7 Years Later......

I made the final payoff on my student loans!!! What a GREAT feeling that was to FINALLY get those paid off this month!! :-) Hooray!!! Now we can start getting the car loan paid off........slowly but surely the debt will be going away!!

On a side note...could it really have been 7 years ago that I graduated from college?? Wow...and with 30 right around the corner...yikes! Jeff dealt with 30 much better than I'm sure I will (based how I already feel!)...he just says, there's nothing he can do about it so it's just another year! I have 6 more months to get to that point...we'll see...

Spring cleaning...in the summer!

The summer is the best time of year in Phoenix for inside projects...so...spring cleaning happens a little late here! :-) I've started, bit by bit, cleaning out piles, closets, space under the sink, etc.....it's amazing how much you accumulate with a bit of time!! Good gracious! It sure feels better though getting some of this cleaned out and thrown away or given away to Goodwill! Still have a long ways to go, but seeing a bit of progress is pretty good motivation to continue...

Saturday

Jeff went golfing in the morning......yes, it is well over 110 now......not sure why anyone would want to be out there, but he had a great time anyway!

The girls were supposed to have book club yesterday, but it ended up not working out for a couple of them so Krista and I went ahead and got some Starbucks in the afternoon instead. In the meantime, Jeff went over to Dave & Krista's to hang out with Dave and Chase.

We had dinner with our friends Adam and Jenn at Bonefish. I had tried Bonefish for the first time when we were in FL and then we found out there was one here...not quite as fresh for obvious reasons, but still delicious...and great conversation!

All in all...a great day!

Back to work

It's sure hard to get back to work after a week and a half of vacation...especially when your husband is still on vacation!! Nothing too exciting this week...I would get tired out every night...hard to get back into the swing of things and looking forward to a weekend off!!

Father's Day

A special day to remember our dad's and grandpa's...Jeff and I have been so richly blessed...how thankful we are for the legacy that's been given by both of our dad's and grandpa's...a Christian heritage we are so grateful to be a part of!

Thank you Dad Harvey, Dad Platt and Grandpa Erickson for the men that you are and for loving your families so much. You have given us such great role models and are all such an incredible support and encouragement. We love you so much!

We also lovingly remember Grandpa Lindo and Grandpa Platt who also embodied these same qualities...they will never be forgotten...

Philemon 1:4 "I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers..."

We're back!

After a wonderful and much needed trip, we made it back last night. Both our flights were delayed (we were on separate airlines), but eventually made it back. When my flight left Charlotte, the pilot told us the great news...it was 109 in Phoenix yesterday...to which I started thinking about when we could take another vacation... :-)

Exhaustion

Exhaustion set in on Thursday after 2 long (but great!) days of parks so we fully enjoyed the amenities that our hotel had to offer!! We got a great spot by the pool and just enjoyed the day...got smoothies and lunch by the pool and just relaxed on our last day in Orlando...

Jeff's up on that bridge...the bridge went across the pool to get to the other side of the pool.

Nummmm....Jeff got a Strawberry-Banana smoothie and I got a Pina Colada-Strawberry smoothie...delicious!!

This was from where we "set-up" at the pool. If you go under the waterfall, it goes under the rocks and ends up on the other side of the pool.

This is the other side of the pool. They even had a volleyball net set up on the far left side! There was another pool to the right of this one as well (the heated pool...it was about 83 degrees compared to the main pool at 77 degrees). There were also 3 jacuzzi's...one under these rocks between the two sides of the main pool...pretty neat set up!

Jamie had a break in the afternoon on Thursday so she came and visited us for an hour 1/2 or so...great to see her again!!

Saw one last beautiful sunset...this is from our balcony off our room...

We were only about 5 minutes from Downtown Disney so we figured, what better way to top off the trip than to get one last trip to Ghirardhelli!! :-) I of course, went with the hot fudge sundae again, but Jeff tried the Chocolate Float......both were delicious!

DisneyWorld

Jeff's sister Jamie was able to get us free one-day Park Hopper passes to DisneyWorld! So, we went to Magic Kingdom (most of the day) and Epcot (for a couple hours) on Wednesday. We had so much fun!! Jeff even went on Space Mountain twice...and I didn't even have to twist his arm!! Mom Harvey would have loved Pirates of the Caribbean...they've changed it to include Johnny Depp throughout it...he looks so real too! Best rides of the day were Space Mountain and Splash Mountain...

At night, the castle was lit up different colors...pink, blue...it was beautiful! We stayed for the fireworks (had to stay the FULL day!!)...they were all done over the castle...incredible.

Thunder Mountain...a classic...

At the parade Wednesday night...it was BEAUTIFUL...but my camera couldn't capture it. This was an attempt...

We wanted to ride Soren (a new ride at Epcot), but when we got there, there was a 120 minute wait...I'm all for good rides, but I don't think anything is worth 2 hours!! We ended up eating at the China pavilion...pretty good food...

