25 Random Things About Me

1. I have a terrible genetic disease called packratitis.
2. I played the flute in the 7th and 8th grade.
3. I'm extremely shy.
4. I can act like I'm not shy and fool just about anyone.
5. I left a job I loved for one I hated because I wanted a new challenge.
6. 2008 was the first year I got Christmas cards out since I've been married (1998).
7. I have three stories fermenting in my brain that I hope to write on paper in the near future.
8. I can type 80 wpm if the winds are right, and the sky is clear.
9. My skin is so dry people tell me I need lotion after I shake their hands.
10. I have an MBA. I got it because I wanted my company to pay for it (which they did) not because I actually wanted it. I hate greed.
11. I have a problem with authority of any kind, which has gotten me into trouble.
12. I didn't play much with toys when I was a kid. My parents once got me a "Baby Alive" doll for Christmas, because I begged them, but I never played with it.
13. The more I learn about science, the more obvious the existence of God becomes.
14. I can quote "Princess Bride" from start to finish.
15. I really enjoy figuring out what bugs people and using it against them.
16. I can remember just about anything anyone has ever told me--unless it's important.
17. I can never remember the rules for using its and it's.
18. My Hollywood crush is Russell Crow. I once spent an entire morning hiding out in a back room at work so I could listen to him on the radio. I don't know why, but I've always had a thing for bad boys.
19. My tear ducts are hardwired to my emotions--happy, sad, startled whatever, I cry.
20. I'm extremely embarrassed by 19, which usually makes me cry harder.
21. I'm passive-aggressive which makes me mad, but I won't do anything about it.
22. I once argued with an old roommate that I wasn't argumentative.
23. I believe in Karma.
24. I love my family more than anything, and I count my siblings as my best friends. This can make it hard to develop outside friendships.
25. I'm a reader-whore. I love to read anything, anywhere (including the bathroom), but my favorite stories always involve a little romance.

Two Funny Porter Stories

Say fork 10 times; now spell it three times; now spell it backwards; now say it 10 times. Quick what do you eat your soup with? Jake had heard this joke on TV, and decided to twist it a little and use it on his little brother.


Jake, "Porter, say spoon 10 times; now spell it three times (we had to help with this one a little); now say it again 10 times. Now what do you eat your spaghetti with?"


Porter, "MEATBALLS!"

We laughed so hard! He is such a funny kid!


The next one. . . Well, let's just say Porter is about the quickest undresser I know--especially at inopportune moments. This kid can get down to his skivvies in 2.2 seconds, and worse, he can generally convince the kids around him this is a good idea too. Note the 2 pictures below. One was at the baseball field while we were watching Jake practice with his team, the second, was at Christmas. Both pictures attest to my youngest's fondness for inappropriate nudity.
































On to the story. . .I am hauling laundry downstairs as my husband, who rides his bicycle everyday to work is coming upstairs. I set the basket down to have a conversation with him, and he strips off his sweaty stuff and puts in in the basket as we are catching up on our days. I get the clever idea of pulling out the 2 $5 bills I have in my pocket (having any money is a very rare occurrence for me) and laughingly stuff them into his shorts, in appreciation for the striptease I just had. Paul starts laughing and begins dancing in earnest, at which point, Porter, already stripped to undies, comes to join the show. The really awful thing? He wasn't half bad.

This is the child my mother cursed me with, when she said, "Someday, I hope you have a child just like you." It's called KARMA.

Chance meeting at the library to zoo date!

So I was racing home from Jake's school when I suddenly remembered the library e-mail saying Jake's book was in. We hung a quick left and hurried in to get the book about 10 minutes before closing. As I walked in, I glanced up at a family just leaving. "As I live and breathe it's Annika Criddle!" She looked up, "Nesha? My goodness is that Jake?!" We had attended church together several years (4?) ago when her husband was doing a law clerkship for the Federal DA in San Diego. They stayed about a year, and then moved to NYC. She was back in town for a few days accompanying her husband at a law conference.

