For our 1 year anniversary we decided to take the train. Since we planned to go visit Jill's family in Seattle over New Year's we decided we would travel by train from L.A to Seattle, so on new year's eve we departed.

Union Station in L.A. was actually very nice, old fashioned decor, a Christmas tree, and since we had reserved a an overnight sleeping car we got to wait in the first class lounge before getting on the train.

Jill posing for the camera, trying to act excited about something out the window, not sure if we were even moving yet.

The parlor car was decorated a little for the new year, this was the main room where you can sit and relax and enjoy the view. We ate a couple meals here and also spent new years eve count down in this car while we were passing through Sacramento with a couple about our age going to Sunriver, OR to snowboard. The couple to Jill's right we actually got to know, they were from Vancouver, BC and they stayed right across from us. The four of us ended up having dinner together the last evening we were on the train.

Klammath Lake, OR

The snow capped mountains some where between Klammath Falls and Bend, OR.

One day after lunch we took our dessert to our sleeper car and ate them there, Hagen Daaz chocolate and vanilla ice cream, yum.

Union Station at Portland, we had a few minutes to get off the train to look around before getting back on.

At The Coast In October 08

2008-11-12T08:30:00.000-08:00

Again this year we made it back to the beach house at White Rock Resort. It was a nice drive on Wednesday along the Smith River to the coast and we made sure that we did it with a cup of Dutch Bros. coffee. Thursday we had a tee time at noon to play Salmon Run Golf Course, my dad, Heather and I had a great day it was beautiful. Friday my dad and I drove up the Smith River for day one of fishing along the north fork, it was a beautiful hike up the river but we managed to only see a school of fish but not catch any. Later that day all 5 of us went golfing on Del Norte Golf Course along the Smith River, it was my dad and Heather against my mom and me with best ball. Our team the "Jewish Viper's" (inside joke) ended up winning. Saturday involved a hike in the Oregon redwoods along with lunch, walks on the beach, and a beach campfire with hot dog's and marshmallows to end it. Sunday my dad and I tried fishing again but this time on the south fork and managed to find some Cutthroat trout, I landed about 13 fish but my dad got the big one for the day. Another fun trip of beautiful fall weather, golf , walks on the beach, and fly fishing.

Organic Vegetables

2008-10-11T15:12:00.000-07:00

About a month ago we found this Organic Food Co-op that meets every week on Saturday in Redlands in front of The Farm restaurant. Today was our first time going there, picking up our pre-selected basket of organic fruits and vegetables, paying for the next time we come, and taking it all home for a way better price than at the grocery store. Each week someone collects all the money from everyone participating and then goes to local organic farmers and buys their produce at cost. They then devide all the produce evenly (depending on how many people decide to RSVP for that week) and distribute it on Saturday morning. We were really impressed with all the different kinds of fruits and vegetables we were able to get, and it's kind of fun to just let someone else pick out what's in season right now for you to eat. Our next pick up for us will be October 25th because we don't think we'll be done eating all our stuff by next week.
After we picked up our produce we took Jackson for a walk around downtown Redlands (does that alley look familar?). Then he was so tuckered out that he and Hermione took a nap together.

Huntington Beach Trip

2008-09-06T11:14:00.000-07:00

One of many beach trips over this summer. We went with our friends Trevor and Leah for a 1/2 day at the beach. After some taco bell, a wardrobe change, and some final yoga poses Trevor and I ventured out into the waves to do some surfing. Once again a beautiful day, but don't let the sunny day fool ya the water still needed a wetsuit.

Memorial Day Weekend

2008-05-31T12:05:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning Jill and I and the pup drove up to Ventura, CA for 2 days and a one night stay for the weekend. When we got there it was raining, but by the time we had walked around Ventura Harbor the clouds broke and there was sun. We ate lunch at a nice little restaurant called the Cajun Kitchen Cafe where we shared some chicken gumbo, red beans and rice, corn bread, and a biscuit. We eventually checked into the luxurious Motel 6 before going out to dinner later that night at the Anacapa Brewing Co. We followed that up with going to see Indiana Jones at the downtown Cinema. Sunday morning we got up and went for a 3-4 mile run with our new Nike+ipods on the Ventura River Trail followed by Starbucks for breakfast. At the last minute we decided to drive up to Ojai for part of the day and managed to catch there farmer's market, but sadly no dog's were allowed. After walking around the art festival they had that day we went back to a little organic cafe inside of the local market and found stuff for lunch.

