My Favorite Time of Year

October is an interesting month in Arizona...at the beginning, there are still days with triple digit temperatures, prompting me to wonder if Mother Nature failed to get the memo that summer is in fact over. And then, right about this time, it turns nice. Temperatures in the 80's during the day, in the 60's at night. Last night I came out of the temple a little before 9:00 p.m. and I was chilly. I think that's the first time that has happened since April or so. I loved it.

We're now only 13 days from my favorite month. Perfect weather, my favorite holiday, and my anniversary.

Life is good.

Hometown Huddle

Every year, all of the United Way's in major cities team up with their local NFL team for this fun event called Hometown Huddle. In addition to completing a major project for a local agency, some of the players and cheerleaders come out and do a little mini football and cheerleading camp for a group of kids that tend to be on the lower rungs of the socioecomonic ladder. Anyway, Hometown Huddle was yesterday. It was a nice break from the office and we all had a great time.

The photo is of me, some of my fellow marketing department divas and Deuce from the Cardinals...

Babies, Babies Everywhere

This past weekend I went up to Sacramento for my best friend's baby shower. It seems like everyone is having babies! I love it! Anyway, the shower was seriously the nicest baby (or any other) shower I've ever attended. Everything was picture perfect.

The best part though, of course, was spending time with Christine. The only thing I dislike about living in Arizona is the distance from my friends. But little visits here and there defininitely help.

In addition, I got to help her get everything organized for the nursery, which I totally loved. Maybe I should have taken the Professional Organizer career track...

Birthday Fun for Bry

October is a crazy month for us, so even though Bryan’s birthday isn’t until the 10th, we took his birthday trip this last weekend. Day One was spent between Disneyland and California Adventure, which was fine, but since it was our 3rd time in two years, we just weren’t feeling the ‘magic.’ However that night we had dinner at the Blue Bayou Restaurant (inside of Pirates of the Caribbean) and the food was spectacular, which made the whole day worth it. Day Two was spent at Universal Studios. It had been years since either of us had been there and we had a great time. That night we went to Bryan’s favorite restaurant, Rockin’ Baja Lobster where his Bucket O’ Meat was the highlight of the trip for him! Day Three we met up with my friends Katherine and Rob for brunch before heading home to Arizona. All in all it was another fabulous weekend trip, which will hopefully keep us geared up throughout the month!

Recollections of 9/11

On September 11, 2001 I had lived in San Francisco for a little more than two months. I got up that morning as usual, showered, dressed in black pants and a lavender ¾ length sweater, and proceeded to get ready for work. My roommates and I rarely interacted in the morning, for no other reason than our own preoccupation with our individual morning routines and the accompanying effort to get out the door on schedule. So when I came out of my bedroom that morning and saw Katie and Kelly standing in front of the TV in Katie’s room, I knew something was up.

I walked into Katie’s room, and no one said a word. I think they were in shock. After a few moments of viewing the horrible images that flashed across the screen, I was, too. We continued to watch for a few minutes, wanting to look away, but somehow unable to.

One by one we eventually tore ourselves away from the TV so we could proceed to work. When I got onto MUNI that morning, something seemed strange. Usually people occupied themselves with newspapers and books and their blackberries as the Express worked its way through traffic toward the Financial District. After a few minutes someone started a conversation—addressed to no one in particular—and astonishingly, everyone began chiming in with little bits and pieces of information that they had gleaned from various news sources that morning.

After we reached my stop I walked the three-or-so blocks to my office in a fog. When I walked into the office, one of my co-workers was sitting on the couch crying. She had family that worked in the towers. Within minutes our main office in Utah called and told us all to go home. My co-worker Katherine’s boyfriend picked us up and drove us back to the other side of town. As we made our way through the Financial District and the Civic Center it was like a ghost town. Very eerie for a Tuesday morning in September.

By the time I returned to my apartment in the Richmond District, both of my roommates were home. We parked ourselves in front of the television in our living room and wondered out loud whether the reporter’s speculation about terrorists targeting the Golden Gate Bridge could actually happen. You could see the Golden Gate Bridge from the balcony of our apartment.

