Day 4: a habit that I wish I didn't have

Hmmm, that's a tough one. I don't have any habits that are socially unacceptable, I guess. But I can certainly think of a few that I wish I could change.

For one, I wish I wasn't so dependent on internet. Checking things on internet is my daily habit. Sometimes I feel like I'm physically attached to my computer and I HAVE to check multiple email accounts, FB, and other random things regularly. I want to work on decreasing the amount I spend on the internet. On the positive note though, this habit means that I have lots of great friends who I keep in touch with regularly. If I wasn't checking my email daily I would certainly get very backed up on my emails and still have to spend a lot of time going through them.

Another habit I want to work on is being over-analytical. I sometimes spend hours and hours analyzing things in my head, coming up with alternate solutions, predicting outcomes, and even developing multiple outcome scenarios for things that I do. The negative aspect of this habit is that I get worked up over things that either haven't happened yet or will never happen. The positive aspect is that I almost never get caught off guard because I think of all possible outcomes ahead of time. I mentally prepare myself for the best and for the worst case scenarios all the time. Can I say I'm never disappointed? No. But I almost always "know" ahead of time of all possible outcomes. Call me a pessimist? Maybe or maybe not. Call me a person with a great intuition? Definitely!

The bottom line is I want to work on being more carefree, learning to go with the flow rather than always try to predict things, and just enjoying the ride!

Day 3: pictures of my friends

As I was looking for pictures of my friends, I realized I DO have some amazing friends. I hope I didn't miss anybody... Here we go, in no particular order :)

My childhood friend Irina Rudenko. We've known each other since we were 3 years old! I won't even tell you how many years that makes :))) Last time she came to visit me here was in August of 2007. We took a trip together to Newport Beach then and it was a great weekend! I miss Irina.
My friend Elena Weaver. We met in nursing school, she was a year ahead of me but we had some classes together. We've known each other since 2001. She is a CRNA in Florida. This picture was taken last year in San Francisco, on the Alcatraz tour. I miss her too!
My friend Emily Erickson. We've "known" each other for a while but became good friends during our time together in graduate school, ACNP program. She is an NP at Huntsman Hospital. This picture is also from SF trip last August where we took a Boards preparation class together.
My friends Nadia Kulikova and Katia Hatch. We've known each other since 1993. We're all from Samara and for almost 10 years we all lived in Utah together... until destiny separated us. Katia now lives in Rochester, NY and Nadia lives in Samara for a few more months where she's getting ready to immigrate to Canada :) This picture was taken in summer of 2007.
Here is Nadia again when she came to visit us in May of 2009. I just love this picture of her :)
My old work friends: Anya, Roxanne, Jessie, Bonnie, Shirley, Brittany, Rasa, and Zara. Also Vika and Carine (not from work :). This was taken last November at my baby shower in Zara's house. I miss all the girls!
Vika Gnatyuk and Zara Amoros, my fellow NPs. I met Zara while working on 4 North at the University hospital, it must have been 2005? Zar, do you remember? I met Vika last year during my residency at the Jordan Valley hospital.

Here we are at an annual NP appreciation dinner at La Caille in October of 2009. I was WAY pregnant, hence the round face :)
This is Carine Henderson and Valia Masse at one of our mountain picnic-get-togethers. I've known Valia for maybe 2 years and Carine for about 3 years.
Here is Zara and Carine again at Nicholas's baby blessing in March 2010. This time Carine is WAY pregnant :)
My ACNP program buddies at Emily's wedding in May 2010: Kelleen, John, and Emily herself :)
Valia, Zara, Carine, and Katya Turner at Carine's baby shower in June 2010 in our backyard. Fun times! I first met Katya at another friend's bridal shower in 2006 but we didn't become friends until about 2 years ago, thanks to Carine :)
My long-lost friend Yulia Klochkova (Ujuk) who now lives in Estonia and was visiting us here in August 2010. We first met when I was 15 years old and we travelled back and forth between Samara and Saratov (where she's from) to see each other and hang out. It was so fun to re-unite after not seeing each other for almost 15 years!
I hope I didn't forget anybody... And if I did it means I don't have your picture and we need to hang our MORE!

