Rach -N- Russ

California Update!!!

2009-07-02T14:08:00.000-07:00

On Monday morning, we decided to rent a car and run around for a few days. We drove down the Pacific Coast Highway to Laguna Beach in the morning then to La Habra in the afternoon. We had lunch at a big shopping center in Newport Beach and Rachel had Cheesecake Factory Cheesecake for the first time. In the afternoon we went to La Habra to meet up with Stephen and Robin Fulton. They showed us around Hollywood, took us to the beach at sunset, and then finally to the Santa Monica pier.

This is the awesome car we rented for 2 days! It sure handled the 6 lane freeway without any problem!!

Rachel's first encounter with a real Cheesecake Factory Cheesecake!!

Building in downtown LA

Some crazy park bench on our way to Hollywood!

You can't read it, but Rach is by Marilyn Monroe's prints!

Clint Eastwood prints in front of Graumans Chinese Theater

Michael Jackson tribute! His star was so popular, you had to wait in line forever to see it! It wasn't that important to us...

Rach and I under the Hollywood sign!

Beach near Malibu at sunset!

The carnival at the Santa Monica pier!

Wednesday: We took Molly's boat out on the ocean hoping to see some dolphins and other wildlife.

Rachel and I on the boat with my cousin Molly!

Seals on the buoy!!!! This was by a on the water bait shop, so seals and pelicans were everywhere.

These are the dolphins that we were able to see while on the boat. There were six of them hangin out by Laguna Beach!

We went to Universal Studios on Tuesday and surfing this morning. These pics are on the other camera and I forgot the cord to download them to the computer. Hopefully, we will be able to upload them soon!!!!!!

Rusty

California Adventure!!

2009-06-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

We are in California right now...here are a few pictures of our first 2 days here in the big city...

On the beach for the first time. A few seconds after I took a picture of my carving in the sand the water rolled over and wiped away my masterpiece....

Gymnastics on the beach...

A cookout after church at Molly and Terry's friend's (Mary) house...

While we were on the beach, "Baywatch" was filming a scene with this really hott actor...do you recognize him? ha ha

This is my actual first time to see the beach and put my little toes in the wet sand....

As we were walking to the pier, we came up on a few kids hunting star fish. They would catch them and put them in a kiddy pool full of water...then release them at the end of the day~

Our first morning in California we walked to this cute little restaurant for breakfast. It is called the Chicken~Coop. They have the best omelets! And the orange juice is probably the best I have ever tasted! Freshly squeezed I am sure...

It is pretty much freezing here compared to Arkansas! Last week before we left it was in the upper 90's and very humid! California is in the 80's and then really cool at night. Since we are only a few minutes from the beach it stays pretty cool. I wish I would have packed more light jackets and more pants rather than shorts and tank tops. Oh well, maybe I can go shopping...
We are hoping to go see Hollywood and maybe go out on Molly's boat a few times. We will see...

Update on the Tate's...

2009-04-06T19:43:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! It's been a while since I have posted...life is too busy...
Well, since the new year began we have been busy with school and work. We recently got back from skiing in Colorado. We had a blast! I took Russ down most of the blacks...LOL...He wouldn't let me go down them by my self...heaven forbid I out-do him! ha ha
Just a little quote: Rusty:"you think we can do this one....you don't think it is too steep for us?"....Me: "Nahhh" so I start going down the black and Rusty is still at the top pondering.... "Are you sure about this?" Me: "Yeah...C'mon...I'm not going to hike back up this!!..." a few minutes later....I'm sitting at the bottom of the slope watching Rusty as he inches his way down...20 minutes past...he finally makes it down... Rusty: (huffing and puffing) " oh man....that was tuff!"....Me: well.....ya ready to go...." Rusty: (still huffing) "NO!! Let me rest a while..."

The little black dot that is in the middle of the slope half way down is Russ. This was a really tuff black. It didn't help that it was fairly warm and the snow had a good layer of slush. It had it hard to cut in and out...

Go Rusty!!!

OH!! I got a new car! We weren't planning on purchasing one until May but look what happened~ It is a 2009 Honda Accord Coupe...

Here are my curtains I made for my living room with my new sewing maching my mother-in-law bought me for Christmas...

Here is a picture I found. We took this picture in Charlotte Russe in the mall...we were on a scavenger hunt for Libby's bachelorette party...

The night we got engaged!! September 22nd 2006...

Back in the day...Partner stunting...

Having a good laugh with Courtney and Grace...

Toe touch on the trampoline...pointed toes and all!!

Free kitten to good home!!

2008-12-01T19:21:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! My mom's brother came in from Missouri for Thanksgiving and brought a little black and white kitten that had been abandoned. He is so sweet and playful and is in need of a good home. He purrs and is very talkative!! Very pretty markings.... My mom is sending out a mass e-mail with pictures so be quick at letting me know if you want him or know of anyone who would want him. He would be such a precious Christmas present to someone who would be willing to take good care of him....

2008-11-20T20:16:00.001-08:00

It's cold outside!

