Christmas Par-tay!

The Rosemead students threw a Christmas party and we took Phoebe along. She was a hit. She had lots of fun charming everyone there. It was supposed to be a tacky christmas sweater party (you wouldn't know it from the group shots) and Levi got runner-up for his outfit.

Being Silly

She actually wore her tights on her head around the house for a while!

All in a day's work

Sporting her Tigger backpack

Playing on the step stool

Hanging out with dad

Helping dad with homework

Going on dates

Practicing her driving skills

Just out of the bath

Playing with bubblesChillaxin'

Where I Work

So I thought I'd change things up and briefly share a little about where I work: Water Specialties.


Water Specialties installs and services main water systems and reverse-osmosis drinking water systems in people's homes. See these filing cabinets? That's only about one-half of all the clients they service. I couldn't even tell you how many clients they have total.


My job is to call clients with reverse-osmosis units - the drinking water system that is typically installed in their kitchen sink. Every year the filters on this system need to be replaced, so I call up clients, remind them of their need to have their filters replaced, and try to schedule an appointment to have one of our technicians visit their home to replace their filters. It is partly a means of getting our foot in the door so that the technicians can also check out their main unit and try to find something wrong with it and charge them the big bucks to have their main unit serviced. The room you see below is typically where I work. I go through the client database and call clients. I usually dial about 100-150 phone numbers an hour.


This is the Control Center for the entire shindig. Calls are also made and received up here; appointments scheduled; and whole lot more. You can see the big huge white boards that line the walls. Each white board is dedicated to a certain region of Southern California.


Appointments are written up on the white boards.


And the service orders are placed in these big organizers. Voile! Such is my work day!

Momma's helper

I made this apron with my mom when i was a kid. Phoebe sometimes brings it to me and wants me to put it on her. I think she is going to be a real dress-up girl when she get a little older!

Big girl!

Phoebe is adjusting to sleeping her toddler bed. She's fallen out of bed the last few nights so i tied a laundry drying rack onto the opening but she broke it. I'll have to construct something to keep her in at night. Other than that, she is loving it and doing great!

So, umm, yeah, like, totally!

Please pray...

The fires are still burning strong. The one fire near us in Yorba Linda has not died down at all. Fortunately, the wind was blowing against the flames last night, therefore keeping the flames at bay. The winds are pretty strong this morning, so please pray that the wind would blow against the fires and not fan them further along. Please pray for the families who have had to evacuate their homes, some of whom have lost their homes. Please also pray for the fire fighters who are in the thick of the fires, for their safety and health, and that they would be able to effectively put out the fires.

It's raining...ASH!!!

Some of you may have seen on the news that some fires have broken out in LA. The worst fire has been up in Montecito, which is northwest of LA. However, a fire just broke out this morning about 20 minutes away from us in Yorba Linda. The smoke clouded the sky, which resulted in the sun turning red, while casting a pale, eery light on everything. Also, there was an ominious stillness to everything. Very creepy and very apocolyptic. Later in the afternoon, Sarah and I had to run some errands, and we could actually see the fires on some hilltops in the distance.

It's raining...RAIN!!!

You may look at this picture and think there is nothing special about it. It probably looks like a cloudy, rainy day to you. And that is exactly what it is - a rainy day! We recently had about 4 days in a row where it rained around here. Apparently it had not rained since April. I don't think you can really appreciate rain until you live in a place like LA. Here you see what rain really does. When it rains it clears all the smog out of the air and makes it fresh and clear. Incidentally, when it rains, you discover that mountains surround LA - something you would not know if it did not rain! Also, it washes away the thin filament of dirt and smog that covers everything, while also providing life and nourishment to the soil and vegetation. All I can say is that I LOVE it when it rains here. It's so beautiful, and I praise God for it!

Candyland!

We celebrated Halloween by going to Alphi Chi's (Biola girl's dorm) annual CANDYLAND. It is open to the public, so everyone from the community with little kids, and Biola students, go to Candyland. There are six floors in the dorm, and every floor decorates their entire floor with a specific Candyland theme; and the room with the best Candyland decoration wins a personally reserved yearlong parking space in front of the dorm, as motivation to decorate creatively. We had Phoebe dress up as Pebbles from the Flintstones. She was adorable, to say the least. Sarah made the entire costume. She did an amazing job. Anyway, it turned out to be a fun night and our family's first Halloween celebration!

Anniversary Getaway!

This past weekend Sarah and I drove down to and spent the weekend on Coronado Island to celebrate our 3 year anniversary. Silas and Emma watched Phoebe over night while we went down. Coronado Island is a lovely little island off the coast of San Diego, connected by the Coronado Bay Bridge (as seen below). If you have seen the movie Anchorman, this is the bridge on which Will Farrel threw out a burrito that hit the motorcyclist, who ended kicking Baxter the dog off the bridge.

Sarah has a friend who lives on the island in apartment right in front of the marina. If you look at the picture below you can see all the boats, and their apartment is right behind that. Anyway, Sarah's friend is out of town, so we were invited to use it. It worked out great!

The heart and soul of the island is the Hotel Del Coronado, affectionately known among the locals as the Hotel Del. It is a magnificent hotel that was built in 1888 and has hosted guests such as Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, and numerous presidents.

The Hotel Del was just a couple hundred yards away from the apartment, so we spent time wondering through the hotel. And since the hotel is right on the beach, we had a great time talking and walking along the beach. And let me tell you, the sand on the beach was so fine and soft, it was like walking through flour.

We also enjoyed a fantastic dinner at the Coronado Brewing Company. I had the Baja Burger with guacamole and peppers, and Sarah had the Coconut Encrusted Mahi Mahi. Truly delicious!

Sarah and I really enjoyed our time away together. I think both of us forgot what life was like with just the two of us, so it was great to spent time together to reconnect and talk. It was great, and we hope to do it again as soon as the next opportunity presents itself. Even though we enjoyed the weekend together, both of us were more than eager to get home and be with Phoebe. :)

Phoebe's Chicken Dance

Sarah taught Phoebe what a chicken says and how it acts. Very cute!

A Visit to VA

Phoebe and I went back to Virginia for a three week visit and we had a great time! Although three weeks was a long time to be away from Levi and I missed him a lot. It is wonderful to be back with him here in LA. Here is a glimpse of the two weddings and a little in between. Janna, Margot and me! Such a fun reunion with these precious friends!

Mr. and Mrs. Ian and Martha Robinson!

Shiloh '05. We missed you, Kristin and Marie!

Their first dance was super cute

The reception was beautiful!

Phoebe: "Ahhh, i'm back with my friends and it's GREAT!"

Phoebe and Liam (with Auntie Ambie)

At Nana and Papa's house!

Uncle John got this Pooh Bear from a game of Bigger and Better. Phoebe woke up every morning and gave him kisses.

"Mmmm, this apple juice is delicious"

Sistas minus one sista! (Where were you, Rachel??)

Seth and Jess's wedding was gorgeous. The wedding was in Falls Church and the reception was downtown Washington DC at the City Club. Here we are - the Kewley/Blanchard clan. Oops, Eric (Anna's husband) was cut out of the picture for some reason. He was standing right next to Rachel. Oh well.