Day 43 ~ The Beach

My husband and I grew up near the beach, we have spent many summer days laying on the sand. There is nothing like listening to the sound of waves, and feeling the sand between your toes. I haven't been to the beach in 3 years and today we changed that.



Today my family and my brother in law's family headed to the beach. When we first set out it was sprinkling, but by the time we arrived on the sand, the sun was shining. The kids went crazy running back and forth and chasing the waves. We collected sea shells and rocks and played in the sand. This was Kyndall's first time to the beach and she sat and grabbed handfuls of sand at a time and would chuck them. You couldn't help but laugh. The smell of the ocean can be amazing at times, and the sound gives such a sense of comfort and piece of mind. I just sat there for awhile and watched my husband with the girls and smiled. I can honestly say I was so happy and so full of joy, I felt almost overwhelmed. To be there with my all my family was so much fun. The beach is a beautiful place and I am so glad we went.

PS I will be added photos tomorrow, words really can't describe the beauty of the day!

Day 42 ~ 2725

2725 Princeton Court is where it all began. It was my apartment while I attended college and made new friends, it was where my husband asked me to marry him, it is where we spent the first 2 years of our married life, and it is where we brought our oldest daughter home from the hospital. That apartment holds a lot of memories, a lot of very good memories. Our new thing for the day was visiting my old campus and visiting our old place.

I haven't been back to my old campus at CSUMB since I graduated. It was so great to drive around and see the new buildings and see how the campus has changed. It brought back so many wonderful memories. When I graduated and left, I realized I had no memorabilia with my school's logo, and I always planned on going back to change that, so that is what I did. I bought a coffee mug and I sit this morning drinking from it, feeling pretty good. It's almost like it says "Hey, I was there, I graduated, and I rock!" We also took our oldest and showed her where she spent the first year of her life. It brought back so many memories and I couldn't help but tear up, but only because I was so happy to have experienced all that I did. It was a good time a life. It was the first time I was away from home and it really forced me to grow up and experience life as an independent woman. I really grew up those 3 years, and they have helped make me the girl I am today. After touring the campus and our old apartment, we took the kids to a park, and they had the best time climbing trees, laughing and swinging. It was an AWESOME day!

One other amazing thing for the day was after a 4 interview process, my husband was offered a new job. I can not tell you the happiness and relief we feel. It is something he is very excited about and it will allow him to take care of our family. You can imagine the smile on his face. I truly believe this will be one of our best years yet to date!

Day 41 ~ A Road Trip

Today our new thing was a 15 hour road trip, I am half dead, lost 75% of my hearing and am seeing double, but we made it.

This morning we left very early and set out to Monterey. We saw trees, trees, trees, snow, crazy fog, eucalyptus trees, farm land, olive trees, orange trees, and a hitch hiker with a drum. I listened to my husband have conversations with drivers in the comfort of his truck, although they couldn't hear him, he still explained what the were doing wrong and why they need to get the BEEP out of the way. Of course with 3 little girls we made umpteen stops to use the restroom, but over all, the drive went well. At least for the first 13 hours. The last two were almost painful. It went from "When will we get there?" every 30 minutes to, "Are we there yet?" every 5. I thought the two oldest were going to scratch each others eyes out and their screaming came to an all time high. Then I started thinking, maybe a little competition will work, so I challenged them to the good old, quiet contest. Who ever stays quiet the longest wins! That worked for all of about 15 minutes, but those 15 minutes were wonderful. Once we arrived it was so great to see the smiles on every ones faces. The 15 hours of driving was well worth it. I am so excited for the next week and the things we will see and do. Stay tuned in for more adventures in Monterey!

Our new thing for the day was a 15 hour road trip, and I can say I am happy that we arrived!

Day 40 ~ Packing for a Road Trip

Last minute we decided on a road trip to see my husbands family we haven't seen in 2 years. My new thing is packing for it, and I think I am ready to pull my hair out. I haven't packed for a vacation in 4 years and I think I have forgotten how.

