Newbold reunion

We had a wonderful Newbold reunion on this side of the "pond". We had dinner in Temcula, California at the restaurant "El Torito" with Dave Penner. .... Well, like has been happening lately, I completely forgot to take a picture at the beginning of the meal (when the food was beautiful and hot :) ) ... so here's the picture we took after the fact :)


It felt good to reminisce on fond memories and hear about new events in each other's lives :)

Missed you there Josée !

Kumqwhaaat ?

Matt has found a new favorite fruit while on a Sunday walk with the Dawkins family. Who knew that you could pack a whole party in just one little bite ?

The kumquat fruit is a little something originating from China. This funny little fruit is the size of a grape-tomato and it is eaten whole because the peel is sweet and the inside sour. (Very yummy :) )

Suffice it to say ... we'll probably be going on more walks soon enough ;)

Walking, walking, walking

Well, we had a nice walk at the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve Trails today with Gordon & Zulita :)

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera in the car and so I didn't get a chance to take any pictures at all. Luckily though, Zulita had her camera with her and took a picture of us walking along one of the trails :)

San Diego Zoo

As part of my birthday weekend, Matt and I went to the San Diego Zoo (something that I'd been wanting to see since the first time we visited southern California). We haven't put up a lot of pictures recently, so I made sure to pick out some of our favorite shots from the zoo so that you could join us on our trip.

Enjoy !

(This mama gorilla was particularly difficult to photograph with the reflection on the glass, but thanks to the help of a lady with a black purse, I was able to catch this delicate "siesta" time :):) )

Just keep swimming ... just keep swimming :)

NOT a wax sculpture ... this little one has sharp teeth that will snap your fingers off !

Yet another reptile that I wouldn't want to meet up with outside of the zoo ...

Wombats are fuzzy little creatures. This one seemed too preoccupied with his dinner to see anyone stand around staring at him ;)

Hippo & Okapi

A little kid standing in amazement of such a huge hippo.

Pucker up !! ** Muah ! **

#1 on Matt's "Animals-to-see-at-the-zoo" list :)



Okapi have markings similar to zebras and have an overall body shape like a giraffe (except with a much shorter neck). We were surprised to see that they have long blue tongues like the giraffe too !!

What trip to the zoo would be complete without a visit to the llamas ? :)

Apparently some where lazier than others ....

The large rodent from South America: the Capybara

We like photographing monkeys ... but this lemur was more interested in the setting sun.

When we saw this t-shirt we immediately thought of little Jeanne, since she'll be walking and climbing all over the place really soon ! We'll get you this t-shirt when you come to visit us here in California (hope it'll fit when the time comes !).

Prairie Dogs & big animals ;)

Meerkats (prairie dogs) are some of my favorite animals ... they just look funny :)

Looking for mischief.

Curious little things ... :D

Big ol' elephant that was eating his lunch.

This rhino didn't seem to mind just standing there and posing for the crowd.

The Art Center, just outside the Zoo. (Did you notice the BLUE sky ? ;) )

Not your average post :)

Palm trees we saw on our way to the Zoo entrance. (Pour Michel)

Doesn't he just look cute enough to hug ??

Monkeys all dressed up with no place to go ....

Friday Dinner Between Friends + Balloons !

Maritza & Dion prepared a wonderful Thai supper for Julia, Matt & I to start off a great weekend of catching up and hanging out.
Julia being a shutterbug and Maritza striking a pose before supper.
Did you know that they give you balloons at TGIFriday's when it's your birthday ? Well they do ! Three balloons and 2 scoops of ice cream later, Julia & I take a quick shot before leaving the restaurant after church on a bright and sunny Saturday afternoon (did I mention that it was 29C/84F ??).

Happy Bday Di!

An expression of affection ...

To all who celebrate this day
(or protest it, whatever the individual case may be)
we wish you a
Happy Valentine's Day 2007

Well ... maybe next year.

The Bears gave it a shot. They had a good season and made us all proud of that feat. Losing tonight wasn't because of any lack on our part of screaming, yelling and cheering.

We could point fingers ... but what would that accomplish other than just tearing the team apart ? We wore our t-shirts (thanks Mom) proudly. But now must put them away until next season.

The trophy will be ours again one day.

Something to celebrate :)

Well, this post isn't directly about us this time.

Today's news is about my dad, State Fair Community College's newest winner of the (2nd) Annual SFCC Chili Contest !!!

The judges were allowed 4 votes, and the contestant with the most votes would be declared the winner.

Here's Dad (down on the right ;) ) making sure that his chili was at the right temperature for his judges.

And what was the prize, you might ask ?
Glad you asked !

This nifty ladle and bragging right until next year.

The recipe, you might ask ?
It's a secret family recipe ... so secret I don't even know it !! ;)

Great job, Dad !