San Diego - Golf - Round 2 & 3

That last post was getting a little long so I decided to break up my golf post :)

We played our second round of golf on Thursday, and we played Coronado Golf Course.

The views at this course were almost as stunning as the views at Torrey Pines. Torrey Pines is elevated, so you get cliff side views of the ocean...Coronado is at sea level, so you get a totally different ocean view.

A few photo worthy views...

One of the other amazing views you get throughout the course is of the Coronado Bridge; Coronado has an island feel, but it's actually a peninsula - the bridge takes you across San Diego Bay.
Curt making his second shot on the 18th hole...good thing it was low tide!
Just to prove that I was there...and because I like the palm trees :)
We played with two men, George and Steve, and really enjoyed their company! George had to quit after nine holes because his back was bothering him; Steve played the full round, and because he was a local, he had lots of interesting local knowledge to share with us.

Notice the buildings in the background? The locals call those 'Taco Towers' - when they were originally built, none of the locals wanted to buy them (they are ocean front, but pretty ugly), so the builders went to Mexico and sold them to wealthy Mexicans!
I think our round at Coronado was probably my favourite round of the trip. Torrey Pines was amazing, but I was playing so poorly it was more about the experience then the golf. I played a lot better at Coronado, and it was a great experience, so it takes first.

Our third round of golf was on Friday, and we played the course at our resort. We were originally going to play another round at Torrey Pines - this time the North Course - but decided to keep our last day of vacation a little more low key. Playing the resort course allowed to sleep in and have a relaxing morning, which was nice.

The course was actually an executive course - I think there were 11 par threes! It would have been great to warm-up on this course, we did things totally backwards.

Curt, loving life!
No ocean views at this course, but plenty of mountain views!
And, this always happens...we have hardly any pictures from our last round! Oh well, there is no shortage of pictures in this post anyway!

San Diego - Golf - Round 1

We played three rounds of golf on this trip, and we played at some pretty spectacular courses. Our first round of the week was on Tuesday, and we played the South Course at Torrey Pines - home of the 2008 U.S. Open!

Torrey Pines is a municipal course, owned and operated by the city of San Diego, but because it has hosted the Open and hosts a yearly PGA event, it's quite popular! As a result, they have a different way off booking tee times, you don't just call the Pro Shop, and it seemed pretty complicated.

We wanted to play in the afternoon because there is a reduced twilight rate - so, we had to show up first thing in the morning to get our name on the waiting list (we got there just after 8am to sign up then we went and got breakfast and did some shopping), then you have to make sure you are at the course around noon when they start calling names for the twilight tee times. There is really no guarantee that you'll get on, so, we decided to go to the course on Tuesday, that way if it didn't work out, we could try again later in the week. And, although it all seemed pretty complicated, we got on that first day...and, we got off at 12:40pm, the second twilight group!

Curt making a great bunker shot on the third hole - the signature hole.
Making my birdie putt on the third hole. I missed the birdie, but made the par putt!
Just south of the course is Torrey Pines Gliderport - so, we saw a lot of people out paragliding along the cliffs. We looked into doing this before our trip, but it was a little too expensive!
A picture of the scenery...and Curt and I.
We finished our round just as it was getting dark and we got to see a beautiful sunset while we played the last few holes.

In hindsight, we should have played Torrey Pines later in the week - had we known that the different way of getting a tee time was actually pretty easy, we would have done things differently - it would have been nice to have a little warm up before taking on such a course (especially considering we haven't swung a club in a few months). I didn't play well at all, but I decided just to stop keeping score and enjoy the experience...that was a good decision! Curt played really well though, he shot a 92!

