Hello to all. Sorry it has taken so long to get up a new post. Abby and I have been really busy these past couple of days. We arrived back in Phoenix on Monday night, headed straight to chicfila for some late night dinner, then crashed out. Tuesday morning quickly came. We were both up around 8am due to being on east coast time. We packed and cleaned, then moved into our new apartment all by 1pm. Tuesday was spent buying supplies for our new place. We spent a lot of money on products to help with the "cat piss" smell. Needless to say, we jumped into renting out this apartment. This place is a piece compared to the place we were renting. The place smells really bad, there is no cable box (i.e. no sportscenter for 2 months), no DVD player, and the people below us hate us already (when i was moving stuff in, the guy said they are going to move out because they hear every noise). On the bright side, we don't share our place with random people, its dark during the day so sleeping will be great, and we "had" to go buy a DVD player (my pushing :) ). Abby was very upset when we first moved in because the place just isn't worth what we are paying for it, however she warmed up to the place and we think we can make it work for the 2 months we will be there (even though there is no sportscenter). The DVD player is nice! Just one more thing we have to try and pack into our already packed out car. I'm thinking if we buy any more clothes, toys (new TV and DVD player), and the golf clubs I want, I'm going to have to kick Abby out of the car and fly her to our new destinations. Packing the car is going to be an engineering miracle! We tried to stay up late Tuesday night to watch the Olympics, but we were just so tired from orienting to the east coast time for a week and a half, that we fell asleep fairly quick. We were up by 8am the next morning! Not a good thing since we were suppose to work Wednesday night. I was teasing Abby because we were at Circuit City (looking for our new DVD player) before they opened. A definite first for Abby (she likes her sleep). We did more shopping before heading home around 1pm to try and nap for our first night shift in almost 2 weeks. Neither one of us slept much. Maybe 2 or so hours then we were wide awake again. Luckily we received the bitter sweet call from work saying that we were on call. Meaning we didn't have to go into work at 7, but had to call back around 930pm to see if they were going to need us for the rest of the night. We didn't end up having to go in that night, so we tried once again to stay up late to watch the Olympics. The reason it was bitter sweet was because we really didn't get much sleep to warrant a safe night of work. On the other hand, we really need the money because if we don't work, we don't get paid. We already took off the week before for our vacation back to NC, so losing another shift of pay isn't going to be good for the wallet. Anyhow, we enjoyed our night off by sipping on a glass of wine, ordering out to this great Italian restaurant called Tutti Santi, and lounging on the couch watching the Olympics. I must apologize now for my sporadic thoughts and my horrible grammer and spelling. 1. It is 230am and I'm not feeling to good. 2. the call bells (from patient rooms) keep going off, so I keep getting up trying to assist all the sick. 3. Abby is working on a different floor, so I don't have the smart one in the family proof reading my work. Now back to the good stuff...
Our vacation was amazing! We realized how much we miss North Carolina, but most importantly our family and friends. We arrived in Greensboro on Thursday July 31st. Abby's dad picked us up from the airport and we headed straight to her brother Craig's house. They ordered Chinese food which looked amazing. I was unable to eat because my stomach wasn't agreeing with me. Let's just say I threw up on the airplane from Memphis to Greensboro. We flew in a puddle hopper, so trying to aim in the toilet wasn't easy. I'll stop there! Friday Abby had her appointment with the eye doctor and that night we went to hang out with her best friend Betsy. Okay, so I just received a phone call from the floor charge nurse. I am going to be getting this 16yr kid with stomach pain. Supposedly he has had gastric bypass. Can't wait to see this admit. So, I will hopefully get this post in, if not I will hope to finish later. Saturday we left for the beach with her family. We arrived at Holden Beach that afternoon quickly hurrying to the beach. The weather was beautiful all week. Her entire family was there. Let's just say that the beach trip was wonderful birth control. Lots of little ones ruling the roost. The following saturday, Abby and I took off to Raleigh to visit my mom, brother and friends. Andy was nice enough to let us borrow his car. We had dinner with my mom and brother saturday night, then headed over to my house to see all the guys. It was great seeing them all. We made home made ice cream and just sat around trying to catch up. Chuck made it back from Iraq so he told us stories about his travels and showed us pictures and videos of our tax dollars hard at work! To make a long story short, Chuck got stranded on a mountain and it took the US army to rescue him! F16's and all. Crazy story, but if you know Chuck you will understand. Fix my screens Chuck! Sunday we headed over to my brothers new house to swim in his pool and hang out with my mom, Sean, Corey and Van. After some delicious pizza Sean and I jumped in the pool. Woo quickly showed up to join us. The water was pretty cold, so Abby didn't stay in for long. Sunday night we joined a few folks for dinner at Los Tres! A great mexican restaurant in Raleigh. We then had to make a quick trip to Goodberry's, then it was home to spend some more time with my mom. Monday morning came and it was time to say goodbye and head back to phoenix. Sorry to those whom I wasn't able to see. The trip to raleigh was a short one, and I really tried to spend as much time with my mom and brother as I could. It was a great trip and it was so great to see my mom, my brother and all my buddies. We had a great time at the beach with Abby's family. So great seeing them as well. This trip made us both really sad. We just love our family and friends so much and hate that we are so far away. We are really enjoying our time on the west coast, but we are really looking forward to the day we get back to the east coast. In October we have another trip planned, but this trip will take us to NYC and to upstate NY. GO GIANTS! When we get back from NY, we will be moving to San Diego for our second travel assignment. We believe our contract there runs through the beginning of february. I told Abby earlier tonight that I have a surprise for her. I haven't told her what, and I probably won't. I am going to tell you all what I have up my sleeve, so Abby won't find out until she reads this blog. You can't tell her, she has to find out on her own. We'll see if she is keeping up with what I write! The San Diego Chargers play the Carolina Panthers on September 7th in San Diego (first game of the season). I am going to get us tickets to the game!!!! We will spend a few days in San Diego and then head to the game! Should be a great trip. I figure it will also give us a chance to try and hunt down a place to stay when we move out there. It should be a great trip! Abby packed her Panthers jersey, so this will give her a great chance to show off her Panther pride! GO GIANTS! Just remember, you are not allowed to tell her!
