BLACKOUT!

BLACKOUT!  Depending on which state you're reading this from it could mean something different. Right now, Brian and I are spending out pre-bed time watching a few minutes of the first Arizona State game of the season.  Go Devils, we are doing amazing!  It's the debut of our new black uniforms....which looks quite intimidating...and the whole stadium is decked out in black.  Team Lawrence may not be there but we've been sporting our school gear all night.  Trying to represent out in SD. 

If you're in California you either experienced or heard of the largest power-outage in our history.  Yesterday afternoon at 3:30 all of the power in the house went off.  Usually after about 2 minutes it comes back.  After about 5 minutes I didn't quite know what to do.  So, I of course called B at work wondering if I should call the apartment manager or the electric company.  Turns out his entire work building was down too.  We were quite impressed, seeing as he works 20 miles away.  Throughout the night we found out that the power was out from LA, to Mexico, to Yuma....wow.  Blackout! It took B 2.5 hours to get home, gah.  We decided to make the best out of the situation and have fun.  Two days earlier I bought 5 things of steak so that was first choice for dinner.  A few friends came over, we filled the apartment with candles, ate steak and enjoyed talking.  The candles made the apartment hot and sleeping was not fun at all.  I'm used to having AC or a ceiling fan out in PHX...not here.  We have little fans near our bed and don't turn on the AC so I have a hard time sleeping normally.  Luckily at about 1:45am we heard the buzz on the little fans....mmmmm....we were happy campers.  So, Brian did have to go to work, the stores were open again, and SoCal in once again in working order!

We live next door to Greg and Kill Boaz.  David was over too so the three of them joined us for the evening.

Brian, Greg and David in our living room.

It was pitch dark, making the moon shine brighter than we've seen anywhere in the city.

The sky last night was one of the most exciting parts of the blackout yesterday.  Not a light for hundreds of miles.  Just the glow of the moon.  The sky was almost gray because of the absence of city lights.  God sure gave us a gift!  We got to enjoy each other's company and marvel at His creation.  We woke up to a much cooler San Diego today.  It has been hot and muggy this week due the the day of rain Monday. Gross.  But, today was breezy and lovely.  I felt like it was a little present from God.  "Here ya go, guys.  Just because I love you."

Now, back to the game. Take that Mizzou!

Fun weekends!

Today is the first true rainy day of the season!  Can you say happy people?!  I'm sitting here with the windows open, listening to the drip drops and smelling it..mmmm. All I can say is that I am on pins and needles for the fall to stay. 

We've had a lot of fun the last two weekends.  Last weekend we went to the AV fair and Alfalfa Festival. Hot dogs, goats, pumpkins, the works.  I just love fairs.  There is something about the atmosphere that screams fun.  Maybe next year we'll have to enter in one of the contests ha ha

Look at all of that fun in one picture!

We got to see a lot of different goats that were up for showing. Maybe a house with animals some day?

This weekend we had a great time exploring San Diego.  We live here, why not get out and experience it, right?  Thursday B called from work saying: Let's go to a Chargers game.  Well, ok!  We ended up saving $100 (YES!), and borrowing jerseys from our friends.  It was my first time at Qualcomm statium....it's huge.  Saturday we headed downtown to Seaport Village for dinner/ice cream with friends.  Down the way, at the Embarcadero, was a Pops concert by the San Diego Symphony playing the hits of Tchaikovsky.  B and I really wanted to go but couldn't get tickets.  To our luck we found a great spot on the grass right outside the gates to listen.  Yesterday we headed to the beach for the holiday.  It was wonderful that B had the day off so we were able to spend the whole day just enjoying life.  We played lawn games & bbq'd with friends in overcast weather. We ended the day with some sushi-the best!

In other news, B has a little 'accident'.  While I was on a run B was in a cleaning mood and decided to sweep/mop.  While going for the boom stuck behind the refrigerator, he pulled too hard and BOOM!  I came home to his mouth full of tp and blood.  It stopped bleeding and no stiches needed but it sure made for an eventful day.

