Tag your it!!

I got a cool tag from Kim!! Thanks Kim!! So here you go. . .if you are reading this you are tagged!! Enjoy!

Goal I have for this next year:

A house!! I am so tired of living in a tight scary condo!! I have other larger goals for this year. . .but this one is the only one I would want made public! ;)

The Town I live in:
Place I want to visit:

THE WORLD!! I realize that this is such a generic answer. But I would love to see all the world. Which is one of the reasons I love to watch the Amazing Race. That would be fun to do some day!
Nickname I have had:

I can't believe I am admitting this. . . but, my little bro Austin couldn't pronounce my name when he was little so Heather sounded more like Hair. Needless to say having two very mean older brothers and the last name Combs. . .I was a bulls eye for teasing!! When puberty hit (or the uglies hit) I was a lost case!!

My Favorite Food:

There is always room for cupcakes!! Hand me one of those suckers and a cold cream soda and I am a happy girl!! My all time favorite cupcakes are the mini one bites vanilla cake with butter cream frosting. YYYUUUUUMMMMMM!!!! (if any of you have a yummy butter cream frosting recipe you would be my ultimate hero if you shared it with me!!)

My First Job:

The County Seat at Cottonwood Mall. The store is non-existent now. But those shorts I remember selling. Were any of you around to remember that store? Or that Style? Did I just totally make myself very old!!??

I was 16 and had just barely got a car to drive myself to and from work. It was a fun part time thing. I got to work with my best friend Amy. Such fun!! No bills no stresses of the adult world yet, good times!!

Age at my next birthday:

At least I wont be 30 (Ryan!!). Isn't this the age where you end the aging. . .or at least end the truthful age? (Annelise. . .I am like almost thirty. . .that is so old, right??)

My Favorite Place:

In his arms!!!

And:

Disneyland. . .surprise surprise!!!

At the top I tagged all of you who read this and who want to do this. . .however, I would love to see Annelise, Jenny, Michelle, and Kim O. do a photo post!!

Fun Field Trip

A few weeks ago (I have been really lazy with updating my blog), I got the opportunity to go as an adult helper for Aubrey's Field Trip. This is a first for me and I was so excited to go that I couldn't sleep the night before. We were taking a bus to the Huntington Library. I was so excited to see the original "Pinkie" by Sir Thomas Lawrence, "Blue Boy" by Thomas Gainsborough, Mary Cassatt collection, and the John Singer Sargent collection. But most of all I was so excited to go on a field trip with Aubrey and her class. I love Second Graders!! They are so bright and fun!

I felt so guilty that I got to go and Tawny had to stay behind. But when I got on the bus with all these kids, no air conditioner, and being in traffic for the majority of the drive. I thought there is no way a pregnant mother would have survived the trip!! It was fun to see Austin and her before we got on the bus. Austin kept talking about when I was his mystery reader for his class. I feel so good that it is still on his mind!! That was a fun thing to do with Austin and his class.

I felt honored that Aubrey and her friend insisted that I share a two person bench with them. (It reminded me that I need to hit the treadmill more often!) It was so much fun playing games and getting to know all the kids on the bus on our way to the Library.

I figured this picture was safe to show on here. You can't see all the kids faces. . .right? This is some of the kids in the group I was in charge of. They are so adorable!! They were mesmerized by the huge Koi fish in the fountain.

We split up in four groups and I got to be in charge of ten kids. It was so fun to look at art through these little kids eyes. The whole time I was there I kept thinking about Nadine and Theresa. The lady that guided us was so sweet and wonderful with the kids. I think Theresa would be really good in a job like that.

After we were done with the tour (unfortunately I didn't get to see a lot of the art or the Library, it Will be saved for another trip out there, maybe even a lunch at the Tea Room!) The kids got to create their own art. It was so cute to see their creations with two strings of pipe cleaners. Flowers and little people were the popular choice.

This is Aubrey's Blue and white flower. So cute!! The flower is pretty cute also!! ;)

We then sat on the grass and had our packed lunches. I didn't want to carry my lunch with me so I just brought a bottle water, snack bar, and fruit. It was fun. All the kids started off by sitting on the cement and the benches. I wanted to sit on the grass under one of the big trees. As soon as I sat down I had three kids come and sit with me. At the end of lunch I must have had the majority of the two classes next to me. I felt a little like "The Pied Piper"(only not the creepiness of the underlining story). It was so much fun to play with them and talk with them all.

All I need is the nice outfit and the Pipe. The hat RAWKS!! I think the Pimp Feather is the cherry on the top!