Well time to get ready for my admit. I hope you are all great and thanks again for keeping up with us through our blog. We don't have internet at our new place, so not sure when we will get new pictures up, but will try. We love and miss you all. Keep in touch.
In His peace,
Love Abby and Michael.
p.s. please pray for my grandma and grandpa! thanks!
Friday, August 15, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Vacation here we come...
Just wanted to write a quick message to let everyone know that Abby and I are heading to North Carolina on thursday. We are flying into Charlotte for Abby's eye appointment on friday, then heading to her families yearly beach vacation at Holden Beach. We will be there saturday through saturday then hoping to make it to Raleigh to visit my mom, brother and friends. We fly out that following monday, so our visit will be short but sweet. Abby and I have been working at getting prepared for our San Diego trip, figuring out our move into our new home when we return from vacation, and making plans to head to NY in October. All involve spending money. A problem we can't escape at this time. I hope everyone has a great week. We will have lots to write about when we get back and hopefully many great pictures to share. Much love to all.
In His peace,
Michael and Abby
In His peace,
Michael and Abby
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
San Diego here we come...
Just a quick update... Abby and I interviewed for a jobby job in San Diego Monday morning. By Monday afternoon we were offered a position working the night shift at a Kaiser Hospital in San Diego. We are both extremely excited to be heading there for the winter. We start October 20th and work there through the beginning of February. Having said that, we had to sign on for another 2 months in Phoenix putting us here until October 4th. In October we are heading to NYC to watch the NY football Giants take on the Seattle Seahawks on the 5th of October, then we are heading upstate NY for a week. After returning from NY we are going to take a few days to get settled into San Diego. We are not sure where we will be living, but hopefully we will know before long. Don't worry, we are travelling with a queen size air mattress in hopes of having visitors! The housing stipend for San Diego is $1600 a month, so we are hoping to both take the stipend and try to find a place to live for cheaper than that. Craigslist didn't seem to promising as San Diego is very expensive to live. Worse case scenario, one of us takes the free housing and the other takes the stipend. We will be taking a pay cut, but well worth it to live in perfect weather for the winter. Keep checking for updates on our San Diego move. Our night shift is almost up. Promise to write more later!
Much Love to all...
In His peace,
Michael and Abby
p.s. Prayer requests. My grandma, and Mr. Richardson. Thanks!
Much Love to all...
In His peace,
Michael and Abby
p.s. Prayer requests. My grandma, and Mr. Richardson. Thanks!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Viva Las Vegas!
So surprise, surprise...this is Abby writing the latest post! Mike thought my description of our vacation might come better from virgin Vegas eyes. We headed out to Las Vegas last Saturday for a 4-night, 5-day vacation, with my parents flying in on Sunday to meet up with us. The 4 1/2 - 5 hour drive was dominated by true desert - lots of cacti and very few cars on the road. About 30 miles outside of Vegas we stopped and visited the Hoover Dam. An impressive site - especially considering how long ago it was built. It looks as if they are building a bypass bridge and the construction equipment was amazing - they are building the bridge over a huge canyon and these cable-care looking things were hanging across the canyon so the workers could go back and forth. Finally we pulled in to Vegas - luckily it was turning dark so my first views were with the lights on! I'm not exactly sure how to put Vegas in words. I'm just glad I wasn't driving as I would have surely wrecked - I'm pretty sure I sat in the passenger seat with my mouth hanging open. So we get to TI (Treasure Island for those of you not in the know), checked in, went to our room and realized we had an amazing strip view - looking straight down Las Vegas Blvd - it looked postcard-esque.
