Shaking things up!

So, the first week we move back to California...Santa Barbara has a major fire and there was a 4.2 earthquake that was centered in Ojai. I'm pretty sure it wasn't my fault, I was back in Utah getting my car... Crazy!
Photo by Matt Nirenberg

I left my car (& my heart) in Salt Lake City...

So rather than towing one of our cars during the big move... which if you've ever done it, you know it sucks... I chose to leave my car in SLC so that I could get an extra trip in to spend some time with the family. I figured a $250 tow dolly at 45 mph vs. a $89 plane ticket and a good time is a no brainer. Joey picked me up at the airport & it was great to see her again. I stayed with Matt & Cacia & the kids for 2 nights so we all got to go out with Joey for dinner. It was such a great time.
There is nothing better than waking up to the cutest kids in the world. We got lots of hang time in... What a great family. Luckily, Cacia had work off so we got to spend a lot of time together. I love her so much, she is the best! I got to finally see one of Aiden's baseball games and got a great picture of him about to hit the ball. Since I was going to miss Aiden's birthday party we got to go to Target so he could pick out his present. He decided he is like his dad & "doesn't like surprises" LOL. He's such a little man.
Grace was trying on sunglasses while we were at Target and Cacia got a great picture of her. She is so sassy & seems to already have fun shopping. Jax & I also have fun shopping and got one more impromptu Ross adventure in before dinner. I will miss our 'what not to wear' trips.
Matt & I were on our way to the store to get something to BBQ when we saw a big fire. We had to go take a look. It was controlled because it was a training exercise for the fire department, so we were able to drive right by. It was awesome and really hot! He is such a great brother! Another highlight was getting to hang out for kitchen bath time with Coleman & Grace playing and having fun. They were so cute together. Coleman is getting so big! He is almost walking without any assistance.
I am so lucky to be so close to them. It was really hard to drive away with them all standing in the driveway and waving, they are my heart... Here are some of the pictures.

Finding our new place...

So we've made the big move back to California. Here's some pictures taken on our first day in Ojai while we were looking for somewhere to live and pics of the place that we found. The whole ground level of the part of the complex that you can see street side is ours. It is a very large 2 bedroom 2 bath with a gigantic living room and a huge fenced patio. We love it!

A rare encounter!

Yeah, I know I haven't blogged all winter. I hate winter. You would think with all the time I spend on my computer I would have found some time to at least post something, but no. Anyway, I would like to start again. I think especially with moving far away from the people I love it would be a great habit to start so y'all know what's going on with me. No, I'm not gone yet.. but I'm starting now. I guess I don't get too excited about much during cold weather, and the last thing I want to subject you to is my complaining about how miserable I am with the dreadful season in Utah (not to mention the air quality.) But something cool DID happen that I wanted to share.
So... I'm sitting there the other day. Monday March 9th, to be exact. I'm thinking about how excited I am that we have decided not to move to Hawaii, but to move back to California in May, and I'm imagining how magical and wonderful it will be to return to Ojai, where Greg and I met. It is a very special place, so if you've never been there, you must come and visit. Anyway, something kept catching my attention out of the corner of my eye so I finally went to the window to see if it was just my imagination, or if it was what I thought it was... Sure enough, there it was... a beautiful Hawk sitting on a tree branch, staring into my window, staring at me. I was amazed. In the city? Really? In this storm. It was a divine encounter. I stood on our patio in my bathrobe without a coat and just watched in awe.
I am a firm believer in the symbolism and power of animals, and a hawk is definitely a messenger of spirit. The ancients recognized this magnificent bird of prey as a messenger bringing tidings to their Earth Walk, the Good Red Road, from the world of the grandfathers and grandmothers who lived before them. Hawk sometimes comes to teach you to grab an opportunity which is coming your way... I will take this as a good omen. We shared a special moment on a day I would normally be anything but thankful.

Goodbye Sunshine, Hello %@*&!

I love laying in bed when the fall sunshine is peeking through the windows. I'm sad to even think that it is on it's way out, and I am not looking forward to winter. It's cold outside, and it's my day off... At least I can use that as an excuse to just lay here. Truth is, I can barely cope just laying down these days. I'm nervous as my mystery symptoms that started in 2001 have returned. After 6 months of testing and experimenting, 5 different doctors, and a car acccident, there were never any answers but luckily everything just returned to normal. So, why is it back? I'm exhausted, I'm disoriented and I'm irritated. I just want to be well, and feel good. I don't want to go through this again...WTF!? I don't know what to do...

Happy Birthday Alex!

11 Years Old!

Lady Marmalade meets Madame Butterfly

Opening night at the opera with my hot bitch of a girlfriend!

Amy, a.k.a Tootsie, and I share a birthday. We were born on the same day, same year, a few hours and miles apart. We met when we were 18 years old working for Holiday Inn. We like to think we hung out while waiting to be born & made plans to meet as teenagers. For our birthday this year she took me to the opera. It was beautiful. I cried like a baby. I love my twin soul sister!