Oh Canada!

This past week was fraught with adventures for us! And, they were the best kind because not only did we get to do fun things, we got to do them all with family! We kicked off our adventures on Friday afternoon with lunch at Mimi's Cafe (www.mimiscafe.com) with our friends Matthew and Beth who are on their way to a new adventure in New York. We’re thrilled that they’ll be able to enjoy each other’s company more (now that they won’t each be commuting an hour one way!), but we’re definitely sad to see them go because *we* won’t be able to enjoy their company as easily! Nevertheless we wish them well in their new venture and look forward to visiting New York!

After lunch on Friday, we returned home and packed for our flight the next day. We would be traveling to Detroit where we would stay one night and then venture over the border into Canada for a visit with Mark’s grandmother. When we arrived in Detroit, we made our way to the car rental agency where we got more than we bargained for! Since they were out of mid-sized vehicles, they upgraded us to a Chrysler 300 – a very nice luxury sedan with leather seats, satellite radio and such a smooth ride that when we returned home and drove our car for the first time in several days, MeLissa was wondering if there was something wrong with one of the tires since the ride was so bumpy!

Once we had our vehicle, we headed toward Mark’s Aunt Connie’s house where we would be staying the night. While there, we met Uncle Dickie and Dominick. We all headed out for a late dinner and then returned to the house where we enjoyed discussing a variety of topics with Aunt Connie. It was a great start to our vacation! The next morning, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast and then said our good-byes and headed up the road to Canada where we would visit with Uncle Timmy and Grammy!

Once we finally made it across the border into Windsor, Ontario,(we experienced some delays due to our confusion over road signs and such), we visited the visistor’s bureau to see what there was to do while we waited for Uncle Timmy and Grammy to arrive. When they did arrive, it was fun to see how surprised and excited Grammy was to see us since she hadn’t known we were coming to visit.

We all piled into our respective vehicles and headed to Kingsville, Ontario, where Grammy lives. We all chatted for a little once we arrived and then Mark and Uncle Timmy took a trip to visit the docks while Grammy and MeLissa relaxed and enjoyed each other’s company. It had been a few months since we'd been able to have a nice chat so we had a lot of things to talk about!

Later that day, we were able to see Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye. They were thrilled to see how tall and handsome Mark had grown to be. They hadn’t seen him for such a long time! And, they were also happy to meet MeLissa since they had only been able to see her in the wedding picture that they had received in their Christmas card! We all took a little jaunt out to grab some dinner at a restaurant in town and then, Mark, MeLissa, Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye traveled to Aunt Inie’s house where we could share our wedding video.

When we arrived at her house, Aunt Inie called Cory & Mary Ellen and Jodie & David (Mark’s cousins) to see if they could come for a visit with us. Everyone came over including Katie and Crissy, Jodie and David’s daughters. They were all very happy to see the wedding video…some were even close to tears! We enjoyed each others company for a good while and then we all returned home for a good night’s rest.

The next day, we traveled back to Windsor to visit the chiropractor and Devonshire mall for a bit of shopping. MeLissa was surprised and excited to learn that Northern Reflections, the retail store she had worked in during college, was still in existence (she had thought they had closed their doors years ago!). She learned that the store had pulled back its operations and was only found in Canada and a couple of US locations. She made good use of her find and walked out with a couple of new outfits to enhance her wardrobe. We also made a quick stop by Hooters to grab a hat for Uncle Max who we knew would appreciate it. While we were there, we paused to allow Mark the opportunity to pose with the Hooter's Hum-V which they had given away recently.

That night, after a trip to the grocery store, MeLissa made Grammy and Uncle Timmy dinner with help from Mark, of course! Everyone was delighted with the culinary offerings and enjoyed the opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company. Following dinner (and clean-up, of course), Mark, Uncle Tim and MeLissa watched “Be Cool” and then headed off to bed.

Tuesday would be our last full day in Ontario and we made good use of it visiting with family members. Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye were accompanied by Aunt Ann and her daughter, Mark’s cousin, Robbie. It was fun hearing stories they told about growing up and raising their families. Watching for squirrels was also amusing! We headed to King’s Landing for lunch, for which we were joined by another Aunt Ann – you can never have too many! After lunch, we said good bye to Aunt Ann and Robbie and hello to Mary Ellen who joined us for more story telling!