First lesson I learned in Vegas....food is extremely EXPENSIVE (and not always that good!) We went to a restaurant in the hotel the first night - Kahunaville. It was decent - not great, but not bad. We had one of those gigantic drinks that comes in a fish-bowl sized glass and washed that one down with another (smaller) drink. At this point I'm ready to see the town. We meandered up the strip all the way to the Bellagio and back down. I was astounded by many things - a. the grandeur of Vegas b. the number of people out and about and c. the amount of kids that were in Vegas and out so late! I was very hesitant to gamble straight away as Mike and I succeeded in losing on a video roulette table in a matter of minutes. So we walked around some of the casinos and he explained craps to me as we watched a man making and losing hundreds of dollars at a $100 minimum table. We also wandered through the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace and the Shops at the Venetian. Dang - the shopping is incredible in Vegas, but really only for those with deep pockets. Overall, an awesome introduction to Vegas.
The next day was spent with some time at the pool, a little gambling, and dinner and a movie before we went to pick up my parents. Did I mention how phenomenal Vegas is for people watching?! That actually may have been my favorite part (seeing as how I lost a disappointing amount of money - more about that later.) There are definitely all types in Vegas - the drunken guys looking to pick up some booty, the drunken girls looking to do the same (in much less clothing then the boys), the old couples who love to gamble, the families, and the high rollers. We watched one guy drop $5000 in about four minutes at a $10 blackjack table. We think we overheard him on the phone saying he was down seventy thousand!!! What?! Some people have entirely too much money! Anyways, we picked my parents up around midnight and it was fun to watch my mom's face as we drove down the strip. My parents had a little trouble checking in and ended up getting a suite for the night! We crashed out after that and woke up the next morning to start some serious gambling!
My mom stuck to Wheel of Fortune the whole trip. And darn if she didn't get addicted to that slot machine! Every morning we found her playing Wheel of Fortune and one night she stayed up past us to play! Even at the different casinos, Mom stuck to Wheel of Fortune. Too bad there wasn't much fortune with the game. Mike tried to introduce Dad and I to craps, but we lost miserably everytime we tried to play so it didn't stick with us. I became a fan of 3 card poker. I was able to win little bits of money that I inevitably lost. Mike lost money at craps, roulette, poker, and slots. Let's just say Vegas wasn't too good to him. Nor was it to any of us - we all lost our money. I have to say, gambling is fun. I think I liked 3 card poker so much b/c I could start with a reasonable amount of money and play for a long time before I lost it.
Aside from losing all our money, we did enjoy some other draws of Vegas. We saw Mystere (a Cirque de Soleil show) on Monday night which was incredible. I don't even know how to explain how those performers did what they did. And of course we caught the Sirens show at TI. And you can't go to Vegas without seeing the Bellagio fountains. We also ate (and ate and ate...) - even made a late night trip to McDonalds! And of course, if you know the Jones' - we did some shopping. Mom and Dad gave us a wedding present - a beautiful globe we picked out - we'll have to attach a picture so you can appreciate this globe! Thanks so much Mom and Dad!!! I think that pretty much sums up our trip. I hope to return to Vegas sometime - I've got some money to earn back!
Other than that we've been trying to figure out where our next assignment will take us. I think we've decided to stay in Phoenix for another 8 weeks (til beginning of October) and then possibly head to San Diego or Littleton, Colorado. We have interviews/possibilites with both these areas. We are going to move to a different apartment. We found a one bedroom condo close to where we live now and will move after our beach trip in August. The roomate is just getting weirder and we are having to be conscious of air-conditioning use which is frustrating (and hot!) living on a second floor surrounded by windows and french doors! It will be nice to live on our own (finally!) We are headed to the Jones/Lowe beach trip the beginning of August - we can't wait to be home for a little bit and see some family! And then in October we are heading to New York - a few days in the city and to see the Giants game and then up to the Catskills to spend some time with Mike's grandparents and his aunt and uncle!
We hope all is well with everyone. Being away is definitely getting harder as we miss our family and friends more and more. Please keep in touch - we love hearing from you....and haven't heard from some of you in entirely too long....
In His love,
Abby and Mike
First lesson I learned in Vegas....food is extremely EXPENSIVE (and not always that good!) We went to a restaurant in the hotel the first night - Kahunaville. It was decent - not great, but not bad. We had one of those gigantic drinks that comes in a fish-bowl sized glass and washed that one down with another (smaller) drink. At this point I'm ready to see the town. We meandered up the strip all the way to the Bellagio and back down. I was astounded by many things - a. the grandeur of Vegas b. the number of people out and about and c. the amount of kids that were in Vegas and out so late! I was very hesitant to gamble straight away as Mike and I succeeded in losing on a video roulette table in a matter of minutes. So we walked around some of the casinos and he explained craps to me as we watched a man making and losing hundreds of dollars at a $100 minimum table. We also wandered through the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace and the Shops at the Venetian. Dang - the shopping is incredible in Vegas, but really only for those with deep pockets. Overall, an awesome introduction to Vegas.
