I'm having trouble with one of my roommates. She's been seeing a guy about a month and had a guy sleep over Wednesday night. I am completely not ok with this (which I thought was clear), but when I confronted her about it, she wasn't very receptive. My other roommate and I need to talk to her about it again and be more firm that she can either not have him over, or find other living arrangements.
I HATE conflict, so this is really hard on me. I would appreciate prayers of strength (emotionally and spiritually) for me and my roommate as we confront her and deal with this, and that her heart would be open to changing her behavior to respect our boundaries as roommates.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Wait, He's Still Here?
It's been just over a month since Tad moved down here to San Diego, and I think we may be starting to feel a sense of normalcy about it.
This is a whole new experience for us, largely (at least in my opinion) in part due to the fact that we see each other for a few hours, and then separate. Obviously this is much healthier than spending every waking second together (like we had to on visits), but it felt weird at first. Any time he'd leave to go home, I'd start feeling like he was leaving town...and then he'd come back the next day, weird! lol
Making his new life down here has definitely been a stretch for him. He found a job several weeks ago (praise the Lord!) as a game tester for Sony (can you think of anything more perfect for him?) and has since been trying to find a different place to live. Living with two 60 year old men, as a 23 year old, he's found, is like living with your parents, except you don't know these people who are telling you what to do. The house hunt is still on, but he's had some good leads, so hopefully something will turn up soon.
In the meantime, we've been quite enjoying each other's company. He's spent quite a bit of time hanging out with my family here at home, we had a game night with Raelene and Nate, dessert night over at his aunt and uncle's, dinner out at Fudrucker's to celebrate the new job, surprise date night to Applebee's for half price appetizers, and fun hanging out at the free "Aztec Night" events on campus for the start of the semester.
I'm thoroughly enjoying having him in town, and look forward to our relationship getting more "normal" as we learn to relax a little, knowing that neither of us is going anywhere :)
This is a whole new experience for us, largely (at least in my opinion) in part due to the fact that we see each other for a few hours, and then separate. Obviously this is much healthier than spending every waking second together (like we had to on visits), but it felt weird at first. Any time he'd leave to go home, I'd start feeling like he was leaving town...and then he'd come back the next day, weird! lol
Making his new life down here has definitely been a stretch for him. He found a job several weeks ago (praise the Lord!) as a game tester for Sony (can you think of anything more perfect for him?) and has since been trying to find a different place to live. Living with two 60 year old men, as a 23 year old, he's found, is like living with your parents, except you don't know these people who are telling you what to do. The house hunt is still on, but he's had some good leads, so hopefully something will turn up soon.
In the meantime, we've been quite enjoying each other's company. He's spent quite a bit of time hanging out with my family here at home, we had a game night with Raelene and Nate, dessert night over at his aunt and uncle's, dinner out at Fudrucker's to celebrate the new job, surprise date night to Applebee's for half price appetizers, and fun hanging out at the free "Aztec Night" events on campus for the start of the semester.
I'm thoroughly enjoying having him in town, and look forward to our relationship getting more "normal" as we learn to relax a little, knowing that neither of us is going anywhere :)
Friday, January 15, 2010
Caribbean Getaway
What a wonderful trip, I'm pretty sure it helped me regain my sanity! hahaha I'm going to attempt to keep this at a "not too long" length, but I tend to be pretty windy in my blogging, so we'll see.
1/2/10 Travel to Puerto Rico
Our trip started at 5:00 on a Saturday morning. The trip through the San Diego airport went without any hitches as did our flight to Atlanta. We entertained ourselves with the onboard trivia game for a good portion of the flight. Atlanta gave us a special treat in that it was 32 degrees farenheit when we arrived. We had lunch, and somehow convinced airport officials to let me relieve Valencia out on the tarmack...something that has not been allowed since 9/11. Go figure. From Atlanta we finished our flying and arrived in much warmer and much more humid,, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
My parents had planned for us to stay the night in San Juan and have Sunday morning and afternoon to explore the city before boarding the ship. We stayed at the Isla Verde Marriott. (Isla Verde is a part of San Juan). The hotel was still decorated quite festively for the Christmas season (all Hispanic countries have a major celebration on Jan 6 for Epiphany, or "3 King's Day" as they call it). There was a live band playing in one of the hotel's bars and there were people dacning EVERYWHERE, including the main lobby, haha It was quite the party!
Upon checking in we were given coupons for free drinks from one of the bars, so we dropped off our luggage in our rooms and went to go get dinner and our drinks. My mom and I both enjoyed a mojito, pretty good and not too much alcohol. The atlantic ocean serenaded us as we ate our dinner out on one of the patios. By the time we finished eating, we were all plenty ready for bed.
1/3/10 San Juan and the Caribbean Princess
Sunday morning la familia arose at a decent hour, ate breakfast at the hotel buffet, and set off for our adventure around the city. Our cab driver Eric took us through the districts in New San Juan and dropped us off at El Morro fort. El Morro dates back to the 16th/17th centuries when Puerto Rico was a part of Spain. It is also where some of the Die Another Day James Bond movie was filmed. After leaving El Morro, we had a thorough walking exploration of Old San Juan before meeting up again with Eric and heading to the ship.
Our check in time before boarding was expedited thanks to having Valencia and in no time we were up eating lunch at the buffet.
