Panama Canal Cruise

Brett and I booked our cruise for the Panama Canal! 

We will be going to

Aruba

Cartagena, Columbia

Panama City, Panama

Colon, Panama

Limon, Costa Rica

Grand Cayman Islands

We love to travel and are so excited to go explore new places again!

A Funeral Party for Brett's Youth!

For the past year, Brett had been telling me that he absolutely did NOT want a 30th Birthday Party.  I kept telling him that we needed to celebrate this milestone in his life.  I tried for months to convince him and he would not have it.  Of course it probably did not help with me always teasing him constantly about it. Let's just face it, Brett did not want to embrace the big 3-0.

Well around Christmas, Brett came around to the idea of a party, but it was strictly to be low key.  So we came up with the idea of a "funeral of his youth" party.  Everyone was to come in comfortable black and celebrate the youth of Brett.

We ate food, played games like pin the tail on donkey and had a charade type drawing game, and shared two funny memories of Brett.  Brett then shared how he felt about turning 30 when he reflected about all the life experiences he has had.  I believe Brett finally felt at peace and was ready to embrace this new chapter of life.  At the end, we sang "Happy Birthday" to Brett and all enjoyed his favorite dessert, Cherry Chocolate Brownies.

Overall, it was a great night and such a fun way for Brett to spend time with the family and close friends that matter most to him.  Hope the next 30 years Brett, are just as great and even better!  Love you much!

The Program for the Party

Happy 30th Birthday, Brett

Today Brett turns 30!  

First of all, it's weird to think that my husband is 30, and second, I'm only 4 years behind.

Anyway, I love my lovely husband and the laughter he brings into my life.

Happy Birthday Brett!

Why does December have to be crazy?

December has been one busy month and Christmas is still a few days away.  Somehow, I have been terrible at taking pictures of the events, but here are a few
.

When Christmas comes around, Brett breaks out these wolf slippers which always make me laugh hysterically.

Here's our 2012 Pretty Christmas Tree 

(been a Jungle gym for the Sparky and Chip)

Chip helping me wrap

Sparky needed a turn too

I had some sort of flu/stomach virus during the most important week of events.

Luckily, I had these two Siamese look cuddling with me.

December 15-  The Holiday Showcase for Momentum Dance and Performing Arts.  I had kids perform and I was also in two numbers. It was a good time!

December 16-  Brett and I had our 2nd Annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party.  It was a fun time with lots of close friends and a few family members.  Too bad I didn't take any pictures!

Since Brett doesn't have his annual pass anymore, I always go with my friend Laura.  While Brett was at YM's and basketball, we went and had a nice Disney date.

I bought this toy last night because these two cats hate feathers!

Jingle Bell Rock/Gangnam Style

Last Saturday night Brett and I had our Church Christmas Party and I was once again in charge of a song and dance routine for the young men and young women.  I was lucky again to have Luisa Rueckert help me with the singing portion while I came up with the choreography.  We used Jingle Bell Rock and cut into the chorus of Gangnam Style.  I loved what we came up with with kids who are not dancers.

Check it out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvmRVOZxBLA&feature=youtu.be

Both Luisa and I were proud of our accomplishment because all we wanted was the youth to have fun.

And guess what?!

They did, Yes!

I received a lot of compliments from parents and other adults that this was the best number of the night which I'm glad the audience enjoyed it.  :)

Grateful for Power

Lately, I've been watching shows like The Walking Dead and Revolution where there are people who defend themselves, survive, and have no power.  Saturday night, Brett and I experienced the latter and thank goodness we didn't have zombies or tyrants after us.

It was two hours before we were to go to our church Christmas Party and it was raining.  I was vacuuming to prepare for guest to come over the next day.  While I was running the vacuum, Brett had plugged in the carpet cleaner in the same light socket.  I had the thought to tell him to wait until I was done, but I decided to let it be since I was about to finish.  30 seconds later, everything turns off!

Brett and I go to our the electricity box, flip some switches, and the power won't turn on.  We go to another box by our garage that has the main circuit and turn that off.  We waited a couple of minutes and  turned the breaker back on.  Basically, the power would not come on with everything we tried to do.

Brett gets on the phone, calls Edison, they tell us to call our home warranty people, we call Home Warranty, and they tell us they will try to find a electrician to come out on a Saturday night.  Well after 90 minutes and our neighbors trying to help us, I made the decision that I needed to save our food because I had responsibilities at the Christmas party.  I grabbed the most important stuff like milk, eggs, egg whites, and chicken and ran over to Michelle Pierce's (our neighbor and a church member) and she graciously helped me out.

We decided to go to the party since the church building is one minute away and await the call from the electrician.  Home Warranty did call us back 20 minutes later and told us that no one would be coming out until possibly tomorrow.  After the party, Brett and I went home, grabbed all our food in the freezer, and drove to his parent's house in Hacienda Heights.

On Sunday, we still did not have power and when I took a shower there wasn't any hot water (terrible).  Brett decided to stay home from church to get an electrician there.  I went to church and while I was there, Brett text me that no one had come yet.  I had heard there was an electrician in our ward, Darryl Outhier, and so I sought him out.  I told him the problem and he said he would come by.

When I came home from church, Darryl was already there with Brett working on the box.  Within 10 minutes, he had turned our power back on after nearly 20 hours without it.  Darryl was our hero on Sunday and Brett and I couldn't be more grateful for him, our neighbors, family, and power.  Crazy!

(And if you are wondering we still haven't heard back from Home Warranty to fix our circuit breaker.)

Thanksgiving 2012

Disclaimer: I didn't take any pictures with my family and I don't get how that happened!

Brett and I went to St. George for Thanksgiving at my parent's house.  We left Tuesday afternoon with two baby kitties.  Now these kitties were not mine, but Brett and I were the deliverers to my nephew Jaden and Brett's uncle Troy.  I was so excited to give my nephew a Siamese cat as his Christmas present.  Let me just say that both kitties LoKey and Buttercup were a hit with my family! :)

Thanksgiving was special this year because all my siblings were actually there. We haven't all been together since Brett and I were married about 20 months ago.

The highlight was seeing Skyfall!  My family and I are big James Bond Fans and it is tradition to always see the Bond at Thanksgiving time.  I loved the movie for three reasons...
1) The original Aston Martin from Goldfinger
2)  It was filmed in Europe!  Seeing Istanbul and London and saying I know exactly where they are was thrilling.  I also loved the Scotland part of the movie.
3) Because it is James Bond!

Brett and I left really early Sunday morning and made it back with no problems and no traffic.

Thanksgiving is such a great way to kick off the holidays!