The next day was spent with some time at the pool, a little gambling, and dinner and a movie before we went to pick up my parents. Did I mention how phenomenal Vegas is for people watching?! That actually may have been my favorite part (seeing as how I lost a disappointing amount of money - more about that later.) There are definitely all types in Vegas - the drunken guys looking to pick up some booty, the drunken girls looking to do the same (in much less clothing then the boys), the old couples who love to gamble, the families, and the high rollers. We watched one guy drop $5000 in about four minutes at a $10 blackjack table. We think we overheard him on the phone saying he was down seventy thousand!!! What?! Some people have entirely too much money! Anyways, we picked my parents up around midnight and it was fun to watch my mom's face as we drove down the strip. My parents had a little trouble checking in and ended up getting a suite for the night! We crashed out after that and woke up the next morning to start some serious gambling!
My mom stuck to Wheel of Fortune the whole trip. And darn if she didn't get addicted to that slot machine! Every morning we found her playing Wheel of Fortune and one night she stayed up past us to play! Even at the different casinos, Mom stuck to Wheel of Fortune. Too bad there wasn't much fortune with the game. Mike tried to introduce Dad and I to craps, but we lost miserably everytime we tried to play so it didn't stick with us. I became a fan of 3 card poker. I was able to win little bits of money that I inevitably lost. Mike lost money at craps, roulette, poker, and slots. Let's just say Vegas wasn't too good to him. Nor was it to any of us - we all lost our money. I have to say, gambling is fun. I think I liked 3 card poker so much b/c I could start with a reasonable amount of money and play for a long time before I lost it.
Aside from losing all our money, we did enjoy some other draws of Vegas. We saw Mystere (a Cirque de Soleil show) on Monday night which was incredible. I don't even know how to explain how those performers did what they did. And of course we caught the Sirens show at TI. And you can't go to Vegas without seeing the Bellagio fountains. We also ate (and ate and ate...) - even made a late night trip to McDonalds! And of course, if you know the Jones' - we did some shopping. Mom and Dad gave us a wedding present - a beautiful globe we picked out - we'll have to attach a picture so you can appreciate this globe! Thanks so much Mom and Dad!!! I think that pretty much sums up our trip. I hope to return to Vegas sometime - I've got some money to earn back!
Other than that we've been trying to figure out where our next assignment will take us. I think we've decided to stay in Phoenix for another 8 weeks (til beginning of October) and then possibly head to San Diego or Littleton, Colorado. We have interviews/possibilites with both these areas. We are going to move to a different apartment. We found a one bedroom condo close to where we live now and will move after our beach trip in August. The roomate is just getting weirder and we are having to be conscious of air-conditioning use which is frustrating (and hot!) living on a second floor surrounded by windows and french doors! It will be nice to live on our own (finally!) We are headed to the Jones/Lowe beach trip the beginning of August - we can't wait to be home for a little bit and see some family! And then in October we are heading to New York - a few days in the city and to see the Giants game and then up to the Catskills to spend some time with Mike's grandparents and his aunt and uncle!
We hope all is well with everyone. Being away is definitely getting harder as we miss our family and friends more and more. Please keep in touch - we love hearing from you....and haven't heard from some of you in entirely too long....
In His love,
Abby and Mike
Monday, June 30, 2008
Internet is up and running...
Great news... We are finally able to get on the Internet in "our" house. John, the owner, made a surprise visit this past week to fix the Internet. We have recently been blessed with a roommate who needs the Internet. She is a 48 yr old awkward lady who works on developing websites. I guess she was threatening to leave because John made a 5 hour trip to just work on the Internet. Abby and I were joking about sabotaging the Internet so that she would leave. We were definitely getting use to living alone. I guess you can say that we were spoiled, but what can we say... We are honeymooners looking to be alone, not share a sofa with a random 48 year old. Oh well, we are only here for a little while longer. I think we have 5 more weeks of work and then we move on. We are not sure where we will be next, but hopefully we will find out soon. We are really working on getting to Denver or Portland for the end of summer beginning of fall. Keep your fingers crossed. We learned that there are a lot of pediatric positions out there, but unfortunately there are an abundance of pediatric nurses. Abby and I are at a disadvantage because we both need positions at a certain hospital. Our recruiter is working really hard on placing us in a desirable location. We have also talked about just staying in Phoenix for another 3 months. If we do that, we will most likely move out of this house and into an apartment. We would take a pay cut, but at least we would have our OWN place to live for the first time since we've been married! Will keep you posted.
As you can see we've put up pictures of our hike up Squaw Peak. It is a strenuous hike that takes a good 30-40 minutes to hike 1.2 miles. The view from the top is amazing. I have to admit that the 360 view is about the same. Houses, dry land, spiked mountain tops, and cacti. We were able to catch a sunset the last time we both went up. Pictures really don't show the beauty of this sunset, but as you can see it was pretty neat to be on top of this mountain during that time. The trip down was a little hairy. The trail runs down both sides of the mountain, so when we were on the East side, it was quite dark. Abby, and her new found obsession with scorpions, was pretty nervous about running into one of the little creatures (they are nocturnal).
