catch-up time

It has been quite a while since I last posted so I will just start with the first, last big thing that happened with us. This is a post that will take a while to read...sorry in advance.

In the middle of November we had the good fortune to have the Donovans (my old boss and her family) come down to the Southern California area for their annual Disneyland trip. Lynda has been so good to Ross and I over the years, doing so many things for us and just being a great friend in the process of life. Anyway, she was kind enough to invite us to Disneyland for a day of fun with them. Jake and I left early Saturday morning and made it there about 10:15 and met them at their hotel and then off to Disneyland for the first ride of the day, the Matterhorn.

After the Matterhorn we decided to hop right over to the Tea Cups (one of my favorite rides) since they are right next to the it. Tom and Lynda sat this one out and as the four of us waited in line Jake and I told the kids if we go too fast just let us know and we will stop spinning. So we get on and Jake and I start spinning it pretty fast and we look at Joe and he is not lookin' good so we stop spinning. All the while Rachel is laughing her head off, Jake and I are laughing but poor Joe just has a blank look on his face. We get off the ride and need to let Joe settle down. About 20 minutes later he threw up. We felt soo bad. Here it is the second ride of the day and we already made a Donovan sick...great!! He is a trooper and shortly after that he was back and ready to ride some rides.

Of course we hit up all of the major big rides like, Indiana Jones, Haunted Mansion, and Pirates which is Rachel and Jake's favorite ride.

The kids really wanted to do the water rides with Jake and I and Lynda, Jake and myself were hoping to get those done as early as possible but that didn't happen which was ok. Luckily Jake took one for the team on Splash Mountain and sat in the front. However by the time we made it to California Adventure and on to the Grizzly River Run (a water rafting type ride, guaranteed to get you wet) it was 5:30 and the sun was down. I was soo not looking forward to getting wet and of course Lynda and I were the two who got absolutely soaked. I had denim jeans on that day and they were literally stuck to my legs, my underwear was soaked, my tank-top was soaked, everything was soaked. Well, there were no lines and the kids wanted to hop right back on so, why not since we were already drenched. I have to say it was a blast. Luckily it was 86-88 degrees that day and I dried completely by 10 or 10:30. All in all it was a totally fun day at Disneyland with some great friends. Plus the decor of Disneyland at that time of year is so fun and beautiful, how can you not have fun at Disneyland at Thanksgiving/Christmas time...in general how can you not have fun at Disneyland!?

Self-portrait in a ornament on the big Christmas tree.






This is one of the big trees in California Adventure park...I should have taken a picture of the tree on Main Street when it was lit because it was soo tall and beautiful- oh well!

Thanksgiving:

Thanksgiving was the next major thing that happened and we were able to go back home to Reno/Dayton. I was so looking forward to going home not only because it is home but because I really, honestly was looking forward to the cold. I will admit that it is nice living in an area where the weather is always comfortable, rarely below 62 and rarely above 72, but I grew up in a place with seasons and we were both looking forward to wearing our coats and bundling up. And boy oh boy did I get to wear my coat - I forgot what a 35 degree night feels like and I did not complain once about it! Anyway, we spent Thanksgiving morning with Mom, Pop and the Reillys and had a great breakfast. Hilary made homemade cinnamon rolls which were delicious (maybe Hil you should post the recipe, hint, hint) the boys talked boy talk, and Hilary, Finn and I played Candyland until the boys barged in and wanted to join! It was a good morning full of laughs and fun. I can never get enough of my family. Sorry I don't have any pictures on my camera of Thanksgiving day- Mom you need to post some!

