Day 366 - The Ending...or is it

So today ended My 27th Year...

But good news is it also started a whole new year and a whole new blog

Well kind of new...just click here and you'll see

And now for a bit of déjà vu...

This was my very first post on this blog

And today is my very last post on this blog...

A family trip has ended, siblings have been hugged good-bye and are all at separate homes,

Parents have headed home, puppies are sleeping soundly, a new blog has been started,

And now I say good night as the candles burn out the last moments of this special day...

The first day of the rest of my life!



Day 365 - Magical

Well today is day 365 - That's one whole year of blog posts

And that means it's my very last day as a 27 year old

And although I have completed my goal...I'm thinking this blog will get one additional post

Tomorrow we will drive back to AZ, back to our puppies, back to our home...

And back to my parents for my actual birthday and my last official post

But as for today, day 365, well it was magical

We spent the day at Disney Land (the happiest place on earth!)

And I got to celebrate an early birthday in the magical kingdom with my husband, 

My brother & his girl friend, my sister & her roomie, and my sister-in-law & her boyfriend

I even had a birthday pin with my name on it so everyone could wish me a happy birthday...

And they really did do it! Both staff and other Disney visitors!

The whole experience was great and instead of getting older, I felt like I was a little kid again

Anyway, Now back to the good part...

On the tram to the park: Steve, Jesse, Anne, Jessica, & Mykaela

Me,  Nickee (aka Mini Mouse), & Kipp

Steve & I out in front of the gates before opening...and before the ticket machine broke

Me with my ticket, birthday pin, & super excited face!

You know who else was super excited...Nickee!!!

Me & my brother...I wish I had a picture of us at Disney as babies to put next to this!

Anne & I "owling" apparently this is a thing now

Myk loving life with her coffee and castle

And the group shot - before the second part of the day began...

Kipp, Nickee, Myk & Jess staid at the park and plan to go all night (yup there still there!)

Steve, Anne, Jesse, and I took off after 5 and a half hours so we could fit in some time on Balboa

So that's my last day as a 27 year old!

Now on to 28 and all the good thing it may bring...

Day 364 - Worth the wait

The morning started in Crystal Cove at Myk's favorite breakfast place, Beachcomber 

It was an hour and a half wait but we had great drinks and apps while we waited

And the food was great...plus eating on the beach is to die for!

Then we headed back to Myk's place so we could hit the beach

We drove and drove around before we were able to park...but waiting for this spot was worth it

The beach had a good amount of people but wasn't too crowded...and it was about a 5 second walk!

While we beached it up...poor Kipp and Nickee spent about 2 hours looking for parking

They were able to find a spot just as we packed up our beach stuff

So we had a little "meet & greet" back at Myk's place and then headed back to the hotel

After a quick shower we headed out to Orange for my favorite CA meal - Felix's

It's the best little town, the best cuban food, and the best place to sit and chill

Or if you have a sister like Mykaela...it's the best place to have a birthday party in the park!

And now it's off to bed because the real magic starts tomorrow at 6 am!!!

Day 363 - We're back!!!

Today we left the house at 6:45 with Anne and Jesse...and the pups

And we headed out to drop of the dogs at doggie day camp

And then hit the open road on our way to Cali

We got into Newport around 12:30, checked in...ate at Bear Flag...and then headed to Huntington

We hit the shops and the pier and then after a long wait, finally met up with Myk

Now we're wrapping up the evening back at the hotel watching some tv....

Oh and opening a special gift from Mim - twinsies are back!

Ashby on her way to doggie day camp!

Huntington Beach 

Anne, Jesse, & Steve enjoying the view at the end of the pier 

Myk & I with the "sissy-sissy" present from Mim

Ta-Da...we're twins again!!! Should we wear these to Disney Land?

Day 362 - Told you so

It's almost 9:30 on the night before we leave on a trip

We're going out to So Cal to of course see Myk but also show Jesse (my sister's boyfriend)

around the area, including Disneyland

Summer's hard at work upstairs packing right now, which inevitably takes longer than planned

Two hours ago I told her she should blog because I know how these nights can get

But did she?

Nope.

 And now I'm here completing another blog post for her and saying

I told you so

-Steve

Day 361 - Happy 50th Phil!

Tonight we were at Hillstone for my father-in-law's surprise 50th birthday dinner!

Steve and Anne were having a hard time fake ignoring their dad all day

But it was all worth it to see his face when he arrived and saw us!

Phil & Shelly

Steve and his dad

The birthday boy with his amazing sundae

Day 360 - Double Down

A vacation at the end of the week means 4 days of hell at work

Monday I finally got my second monitor and the 2012 version of CADD (our drafting software)...

Unfortunately work seams to think that double the monitors mean I can do double the work

And that means being quadruple booked instead of my normal double booked!

The one good part is that by putting in extra long hours I can buy back one of my vacation days

This Cali trip better be worth two more days like today...because I'm dying!!!



A small monitor for email, field notes, and project folders...

And a large monitor for drafting construction documents

That's how you double down!

Day 359 - Impressionist

I have very sensitive skin...it's very impressionable

I can lay on a blanket for 5 minutes and when I get up I'll have the thread pattern imprinted on my skin

If one of the dogs scratch me it will bruise and welt...both of which will last a week or more

This is what happens when I sit at our kitchen chairs during diner ( I sit with one foot under me)

I need better skin...and I need to learn to sit at the table like an adult

Day 358 - Flash from the past

I needed to find a baby picture of myself for something my mom is working on

It was actually pretty fun to go back through these old photos

I think I look exactly the same...Steve thinks I've changed a lot...