When it was time for everyone to head out, Mark, Uncle Timmy, Aunt Faye and MeLissa all piled into the car and headed to Jack Miner’s to see the geese and other birds that live and visit there. Jack Miner was the pioneered the tagging of waterfowl so that their migration could be tracked in 1909.

After having a good gander (ha ha!) at the geese, ducks and peafowl, we ventured to Leamington, home of the Heinz factory where Aunt Faye lives. After visiting for a while at her house, we returned to Grammy's where we decided to take a little walk. On our way, we caught site of this beautiful Blue Jay.

The next day, we packed up and headed back to Detroit to fly home. We were sad to leave Canada and all of our sweet relatives behind! We'll be visiting again soon we hope. Once we arrived in Detroit, we had a little extra time so we took the opportunity to eat lunch and to explore a few areas of Detroit in our vehicle. Then it was off to the airport and back to California for a couple of days....until we headed off for our next adventure.

Happy Birthday, Mark!!!!

Spread the news, Mark's last year as a "twenty-something" is at hand!!!

Our celebration began by watching an old episode of the Dukes of Hazzard which always makes Mark crack up. Once we were able to drag him away from the TV set, MeLissa and Rick took him to dinner at Ohana Grill for some Hawaiian food! Once Mark's tummy was happy, we returned home so he could open his presents and cards.

Mark's gifts, though not glamorous, were exactly what he was wishing for - some new jean shorts and some new pens, highlighters and notebooks for school. MeLissa picked up two cards (she couldn't choose between the two!) for him as well which he really liked. We've attached the funny card here for your enjoyment.

After slaving away at his board review class on Saturday, Mark returned home to find the products of MeLissa's attempts to make "allergy-free" cinnamon rolls and brownies as well as vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce so that Mark could have a yummy hot fudge birthday sundae! Everything turned out pretty well...all things considered. There's room for improvement in the cinnamon rolls (though Mark thinks they're great as-is) so she'll probably be trying those again soon! All in all, Mark was pleased with his birthday weekend, but MeLissa hopes that this year's celebration will pale in comparison to what she is dreaming up for next year!

Men in Kilts

This Saturday, MeLissa took a little trip to Scotland. Well, okay, she actually just went to the Scottish Games in Pleasanton, California, with Rob and Lisa. Mark, unfortunately was unable to join in on the fun due to his Chiropractic Board exam review course. Rick, a friend that is current staying with us went instead.

This event showcased Scottish games such as the caber toss (it's hard to describe, but it involves throwing a rather large pole - go check the website above for pictures) and the hammer toss. It was pretty amazing seeing how easy some of the athletes made the various tasks look like child's play.

In addition to the games, there was celtic dancing and music performances (a couple of which MeLissa shared with her Papa via cell phone), border collie competitions and many artisans with crafty things to buy. MeLissa especially liked the woven wheat decorations that she saw - so much so that she brought a couple pieces home!

As the day wound down, we all gathered in the grandstands to see the closing ceremonies. It was an awesome sight with several pipe bands joining together to play several well-known songs. It was quite a treat for the ears! If you're in the Bay Area during Labor Day weekend in the future and you enjoy all things Celtic, we suggest you check out this festival!

Wicked Fun!

This past week brought another bit of excitement to our world. We ventured to San Francisco to see a live performance of the musical Wicked. This musical tells the story of the witches of Oz and how they became who they were before Dorothy dropped in.

We highly recommend that you see this show if you have the opportunity! Though we haven't yet read it, we believe you should also check out the book upon which the musical is based because it really is a compelling story. If you'd like a taste of what the musical has to offer, please visit the show's website by clicking on the message title link above. There is a trailer on the home page that really give you a good glimpse of what goes on.

In our particular show, we enjoyed Carol Kane (go search for her, you'll recognize her we imagine) as Madame Morrible and David Garrison (you know him as Steve from "Married with Children"!) as the Wonderful Wizard. Katie Adams played Glinda the Good and Eden Espinosa was Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West). These two ladies did a fabulous job, too.

We hope you'll have a chance to enjoy this awesome show!

