What's in a number?

I know, I know. I've been neglecting my blog. Again. But it's been for good reason. We've been busy doing stuff around the house and hanging out with friends and family this past week. Nevermind B's swimming lessons every night for the past two weeks and my time has been a bit crunched lately. The good news is that last weekend we stained roughly 84 cedar boards which will comprise the new front deck on the house. By the end of the week I am hoping to have some pictures up as it is almost done! That's the good news, but I have even better news...
Today is my birthday!! Today is the day that I move up to the ripe old age of 32. Although I really don't feel that old. I think I'm going to like being 32. It's got to be better than 31. There's just something about those odd-numbered birthday years that doesn't sit right with me. I'm an even-numbered gal - all my favorite numbers are even. This must go back to when I was 7. That was the year I decided it would be a great idea to ride my skateboard down the hall of my parent's house, only to see it slip out from under me and slam against the mirror-covered wall at the end of the hallway. (Whose idea it was to cover a wall from floor to ceiling with mirrored tiles is beyond me anyway...) From that point on, I just knew those odd-numbered years would be bad luck for me! So this year I get to relax cause we're back in the even-numbered territory.

Happy Birthday to me!

Friday Favorites!

Ok so I know I haven't done a Friday Favorites in like MONTHS, but that's because I got busy with a bunch of house stuff, never mind the recent trips we've taken. So this is my attempt to get back on track! And this Friday is all about something that's near and dear to my heart - GADGETS!!

Here are a few of my favorite gadgets I cannot live without:

1.) My cell phone. Any of you surprised that this would be at the top of my list? Yeah, didn't think so. And please reassure me that I'm not the only one who's had a near panic attack upon realizing that I must have left it at home only to find it later, buried in the deep abyss that is my knock-off Coach handbag. How can such a tiny gadget cause so much undue stress when it's not tucked away in the convenient little pocket now integrated into almost every purse sold these days? Especially since I came from a generation that knew what life was like before all the beeps and ringtones and text messaging.

2.) My iPod Touch. Gone are the days of filling up one's car with CDs, cassettes, 8-tracks?! for some musical relief from the nonsense that most radio stations play today, only to find that most of them get scratched or damaged during their life in that car. This handy dandy gadget contains all the music I need and then some. I listen to it in the car, at work and I have even gotten rid of the trusty radio that has graced the countertop in my kitchen for so many years in favor of the Touch and a mini pair of speakers.

3.) My DVR. Well actually it's OUR DVR, but since I'm the recording-aholic in the family and the fact that it was given to me by my wonderful husband for my birthday, well I think I have the right call it "mine". I just let him use it. LOL Talk about a fantastic piece of technology and I don't know how I could ever watch TV again without it. To be able to set up season passes to capture every episode of Ice Road Truckers without even needing to know which channel it's on or when it airs - now that is priceless! And let's not overlook the ability to fast-forward through those gawd awful commercials!

4.) Our wireless router. This one may sound a little weird to the non-techy folks out there, but trust me when I say that this is the life-blood of our household! Without it, we couldn't put the laptop in the kitchen to follow that new recipe we found online when searching for dinner ideas at the last minute. Or research something on wikipedia while watching TV in the living room. Or sit on the back deck while working from home. Or do some late night Facebook surfing in bed before going to sleep. Without that router, I don't know what we'd do, although I guess we'd be stuck in my office "wired" to the DSL modem instead and never see the light of day! I don't even remember what we did before we even had laptops that spoke to that magical router. Read books I guess? Sheesh, where's the fun in that! It's a marvelous little gadget I tell ya, but trust me, you don't want to be in our house when the power goes out!

So what are your favorite gadgets?

An award and some random stuff...

So my blah, hum-drum day has been given new life! I got in this morning to find that Fancy Schmancy had tagged me with an Honest Scrap award (Thanks so much!!) and while I'm not big on memes (cause they usually take me forever to think of stuff to write that I eventually just give up after a while.) But this time I happened to have a few ideas on the top of my head so I just went with it and the rest pretty much wrote itself. (If only stuff at work was this easy!) So again - Thanks Fancy!