Sunday afternoon after eating lunch we drove home to beat the traffic and also to prepare for the 15 mile round trip hike that we were planning to do the next day to the top of one of the 9 San Grogronio Peaks. Oh by the way, Jill and I have decided to summit all 9 peaks of the San Grogronio Mountain Range before we leave S. Cal in 2 years. Our friends Trevor and Leah were up for it as well and so Monday morning at 8:30 we made our way up towards the mountains. We stopped at the Ranger Station to sign a hiking permit and then up to the Foresee Creek trailhead that lead to San Bernardino East Peak Summit. It started off cold and foggy but eventually with some altitude change we broke through the clouds. About 1:00 pm we stopped and ate lunch just off the trail, and then continued on. As we got towards 8,500- 9,000 ft. elevation we begin to walk over mounds of snow that covered the trail periodically. Once we reached 10,400 the trail was mostly gone and we had to rely on the GPS coordinates for the summit. But even more than the GPS we used the trees (thanks to Trevor for noticing) since someone had cut parts of the bark to mark where the trail continued on from tree to tree. At about 5:00-5:15 pm we summited San Bernardino East Peak at 10,691 ft., and what a view!
We took it all in as long as we could, but then the descent had to start sometime. Half way down we caught a beautiful sunset and then we made use of the headlamps we brought until we reached the truck at about 9:30 pm. (Oh the burn!)

What we've been up to...

2008-05-21T08:54:00.000-07:00

We've been making dinners, we took advantage of the REI sale this month and bought sleeping bags (thank you uncle Sam and Jackson). About a week or so ago I pulled out my fly rod, got my license and headed up to the Santa Ana river and manage to pull some nice trout out of there. I caught about 9 trout total some brown some rainbow, but only about half of them were of any size for that river / creek. It was a good start to the season though. We decided to plant a garden this summer and since summer is almost here we did the quick planter box method of cement blocks with a layer of chicken wire underneath due to our resident gofers. Took a couple days of moving dirt but we finally finished it and put a nice layer of compost and Starbucks Pike Place coffee grounds on top. So far we have two Roma tomatoes plants, one Serrano Chile, and one crook neck squash, today is a cooler day so we'll have to take advantage and plant some more.

Morning Book Review

2008-03-12T10:53:00.000-07:00

I just finished this book in about 2 weeks after it sat on my bookshelf for a couple years. It was a pretty easy read so I was able to read a chapter every morning. In this book he follows the Lord's prayer and devotes a chapter to each line relating it to our lives today. The premise is in the title, how we must "Travel Light" and let go of the baggage we carry around each day. The "suitcases and duffel bags of sorrow, disappointment, and guilt", whatever it is that a person holds with them. The idea was good but to me not one of Lucado's best. Insightful on occasion, but some of the "baggage" I had a hard time relating to. Easy read though, of course still has redeeming value but to me not one of his best.

~ N. Schmunk

The last winter dinner...

2008-03-12T07:30:00.000-07:00

Last week Jill and made this dish after I snagged it out of a magazine at work. We weren't sure how it would end up using the chickpeas for a stew but were not disappointed. This recipe was delicious, I got two meals at work after the fact with the leftovers and it was still good every time. We of course substituted the sausage in the recipe with a breakfast chicken sausage from Trader Joe's that had a nice smoky flavor. For the bread we also got from a Trader Joe's a whole grain crusty bread (french would not work well) that was very good. Sourdough may work if that's all you have but a dense bread works well to soak up the broth of the stew without turning to mush.