1 Year and Counting!

It's been a whole year - can you believe it?!? Neither can we...time flew by! We celebrated our first anniversary by taking a mini vacation to Half Moon Bay, Monterey and Carmel. We began our adventure by staying overnight in a charming little bed and breakfast - the Pacific Victorian Bed and Breakfast to be exact! This little hideaway is fit for a king or should we say The King. Our host, Jeff, was a talented Elvis impersonator after all!

Before settling in at the inn, we enjoyed a yummy meal at the Ono Grill, a Hawaiian restaurant we had discovered on a previous visit to Half Moon Bay. We completed our meal later that night with some yummy strawberry ice cream. This is actually significant because MeLissa hadn't been able to have one of her favorite foods (ice cream, that is!) since before the wedding due to dietary restrictions her doctor placed on her!

The next morning, after being serenaded by Elvis at breakfast, we headed down the coast to Monterey. We made a very relaxed journey and took several stops along the way...

First, we paused at this scenic spot (photo - right) to take advantage of a photo opportunity. Then, we stopped at some tide pools where we beheld some cute crabs and some pretty neat waves crashing into the rocks. Then it was on to Capitola where we stopped to wander around and where we enjoyed some yummy food at El Torro Bravo. Once we had our fill, we headed out for our next stop - Monterey!

We had a bit of a scare when we arrived in Monterey. There was a large gathering that resulted in most of the hotels having no vacancy. Luckily, we finally found a room at the Monterey Bay Inn that had a lovely view of Monterey's harbor. We checked in to our room and then went out to enjoy the town. We found some nifty thing and enjoyed dinner at Louie Linguine's. After dinner, we returned to our hotel for some R&R facilitated by a trip to the upper deck hot tub where we enjoyed each other's company and a view of Monterey at night.

Sunday was our first anniversary! We began our day with breakfast where Mark demonstrated his talent as a comic artist. We bought an Encyclopedia of Lighthouses to commemorate our first anniversary since we used lighthouses as our wedding reception theme. After acquiring this special item, we jumped in the car and headed for Carmel. We took some time to enjoy the beautiful beach there and even caught a glimpse at some squirrels who also were enjoying the beach. After strolling the beach, we stopped for lunch at a deli and then visited a unique art store called Sand Art Designs. The artists behind this business create dimorphic glass jewelry in addition to sand art pictures. Mark's anniversary gift to MeLissa was a heart pendant in lavender and magenta.

Once we were finished exploring the art store, we took a drive along the coast. This drive cemented our desire to return to Carmel for a longer visit when we have another opportunity. Once we had sufficiently explored the town in our car, we began the trek home.

We made a quick stop at the Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey to see what it had to offer. Once we were satisfied, we headed home via Highway One. On the way home, we caught a glimpse of a charming lighthouse that we plan to visit in the future. As always, when we arrived home, Pixie and Banshee were there to meet us! We gave them a little attention and then headed to bed so that we would be well rested for school and, in MeLissa's case, a first day at her new job.

Fortified Virtual Bowling in Yosemite

San Francisco was the place to be this past Saturday (July 23, 2005) . How do we know? Because we were trapped in a traffic jam on I-80 for quite some time with all the other people who wanted in the city. At least we had good company - our friends Rob and Lisa were along for the ride.

This was to be a dual adventure - MeLissa would be retrieving all but the bare essentials from her office in anticipation of her last day on Friday. Then, we planned to go do something - we weren't sure what, but we figured we would decide when the time came...and we did! Unfortunately, we forgot to grab our camera so we've scoured the web for a few pictures of the sites we've seen taken by others.

After grabbing MeLissa's two measly boxes, we all decided to visit Fort Point. On the way there, we enjoyed flying down Franklin street....a street we wouldn't suggest you ride your bike up! We also were able to see many sites of San Francisco, such as the Palace of Fine Arts on our way. You can see quite a few sites of San Francisco here.

We arrived at Ft. Point and were just in time to join a tour that told us all about what life on the fort was like. After visiting all the rooms in the fort and after MeLissa made excellent use of the fabulous acoustics of the fort by singing, opera style, everything she said to the others, we made our way to another "must-see" San Francisco attraction - Lombard street. This street is definitely the most winding road we've ever traveled on!

This short excursion was a perfect prelude to our next activity - virtual bowling at the Metreon! We had a blast trying to knock down pins in both Yosemite and the Roman Columns games. Lisa and MeLissa were the bowling queens, but we question whether luck had something to do with it since neither of us did well in both games!