I didn't know her that well while she was here, we only really started chatting right before she moved away, but our conversations had a profound effect on me. I don't know if I've ever met a woman more powerful in her motherhood, and I don't say that lightly. I aspire to that.

Anyway, I invited myself and Porter along on her zoo trip, and we happily met up the next day. We have a membership there, but I really don't get there often enough, so it was a nice opportunity to renew our friendship, and see a place I love.

This is Isaac Criddle, he and Jake were in nursery and Sunbeams together. I didn't bring Jake because we was in school. I really should have just taken him out early that day, because we had a great day at the zoo.

My ham child Porter posed for some great pictures. He loves being able to freely climb on things and not get in trouble, like he does at home. Annika commented that she's been to a lot of amazing zoos, but San Diego is truly the best zoo in the US. The animals and their enclosures are amazing, but I think people don't really appreciate the horticulture of the place.

I'm kicking myself because I didn't bring my telephoto lens with me. While we were walking down (Tiger Trail?) Porter had run up ahead. The golden leaf tree visible at the top left corner of the picture was raining down golden leaves, and Porter was dancing in them. It was so beautiful it was almost surreal.

This whole experience made me wish I had more time to keep in touch with old friends. I wish I was a better friend to the ones I have locally. Shoot, I feel a resolution coming on!!!!

Free Tuesday!

I love living in San Diego. Yes, it's mid January and the temperature is hovering near 80F. My kids don't really fathom snow and ice, let alone rain. We're spoiled an we know it. We have some really beautiful parks here that we can go to year round. The biggest and best is Balboa Park. It's right next door to the zoo, and has some pretty great museums, and, they have free Tuesdays. http://www.balboapark.org/calendar/detail.php?EventID=370 Last Tuesday it was the Natural History Museum, the Reuben H. Fleet Center and the Model Railroad Museum. A friend of mine and I took our kids to the RHFC and train museum. They have science toys in the RHFC and upstairs is a "Kid City" where kids can play grocery store and a lot of other things.

As we were walking back to the car, the weather was perfect, there were children running around the fountain, and I was just struck by how great we have it.

Happy New Year!

I know, I know, it is a little past New Year, but I'm seriously just catching my breath. Whew, what a holiday season. Christmas was fantastic, I still have my kids shouts of excitement at their presents ringing in my ears. Jake got a new BMX bike, a Nintendo DS and a set of scriptures; Porter got a lot of really cool Star Wars gear including the Captain Rex helmet he's been asking for since August, and the Clone Wars AT-TE he really wanted.
















The hits? Well, the Nintendo DS has been fantastic. Porter loves the Leapster Clone Wars game we got him. That darn AT-TE I wanted to throw out nearly from the get go--it has cool "articulated" legs for different "poses." Those same articulated legs break off under the minutest of pressure, causing a great deal of frustration for Porter, and his mom & dad.
Anyway, it's a cool toy, but it is very frustrating!

We had some wonderful guests for Christmas, Tommy, Katrina and their little addition;

































and my girlfriend Roni and her cutie Koji. My brother is playing peak-a-boo with him here. He was so cute--we got several giggles and belly laughs from this game. I really loved having all my friends and family around for Christmas day. My brother the chef cooked the ham and roast "beast" for Christmas dinner, and it was fantastic. We also swooped in to see Paul's brother and sister-in-law for the afternoon. I was really struck by how blessed we are to have so much family in the area, and that we need to take more advantage of that. Tom and Paul told stories and memories of their Dad, who passed before I met Paul, so the kids don't even know him. It was great hearing their stories. I now know that Jake comes by his pickiness genetically. Tom said he remembers Grandpa Z picking up Tim (the 3rd oldest) and shoving food in his mouth when he refused to eat (not gently either). I do swear there are times we feel like this too!



















We had some great quiet moments that day too. I love this shot with Rachael and baby Bella, my little bother Joel's latest addition and the "other" girl in the family.


We are so blessed!