Chickpea and Sausage Stew

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
12 ounces Italian sausage, thawed and casings removed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
2 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 10-ounce package frozen leaf spinach
Kosher salt and pepper
8 slices bread, toasted (optional)

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the sausage and cook, crumbling it with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the parsley and cilantro and cook for 1 minute more. Add the broth and chickpeas and bring to a boil. Add the frozen spinach and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a fork to separate the leaves. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Divide the toasted bread, if using, among individual bowls and spoon the stew on top.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

2008-02-23T11:01:00.001-08:00

Last weekend Leanne / Mom came down to visit us and help us paint some of the rooms in the house (pictures to follow). Friday we went to the airport where Jill had to drive around in circles 4 times before Leanne and I got her bags, but then we enjoyed a nice quiet meal at a Korean restaurant before heading home. Saturday we went to Loma Linda University Church followed by a light lunch of blue cheese and steak spinach salad. That evening Leanne and I created our golfing characters on Tiger Woods 07' that she and Pat had brought us as a gift, we eventually tied after 9 holes. We couldn't help but go to sushi that night at SGC in Corona and Kay Kay decided to come with us. Sunday was pretty much a full day of painting but we did manage to barbeque some burgers after long needed showers that night. Monday we went to the Redlands Country Breakfast (that's just what we call it) and then it was off to the "links". A beautiful day and the most crowded I've ever seen it. The greens were as hard as concrete which made for an interesting game, but we all had a great time.

Tuesday Date Night

2008-02-03T09:24:00.000-08:00

Last week for date night we decided to just stay at home and cook something ourselves. Jill had to study so we couldn't really go out anywhere, so we dreamed up a our own recipe with things we had left in the fridge. I will have to say it tasted pretty good, so try it yourself. The picture doesn't do it justice.

Grilled Chicken with Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
(Serves 2)

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers:
2 yellow peppers
¾ cup chopped pepper (or pepper tops)
½ cup diced onion
2 Roma tomatoes seeded and chopped (about ½ cup)
1 Tb oil
½ tsp salt or to taste
¼ tsp dried basil
1 pinch fresh ground pepper
½ cup crumbled goat cheese
1 ½ cup cooked quinoa
4 thin slices fresh mozzarella

Chicken:
2 Tb oil
1 packet Archer Farms taco seasoning mix (@ Target)
2 chicken breasts`(thawed)

Cook quinoa as desired. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a small baking dish with cooking spray. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut the stems and top half inch off the bell peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Boil trimmed peppers for 5 minutes, then drain them upside down. Heat 1 Tb of oil in a nonstick skillet. Add onion, chopped yellow pepper, salt, dried basil, and fresh ground pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened. Remove from heat and stir in the tomatoes. Using a spoon, scrape the quinoa into the skillet and toss with the vegetables. Stir in the crumbled goat cheese. Place peppers upright in the baking dish and fill them with quinoa mixture. Bake 10 minutes. Meanwhile combine 2 Tb oil and taco seasoning in small bowl and coat both sides of chicken breasts. Place chicken breasts on preheated grill and grill for 15 min. over medium heat turning every 5 min. Pull peppers out of oven. Place 2 slices of mozzarella on top of peppers and place under open broiler. Broil 5 min. or until cheese is melted. Garnish with remaining tomato if desired. Serve chicken and peppers immediately.

The HoneyMoon

2008-01-29T22:53:00.000-08:00

The next day after staying at the Hotel Lucia ( www.hotellucia.com ) very cool, I surprised Jill with our honeymoon destination of Whistler, BC. We flew out Monday afternoon to Vancouver and then took a 2 hour shuttle to the Hilton hotel which was a ski in / ski out hotel in the main village. We enjoyed celebrating the new year on our balcony with fireworks shooting off of the mountain. The week was filled with lots of lounging around, warm fires, morning coffee, sampling as many restaurants as possible, snowboarding, and finally zip lining through an actual "rain forest". We had a great time and are already planning our return some day.

Darla's New Blog!

2008-01-28T10:44:00.001-08:00

Hey everybody...check out Darla's new blog!

www.darlaschmunk.blogspot.com

Convince her to keep on posting...we want to know what they're up to in Fall River. :)

-J

Weekend Fun

2008-01-20T21:23:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd share a little about our weekend. Started out Friday night with making a delicious meal from a recipe that my mom sent me. Here's the recipe...I would highly recommend it.

