First Camping Trip of 2006

Phew! What fun..... Erik and I drove out to the coast this weekend for a nice camping trip and the Doo Wop Rally Race. We were a little skeptical about the weather but it turned out really nice..... gray and windy, but not a drop of rain until late Sunday.

One of my favorite things about a road trip out in the middle of nowhere, is the anticipation of seeing something unique and sometimes, really weird. It's like something new and interesting is around every turn.......We saw vintage vehicles, old barns overgrown with blackberries, wildlife (2 herds of wild elk, a bunch of hawks and of course, mule deer). I mean, things like this huge boat project explain it all. I think it was two complete sailboats being fused together to make some sort of huge cruising vessel. How cool is that!?!?











And then there was going to the ocean and making breakfast........
















We're celebrating 4 years tomorrow!!!












Then there was the reason we were out there....... fast cars flying around logging roads, miles and miles from any town........












We had such a good time..... very relaxing, lots of great conversation and a nice break from the tv, phones, traffic and of course, a break from work.

My favorite parts:
- Having the tent, with no tent poles!
- Rigging up the most comfortable sleeping arrangment in the truck bed, which will now be used regularly.
- Seeing wild elk running around one of the wildlife preserve
- Cooking breakfast on the beach
- Climbing up part of a mountain to get a fantastic view the of the cars
and
- Being with my one and only :-)

Next camping trip: April 21-23 for the Oregon Trail Rally Race in Hillsboro, OR.

GOING CAMPING (and other thoughts)

I know, I know, I know....... it's just a tad early for camping :-) BUT! One of our favorite rally races got moved up from May to this weekend, so we're not going to miss it just because of a little rain. The race is in Aberdeen/Brooklyn/Montesano area, which is out on the coast. It's a 2 day event, but Erik and I are only going to the Sunday one. We seem to remember that the stages on Saturday are very limited as far as where we can spectate from. But the stages on Sunday are so fun to watch - they come flying around a corner (This photo was from the same race 2 years ago.....and I wasn't even zoomed it - we can get that close!)







So, we're pretty excited to get out and go on a little road trip. We've both been going stir crazy being cooped up with all the rain and cold weather. We also both got a bunch of new camping gear (including a new GPS thingy!) so we've been looking forward to using it all.

On another subject, can I just get a hell yeah for Sasha Cohen! These photos don't even do her performance justice...... she's been my pick to win gold since the beginning and I think she just might do it!

So, go get 'em Sasha...... gold is yours this time around :-)

And lastly..... I found this quote the other day and wanted to share. I just thought it was so beautiful........

"What you promise today must be renewed and redecided tomorrow and each day that stretches out before you."

- Arthur Gordon

That's it!

Have a fabulous weekend all!

Okay, all 3 of you that read my blog :-)

Where to Begin (now extended yet another week!)

So many cool things have happened in the last three weeks, I don't even know where to start. My dad returned from Africa safely, we've been working on the new hydroplane, Erik and I took a wild and windy but really fun ferry ride during the winter storm, the company I work for (UBuildIt) awarded another Franchise in Maryland, a friend of mine Mike Taylor got married at the Hollywood School House on Sunday, Erik got asked by his work (BWM Northwest) to speak at a school on the Penisula, my friend Mimi just went into labor this morning and I got my tax refund already! Phew!

I'm going to post a few photos and then I've gotta run - my lunch break is almost up. I've included one of the hydroplanes......











One of the sunrise Erik and I got to watch from a hilltop on South Whidbey......













One of the Mike Taylor / Colleen Cox wedding on Sunday, Feb 12th.......











It's now February 20th - I saved this as a draft last week and was not able to finish it until today. Man, how times flies!

So, the newest news is that my dad is leaving (again) for California for a week to be with my mom's parents, which will be fun for him. Um, Erik and I had to change our flights for Mexico (damn Delta Airlines - NEVER fly with them), so now we're getting into Cabo at noon instead of 9pm, which gives us a half day to play in the sun! Hmmmm..... I think that's about it. Oh! Except that I'm just SO excited for the Olympics and the Ladie's Ice Skating that's taking place this week. Sasha Cohen is my pick for gold....she rocks :-)

Anyways, lunchtime is over - gotta run to a meeting!

Thank God for Girlfriends

I will say it again. Thank God for girlfriends.

Here's how it all started.........I stopped by the gym after a challenging day at work to take it all out on the treadmill.....which I did. I did my warm up, then ran so hard I could barely see afterwards. But it felt wonderful. I gathered my things and made my way out to my car. As I was walking, I realized I was favoring one of my legs because my calf and tendon were so sore. And then it came in a huge rush...... you know when you have a sudden memory, that only takes just a split second to remember and you can feel whatever it was that you were feeling back in that moment?

I suffered from awful charlie horses in my calves during swim meets and my mom used to massage my calves and Achilles tendons in between heats to help make 'em go away. She did this for years. I instantly started crying and felt so sad........ she was my biggest fan. Always there to cheer me on, even if I was 4 lenghts behind, she would cheer for me like I was going to win. At the time I thought it was embarressing - now I feel grateful and I would give anything to have my mom standing next to the treadmill with a stop watch and a wistle, wearing her classic spandex bike shorts and cute little Polo top that showed off her trim figure, loudly encouraging me to keep going and push myself a little further.

I cried all the way home and when I got into my parking lot, I had to talk to someone. I called Shannon and within 10 secs, she invited me over to talk. When I got there, she had the candles lit on the mantle and a pot of hot water boiling for hot chocolate. I sank into her ultra-comfy, creamy leather couch and just let it all out. And she just listened......nodding her head and handing me tissue. I gushed and gushed about it all and when I was done, I felt so relieved. We spent the rest of the evening gabbing about this and that, sharing what's going on in our lives..... true girl talk. Oh, and then we had a good laugh watching people makes absolute fools of themselves trying out for American Idol while eating ice cream bars.

Thank goodness for strong, sensitive, compassionate women like Shannon........ she knew exactly what I needed. Candles, hot chocolate, a couch to sink into, a box of tissues and her undivided attention.