Bob & Dad

Last Monday my Dad and I ventured down to Santa Barbara to see Bob Dylan in concert.  I have grown up listening to him my whole life.  I have heard every Bob Dylan song ever written & recorded (either by a CD, tape, or my Dad singing it).  I even had my Dad and I dance to a Bob Dylan song for the Father Daughter dance at my wedding.  

When I hear Bob Dylan, I go down memory lane.  

My sister and I dancing on our boat at Shaver Lake singing "Everybody must get stoned..." (little did we know what that acutally meant...I'm still shocked my parents let us sing that at the top of our lungs...they were probably laughing hysterically in their heads).  

On our way to school, my dad, sister and me, all snug in a truck singing to my dad's Bob Dylan tape "Froggie went a courtin and he did right, uh huhhh.  Froggie went a courtin and he did right, uh huhhh...".  

Snuggled up in bed with my sister while my dad played his guitar and sang us some old Bob songs to bed. 

 Studying in the library for college midterms-putting Bob Dylan on to help me relax and stay focused on the task at hand (and give me a little boost from being homesick). 

 Dancing with my daddy at my wedding "May God bless and keep you always, may your wishes all come true.  May you always do to others, as others do to you... May you stay forever young."

So, for my Dad's birthday I was racking my brain (as always) to figure out what to get him.  I didn't want the usual socks, undies, shirt...etc. to be the gift for this year.  Then I saw on the TV that Bob Dylan was going to be at the Santa Barbara Bowl! I've heard about this venue and how awesome it is.  And I REALLY wanted to see him with my Dad. (You can call it a Happy Birthday to me present as well!) ;)  So I asked my mom and sister if they wanted in on the deal-and they thought it was a perfect gift.  WAHOO!  I was probably just as, if not more, excited as my dad.  I couldn't even wait til his birthday.  I blurted it out the next weekend (in August when we were visiting) that I had bought us tickets. Ha.

So the evening comes.  Of course, the one day, in a billion surrounding it, that it was supposed to rain.  OHHH WELLL! I told my dad to bring his rain coat because I'm goin either way!  We jumped in the car and headed down the coast.  When we got there, after parking a thousand miles uphill, we made our way inside.  The evening ended up being perfect-with not a drop of rain!  It really was a beautiful venue.  Mark Knopfler played before Bob came on, and he was amazing.  Him and his band were very entertaining.  I turned to my dad and said I wanted some fish & chips and a Bulmers cider.  His band reminded me of Ireland.  A very good show.  

Then it was Bob's turn. 

(I have to mention here that I have seen Bob once in concert before with my mom, dad, and Jon in Fresno.  It was in a stadium where he played with John Mellencamp and Willy Nelson.  Very cool show.  Jon and I pushed and shoved our way through so I could get a coveted glance of Mr.Dylan himself.  Awesome.  And my dad has seen him a handful of times.) 

 Anywho-out came Bob.  

If you have never been to one of his concerts I'll set the scene for you.  He usually stands behind his keyboard-facing sideways (which my dad says is rude..hah).  

But on this rare occasion Bob found some dance moves from yonder.  He was all over the stage, bouncing his old man knees to the beat-getting down with his bad self.  He even SANG a couple of really good notes! (again, setting the stage for his concerts-you can't always understand what ol Bob is saying/singing.  He tends to change up the compositions of his tunes, so songs that should be easily recognized aren't.  And....you just can't really understand a darn thing he's singing most of the time.  Some notes even came out as squeaks.  But you gotta love that "gravelly voice".  It's how he's always been. And I LOVE IT (even if I don't understand every other word coming out of his mouth) :)  I know my dad understands it all-he's just that big of a fan ;)  

After the concert we made our trek back to the car. (I forgot to mention that upon arriving there were people on bikes with trailers attached to the back that would take you right to the bowl entrance.  When we left and saw all of them waiting to take people back my dad and I started laughing.  We were tempted to have them take us back.  No joke, biggest hill we parked on.  I could lay down on the road and almost be standing up straight. Ha.  We should've done it!)

We then stopped at In n Out on the way home and scarfed a hamburger down.  It was 11pm.  Ha.  Gotta love it!

The evening was wonderful.  Bob was in rare form that night.  My Dad said it was the best he's seen him.  So thankful I got to share this special evening with my father.  I am also so thankful to have a dad like him.  He has always been there for me and our family.  And I have never, ever, doubted his love for me.  Hopefully he had just as much fun as I did :)

Trick or Treat

Yesterday was Halloween! (or as I like to call it All Hallows Eve)...sounds a little spookier, right? 

Well, we were invited to a Halloween party-an annual one that we usually go to and haven't been able to make the past two years.  It also happened to be at the place where I am now a nanny, so it worked out perfectly.  It ended up just being a small gathering with yummy food, and good wine.  Which if you ask me was ppppeerrrfect!

Here is our Charleigh girl. 

