Friday, July 24, 2009
Oakland Zoo
Bay Bridge Tour
Last week Nick and I got to go on a boat tour of the Bay Bridge construction. It was really neat and a HUGE endeavor. They are closing the bay bridge Thursday night of Labor Day weekend and reopening Tuesday morning so that they can create a detour through Treasure Island. It is crazy the technology and physics of what they are doing! Even I (who knows NOTHING about engineering) was amazed. Their website: baybridgeinfo.org. It has simulations of what they are doing. It even won a Webby (which I guess is a big deal).
We were so official with our hard hats, safety glasses, work boots and life jackets. We were so protected so that if someone threw something off the bridge we wouldn't get injured. 
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Another Book Review
My books this week (or so):
Book 3 and 4 of the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull. Children's books about a reserve for magical creatures. Fun books to read but definitely are written for children (whereas, for instance, Harry Potter could arguably be as much for adults than kids). Entertaining and easy to read though. I'll read the last one when it comes out and probably give them to my niece for Christmas.
Confessions of a Shopaholic. This book took me a really long time to finish because I had a really hard time getting into it. I'm not a shopaholic, AT ALL, and I found the main character really annoying because she has all this debt and still won't stop buying stupid stuff. I don't get it. However, I finished it, and actually enjoyed the resolution to her debt problems. In a way she was searching to find herself and I enjoyed the journey (even though I was annoyed during the first half or so). It is significantly different than the movie.
Bridge to Terabithia. I'd read this book in elementary school but didn't remember anything about it except that it was sad. Sure enough, still sad, very sad, but a great story and was worth rereading.
What next... I have The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings books that I've been wanting to read. Am I ready to tackle them though after a bunch of kid's books? Hum... Or, I have a Nicholas Sparks book that I haven't read yet. That one will probably come first. I never said I choose the hard road...
Book 3 and 4 of the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull. Children's books about a reserve for magical creatures. Fun books to read but definitely are written for children (whereas, for instance, Harry Potter could arguably be as much for adults than kids). Entertaining and easy to read though. I'll read the last one when it comes out and probably give them to my niece for Christmas.
Confessions of a Shopaholic. This book took me a really long time to finish because I had a really hard time getting into it. I'm not a shopaholic, AT ALL, and I found the main character really annoying because she has all this debt and still won't stop buying stupid stuff. I don't get it. However, I finished it, and actually enjoyed the resolution to her debt problems. In a way she was searching to find herself and I enjoyed the journey (even though I was annoyed during the first half or so). It is significantly different than the movie.
Bridge to Terabithia. I'd read this book in elementary school but didn't remember anything about it except that it was sad. Sure enough, still sad, very sad, but a great story and was worth rereading.
What next... I have The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings books that I've been wanting to read. Am I ready to tackle them though after a bunch of kid's books? Hum... Or, I have a Nicholas Sparks book that I haven't read yet. That one will probably come first. I never said I choose the hard road...
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Making Home Affordable!
I feel like an advertisement but I'm stoked about his and have to share. Nick and I found out today that we are initially qualified for (and in a trial period of) a loan modification. Our interest rate was dropped so that our home debt/income is 31%. It is saving us $435/month! We have a 3 month trial period, during which time we have to make our payments on time (which we never stopped doing), and probably send in documentation of the information I gave them over the phone. Then, this new interest rate will be fixed for 5 years. After 5 years, it will be fixed at whatever the rate is now (lower than the 6.75 we're currently at, she said something about 5 something).
It feels so good to have actually qualified for something. After all my woes about the government only helping people who are financially irresponsible and NOT making payments, there is finally a program that will work for me. Yeah Obama!!
For more information go to http://makinghomeaffordable.gov/
It feels so good to have actually qualified for something. After all my woes about the government only helping people who are financially irresponsible and NOT making payments, there is finally a program that will work for me. Yeah Obama!!
For more information go to http://makinghomeaffordable.gov/
What we've been doing
Not taking pictures (obviously).
I went to Sacramento to see the Lion King with my girlfriends the last Saturday in June. My friend upgraded out tickets for us so we towards the front. The costumes were amazing and the woman who played Raffiki (the baboon) was incredible. I highly recommend it. It follows the same storyline as the Disney movie with some additional songs and scenes. Worth it for the costumes (if nothing else).
We went to Bakersfield for the 4th of July. Joe Eribarne, the man Nick worked for over the internet/fax machine while in college and who we were going to go to work for when Nick lost his job with Harris and Sloan passed away and his funeral was the 3rd. I'm grateful for my testimony of Jesus Christ and eternal families. I don't think there is anything quite like a funeral to remind us of our beliefs.
We opened a Health Savings account! For those of you who don't know what that is (as I didn't until recently), it is a savings account to use for medical expenses. It's meant for people with no medical insurance or with high deductibles. In 2009, $5950 that you put into the fund is tax deductible. It rolls over from year to year and can be used for any medical expenses (except premiums). We'll us it to pay for our new baby (I don't even want to think about how much that will be). It's a way to write of medical expenses that aren't 20% of your income (which I'm pretty sure is the requirement to put them on your taxes).
We also met with someone to discuss a rollover for Nick's 401K from Harris and Sloan and life insurance, as well as Roth IRAs for our future. Am I really ready for this stuff?