Our fabulous room steward Ariel helped us get setted, and sent us in the right direction to find Valencia's potty station for the trip. That's seriously been the most frequent question I've been asked "how did she go potty on the ship". They had several small wood boxes with woodchips int hem, basicay like a giant litter box.
And then it was time to get ready for dinner. We had first seating in the Palm Dining Room. Our table was right by a window, which gave us great views on a couple of the evenings. Our servers were wonderful, Anya (from Ukraine) and Borche (from Macedonia). Highlight from dinner #1: prime rib. Following dinner I went with my parents to a flamenco and classical guitar show by Juan Carlos and then to the Sail Away party with my dad and Steve.
1/4/10 St Thomas
The ship docked bright and early Monday morning in St Thomas, thus we arose bright and early to eat breakfast in the Coral dining room, change into our swim gear, and head ashore for our "Champagne Cruise". The tour company bused us across the island in an open air bus, to the dock where we met our crew for the excursion: Johnny, Eric, and Joe of The Adventurer (who informed us they weren't classy enough to call their trip a "champagne cruise" but instead a "booze cruise" lol).
This catamaran ride was I think Valencia's favorite part of the entire trip. We let her sit on deck with us and watch the water go by. She was in doggy heaven. Our guides took us from St. Thomas to St. John's, another of the US Virgin Islands, where we had time to snorkel, swim, or hang out ont he beach. I did a little of all 3, but mostly hung out on the beach.
On our trip back to St. Thomas is when the party really started. Our crew broke out the fruit platters, mimosas, and rum punch, and we rocked out to classic rock and Bob Marley all the way back to shore.
Before getting back on the ship, my mom and I did a bit of shopping. We bought a pair of sterling and larimar (a local stone) earrings from a native lady named Mandla. Once back aboard we grabbed some pizza from the pool deck, and had a nap.
Monday was the first of our formal nights, so all of us got snazzed up and headed down for night #2 of amazing food. Highlight of dinner #2: nutella icecream. We took a family portrait in the Mezzanine, watched the champagne fountain get kicked off, and went to a comedian show. After the show, my dad and I played Jeopardy trivia with several Canadian ladies on our team.
1/5/10 Dominica
Another delicious breakfast was made more fun by our server with the sweets tray "Sugar, for my honey?" (directed to Dave, lol). The island of Dominica gave us our sudden Caribbean rain shower experience, as we dashed to the shoppping warehouse by the dock. I bought a woven straw hot pad type mat and several kinds of spices.
I had a nap back on ship, then lunch with the family in the dining room. After gazpacho, half a cheeseburger, and some delicious Italian icecream, we set off for snorkeling trip #2. This was also a champagne snorkel, but champagne in this case referred to bubbles int he water due to volcanic activity. It was pretty neat, plus we got to see the site of some of the Pirates of the Caribbean filming.
Highlight of dinner #3: key lime pie
We opted for the hypnotist show Tuesday evening and then did some shopping out int he mezzanine.
1/6/10 Grenada
Unfortunately, by the time we got to Grenada, it was evident I had caught a cold and an ear infection. I seem to have this habit of getting sick on family vacations now. I still enjoyed the day, but was a little sleepier throughout it.
Our tour for the day was a driving tour of the island. Our tour guide Luther took us to Fort Frederick, a volcanic crater lake, to see a local lady who is very knowledgeable about spices, and to a beautiful waterfall. Grenada has a very old timey Dutch look and feel to it, which makes it a very cute place, and very very green.
The ship was in port shorter Wednesday because we had quite a ways to go to get to our next port. We were back aboard for lunch (pizza again) and icecream from the pool deck, and then (you guessed it) nap time.
Wednesday was Italian night for dinner, including proscuto, nippy peach soup (favorite soup of the trip), veel scalopini, and tiramisu.
1/7/10 Bonaire
Bonaire is another Dutch West Indies island. We explored some shops in the town nearest the dock and then took a taxi over to the best snorkeling beach I have ever seen. The water was so incredibly clear I couldn't believe it. If you waded out to about waist deep, and looked down, there were your feet, and TONS of fish. We had lunch on the beach before returning to the ship for a nap.
Highlights of dinner #5: lemon strawberry sorbet, and I tried ratatouille
The show Thursday was my favorite of the comedians on this trip. Afterwards we watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding in our stateroom.
1/8/10 Aruba
The fifth and final port on our cruise was Aruba. Aruba and Bonaire were my favorites of the ports. We took a bus from Oranjstad to Palm Beach. Palm Beach is along where mos tof the main resorts in Aruba are. After we'd had our fill of beach time for the day, we explored one of the nearby resorts, and went back to the ship to shower, change, and have lunch
I went back into town with my parents to do some shopping. While there, my dad and I picked up soem phrases in Papmiento (the language of the island, a mix of French, Dutch, Spanish, and a few others). My mom and I got matching necklaces from a jewelry shop on the way back to ship.
Friday was our second formal night. Highlight of dinner #6: feasant with challots.
We took a second family portrait, and had a Lindsey/Valencia photoshoot, which made a lot of people in line very happy.