She was a moo moo (as she calls them).  And she was the cutest "moo moo" I have ever seen.  We went trick or treating just to see how she would like it...and oh my word.  She waddled right up to the doors, knocked (with my help), smiled her cute little smile, picked out ONE (I was shocked she only grabbed one) candy from the buckets, put it in the bag I held open for her, and then signed thank you and said "byyyyeeee"!

  Seriously.

  Jon and I could not stop laughing.  We had only planned to go to a couple of houses-but she was having so much fun (and so were we) that we went to a few more.  Each person who opened the door to this sweet little face couldn't help but have a huge smile!  Many people stated that she was the best part of their night! (she has that effect on people) :) 

It was a good evening.  We didn't take a family picture, which I'm super bummed about, but we are planning on taking one in all of our costumes this weekend.  So I will have to post that later.  In the meantime, here is a couple more pictures of our little cow.

The Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend Jon, Charleigh and I ventured to the Avila Valley Barn.  Probably not the best time to find yourself there....with the masses upon masses of people (most of which are little kids running around hyped up on sugar!) :)  But we went anyway....I knew Charleigh would love seeing the animals.  She has been sick for a couple weeks now...went from a really bad cold to a deep chest cough.  Poor little girl :( She still finds time to be as feisty as ever though...so that's how I know she is doing ok!  Here are some pictures of last weekends trip.

Char Char had so much fun at the barn, that when we heard Gramma was coming to visit we decided to go again!  This time we went a little earlier in the morning to try and beat the crowds.  However, I noticed when we got there that a certain mommy (me) had forgotten to put shoes on her daughter!  A BIG OOPS!  Daddy was so nice to go back and get them :) :) So for a little while Gramma and Mommy tried our best to distract this little cutie.  The chairs were our first stop.

Then Gramma got Charleigh a bag of "goat food" to feed all the animals.  

However, Charleigh decided that this must be some tasty stuff if all these animals wanted it so bad!

So she would sit in front of them and (try) to eat it.  I would dive in and (try) to stop her, and say "ICK!"

She eventually gave up trying to eat it, and went back to feeding the animals.  But those poor animals had to work for their food from this little girl!  She had a death grip on every piece of lettuce and didn't want to let go.

Next was the pumpkins, which didn't interest her for long.

(but notice, she has shoes!...thanks Daddy!)

Family picture :)

Daddy taming the wild beast!

Char Char....you really need to learn what things are "appropriate" for eating. 

This whole, uncooked, raw pumpkin? Probably not on that list.

I love this little nugget!

Bree Ann & Blake::maternity::

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to photograph my friend Bree Ann.  It is weird to think we have been friends for over 10 years...wow.  We met in High School where we both played water polo.  I guess kicking girls under the water and almost drowning everyday carrying metal folding chairs across the pool creates a special bond. ;)

  She is expecting baby # 2, and wanted some maternity pictures.  These are my favorite kind of pictures.  Maybe because I enjoyed being pregnant so much-or maybe it's just the sheer amazement of pregnancy!  Anywho-Bree Ann has the sweetest little boy already, named Blake.  He is two years old-and inherited is Daddy's shyness. (I think Blake was wondering "Hey, Daddy doesn't have to be in any...why do I?"  :)  Thankfully Nona (grandma) was there and helped crack this little guy, and give me a couple smiles.  Between his grandma, and my mom blowing bubbles everywhere like a mad woman, I'd say we got some good shots ;)  Here are some of my favorites from the session.

Our Family Teams

The football season is upon us! WOO HOO! (I actually think I am more excited for this than my husband is)  

I am a big football watcher.  It's almost a comfort thing for me. I think this stems from football being on non-stop from September-February in our house growing up.  My Dad played football in High School and I can tell he really enjoys the game.  So that being said, I know a thing or two about the game-and actually understand what is going on! I actually had to explain, more than once, the rules and understandings of the game to my husband.  THIS IS NOT HIS FAULT! I will tell you now, to help preserve his manhood, he came from a family that didn't watch or care for sporting events at all.  His Dad is really into music (and is an exceptional guitarist) therefore my hubby never got into rooting for certain teams or enjoying the Sunday game.  Hence why I had to explain some of the rulings for football ;)  And to help preserve even more of my husband's manhood....My brother in law (sis's hubby) is a HUGE sports guy and is even amazed by the knowledge my sister and I have for football...even stated once that she probably knew some things he didn't at one point when they first started dating.  Point and case: we grew up in a football household and it must've just stuck :)  

(I've never been a huge fan of basketball or baseball-I enjoy watching them in person, but when they are on TV I just get kind of bored....maybe that's because no one is hitting eachother??)  

Jon joined a Fantasty Football League (well, actually 2) this year.  {I hope he doesn't read this...or I may be in trouble}  I was trying to figure out what players he had, who his defensive line was, etc., etc. and he just gave me a blank stare.  Come on! You gotta know these things! Get into it! Yes, I am the crazy wife who would love to run her husband's Fantasy Football team (just like the wife on that show The League...if you haven't seen this show, it is HILARIOUS-crude, but hilarious.)  Anyway..this got us into a dicussion the other night about who our team should be as a family.