Literally, I have been packing and organizing ALL DAY! I am ready to go to bed yet I hear the suitcases calling me.......

Jennifer, did you remember enough socks for the kids, Jennifer don't forget the snacks, Jennifer did you remember DVDs, Jennifer are you a crazy woman!

This drive will take us about 13 hours. I am so excited yet I am a little afraid. Afraid of what I will do to myself after 13 hours in the car. We haven't had a vacation in about 4 years. This summer I will also be heading on vacation to San Diego to see more family. Two vacations in one year, I think I am on a roll!!

Although this trip won't be a long trip, it will be fun trip, and damn it, I will be prepared, so back to packing I go. MONTEREY HERE WE COME!!!!!

Day 39 ~ Miami Glow

My new thing for the day was a gift from my wonderful husband.

Today my husband and I went shopping for some shoes for the girls. He was nice enough to come along and keep me company, we all know most men don't enjoy shopping too much. I was picking up my dad some of his favorite cologne in the perfume store, and casually smelling the different scents. I love perfume. I love things that smell wonderful whether that is fruit, flowers, fresh rain, sunshine, fresh air and even food. I have a very sensitive nose, so although I love wonderful scents, if something smells wrong, I find it almost painful to be around. It is a blessing and a curse all wrapped up in one tiny package, my nose.

While smelling the different perfumes, I came across this AMAZING scent. It smelled of summer, of coconut, pineapples, sunshine, everything wonderful and beautiful in the world. To my huge surprise it was by no other than J-Lo. That is right folks, Miami Glow is what it was called, and it was intoxicating. I sprayed a little on my neck and my husband just gave me that grin. The, "Hey, how you doin?" grin. I couldn't help but laugh. Later today he had to work, but came home with a surprise. He found the same perfume and brought it home for me. Of course I was delighted, he made me feel very special.

Tonight I sit here and smell of summer, coconut, pineapples, and sunshine, everything wonderful and beautiful in the world thanks to my wonderful husband.

Next time you are at the mall, check out the J-Lo perfumes, I think you will be pleasantly surprised

Day 38~ Oregon Zoo

Today my friend called and asked if we felt like ditching the Super Bowl and taking the girls to the zoo, she had extra tickets and thought it would be fun to go. My poor hubby had to work so I thought why not? Could be a lot of fun! I was right, it was and the Wild Six were at it again.

It had to be the perfect day to take the kids, nice weather, very few people and all the cats were out. I love the spur of the moments things. Where you don't have to plan it all out, you just go. Those type of things always seem to be so much fun. I thought about a million other places I would love to go during Super Bowl, like Disneyland! Can you imagine how short the lines would be. HMMMM.... maybe next year!

So there you have it, our new thing today was ditching the game and going to the zoo and we all had a wonderful time!

Day 37 ~ Beef Bourguignon

Tonight I tried a new recipe, Beef Bourguignon, and although it took awhile to cook it was DELICIOUS!!


In Late December I rented Julie and Julia and was inspired. She went through the entire year, cooking new recipes from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The movie not only inspired me to cook, but inspired me to start this blog. I loved the idea of trying something new everyday, and so here I am, day 37, trying the famous Beef Bourguignon. Although it is a slight variation from Julia Child's recipe, it was still wonderfully delicious. Trust me, the picture does not do it justice, just ask my husband who licked his bowl clean. I spent most of the afternoon cooking, sautéing, and chopping, and it was well worth it. I have attached the link to the recipe I used. I made a few substitutions like using 6 pieces of thick cut bacon instead of what the recipe called for, and no, I didn't use the cognac... I was afraid I would set the house on fire with that trick! Either way it was still absolutely delicious. The Italian Bread was a wonderful touch, toasted with a small amount of butter. All I can say is I tried a new recipe today and it was YUMMY!

Try it out, you will not be disappointed!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beef-bourguignon-recipe/index.html