Christmas 2010

Hope that you all had a great, happy, fun, adventurous, restful, blessed and inspiring Christmas! We had a blast around here which always includes taking lots of pictures:

We had a relaxing Christmas with lots of family time and good food and fun! We also decided to start a Barlow Family blog so check us all out at the Barlow Family blog link to the right:)
Now, on to the New Year's festivities!

In Honor of Veteran's Day

Dear Mr. President:

On this day where we honor those who serve in the Armed Forces and those Veterans of wars past, I reflect on the state of our union. Not so long ago, you were sworn in and promised to make America a better place. Since then, America has come upon perilous times. There is an attitude that the United States should pull troops out from countries in the Middle East that have made no secret out of the fact that they hate all things American and will have no problem trying to bring this great country to it's knees. Our soldiers are protecting their country, OUR country, in wars both foreign and domestic. We should be proud to be Americans and vow to defend her no matter the cost. Now it seems that our Commander in Chief does little to instill confidence that the citizens of this country are the first priority. Don't worry about it, you said, and don't question me, I know what I am doing. You even tweeted about it.

Now, in 2010, America is on the brink of losing it's standing as a powerful nation. You have even stated in the press that now it is time to get to work. Well, Mr. President, the time to get to work was long ago. Stop going on talk shows, making speeches to defend your non-actions and get to work. We cannot afford to waste any more time. You need to insure that the citizens of this country are protected from any and all threats.

We need to remember that America is the home of the free BECAUSE of our brave. We need to reflect every day that we are grateful for our troops and all that they have done for us. We support our soldiers and we are thankful for our freedom that we have because of their sacrifices. As the Commander in Chief of the most powerful military in the world, you need to support our troops and let them finish what they started. They are making a difference. Be the kind of Commander in Chief that those "faceless cowards" are afraid to attack because they know that they will be hunted down and stopped. Stop apologizing for America and get to work.

Lastly, Mr. President, it is time that you listen to the people of this country and remember that you work for us.

Sincerely,
A Concerned Citizen

1 Year in Cali: What I Know Now

It just occurred to me that last year at this time I was packing up the Jeep and making the long trek to California. So, what have I learned about myself since I packed up my life and made a, well, life-changing move? Here is just a bit of the wisdom I have accrued about the wonder that is AnneBarlow:

1-I love to read. Turns out there are way more interesting things to read than text books. I have a well-used library card and have decided that I like to read mysteries the most. I always think that I am smarter than the average reader when I can figure out who did it.

2-I have really enjoyed not working full time. Do not take this the wrong way. It is not that I do not want to work full time and have a job and a career and all the benefits that come with that. I am not lazy at all. I actually get a little anxious that I have not been able to find a job yet because I think that I have a lot to offer as an employee, but apparently the right thing has not come along yet. I just have to keep doing my part and look hard and take advantage of all the opportunities that are around me. Until I get that job, though, I have been able to spend the last year doing random part time things which have allowed me the time to do things like service and learning new skills.

3-I am a very blessed girl. I have had the opportunity to live rent free which has allowed me to not worry so much about money for the first time in my adult life. I realize that this is a huge blessing. I kind of feel guilty that I have been rent free so I try to contribute in other ways as much as I can.

4-I love love love being in a family ward. I have 2 callings-Activities Committee Chair and Primary Teacher. I get to teach the 8-year-olds and I absolutely love them. I look forward to going to church every week because I get to be with them. And learn from them. I also love all of the people in the ward. There is such a diverse population that makes up the dynamics and I thoroughly enjoy the differences we all bring to the table. It is fun to try and plan activities to meet the needs of everyone.

5-I love whipped cream. It just makes me happy every time I eat it and I take the opportunity to eat it on everything I can. Within reason that is. I would probably eat it more if I wasn't so worried about there becoming too much of me to love. If only a serving of whipped cream would count as a serving of vegetables...

I have learned a lot more than this, but right now I am watching the Giants play stellar baseball in Game 1 of the World Series and loving it so I will have to add more later:)

Bike vs Car...Seriously?

As I was driving the other day in a 45 MPH zone, I noticed that the lane I was in was slowing at a quicker than normal rate as approaching the upcoming intersection that had a green light. I was in the middle lane of a 3-lane road and I figured that someone was having car troubles or something, so I waited for an opening and switched lanes to go around the offending obstacle. Much to my surprise, the reason that we were all moving out of the lane that was going slower than normal was because there was a...wait for it...a biker.

SERIOUSLY?!?

