Can I have it? Can I have it?

This was an all too common experience for me at DVC or riding BART. So umm Listen.

Sizzle

I know what you're thinking- "awesome new white bathing suit Melody!" You're wrong. It's just a painful sunburn. A word of advice. If you take a prescription that says "causes sun sensitivity" they are not joking.

Escape From Alcatraz

This is so great. Simpsons shout out to Oak-town. Sorry the video isn't great, but you get the most important part. check it.

The Endless Weekend

On Friday after Kevin got off work we drove straight to our mechanic to get new brakes for the Saturn. We walked around the neighborhood and hung out at a park while my car received some much needed TLC. They finished in less than an hour, and when we came back they were topping off all my fluids, told us what to watch out for, and had rotated my tires without us even asking. We love our mechanic. We drive pretty far to go to him, but he is honest, has fair prices, and does great work. We got home, and I got to work on the promised "man meal." When we came home Kevin was greeted with my surprise for him. I had baked his favorite- carrot cake. I made it from scratch, with cream cheese frosting of course.

I am coming to terms with the fact that I am my mom, yes that is a hostess apron around my waist thank you very much.



I worked on our dinner of New York Strip steaks and "chuck wagon potatoes." Oh man it turned out sooo good. I was nervous as this was my first time making steak. We seasoned the meat with "Jamaica Me Steak."



We ate it up. I could only eat about 2oz. of my 8oz. steak, but Kevin cleaned his plate.



After dinner we watched Shaun of the Dead. Then we sat down with tea, and carrot cake and watched some British sitcom on PBS. At this point Kevin and I looked at each other asking ourselves if we have become my parents. If you know them you understand. Our favorite quote from the British sitcom- Son- "She was your wife before she was my mother." Father- "Not necessarily."

Saturday we went for a hike to work off the calories from the night before. We used our left over steak to make yummy tacos, therefore justifying further the purchase of this delicious meat.

After church on Sunday we were feeling adventurous and decided to check out a dog show. We loved the movie "Best In Show." As well as the series on Bravo "Showdog Moms and Dads." It seemed a natural next step to go to a dog show.

Admission was free and we paid $3.40 (for both of us) to ride the Max round trip to the show. I was in dog heaven. We went home and took a nap and then we did laundry. I swear we did as much in one weekend as we normally do in 3 or 4.

Rainy Fridays Are Lovely

It's Friday and it's grey and rainy. I love it. Tonight Kevin gets an extra special mans meal.

I am going to make this- minus the giant ball of butter on the steak. I mean is that really necessary?



Have a good weekend!

Birdie, Mulli, Bogey

On Sunday Kevin and I volunteered at an event for the hospital he works at. We signed up to help out at their 12th annual golf benefit. Our previous experiences with volunteering have involved early morning, long hours, and heavy lifting. We enjoy volunteering and try to do it when we have an opportunity.

We were told to wear khaki shorts (blech) and that they would provide a polo shirt when we arrived. We spent a good part of Saturday searching for khaki shorts for me because I have not owned a pair since 7th grade. That shopping trip was an ordeal I will save for another day- but I did find a pair for $11 so it worked out.

Sunday morning we started the day slow with coffee and bagels and drove 30 minutes West to the event. We arrived at The Reserve which is a very beautiful golf course.

We parked and walked to the club house to register. We were given our volunteer polos, a gift bag, and hats. I was expecting some hideous over-sized men's polo, but to my surprise, we were given really really nice Nike golf shirts. The men's are maroon with white stripes, and the women's are burgundy with pink stripes and totally cute and fitted. This was when we realized this would not be our common volunteer experience. We put our shirts on and walked to the lunch tent. The catered food was fresh and delicious.

Next this crazy old man drove us to our hole in a golf cart. He drove the cart as fast as he could cutting straight through the course. Our hole was #5, and was a prize hole! The deal was that if any player could make a hole-in-one they would win a $12,000 motorcycle that was parked at the tee.