2008-11-09T18:36:00.000-08:00

Wow! It has been so cold...I hate being cold! We have not been turning on our heat in our house because it stirs up the allergens in the air and makes Rusty have bad headaches and earaches. The woman who used to live in this house had two inside dogs and it is in the ventilation system. We need to have them cleaned out so we can be warm again in this house! That is one of the worst things in life....waking up to a cold house every morning. It was 61 degrees this morning! Too cold for me....BUT, I am used to it since I grew up in a drafty house. My parents house started out as a one room school house and was moved to it's location where it is now and was added on to once and then added on to again after my parents bought it about 30 years ago. I remember my room was the farthest away from the fireplace and it only had one vent. At night, or when it was below freezing outside the condensation on my windows would freeze! I'm not joking! ha ha We are hoping to be able to get rid of our carpet in the living room and put down a wood floor after Christmas. I want to get rid of the carpet so bad! As I stated above, the woman who lived here before had to inside dogs who evidently were never let outside to do their business....We had Stanley Steamer come but you can still see "rings" in the carpet. NASTY! Hopefully that will help with Rusty's allergies too.

On a side note...I decorated for Christmas last week (the week after Halloween)! ha ha Some say it is too early but I was so anxious to decorate since it is our first Christmas in our house. Last Tuesday, Rusty got home and I already had the tree's....yes, more than one tree, up and the mantle decorated. I finally got it all finished last Thursday while Rusty was reffing his last football game of the season. I will post pictures later after I add a few final touches. I still need a tree skirt, a new stocking for me and a stocking for Canyon.....maybe a few other things.

I feel like I am rambling on and on....

On a side note....I am on the homestretch for completing my bachelor's degree! I have 6 hours in the spring and internship, which consists of being at a school teaching from 8-3 Monday through Thursday and 16 hours where I will be at the University all day from 8-3 on Fridays taking classes. I won't be able to work at all next fall unless I work a few nights or weekends. I might need that time though to do homework....clean house....cook dinner....catch up with Russ...etc.... A little overwhelming but it will be the grand finale! ha ha Pray for me....

Random things....

2008-11-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

Wow! It will be five years since I graduated from high school this Spring! I decided to get the cheer squad together to reunite since it has been so long. On the squad there were 10 seniors and 1 sophomore! We all cheered together throughout Jr. high and high school. It was great catching up with everyone and hearing what everyone has been up to the past 5 years. Not everyone was able to come but we still had a good turnout!

Back in the day...our last time to cheer with each other. Little Rock State playoffs...we won state! March 2004....

I was always a base but we decided to give me a shot at being on top during a football game!

Cheer Reunion, October 2008

Sarah, me, and Brittany

Recently, my aunt Linda and a good friend of hers, Patti, started a business called Upstage Interiors. They are so talented! Below is a picture or their business card and a few pictures of Linda's house. She has it decorated so cute! For safety and privacy reasons I didn't post their e-mail or phone numbers but if you are interested in them "beautifying" your home or you have a house that won't sell feel free to ask :)

Her living room

Corner in her kitching

Front porch

Bedroom

Patti painted the harlequin on this wall! She did an awesome job...

Halloween!!

Kinlee and Julie handing out candy to the trick or treaters...

Linda, Dad, and Brenda (3 of the 6 siblings)

Shrek them, I was Puss in Boots...I had a big white feather sticking out of my hat but you can't see it...

My mother-in-law, Marilyn, and Doctor Payton (tooth ferry) on Halloween at work. He won first in the costume category. I took 2nd place!

Fall Pictures

2008-11-01T19:04:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, my sister, Miranda Campbell, took a few fall pictures at the Battlefield Park in Prairie Grove. It was so windy but we still got some good "snapshots." She is so talented! Take a look at more of her work @ http://mirandacampbell.blogspot.com

Busy Weekend!

2008-10-20T19:51:00.001-07:00

What a busy weekend we had! Rusty and I went with my family (mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, and nieces) on our annual camping trip this past weekend. We left on Friday and got back Sunday morning in time to get ready to go out to Rusty's grandma's house for their family's annual reunion. Like my family, he has a lot of relatives from California. It was good to see many faces again and meet new ones. Here are a few pictures from our weekend:

Gage/Tate Family:

Sitting by the bonfire...you can see the rays of sun in this picture...

Skinny (left), who is still here from our wedding, and his son Molly (right) from California

I thought this was a cool picture I took of the kids playing on the hay...

The whole group who came to the reunion

Just a few camping pictures:

Canyon slept part of the night in our tent but then we let him out at one point...then I woke up to about 10 coyotes howling so I made Russ go out and get him.....well, as we were waking up that morning he decided to climb into "mommy's" bed .....LOL

Can't you just hear him saying..."MOM!"

Dutch oven chili on Saturday night

Playing fetch

Sawing wood for the fire...

Cute kiss

Feeding him part of my sandwich. Notice he is using my hands because his hands were dirty...

Isn't he handsome!?!?

