"Happy Birthday Jesus" Party at Jen's House

Jen's "Happy Birthday Jesus" party is an annual tradition. We celebrate the birth of Jesus; the moment when God broke into human history. We also celebrate toasted coconut cake so sweet it makes your heart do a somersault.

The highlight of the evening is Jesus's birthday cake. Baked inside are tiny bits of Scripture wrapped inside of tin foil. Often you can find more than one foil package in a single piece of cake. This year, Jen chose calming verses from the Psalms.

Jen, our hostess with the most-ess, double-fisting red wine and hot cocoa.

Sweet girlies snuggling on the couch.

Francis and James squeezing in a game of chess.

Below are some photos from "HBJ" parties of Christmas past...circa 2006 at Danielle's old house.

Photo session with Patrick Ang Photography Studios

Brother-in-law who can make any subject look beautiful? Can you say "score"? Francis and I were hanging out on the steps outside the Go-Karting place in Bakersfield when Patrick started snapping shots. We acted silly because we didn't think he could possibly get any good shots. The sky was an ugly gray. The building was an ugly gray. My coat was an ugly gray. As usual, Pat made our jaws drop when he slid the edited photos over to us later that evening.

This is Francis and me practicing the tango, which we learned during our date night at a local ballroom dancing place a week ago.

It's a Girl!

Our niece is gonna be a girl! Haha. Patrick and Christine waited for us to be with them before they went to find out the sex of their baby. At 4+ months, Chris has a cute little bump and a head swirling with baby names. At the ultrasound, the technician picked out the tell-tale "three lines" immediately. I was like, "Why does my niece look like a swirling pile of gray?" I just took her word for it. Three things I know for sure, though:

1. My niece will be beautiful.
2. My niece will be smart.
3. My niece will be spoiled.

(which has nothing to do with Auntie Joanna and Uncle Francis, of course)

Thanksgiving in Bakersfield, CA

Patrick and Christine hosted us for a very relaxing holiday weekend. I slept 12 hours one night, and Francis exclaimed, "You never sleep that much!" Oh, it's Thanksgiving, and it's on. We scored some great photos courtesy of Patrick. The first few show us visiting a little holiday light show in a local park in Bakerfield. Light displays, hot apple cider, fresh kettle corn, a carousel, and a little train, Dorney-Park style.

One day we visited a Go-Karting place. Pat and I went head to head, and he lapped me...almost twice. (Probably because I was spending so much time waving to Francis during my photo op)

Francis's 26th Birthday

I am leading with this horrendous photo because, well, he deserves it. Francis was in a particularly silly mood the night we and 15 friends went to BJ's Restaurant in Foster City to celebrate his birthday. He ate an entire rack of ribs, fries, and soup, as promised. I couldn't get him to stop making stupid faces to save my life. Check out the video. That's my honey! Take it or leave it.

Our friends were extremely gracious, considering the fact that I forgot to make a reservation so we had to wait an hour and a half for a table. (!)

My pal Madeline, wife of Francis's good friend from high school. She is 5 months pregnant and barely showing since she is a little Korean doll. Literally.

The OG boys, Phil and Damon.

Johann, Jonathan, and Andrea.

Great gift Danielle! Basketball + Jesus = Perfect gift for Francis.

Halloween 2008

Party in Pacifica! I am not a big fan of Halloween, but Erin and Randi threw a really fun party on Halloween and some of our friends went all out for their costumes. Above are Queen Elizabeth, a crazy witch lady, and a lame cowgirl hanging with the resident pup dog.

A cowboy/EMT, Superman, and Tyra Banks.

(From left) Blessing in Disguise, a drunk Mexican/cowboy/EMT, and a dancing queen/Greek goddess of some sort.

Helping our friends move

On Saturday morning, we headed over to Brance and Fi's old apartment to help them move. Half the stuff is headed to San Jose, where they will be living, and half is headed to Brance's mother's house in Hanford, CA for storage. Check out the cute movers above! Need a hand, boys?

Brance organizing the new and improved large truck. The first truck they rented was only 10' long, not large enough for all their stuff. So Brance and I went back to Budget and rented a 15 footer.

