A long time coming...

These have been a long time coming. They are not much, as my camera doesn't have the best zoom, but they'll give you an idea of how close we are to Lake Washington and Gene Coulon Park in our new place. Needless to say, we are very happy with our new apartment and location in Renton. We've already had guests (i.e. the pics of Gail & Lindsay...and Mama Lois :) came to visit this past weekend)...enjoy!

(from our balcony)


(the not-as-pleasant view of Boeing from our balcony & our view of Mt. Rainier that will be nice once they finish the condos)


(us & view of Bellevue at sunset)


(Coulon Park)


(lunch from the park with Gail, Jeff's mom & Lindsay, my sister)

Pets

This is a little dedication to our current children..hehe :) our kitties! I couldn't help myself, as I found this awesome site that allows you to download their free application to create your own online scrapbooks, pages, postcards, etc. It has many other cool features...you should check it out: Smilebox

Make a Smilebox postcard

Make a Smilebox postcard

Dedication...kind of...

This is somewhat of a dedication....to my dear friend Michelle, who encouraged me to start actively posting in this blog (requested a few months ago, oops) and has a fun blog of her own that I love reading. She is a gorgeous, kind-hearted, energetic and loving person. Michelle 'tag'ed me earlier in the month to respond to this silly post about high school memories. For you, Michelle, I will definitely kill some time by re-posting it. Love you!

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1. Did you date someone from your school?
'Date' / 'Went out', whatever you'd call it, yes. All for short amounts of time, nothing long or serious for me in high school.

2. What kind of car did you drive?
'Old Blue' - 1990, Blue, Volkswagen Jetta. She was great...until some crazy person followed me up our private road, hit me & ran! Then, it was a lil' ghetto.

3. What was the most embarrassing moment of high school?
Not really sure if I can recall a most embarrassing moment. However, I did just tell Jeff yesterday the story of when I tripped and bit the dust in the middle of a Varsity Volleyball game. It was pretty funny. (Jacqueline still likes to mind me of it.)
OH, I can think of another, but it is still so embarrassing that I will not repeat it.

4. Were you a party animal?
No

5. Were you considered a flirt?
I don't think so..maybe a little when I was younger, but not so much through high school.

6. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir?
Not in high school, but I played the clarinet in junior high.

7. Were you a nerd?
What does that really mean anymore? I don't think I was.

8. Were you on any varsity teams?
Yep - Volleyball, Basketball, Softball :)

9. Did you get suspended/ expelled?
Ohh...maybe I should rethink the 'party animal' question...not really, but I did get in trouble for just being at a party and was suspended from 2 Volleyball games my Senior year.

10. Can you still sing the fight song?
Heck yeah! "Give a yell, give a cheer, for the Papermakers here, we are fighting for old Camas High. We are brave, we are bold...na nana na na na... So, fight, fight, fight, we're gonna win tonight! Shout out your numbers brave and strong - GO TEAM!"
I should've been a cheerleader, haha.

11. Who were your favorite teachers?
Mr. Ronig (because it was Art, of course), Mr. Croswell (because he was so cooky & kind-hearted) and Mr. Huegli (just loved Yearbook & Graphic Design).

12. Where did you sit during lunch?
In the lunch room? eh? Or, going to Burgerville with Jessie Buck :)

13. What was your school's full name?
Camas High School

14. School mascot?
Mean Machine


15. Did you go to Homecoming and who with?
Yes - Kyle Carpenter, Travis Eubanks & Skyler Mantz

16. If you could go back and do it again, would you?
It would seem kind of sad if I said yes. I don't think this is truly how I feel because I don't have any regrets and treasure every moment that I had through that time, but I only wish that I got to see my friends half as much now, as I did then. Like Michelle said, it's a fine line. There are many more great adventures life has had for me and many more to come :)

17. What do you remember most about graduation?
That I kept trying to pause time and take everything in. I remember thinking...Wow, this is all moving so fast! But what I remember the most is hearing my best friend sing the national anthem, getting to sit near all the people that meant so much to me, and having my Dad hand me my diploma.

18. Where did you go senior skip day?
Definitely at school. I learned my lesson about trying to skip (even if it was 'skip day'), the fear of being caught by Mrs. Anderson (Vice Principal) again kept me in class.

19. Were you in a club?
Natural Helpers, Yearbook & Key Club

20. Have you gained some weight since then?
That is such a stupid question! Of course I have...that's all I'm going to say.

21. Who was your prom date?
Brandon Evans, Mike Hayworth & Joe Stevenson

22. Are you planning on going to your 10 year reunion?
Heck Yeah! Now, getting Jeff to go to his...that's another story...

23. Looking back, what advice would you give yourself?
Take a little more serious the things you know you have a passion for...as you get older, it can get hard to pursue them to the degree that you once wanted to. And, learn not to procrastinate earlier in life, lol.

New Adventures

Well, as is to all new bloggers, this feels really foreign. I am not quite sure why, due to the fact that I am pretty computer savvy and enjoy the creative aspect to things like this. Either way, this is one of my new adventures...'our' blog! I, of course, will do almost ALL the blogging, but I'm sure if I win a bet or two I can persuade Jeff into doing one. I will admit to everyone up front that I can be pretty corny, so forgive me. I can also be indecisive, so if I change up our layout many times, just attribute it to that and my artistic side. :) Anyways, I don't want to be a sugar-coated blogger and I hope to show you portions of our/my life, thoughts and adventures...good/bad, ups/downs. Hope you all enjoy. Much love, Jess (& Jeff)