We also put up a picture of us at the Arizona Diamondbacks game. Yes, I was slowly developing man boobs. Now you know my obsession with losing weight. The game was a lot of fun. Randy Johnson tied second all time on the strikeout list. He tried and tried to get that last one to put him alone at second but constantly failed. They pulled him in the 6th. He eventually got that mark, just not at home. I also put up a picture of Abby in a phone booth. Don't see those much. This phone booth was outside one of our favorite restaurants, 5 & Dinner.
Okay okay, I know you've all been on your seats waiting to find out what my big surprise was for Abby. Here it is... I surprised her with 4th row seats to the Ringling Brothers and Barney and Bailey Circus!!!!! It was an amazing show. I don't remember it being so entertaining. We definitely recommend it to all. Just watch out for the protesters outside the arena passing out flyer's on how the circus abuses it's animals. My favorite part of the show was the 6 bikes in the ring of steel. Amazing!!! Abby's favorite part were the elephants. They had about 6 huge elephants and 1 little baby elephant. After the show, as we were walking to our car, we spotted the trainers giving the elephants water and a bath. They were having a blast drinking from huge trash cans and trying to spray the crowd with water. Playful jokers. It was really neat seeing such amazing animals so close up. Go see the circus if it comes to a city near you!
We had a long week of work. I picked up an overtime shift on Monday, then we both worked Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Saturday I woke up early to climb the mountain and then i headed to play golf with John. Abby slept in then went to this huge mall near by. She has been told that this mall has every store she likes, so she wanted to check it out. She told me that they have a store solely about peanut butter! We are going tomorrow! Today we didn't do much. Neither one of us could sleep last night. We went to bed around midnight. I woke up around 2am and just couldn't fall back to sleep. Decided to get up and watch TV till 5am. I then got dressed and headed to Squaw peak. I was able to catch the tail end of the sunrise as I hiked the mountain. I was amazed with how crowded the trail was. I guess the locals know that they need to get their outdoor exercise in as soon as the sun rises. I then came home and slept till 2ish. We both got our lazy tails out of bed, went bowling, ate supper, then caught a movie. We saw "Wanted." Mixed reviews. If you like Kill Bill, you will probably like this movie. Midway through the movie Abby started feeling nauseous. She is currently lying on the couch watching TV as I type this post. It is almost 3:30am and I'm not tired. I think I might go hike the mountain again at 5am. The weather at that time is in the 80's with a nice breeze. This night shift gig has our sleeping patterns all messed up. Hope Abby feels better.
Restaurant of the week: NYPD pizza! Amazing NY style pizza.
Movie of the Week: Definitely, Maybe. We only started this movie, but it looks really good. A chic flick.
Weather: This week was the first time in about 2 weeks were the high temp was under 110. I think it was 106 and above. I "nice cool trend" (some weather guy).
This week we are trying to pick up an overtime shift on Tuesday, then we work Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Saturday we head to Las Vegas. Abby and i are going Saturday night and staying at Treasure Island. Abby's parents fly out on Sunday and we all will be staying at Treasure Island until Wednesday. We are both very excited to see her parents. We miss our families a lot. Hope to have a lot of luck. Keep your fingers crossed...
Have a great week everybody. We love and miss you all. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers!
In His peace,
Michael and Abby Lee
As you can see we've put up pictures of our hike up Squaw Peak. It is a strenuous hike that takes a good 30-40 minutes to hike 1.2 miles. The view from the top is amazing. I have to admit that the 360 view is about the same. Houses, dry land, spiked mountain tops, and cacti. We were able to catch a sunset the last time we both went up. Pictures really don't show the beauty of this sunset, but as you can see it was pretty neat to be on top of this mountain during that time. The trip down was a little hairy. The trail runs down both sides of the mountain, so when we were on the East side, it was quite dark. Abby, and her new found obsession with scorpions, was pretty nervous about running into one of the little creatures (they are nocturnal).
We also put up a picture of us at the Arizona Diamondbacks game. Yes, I was slowly developing man boobs. Now you know my obsession with losing weight. The game was a lot of fun. Randy Johnson tied second all time on the strikeout list. He tried and tried to get that last one to put him alone at second but constantly failed. They pulled him in the 6th. He eventually got that mark, just not at home. I also put up a picture of Abby in a phone booth. Don't see those much. This phone booth was outside one of our favorite restaurants, 5 & Dinner.