After we returned to Hayward, we spent some time at Lisa and Rob's house playing with Leo, their black kitty, and watching a comedy video...that is until MeLissa, ever the morning person, dozed off. She woke up long enough to drive Mark and she home and then jumped into bed and continued her dreams.

Each Time I Leave - Chicago 7/17

On Sunday, we enjoyed one final lecture on artificial iris implants. This was a fascinating topic presented by Dr. Francis Price about technology that has emerged which will definitely make an impact in aniridics lives if approved by the FDA. The iris comes in brown, green or blue and has a stationary 4mm pupil all of which serve to provide better light filtering and focus in many cases and which, as an added benefit, also improve the cosmetic appearance of those who receive the transplant. We're hopeful that Mark can take advantage of this technology in the future!

If you would like to learn more about people who have had this procedure, please visit the following articles:

• www.nyee.edu/highlights-2003h.html
• http://pricevisiongroup.com/cruz.html
• http://pricevisiongroup.com/zorn.html

Once we finished packing our things, we passed the remainder of our time in Chicago visiting shops along the Magnificent Mile after enjoying tasty hamburgers at Mike Ditka's restaurant!Unfortunately, "Da Coach" wasn't in the house when we stopped by, but the food made up for it! One of our favorite shops was the Hershey Store. You can see some of what they have at. We enjoyed some yummy brownies for dessert here which had caramel kisses and junior mints in them! We also bought a yummy Hershey cookbook so that we can make some yummy brownies (and other treats) of our own at home!

All too soon, the time for fun was over and we jumped on the train to rush to the airport to make our flight home. We were soon home in California. Our bags didn't join us immediately, but, thankfully, they were delivered by the airline the next day!

Art and Da Cubs! - Chicago 7/16

Saturday's conference "menu" didn't really pertain to us so we took the opportunity to visit some of Chicago's sites. In the morning, we ventured through Millennium Park and watched a ton of people doing yoga. This led us to the Chicago Art Institute where we spent the next few hours looking at all sorts of things. Some of the most memorable were the Chicago Stock Exchange room and various paintings by Manet, Renoir, van Gogh, Cezanne and Monet. By far, the coolest thing we visited were the Thorn Rooms which are mini replicas of rooms from the 16th to 20th centuries. Any girl who dreamed of the "perfect" dollhouse as a child, would absolutely LOVE these rooms....and they're pretty neat from a guy's perspective, too. If you ever travel to Chicago, you must go see these!

Although we spent nearly 3 hours wandering around the museum, we missed a lot of the exhibits...including the American Gothic painting by Grant Wood which MeLissa didn't discover was in the museum until after they left - doh! So, we have yet another excuse to return to Chicago!.

After seeing what we could of the museum, it was time to hop the El Train and make our way to line anyhow because a friendly and helpful Chicagoan told us that the box office usually reopens a couple of minutes before the game to resell the players' tickets which won't be used for that game. Patience is a virtue and it definitely paid off when we got to the box office and were offered seats behind home plate in the shaded terrace area especially since the sun was in full force. Unfortunately, the Cubs lost to the Pirates that day, but we had a great time anyhow!

That night, we joined the other conference attendees for a banquet which featured a silent auction, dancing and lots of tasty food. The silent auction raised over $6000 to help discover new treatments for aniridia and to support the efforts of the USA Aniridia Network in educating the public about the condition. We enjoyed ourselves for a while and then returned to our room to begin the chore of packing for our trip home the next day!

And It Has All That Jazz! - Chicago 7/15

Friday was our busiest day at the conference. We started it off right with breakfast at the Cambridge Diner. The pancakes there are fabulous, the price was right and the service was friendly - which is probably why we went back on Saturday and Sunday morning, too!

We attended lectures on a variety of topics during the day which were all fascinating. We found the lectures on artificial cornea implants, stem cell implants, aniridia fibrosis syndrome and the possibility of regenerating the optic nerve fascinating.

On our lunch break, we visited the Cheesecake Factory at the base of the Hancock building for some tasty sandwiches. We finished our meal off with both dulce du leche and peanut butter cup cheesecake both of which were absolutely fabulous! We recommend them highly!