Jake and I left around 2 and headed to his house for dinner with his parents and brother. I felt bad because I wasn't able to help with anything ahead of time except make homemade whipped cream because Jake was on call for jury duty in Los Angeles from November 18th-December 1st and I had no idea when were were going to be able to come. Jake got called on a jury the Tuesday before Thanksgiving but luckily for some reason after questioning the jurors the prosecution and defense did not feel like he would be right for the case and he was called off and his duty was served and over. Sorry for the digression but that is why I could not help because Marna had already gotten everything for dinner. Marna did a wonderful job with everything. The table was set up very beautifully and the food was delicious (I ate everything but the turkey). Then we just had a relaxing, fun evening watching Cars and playing Disney's Scene It and chit-chatting.

The next day I got up about 7:30 to go home and meet mom for a day of Black Friday shopping. We weren't in any hurry anywhere, we didn't need to be the 4 and 5 am-ers and neither of us were really planning on buying much but it was still a fun day. I got Sleeping Beauty for $12 at Target. I just realized that we look like Disney freaks; we like Disney but I don't think as much as this post leads on. Anyway, I also got one of the really nice cozy throws from Potterybarn. It was such a good deal, originally $80 on sale for $60 with another 20% off and I still had part of a gift card left from the wedding. I love this blanket, in fact I have used it every day since. So after a fun day of shopping with Mom, Jake came up from his parents and we had the Reillys over for some fun that night. Finn brought her easy bake oven and Hilary and I helped her make some sugar cookies. Aidain brought his guitar so Jake could help put a new string on and teach him some songs. I think Aidan really enjoyed that...he kept playing the songs all night. Chex mix was made, Pop's popcorn was made and then a game of spoons was played. It was just an old fashioned family fun night.

The next day I went and saw pregnant Paige and the new baby's room (she has her own blog now for those who don't know- it is 1+1=4). I wouldn't expect anything less of Paige than to have the baby's room perfectly done and organized down to each specified blanket laid out for each specified object i.e. the stroller, crib, etc., to the diapers out of their package in the specified spot in the dresser. I love you Paige!!! I have a feeling Josh and Karly will be awesomely organized as well and I can't wait to see pictures. Then we were off for a nice ending to a fun week, dinner with both sets of parents. It was a good week.

December:

After the trip it was back to normal life. Jake and I joked that it was bitter-sweet, but mostly bitter. I had fun getting out what little Christmas decorations we have, my snow globes, snowflake stocking hangers, a little village that lights up, and some candles and berries. Jake's mom, Marna, was so sweet to send us a very pretty and festive Christmas wreath. Later that weekend we went and got our first Christmas tree. We picked up one of the 5 footer Noble Firs at Lowe's for 20 bucks and it is a little cute, full, tiny tree. Jake put up the lights on the house that day too. Nothing extraordinary just the little lights but I love it still. The next night we put on some Christmas music and had a tree decorating party, talking and laughing about our ornaments that we have gotten over the years. It makes me smile that he likes to do that stuff with me and that we will have fun memories to look back on.
And of course Clara Belle couldn't miss out on the Christmas fun too- she was such a help!! Jake has been miserably busy with work trying to get a big project done before we head back to Reno/Dayton for Christmas. He has been all over Southern California the last two months, especially the last two weeks but none-the-less we are having a fun first Christmas season as our little family.

It's 8:15 pm on November 14th and

it's 76 degrees outside...

Update:
It's 9:30 pm on November 14th and it's 77 degrees outside...WHAT!?
*provided by theweatherchannel.com

The mystery food is....

An orange off of our orange tree. It grew long, skinny and straight. We came home one evening to find Clara Belle eating the other half in our backyard. So considering we have an orange tree in our backyard and Clara Belle couldn't go anywhere it must be an orange. Weird!

Job News

My interview on Friday, I thought, went really well but I know I could have answered better on one particular question. I knew I would be waiting for my response to come in the mail this week and it came today which I unfortunately did not get the position. I ranked number four which means I can still qualify for future openings in that position. I was a little disappointed because I thought that I would really like the job but really I am fine with it. It just prepped me for future interviews and jobs. I have still been searching and will keep you updated on any new prospects.

P.S. there are two new posts below this one.

Can you guess what this is?

