Has it been that long?

Alright so the last post was in March of the cruise. But what can I say, not much has really happened. Work is still going well for Kelly and me. Sometimes I feel we are both so busy we hardly see each other. Poor Harley gets neglected. But at the end of the night she still forgives us.
So big news!!! We got a scooter!! Anyone one who knows me, knows I have wanted a scooter for the longest time. But when it came down to buying it, I resisted with the reason it wasn't really practical because work is just too far away. But we are not practical people so we got Sasha anyways. I named her Sasha after JD's scooter from Scrubs. Except mine is red.
So sad news. I crashed her. I know right. I am that girl who gets something and then destroys it. It was a sad day, but I can laugh about it now. I won't go into detail, but know from now on I ride alone on Sasha. She is almost fixed though and I have a helmet so all is good.
But Kelly couldn't live with me having a scooter so she now has a sister. Stella. After a week long fight I gave in and now we have Stella. I will admit it's fun to have a motorcycle for those nights it's just so hot that a night ride is the just the thing to cool off.
I figure since we don't have kids and probably won't for long time we will enjoy this time in our lives and just be selfish for a little bit.
Other than that not much. Just enjoying the summer and the good warm times.
Here are pictures of our girls.

This is Stella

This is Sasha in the repair phase

This is Sasha before the crash. If you think she has an eagle on the front fender you would be right. EEEEAGLLLE!

Mexican or Mexican't part Dose!!

Our second cruise was freakin AWESOME! It was a much needed break. All of us were feeling the stress of work and school before leaving for a week. We booked a month ago with our pal Dwayne. And March 21 we boarded the Royal Carribbean Mariner of the Seas bound for Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta.
First day at sea a bit rough getting my sea legs back. But worth it. First stop, Cabo. Kelly and I had been there before on our last cruise. It really hasn't changed. We didn't book any excursions, just did as we felt. So we went to the beach. We played in the ocean, marveled at how much bigger our boat was than Carnivals boat, Ashley burried Taylor in the sand. Funny story, the waves are much stronger than you think. A couple of times I got sand rash on my legs and butt. One particular wave practically tumbled me head over heals. So when we stopped at Cabo Wabo for lunch, I went to the bathroom and everyone laughed when sand started pouring out of my stall. Ya it was insane.
Next stop Mazatlan. None of us had been there so we didn't know what to expect. So we picked a sight seeing, shopping and show tour. We got on a bus, watched some divers, saw the richest man in Mazatlan's house, saw a lame show called "Spetaculare" and went and ate at the Shrimp Bucket. We were scared a little bit in this city. Still the beaches looked pretty and it was warm. We did stop and see this old cathedral. We were a bit innappropriate there. Sorry. 
Last stop was Puerto Vallarta. I thought it was the prettiest of the cities we had been to. Blue water, blue sky, warm sunny. The sand was rough, but we didn't go to the beach. Ashley and Taylor had been there on their honeymoon, so we let them lead the way. We just walked around the boardwalk, had 2 for 1 margaritas and daqueries (non-alcoholic, don't worry mom). Ashley went parasailing. That's about it. Let's not forget Magnum ice cream bars. I will just say the US does not make anything as good as those.
Then we wrapped up the trip with two days at sea. We filled those with card games, food, laying out and let's not forget the soft serve!!
Thanks Olsens and Sandersons for making this trip so fun. We have many funny stories, but they wouldn't be as funny if I posted them, but I will ask "Do you like pancakes?"

This little blog

I feel blogs have gone the way of myspace. They just aren't cool anymore. But since I have many a family outside of Utah I will keep udating it. Plus my mom says she knows whats going on in my life by reading my blog. I guess I don't call her enough. Sorry Judy.

Well well, what to write. I made an executive decision and am going to run the Salt Lake Half Marathon. Not the full, the half that's 13.1 miles. I have already done this before, but am better prepared and am not training in the dead of winter. However it is still cold when I run outside. Lame. I started training this week. Had a good run on Saturday and totally thought I hit 7 miles. Clocked it and it was 5?!! What the....Guess I need to find longer routes.

We are going on a cruse in March!! We are going to the dirty Mexico side. That's Cabo, Puerta V. and Mazatlan. Totally stoked to go. I have needed a vacation since December 1st of 2008. Plus when we get back hopefully soon after that it will start to warm up. The only thing I am worried about is continuing my running training while on the boat. Any suggestions?

Other than that there really isn't much going on here in Jaquesville. Just hanging out with good friends, teaching Harley new tricks which she refuses to learn and living the life. My photography is at a standstill right now. Probably because it's winter. But I am going to try and keep up with it, but mostly keep doing it on the side. Work is good. My company keeps growing so that's a good sign. Kelly is busy with school and work. He is getting closer to being done with his bachelors. Can't wait!!

Anywho happy February. Here is a fun picture project we have did this month.

I have been wanting to try and capture smoke lately. Don't know why but it always looked cool when it curls around itself and just disappears. So one night Kelly and I got our smokiest candle and this is what came out.