Day 2: the meaning behind my blog name

That one is easy! Alex. Nicholas. Parents. Family. What could be any simpler and any more meaningful than that?

Our original blog name was Alex's family but when Nicholas came into the world, it had to change :)

I write on this blog for them so when they're older they can go way back and read it from the time they were little. I guess this is my type of journaling and recording our family's adventures.

Day 1: 15 interesting facts about me

I will try very hard to stick to 30 days of blogging. I realize that life can get in the way as I am a very busy person at the time. So here we go, in no particular order:
1. My kids are everything to me. Honestly, it scares me how much I love them. I used to grin at the saying "the love of my life", but now I realize that I gave birth to 2 loves of my life... so far :)

2. I love my husband and feel very blessed every day that we found each other. It was definitely fate because of the circumstances of our meeting.

3. I love gardening. After my family, this is the most important thing in my life. There is something about digging in the dirt, being in the sun and nature, and marveling at the end product. Well, in reality, gardening never has a true "end product"; it is a seasonal work in progress and this is the beauty of it.

4. Cats fascinate me. They're such magical animals; very free-spirited and independent. I seriously think that my cat Bessie is smarter than some humans I know.

5. I am a Nurse Practitioner but I secretly wish and hope some day to open up a gardening business of some sort.

6. I am very humbled by the power of a heart. It is just an organ that makes our physical bodies alive, but having a healthy heart should never be taken for granted, as I learned last year.

7. I truly do enjoy every day of my life as I don't know how limited or prolonged this life can be. I try not to take any day for granted and live it as fully as I can.

"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift. That's why we call it the present. ~Babatunde Olatunji"

8. I try very hard to make my family healthier, whether it be eating better or exercising more. I think I've been pretty successful lately.

9. Traveling is my other passion. If we can ever afford it, we plan to see every part of the World.

10. I have this amazing intuition that can sometimes be a blessing and sometimes... well, a barrier. I think I might have been a fortune-teller in a previous life :)

11. I respect people who are straight-forward, honest, hard-working, kind, and genuine. I can't stand whining and self-pity.

12. I often over-analyze things.

13. I am very lucky to have some amazing friends in whom I can trust 100% if needed.

14. I may appear as a very social person but I get shy in a new company of people I don't know and it takes me a while to warm up to them.

15. Alex said for the last one I have to put: I take good care of my kids. Thanks, Alex! You are so sweet :)

Thanks Jessie!

My friend Jessie gave me this idea. I want to try to blog for 30 days. Hope I can stick with it... I'll start today!

Day 1 - A recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself
Day 2 - The meaning behind your Blog name
Day 3 - A picture of you and your friends
Day 4 - A habit that you wish you didn’t have
Day 5- A picture of somewhere you’ve been to
Day 6 - Favorite super hero and why
Day 7 - A picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you
Day 8 - Short term goals for this month and why
Day 9 - Something you’re proud of in the past few days
Day 10- Songs you listen to when you are Happy, Sad, Bored, Hyped, Mad
Day 11 - Another picture of you and your friends
Day 12- How you found out about Blogs and why you made one
Day 13 - A letter to someone who has hurt you recently
Day 14- A picture of you and your family
Day 15 - Put your iPod on shuffle: First 10 songs that play
Day 16 - Another picture of yourself
Day 17 - Someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why
Day 18- Plans/dreams/goals you have
Day 19- Nicknames you have; why do you have them
Day 20 - Someone you see yourself marrying/being with in the future
Day 21 - A picture of something that makes you happy
Day 22 - What makes you different from everyone else
Day 23 - Something you crave for a lot
Day 24- A letter to your parents
Day 25 - What I would find in your bag
Day 26- What you think about your friends
Day 27 - Why are you doing this 30 day challenge
Day 28- A picture of you last year and now, how have you changed since then?
Day 29 - In this past month, what have you learned
Day 30- Who are you?