So here is the award...

Here are the rules...
1.) “The Honest Scrap” award is not one to hold all to your self but it must be shared!
2.) First, the recipient has to tell 10 true things about themselves in their blog that no one else knows.
3.) Second, the recipient has to pass along this prestigious award to 10 more bloggers.
4.) Third, those 10 bloggers all have to be notified they have been given with this award.
5.) Those 10 bloggers that receive this award should link back to the blog that awarded them “The Honest Scrap’ award.

And here are my 10 things...

1.) I spent an hour in the sun yesterday because it was freaking cold in our house and I wanted to warm up. So today I'm sporting the latest "lobster red" skin color fashion. I am incapable of tanning unless I slather on the SPF 70 followed by spending a solid 80 hours in the sun (i.e. need to head back down to Mexico for a week!)

2.) So now my coworkers are probably wondering if I was really working from home yesterday since it looks like I spent the day down at the beach instead. I wish!

3.) It has been a dream of mine to someday own a convertible. It all started before I could even drive when the first Mazda Miata came out. But as with all things, tastes change over time. Now I want a BMW Z4 or Mini. Go figure...

4.) I tend to get sucked into television shows and/or movies much too easily. Right now I'm wondering what it would be like being a woman and drive a big rig like Lisa Kelly on Ice Road Truckers. Although I don't think I'd like to drive it on the Dalton Hwy in Alaska. Or on any road intentionally paved with ice. Or the occassional 5' snow drifts. Or along mountain passes with 1000' drops on either side.

5.) I think my dream job would be to captain some rich person's yacht. Sailing them around the world. Meeting them in the Caribbean in time for their helicopter to land onboard the helipad and hopping from island to island. Yup...

6.) Since high school I have worked in both the blue-collar and white-collar fields and have discovered that both have pluses and minuses. Despite all that, I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.

7.) I sometimes wonder what it would be like to pack up and move to a new city/state every few years. To see new places, meet new people. Then I remember how much crap I have accumulated in recent years and think there's no way in hell I'm packing all of that!

8.) I'd love to hire a cleaning lady, but the cost frightens me. Then I read that some stay-at-home-lazy-mom somewhere is complaing that her cleaning lady isn't doing a good enough job and I think WTF?!?

9.) When I'm at work, I wish I could just stay home and be with B. When I was on maternity leave, I couldn't wait to get back to work. I guess there's just no pleasing me!

10.) I'm dreaming right now about driving a big rig, around the country, with my convertible in the trailer and B in the back seat singing songs to pass the time. And with all the money I'd be making as a trucker, I could drive straight down to Miami, catch a plane to Mexico (sunscreen in tow) for a week of fun before heading back and driving to some other part of the country I've never seen before. Hmm...think it could work?

Athough it's against the rules, I've decided not to tag anyone with this and to keep the award all to myself! Mainly because most of my fellow bloggers have been tagged with this award already. But really it's cause I've just plain run out of time.

A Tale of a Beautiful State – Part 3

Mid-way through our week in Oregon we hopped in the car and drove 4 1/2 hours south of Portland to Crater Lake.  A former volcano that caved in on itself thousands of years ago, the entire top of the mountain is a self-contained lake.  It’s also one of the deepest lakes in the country – almost 2000’ feet in the deepest part.  Here are some amazing shots of this beautiful place!

There was still quite a bit of snow up there.

The water was so still and blue.  It provided a perfect mirror effect for the cliffs on the opposite side.

There is even a little island in the middle of the lake.

Those cliffs were so steep and there were no guardrails at many of the pull-offs.  I wonder if anyone has ever fallen into that lake… 

At one side of the lake there is a path that takes you down into the caldera to the surface of the water.  It was steep and very buggy (mosquitoes there are 3x the size of the ones we have around here!)

