Cheap Southern Fun

Dad and Betsey were in town this past weekend for a quick visit before they returned to dreary Idaho (seriously, still snowing!). We had beautiful 85 degree weather so, we decided to introduce them to a north central Florida treasure, the Itchetucknee River! It's a spring fed river (fun factoid--it produces 230 million gallons of water every day) and is a fun, cheap way for us southern folks to stay entertained and cool.

Jeff prefers to traverse the river in a tube.

He really tried to stay somewhat dry when he mounted his floatation device but, he promptly flipped right off the back of it.

I prefer the yacht of the floatation devices--72 degree water is a bit chilly for my taste.

It was a great way to spend the afternoon! We had a fun couple of days and can't wait to have my Dad and Betsey back in Florida soon!

One Down, Three to Go

Jeff officially finished his first year for dental school on Friday! Yay! He worked really hard this past year and did so well--I'm so proud of him!

The first picture was taken Friday, the second on his first day of school. Can you tell he spent a lot of time in the library? A little more pale, a lot more tired, and maybe just a little softer...

This year went fast for both us us, which means we'll have to figure our where these Toblers are settling sooner than we may think! It's all very exciting though. Three years to go and only one year of classes left! Congratulations, love, the first year is over!

A Quick Trip to Palm Bay

We spent a quick weekend (or part of the weekend, anyway) in Palm Bay last week with the Chad Tobler clan. Jeff's mom was in town to help celebrate (or mourn...depends on who you ask) Chad's return to the workforce so, we went down for a day and two evenings of fun.

Violet showed Jeff how to use an iTouch...




We were able to spend most of Saturday outside, which was a real treat for me! Mostly I've been enjoying the spring sunshine from the confines of my office. So, it was great to get out and get some vitamin D!

We enjoyed a sunset walk on the beach, even though we were on the wrong side of the state.




Little Violet was sure not to leave me behind. When I started lagging behind, she would yell "Em-eee, Bien," which I quickly learned was "Amy Come" in Spanish.





We found a Violet-sized hole and buried her in it. I'm sure she still has sand in all of her cracks 'n crevies.



The boys grilled some delicious ribs for dinner. Jeff, as always, enjoyed himself (although not cleanly).

Excellent

Read these. Immediately. I have not enjoyed a book series so much since, well, the Twilight saga, and frankly I'm a lot less (or not at all) embarrassed about really enjoying these!

The last book in the trilogy will be released in August. You have my permission to wait until then to read them if you want to get 'er done all at once.

A Weekend on Pine Island

Jeff was on spring break last week and to celebrate we spent the weekend on Pine Island with my Dad and step-mom. Pine Island and its neighboring city, Matlacha (pronounced Matt-Lachay), are interesting places--very colorful, kind of random, but so fun!

We had beautiful weather on Saturday and Sunday and it was a welcome relief from the cold and clouds (to those of you up north or out west, yes, I understand that this is all relative).

We explored the island by bike (beach cruiser, baby! Have I ever mentioned I'm not really good at riding a bike?) and car and found some great treasures--some beautiful, big homes amid trailer parks, some funky and delicious restaurants (if you get the chance to eat at the Sandy Hook, do!), and some small biker bars with great names (e.g., Ragged Ass).

Jeff found some coconuts while out and about...

Any trip to visit my dad would not be complete without a great cookout--steak, chicken and fresh gulf shrimp. Yum! Since the shrimp were fresh, they came as God made them. Dad and Jeff made them suitable for eating. Ashley and I avoided this processes like the plague. Neither of us enjoys seeing our food with a face.

I didn't get a picture of it but, Ashley made quite the entrance on Friday night. She drives a big, four door, Titan that makes sure nothing gets in her way--including the string of lantern lights marking the parking area next to my dad's motor coach. Once she clipped one, she decided to just keep going and flattened the rest of the string. We all had a good laugh about it!

One of the things I love about Jeff...

So, Jeff woke up early this morning to drive to Palm Bay, Florida where he will spend the weekend with Chad and company. I am always nervous when Jeff has to drive somewhere "foreign" alone. He just doesn't have a good sense of direction. And while he's been to Chad's house on numerous occasions, I was still nervous.

He called me a couple of hours into his trip and says, "I was thinking of you. I see the cruise ships and the Tiki Bar!" (one of my favorite places for crab legs and sweet potato fries). I thought this was really sweet and felt bad having to tell him that he has in deed gone too far (maybe 30 minutes passed his turn). I promised him that in just two short months (when my t-mobile contract is up) I will buy him an iPhone, equip it with the GPS application (I'm the IT department at our home in addition to navigation) and then neither of us will have to worry any more about him getting lost.

I've Always Loved Football Players...