Okay okay, I know you've all been on your seats waiting to find out what my big surprise was for Abby. Here it is... I surprised her with 4th row seats to the Ringling Brothers and Barney and Bailey Circus!!!!! It was an amazing show. I don't remember it being so entertaining. We definitely recommend it to all. Just watch out for the protesters outside the arena passing out flyer's on how the circus abuses it's animals. My favorite part of the show was the 6 bikes in the ring of steel. Amazing!!! Abby's favorite part were the elephants. They had about 6 huge elephants and 1 little baby elephant. After the show, as we were walking to our car, we spotted the trainers giving the elephants water and a bath. They were having a blast drinking from huge trash cans and trying to spray the crowd with water. Playful jokers. It was really neat seeing such amazing animals so close up. Go see the circus if it comes to a city near you!
We had a long week of work. I picked up an overtime shift on Monday, then we both worked Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Saturday I woke up early to climb the mountain and then i headed to play golf with John. Abby slept in then went to this huge mall near by. She has been told that this mall has every store she likes, so she wanted to check it out. She told me that they have a store solely about peanut butter! We are going tomorrow! Today we didn't do much. Neither one of us could sleep last night. We went to bed around midnight. I woke up around 2am and just couldn't fall back to sleep. Decided to get up and watch TV till 5am. I then got dressed and headed to Squaw peak. I was able to catch the tail end of the sunrise as I hiked the mountain. I was amazed with how crowded the trail was. I guess the locals know that they need to get their outdoor exercise in as soon as the sun rises. I then came home and slept till 2ish. We both got our lazy tails out of bed, went bowling, ate supper, then caught a movie. We saw "Wanted." Mixed reviews. If you like Kill Bill, you will probably like this movie. Midway through the movie Abby started feeling nauseous. She is currently lying on the couch watching TV as I type this post. It is almost 3:30am and I'm not tired. I think I might go hike the mountain again at 5am. The weather at that time is in the 80's with a nice breeze. This night shift gig has our sleeping patterns all messed up. Hope Abby feels better.
Restaurant of the week: NYPD pizza! Amazing NY style pizza.
Movie of the Week: Definitely, Maybe. We only started this movie, but it looks really good. A chic flick.
Weather: This week was the first time in about 2 weeks were the high temp was under 110. I think it was 106 and above. I "nice cool trend" (some weather guy).
This week we are trying to pick up an overtime shift on Tuesday, then we work Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Saturday we head to Las Vegas. Abby and i are going Saturday night and staying at Treasure Island. Abby's parents fly out on Sunday and we all will be staying at Treasure Island until Wednesday. We are both very excited to see her parents. We miss our families a lot. Hope to have a lot of luck. Keep your fingers crossed...
Have a great week everybody. We love and miss you all. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers!
In His peace,
Michael and Abby Lee
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Uneventful Weekend...
Hello to all. Man, these posts get more and more boring as the weeks go on. Sorry about that. Since I last wrote not much has gone on. We had off from Thursday until today but Abby came down with a little illness all weekend. She is better now, but it really knocked her out all day Saturday and Sunday. Poor Abby. We don't know what it is out here, but we constantly get a little bug that knocks us out for a day or two. Who knows what is causing it.. We have another long weekend coming up, so we'll see if either one of us gets sick.
Before Abby became ill, we went shopping. Surprise Surprise Surprise.. haha.. we have money now, so what do we do? that's right, we shop! Banana Republic was having their big sale, so we dropped a couple of hundred there. Then we headed over to Cole Hahn and dropped a little bit there. I laugh at us really. If you could have seen our car when we were driving across the country you would have laughed. Slam packed!!! But yet we shop! haha.. Oh to top it off, I bought a new TV on Sunday. A 32" Samsung. We were going to wait until we travelled to our next assignment, as we don't really need one here, but it was a deal I couldn't pass up. We have serious problems I tell ya. So other than shopping, we really haven't done much. I am working tonight (an overtime shift. to support our shopping habits) then we both work Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. Friday we are going to the surprise for Abby. It will be awesome, then we hope to pick up a couple of more overtime shifts before we head to Vegas on the 6th of July. We work on the 4th, but why not... Great pay...
Restaurant of the week: The Fish market. We ate there Sunday night and it was delicious. they had the freshest Mahi Mahi. So tender you could cut it with a fork.
Movie of the week: "Get Smart" A very funny movie. We had our doubts, but we laughed a lot.
Weather forecast: Sunny and Hot. I think we are going on our 14th straight day of Temps over 110. Good times!
Well, I hope to bring you more fun and adventures someday. I guess once we stop shopping we might have money to take a fun trip. Seriously, after Vegas we hope to take a few trips through July and august. We are going to head to San Diego, the Grand Canyons, Sedona, and Flagstaff. We truly aren't taking advantage of our location, and that is unfortunate. Will keep you posted. Hope you are all doing great. We love and miss you all. Till the next time...
Love to you all,
In His peace,
Michael and Abby...
p.s. I have lost 14 pounds since moving out here. Climbing that mountain I tell ya. Tough work!