Bye Grandpa

JOHN W. SKOLA  "Sweet Dad" 1915 ~ 2010 Our beloved husband, father and grandfather, John William Skola, passed away January 14, 2010 in Salt Lake City, UT. He was born September 16, 1915 to John and Anna Vesta Mauermann Skola. He grew up in Poplar Grove and graduated from South High School. John served his country during World War II in the U.S. Army as part of the Coastal Artillery. It was while serving in the Army, that he met his lovely wife, Gayle Cluff. It was a sweet Army-Navy romance. John and Gayle were married July 19, 1944. Gayle passed away April 7, 2001. John served an LDS Mission (Swiss German) and served a German-speaking mission on Temple Square. John and Gayle also served an LDS mission together in Frankfurt, Germany. Working, working-always working-always caring-this was what John was known for. He worked with Midwest Casket Company for 60 years. He was very kind, gentle, warm and tender hearted. John was loved by many, because of his Christ-like nature. He is survived by his children, Judith (David) Blake, Gaylyn (Robert) Stephenson, Mimi (Scott) Silverstein; 15 grandchildren; and 16 great-grandchildren. Preceded in death by siblings, Curt, Henry, Ann Volkert, and Freda Brochinsky. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, January 20, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. in the Valley View 3rd Ward, 4101 S. 1920 E. The viewing will be at the church from 10:00-10:45 a.m. Burial will be at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park. Share an online condolence with the family at www.jenkins-soffe.com

What I remember most about my Grandpa were his quirky songs he would always sing like "She died she did, she died with a broken rib." He had this amazing garden and would get mad if we picked the peas too early. Whenever we came over there was always his game of solitair on the kitchen table. He called Grandma, Mum. He would always greet us "Hi, sweetheart." He missed Gramda something fierce and now they are together. Miss you Grandpa!

Now What?

Do you ever have that feeling once Christmas is over? I mean you look forward to the one day all year and then if you are like me, New Years is a bit of a let down. I will be darned if Kelly and I don't have a fun New Years this year.
Anywho, what have we been up to? We went ice skating and to the Melting Pot with Chamanda. That was pretty fun. We haven't really gotten out much this winter. We have had tons of family parties. More on Kelly's side. So were driving up north quite a bit. Good thing we have the X to handle the snow and winter driving. If you remember a couple of weeks ago the really bad snow storms. It took me 2 hours to get to work. Gotta Love winter driving.
Christmas Eve we were at Pams house. Enjoyed lots of fun and card games. Harley got two presents this year from them. We gave her a bone in her stocking. She loved it and ate it all. Christmas eve I wore my red puffy vest with the fur hood. Without realizing I put Harleys new coat we got her (not for fashion, but to keep her warm so she will actually go potty outside) and went to the store. I came back and realized how much we matched. Needless to say I later lost a bet to Kelly and had to endure pictures to prove we matched. Sad. I just laughed about it. It is kinda funny.
Christmas day we spent the morning watching christmas movies and sleeping. Then headed up to my parents. It was a pretty quiet Christmas, but I will say I have felt the true meaning of Christmas better this year. I tried to read more about Christ. I think it really helped.
Anywho fun pictures below.

Not happy about matching.

Isn't Harley Cute in her coat!!

Chase thoroughly enjoyed the Flaming Turtle!!

Christmas is coming!!

I did Christmas card pictures for my sis the other night. Man those kids are so dang cute. I decided to post them because I have just have to spread the smiles.
Well, I did get a job finally. I am working for a logistics company. The ship things to say the least. I am excited to be helping to support our family again. I have been working two full days and I miss my free time already. But I am grateful for the job. Thank you to those who helped me get the job and you know who you are.
Anywho not much else is going on. I did many a christmas craft and actually put them up around the house so we look festive. I am excited for the season and hope we get some snow to really make it feel like Christmas.

MLS Cup '09

Kelly here, just sharing a once in a lifetime experience I had this past weekend. I went to Seattle to watch our very own Real Salt Lake compete against LA Galaxy in the MLS Cup.

I went with Josh B, Nick M, and my brother Brady. We drove the 855 miles to Seattle on some what of a whim, because even we did not expect our Real to make it to the Championship. I have never been to Seattle, and I must say I think I would love to end up there one day. The city was clean (probably from all the rain), the architecture was cool, and the food was good. And I enjoy any city that is that close to the water on multiple sides.

The turnout for the game was amazing. As we walked around earlier that day, we noticed a lot more Real fans than we expected. Turns out Real fans outnumbered LA fans 10 to 1 according to some report. Naturally there were 10 times more Seattle Fans there than the two groups combined. The good news is that Seattle Sounders fans HATE the Galaxy. Even Drew Carey. So as you can imagine Real had the support of 95% of the crowd. Before the game Real fans gathered and marched the streets for a few blocks to the stadium. It was a river of red. The game was intense, I remember shivering uncontrollably before the game, but once that whistle blew, we started shedding clothes. You should know the end. Real wins in a shoot out and I lost my voice for the night.

I want to publicly thank my beautiful wife for understanding and letting me take this trip with the boys.