San Diego - Welk Resorts

First, a little note to add to my last post...the adventure we had getting to airport, and catching our flight, pretty much ended there - we didn't have any other major issues. We were told that our car rental reservation had been cancelled because we showed up late, but they still had cars on the lot, so it wasn't really an issue. That would have happened even if we had caught our original flight though, so we can't really complain (we didn't realize that we had to give a specific time of arrival, so we just entered 9am on our online reservation; they cancel the reservation if you're not there within six hours of that). Our original reservation was for a Jeep Wrangler, but because they wouldn't give us the deal we found online, we ended up with a Hyundai Elantra. I think we're pretty practical people, so we realized it was probably a lot better on gas anyway :)

Our trip to San Diego was another Timeshare getaway, and once again, we were VERY impressed with our accommodations! The resort we stayed at was part of Welk Resorts - we stayed in the Mountain Villas, the newest units on the property! I think this is probably my favourite of the three places we've stayed now; however, it may have to be tied with Stormy Point Village in Branson, just because the two resorts are so different - you can't really compare the two.

First, our room...

A view from the front door.

A view of the sitting area. Those pictures on the wall were amazing! I would have loved to bring those home with me.

Our bedroom! Soooo nice. And you'll notice this is the second fireplace in our unit! We used both of the throughout the week - it cools down quite a bit in the evenings, so it was nice to have those on at night and in the morning.

We also had a full kitchen. We enjoy this aspect of staying in timeshare units rather then hotels; it allows us to have a few meals 'at home' so we can save money by not eating out three times a day.

Needless to say, we were very comfortable here for the week!

Now, for some pictures of the pool area...I wish we could have taken advantage of this area a little more. We had some pretty busy days on this trip, so we didn't really get to lounge by the pool. And although we had great weather, it wasn't really hot to the point that you needed to go for a swim to cool down (although our last day there was pretty close).

The pool and members clubhouse/presentation center.

A few of the Cabanas available for rent - these would be great if you were staying there in the summer!

Look closely...notice the water slide just beyond the pool! No, we did not go down the slide :( We were usually at the pool in the evening, to use the hot tub, so the slide wasn't open.

We did take advantage of the hot tub...I think we used it every day!

Another area we didn't take advantage of, but thought it was great...the kids splash pad! Curt took the liberty of turning on the water, even though the water was freezing, so we could see how everything worked.


Although the pictures don't really do it justice, hopefully you can get an idea about how beautiful this place was! I would love to go back, but, we have a lot of other places we want to visit too! How are we supposed to choose?!?

Let the Adventure Begin

To my faithful readers: I am WAY behind in blog posts, so, I'm cheating...I'm going to try to get caught up over the next few days and I'm going to back date my posts until I'm back on track.

I actually wrote this post on December 3rd while I was on the plane, so here it goes...

It’s our first day of vacation, I expected it to only be a day of travel; however, it’s already been an adventure worth blogging about.

We arrived in Acton last night and spent the night at Tom and Krystle’s; this morning, we had a chance to visit with Krystle and the kids (Tom had to work), and my mom. We left for airport around 9:15am, plenty of time to make a 12:20pm flight….or so we thought!

The drive was going great, and we both commented on how it always seemed to be a quick drive. Then we got to the border, and things CHANGED! There is a lot of construction happening on the Canadian side of the border, so at one point, we were down to just one lane. We were crawling along, but figured once we got past the bottle neck, we would be fine. Unfortunately, the bottle neck last a lot longer then we expected and even when it did open up in to more lanes, things were SLOW! The clock was ticking, and I was getting nervous.

Beside us to the right there was an empty lane – yes it was blocked off with pylons; yes, it was clearly marked ‘Trucks/Commercial Vehicles Only’…I don’t deny any of that. I joked with Curt that we should cut into that lane and fly through. Then, we noticed a Saturn Ion do just that…then it was a Lexus…the last straw was when we saw a minivan in that lane…that was enough to make Curt cut through the pylons! We fell into line behind the Lexus and minivan. Our rationale, we were desperate! It was getting so close to our flight time that we figured we either pay a ticket for using the wrong lane at the border (not sure if that’s what happens, but that’s what we told ourselves?!?)…or, we miss our flight and have to purchase new tickets (again, not sure what would happen if we actually didn’t make the flight, but we figured it would involve forking out more money to get on a new flight).