1
In lieu of a show, my parents and I went to the "newlywed/Not so Newlywed" game, amusing, but slightly awkward at times.1
1/9/10 At sea
The finald ay of our voyage was spent entirely at sea (making our way back across the Caribbean from Aruba to San Juan). We arose a bit late and got breakfast from the buffet. Down in one of the dining rooms was an "outlet sale". Basically they put on sale stuff that has been in inventory for a looong time, lol. I did get a cute shirt from it though.
Then came an activity I'd never done on a cruise before. I went to the ship doctor (for my ear). They gave me some antibiotics and ear drops fo the infection.
I then joined my dad and Steve for morning trivia, which we won! We went to the Crown Dining Room for the "Pub Lunch" I got cottage pie, basically like shepherd's pie. After lunch it was time for a nap, and then more trivia, which was a lot harder, but still fun.
My mom, Dave, and I went for afternoon tea. I love afternoon tea, my favorite part is the scones with jam and cream. Mmm
Our final dinner was "American Night". I had a Caesar salad and New York strip steak. Teh highlight of the evening was the "Baked Alaska Parade" and then of course, eating the baked Alaska, yum! And our final show of the trip was a variety show. Two different comedians and a hypnotist, lots of fun :)
It was a great trip, very relaxing. Plus, we met some great people. Like the deaf couple who also have a service dog (but didn't bring it) and the Romanian waitress at the table next to us in the dining room.
Can't wait for our next family adventure :D
1/2/10 Travel to Puerto Rico
Our trip started at 5:00 on a Saturday morning. The trip through the San Diego airport went without any hitches as did our flight to Atlanta. We entertained ourselves with the onboard trivia game for a good portion of the flight. Atlanta gave us a special treat in that it was 32 degrees farenheit when we arrived. We had lunch, and somehow convinced airport officials to let me relieve Valencia out on the tarmack...something that has not been allowed since 9/11. Go figure. From Atlanta we finished our flying and arrived in much warmer and much more humid,, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
My parents had planned for us to stay the night in San Juan and have Sunday morning and afternoon to explore the city before boarding the ship. We stayed at the Isla Verde Marriott. (Isla Verde is a part of San Juan). The hotel was still decorated quite festively for the Christmas season (all Hispanic countries have a major celebration on Jan 6 for Epiphany, or "3 King's Day" as they call it). There was a live band playing in one of the hotel's bars and there were people dacning EVERYWHERE, including the main lobby, haha It was quite the party!
Upon checking in we were given coupons for free drinks from one of the bars, so we dropped off our luggage in our rooms and went to go get dinner and our drinks. My mom and I both enjoyed a mojito, pretty good and not too much alcohol. The atlantic ocean serenaded us as we ate our dinner out on one of the patios. By the time we finished eating, we were all plenty ready for bed.
1/3/10 San Juan and the Caribbean Princess
Sunday morning la familia arose at a decent hour, ate breakfast at the hotel buffet, and set off for our adventure around the city. Our cab driver Eric took us through the districts in New San Juan and dropped us off at El Morro fort. El Morro dates back to the 16th/17th centuries when Puerto Rico was a part of Spain. It is also where some of the Die Another Day James Bond movie was filmed. After leaving El Morro, we had a thorough walking exploration of Old San Juan before meeting up again with Eric and heading to the ship.
Our check in time before boarding was expedited thanks to having Valencia and in no time we were up eating lunch at the buffet.
Our fabulous room steward Ariel helped us get setted, and sent us in the right direction to find Valencia's potty station for the trip. That's seriously been the most frequent question I've been asked "how did she go potty on the ship". They had several small wood boxes with woodchips int hem, basicay like a giant litter box.
And then it was time to get ready for dinner. We had first seating in the Palm Dining Room. Our table was right by a window, which gave us great views on a couple of the evenings. Our servers were wonderful, Anya (from Ukraine) and Borche (from Macedonia). Highlight from dinner #1: prime rib. Following dinner I went with my parents to a flamenco and classical guitar show by Juan Carlos and then to the Sail Away party with my dad and Steve.
1/4/10 St Thomas
The ship docked bright and early Monday morning in St Thomas, thus we arose bright and early to eat breakfast in the Coral dining room, change into our swim gear, and head ashore for our "Champagne Cruise". The tour company bused us across the island in an open air bus, to the dock where we met our crew for the excursion: Johnny, Eric, and Joe of The Adventurer (who informed us they weren't classy enough to call their trip a "champagne cruise" but instead a "booze cruise" lol).
This catamaran ride was I think Valencia's favorite part of the entire trip. We let her sit on deck with us and watch the water go by. She was in doggy heaven. Our guides took us from St. Thomas to St. John's, another of the US Virgin Islands, where we had time to snorkel, swim, or hang out ont he beach. I did a little of all 3, but mostly hung out on the beach.
On our trip back to St. Thomas is when the party really started. Our crew broke out the fruit platters, mimosas, and rum punch, and we rocked out to classic rock and Bob Marley all the way back to shore.
Before getting back on the ship, my mom and I did a bit of shopping. We bought a pair of sterling and larimar (a local stone) earrings from a native lady named Mandla. Once back aboard we grabbed some pizza from the pool deck, and had a nap.
Monday was the first of our formal nights, so all of us got snazzed up and headed down for night #2 of amazing food. Highlight of dinner #2: nutella icecream. We took a family portrait in the Mezzanine, watched the champagne fountain get kicked off, and went to a comedian show. After the show, my dad and I played Jeopardy trivia with several Canadian ladies on our team.