I went to Sacramento to see the Lion King with my girlfriends the last Saturday in June. My friend upgraded out tickets for us so we towards the front. The costumes were amazing and the woman who played Raffiki (the baboon) was incredible. I highly recommend it. It follows the same storyline as the Disney movie with some additional songs and scenes. Worth it for the costumes (if nothing else).
We went to Bakersfield for the 4th of July. Joe Eribarne, the man Nick worked for over the internet/fax machine while in college and who we were going to go to work for when Nick lost his job with Harris and Sloan passed away and his funeral was the 3rd. I'm grateful for my testimony of Jesus Christ and eternal families. I don't think there is anything quite like a funeral to remind us of our beliefs.
We opened a Health Savings account! For those of you who don't know what that is (as I didn't until recently), it is a savings account to use for medical expenses. It's meant for people with no medical insurance or with high deductibles. In 2009, $5950 that you put into the fund is tax deductible. It rolls over from year to year and can be used for any medical expenses (except premiums). We'll us it to pay for our new baby (I don't even want to think about how much that will be). It's a way to write of medical expenses that aren't 20% of your income (which I'm pretty sure is the requirement to put them on your taxes).
We also met with someone to discuss a rollover for Nick's 401K from Harris and Sloan and life insurance, as well as Roth IRAs for our future. Am I really ready for this stuff?
It's a girl!
That's it. She's coming and there's no stopping her. This pregnancy has been pretty easy, I don't even realize I'm pregnant most of the time. My due date is November 5th. I'm hoping to not have to deliver until November 3rd (scheduled C-section so if she's stubborn like Grant was then it shouldn't be a problem waiting until just before the due date). We have no names yet because Nick won't talk about it until the 3rd trimester. I love the name Grace but I think I've decided it's too much like Grant to actually name her that. Bummer. Now I'm stuck. Teaching has made it somewhat difficult too... too many memories associated with names.
Books Books and more Books
So I've learned something about myself. I get into something and I can't stop. Somedays (unfortunately) it's TV or video or computer games. Occasionally, it will be something constructive like geneology. Lately, it has been reading. I love to read. The latest in my quest for knowledge (or something like that)...
Cheaper by the Dozen by Gilbreth (I think). I read this for book club in April. It was the last book I finished before I started the other 4 in the last 10 days or so. It was a super fun easy read. IT IS A COMPLETELY different story than the movie. It's about a family with 12 kids, and the things their dad/parents taught them. It's a biography but readable as fiction (I'm not a non-fiction fan AT ALL).
The Note by Angela Hunt. It was okay. Worth reading but not on the top of my request list. It's about a reporter who finds a note written by a father to a child right before his plane crashes. The reporter is searching to find the child to return this lost note and final message from the father. As she does this, she grows and learns about herself also.
The Fabelhaven series by Muller (I think). I've read the first two of these and just started the 3rd (of 4) tonight. They are children's books (like upper elementary probably). The series is about a preserve for enchanted creatures (like faires, goblins, witches, trolls, etc). The main characters, a teenage girl and an 11ish yr old boy, go to stay with their grandparents who are the caretakers for this preserve. They get into a lot of trouble as they discover the truth about Fablehaven. They are fun to read but not at all on the same level as Harry Potter. Definitly kids's books, whereas Harry Potter could have been directed towards adults.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Hosseini. Beautiful. Difficult to read. It is about the treatment of women in Afghanistan through the eyes of a "bastard" woman and a girl who lost her parents to a bomb. It is by the same author as the Kite Runner and I'd say is more difficult to read but just as rewarding if not more so. I love the bits of history that he includes about the rule of Afghanistan and what their people have been through. If you can handle a little disturbing to reach a redeeming end, I highly recommend (I almost quit with about 50 pages left because I couldn't take it anymore. I'm very glad I finished).
Cheaper by the Dozen by Gilbreth (I think). I read this for book club in April. It was the last book I finished before I started the other 4 in the last 10 days or so. It was a super fun easy read. IT IS A COMPLETELY different story than the movie. It's about a family with 12 kids, and the things their dad/parents taught them. It's a biography but readable as fiction (I'm not a non-fiction fan AT ALL).
The Note by Angela Hunt. It was okay. Worth reading but not on the top of my request list. It's about a reporter who finds a note written by a father to a child right before his plane crashes. The reporter is searching to find the child to return this lost note and final message from the father. As she does this, she grows and learns about herself also.
The Fabelhaven series by Muller (I think). I've read the first two of these and just started the 3rd (of 4) tonight. They are children's books (like upper elementary probably). The series is about a preserve for enchanted creatures (like faires, goblins, witches, trolls, etc). The main characters, a teenage girl and an 11ish yr old boy, go to stay with their grandparents who are the caretakers for this preserve. They get into a lot of trouble as they discover the truth about Fablehaven. They are fun to read but not at all on the same level as Harry Potter. Definitly kids's books, whereas Harry Potter could have been directed towards adults.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Hosseini. Beautiful. Difficult to read. It is about the treatment of women in Afghanistan through the eyes of a "bastard" woman and a girl who lost her parents to a bomb. It is by the same author as the Kite Runner and I'd say is more difficult to read but just as rewarding if not more so. I love the bits of history that he includes about the rule of Afghanistan and what their people have been through. If you can handle a little disturbing to reach a redeeming end, I highly recommend (I almost quit with about 50 pages left because I couldn't take it anymore. I'm very glad I finished).
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