So, we’re sitting in line and along comes a Border Crossing official…he spoke to the driver of the Lexus, who then handed over his passport (which scared us, a little), but then he walked to the van and spoke to them briefly. When he made it to us, and asked if it was commercial entry, Curt stated ‘no’ and we were in trouble! He wondered why we had gotten into that line, but took no sympathy on us when we told him we were going to miss a flight…his response, he told us that if we had made it to the booth, the agent would have made us ‘go inside’ and we would have been busy explaining ourselves for at least an hour and a half. After some more stern lecturing, he told us we were getting a ‘huge break’ and he was going to let us merge back into the lane to our left.

Well, at his direction, we merged in front of a vehicle with two ladies in it….and, the passenger felt it was necessary to give us another lecture?!?! She was complaining that she had been waiting in line for an hour, and we shouldn’t get to merge ahead of her… Curt was driving, so he left his window down and listened to her yell at us...I think he was just smiling and laughing at what she was saying. I was already a little annoyed by this point, and couldn't stand getting yelled at by some random person. So, I leaned over and stated that we had also been waiting an hour, and as a result, had missed a flight…I think I then thanked her for letting us in front of her…or something like that?!?!

After the normal questioning from the Customs Officer in the booth, we got another little lecture, but it wasn’t too bad (and besides, we were getting used to them by this point)…and, we were on our way!

Curt did his best to get us to the airport QUICKLY, but, it was to no avail.

We started the self check-in process at the Southwest counter, but when Curt entered our confirmation number in the computer, it quickly told us that we had to check our bags in at least 30 minutes before a flight. At this point, the ticket agent turns his attention to us and asks what flight we were trying to catch…when we told him, he remarked that ‘seven minutes before a flight takes off is not adequate time to check-in’! Here we go again, another lecture! How many is that today?

Thankfully, he then proceeded to search for a new flight for us and we explained what had happened. Within a few minutes, he was able to tell us that we would be able to catch a flight at 2:20pm, it would take us to Phoenix, Arizona…once there, we would have a 40 minute layover, and then we could catch a flight onto San Diego. I don’t think I relaxed until I heard the magical words ‘there will be no extra charge to you’!!!

So, from there, things proceeded as they should have originally. We grabbed a bite to eat at the airport (Curt had a beer, and I was tempted to join him, just to calm my nerves). Boarding the plane went well, although Curt and I didn’t get to sit together (not something we could complain about, given the circumstances). I’m typing this in Word as the plane descends into Phoenix, I’ll post it to Blogger when we have internet access and we’ll see if I have to add to the drama from here or if we’ll simply make the connection to San Diego and get on with our vacation!?!?

So Long Movember...

you will not be missed!

Well, we've made it to the end of November/Movember, and I couldn't be happier.

Here is a picture of Curt as of today....

Thankfully, Curt has been a little annoyed with the moustache throughout the month, so there won't be any question about him getting rid of it! He said that it got in the way when he had to blow his nose...and it felt weird when he was drinking out of a glass.

So, Movember is raising money for a great cause...and I hope that a lot of money was raised this year...but, I'm glad it's over and I hope Curt doesn't get on the band wagon next year :)

Update: I wrote this post a few hours ago, but just took the picture of Curt to add to the post. As I took the picture he commented that I only had to put up with it for a few more days. What?!?! He tells me that he wants to leave it so that the family can see it (as in my side of the family). I told him that's why I was blogging about it, so they could see the picture...but I think he's seriously going to keep it. UGH!

I can guarantee that it will be gone BEFORE we leave for the airport on Saturday!

A Long Weekend

Well, I have to say it, I was right! A few weeks ago, I commented that we should have four day work weeks and three day weekends...and, as we wrap up a three day weekend, I can say that it would be glorious to have this every weekend.

