NoCal Valentines Day

We just spent an amazing weekend in Napa and San Francisco. Gary surprised me with the whole thing. Flew into Oakland on Friday and drove to Napa. We stayed at the Westin Verasa while there...what an amazing hotel! Not only was it beautiful, but the employees were top notch! We wine tasted all day and Friday and had a chance to visit with Pete, an old friend who is a winemaker there. We had such a great time tasting...I can't wait to go back! Saturday morning the surprises continued. Gary scheduled a couples massage at a local Napa spa, so we were relaxed and ready for our drive to San Francisco. We spent the day in the city walking and taking in the sites. Our hotel, Le Meredien, was just a block away from the Trans America building and had an outstanding view of the bay. We dodged the rain all weekend and it was only a slight problem on Sunday morning. We had planned to do some more walking, but opted instead to spend a romantic morning in our room. We flew home on Sunday and spent the evening celebrating my upcoming birthday with my parents. It was a perfect weekend!

The kids continue to do well. Still waiting for soccer to start for Jake. He is doing well in school and is (of course!) well liked by his teacher. He is involved in the GATE program and loves to read...just like his mom! Alyssa is falling more and more in love with London. I skyped with her today, though, and she is definitely missing our weather! She has grown so much in the past two months. Keep your fingers crossed, or say a prayer for her (whichever you prefer)...she applied to the photography program at BYU and will find out in April if she is accepted. Maybe I am biased, but I think she deserves a spot!!!

Wishing everyone health and happiness :-)

Had a great time hosting our 14th annual Super Bowl party. Had a house filled with friends, family, food and of course, yummy beverages! Make-It-or-Take-It was a big hit~as always (even with the wind)! Had some suggestions for improving the game. Next year, expect yard lines and some new rules regarding distance!

Unfortunately, the water heater (that is only 5 years old) broke that night and we are still waiting for parts to repair it. Took the day off under the guise of "waiting for parts delivery" but really, I just needed some time to myself! Yes, Jakey and I are playing "hooky" and just relaxing. We both slept in...which in our house really only means that we both got up at 8:00. Not so much "sleeping in" but better than our usual 6:00 am wake time!

Alyssa is doing well. Of course, how could she not be? If I were in London I imagine I would be having the time of my life as well! Anyone who is interested can check out her blog...link on this page. I absolutely love checking out her messages and pictures. She is hoping to change majors to photography...I hope you agree when you see her pics that she is a natural!

Love to all!

The family update

For those of you who received our Christmas card this year, you have already seen the photo of our family. What beautiful children! We are so lucky to have two such wonderful kids! We had a great time taking these photos and trying to recreate the shots from 8 years ago when Jakey was a baby. I hope you enjoyed taking a look at how much we have all changed!

New news in our lives:

Alyssa is in London on a study abroad program. She has only been there for a few days and she is already in love with it. She said she wants to stay and that we should all move there. Maybe she will tire of the dreary weather and be ready to come home in April...keep your fingers crossed!

We just signed Jake up for his first season of soccer. Not sure how much he is going to like it, but it will be good for him. He also got a piano for Christmas so lessons will be starting soon. Guess we are going to be busy keeping his schedule!

I will continue to post photos to keep you all informed of what is going on in our lives.

Into the 21st Century

Here we go...everyone has been bugging us to get this started, so here we go! Can't promise miracles, but we hope it will be a great way to keep in touch with everyone and keep you posted on our life. I guess with our beautiful daughter, Alyssa, away in London we have been forced into the 21st century! No pictures will be posted yet...gotta get ready to go out tonight...Rock the Keys, here we come! Will post again soon and try to get creative with this blog.