Is It Masochism?

These are my Bears playing at the new Gaylen Center at USC. It was a beautiful night. The new arena is amazing - true to USC form, cost was no object & no expense was spared. Our seats were great - thank you Ryan! The company was awesome. The only problem? My Bears never win!


Well - let me clarify - they're actually 5th in the Pac 10. And well above Stanford, which is all that really matters. But after sitting through 4 losing seasons of Cal football (for those of you who keep track - I was there during the Holmoe years. Enough said.). After dragging groups of friends to recent Cal games & that we inevitably always lose. And after having expectations that we'd have a decent basketball season... I begin to wonder.... is it me? Do I jinx them? Or is it just plain masochism at this point? I'm beginning to know how Cubs fans feel.


So - despite the loss, it was actually a great game. And with no shame (or perhaps no pride), there we all sat in the sea of red - sporting our faithful blue & gold. I walked out with my head high. And will continue to say - Go Bears!

Jack's 1st Birthday

This past weekend was awesome. I mean - who can beat 80 degrees in January? I enjoyed the weekend in the company of great friends. First off - Jack's 1st Birthday! I know I'm a little biased, but I seriously think he's the cutest ever! Check out these pics of Jack after he's devoured his Elmo cupcake... there was red frosting from ear to ear! And just FYI - Heather is amazing. She made the Elmo cake & Elmo cupcakes herself. You can kindof see them in the bottom of the picture. So fun!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Although most of the country considers yesterday a historic day because of the inauguration, I consider it a historic day in commemoration of my Dear Old Dad! Yesterday was Grego's birthday. I'm so grateful for his example as a loving father, a man of integrity, hard work & learning. To celebrate - the whole family got together for dinner & dessert. It was so fun to be together & spend time chatting & bantering as adults. I'm so grateful we all live close for this brief window of time. We took some family pics. Enjoy!

PS. As everyone was wearing cheesy Obama shirts around town yesterday, I was wishing I had made a shirt with my Dad's picture on it! If only I had been so clever ahead of time to prepare. :)

A New Start...

Hi Friends -

So I'm a little late with the New Year's resolutions this year. As many of you know, it was a rough holiday. And just as I was hoping to get my feet under me, I got sick. Yuck! Serious headaches. At first I thought it was a migraine (that lasted for 3 days). Then I finally saw a doc and went on meds to treat a serious sinus infection. BTW - sinus headaches often feel like migraines. FYI. I'm finally doing a bit better. But the headaches still come & go. So we'll see if further follow-up is needed. I'll report back to you all...

But I do want to say that I'm optimistic. I love new starts. I love change. I even love Mondays. So here it goes... a new year, a new single life, a new haircut. Soon to come a new body (a much needed diet is underway), perhaps even a new job or new city (pending the outcome of this scary economic slowdown). Anyway - I'm off to a new start. And I believe talk is cheap - so I'm making myself accountable - to all of you! :)

So... stay tuned for the fabulous adventures of Maren J. And for now, I'm of course keeping busy with work, basketball season, teaching Gospel Doctrine, piano lessons, being super aunt, planning someone else's wedding (no joke... it's a long story...), and trying to keep balance.

I wish you all a fabulous New Year! I love hearing your adventures and of your fabulous families. And even if we don't talk too much - no worries - I blog-stalk all of you. :)

Take care...Lots of loves...
Maren