It's was swollen for a few days.  But, he sure looks cute, ya?

Now, off to another work week! Hope that the rain drops stay for a few more days :)

'Projects'

Here are a few pictures to update on our 'projects' in the house.  We seem to love having things hung up on our walls.  Something new joins ever week!

This picture is above our TV, in between the bookshelves.  It was a steal: originally over $100 and we bought it at a closing sale for $5!

Shadow boxes, pictures, and other decorations in our hallway.

This project was a beast.  It started with 1 1/2 hours of me attempting to hang the shelves, another hour of B trying to hang the shelves, then a 2 hour excursion to Home Depot (my latest episode of getting lost) and another 2 hours of work.  Alas...it is accomplished.

Both of us are excited to buy a house in a few years that we can continue to decorate and have fun with.

Hello from San Diego

Brian and I decided we wanted to start a blog so we could keep people in the loop about our new life!  Hopefully we'll keep it up and running.


Today marks us being married for two months already.  I could swear the wedding was yesterday and we just got back from our honeymoon.  God has been quick to work over here.  Brian and I have both been through our second jobs (technically), we have pregnant friends, our apartment is radically different and we're learning a lot about each other. 
Let's see what I can update you about.....

B: Brian was working at Starbucks for about 1 1/2 months before the wedding.  He continued to look for jobs that could use his communication skills but no luck.  Mr. Talkative wasn't letting those skills go to waste though.  He quickly became friends with all of the regulars.  B knew their story, they knew his/ours.  The opportunity arose for him to meet with the VP of Bridgepoint Education to talk business ethics and resume stuff.  Long story short.....today is his last day of a 2-week training at one of their schools, Ashford University.  The company is huge on being involved in the community.  (We went to a Padres game and saw their signs everywhere and the next week at a concert in the park)  God has put him in a place that uses his communication skills and love for helping people. 

D:  I have been busy at work making sure our apartment is up kept perfectly.  (Mainly because for the first 2 months of living here I didn't have a job).  I am surprised at how many dishes we go through.  There are only two of us here and yet I do a load of dishes almost every day.  My theory is because I love presentation.  I use twice as many dishes because I like to present them on a clean plate or in a clean bowl.  The apartment is us.  It's covered with pictures of places we've been, filled with cozy pillows and overall a warm place. I don't get lost very much anymore.  The first few weeks I had to call B almost every day asking, "how do I get to Kohls?", "where is Old Navy?", "B, I can't find Home Depot!!"  That only happens in a blue moon; I feel like I'm getting the hang out it.  Monday was the first day of my training at Sylvan as a teacher.  I was on hold with Starbucks for an entire month and then I was asked to take the teaching position.  So far it's perfect.  God knew that I needed a job I didn't take home, I could start going to grad school with, used my teaching degree and made my heart happy.  He has provided us both with so much and we are so grateful!

School:
B's new job will allow us to go back to grad school soon for almost free.  When he told me that I was amazed.  What did we do to deserve so many blessings?  I don't know, but I am so grateful. 
Church:
We have both been getting involved at our church (Skyline) as high school leaders.  What a wonderful place to create relationships and help encourage the students.  Camp was a week that we were able to get close with a lot of them.  I'm excited to take that and go into small groups.  Those start in about 2 weeks.  B and I will both be leading high school groups and building more relationships with the students.  Also, we joined a young-married group.  The first meeting is 1 1/2 weeks...we are really glad that there is that opportunity to be a part of that. 


Everything in San Diego is going really well.  The first two months of being married have been wonderful.  Each day we learn how we can love the other better and we need.  I think one of the biggest eye opening things for me has been learning more about what I need. Not only am I learning about myself and how I can communicate my needs to B, I get to learn more about how my actions and words can build him up and love him more.  It's great.  It's work.  But, it's great work.

Tomorrow we are going to the fair.  Awesome.