Before Abby became ill, we went shopping. Surprise Surprise Surprise.. haha.. we have money now, so what do we do? that's right, we shop! Banana Republic was having their big sale, so we dropped a couple of hundred there. Then we headed over to Cole Hahn and dropped a little bit there. I laugh at us really. If you could have seen our car when we were driving across the country you would have laughed. Slam packed!!! But yet we shop! haha.. Oh to top it off, I bought a new TV on Sunday. A 32" Samsung. We were going to wait until we travelled to our next assignment, as we don't really need one here, but it was a deal I couldn't pass up. We have serious problems I tell ya. So other than shopping, we really haven't done much. I am working tonight (an overtime shift. to support our shopping habits) then we both work Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. Friday we are going to the surprise for Abby. It will be awesome, then we hope to pick up a couple of more overtime shifts before we head to Vegas on the 6th of July. We work on the 4th, but why not... Great pay...
Restaurant of the week: The Fish market. We ate there Sunday night and it was delicious. they had the freshest Mahi Mahi. So tender you could cut it with a fork.
Movie of the week: "Get Smart" A very funny movie. We had our doubts, but we laughed a lot.
Weather forecast: Sunny and Hot. I think we are going on our 14th straight day of Temps over 110. Good times!
Well, I hope to bring you more fun and adventures someday. I guess once we stop shopping we might have money to take a fun trip. Seriously, after Vegas we hope to take a few trips through July and august. We are going to head to San Diego, the Grand Canyons, Sedona, and Flagstaff. We truly aren't taking advantage of our location, and that is unfortunate. Will keep you posted. Hope you are all doing great. We love and miss you all. Till the next time...
Love to you all,
In His peace,
Michael and Abby...
p.s. I have lost 14 pounds since moving out here. Climbing that mountain I tell ya. Tough work!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Competition breeds results...
Hello to all... Do hope this post finds everyone doing well. Abby and I are back to work. This week we work monday, tuesday and wednesday (nights). Then we have off until next monday night. I am picking up an overtime shift monday night, then Abby and I work tuesday, wednesday and thursday! On Friday I have a very special treat for Abby. She does not know what it is, but I assure you she will love it! I'll keep you posted...
This weekend was a pretty fun and relaxing weekend. We worked last tuesday, wednesday, and thursday, and we were suppose to work saturday. We ended up getting called off, so we had the entire weekend off. I was thrilled because that meant that I could sit on the couch all weekend and watch the US Open! Congrats Tiger... Although I was pulling for rocco near the end. Tiger has been there done that! He is amazing though. Sunday we went to climb Squaw Peak. It constantly takes me close to 40 minutes to climb the mountain. Abby and I broke 40 minutes a couple of times, but nothing to brag about. On sunday I offered up a friendly bet to Abby. I was on my high horse about how competition brings out the best in people. Hence the title of this post. I told her that she should get a head start and have me try to catch her so that it may push us to climb harder and faster. At first she was asking for a 10 minute head start. Now mind you that the hike only takes about 40 minutes, so I wasn't to keen on that idea. We worked it down to a 5 minute head start. She began to climb the mountain quickly disappearing out of my sight. I started my hike 5 minutes later. It took me a while to actually spot her climbing the mountain, but I did about 1/4 of the way up. I kicked it into gear and just kept climbing. I only stopped a couple of times until I was getting close to the top. I was pushing myself so hard, that I stopped a few times to catch my breath and hold off from throwing up! Okay, so I'm trying to make this a long story. I will get right to it. I did not catch Abby, although I was close. She ended up climbing the mountain in 34 minutes, a personal best. I finished in 30:15, also a personal best. We both destroyed that mountain. We were very pleased, but very very tired! We were able to take some awesome pictures of the sunset while on top of the mountain. I hope to put those pictures up along with the others that I've promised. Sorry about that! So now we have a new personal best to beat. I'm pretty sure that will not happen for sometime. The heat is getting out of control. When we first arrived in Phoenix we had highs in the 90's - low 100's. In that heat, you can tell that there is low humidity and actually function throughout the day. Well let me tell you. the 110's are no joke! I don't' care what the humidity is, it is HOT!! When we climbed the mountain, we got back into our car around 8:30pm and the temperature gage was saying 110. The temperature today was 115 and that trend is suppose to continue throughout the week. I hope to make it back to Squaw Peak when we get off work to try and escape the heat, but listen to this. We were on our way home from work yesterday around 8am. The news was already saying it was 93. 93 at 8am. What is that? Anyhow, we will survive near and in the pool all week. For those keeping up with the "biggest loser" between Brother Bear and I, I am happy to report that I'm down from 238 lbs to 228 lbs. Guess the heat has some advantages! haha.. In phoenix I feel like a wrestler, with his sweat suit on, sitting in the sauna! Good times!
The Abby and Hinchy movie review: "The Happening" Worst movie ever! If you pay money to see this we will laugh. Marky Mark's acting is worse than when he was making his music video for "good vibrations." haha.. I make myself laugh. I usually like him as an actor. Who can forget Planet of the Apes and Fear. Classics.. haha.. In all seriousness, a terrible movie. Sorry to disappoint, but trust us on this one!