Yep, a biker. In the middle of the lane. In the middle of the road. On a really busy street. From the looks of his very spandex laden outfit and matching helmet he was an experienced biker. Maybe I missed something-car vs. bike. The car always wins, right? This is not the first time, nor I'm sure, will it be the last time that traffic has been hindered by one of these bikers that considers themselves entitled to be riding in the middle of the road. And it drives (pardon the pun) me crazy!! I cannot stand that I have to get out of the way of some biker who is in the middle of the road hindering traffic. I am not sure what the bikers ediquette is on this subject, but I don't really care. There may be laws that say that bikers can ride on the road and I am the only person who does not know that it is okay for a biker to ride 20 MPH in a 45 MPH zone obstructing traffic. I don't care. I am a normally pretty even-keeled person who doesn't get irritated very easily, but here in Pleasanton it seems that the bikers can and do rule the road and it bugs me. I am sure that they should get extra points for doing their part to reduce their carbon footprint on the environment or blah blah blah. I don't care.
My gripe today is this: I do not drive the Jeep in the bike lane, so please do not ride your bike in the Jeep lane. Seriously.

I'm Baaaaaack...

...to the blogging world that is. I realize that it has been a while, but I haven't been feeling inspired as of late. I have had plenty going on, no worries, but I just haven't been feeling like sharing it with the world. I haven't really been on facebook, either, so maybe we can just say that I have been on sabbatical from all things social networking. Here is a picture of the new addition to our family that accounts for some of the busy-ness and lots of visits from our family who live in exotic places as far away as...Salt Lake:Meet Spencer John Barlow born on August 24, 2010. He decided to make things a little more interesting and arrived by C-Section without telling us that was how he wanted to come out. Surprise and everyone is healthy! While he was making friends in the hospital waiting to come home, I got to spend the week with my most favorite girl on the planet: We did lots of things together and had a great time and I am pretty sure that if I could bottle up the energy in that little body and sell it I would be a gazillionaire! Seriously, sometimes she just runs in circles or jumps in place because she has so much energy. I think that I will go to the gym before I see her again because then I might have a prayer of keeping up. And, someone commented that they might be forgetting what I look like because we haven't seen each other for so long, so here I am at the beach last month:

I love it there!

So, I will definitely be reporting on my goals that I wanted to reach before my birthday-most of which are going very well-and I have a few ideas in my head for some other things that I wanna write about. Number 1: Consideration. I feel like there is a lack of consideration for others in this world. Like, do the people pedaling their bikes down a busy street really need the whole lane and to block traffic? What about using the signal when you want to turn your vehicle? You get it-there is definitely more to come on this. Number 2: I have been conducting a great no-make-up experiment for the sake of myself and my skin and have some interesting stuff to report-my question to you is, do you feel confident enough in your appearance to just stop wearing make-up? How about for a month? Think about it...I'll get back to you:)

Yreka? Y-Not?

Yes, I am finally back to the blogging world and there has actually been a bunch of things going on in my world. First, back in June, we decided to drive north to a place called Yreka (pronounced Y-Reek-Ah) to attend my cousin Taylor's graduation. Here's what it looks like when a bunch of Barlows get together:Since we were so close to one of my goals for this year, we decided to drive a little farther north:I got to visit a new state! This was the first time that I was able to visit Oregon and it is beautiful! We ended up in a little town called Ashland, Oregon. It is where Southern Oregon University is located and it reminded me of a little college town I used to live in. It was filled with great people watching and incredible nature walks and a warning to avoid a little green plant: So, after wandering around for a couple hours and successfully avoiding any plant shaped like a "T" , we headed back to the parties in Yreka and then went home the next day. It was a great weekend filled with lots of family, food, and fun.
Next, we got to party like a 2-year-old at a ladybug party with this girl:There was also lots of food, family and fun at this event and we had a blast. We have been able to do lots of fun partying now that summer is officially here and it has been HOT HOT HOT! How much do we love the Farmer's Markets, The Fair, Fireworks and everything else that comes with summer?

Memorial Day Fun

So, we had a great weekend of very fun things. It started by Chel and I going to see this foxy man in concert:Seriously, isn't he foxy? We had a great time and all I have to say about the crowd is that it is a good thing a couple of good Mormon girls can't get high off of second-hand pot smoke. But good concert, good music and we are very stealth at finding good people to sit by who were super nice.
Next, we put on a very successful 2-ward Memorial Day Breakfast. Everyone had enough food, the gym looked greatly patriotic, and I am pretty sure that people will come to another event planned by yours truly. Pretty sure. Then, we packed up and headed to the city to see a Giant's game. Here is the view from our seats:While we still love our A's and the ghetto stadium in which they play, it was nice to go to the first-class stadium in SF and see the Giants. We were pretty high up, but it was a blast and there were fun people around us. The Giants lost, but we had a great time anyways and then we packed up again and headed to Bubba Gump's for dinner at Pier 39:If you are looking for a good meal surrounded by Forrest Gump the movie memorabilia-this is the place. All in all, a really fun holiday weekend.
Now, you might be a little curious that there is no actual documented proof that I attended any of these events. There is a reason for that. My camera has been traveling the world. It has been to Europe and is now in Vegas and I miss it. Although I think that it has been having a great time, I miss it. There is a big hole in my purse where it is supposed to be. Maybe one day it will return home.