Hotel in Orlando

We ended up staying at the Hyatt in Orlando - it was a last minute decision which ended up being a great decision! We loved the hotel...the grounds were beautiful and the service was great! I realize now, however, I didn't get enough pictures of the hotel to do it justice...here are a couple...

This was the view from our hotel room balcony

This parrot was hilarious...would talk up a storm..."hi" "hello" "come over here" were a few of his sayings. He would also bounce up and down while saying "up and down, up and down" and then if there was music (or people came up and sang...yes, they did...), he would sway from side to side. Funny stuff! :-)

Mom and Dad Harvey...doesn't this look exactly like the one we saw in that Gallery in Scottsdale?? Remember how we said where on earth would you put something like that?? Hotel lobby never came to mind, but it definitely looked in its place there! :-)

This was my only concern...I can handle roller coasters, but this fear I'm not sure can be overcome! There were signs like this all over the beach (it's small, but it says "Please be aware of alligators in the lake." We didn't spend too much time on this beach!!

Islands of Adventure Day!!

We left Sarasota yesterday morning, stopped at Starbucks, and made our way to Orlando...yesterday was Islands of Adventure day for Jeff, his sister, Jessica and me. We had a ball!! It was great fun and we really enjoyed it. We spend most of the day in Islands of Adventure and then the last couple hours of the day at Universal Studios. And yes...we did go go go until the parks closed at 8:00! :-)

We ended up having a beautiful day...pretty hot and sunny in the morning and early afternoon, but then ended up raining mid afternoon which significantly cooled it down so it was beautiful the rest of the day!

First stop...Islands of Adventure

Islands of Adventure has some really neat parts to it - this was Poseidon's arm...made out of some type of rock...it was HUGE!

We weren't the world's smartest when it came to rides yesterday though...about the time it started raining (and getting cooler), we rode one of the water rides...soaking ourselves. Then...after already being drenched, the rain started picking up again so what did we do? Logically, since we were already drenched, we bought ponchos to protect ourselves from the rain...I know, I know...may not make sense to you, but it sure made sense to us at the time! :-) Then, we decided since we're already wet, we may as well go on the raft ride...where we got additionally drenched, despite the ponchos. We were quite cold for a while (unusual in June in Orlando!), but the sun ended up coming out in the afternoon and drying us off, but still left the temperature cooler so we were refreshed to finish out the parks strong! :-)

Jeff and I after our first drenching at Island's equivalent to a log ride

I went on my first roller coaster that went upside down at Islands...the Hulk...it was crazy scary, but it was awesome!! Jessica and I went on it while Jeff waited safely below... :-) I liked it enough that Jess and I ended up following that ride with another roller coaster that twisted upside down, backwards and every which way...and also was my first roller coaster where your feet are dangling (which of course, Jeff waited safely below for as well)!!

These were the types of seats we were in on the Hulk

The Hulk...and this is only about 1/3 of the actual ride!

Next stop...Universal Studios

One of the "streets" within Universal...pretty cool setup...different types of streets with different location themes (i.e. San Francisco, Hollywood, etc.). This street held one of our favorite coaster rides of the day...the Mummy...big drops, times of going backwards, in the dark...it was GREAT! We went on it twice and was our last ride of the day.

Last, to top the day off, we met up with Jamie at Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory. We were SO excited to get to another one in just a couple weeks from the one in San Diego! We had incredible chocolate sundaes again!! Nummm.....

Another Beautiful Sunset

We ate at a restaurant right on the beach tonight and saw another beautiful sunset...

To top the sunset off, there was a guy entertaining throughout our meal...guitar and singing. When the sun was about to set, he was singing What a Wonderful World...and the last note ended just as you could see the very last piece of the sun go down...couldn't have been timed any better! What a great last evening in Sarasota!!

Breakfast

Jeff LOVES breakfast...especially when he's on vacation. So, he got a good breakfast this morning with the family before Mom and Dad Platt had to leave to head back to New York. The Blue Dolphin is a restaurant on the Circle right by the Condo that the Platt's have been going to for years. I had a belgium waffle with tons of strawberries and whipped cream....numm!! Having a breakfast like that makes me realize why Jeff loves breakfast so much! :-)

More from Sarasota

Yesterday Jamie left to go back to Orlando and today Mom and Dad Platt leave to go back to New York...the Sarasota part of the trip is unfortunately winding down.

Yesterday we started out the morning with a family devotional, then headed down to spend more time at the pool, went to Siesta Beach (wow...was that incredible!), saw a beautiful sunset over the ocean, ate at a local restaurant at the beach (Daiquiri Deck)...all in all a good day! :-)

To avoid taking to cars, the girls squeezed into the back of the car that the family has here...fondly known as "The '88." :-)

Looking out from the restaurant we ate at a couple nights ago...BEAUTIFUL view!