Our day ended on a "high note" with a visit to Tommy Gun's Garage - a real live speak easy from the era of Prohibition. We were greeted by "Gloves" the doorman and his machine gun. Once we gave the right password (we could tell youz but we'd have to kill ya), we were ushered in to our table. Before they went in, though, Gloves told MeLissa that she should get Mark liquored up so that he could take his place! Lucky for Mark, MeLissa is a little wary of guys who tote machine guns!

Once we were settled at our table, our waiter, Babyface, fetched our drinks and Vito (da Boss) ventured by to ensure that we were enjoying ourselves. When he learned that we lived in California, he took it upon himself to tell us to not go back but stay in Chicago - tempting....very tempting!

Gloves and Vito made a second stop by our table later when Mark was away. Vito told Gloves to stay with MeLissa - something Gloves was more than happy to do - and to let Mark know that he shouldn't leave such a beautiful woman alone if he knows what's good for him. MeLissa was, naturally, a pretty nice shade of scarlet by this time. Thankfully, Mark came back in one piece and without cement shoes!

After a hearty lasagna dinner, we sat back and enjoyed the show. There was a lot of singing and dancing by the gangsters and the "molls." Things got crazy at one point when the police raided the place and subjected several guests to sobriety tests despite the fact that we all were only participating in a church revival service. *wink, wink* He wouldn't buy it - especially when he noticed that the Bible in use was "The Bartender's Bible" - oops. Eventually, though, he got the right motivation (some greenbacks and a bottle of Irish Whiskey) and he went his merry way. At the end of the show, though, he reappeared with a completely different demeanor - he was downright drunk...and quite happy about it, too!

My Kind of Razz-Ma-Tazz - Chicago 7/14

On Thursday, we attended several lectures during the day. Afterward, we took a stroll down to the Hancock building where we rode the super fast elevator to the 96th floor to enjoy drinks and appetizers along with the wonderful view! Eating and drinking in the clouds was quite memorable!

That evening, we decided Navy Pier was the place to be yet again. We enjoyed a round of mini golf which is perhaps more appropriately referred to as "mosquito" mini golf given the clouds (no, we're not exaggerating!) of mosquitos that attacked us at every hole. We took a ride on the ferris wheel and wandered to the Smith Museum of Stained Glass where we viewed many beautiful stained glass windows. Toward the end of the evening, we treated ourselves to burgers at a branch of the Billy Goat Tavern at Navy Pier. This restaurant was immortalized in a skit on Saturday Night Live in the 70s where John Belushi said "Cheezeborger! Cheezeborger! No Pepsi - Coke! No Fries - Cheeps!"

My Kind of Town - Chicago 7/12 to 7/13

On July 12, we met at the Oakland airport for a second adventure away from home. This time we were off to see if Frank Sinatra knew what he was talking about when he sang the song "Chicago."
Chicago is our kind of town and it has our kind of people, too. People who - smile at you and help you find your way if you lose it! The food was "note" worthy as well and was usually served with a smile. And, did we mention that it is hopping with things to do and see? We still have things we'd like to do on another visit!

We arrived in the early evening and hopped on the "El" (for Elevated) Train which provided us with our first view of the city. Our first stop was our hotel - the Allerton Crowne Plaza on the Magnificent Mile. While staying at this hotel, we had to learn a special method for catching an elevator. The trick was to catch an elevator going down and then ride it back up to the floor you wanted - without this trick, we would have had to walk up 21 flights of stairs on multiple occasions!

Once we had settled into our room, we took our first walk in the city in search of dinner. We happened upon Pizzeria Uno, credited with the invention of Chicago-style deep dish pizza. Since the restaurant had been recommended to us, we decided to give it a try. Deep dish pizza, we learned, required quite an investment in time - 1 hour to be exact. We waited patiently and were not disappointed! Once we had filled our tummies, we returned to the hotel where we relaxed and watched some TV.

We slept in the next morning and then took a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo and the botanical gardens. We enjoyed wandering around this free zoo (which was much better than either of us expected) and made a bit of a game of making sure that MeLissa spent enough time in the shade so that she wouldn't turn out looking like a lobster (since she forgot her sunscreen - again!). Our favorite exhibits were the sea lions (including the dive bombing sea gulls) and the arctic birds where a very playful Puffin was happy to show off for us.