I took a small group to the gift store. Only the ones that had money were allowed to go. So I had three girls with me. The gift shop was so expensive and no one had enough money for the items they wanted. Ryan is going to kill me when he finds out about this, but I gave a little over a dollar or two to the girls so that they could at least get a small present. Aubrey got a little more than the other girls. . .but she is my niece she deserves it!! Sorry Ryan. . .it wasn't on the cards it was the cash in my wallet!!

How can you say no to this little sweet face!!

We then went to the children's gardens and played with the rest of the class. It was mid afternoon when we all piled onto the buses to go home. I felt so bad it was very hot and I drank all my water at lunch. Aubrey and all the kids were miserable. I was fanning them all with my map of the Library and I was having them sing Christmas songs to help them think of the cold. It was miserable but very fun!!

A big thank you to Tawny for letting me go in her place to the Library, and Aubrey for letting me be her Buddy on the trip. It was such a fun trip and I had a blast!!

What a Man, What a Mighty Mighty Good Man!!

I just have to do a quick shout out to this man of mine!! He is the best!! Here is how our night went the other night.

As a back story:
Our condo was broken into about a year ago, and lately there have been some teenagers hanging out on the side yard that is right next to the side of our condo (it is a very secluded area). They may be harmless. . .but I am paranoid. So when I open my window the next morning there is graffiti on it. At this point I am angry and scared. It just happens to be the same window that was broken into. So I am a nutcase at this point (not a difficult achievement). Needless to say I have been a little jumpy and scared.

What does my sweet husband do, he goes out and buys a security camera system!! But that's not all!!

Imagine it is 3:00 am and Ryan is sleeping peacefully where as I am awoken by a noise in the backyard. The temperature is at that perfect point where it is so nice to sleep with the window open with a stick preventing it to be pushed open by an intruder. I wake Ryan up as quietly as I can and tell him that I heard something. He gets up quietly and looks outside the window without moving the blinds. He then opens them wider to get a better look, then closes the window entirely and starts the AC up. He then hunkers back down to bed and comforts me and helps me fall back asleep!! Not once complaining that the paranoid wife is scared. . .again!! Such a good man!!

There have been so many times that I have woke him up from a nightmare and he never complains that his sleep is disturbed. He comforts me and makes me feel safe enough to go back to sleep.

Not only does he protect and keep me safe, but he is such a great person!!

He goes in and donates blood. He does the Apheresis, which is more involved, time consuming, and requires more specialized equipment (basically two units of red blood cells instead of the traditional one unit). I tried just the traditional donation once and I am still trying to talk myself into another round of it.

If he is approached by a homeless person he will take them to the nearest fastfood restauraunt and buy them a lunch/dinner. Or he will give them money.

He is so tender with the cats, fish, and hamster. . .we are still working on him liking Lacey!! ;)

He is so close and supportive of his friends and family!!

But best of all, he loves me and never lets a day go by to let me know that. I really married up!! I am the luckiest girl to have him. My goal in life is to make his life more enjoyable, make him feel more loved, and to be a better companion for him. I love you Ryan!!

Note to reader. . .sorry for the mushiness. . .he's worth it though!! ;)

Just One Of Those Weeks!!

Do you ever have one of those weeks were things just aren't going right??

Ours started off with the death of my little hamster Jasper. He lived a full and relatively happy life. I was having a hard time saying goodbye to that sweet little critter!! I have to say that Ryan was amazing! I have a hard time touching or disturbing the dead hamsters, fish, and bugs. However, Ryan was very tender with Jasper and made a nice little grave for him in the yard. It's times like this when I don't know what I would do without Ryan. He was such an amazing support system!! He was very sensitive of my feelings even though he was having a difficult time with it!! I love you Ryan!!

We have checked four different pet stores for another Hamster. Poor Ryan, he has been charged and bitten by so many in our search!! We really lucked out with Jasper and Zeus!! They were very cuddly, and sweet. I imagine it will be awhile until we find the right one that can come home with us!! Wish us luck!!

So on top of loosing little Jasper, Puppy (the crab I got Ryan for Christmas) has been killed by the parrot fish!! I went to feed them one morning and I couldn't find him in the fish tank. I did however find his claw. . . so sad!! I am not sure if we will replace him or not. But I think he put up a good fight, now the Parrot Fish isn't looking too hot!!

That's right we are looking at three deaths right now!! I am not sure what is going on!! The only redeeming quality is that they all lived longer than expected. . .but still!!

I need to end this post on a good note, Ryan bought a treadmill!! I am thrilled with this! Also, I decided to spend some time and change up my background. After working on Tawny's background and Michelle's I thought I needed to change mine up a bit. Let me know what you all think!!