TOFU PARMIGIANA

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
5 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried oregano, divided
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 (12 ounce) package firm tofu
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 clove garlic, minced
4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon oregano, salt, and black pepper.
Slice tofu into 1/4 inch thick slices, and place in bowl of cold water. One at a time, press tofu slices into crumb mixture, turning to coat all sides.
Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Cook tofu slices until crisp on one side. Drizzle with a bit more olive oil, turn, and brown on the other side.
Combine tomato sauce, basil, garlic, and remaining oregano. Place a thin layer of sauce in an 8 inch square baking pan. Arrange tofu slices in the pan. Spoon remaining sauce over tofu. Top with shredded mozzarella and remaining 3 tablespoons Parmesan.
Bake at 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) for 20 minutes.

Saturday we both woke up super early for some reason and so decided to go to the 8:30am early service at Loma Linda University Church. Karl Haffner spoke (used to be the pastor up at Walla Walla, but now out at Kettering in Ohio) and concluded the North American division's Week of Prayer here at Loma Linda. Every day this week we had chapel and a different pastor or president of an Adventist College spoke each day. After church we made tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, and invited Trevor and Leah over. Then the four of us went rock climbing on Mt. Rubidoux. I really need to get some rock climbing shoes! So much fun, but every other turn I had to borrow Leah's shoes. It was a beautiful day and not even very windy. Lots of people hiking and climbing and bouldering on Mt. Rubidoux. For those of you who aren't familiar with the area...Mt. Rubidoux is in Riverside, kind of behind the Mission Inn. They are planning some very nice upgrades to the facilities in the near future. That evening the four of us decided to see CLOVERFIELD!!! Yikes....so fun, so exciting...I screamed twice....had to close my eyes to stop the dizziness....but I would definitely recommend it if you like those kinds of disaster type movies like I do! At the theater we ran into Jen & Mike, Mike's bro Jared, and their friends Melissa, Glen, and Jon.

Finally, today we went to Jenece & Brenden Hanks' wedding at the Azure Hills SDA Church. Very nice and simple wedding with tasty Thai food catered. There were only two people in their bridal party (her sister and his brother) and the reception was in the fellowship hall. They did something really nice that I've never seen before...they took communion together in front of the congregation and then had both of their immediate families come onto the platform and offered prayer together in a big circle. After the wedding we headed over to Byron and Tracey's house to watch the NFC Championship game (so sad that the Packers lost) and ate some pizza and popcorn and root beer. Now we're just chilling at home once again and Nathan is breaking in his new demo download on the Xbox while I delay studying. (I have all day tomorrow :) MLK day)

Hope the weekend was as good for you as it was for us.
-J

Dinner on Jan. 10

2008-01-18T20:45:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm learning to play housewife and what better way to start than to think about planning meals? Lately my schedule has been conducive to this way of life... Our days have been going something like this: wake up, eat breakfast and drink coffee together, Nathan leaves for work and I walk to school around 8am, I'm in class until noon, come home for lunch or scam a free lunch while listening to some presentation at school, then either go to lab or clinic or start studying (often with Kay-Kay). This time at home studying allows me to start preparing dinner while memorizing bacteria, drugs, or other unappetizing subjects. Nathan then arrives home around 7:20 on Mon, Tues, Thurs, and 6:20 on Fri. We then sit down to a tasty dinner together (often at our lovely new coffee table) and possibly watch a show that we've recorded or perhaps a football game. Finally, I usually grab my notes again and Nathan turns on his new Xbox 360 and we alternate chatting, studying, and playing games. Good times. Wish I could play more games :)

Anyway, where was I going with this post? Oh yes, I tried out a new recipe last Thursday night and I had forgotten to post it...very tasty. Got it out of "New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant"-Nathan says his mom gave him this "recipeasel" that we have thoroughly enjoyed. So, here's the recipe:

PASTA VERDE
2 Tbs. olive oil
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
3 cups coarsely chopped raw spinach
1 cup ricotta cheese (9 oz.)
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tb. fresh basic (1 tsp. dried)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt to taste
1 to 1 1/2 lbs. pasta (fettucine, spaghetti, or egg noodles)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Saute the onions and garlic in the oil until the onions are translucent. Rinse the washed, chopped spinach in a colander and then add it, still damp, to the onions. Cover the pan. When the spinach is wilted and still very bright green, puree the sauteed vegetables with the other sauce ingredients at medium speed in a blender or food processor. Cook and drain the pasta. Toss the sauce with the hot, drained pasta in a warm bowl. Serve immediately, garnished with grated Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!
-J

Road Trip For Thanksgiving

2007-12-05T11:40:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving began with us driving up to Aptos, CA to Nathan's Grandma Schmunks' house. Since we had all day on Wednesday to get up there we decided to take our time and drive up highway 1. We loaded up Jackson in the back seat and set out, we stopped at San Luis Obispo and had breakfast at a coffee shop, next we stopped at San Simeon and went inside the Hearst Castle visitors center, drove through the little town of Cambria, ate lunch in car, and stopped again in Carmel, one of our favorite places to eat. As the sun went down we took Jackson for a walk looking in all the shops and scanning every menu from all the restaurants till we finally found one that was in our price range and didn't require a dress code : ) . After dinner we drove to Aptos where Grandma Schmunk waiting for us. Later that night Bill, Darla, and Grandma Cottrell drove in and after visiting for a awhile we went to bed. Thanksgiving day was pretty relaxing since we didn't really have to cook due to the fact that Aunt Marie had it taken care of (we had dinner catered by Marie Callender's). After dinner, dishes, and football games, we took one of our many walks to the beach with Jackson and Sebena (Aunt Heidi's dog) in tow. Friday was again relaxing and quiet until we all decided to make the drive to the nearest BART station in order to take the train into San Francisco. We wanted to visit Union Square to see the tree lighting in front of Macy's. Before the lighting we all got a table at a nice restaurant just up the street and enjoyed sharing dinner as well as dessert till we were full. At 6:30 the countdown started and then the Christmas season began.

Beach House 2007

2007-11-26T15:42:00.000-08:00

So it's been basically a whole year since my last post back in October, 2006. My last post was my trip up to my parents beach cabin near Brookings, OR where we enjoyed multiple sunsets on the beach, played a couple rounds of golf, and my dad and I hooked into 4 salmon (which we had smoked and canned).
This year we did the same trip only this time we had a few more people along, my fiance Jillian, my sister Heather, and my niece Sidney. Again we had many nice walks on the beach as well as building a driftwood fort for Sidney so that we had a place to use the bucket and shovel that she got and eat our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. My dad and I "attempted" to catch some salmon (which we didn't), we did play 3 rounds of golf, and we did eat good food. It was nice to have more people this year and I was glad that Heather and Sidney were able to stay so that Jillian and I could see them.

The Great "Fall" Outdoors

2006-12-22T19:18:00.001-08:00

In October I got the itch to head home and take advantage of the fall colors and the crisp tempatures at home. After flying into Medord the next day was filled first by flyfishing on the Pit River with a trip up to my parents beach cabin. The next day again started with an early morning rise to try to catch a few salmon running up the Chetco River. Of course we did have to sit on a rock in the dark for an hour before we could even start fishing. By the time the sun came up we had about 20 guys craming for space on one rock, trying to through their lines in to hook a big fish. With one hour to spare I hooked two in the span of twenty minutes to reach my official limit. My dad had to wait till the next day of fishing (without me) to finally catch his 36 lb. salmon. We did manage to squeeze in many walks on the beach, a hike in the redwoods, and two rounds of golf. It was said that it was one of the best times had at the cabin. We may have to make this an annual event.

The Babysitting Club

2006-11-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

Jill and I took our first call of duty babysitting my friends 1 year old son Logan. We crawled on the floors, put down all that was iin the fridge into this little guy, went for a walk around the property, and mangaged to squeeze in some sunday afternoon football as well. He's a blast to play with, full of smiles as you can see and loves to point at "this" and "that" (his two favorite words). But as much fun as he is it's still always fun to give him back to his parents after he's done playing and spoiled by us. Luckily he only needed to be changed once and Jill lost the "1,2,3 not it" game (I think cause she didn't know we were playing) so she got to change his diaper. But still all in all a fun time.