Once we had our fill of the zoo and the botanical gardens (which were also lovely), we returned to the hotel and attended a meet and greet where we met many of the other USA Aniridia Network Conference attendees. For more information on this non-profit organization created to assist those individuals, such as Mark with aniridia (an eye condition where the eye's iris is absent). We enjoyed learning from other conference attendees about various surgeries they had undergone and how they had improved their vision. We also were intrigued by the list of topics that would be discussed at the conference.

After the meet and greet wound down, we headed to Navy Pier dinner and a fireworks show. We ate at yummy steak sandwiches at Charlie's Ale House

While waiting for dinner, we enjoyed some cinnamon roasted almonds which were hard to stop eating! We had a few after dinner during the fireworks, too. We enjoyed the fireworks show (especially since we hadn't seen many on the 4th of July) and then wandered around Navy Pier. We decided we definitely needed to come back for another outing to try some of the fun things it offered.

Viva Las Vegas!

During the 2nd weekend in July, we took a short trip to Las Vegas. Mark and his parents arrived first and enjoyed watching the Bluemen perform on Thursday night. MeLissa arrived on Friday night ready for fun and food!

We stayed at Paris Las Vegas in rooms with a view of the Eiffel Tower and the Bellagio fountains. The hourly fountain show was especially beautiful at night and the lit up Eiffel Tower made everything look magical!

On Saturday, MeLissa's Uncle Max joined the party, too. We three began our adventures by heading to the Tropicana hotel and casino to see the parrots - an activity that has become a tradition with MeLissa. Unfortunately, we learned that they were no longer there so we visited the Hard Rock Hotel instead. While we were there, we grabbed some tasty lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. Then we returned to the hotel for a refreshing swim in the pool.

That evening we enjoyed the Excalibur Tournament of Champions jousting tournament. Before the show, we took time to pose with our new friend the lavender dragon! After the show, MeLissa and Uncle Max wandered around the Aladdin hotel's shops while Mark and his parents check out some of the other casinos. We all met up again later to try our hands at gambling. Lady Luck was on Mark's side at the roulette table. His biggest win was on the number 31 which MeLissa chose because of our anniversary! MeLissa's fared well at the Black Jack table where she won about $50!

On Sunday, we piled into a rental car and went in search of greener pastures. Well, sort of - we drove around looking at various places where astro turf had been installed so that Mark's mom could see if it would work at some of her parks. Once that adventure was over, we made a mad dash back to the hotel and then to the airport to catch our flight and head home where Pixie and Banshee were waiting!

Post-Wedding Bliss

The day after the wedding. Mark's parents, MeLissa's family and Grammy all piled into vehicles and traveled to Lamar where they met all of MeLissa's family and friends from her younger years. The people of Lamar were thrilled to meet MeLissa's new husband and his family.

On September 11, 2004, we hosted a celebration at our home for our friends and family in California. Many of Mark's classmates from Chiropractic school came and several friends made an appearance as well. MeLissa was very excited that her cousin Todd, his wife Kelly and their little girl Maggie came to the celebration! We barbecued and everyone brought delicious foods to share. It was a great time and no one left hungry! During this visit, we showed everyone our wedding video which had been made by MaxEfx Video. If you need a wedding video in Colorado Springs, we highly recommend Angela and Eric's work! (update: they've moved to Alaska where they now offer their services! Eric's brother, however, is available for any weddings in Colorado Springs or Northern Colorado! If you want details, please visit their website at www.maxefxvideo.com!)

We took a break from celebrating for a couple of months, but we certainly weren't without activities. One of our adventures occurred when we were visited by Nanook and Vorbot (Mark's creativity knows no bounds!) from the planet Kitty. These feisty felines came home in the place of Pixie and Banshee after we took them to the SPCA to have "kitty-it" operations. Thankfully, our sweet little kitties (erhem, when they behave!) came back within a couple of weeks.

In September of 2004, we ventured to Yosemite National Park with our friends Matthew and Beth. We had a very enjoyable time wandering around in the sequoia forest and driving around other well known places, but we could have done without some of the hills we had to walk up!

In October 2004, we ventured to Half Moon Bay for the annual Pumpkin festival. Half Moon Bay is the pumpkin capital of the world and now we know why! One of the best parts of this adventure was finding a new delectable to look forward to - pumpkin fudge. Trust us, it's to die for!