1/5/10 Dominica
Another delicious breakfast was made more fun by our server with the sweets tray "Sugar, for my honey?" (directed to Dave, lol). The island of Dominica gave us our sudden Caribbean rain shower experience, as we dashed to the shoppping warehouse by the dock. I bought a woven straw hot pad type mat and several kinds of spices.
I had a nap back on ship, then lunch with the family in the dining room. After gazpacho, half a cheeseburger, and some delicious Italian icecream, we set off for snorkeling trip #2. This was also a champagne snorkel, but champagne in this case referred to bubbles int he water due to volcanic activity. It was pretty neat, plus we got to see the site of some of the Pirates of the Caribbean filming.
Highlight of dinner #3: key lime pie
We opted for the hypnotist show Tuesday evening and then did some shopping out int he mezzanine.
1/6/10 Grenada
Unfortunately, by the time we got to Grenada, it was evident I had caught a cold and an ear infection. I seem to have this habit of getting sick on family vacations now. I still enjoyed the day, but was a little sleepier throughout it.
Our tour for the day was a driving tour of the island. Our tour guide Luther took us to Fort Frederick, a volcanic crater lake, to see a local lady who is very knowledgeable about spices, and to a beautiful waterfall. Grenada has a very old timey Dutch look and feel to it, which makes it a very cute place, and very very green.
The ship was in port shorter Wednesday because we had quite a ways to go to get to our next port. We were back aboard for lunch (pizza again) and icecream from the pool deck, and then (you guessed it) nap time.
Wednesday was Italian night for dinner, including proscuto, nippy peach soup (favorite soup of the trip), veel scalopini, and tiramisu.
1/7/10 Bonaire
Bonaire is another Dutch West Indies island. We explored some shops in the town nearest the dock and then took a taxi over to the best snorkeling beach I have ever seen. The water was so incredibly clear I couldn't believe it. If you waded out to about waist deep, and looked down, there were your feet, and TONS of fish. We had lunch on the beach before returning to the ship for a nap.
Highlights of dinner #5: lemon strawberry sorbet, and I tried ratatouille
The show Thursday was my favorite of the comedians on this trip. Afterwards we watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding in our stateroom.
1/8/10 Aruba
The fifth and final port on our cruise was Aruba. Aruba and Bonaire were my favorites of the ports. We took a bus from Oranjstad to Palm Beach. Palm Beach is along where mos tof the main resorts in Aruba are. After we'd had our fill of beach time for the day, we explored one of the nearby resorts, and went back to the ship to shower, change, and have lunch
I went back into town with my parents to do some shopping. While there, my dad and I picked up soem phrases in Papmiento (the language of the island, a mix of French, Dutch, Spanish, and a few others). My mom and I got matching necklaces from a jewelry shop on the way back to ship.
Friday was our second formal night. Highlight of dinner #6: feasant with challots.
We took a second family portrait, and had a Lindsey/Valencia photoshoot, which made a lot of people in line very happy.
1
In lieu of a show, my parents and I went to the "newlywed/Not so Newlywed" game, amusing, but slightly awkward at times.1
1/9/10 At sea
The finald ay of our voyage was spent entirely at sea (making our way back across the Caribbean from Aruba to San Juan). We arose a bit late and got breakfast from the buffet. Down in one of the dining rooms was an "outlet sale". Basically they put on sale stuff that has been in inventory for a looong time, lol. I did get a cute shirt from it though.
Then came an activity I'd never done on a cruise before. I went to the ship doctor (for my ear). They gave me some antibiotics and ear drops fo the infection.
I then joined my dad and Steve for morning trivia, which we won! We went to the Crown Dining Room for the "Pub Lunch" I got cottage pie, basically like shepherd's pie. After lunch it was time for a nap, and then more trivia, which was a lot harder, but still fun.
My mom, Dave, and I went for afternoon tea. I love afternoon tea, my favorite part is the scones with jam and cream. Mmm
Our final dinner was "American Night". I had a Caesar salad and New York strip steak. Teh highlight of the evening was the "Baked Alaska Parade" and then of course, eating the baked Alaska, yum! And our final show of the trip was a variety show. Two different comedians and a hypnotist, lots of fun :)
It was a great trip, very relaxing. Plus, we met some great people. Like the deaf couple who also have a service dog (but didn't bring it) and the Romanian waitress at the table next to us in the dining room.
Can't wait for our next family adventure :D
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Nine Highlights from '09
I may have stretched these *a bit* to make them fit into nine...but just a little :)
Enjoying Olive Grove Park on campus
looking nifty, fifties style :)
awesome HUOD girls on floor retreat
Funktastic friends with our funktabulous party drinks, at the Funkship Cruise All Hall, funk yeah!!! (oh how I love Ryan Low and the Hart Res Life staff xD)
Cheesecake Factory #1 for Raeleen's bday
Cheesecake #2 for Amanda's bday
About to watch Sleepless in Seattle
the Clarinet Club seniors after our last recital
My love and me at the all hall
"it's a small world after all" kinda
Walking the Hermosa Beach pier
Seniors at Comm Disorders dinner at El Torrito
The Romania clarinet section, at Winds Banquet
Communication Disorders graduating class Spring 09!
