Life Is Good

Three decades have passed me by and I am thankful for so much. I have learned so much, yet I feel like "real" life has only just begun. Just when I think I know it all, life throws you curve balls that give you the opportunity to grow and excel. Here is a list of things I look back on and smile about:

1. My loving family. They have always supported me and listened to my opinions (that takes a lot of patience, I know).
2. Running for class president in sixth grade and losing to the most popular boy by only a few votes.
3. Helping a girl with her horse at horse camp only to have him bend around and bite me in the thigh. I ended up winning the horse competition with that darn horse.
4. My Grandmother's unconditional love and all of those fox trot lessons we shared in the family room.
5. Being so happy when my father said we could keep the stray cat we found at the bus stop (RIP Molly).
6. The memories of pudding and playing with the cutest, wooden doll furniture at my Grandparent's house.
7. Stacking floor cushions in the hallway so my sister and I could jump over them for hours and hours.
8. Being part of a best friend triangle that allowed us to feel untouchable.
9. Calling my mother at work thinking rats were in our guinea pig's cage only to learn she was having babies.
10. Playing soccer in elementary school. In Shannon fashion, I would sit on the field during games and gossip with the goalie. That is multitasking if you ask me.

11. Running track in junior high and really thinking I was going to make it to the Olympics one day.
12. All of the memories my father and I shared regarding basketball. He was my coach and number one supporter even though I wasn't that great!
13. Surviving high school with a smile on my face. You really do face some tough challenges, but man did I have fun doing it.
14. Doing gymkhana on draft horses. I will never forget sitting atop Debbie when the sun was setting and watching the cherry blossoms blow in the wind. I felt very connected right at that moment.
15. My mother driving me and my friends to a country line dancing club through the most horrible fog on Friday evenings. Those memories are hilarious, but man my mom was strong to be able to let her youngest daughter find her independence.
16. Driving the 1978 Volvo. I loved that car.
17. Working for the best physician on this planet. Even though I hated everything medical, I had his files in tip top shape.
18. Voting for the first time. Who knows how I voted back then, but I am sure I was trying to save the environment.
19. Only missing one question on my brain exam in my Physiological Psychology class. I got the highest score and absolutely loved dissecting the sheep brains. I will never forget Dr. Murikami and how he made psychology so much fun.
20. Moving away to college. I thought I was going to party and get great grades just like I had been doing in junior college. Boy was it a shock when I got to UCDavis. I had to step up my game a little bit.

21. Meeting the man of my dreams.
22. Moving across the country for an internship on a farm.
23. Realizing I have to grow up and be responsible for myself.
24. Four wheeling with my Jeep Wrangler.
25. Marrying the man of my dreams.
26. Being a Nanny and all the fun that came with that title.
27. Learning that it is okay to live life the way I want to. I finally reined in my insecurities and now know to put myself first and chill out about the world.
28. Visiting Europe: eating chocolate in Switzerland, drinking Absinthe in Prague, and walking the canals of Venice at night.
29. Gave birth naturally to my wonderful son. The love I have for my husband, son, and two dogs is so amazing and I thank my lucky stars for all I have everyday. They are the best.
30. Imagining what tomorrow brings.

Cheers to everyone's next thirty! Okay, I have to admit it is hard for me to think my baby will be thirty someday and I want him to stay a baby forever, but I am working on pushing my overprotective thoughts aside so he can grow.

Happy Belated Father's Day

Blake wanted me to post this picture and tell everyone how much he loves his daddy. He thought it would be really fun to take his daddy to the Computer History Museum in Mountain View.



Yes, it is a geeky thing to do on Father's day, but we had a great time. We also drove around the Peninsula and looked around the Redwood shores. We had to see the ocean even if we weren't surfing for the day!

Last night we put in an offer on a 1993 Eurovan, but we offered half the asking price so we are not sure if the owner will accept that. It needs a lot of work to get it in everyday working order so we tried to account for that. We will see. Keep your fingers crossed.

Habits Form Early

Blake found his thumb. He also seems to twirl his yet-to-be hair. I am scared of the bald spot he may create when his hair grows in.

Garage Sale Find

Andrew and I bought Blake his first garage sale toy. Teenie decided to try it out for us since Blake is a wee bit small for it. He gets to try it, with a towel, on his 11 week birthday this Friday.

I Am Just Learning

Andrew is teaching me how to upload these videos by myself. So you may get bored of watching Blake play with toys, but this is for the sake of my internet education.

Grammie gave Blake this crocheted rattle.


Now Blake has moved onto wooden toys.


Now for the Teenie toy.


I did it, I did it. They are all loaded. Andrew will be so proud.

Beach Days

My friend Miriam and her boyfriend Daniel came and stayed with us this weekend so we could go surfing in Santa Cruz on Sunday. Miriam is from Germany and had never surfed before, but Andrew played instructor and helped her experience the California surf. She had a blast and is ready to take on more waves.

Here Andrew is showing her the ropes on a makeshift sand surfboard.


The three of them are off to hang ten.


Blake spent a good three hours wrapped in a blanket snoozing away. The poor guy got sunburned cheeks because I forgot that the umbrellas don't offer full sun protection. Doctors say you shouldn't use sunscreen on babies under six months, but this beach babe needs more help than his hat since we tend to stay out all day.


Andrew catching a wave.


Riding it in.


Miriam got up!


Dad and son/


The camera erased some of the pictures so this is the only one of the two of us that survived. We look like crazy tourists.


The weather was perfect and we had to take a late evening stroller ride to Walgreens to buy new aloe vera gel because all of us got sunburned. It wouldn't be the first beach trip of the summer without us looking like lobsters around 10pm.

Genes are Fun

My grandfather burnt me a CD of their old family slides from when my father was a baby. I put up one of the pictures in an earlier post, but I couldn't resist adding another one since I now see this exact expression in Blake these days. It is so crazy how a little person can resemble so many family members all at once. My grandfather is holding my dad in this picture. Blake's arms are exactly the same.

Eventually he will suck his thumb

But it takes lots of practice!

Blake's First Dance Lesson

Shannon was dancing with Blake yesterday and I caught it on video.