In November 2004, the main source of excitement in our lives was selling MeLissa's town home in Colorado Springs. Although MeLissa was sad that she had to sell it, she was thrilled that she no longer had to spend money on something they weren't using!

December arrived and brought with it many exciting appointments on our social calendar. It began, as it does every year, with MeLissa's birthday. Mark had a big surprise planned for MeLissa (as he does every year - he's very thoughtful)! In addition to the lovely Christmasy floral arrangement he had waiting for her when she came home from work, he would be treating her to a cruise on the Bay that weekend. The cruise would be aboard a paddle boat named the San Francisco Belle and would feature great food, dancing and the band Vertical Horizon!

Once the big night arrived, we walked from MeLissa's office to the pier and waited in line. The city skyline was beautiful with all the Christmas lights lit up. Once we were aboard, we enjoyed a fabulous meal and then we explored the boat. We were also able to see Alcatraz from close up (we still haven't made it there to visit!) and were quite happy that there were no convicts swimming toward the ship!

After that fun experience, Mark's parents came to visit us at our home. We celebrated MeLissa's birthday again by going to the A Street Cafe - her favorite French restaurant. Good conversation, good food, yummy wine and to die for creme brulee made the evening quite lovely.

Later that week, we traveled to the HP Pavilion in San Jose where we saw Dolly Parton in concert - up close and personal in the 3rd row thanks to a great ticket find. Dolly sang all of her famous songs in a invigorating show that left the crowd tapping their feet for days afterward!

Soon after the concert, Mark's parents returned to Maui and we were right behind them! We arrived the day after they did with gifts for under the tree. We made good use of our time visiting as much as possible with friends, family and especially Grammy! We did a little last minute Christmas shopping, and looked at Christmas lights (MeLissa is still having Snoopy envy for all the lighted Snoopy decorations she saw.

As if the holidays didn't bring enough excitement, we were treated to another reception thrown by Mark's parents. The party started early with tasty appetizers - even the party crashers (some very cute kittens) thought so. The dinner for the evening was a clam bake which left all of our guests happily full. Before dinner, we were treated to a live Hawaiian band and even an impromptu hula by one of the band's friends!

One of our favorite parts of the evening was that we were able to renew our vows at sunset with a Hawaiian priest! Not too many people get to get married twice in the same year (legally)! We really thought it was neat - unfortunately, due to a snafu with the video camera, we only have pictures (unfortunately again - the good ones are not in digital format). We figure this means we'll have to do it again sometime to correct these issues!

As the evening progressed, we held a Hawaiian-style money dance. For this, we danced while guests came and tucked money into different parts of our clothes and then we had to take it out with our teeth. Thankfully, no one put anything in too embarrassing a spot! It was all in good fun, so we enjoyed it.

After the reception was over, we enjoyed a belated honeymoon in Kanapali and on the Big Island. While on the Big Island of Hawaii, we stayed at the Hilton Waikoloa which was very cool. They had a huge tree in their lobby which Mark posed with. One of the highlights of the trip for MeLissa was swimming with Dolphins. Her group had the fortune to play with the youngest dolphin - Makana (meaning gift). A stuffed dolphin accompanied them home and MeLissa named it after her dolphin friend. We also took a short trip to meet with Mark's Uncle Timmy and Michiko to Wai Pio Valley . We enjoyed a surprise visit from Aunt Keina, an artist who bestowed us with many wonderful creations. We also found a new friend for MeLissa. After our short stay, we traveled back to Maui to enjoy Christmas with Mark's family.
Since Christmas-time, we have spent a majority of our time focused on school and work. We've also been very focused on Mark who's had a couple of surgeries to reattach his retina which have, thus far, been successful. We did have one adventure to Napa in June which was pretty nifty. We stopped by Copia first where Mark met a flashy new friend. We learned how to make fabulous herbal tea from various herbs and where we were able to explore food and wine in a museum-style setting. One of the niftiest things we were able to see were enchanting cakes. One was of the Eiffel Tower, another had lots of whimsical animals coming out of it (pictured right) - there were others which were very neat also. After we had exhausted the exhibits and had walked through the gardens, we made a quick trip to both V. Sattui and the Beringer wineries where we purchased a few yummy wines to restock our wine rack with and then headed home.