GeoCaching in Idyllwild

2006-11-16T05:07:00.000-08:00

As soon as the weather started to turn to fall in October we headed up to Idyllwild tucked away in the mountains just west of Palm Springs. A nice mountain town with mom and pop stores, natural food grocery stores, coffee houses, and this day a cheese and wine festival featuring local vineyards. We stopped at the local candystore for choclate covered pretzels and sour patch kids and laughed at a number of black and white photographs taken of dogs around the world shown in a local gallery. We managed to also go off the beaten path to attempt some geocaching. It led to a creek nestled in some trees (which makes the readings on the gps not as accurate) and we only ended up locating 1 out of 2 caches. Still the day was full of exploration in town as well as places that have no permanent address. It was a good trip to properly bring in the fall.

Poor Jacky Boy

2006-11-14T15:24:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of poor little Jackson when he first came home (well, to his "doggy condo" at my house). Doesn't he just have those puppy dog eyes down perfectly? Well, luckily Jackson no longer has to wear the cone and he appears to be healing quite well. A trip to the vet last week informed us that he can now take longer walks, as well as begin "water therapy". This weekend we took him up to Jinx Lake and he had a blast, although he tired more easily than before. As I write, Jackson is sprawled at my feet, looking more like himself everyday. And most importantly...he is becoming more comfortable with himself cosmetically (although this may be due to his buttocks no longer being quite as nude)...his shaved rear end is sprouting hair once again! -Jill

Hard Core Camping @ Big Bear

2006-11-14T15:03:00.000-08:00

Well, this is a little late to post, but I found some old pictures of when we went camping up at Big Bear in September. I can't really remember the date, but Jackson's leg was well and we we had a jolly good time. Saturday morning we drove up to find a campsite (we weren't able to reserve one beforehand because it was a spur of the moment trip). However, once we got up there, we stopped at the Ranger Station and were informed that we would have the best luck with a campsite if we were willing to "dry camp". We said sure and headed out on an adventure to find a camping spot. Ridge got his first experiences doing a little off-roading and for a moment Nathan even had to throw it into a little 4X! oh yes... We ended up finding a secluded little spot (where a creek must run through in the springtime), and set up camp. Broke in the new, enormous tent, cooked a little grub on the tailgate, and had a great time. The next morning we went geocaching!! --Jill

Sushi Night

2006-10-11T14:11:00.000-07:00

Last get together dinner at the highland house. Had Garret and Travis over for a night of sushi. We even got so bold as to make some fresh ahi tuna sushi with canned tuna sushi as backup (the fresh was the best!) We made so much that there was some left over, but we saved room for green tea and mango mochi for dessert.

Back to Monterey!

2006-07-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

Memorial weekend took us up on another road trip to Carmel where we enjoy lunch at an outdoor cafe with a walk on the beach along pebble beach. We grabbed a couple of sparkling martinelli's and took 17 mile drive along the coast with stop at pebble beach of course. Next onto Monterey where I took Jill to Ghirardelli's for an ice cream sundae and coffee over looking the bay. Saturday afternoon we enjoyed a walk along the Santa Cruz coastline where a longboarding competition was going on. Starbuck's followed by Pizza My Heart for dinner, delicious! Sunday morning we got up early to revisit the Napa valley where we played golf near PUC, Rutherford Grill for dinner, and Taylor's Refresher for dessert. We made it last as long as we could but come Monday we returned home already missing the beautiful sunsets and the cool ocean breeze.

Viva Las Vegas!

2006-05-21T18:03:00.000-07:00

Jill's 21st Birthday lasted for a whole week into the next with Pat & LeAnne meetin us in Las Vegas. We arrived late friday night but not late enough for Jill to open her presents, a 12" Mac Notebook awesome! Saturday we got up and went to the best brunch around at Paris. Then we jumped in the car for a drive to Hoover Dam, (it's alot smaller in real life) just kidding it's as big as ever. With the evening coming we got changed and went to our reservations at "Fix"in the Bellagio, I lost 5 dollars while we waited for our table but LeAnne was smart and cashed our her $5 when she broke even. At Fix it was wonderful prime rib and filet mignon. After dinner we walked 50 ft. to "O", it was amazing the water adds such an awesome element and the music was awesome. Sunday morning up early for 18 holes of golf with Pat and Jill's uncle Scott while the ladies got the "royal treatment". Pat came out of golf on top but fun was had by all. That afternoon we road tripped it back to the beautiful county of San Bernardino and our return to reality.