Mi familia y yo
Best friends since 2nd grade, this may it'll be her turn to wear the cap and gown :)
staying dry in Roschiori :)
our whole team, behind the team house
this sums up my trip
my super fun birthday/graduation party
Birthday, Disneyland style :)
California Adventure with Amanda <3 onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbckf4htpkWtYPJtRx4lvS0ObUDowyLnf0kNAlLOR0WofvGFqUYSMBZKwhAkfjAE79pp8Tb7WafVUICG7cFhtmRGQzlEW6SQkx-pi31MgA5nTWMpEVWRC3rNxfgmCoNlr4uJDhN_DJr8Q/s1600-h/summer2.jpg">
SonRock Kids' Camp VBS
Always delighted to see my love
Wicked at the San Diego Civic Center with the roomies and Raelene (and the fam)
I helped Raelene put on her parents' surprise 50th birthday party
On a Biola visit weekend :)
December Nights in Balboa Park
a few of the ladies from my program, at my house for a Christmas party
Hanging out in a Krispy Kreme in Spokane
Happy 2010!
Interterm at Biola
This one started out as a bit of a sore spot for me, thanks to the whole "my family's on a cruise and I'm not" thing, but it ended up being a good month anyway. I took my stats class, which I really enjoyed thanks to the professor. When I wasn't doing stats problems, I was hanging out with people in Hart having family dinners and making Berry Cool runs. Tad visited me for the last week of interterm, and we enjoyed watching movies, hanging out at Berry Cool, wandering around Brea and Fullerton with Christine, and exploring new areas of campus.
Enjoying Olive Grove Park on campusHart Events
I absolutely LOVED living in Hart, no joke. The spring included '50's and "Funkship Cruise" all halls, HUOD/HUB sister floor "Spa and Dessert Night" Valentine's party, HUOD floor retreat to Shanelle's house in Valencia, and two girls' nights out to Cheesecake Factory.
looking nifty, fifties style :)
awesome HUOD girls on floor retreat
Funktastic friends with our funktabulous party drinks, at the Funkship Cruise All Hall, funk yeah!!! (oh how I love Ryan Low and the Hart Res Life staff xD)
Cheesecake Factory #1 for Raeleen's bday
Cheesecake #2 for Amanda's bdayClarinet Club Events
Clarinet Club was one of my favorite extracurriculars at Biola - good friends, being nerdy about clarinet together and having fun. We had a Valentine's party at Amanda's house, hosted a concert by the LA clarinet choir, held a fundraiser for the Romania team, and put on an end-of-the-year recital.
About to watch Sleepless in Seattle
the Clarinet Club seniors after our last recitalMissions Conference
Missions Conference on its own is a delight, but it's even better when it's accompanied by a Tad visit. Tad was here for the St Patrick's all hall (mentioned above), all of the conference, and a really fun double date night with my friends Dave and Amy (who got married 10 days ago).
My love and me at the all hall
"it's a small world after all" kinda
Walking the Hermosa Beach pierFinal Days at Biola and Graduation
The last month of my time at Biola was filled with fun, including Comm Disorders dinner, Winds banquet, and of course graduation. I graduated magna cum laude and my family and Raelene were ther to celebrate with me.
Seniors at Comm Disorders dinner at El Torrito
The Romania clarinet section, at Winds Banquet
Communication Disorders graduating class Spring 09!
Mi familia y yo
Best friends since 2nd grade, this may it'll be her turn to wear the cap and gown :)Romania
The Biola Romania tour was an incredible experience. I'd never been on a missions trip before, and this was certainly a wonderful first experience. I fell in love with the kids and people there, and I hope to return someday.
staying dry in Roschiori :)
our whole team, behind the team house
this sums up my tripSummer Fun
This was quite possibly the best summer I've ever had. I spent my birthday at Disneyland with Raelene and Becky, played in the North County Community Band, went to California Adventure with Amanda, visited Tad and his family for a week, taught a group of Kindergarteners during VBS, and moved into my condo.
my super fun birthday/graduation party
Birthday, Disneyland style :)
California Adventure with Amanda <3 onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbckf4htpkWtYPJtRx4lvS0ObUDowyLnf0kNAlLOR0WofvGFqUYSMBZKwhAkfjAE79pp8Tb7WafVUICG7cFhtmRGQzlEW6SQkx-pi31MgA5nTWMpEVWRC3rNxfgmCoNlr4uJDhN_DJr8Q/s1600-h/summer2.jpg">SonRock Kids' Camp VBS
Always delighted to see my love
Wicked at the San Diego Civic Center with the roomies and Raelene (and the fam)Grad School
My first semester was killer, but I managed to find time to still have fun with friends.
An afternoon at Bates' Nut Farm
I helped Raelene put on her parents' surprise 50th birthday party
On a Biola visit weekend :)
December Nights in Balboa Park
a few of the ladies from my program, at my house for a Christmas partyHolidays with Tad
I spent Thanksgiving with Tad and his family. I was in Washington for half the week, and ont he Oregon coast for the other half. It was great getting to spend time with him, and get to know his family better. We were also blessed to get to spend New Years together, as Tad is now a San Diego resident :D
Hanging out in a Krispy Kreme in SpokaneHappy 2010!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Wrapping up a Decade
I'm never really "surprised" by the end of a year. A lot has happened in 2009. I am, however, surprised by the end of a decade. I still eel like it just recently turned 2000. I was 12 (and a half) at the turn of the century, thus I didn't have exquisitely clear memories of the entire 90's decade. So in a way, this is more first real closing of a decade.