I will give you all a hint- it is a food item. I will post the answer by Friday night so stay tuned and give another guess if you want. Some of you have guessed well but none have guessed right. I know what this is but do you?

pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere

This last weekend Jake and I went to the pumpkin patch to get our pumpkins. There were sooo many to choose from and poor Jake had to wait while I searched for the perfect one while he carried his around following me. I felt bad -but- if you are going to go to a pumpkin patch you have to get the exact perfect one for yourself...he just found his a lot faster than I did. Anyway it was a lot of fun and here is what we got.

My pumpkin (left) weighed in at 20lbs and Jake's (right) weighed in at 23lbs. Pretty good size pumpkins. However, I took some pictures of our pumpkins next to the really big ones and for some reason the picture won't upload but they were the pumpkins from the previous pumpkin post and I can only imagine that those pumpkins most certainly were all 50lbs and bigger. All in all it was cheap, good fun entertainment, and a fun outing together. I will have to post the third and final installment of the pumpkin post after Halloween.

Job Perhaps?!

In the "random" post I mentioned that I took a test for the administrative specialist position for the Ventura school district and was waiting for a letter in the mail letting me know if I passed to the interview round. When we got back from Reno I indeed had a letter waiting and I have an interview this Friday. I am totally excited for it. I just hope I don't completely bomb this interview. Anyway, keep your fingers crossed because I sure do!

music

My mom's post on her blog about rediscovering Jack Johnson reminded me that I LOVE finding music that I haven't listened to in a long time too. Recently I discovered this with many of my cds possibly due to the fact that my car CD player has been broken for close to five months now and I have been forced to listen to radio EVERYDAY (CC I know you get this). Unfortunately what I do is listen to whatever music I like at that moment and play it and play it and play it to the point of exhaustion. I get sick of it to the point that I don't want to listen to it for months, then it gets lost in the cd case but then I have that rediscovery moment and the whole cycle just repeats itself.

a ton of randoms

I didn't feel like making a post for every thing I thought about so here it is.

Whitney random update:
I went to my rheumatologist two weeks ago and was happy to hear that my arthritis is under control thanks to both of my medications. YAY! She said that everything was looking great and I don't have to go back and see her for three whole months. This is the first time in a year that I have not had to go to a doctor every single month. Unfortunately I still have to do blood work every two months but I guess I can handle that instead of hurting everyday. I still have to give myself a shot every week (actually Jake is quite fond of doing it for me) and it still sucks but again, I can handle a shot that hurts for 30 seconds as opposed to hurting all of the time. All in all, health wise I am doing good.

As for the job hunt.. I took a test for an admin. position for the Ventura school district. I really hope I did well because I think I would really like this job. I should hear from them in a week or two. I also talked to the LDS employment woman that I have been working with on and off and she might have some opportunities for me to check out. Jake and I talked awhile ago that it wasn't necessary for me to get a job just for the sake of getting a job. He said that he is fortunate enough to have a job that he enjoys and likes going to everyday and he wants the same for me. So in essence that is why it is taking me some time to find a job. Things are coming along.

October is officially here and I have to admit that I am such a nerd for Halloween. It is one of my favorite holidays. I love decorating for it, I love smelling the candy when it is in one big bowl, I love watching the corny Halloween specials etc., etc.- I know I am a nerd! I got out our Halloween stuff on Wednesday and already decorated our house. All I have left to do is get our pumpkins. It's not much but it's still fun. I think I just like fall.

Jake random update:
Jake is busy, busy, busy at work. I don't know who knows but he is the California area engineer which means he oversees the engineers and their projects for all of the Baker Tools shops in California, 5 total, and it is a lot of work. He is so good at what he does and everyone has nothing but great things to say about him. However, the guy is worn out. Luckily he is getting some what of a break this week because we get to go to Reno. He has a geothermal conference to go to for three days but we are coming up two days early so he can have some relaxing time and some fun! Other than work, he is enjoying working on his motorcycle again and just got a new tool from craigslist- a mill and lathe in one- and he plays with it everyday and is so excited about it. We are boring but we have fun together.