2006-05-21T17:42:00.000-07:00

Suprise!!

2006-05-17T17:07:00.000-07:00

"Foouuuurrrrr"!! Crafton Hills JNGL Tour

2006-04-03T22:25:00.000-07:00

Ended up being just the four us (Jillian, Garret, Logan, and Nathan) but we had fun. Logan got pushed around the course but the rest of us had to walk. Didn't shoot the best game (double bougie mostly) but luckily there is only 6 holes at the Crafton Hills Community College so I was out of my misery fairly soon. I looked to see if it was my clubs that were causing the problem but no luck, the clubs looked fine.

Spring Break (San Luis Obispo)

2006-03-29T09:17:00.000-08:00

Friday we left after work and started our weekend heading up the 101 along the coast. Ended up in San Luis Obispo along with a few sprinkles following us. Saturday morning brought some pretty good rain but that didn't stop us from loading up the surfboards and heading south 15 miles to Pismo Beach. I ended up surfing for only 45 minutes (it was pretty cold) while Jill stayed warm in the truck with Jackson and a good book. Famous Old West cinnamon rolls with Kona coffee for breakfast, amazing, never going back to Folgers again : ) . Ended up being a nice day in the afternoon with some hiking around Morro Bay and later that night a romantic dinner in SLO along the creek (Jackon had to stay behind). The last day of trip we toured around Cal Poly and made our way back stopping at Ventura for the Patagonia outlet, but no luck.

St. Patrick's Day

2006-03-19T17:48:00.000-08:00

Top of the morning to ya! So Jill and I decided to cook up some corn beef and cabbage in honor of me being irish for a day (I think she might be already). We invited some friends over to the house and started with some irish chedder fondue, corn beef and cabbage, green drinks (sherbert & 7up), and then topped if off with an irish cake made by Jill. We played some dance revolution (one of Jill's favorites), and then a little guitar hero on the big screen. All in all a good holiday.
Irish Blessing: MAY THE ROAD RISE TO MEET YOU, MAY THE WIND BE ALWAYS AT YOUR BACK, MAY THE SUN SHINE UPON YOUR FACE, THE RAINS FALL SOFT UPON YOUR FIELDS AND, UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN, MAY GOD HOLD YOU IN THE PALM OF HIS HAND.

Sledding in Southern Cal.

2006-02-26T12:52:00.000-08:00

A few days of stormy weather brought the snow level down to 2000 ft. So we headed up to the mountains to try to find some S. Cal snow. Suprisingly it was very fine snow nice and dry. The Ridgeline got it's first taste of driving in the snow and even some minor off road driving. We found a couple places to us the sleds and the tubes, with even a little kicker on one of our sled runs. We had a blast!

Dana Point

2006-02-24T23:57:00.000-08:00

Jill suprised me and took me to Dana Point for a Sabbath morning. It started with coffee and a danish followed by boarding a 35 ft. catamaran and sailing out of the harbor to go dolphin and whale watching. We came upon a pod of about 20 dolphins which swam and played right next to the boat about 4 ft away. Later on we bean searching for the infamous whale, Jill and I were the first to spot two grey whales heading north along the coast. They rose and dove under water for 25 minutes until one came shooting out of the water and crashed back down with spray everwhere, very cool to see.

Camping With Jack and Jill

2006-02-07T23:07:00.000-08:00

Disneyland!!

2006-01-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

Accessability for posting

2005-09-12T14:20:00.000-07:00

I found out that no one could post any comments to the pictures or anything, so I fixed the problem and now anyone can post comments on the blogspot.

2005-06-28T12:12:00.000-07:00

My truck (Honda Ridgline)

2005-06-28T12:11:00.001-07:00

My dog Jackson

2005-06-28T12:11:00.000-07:00

Slocan Lake in Canada