Jeff and his buddies are in a flag football league and boy do they take it seriously! The games usually monopolize our Saturdays--the intense focus before, the game itself, and the re-hashing of all of the great (and missed) plays, as well as the new aches and pains, for the remainder of the day. It really is fun for all. Jeff enjoys it and the wives and children usually attend so, I get some good girl time in every week! Plus, it's so nice to be outside when the weather is nice!

They have a good team and are looking forward to the playoffs!

My thoughts on Valentine's Day...

I agree with Ashton Kutcher. Shouldn't we show and celebrate the love in our lives 364 days out of the year and then have 1 day where we let out our frustrations with the people we can't stand? Seems like a much better idea to me.

He's starting to look like a dentist...

Jeff's learning how to use his drill! This whole dentist-thing becomes more real every day!

Our Christmas 2009 Festivities

December was pretty much a blur for us. So, we were really excited to have a couple of weeks to relax, spend time with family and friends, and celebrate the holidays.

This year was our first having a real Christmas tree. I have to say, it was really nice to have that natural pine smell in our home for a month! Much better than what you get with a candle!

We, of course, had our annual Tobler Family Graham Cracker House Build. This year we had the Copelands and the Parrys over. Jeff was our master builder again.

Or, not-so-master-builder... He's a big thinker that is sometimes restricted by the limitations of graham crackers and powdered sugar "glue." Luckily, he has me for the "clean-up crew."

The Parrys were a great team! One would work on the house while the other would wrangle their cute-as-a-button twin girls.

Cassie and Craig worked well together and made a cute house. Cassie almost divorced Craig after he tried to build an "ark" last year--not really, but, she wasn't happy. Everyone went home happy this time and we were all glad that their soon-to-be-debuted son will know the joy of a happy two-parent household!

Jeff was happy to show Heath his small armory... (because nothing says "Merry Christmas" like large guns)

Craig got to practice his daddy skills...

I think a good time was had by all and we ended up with some great, and very different, houses!

Craig and Cassie

Hayden, Heath, Gretchen and Kypri

Me and my lover

After our graham-cracker-house build, we headed down to my mom's house in Tampa to celebrate Christmas. We do our big dinner on Christmas Eve and it's definitely my favorite meal of the year. Prime rib, twice-baked potatoes, green beans, 11-layer jello salad, yum!

I was in charge of dessert. So, I whipped up a new cake recipe--chocolate cake with white chocolate and peppermint mousse frosting. It was tasty!

This is Ashley and her 11-layer jello salad that takes her two days to make. Is it worth it you ask? We think so!

The boys weren't much help in the kitchen but, they provided some great comic relief by boxing each other on the Wii.

After we had dinner, we all settled in to open our one Christmas Eve present (always pajamas),

and take the annual picture by the tree.

Jeff is not a big fan of pj's so, he decided to be the grinch and not change into his for the picture. I still love him but, think this picture would have been cuter if he was in his pjs.

We got a later start on Christmas morning since we're all grown-ups (sort-of) now. I remember those days when it was torture to have to wait until 8am to wake our parents up to open gifts. Now we had to make an effort to get everybody out of bed at 9am.

Ashley re-outfitted Dave in collegiate wear...

Ashley, Jeff and I set mom up with a new Coach handbag (that Ashley and I also have)...

(see told ya we all now carry the same handbag...)

...and her favorite perfume circa 1990. Seriously, I think she's been wearing the Tuscany perfume since sometime in the '90s. It's her signature scent and smells mighty good. Mom was pretty good at doing "the Ashley" for her pics...

We had a fitness/kitchen gift Christmas. Ashley hooked Jeff up with an over-the-door pull-up bar that he really loves and I was so happy to get several great new gourmet kitchen items! We decided to buy a new mattress for Christmas rather than get gifts for each other. I don't have a picture of my new princess bed (I literally have to jump a little bit to get in) but, boy is it divine.

Mom and Dave surprised Ashley with a little blue box. The best kind of blue box that is a big hit in our family!

Braden also had a fitness themed Christmas. He was super excited about these spandex shorts. They are definitely H.O.T.!

We were able to catch a few quiet moments over the weekend to knit/crochet and for mom to give us a sewing lesson--both were so enjoyable! I love creating things and feel so rewarded when I make something from nothing!

We celebrated New Year's with some great friends. We enjoyed a nice big lunch at a brazilian buffet on New Year's Eve and then headed to the Parry's for a party.

The boys managed to beat the girls at Cranium...

But, we didn't let that ruin our fun!

We really had an exceptional holiday and as we reflect on our 2009, we are so grateful for the blessings we received. We really had some great, big, life events last year and couldn't be happier with where we are starting 2010.