Again – no guardrails or safety measures of any kind.  So watch your step!

The water so crystal-clear.  We were able to see rocks that were at least 10’ deep.

And here we are at the bottom.  Beautiful!

This was an area where I wish I had a panoramic camera.  But since I don’t, you’ll have to live with 3 images – from the far left, center and far right of the lake.

This is Wizard Island.  It looks like a mini-volcano because that’s exactly what it is.  One of the last vestiges of the massive volcano that was Mount Mazama.  It erupted around 5600 BC with a force that is estimated to have been about 42 times more powerful than the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.

So if you’re ever in Oregon, Crater Lake National Park is an absolute must-see!

A Tale of a Beautiful State – Part 2

For our next adventure, we set out for the Columbia River Gorge and Mt Hood, but not without first going through Portland.

We caught a glimpse of Mt Hood in the distance while on the highway. 

Our first stop was the Vista house which allowed for fantastic views of the gorge!  This is looking east, with Washington state on the other side of the river. 

Another view looking west.

Along the scenic byway that runs beside the Columbia River Gorge, there are a slew of gorgeous waterfalls.  These are the Latourell Falls.

Next stop were the Bridal Veil falls.

But nothing beat the 600+ foot drop of Multnomah Falls!

From there we departed and headed south for Mt Hood.  The views of the mountain as we climbed in elevation were breathtaking!

Getting closer to the top!

Near the top we stopped and had a drink at the Timberline Lodge.  Elevation there was ~6000 ft.  Elevation of the mountain itself is about 8500 ft.

They still had plenty of snow up there, even for the end of June!  This snow melt was extending into the parking lot.

Stay tuned for Part 3 – Crater Lake!

A Tale of a Beautiful State – Part 1

At the end of June we left the east coast and headed out west the wonderful state of Oregon.  It started out as a simple quest to attend a family wedding and ended up being a wonderful vacation for all of us.  I will attempt to recap the major milestones here, so I apologize in advance for the flood of pictures!  I must say though that pictures really do not do this state any justice.  To see these mountains, hills and rivers in person is truly a sight to behold.

The views of majestic mountains began before our plane even touched down.  I believe this is Mt. Rainier.

Once we landed we even caught a quick glimpse of Mt. Hood.

On our way to J’s aunt and uncle’s house, we passed by several of these – vineyards!

And saw several of these – Very cute recently shorn alpacas!

For our first venture we headed further west to the coast and the Pacific ocean.  This wall of trees was simply breathtaking!

Our destination was Cannon Beach.

And we stopped to get a quick bite to eat here.

Before heading out to see this.  They call it the Haystack.  And when the tide is lower, you can walk out to it.

I have never before seen a Tsunami Evacuation Route sign before!

Believe it or not, this is a trash can.  It was quite a remarkable and clean little town!

After the beach we headed back inland and stopped at Camp 18 for dinner.  This was a rather unique spot and the only restaurant I know of that has a ton of heavy equipment on the property.

The inside of the lodge itself was fantastically rustic!

Back from vaca...sorta...

My poor neglected blog. It probably thinks I'm still on vacation. Which I'm not. But I sure wish I still was. I actually meant to post an update last night but after uploading over 400 pictures to my Kodak gallery followed by several hefty uploads to facebook and I was all Internet'ed out by about 11pm. I think I'm also suffering from major jet lag (is that even possible considering the fact that we've been back for 4 days already?) I am having a hard time concentrating and I can't seem to focus on anything lately. Not to mention I woke up this morning with a mild fever. So yeah, I haven't been my normal perky self and this horrid rainy weather isn't helping one bit.

I want to go back to the sun. The temps in the mid-70s. The dry air. Sigh.

I am currently in the process of putting together a quick re-cap of our week-long travels to the West Coast complete with pictures so please stay tuned. Until then, can we please stop talking about Michael Jackson's death? Let the man rest in peace already.