My REAL New Car

Yesterday, my dear sweet loving and thoughtful husband spent 7 1/2 hours at the Acura dealer negotiating on a new car for ME! What a guy. He bought me an Acura TSX. It is a charcoal grey with black leather interior. The car literally talks to you, thanks to the navigation system. Not only can the car talk, but unlike my teenager, the car can listen! You give the car a command, like "temperature 72" and the car repeats your command and then executes it. This is SO COOL. Yes, I'm a new car nerd! There are so many bells and whistles on this car that its going to take me months to figure them all out. Of course I could read the manual, but what fun would that be?
Thank you Tim! I love you!

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas

from our house to yours!

We were up with the sun today so Kaitlyn could tackle her presents under the tree. Apparently Santa was paying attention this year cuz Kaitlyn received her very own digital camera...now she can keep her mitts off mine. Thank you Santa!
Our friends Terri and Jay came over for a little while this afternoon to visit and exchange gifts. Terri and I have this weird connection that is unexplainable even after 20 years. We both got each other Amazing Grace gifts. Weird!
My Mom came over this afternoon and stayed for dinner. She, Tim and Kaitlyn are downstairs right now playing a game as I sit here and blog. We all have our priorities!
Tomorrow we are getting a new window installed to replace the one broken in the storm. Then Kaitlyn and I are headed for some serious shopping! I LOVE having the day after Christmas off!

~My New Car~

Tim, the generous husband that he is, knew that I really wanted a new car this Christmas, so he got me one!
Too bad that it's a remote controlled Z car and not a full size Z car sitting in my garage! I guess it's the thought that counts!

Merry Christmas

This morning was Christmas in the Babbitt house for Rose & Derek. It has been proven that Santa can indeed read! Most of their Christmas Wish Lists were fulfilled. Funny how that works!
They are each sporting some of the new attire in the photo...Derek with his North Carolina sweatshirt and Rose with her new North Face jacket.

Happy Birthday Chris!

Happy Birthday Chrissie Pissie!

This morning the Triple Threat met at the Hob Nob for Chris's Birthday breakfast. With her birthday falling on Christmas Eve, it is especially important that we separate the birthday celebrating from the Christmas celebrating! Unfortunately, Chris's wish was to play poker on her birthday, but our poker hang out was closed for the Holiday. How RUDE! But her favorite breakfast spot was open. We even got them to sing "Happy Birthday" which was enjoyed by all!

We wish you the happiest of birthdays and a wonderful year ahead!

Answered Prayers!

This was one of the most nerve racking mornings of my life! Today I sat for my Series 7 exam....and passed!

Thank you to the many people who have been praying for me. When I left the house at 5:50 this morning there was a little note of encouragement from Kaitlyn. She reminded me of the verse: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Today was proof of that! I know that God was with me through this process and guiding me to this end.

Congratulations should also go out to Mike Mauss who passed his Series 7 exam yesterday!

Woo Hoo! Let the celebrations begin!

Snow Days!

Oh the weather outside is frightful, but when you are a kid, it is so delightful!
Kaitlyn has spent the last two days at home due to the inclimate weather. This is her latest snow creation!

Sir Timothy and His Royal Princesses!

Photos from Thanksgiving Day 2006.

Report Card Time

This time of year can be so scary for the parents - as much as it is for the kids - except in the case of Kaityn affectionately called "Katie Sue" or "LewyToons". Her very first report card from High School came in the mail last week. There was a brief tense moment as I was opening the envelope, but in typical Kaitlyn fashion, all that appeared inside was a page full of A's! Congratulations Kaitlyn and keep up the good work!

Happy Halloween!

I was looking for a photo of Bailey in one of his adorable Halloween costumes to post, but couldn't seem to find an electronic version of one. In my searching, I found this adorable photo of Chase Alyssa Tanquilut and Uncle Timmy. Is she not the most adorable little thing? This photo was taken on Tim's 40th birthday, so its a little out-dated. Chase turned 5 in August and just started kindergarten. I wish we could see her all dressed up for Halloween!

Series 7 Hell

Could there be any more binders on my dining room table? This is where I sit for at least 2 hours every night trying to study for the Series 7 exam. I have study materials from 3 separate sources. Trust me when I say a lot of trees died so that I might understand this information!
Tonight is OPTIONS, basically I've decided it's legalized gambling! I finally figured out how to diagram the options to find out the break-even points, the maximum gain and the maximum loss for the calls, puts, spreads and straddles. Yes, it sounds like a foreign language, but hopefully it will soon be as easy to understand as English!!!!

Wisdom For Life....

Proverbs 17:9
He who covers and forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats or harps on a matter separates even close friends.

Sometimes its really good to go to church and have the pastor speaking directly to you, even with a thousand other people in the same room. This was the case today! I love how God has been granting my requests for "handwriting on the wall" recently.

There are several things happening in my life right now and I'm having a hard time keeping my seat belt fastened on the rollar coaster. Please pray that God will continue to show me the paths to take that align with His plans for my life! Any may I always remember to THINK before I speak (is it True, is it Helpful, is it Inspiring, is it Necessary, is it Kind?)!

~ Birthday Girl ~

Happy Birthday to You!
Happy Birthday to You!
Happy Birthday Dear Maxine!
Happy Birthday to You!

Wishing you a wonderful birthday and a year full of joy and happiness that surpasses all prior years combined!
I love you dearly and am so grateful for our 20 years of friendship. I hope we celebrate the next 20 birthdays together!
Love Always,
Mabel

So-Long....Farewell....Auf Wiedersehen

This morning I said "goodbye" to my dear friend Chris, as we loaded up the moving truck with her belongings and sent her off to Portland where she has a great job opportunity waiting for her.
I will miss her greatly, but due to the fact she finally broke down and bought a cell phone (which trust me is a MIRACLE!) we can chat whenever we want - for FREE since we both have Verizon.
Since Portland is just a mere 2 1/2 hour drive down the freeway, I'm sure we'll still see each other, but it won't be the same as walking a block down the street to see her at the bank or running into her and Lisa at lunch. Those spontanious moments I will miss, along with our 8:30 weekend breakfasts and poker tourneys.
GLUCK - GLUCK - GLUCK Miss Lyons on your new endeavors. Know that you are wished the very best and that I can't wait to come check out the new digs and actually be let in the door!!!!

Seaside

The view from our room on Saturday as the sun rises and the moon sets over the Pacific.








Then 30 minutes later as the sun begins to shine. This is what we could see from every spot in our hotel room, with the exception of the bathroom. Breathtaking! We'd open the sliding glass door so we could hear the soothing sounds of the ocean.


Cannon Beach with Haystack Rock in the distance.








Last night's sunset in Seaside as we walked the Prom on our way to dinner.