Restaurant of the week: 5 & Diner... This place is a nice little diner open 24/7. It is a old 50's style joint that has delicious breakfast food. Chocolate Chip Waffles! A fat kids dream.
Weather forecast... To quote Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam: "I just want to begin by saying to Roosevelt E. Roosevelt, what it is, what it shall be, what it was. The weather out there today is hot and shitty with continued hot and shitty in the afternoon. Tomorrow a chance of continued crappy with a pissy weather front coming down from the north. Basically, it's hotter than a snake's ass in a wagon rut." How true!
Abby was just over here ready my post and she was going to interrupt with some words of her own. I told her that she needs to write a post so you can all experience this adventure through her eyes. I know it is usually one sided, but it's probably the best side! haha.. j/k.. I hope Abby doesn't read that. Let me hurry up and finish and post this... Okay where was I.
We came
We saw
we did this
we did that
We enjoyed
thanks
love ya
goodbye!
This weekend was a pretty fun and relaxing weekend. We worked last tuesday, wednesday, and thursday, and we were suppose to work saturday. We ended up getting called off, so we had the entire weekend off. I was thrilled because that meant that I could sit on the couch all weekend and watch the US Open! Congrats Tiger... Although I was pulling for rocco near the end. Tiger has been there done that! He is amazing though. Sunday we went to climb Squaw Peak. It constantly takes me close to 40 minutes to climb the mountain. Abby and I broke 40 minutes a couple of times, but nothing to brag about. On sunday I offered up a friendly bet to Abby. I was on my high horse about how competition brings out the best in people. Hence the title of this post. I told her that she should get a head start and have me try to catch her so that it may push us to climb harder and faster. At first she was asking for a 10 minute head start. Now mind you that the hike only takes about 40 minutes, so I wasn't to keen on that idea. We worked it down to a 5 minute head start. She began to climb the mountain quickly disappearing out of my sight. I started my hike 5 minutes later. It took me a while to actually spot her climbing the mountain, but I did about 1/4 of the way up. I kicked it into gear and just kept climbing. I only stopped a couple of times until I was getting close to the top. I was pushing myself so hard, that I stopped a few times to catch my breath and hold off from throwing up! Okay, so I'm trying to make this a long story. I will get right to it. I did not catch Abby, although I was close. She ended up climbing the mountain in 34 minutes, a personal best. I finished in 30:15, also a personal best. We both destroyed that mountain. We were very pleased, but very very tired! We were able to take some awesome pictures of the sunset while on top of the mountain. I hope to put those pictures up along with the others that I've promised. Sorry about that! So now we have a new personal best to beat. I'm pretty sure that will not happen for sometime. The heat is getting out of control. When we first arrived in Phoenix we had highs in the 90's - low 100's. In that heat, you can tell that there is low humidity and actually function throughout the day. Well let me tell you. the 110's are no joke! I don't' care what the humidity is, it is HOT!! When we climbed the mountain, we got back into our car around 8:30pm and the temperature gage was saying 110. The temperature today was 115 and that trend is suppose to continue throughout the week. I hope to make it back to Squaw Peak when we get off work to try and escape the heat, but listen to this. We were on our way home from work yesterday around 8am. The news was already saying it was 93. 93 at 8am. What is that? Anyhow, we will survive near and in the pool all week. For those keeping up with the "biggest loser" between Brother Bear and I, I am happy to report that I'm down from 238 lbs to 228 lbs. Guess the heat has some advantages! haha.. In phoenix I feel like a wrestler, with his sweat suit on, sitting in the sauna! Good times!
The Abby and Hinchy movie review: "The Happening" Worst movie ever! If you pay money to see this we will laugh. Marky Mark's acting is worse than when he was making his music video for "good vibrations." haha.. I make myself laugh. I usually like him as an actor. Who can forget Planet of the Apes and Fear. Classics.. haha.. In all seriousness, a terrible movie. Sorry to disappoint, but trust us on this one!
Restaurant of the week: 5 & Diner... This place is a nice little diner open 24/7. It is a old 50's style joint that has delicious breakfast food. Chocolate Chip Waffles! A fat kids dream.
Weather forecast... To quote Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam: "I just want to begin by saying to Roosevelt E. Roosevelt, what it is, what it shall be, what it was. The weather out there today is hot and shitty with continued hot and shitty in the afternoon. Tomorrow a chance of continued crappy with a pissy weather front coming down from the north. Basically, it's hotter than a snake's ass in a wagon rut." How true!
Abby was just over here ready my post and she was going to interrupt with some words of her own. I told her that she needs to write a post so you can all experience this adventure through her eyes. I know it is usually one sided, but it's probably the best side! haha.. j/k.. I hope Abby doesn't read that. Let me hurry up and finish and post this... Okay where was I.
We came
We saw
we did this
we did that
We enjoyed
thanks
love ya
goodbye!
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