Pet parents

Whenever I would see people with their pets, especially with their dogs, treating them like their children, it always made me laugh and I would think to myself that I will never be like that when I have an animal. I always thought animals were animals and needed to be treated that way, even Jake thought that too. Well, welcome to Pet Parents Anonymous, our names our Jake and Whitney Zachry and we are pet parents! I never thought the day would come. For those who don't know, we have a boxer named Clara Belle and we love her. Jake has done an amazing job training her and for the most part she obeys her commands. She is a spazz sometimes, but she makes us smile and laugh everyday and we love cuddling with her and playing with her; she really is a part of the family. I will be sad when she is not here anymore...luckily that won't be for a long time. However, I have stuck to my guns and she is not allowed on any furniture, after all she is a dog!

Temp Agencies...uhhh

Yesterday I was contacted by a temp agency because of my resume on monster.com. This lady was a ditz on the phone and in person. For the life of me I could NOT get any information out of this lady on the phone yesterday other than the job she was contacting me about was for a non-profit organization...that's it. It was like pulling teeth. So I set up a time to meet with her today and when I got there she didn't seem that prepared. She told me a little bit more about the job only after I told her "I have no idea about the job, you didn't tell me ANYTHING about it over the phone yesterday!" Her reply, "oh (haha) sorry." Errr. That was fine but she still didn't tell me much about it and it left me feeling very dissatisfied and not really wanting to pursue this accounting job. She just didn't make it sound like something I would want. I told her I would interview so we will see what happens. Also, I had to drive 80 miles round trip just to find out nothing! All in all after all of this ranting...I am not impressed with temp agencies, well at least this particular women at this particular one!

It's the great pumpkin

If you don't know already my house (my area in general) is surrounded by agricultural fields - everything from strawberry fields, mushroom fields, flower fields, citrus groves, to my favorite right now, pumpkin fields. When Mom was here during the beginning of August we noticed this pumpkin field with pumpkins that were already 5-10 lbs. So for the last month I have been keeping my eye on this field and just within the last week they cut all of the pumpkins off of their vines. What is so important and great about this particular pumpkin field?...well, as you can see in the pictures I don't think any pumpkin is less than 40-50 lbs. I am so excited because I learned that they do hay rides in that field every fall and you can go and pick your own pumpkin. I CAN'T WAIT, even Jake is excited! We are going to have the best carved pumpkins ever! I can only imagine that Ross is jealous.

Cora's Dancing Skills!

So I just uploaded all of my pictures and videos from my camera onto our computer the other night and came across this video of Cora dancing on Mom's coffee table when they came to Reno for a visit last September. Jake and I watched it about 6 times the other night because it was incredibly cute and hilarious. I thought that all of the family would get a kick out of it as much as we did. Here it is...

Backyard Fun

Last week Jake and I went to Potterybarn to finally spend our gift cards from the wedding. We ended up getting these totally fun colorful hanging lanterns that you put candles in, and bonus they were on sale (they can also be table decor). We bought hooks and candles the next day so we could enjoy them in our backyard as soon as possible, put them up and tried them out. They were so fun but dissapointingly they did not light up the patio like we thought they would. So Friday I went and bought two more with remaining gift card money and went to Target and bought two strings of frosted bulb lights. This is the end result...

We have tons of light now and it is like our own Tea Cup ride in our backyard. Jake even rigged up a light switch back there so we don't have to plug and unplug every night. Now all we need is patio furniture and we can start having some backyard fun.

The last one...

Well- it is official the last one has done it. Obviously we have a blog and now everyone in the family is a blogified...hooray. Bare with me because I am learning as I go so hopefully by the end of the weekend I will have all of the posts that I want up. Holy cow, I am a blogger!