Our job was to stand at the putting green and watch for a hole-in-one. We sat in the sun for 4 1/2 hours and watched golf. Every once in a while a cart would deliver cold water to us and ask us if we needed anything. We didn't see a hole-in-one but I did learn a lot about golf and now I really want to play it! Plus some of the players tried to bribe us into calling a hole-in-one. It was a fun day and I told Kevin we can use our new shirts to find each other in Disneyland, or to be serious players if we go mini-golfing.

There were a lot of players, and a lot of golf carts



The majority of players looked something like this



It was hot and I think we all got sweaty

Jesus Jeopardy

Does that sound like blasphemy? Maybe. But it wasn't my idea- ok, maybe it was. I took a summer school class this summer, and for our final assignment we could write an 8-10 page paper chosen from a myriad of topics- or create a board game. The game was to be similar to Jeopardy, but needed to be a playable board game based on Christology.

Kevin and I spent a weekend at thrift stores searching for the perfect board game for me to re-work. We finally found the perfect one- "Movie Mania"



Originally priced at $29.95 (why??) We bought it for $1.99. I went to work painting over the box and game board. Kevin helped me create some rules of play, and he helped me get it done on time. I painted the box a bright blue and copied the Jeopardy logo onto it. I outlined the letters with yellow paint and then filled them in with gold glitter. Snazzy! I even did the same with a small box that holds my category and question cards for the game. The main purpose in creating the game was to come up with 30 questions on Christology.

My professor titled the assignment "the Jesus game" and so we ran with it. When you open my game the first thing you see is a bright yellow cardboard square that reads "Jesus Jeopardy rules of play." So maybe I am the blasphemer, but I had a lot more fun making a game with Kevin than writing an 8-10 page paper.

Post Script
I would like to tell you that I took a picture of the final game, but I took the picture on my camera and I cannot load those photos onto here. Sorry to be a bum.

Shell Shock

Growing up in California, every 4th of July my mom made fried chicken, macaroni salad, and homemade chocolate chip cookies. We would pack up the coolers, fill our trunks with blankets and folding chairs and usually one or two soccer balls. As mom would pack the caddi or the van we would all whine and complain that she was bringing too much. We just wanted to get to the park! By the time we would arrive at Central Park (San Ramon) we were all thankful mom had packed all she had. We would set up and claim a large piece of lawn for the four kids and two parents, plus whoever may stop by throughout the day. At the park we would listen to weird live bands, inevitably cross paths with our school friends, and watch skydivers land with red white and blue smoke streaming from their shoes. Throughout the day we would wander the park, and kick the ball around. When night fell we would gather together to watch the fireworks. After the show ended my dad, my brothers, and I would stand in a circle passing the soccer ball while we waited for traffic to die down.

As I got older I would notice the couples around me, snuggling up under a blanket or holding hands as they watched the sky burst with color. I wondered if someday I might have someone to hold my hand and watch the show with. Kevin and I have been together for about 2 and 1/2 years now and last night was our third 4th of July as a couple, but the first time we have been in the same place. In 2005 Kevin was in Yemen, and in 2006 I was in San Ramon with Kevin here in Portland. So we were really anticipating this holiday.

We were happy to be together but we were missing our families so we chose not to pay to get into a park. Fireworks are legal here in Portland, but some are illegal- if they travel more than 12ft. Last night we walked our neighborhood where we watched a constant show of legal and illegal fireworks. It was amazing, and for the first time I had a hand to hold as I watched the sky. Our neighbors called out "Happy 4th!" to us as we passed. The romance and sweetness of it all ended when we came across some kids playing with fireworks. Their parents were close by, but they were lighting firecrackers and throwing them. We paused to watch a firecracker burn down before walking forward. As we began to walk again this kid chucked a lit firecracker right at Kevin and I. We quickly moved in opposite directions and the firecracker landed between us. The cracking of it was so loud my ears were ringing. The kid claimed he "didn't see us." Right. We were done at this point but it was still a great evening.