Looking back, it's easy to see how much happens in ten years:
2001
Career day spent with a speech language pathologist
Graduated from middle school
Moved out of the house we'd lived in since I was 5
Started high school, and marching band, which ruled my life for 4 years
Moved into the house we live in now
2002
Mom started Mary Kay
Started playing percussion during marching season
Family trip to San Antonio
2003
First almost kinda sorta, not really boyfriend
Band trip to Australia
Began looking at colleges
2004
Spent 3 weeks in norcal at the STEP (Student Transition Education Program, I think) program at California School for the Blind
Family cruise to Alaska
Began applying to college
2005
Decided to go to Biola
Band trip to Hawaii
Graduated from high school
Started my college education at Biola
Met some of my best friends ever :)
2006
Interterm at Biola
Winds tour around OC?LA county
Family cruise to Mexico
Added my Spanish minor
Met Tad
Started dating Tad
Moved into Horton with Krista
Tad meets my family over Christmas
2007
Interterm at Biola
Met Tad's family over summer
Moved into Welch apartment with Krista and Becky
Started Clarinet Club with Becky
Family trip to Maui with Tad
2008
Biola Centennial
Winds tour to NorCal
Tad graduates from NNU
My 21st birthday
Valencia and I are paired and train for 4 weeks at Guide Dogs for the Blind
Becky, Valencia, and I move into Hart
Applied to grad school
2009
Interterm at Biola
I get accepted to SDSU for grad school
I graduate from Biola
First missions trip, to Romania with Heart 2 Heart International
22nd birthday at Disneyland
I move into my condo in Mission Valley
Grad school
Thanksgiving spent with the Tildens
Tad moves to San Diego!
I'm very excited for all that comes in the new decade :)
Looking back, it's easy to see how much happens in ten years:
2001
Career day spent with a speech language pathologist
Graduated from middle school
Moved out of the house we'd lived in since I was 5
Started high school, and marching band, which ruled my life for 4 years
Moved into the house we live in now
2002
Mom started Mary Kay
Started playing percussion during marching season
Family trip to San Antonio
2003
First almost kinda sorta, not really boyfriend
Band trip to Australia
Began looking at colleges
2004
Spent 3 weeks in norcal at the STEP (Student Transition Education Program, I think) program at California School for the Blind
Family cruise to Alaska
Began applying to college
2005
Decided to go to Biola
Band trip to Hawaii
Graduated from high school
Started my college education at Biola
Met some of my best friends ever :)
2006
Interterm at Biola
Winds tour around OC?LA county
Family cruise to Mexico
Added my Spanish minor
Met Tad
Started dating Tad
Moved into Horton with Krista
Tad meets my family over Christmas
2007
Interterm at Biola
Met Tad's family over summer
Moved into Welch apartment with Krista and Becky
Started Clarinet Club with Becky
Family trip to Maui with Tad
2008
Biola Centennial
Winds tour to NorCal
Tad graduates from NNU
My 21st birthday
Valencia and I are paired and train for 4 weeks at Guide Dogs for the Blind
Becky, Valencia, and I move into Hart
Applied to grad school
2009
Interterm at Biola
I get accepted to SDSU for grad school
I graduate from Biola
First missions trip, to Romania with Heart 2 Heart International
22nd birthday at Disneyland
I move into my condo in Mission Valley
Grad school
Thanksgiving spent with the Tildens
Tad moves to San Diego!
I'm very excited for all that comes in the new decade :)
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Celebrating Biola Style
This year, instead of heading down to San Diego from LA after finishing finals, I did the opposite. I was at home for a day, and then headed up to the Biola area for the weekend. And what a weekend it was.
I rode up to Orange County on Friday morning with Anja. We had fun talking in the car, espeically about how wonderful it was to not have school for a month. She dropped me off at Krista's house where I hung out with Krista's brother and sister while Krista got ready. Soon as she was ready we joined Becky at her place where the rest of us got ready to go to Biola graduation.
Dorothy (the graduate among us) picked Sizzler for dinner, which is conveniently between Becky's townhouse and Biola. I shared a combination plate of steak, shrimp, and ribs with Dorothy. Yum, I had forgotten how much I like Sizzler! We ate quicky since we were a bit short on time. Becky's and Dorhty's rommate Melissa and I went ahead early to the gym to save seats. It was wonderful (as it has been every time) to be back on campus. I became very excited when we walked past the Biola Christmas tree.
The gym was decorated festively with more Christmas trees. The ceremony was nice. I knew a few of the other graduates, mostly music people. Afterwards, we went with Dorothy and her family to the reception in the caf. The caf was also decorated with Christmas trees and such, and had delicious dessserts, eggnog, and cider. My dad made the point later that if you lived in the area you could make a point to go to that every year, lol.
After the reception we went down to Hart to pick up Becky's sister Jen, and happened upon a lot of Hart alumni. I got to chat with Beth for a while about grad school, and compare the programs at SDSU and Redlands. It's a bit of a relief to know that I'm not the only one who's thrilled with graduate coursework, haha
Saturday morning (after walking to Albertson's for milk) Becky made pancakes for her, me and Jen, which we ate with apple butter, very tasty. The rest of my Saturday was spent at Amy and Dave's wedding, which was beautiful.