The very last plane in U.S. airspace that day was to land in San Francisco. We watched with baited breath as news cameras captured its touchdown at SFO. The three of us breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Within a couple of weeks the inability to sleep had set in. The horrible nightmares followed soon after. I don’t remember exactly how long they lasted, but Tylenol P.M. and a meditation-type CD my mom sent me helped me get through the weeks and months that followed.

Eventually I was able to get a normal night’s sleep—uninterrupted by terrible images flashing through my mind—on my own. But the memories of the fear I felt during that time will always remain.

That day could very well be the reason why the city life which I had always wanted to live became something that I truly abhorred…

Things I Love (in no particular order, except #1!)

My husband
Having a plan
Coach bags
Weekend getaways
Chocolate chip cookies
Fire and Ice Roses
Good pens
NASCAR
Cute shoes
Pedicures
Going to the temple
Sales at Banana Republic
November
Roller coasters
Celebrity gossip
Unexpected phone calls from friends
Crisp cotton sheets warm from the dryer
Jackson's welcome when I come home
The beach
Lists
The way I feel after I go to the gym
Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches
The sound of Bryan's laugh
XM radio (which I really miss during my commute)
Getting a good night's sleep
Chocolate shakes from Crossroads Cafe in SF
Weekends at the cabin
Having a clean house
Anything that Bryan BBQ's
Clinique lipstick in A Different Grape
Watermelon-flavored gum

A Cooler, Greener Side of Arizona

On Friday afternoon Bryan and I headed up to his parent's cabin in Show Low for the weekend. Being a typical California girl who expected all of Arizona to be cactus-laden desert, I never cease to be amazed when I come up here. It's about 20-25 degrees cooler than it is in the Valley, and there are big, green pine trees as far as the eye can see.

We've had a fun time with Bryan's parents, his grandma, his brother and his brother's girlfriend. Oh, and Jackson has had a great time, too. Too bad I forgot to bring the camera. And too bad we have to head back home tonight...

Random Musings...

I was thinking this morning about how some of the things I enjoy in my life have been “acquired tastes”—things that at one point I didn’t care much for, but now love. For example, I remember a time when I hated reading the newspaper, abhorred going to the gym and avoided getting up before 10:00 a.m. on the weekend like the plague.

But now, I enjoy reading the newspaper every morning. While keeping up on current events makes me feel like an educated member of society, I’m always on the lookout for anything having to do with personal finance and health and fitness. And of course I love those warm-fuzzy human interest stories.

As far as going to the gym, it’s now a love/hate relationship. I hate getting myself there, but I love the way it makes me feel. Luckily the love part of the relationship outweighs the hate, which keeps me going back.

And while I still (on very rare occasions) allow myself to sleep past 10:00, I find that I am much happier when I get up and going and actually accomplish something. Maybe it’s because I’m getting older and have started to realize that time is a commodity not to be wasted. Or maybe it’s just because I’ve been working a 'real job' for enough years that my internal clock freaks out if I’m in bed past 6:30. Who knows.

What happens in Vegas...

...doesn't really stay in Vegas when you have a blog! This last weekend Bryan and I took a long weekend in Vegas for my birthday. On the way there we stopped and did the Hoover Dam tour, which was really interesting and especially fun for me because I had never seen it before. We saw the Blue Man Group which was just as good as everyone said it was, and did plenty of eating and shopping and eating, and of course got in a roller coaster ride at New York, New York. The great thing about Vegas though, is that I didn't have to feel guilty about eating that cinnamon apple crepe or the fruit tart because we did so much walking! The last morning we were there we had the most amazing breakfast at a restaurant inside of the Venetian called Bouchon...I highly recommend it. The only disappointment was that they've closed the Coca-Cola museum! Bryan had never been and I was all excited for him to try all of the crazy flavors of soda that they sell all over the world and when we got there...nothing! All in all, though, it was another perfect weekend getaway...

I love to see the temple...

Back when the Church announced that there would be a temple built in Sacramento, I told my best friend who lives in the area that when it opened, I would take her to the open house. So that's what I did this weekend. The temple is absolutely beautiful (of course) and it was great to be able to share a little piece of that part of my life with someone who is so close to me.

The rest of the weekend was a blast, as well. We got in a descent dose of shopping (of course!); bbq'd and had poker night with Christine's hubby, parents and grandparents; hung out by the pool; saw a couple of movies; and just generally had a good, relaxing time.

Thanks, Christine, for a perfect weekend!