Fides looking cute as a button, as usual. Even in her scrubs!

We stopped for a bathroom break and a hot dog somewhere off Route 5. Fi and I rode in their Prius, listening to sermons about marriage on CD. Francis and Brance drove the truck, and probably made stupid jokes the whole way.


Hanford is kinda hick, but they do have a Super Walmart, so Fi took me shopping after dinner. She pretended to buy a few makeup brushes for herself, but ended up surprising me with them as a gift. She showed me how to apply eye mayeup and blush when we returned to Brance's mom's house.

When Fi and I returned from the store, Francis was engrossed in a game of chess with Keith, Brance's mom's friend. Francis ended up triumphing, but he said it was a very hard fought battle. After the chess game, we all settled in to watch the movie "Amazing Grace".

Well...we know who to call when we're ready to move!

My Myers Briggs Personality Type

I just read about my pastor's Myers Briggs personality type on his blog, so I thought I'd give it a try myself. I was shocked by the result! Here is their description of my personality type:

ISFJ
Quiet, friendly, responsible, and conscientious. Committed and steady in meeting their obligations. Thorough, painstaking, and accurate. Loyal, considerate, notice and remember specifics about people who are important to them, concerned with how others feel. Strive to create an orderly and harmonious environment at work and at home.

Wow. Everything is dead right, except maybe the "considerate" part. Haha.

Francis hasn't taken the test yet, but this description matches him well in my opinion:

INFP
Idealistic, loyal to their values and to people who are important to them. Want an external life that is congruent with their values. Curious, quick to see possibilities, can be catalysts for implementing ideas. Seek to understand people and to help them fulfill their potential. Adaptable, flexible, and accepting unless a value is threatened.

Try it for yourself!

First Andy-versary Weekend Surprise Extravaganza

Whew! We made it! I am happy to report at the one year mark that our marriage is healthy and blissful to the point of nausea for those around us. Francis planned a surprise anniversary weekend for me. Part of the weekend was a trip to the movie theater to watch Fireproof, a straight up, unapologetic Christian movie about marriage. In the movie, one of the supporting characters explains to the main character that as a husband, you must study your wife the way you might study a book. Notice her likes and dislikes, her hobbies, her interests. Francis earned an A+ this weekend in that department. He took me camping, orienteering, and to eat breakfast!

I was so shocked when we pulled into the KOA campground, I just couldn't believe my husband would try camping. He hates bugs, dirt, and public restrooms...but apparently he loves me more.

The campground was a short drive from the beach, just south of Santa Cruz. Ah, sunset over the ocean. Don't be jealous East Coasters.

I was very impressed with Francis's novice fire-starting skills. He had a nice little fire going in no time. We cooked hot dogs and marshmellows over the flames. You know, a balanced diet. The campground was unlike any I'd ever been to before. The sites were organized in a circle, rather than individual little slots, so it really encouraged campers to talk to one another. There was quite a bit of fire envy going on in the circle. Everyone was inspecting everyone else's work.

The next morning we packed up and headed to breakfast at a cute little diner the folks at the KOA recommended. The only problem was that it was so popular that we had to wait a while to get a table. So long that we missed our orienteering event. No worries, my eggs benedict was worth it.

We decided to go to the park where the orienteering meet was being held anyway. It is located south of San Jose, where the hills are covered in dry grasses and the occasional lonely tree. The park is built around a "reservoir" that was more puddle than pond. These poor people were trying to boat on it, despite the large islands of dry land rising up from the center. Nothing to see here folks, just the desperate last gasps of the California water table. We took a 3.5 mile hike up the mountain on a trail. The trail passed a large horse pen and the horses meandered slowly over to greet us as we passed. Sorry, boys, no carrots today.

I snapped a shot of a few old school orienteerers discussing the event. Maroon and gold are the colors of the Bay Area club. As usual, they were mostly comprised of Europeans with funny accents and even funnier clothes and shoes. They march to the beat of their own drum, that lot.

It was the best first wedding anniversary I've ever had. But seriously. It was.