So...on a side note...I went to a bridal fair a few weekends ago with my cousin Kinlee who is getting married next July. There were tons of photographers, videographers, bakery's, florists, D.J's, etc. Anyways, we came across our photographer for our wedding, Artistry Portraits http://www.artistryportraits.com/
They immediately remembered me and the wedding and mentioned they used a few pictures to show off their work! I thought it was the coolest thing they had chosen pictures from our wedding to display...I had to take a picture! I was tempted to ask them if I could have the picture or buy it for a cheap price after they were done using it...

Rusty and Canyon

2008-10-17T11:52:00.000-07:00

As I stated in an earlier post, Rusty and I recently got a dog, Canyon. Some may/may not know but they are great swimmers because of their webbed feet. On a side note, we are going camping with my family this weekend and Canyon is going with us. This morning, Rusty mentioned giving him a bath since he has that common dog smell that might get a little overwhelming since he will ride in the cab of the truck on our way there. Anyways, as I was giving him bath I realized how Rusty and Canyon have the same hair texture....coarse and water resistant! LOL Rusty has the oddest hair for a Caucasian.....really "wirey" I guess you could call it. His hair, like Canyon's, repels water too. If he were to jump into a swimming pool and be completely submerged his hair would still look dry when he came out of the water. Weird! So, when I was spraying Canyon's coat with water before I actually put shampoo on I noticed that the water was just rolling off hiscoat like it would on Rusty's hair.....LOL Like father like son!

Hairstylist?

2008-10-16T11:12:00.000-07:00

So, over the past 2 or 3 years, I have done hair for proms, weddings, pageants, semi-formals, etc. I think I really enjoy it! After graduating with a Bachelor's Degree in Kinesiology, I think I might go get some more education in the hair department....I think it would be a great job to have once Rusty and I start a family in 5 years. I can be a stay at home mom and make my own schedule~ and if I happen to not like it or when our kids are all in school then I can maybe fall back on my Bachelor's Degree and teach P.E. Here are a few pictures of recent hair I have done...

Decorating!

2008-10-14T18:12:00.000-07:00

I wanted to paint at least one room in our new house green. I finally decided on a color and which room to try it in. I love how it turned out! The color is City Chartreuse (semi-gloss) by Valspar brand. For the accent wall, I taped off 10.5 inch stripes with the blue painter's tape and then painted a touch darker but in flat paint. I found the comforter @ Target for $13 and the wicker dresser at a garage sale for $25 that I painted black. I dressed up the plain black pillow on the bed by stitching a red feather boa and adding a green button in the middle. The curtain is just black taffeta material I bought for our wedding a year ago and didn't end up using it. I folded over the top about 15 inches then clipped the rings on. They aren't hemmed or anything but I kind of like the look! In the picture above at the top right hand corner you can see a stick on the wall that I painted gold. I found that last year while camping and thought it was cool how flat it was and how it branched out. It made it through our move and everything! As you can see, I accented with black, red, and leopard print. I think every house needs something that is carried throughout....that would be leopard print in mine...I have it in both bathrooms, our bedroom, the living room and the spare bedroom. Just a touch here and there....

Poor Rusty...

2008-10-14T18:02:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of weeks, Rusty has been at school at least 1 if not 2 nights a week working on a project for school. It makes for a stressful night for him and a boring night for me.... I can't wait until we are both out of school! I know I say this now and 5 years down the road I will be wishing to be back in this phase of life.

Rusty's New Side Job/ Hobby....

2008-10-13T20:16:00.001-07:00

This football season, Rusty started refereeing football. He has always mentioned doing it but never thought he would seriously ever get to take part in it. He loves it! He always enjoyed playing football and missed being on the field on Friday nights. He loves the fact of being back in the game, in a different way, and it is a way he can get back into shape. He has so many stories already and enjoys being with the other crew members.

Our Family...

2008-10-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

Rusty and I got married last July 2007. We aren't planning on having children for several years but for now a dog will be our practice until we are ready. We purchased Canyon 2 months ago, August 20th to be exact. He is a full-blood Chocolate lab. We found him in the newspaper and he was one of two puppies left. Like with the house situation when we found it online I insisted on calling the Realtor and in this situation I was the one who pursued to find out more about the dogs...registered? full-blood? What are the parents like? Any history of hip dysplasia? etc.....

Two months later, 10 bags of Purina One Puppy, vet visits to get "snip-snipped" and shots, countless bones, and torn up things all throughout the yard....and needless to say several holes dug....Oh...and we can't forget his cozy comforter fluff he decided to decorate the yard with...other than that he has been a blast. We try to take him on a walk every evening and some mornings I take him on a walk around our neighborhood. He has the sweetest personality but he is a little timid of strangers.

Practice....

2008-10-10T20:08:00.000-07:00

I am just practicing on how to beautify my blog! I am kind of getting the hang of it.....

2008-10-10T19:59:00.000-07:00

Hello! I finally decided to create a blog. After visiting several other blogs I started to feel a little outdated since everyone else has one. So....I decided I would give it a try~ What is there to lose? I feel like my page is a little boring right now since I really have no clue how to navigate and make it look all stylish and pretty like everyone else's....but I will catch up soon!