I love weddings, love them, oh my goodness. Amy and Dave are friends I know, in a round about way, because of Valencia. Amy has a dog from GDB, and she was visiting Dave (who just graduated from Talbot) one week, and they came to a Symphonic Winds concert. My mom and Amy met in the bathroom with the two dogs. Amy and Dave are the couple that Tad and I went on a double date with to Hermosa Beach back in March (which happened to be the night before they got engaged).
Anywho
Their wedding was at the church Dave has been interning at. It's a small baptist church, with a tall steeple like a classic old church house, and very nice people. It was a beautiful ceremony, Amy sang a duet in Mandarin with her maid of honor, the wedding party read 2 Cor 13, they wrote their own vows, and at the end we all sang hymns together.
Immediately following the service was picture time, the favorite of which was the guide dog picture. Including Amy's dog Donna, there were five guides present. Donna was the star among the dogs, donning two different party dresses over the course of the afternoon and evening.
There was a reception in the church fellowship hall after the ceremony. Since they were also having a dinner reception, I assumed the church one would be just cake and punch. But they had a full array of food, including fruit and veggie platters, teriyaki chicken, california rolls, and several kinds of Chinese pastries. They had a slideshow of pictures of Amy and Dave and had a number of people say a message to Amy and Dave.
The dinner reception was at a restaurant across town called Happy Habor Seafood. Amy found a ride for me with one of her friends. We got a bit lost on the way, but found it a lot sooner than most of the guests.
The restaurant was a very nice, elegant, Chinese seafood place. Between receptions, Amy had changed from her traditional western wedding dress, into a traditional Chinese dress, red with beautiful gold embroidery. She and Dave looked great together with his matching red button down shirt. They're such a great couple!
Dinner was incredible, all nine courses of it! I tried several things I had never had before. Course one was jellyfish and a cold slice of beef. It was followed by delicious walnut shrimp. Then came the shark fin soup. Then there was shitaki mushrooms, bak choi, and abilone. Then there was the lobster, after which was the Peking duck. Next was the baked fish, and we finished off with a bowl of fried rice. Dessert was lotus paste cookies and red bean soup, both were amazingly delicious!
Amy and Dave came around to each table individually to toast and I got a chance to chat with them a bit. They sent me home with a vase of beautiful red and yellow roses from one o the tables. Presently, they are in Waikiki, lucky ducks :)
There were several things I decided from the day. 1. I want an afternoon wedding, 2. I want a slightly fancier reception locaiton than a church fellowship hall (though I want the ceremony in a church) and 3. White cake with straberries in it makes a delicious wedding cake layer.
Sunday I wrapped up my visit with church at Grace EV Free with Krista dnd Jen and then lunch at Panda Express.
Below are a few pictures from the weekend:
I am no longer in the most recent graduating class from Biola, weird
What a beautiful bride Amy is :)
the centerpiece at my table at their dinner reception
me with the happy couple, isn't Amy's dress gorgeous???
I rode up to Orange County on Friday morning with Anja. We had fun talking in the car, espeically about how wonderful it was to not have school for a month. She dropped me off at Krista's house where I hung out with Krista's brother and sister while Krista got ready. Soon as she was ready we joined Becky at her place where the rest of us got ready to go to Biola graduation.
Dorothy (the graduate among us) picked Sizzler for dinner, which is conveniently between Becky's townhouse and Biola. I shared a combination plate of steak, shrimp, and ribs with Dorothy. Yum, I had forgotten how much I like Sizzler! We ate quicky since we were a bit short on time. Becky's and Dorhty's rommate Melissa and I went ahead early to the gym to save seats. It was wonderful (as it has been every time) to be back on campus. I became very excited when we walked past the Biola Christmas tree.
The gym was decorated festively with more Christmas trees. The ceremony was nice. I knew a few of the other graduates, mostly music people. Afterwards, we went with Dorothy and her family to the reception in the caf. The caf was also decorated with Christmas trees and such, and had delicious dessserts, eggnog, and cider. My dad made the point later that if you lived in the area you could make a point to go to that every year, lol.
After the reception we went down to Hart to pick up Becky's sister Jen, and happened upon a lot of Hart alumni. I got to chat with Beth for a while about grad school, and compare the programs at SDSU and Redlands. It's a bit of a relief to know that I'm not the only one who's thrilled with graduate coursework, haha
Saturday morning (after walking to Albertson's for milk) Becky made pancakes for her, me and Jen, which we ate with apple butter, very tasty. The rest of my Saturday was spent at Amy and Dave's wedding, which was beautiful.
I love weddings, love them, oh my goodness. Amy and Dave are friends I know, in a round about way, because of Valencia. Amy has a dog from GDB, and she was visiting Dave (who just graduated from Talbot) one week, and they came to a Symphonic Winds concert. My mom and Amy met in the bathroom with the two dogs. Amy and Dave are the couple that Tad and I went on a double date with to Hermosa Beach back in March (which happened to be the night before they got engaged).
Anywho
Their wedding was at the church Dave has been interning at. It's a small baptist church, with a tall steeple like a classic old church house, and very nice people. It was a beautiful ceremony, Amy sang a duet in Mandarin with her maid of honor, the wedding party read 2 Cor 13, they wrote their own vows, and at the end we all sang hymns together.
