A Rainy Saturday

So it's raining in Southern California today.. and I mean, windy, palm trees bending over, big rain drops, downpour. But I like it. It's a nice change from the sunshine. I like listening to the drops splat on my patio.

This week has been a blur of work and sleep and driving. I am so thankful for this weekend of rest at home! I drove to Irvine this morning and met my friend, Rachael at Starbucks. It felt really nice to do something "normal", like I would have done back in Missouri. (It also felt nice to drive 80 on the 5 freeway on an early, Saturday morning!!)

This weekend I also ended my two weeks of Dr. Berg's Liver Cleanse.. It has been two weeks of vegetables for breakfast, lunch and dinner (and snacks). So, I totally made chocolate chip cookies this afternoon :) I only ate one. Ha. Dr. Berg would not approve. But physically, I do feel much, much better and I will continue on my vegetable rampage. However, I may throw in some fruit and little fish here and there for variety.

I am almost finished with "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett and wow, I am actually reading it slowly and taking lots of breaks between chapters because I am not ready for it to end! I am just enjoying it too much.

Friday, in between jobs, I stopped in at my supervisor's baby shower. The cupcakes were too cute to escape without a picture.

My supervisor is the one who is pregnant, obviously with the pink sash on.. the other two are fellow interventionists, Ariana and Zach. We all do drug intervention in the same school district.
The rest of our weekend involves some house chores this evening, church tomorrow morning and an afternoon bouldering at Rock City. Have a great weekend, friends.

Flat Colby

My nephew, Colby, is doing a project in his Kindergarten Class. The project is based on a book called "Flat Stanley", it's about a little boy who's bulletin board falls on top of him, making him flat (not hurt). Stanley's parents thought it would now be easy for him to see the world since he is flat; so they folded him up, put him in an envelope and mailed him all over. So, Colby has made a little, "Flat Colby" and mailed himself out here to us. So yesterday, we took Flat Colby for a trip around Los Angeles. We stopped at the Hollywood Sign, Hollywood's Walk of Fame & fed him a Pink's hotdog. Here are some of the highlights:

The Mustache Ride

Last nite, Jarod and I went on the 2nd Annual Mustache Ride around Whittier (very close to where we live). It was a fun night! Everyone (guys and gals) sported the 'stache. Jarod took some great photos of all the bikers. (Check out our photo blog for those) It was a just 12 mile loop, and this ride actually started at 7:30pm! YEAH for me (someone who is NOT a night owl). As usual, it was quite the motley crew. Old guys, mom's pulling little ones in trailers, smokers, BMX bike riders, highschoolers, couples in love, 5th graders pulling stunts on bikes, and of course, Robert, who pulled a trailer with a massive stereo strapped in blaring Jimi Hendrix.

Little Nan Rosa

The night before last, Jarod and I returned Margo to her owners and celebrated the birth of Lani & Evan's Little Girl. Gosh, she is just the smallest, most precious thing ever!

Lani, Evan & Nan

Jarod, Evan & Lil' Nanie

Us & Nanners

The Weekend Update

Yesterday morning Jarod and I celebrated our 2nd married Valentine's Day by exchanging home-made presents, drinking coffee in bed and having a late brunch at Panera. It was a wonderful morning and I'm so very thankful for the man I married. We are such a good match!

My Funny Valentine for Jarod

Our friends, Lani & Evan, had their baby Friday night!! Welcome to the world little Nan Rosa! (Pictures to come :) While the Rosa's are celebrating their new family in the hospital, Jarod and I helped them move. The apartment they were living in had too many issues, but their new place is great! Unfortunately, this was a busy weekend for them.. birthing kiddos and moving!! So, between the Rosa's extended family, their Talbot Community Group and us, we managed to move all their stuff yesterday afternoon AND set up house! I am so glad that Lani has a homey place to come back to, rather than packed boxes everywhere! We are taking care of their dog, Margo for a few days as well... We're hoping to meet Nan tomorrow, when we take Margo back home. Can't wait!!