The "kids" at the pool

At Siesta Beach watching the Sunset

This is how soft the sand is at Siesta Beach...it's incredible...feels like you're walking in baby powder! It's been ranked as the #2 beach in the country by the Travel Channel...after spending a little time there, I can see why!

Jeff and I at Siesta

Jeff and his Dad at Siesta

Is that beautiful or what...as Dad Platt said, how could anyone look at that and not believe there is a God?? His natural wonders are just amazing!!

Bizarre...a couple getting married on the beach...their only witness was the photographer! Jeff said either that was the way they wanted it (no one there) or they're the most hated people ever! :-)

Burned

Well...a couple days here in the sun and I'm already burned. Not horribly, but enough that I'll be staying in the shade today! The joys of starting out white as a ghost and trying to tan!! :-)

Sarasota...First couple days

After all the headache in getting here, I did finally make it into Sarasota...a little early even...and my suitcase even made it! Since I've been here, it's been all about the beach, pool, good eating, spending time with the family...can't get much better than that! We're having a great time! The condo is right on the beach...it's great! I even went INTO the ocean today (despite Dad Platt's "warnings" of sharks and all kinds of other scary sea creatures!)...there was a sand bar out a little ways...Jeff had to carry me out there, but I did get out there...conquering my fears! :-) Here are some pictures...

Pool time...gotta love the noodles... :-)

This is looking out from the pool...this is how close we are to the ocean...can't get much closer than that!!

Gotta have a fruit smoothy at the pool...nummm! (Jeff with his sister, Jamie)


We also went and saw Oceans 13 last night because it was raining...it was a GREAT movie!! We all really liked it! Definitely highly recommended!!

Made it...with time to spare

We left Vegas about an hour and 45 minutes late and I "only" had a 2 hour layover in Charlotte. My hopes of catching my flight in Charlotte were deminishing especially when we got on the plane and found out there were problems with the bathrooms that the mechanics were working on...

However, true to form, they "caught up time in the air..." whatever that means. We ended up getting into Charlotte about an hour late, giving me time to even get a latte. Why they don't just do what they do to catch up time in a normal route, I don't understand, but at least I'm going to make my connection which is much more than a good portion of the people on my flight.

Next stop...Sarasota!

Delayed

This is why I always fly direct flights. You know you can't have 3 legs to a trip and not have problems. I made it to Vegas safe and sound...but now my flight (which isn't supposed to leave for another hour) is already delayed...for about another hour...putting us at 12:45 departure time. This is a little too much like Mom and Dad's flight out of Phoenix...where they sat in the airport for hours and hours. I have 2 hours to spare in Charlotte so hopefully I can get out of here in time to make my flight to Sarasota!!

The good news is that while I wait, I get to listen to slot machines...what better ambiance could you ask for! Gotta love it.

At least nothing shuts down here...I even got myself a TCBY to pacify me during me wait! :-) Silver lining...always have to look for it.

Flying

I've been flying a lot lately - and tonight is bound to top it all!

Two weeks ago I was in New Orleans, the next weekend Jeff and I went to San Diego, this last Tuesday I was in LA and today I'm headed to Florida to meet up with Jeff and his family who are already there!! And...despite the accountant and planner in me, this Florida trip was decided on Monday...it's Wednesday and I'm in the airport headed out!! A little crazy, but it should be fun.

We are planning to spend the rest of this week in Sarasota at the Platt family's condo on the beach and then next week, Jeff and I will head up to Orlando...DisneyWorld here we come!! Should be a relaxing trip and one away from everything here...which is what I need!!

However......this trip is bound to top it all because my flight arrangements this evening are a little ridiculous...

I'm in the Phoenix airport for about 2 1/2 hours then fly to Vegas.

Then wait in Vegas for another 2 hours and fly to Charlotte.

Then wait yet another 2 hours in Charlotte and fly to Sarasota...if my bags and I both make it there on time, it will be a miracle!! I got to the Phx airport at about 6:45pm and won't make it in to Sarasota until 11am...yes, tomorrow morning!! Yikes!

Snow Cones

This morning I brought my camera to church to take pictures of Jeff and I serving snow cones to the kids after the service.

Not sure how I envisioned that going...that there would be time to take a picture when it's 105 degrees outside and there are snow cones being served.......

Needless to say at a church of our size in June in Phoenix, there were long lines and we struggled to even keep up with the ice going into the machine to be able to make enough snow cones!! It's all worth it though to see the huge smiles on all those kids faces!! :-)

Horse

Right hand...off the back step...fadeaway...

Off the waterfall...360 degree...dunk...

These were a couple of the many shots that were attempted in Dave & Krista's pool last night as Dave and Jeff played dunk ball and horse last night. :-) We had a lot of fun...Krista and I attempting to stay dry from all the splashing from the pool resulting from the craziest descriptions of shots we've heard! :-)