He also thinks I looked like I was part Asian or an alien (in a cute way I'm sure) as a baby

I'll I know is my mom dressed me pretty cute!

Day 357 - Listography

A family friend is having a baby shower next weekend and they requested that guests

Bring a book to help grow the baby's library

I loved the idea but took a slightly different take on it...

I brought the mom and dad-to-be a Listography book from Barnes and Noble

(Note: these books make the best gifts and there are all different kinds of them)

The book is an autobiography made up of lists (list your favorite song, websites you go to most...etc.)

I though that if the couple filled it out now and really captured who they were pre-baby

Then when their child (children) are all grown up

(And can't imagine their parents were ever people other than "mom" and "dad")

They can read through this book and get a real sense of who exactly their parents were when they decided

It was time to open their hearts and lives to children

(I love the list subjects and illustrations in this book!!!)

Day 356 - That is...the real day 356

Steve and I are enjoying a little piece of California here in Tempe

The Habit, Myk's favorite Cali burger joint just opened up here and we decided

That it would make the perfect dinner seeing how a week from today we'll be in Cali!!!

While planning out our trip we made a few discoveries:

1) The last day of this blog (yes it really is ending) will take place in California

2) My birthday will be spent on the road between Cali and Az

3) And the biggy...my day count on the blog is off

Yes, I really am going to end this blog

It was a year long adventure and the year is coming to a close

I really want it to be a stand alone piece...so it will end on July 24th...365 days after it started

And yeah, my day count was off because I had 2 "Day 85" posts and no "Day 86"

I had 2 "Day 125" posts and no "Day 124" post...then I just straight up skipped day 225

Other blog stats:

So far I really do have a post for every day of the year

I had 3 late posts (posts that came the morning after they should have)

And I had 3 guest posts

The late posters were:

1 I just forgot (that first one was so painful!),

1 I got sick and fell a sleep at 6pm,

And 1 because the blogger site crashed for over 24 hours

The Guest post where always Steve...and because:

1 I was really, really sick, 1 A nice surprise while I worked late,

1 When I was on a work trip without any web access (Yes, I know I need a smart phone!)

So yeah there it is! I'm in the home stretch and the end of this blog really will be a challenge

But don't worry I'm up for it and plan to make each of these last days count!

Day 356 - Midnight snack

On my mom's birthday my sister and mom made some really good guacamole

(Even if it did have too much red onion in it - just kidding Myk!)

Anyway, I was craving it all day yesterday and all day today

So I ran out to the store and made it at 8:00 pm

Three large avocados

About half of a sweet red onion

One can Rotel tomatoes (drained), touch of lemon juice, and a dash of salt

Mash it all up in a bowl

And eat it all up!

I like mine with Tostitos Restaurant Style chips

Happy snacking!!!

Day 355 - Home - Tweet - Home

World meet Bird....Bird meet the world!

For the last two weeks I have been on an emotional rollercoaster

Watching a little baby bird grow up right in our own back yard

About two weeks ago Wes found a little baby bird sitting in the center of a small bush in our back yard

It was so tiny, so fuzzy, so cute! And it broke my heart that it was out of its nest and alone

It's so hot and dry in Arizona right now and I knew this little guy wouldn't make it long on his own

But after looking for its nest and not finding it, I also knew there was nothing I could do to help him

(Myk and I had a terrible experience trying to save baby birds when we were little)

Heart broken I went to work and worried all day about how awful my little bird's fate would be

To my surprise my little bird was still (alive) sitting in the bush when I got home that evening

This made me happy...but I still worry about how long he would last

I check on him every time I took the dogs out...I could even see his little heart beating while he slept

After another day of this I finally broke down and googled "what to do with lost wild baby bird"

Luckily I found a great wild life blog that explained that this little guy probably wasn't lost at all

Apparently at a certain age the mom & dad bird start kicking the babies out of the nest

They separate the baby birds and leave them in dense brush or grass that can hide and protect them

By separating the babies they insure a greater chance of survival for that generation

(If left in the nest all together...one predator could take out the whole brewed in one fell swoop)

Once separated the parent's spend all day flying in between each baby, feeding them every 20 minutes

This process is called fledgling and it's best to just let the baby bird be so the parents can come feed it

I was hopeful that this is what my little bird was doing and tried to keep a close, but distant eye on him

This was going well except that I began to worry when he disappeared two days ago...

But today I got home and Steve and Corey told me that the little bird wasn't in his bush but

Instead was out hopping across the rocks and walkway in our yard just past the little bush

I looked out the window just in time to see the baby bird hop into the grass and over to our citrus tree

Once at the base of the tree, a bunch of grown birds that had been up in the tree tops started to react

One bird (I am guessing the mom) came all the way down to the lowest branch of the tree...

There she tweeted, flapped, and coxed the baby bird to start jumping...

He jumped and jumped until he finally got up into the little void where the two trunks of our tree join

(About 6-8 inches off the ground) And there he sits...in the base of the tree where his family lives

My little bird is alive and growing up...soon he will learn to fly (hopefully not going too far away)

And I got to see it all happen right here in my yard!

Day 354 - Gifts from a stranger

As I have already gushed, Steve got me a beautiful purse for my birthday

So imagine my surprise when I came home from work and two presents were waiting for me

They are impeccably wrapped and match the kitchen in which they sit

Steve claims they aren't from him and that he has no idea where they came from

Apparently they magically appeared...I guess well see what it's all about come July 25th!!!

Just look at this wrap job!!!

Looks like they were wrapped by someone who really love me : )