I had to work at Old Navy yesterday evening, but Jarod and I finished out the Day of Love with stir-fry and 50 First Dates :) Hello, Love on a grad school budget!! It's great... Honestly, it forces creativity and genuineness. And I wouldn't change that at all.

Today is President's Day and I'm off work!!! Although I haven't any bigger plans than housework and grocery shopping and a trip to the dog park, I am really, REALLY happy to just be at home. I am looking forward to the day when Jarod is a professor and I can be little Sally Homemaker :)

Transitions

This semester in my Talbot Wives Group, we are discussing the significance of transitions in our lives and how to best cope and live in those times at our fullest. Our speaker this past Tuesday challenged me to reflect on some of my own transitional periods and the lessons I learned and experienced. II Corinthians 11:24-28 gives a brief account of Paul's times of change and hardship:

24]Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25]Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26]I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27]I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28]Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

Granted, the transitional time that I am in now, and those I have been in are not to the same intensity and level (well, maybe living in South Africa was), but Paul provides hope and encouragement for us, no matter the level of our transitions.

So here are some of my photographed transitions:

Highschool Graduation

Attending College

Living Abroad in Finland

College Graduation
Living in South Africa
Falling in Love and Getting Engaged
Getting Married

Our Tent Home for 4 Months
Other Tent Home Away from Tent Home One
Outdoor Living (not the quite like the magazine)
Moving to Los Angeles

Living in Southern California

All of these transitions and moves and stops in the journey have been really pivotal in my growth as a person. While I could have looked at all these times as "commas" between bigger and better events, I would have missed out on my life while "waiting" for my life to start! It is such a good reminder when I am frustrated at where I am now (wanting to be out of LA), that this is NOT just a step between two bigger places, but a significant place of it's own accord. And even this is shaping me into the person I was meant to be.

Taiga has the Funk

Taiga and I made a trip the vet today because of this funky growth that sprang up a week and a half ago on her lip :( But, good news, Dr. Hussein (yes, like Saddam) says it's nothing to worry about.. just a cauliflower wart! Apparently it's common among younger dogs. She called it Papiloma Virus! Yikes! But she said it will probably dry up and fall off. Weird!!! I am just supposed to watch and see if it continues to grow... if it does, she can do a quick laceration and leave a dissolvable stitch. Poor, baby!
On another note about Taiga... she got schooled yesterday at the dog park.. a pack, literally, a pack of huskies and malamutes showed up and totally put our dog in her place! It was awesome! I have never seen Taiga cower or whimper to another dog before.. it was great for her to get a taste of her own medicine!

White Chocolate & Raisin Oatmeal Cookies

I am embarrassed to say that I did not know it was Super Bowl Sunday until a few hours ago. Oops. While I am not sure that our afternoon plans will include the Big Game, we will be tuning in to hulu.com for the commercials throughout the day :)

So on this beautiful, sunny Sunday, I have decided to bake and cook. It really is therapeutic for my spirit. On the menu today is 16 Bean Soup and Corn Muffins and cookies. We just pulled the first batch of cookies out of the oven and they are tasty!! Here's the recipe:

Oatmeal Cookies with White Chocolate and Raisins
Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened (That's 2 sticks!)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs at room te

mperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups uncooked oats
1 cup raisins
1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
-Preheat oven

to 350 degrees.
-Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
-In a bowl mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together.
-Beat in eggs and

vanilla.
-Add flour mixture and mix well.
-With a spatula, combine in oats, raisins, and white chocolate chips. Make sure ingredients are evenly distributed.
-Use an ice cream scoop to drop portions of dough onto an ungreased sheet pan. Use the palm of your hand to lightly flatten the cookies.
-Bake at 350 for 12

-15 minutes or until golden brown.
*Allow cookies to settle on the sheet pan before transferring to a cooling rack.

Enjoy!!!!