Fall is here?

Here are the events of the last couple of weeks.

We ended the summer season by going swimming at our little pool for the last (sigh) time. The boys loved it and so did I. Sorry Dave that I forgot to bring your swimsuit :( At least we got some good pictures of our last swim because "the photographer" was bored sitting on the side of the pool in his work clothes...

On the drive home we saw not one but 2 rainbows! Can you see it on the picture? Which provoked a heated discussion between Alex and I because he couldn't see the second rainbow and he kept arguing with me. Well, I'm not the one to give up easily so the argument lasted the whole way home, which made Babulya a little mad :)

Nicholas started crawling.

Last weekend we went to the Oktoberfest- our annual tradition. Alex got really into it this year. He dragged me to dance on the dance floor every time the German music came on and he even participated in the kids' contest. He won a little toy :)
We had lots of fun with our friends, but my camera stopped working so I don't have many pictures.
This past Saturday we went to the Dahlia flower show. It was right up my alley! Some of the flowers were just so gorgeous!

The pink flower that Nicholas is checking out was literally double my head size. I've never seen such a big dahlia and I grow pretty big dahlias myself!
Alex is being silly as always :)


We scored some gorgeous dahlias and free desserts! Mmmm, delicious brownie!
Right after the flower show we went to the Pumpkinfest. Alex got his face painted.
While Nicholas and I chilled in the shade. I can't believe how hot in was at the end of September!
We bought a small pumpkin there that I'm going to cook for Nicholas and maybe some of us will try it as well :)
Alex, there is a pumpkin on your face! Ha ha ha!
I love little local events like this, which we always try to support.
Next stop: Engh Garden's Annual Pirate ship and pumpkins! Stay tuned!

California- Day 4, La Jolla Cove and Sea World

The next day we started our journey with going to the La Jolla Cove. What a beautiful place it is! Despite cloudy sky, the temperature of the air was actually very warm and it felt just perfect outside. I loved all the humidity that we were surrounded by!
The tide was going in and out and Alex and I got our feet wet a couple of times while trying to climb the rocks.

The little cove was full of divers and snorkelers. I SO regretted not having our snorkeling gear with us that day... It just means that we'll have to go back there another time.
Then we found a little cave to the side of the cove and we went in.
On the other side the cave opened up to the ocean and it was a breathtaking view!
The tide there was also fluctuating and we had to watch where we step so we don't get washed out into the ocean :)


This was the view of the ocean from the cave opening:
Alex did so well! He had zero fear climbing rocks and going into a darker cave. I was very proud of him. There were other boys before us and they were both scared.
My mom is a "prisoner" of her own imagination :)
Our next stop that day was the Sea World. We went to see the killer whale show, of course.
We all loved it but the boys especially did. Alex was in awe of all the tricks that these majestical animals could do!



The killer whales splashed everybody in the lower section and we were kind of excited to not be sitting in the splash zone (well, Alex was actually bumped about it).
We then visited the Seals show. This was the view from the top of the stadium. I so wished I was there right now!!!
It was very cute and Alex enjoyed it very much!
Flamingos are always beautiful to look at and they have these funny-looking beaks. When they eat something out of the water, they have to tilt their heads to the side to pick it up :)


We all went on the Atlantis ride, even Babulya. You can see her sitting in the front row in the pink shirt and Alex is next to her in a green shirt.


When they were done riding it, Babulya said: "How did I end up getting so wet? I asked Alex to not get wet and that's where he dragged me" :) We just laughed because everybody knows how much Alex likes to get wet so he convinced her that the front row is the place to be to stay dry :))) Sneaky Alex :)
The Blue Horizons show was also great. Dolphins are so beautiful!

Before we headed back home, we stopped by the San Diego temple. It truly is a beautiful building. While Nicholas was eating, the rest of the family had fun taking pictures next to the temple.

It was another beautiful day in Paradise.