That being said, my Dad has always rooted for the Raiders.  There has been a love for this team since he was little-and I just don't really understand it-but that's the team that we always tended to root for in our household.  However, I will say that my Dad has a love for football, but I have never seen him really get into a team.  We don't have Raider's jerseys, Raider's underwear, or a Raider's flag flying high on game day.  My Dad doesn't actually own any team gear at all.  He never has.  It was just a known fact who he preferred to root for.  I think he just loves watching the games-and from my experience watching with him-he usually roots for the underdog :)  

The point of this post?  I told Jon I really want to start rooting for a team-and get into it! Wear the colors on game day, get a jersey, go all out!  (I have secretly always wanted a jersey!) :)  So, Jon and I sat down the other night and had a debate on who should be our family team (no I'm not joking...it was a serious conversation!)  The team we root for from here on out.  We tossed a couple teams around...both not really committing or liking most of them.  Then Jon tossed out the Saints...he has always had a love for this team (as much as he could with the non-sport family he grew up in) ;) His grandparents live close to New Orleans, so once he started getting into football (after dating me) he tended to lean towards the Saints as a football team, and was really into the Superbowl the year they played and won.  So, I can honestly say he was a fan before they won the superbowl-and is not just wanting to jump on a bandwagon.  BUT they have had some crazyness drawn to their team lately with half their team getting suspended for placing bets and such...yatta yatta.  So I wasn't too impressed with that....and I don't have any draw to that team.  But I told Jon, sure, we can root for them.  But I want another team-one that I want to watch too.  Jon threw out the Broncos.  A lightbulb popped into my head.  MANNING!  They just got Peyton Manning (again...just to boast a little more, Jon didn't believe me that this was their new quarterback-he had to google it-hehe...please don't get mad at me hubby!).  Done and done.  The Broncos it is.  (if he were still at Indianapolis I may be rooting for an entirely different team...)  I know I shouldn't follow a player to each team he goes to, and I won't, but I have always enjoyed watching him play.  I have been amazed by him since he started.  He is an awesome, very talented quarterback.  Just lucky for me Manning is a Bronco for the time being (don't you leave me high and dry Manning!)  So there it is.  Our two teams...The Saints and The Broncos.  After we decided all this I asked Jon "When do I get a jersey!?" :)  

Seriously, I'm that excited.  And I want to be that family who goes all out on game day.  So there.  I always felt weird deciding to root for a team this late in my life, but like I said-Jon's family never liked any particular team (or sport for that matter), and my dad really just liked the sport-and wasn't a HUGE ALL OUT FAN of any team (aside from his being partial to the Raiders).  

Go BRONCOS! Go Saints... ;) (can you tell which one I will be rooting for more??) hehe.

Oh and my college team is a no brainer-Notre Dame.  Has been since High School.  Fighting Irish through and through.

Both my teams have started out great! Keep it up boys! ;)

O-N-E! (The Anderson's Visit-Part II)

Is it really possible? Can my baby be one already!?!?  Oh my...

We had a fun, picnic themed Birthday Party for Charleigh at my parent's house.  It was fun, relaxing, and not too hot :)

I was so thankful my sister could be there!! She was a big help.  And I definitely couldn't have pulled it off without my mama!

Our lunch consisted of fried chicken, biscuits (with home-made strawberry jam), and potato salad. YUM!  And to top it all off for dessert we had apple pie with home-made vanilla ice cream....I'm craving ALL OF THE ABOVE right now.

Here are some pictures of the day.  I love this girl so much it hurts.  She is pretty amazing.

Charleigh Grace:

You are ONE!  When people told me the first year would fly by they weren't kidding!  You are the sweetest little girl.  You always have a huge smile on your face, and you don't know a stranger.  You love to stand up!  You just crawl to where you want to be and shoot straight up and look around-"surveying the land" :)  Your Daddy is your biggest fan (well, besides me of course) ;)  He LOVES to rock and cuddle you when he gets home from work. And you always give him the biggest kisses.  He is the only one who can make you laugh your hardest :)  He tickles your little neck, feet and tummy until you turn bright red from laughing so hard.  It is the cutest.  You keep me, mommy, warm and cozy in the mornings-and we have fun exploring outside in the afternoons.  You are learning something new everyday!  

You are now almost 14 months.  You walk EVERYWHERE!! It is too cute.  You now say mama, dada, dath(bath), crrcrrr (cracker), choo choo (train), shhhsss (shoes), woof woof (dog), ckkkk (cat), nigh nigh (night night) and a handful of other crazy words :) You are 19 pounds and 29 3/4 inches tall according to the last Dr visit we had. :)  You are a growing girl!

You are pure joy.  Your Daddy and I sneak into your room when you are sleeping because we miss you.  If you weren't such a crazy flip floppy sleeper we would have you nestled in-between us every night :)  You are so much fun! Always giggling, always smiling.  A little hard headed and stubborn, but that means your are like your mama....and that's not a bad thing-right? ;)  We love you to the moon and back little nugget, and always will.  You are the greatest gift we have ever received, and feel so very blessed to be your parents.

XXXXXXOOOOOO

mama & dada