Maybe next week will be better!!
I hope none of you had "one of those weeks"!!

Twilight

So excited!! So who wants to see this with me on Dec 12??!!

Sunny San Franny!

Ryan took me away!! I love going on vacation, even more I love going when it is just the two of us!!

Ryan had to go to Oakland for a business seminar so what better way to make a vaca out of it!!

That's us in front of the Golden Gate Bridge. I swear it's behind us. . .look closely! ;)

Our first stop was the Crab house. I went here with my Mom when we went to San Fran on a girl’s trip. This place was so good!! I love crab and they make it really really good!!

It's hard to see in this picture, but we had a great view from our table!!
I don't know what I love more in this picture? The yummy crab or the guy in the bib??!!

We had to visit the sea lions, so fun! I could just sit and watch them for hours. They always remind me of my dog Charla. Don’t you think they look a little Golden Retriever’ish’??

Don't you love my sears catalog photo??!! Fabulous pose!!

So cute! I love that they cuddle and look like a can of sardines!

I was going back and forth on putting this up on here. I will warn you this is Sea Lions Mating. But it is so cute!! That little guy is focused!

Of course no trip to San Fran is complete without a sundae from Ghirardelli Square. SOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD!!

PURE BLISS!! Yummmm!

We stopped in at the Jelly Belly Factory!! Can I say it was Heaven on earth!! At the end of the tour and after the samples I had a major sugar high headache. So worth it!!

ahhhh Belly Flops! I love the name, the concept, and the flavors!

We then went to dinner with Grandma June, Nadine, Kent, and Andrea. It was so fun to visit with them all and to have yummy Greek Food! Big thank you to you guys, it was so last minute, thanks for coming out for it!! Sorry we missed you Geoff!

Nadine you are so AWESOME!! She sent me home with two very adorable posters, and another good book!! Big thank you to Nadine!! You are my own personal Librarian!!

YOU ROCK!!

On the last day Ryan went to his seminar and I drove around Oakland. However, that didn’t last long. I felt very nervous and scared driving in that area alone. I ended up plopping myself on a park bench in the business district were Ryan was. I had a good book (again thank you Nadine) that kept me company for the 3-4 hours.

The only downfall to that day was when a homeless man approached me. He asked me for money, I said no! Then he asked if he could touch my freckles on my neck and chest, I said, NO WAY!! CREAPY!!! Needless to say my fight against these horrible brown splotches on my skin has reached a new level!! The war is on!!

No More Pink Party

Today Lacy went to the groomers for the first time since we dyed her. She needed it bad!

To remind all the readers out there of our pink dog. This is what she looked like after the dye job was all said and done. Pretty cute, eh??!!

I was a stress case, I thought for sure they were going to brow beat me for dying her hair pink!! I was trying everything in my power to convince Ryan that he should drop her off instead of me. I figure he is much better with conflicts and confrontation than I am. I avoid them. Yes, I am a wimp!!


Do you see how bad she needs to groomed?? It's amazing how long that pink lasted, you can still remnants of it.

Needless to say, I called and explained it to the groomer over the phone . . . she was really easy on me. PHEW!!


I have tried grooming her myself . . . but when it came to the anal gland and the pulling out ear hair . . . let’s just say it wasn’t pleasant for Lacy or me!! Poor little thing. It wasn’t until my sweet little neighbor Sam told me of a great groomer that he uses for his Mooshie that I was able to justify taking her to the groomer. They are great with her and the price should be more, I feel like I am robbing them!! The spazzed out Hyena look. It is still cute. She just looks like she is on hyper meds and has lost a lot of weight. Isn't it cute??!! (Meant to sound sarcastic. I really love my dog and all her looks; I swear!!) You can see that she still has some pink on her. She is cotton candy!


Grooming a Cavachon (this is Lacy’s breed) is a battle in and of itself. Trying to make them look less like a Bichon and even less like a poodle is pretty hard to do. I try to get them to do a puppy cut on her. Basically it is suppose to look like all the hair is the same length as a puppy would look. For some reason she always looks like a spazzed out Hyena when she comes back. I suppose there is only so much a groomer could do. Maybe next time I will try the Bichon cut, I just hate that it looks like my girlie dog has lamb chops. They claim it is to make them look more like a teddy bear. . .I don't see it though.

This is her as a puppy!! That is the puppy cut, that's what I aim for everytime I take her in to get groomed. Wasn't she cute?? She still is really cute, don't you think?


The funny thing is the breeder told me that she wouldn’t have the frizzy curly hair or the eye-stain of a Bichon, well she has both. Not a big deal, she fits in perfectly with my imperfections!!