Immediately following the service was picture time, the favorite of which was the guide dog picture. Including Amy's dog Donna, there were five guides present. Donna was the star among the dogs, donning two different party dresses over the course of the afternoon and evening.
There was a reception in the church fellowship hall after the ceremony. Since they were also having a dinner reception, I assumed the church one would be just cake and punch. But they had a full array of food, including fruit and veggie platters, teriyaki chicken, california rolls, and several kinds of Chinese pastries. They had a slideshow of pictures of Amy and Dave and had a number of people say a message to Amy and Dave.
The dinner reception was at a restaurant across town called Happy Habor Seafood. Amy found a ride for me with one of her friends. We got a bit lost on the way, but found it a lot sooner than most of the guests.
The restaurant was a very nice, elegant, Chinese seafood place. Between receptions, Amy had changed from her traditional western wedding dress, into a traditional Chinese dress, red with beautiful gold embroidery. She and Dave looked great together with his matching red button down shirt. They're such a great couple!
Dinner was incredible, all nine courses of it! I tried several things I had never had before. Course one was jellyfish and a cold slice of beef. It was followed by delicious walnut shrimp. Then came the shark fin soup. Then there was shitaki mushrooms, bak choi, and abilone. Then there was the lobster, after which was the Peking duck. Next was the baked fish, and we finished off with a bowl of fried rice. Dessert was lotus paste cookies and red bean soup, both were amazingly delicious!
Amy and Dave came around to each table individually to toast and I got a chance to chat with them a bit. They sent me home with a vase of beautiful red and yellow roses from one o the tables. Presently, they are in Waikiki, lucky ducks :)
There were several things I decided from the day. 1. I want an afternoon wedding, 2. I want a slightly fancier reception locaiton than a church fellowship hall (though I want the ceremony in a church) and 3. White cake with straberries in it makes a delicious wedding cake layer.
Sunday I wrapped up my visit with church at Grace EV Free with Krista dnd Jen and then lunch at Panda Express.
Below are a few pictures from the weekend:
I am no longer in the most recent graduating class from Biola, weird
What a beautiful bride Amy is :)
the centerpiece at my table at their dinner reception
me with the happy couple, isn't Amy's dress gorgeous???
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Preparing for Christmas
Celebrating Advent is so hard when the first 3 weeks are overshadowed by finals :/
As is evidenced by my life all semester, this year is especially difficult. I only have 4 days left in the semester, and yet so much to do. Add in that I am still slowly adjusting to my new again secular surroundings.
Nonetheless, I am almost finished with this darned semester, and have been doing my utmost to enjoy the season.
Last weekend I went with Raelene and her new boyfriend Nate to "December Nights" in Balboa Park. This is a San Diego tradition my family has never done. None of us are much for crowds, and as I discovered that night, all of San Diego (and their dog) goes to December Nights. It was fun though. We didn't actually end up getting there until 8:30 (we had been aiming for 7, and it ended at 10), but it didn't matter too much. I got a good chance to get to know Nate a bit and it was cold outside anyway.
The park was beautifully decorated with tons of lights strung everywhere and multiple Christmas trees. We had brotworst for dinner and enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate while watching some of the jazz choir performance at the organ pavillion.
Raelene dropped me off at home, where I spent Saturday and Sunday helping my family put up the Christmas decorations.
Last week (since clinic was finished) I spent a large amount of time at home working on projects...and rinking eggnog *mmm*. I finished up some Christmas shopping yesterday morning, and enjoyed a Starbucks (courtesy of the starbucks card from my landlord).
4 more days:
EMonday: diagnostics exam
Tuesday: research methods presentation
Wednesday: Phonology project due 4 pm, language project due midnight
Thursday: Online Neurogenics exam
Then, Christmas break!!!!
As is evidenced by my life all semester, this year is especially difficult. I only have 4 days left in the semester, and yet so much to do. Add in that I am still slowly adjusting to my new again secular surroundings.
Nonetheless, I am almost finished with this darned semester, and have been doing my utmost to enjoy the season.
Last weekend I went with Raelene and her new boyfriend Nate to "December Nights" in Balboa Park. This is a San Diego tradition my family has never done. None of us are much for crowds, and as I discovered that night, all of San Diego (and their dog) goes to December Nights. It was fun though. We didn't actually end up getting there until 8:30 (we had been aiming for 7, and it ended at 10), but it didn't matter too much. I got a good chance to get to know Nate a bit and it was cold outside anyway.
The park was beautifully decorated with tons of lights strung everywhere and multiple Christmas trees. We had brotworst for dinner and enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate while watching some of the jazz choir performance at the organ pavillion.
Raelene dropped me off at home, where I spent Saturday and Sunday helping my family put up the Christmas decorations.
Last week (since clinic was finished) I spent a large amount of time at home working on projects...and rinking eggnog *mmm*. I finished up some Christmas shopping yesterday morning, and enjoyed a Starbucks (courtesy of the starbucks card from my landlord).
4 more days:
EMonday: diagnostics exam
Tuesday: research methods presentation
Wednesday: Phonology project due 4 pm, language project due midnight
Thursday: Online Neurogenics exam
Then, Christmas break!!!!
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