Friday was Remembrance Day, and since Curt and I both work for the Government, we both had the day off! We both had a low key, but productive, days around the house. I got some of my weekend chores done early so I could have the rest of the weekend off - just laundry, vacuuming and dusting type chores. I also put dinner in the slow cooker in the morning, so I wouldn't have to worry about that at dinner time. I tried a recipe I found on Pinterest, and it was delicious!

Salsa Chicken, served on a bed of rice...
I've been on Pinterest for months, and have pinned so many recipes, but this is the first one I've actually made. I was glad that it didn't disappoint!

After dinner, we went to visit Ike and Jeanette and played some Rummoli - Curt was the big winner at the end of the night.

Saturday was pretty typical - I had to coach, can't change that.

We recently discovered we have access to some pretty cheap Belleville Bulls tickets - Curt's cousin has seasons tickets, and if he can't make it to a particular game, he sells them off pretty cheap. So, we took advantage of that on Saturday night and went to watch the Bulls play the Saginaw Spirit - the Bulls won in a shootout! I never would have thought I would go to a hockey game and enjoy watching it?!?! I'm still a figure skater through and through though - that's obvious by various comments I make during the game; for example, a player took a shot on net, and another player had to jump to get out of the path of the puck, my first response was to say that he had good height and probably could have rotated an axel! Curt always enjoys my commentary :)

There is always different contests on the ice between periods, and last night, one of the contests had four people on the ice taking shots at signs, trying to knock down as many as possible in a set amount of time. The sign was supposed to read 'Go Bulls Go', and each letter was an individual sign. There were four different people setting things up, three younger guys who probably work at the rink, and a fourth guy, dressed in a suit in tie, who probably works for the Bulls. Here is the what the guy in the suit and tie came up with...
Bahahaha! He set it up from behind (obviously), and when he came around in front to look at it, he just shrugged his shoulders and moved on :)

Today, has been another incredibly low key day, and I've loved every minute of it! Curt and I have both enjoyed relaxing and feeling like we have nothing that HAS to be done. We even had time to play a game today - we pulled out Trivial Pursuit 90's - Curt kicked my butt, but that's because he's so much older then me, he obviously remembers more from the 90's then I do, I was just a young child after all!

We enjoyed another slow cooker dinner - a roast with potatoes and vegetables - and now Curt is setting up the DVD player so we can record Battle of the Blades and The Amazing Race. I have been part of a book club with friends over the last months, and we moved our night from Tuesday's to Sunday's, so I'll be heading out the door shortly. We will be talking about the book 'The Glass Castle' by Jeannette Walls - I thought it was a pretty good book, but the discussions with the other girls always makes me appreciate the book even more.

After such a relaxing weekend, you'd think I would be all prepared to go back to work tomorrow...but, I don't think that will be the case. However, knowing that I only have 15 more days of work (20 days in total) until we leave for California should give me the extra motivation I'll need to get up and get to the office!!!

Whirlwind Weekend

I really wish weekends were longer...I think a four day work week, with a three day weekend, would be perfect. Two days just go by way too fast, especially when you throw in a quick trip home for a birthday party.

I can't believe it, but, Nolan turns FOUR today and his parents had a party for him yesterday - so, it was off to Acton to celebrate!

I had to coach on Saturday, so we didn't get to leave until late afternoon. We arrived in Acton around 6:30pm and went to visit my parents - Tom and Krystle had their own plans and were out for the evening anyway. We had a nice visit with my parents, and even had time for a game of Canasta - which the girls won, of course!

On Sunday, Nolan woke up ready to go - he was sooo excited for his party! Tom and Krystle had a few things to do around the house to get ready, so Curt and I took Nolan to church with us - it gave Nolan something to do to get his mind off his party, and it got him out of his parents hair for awhile...I think it was a win-win!

Nolan seemed a little grumpy when he woke up from his nap - but, once the other kids arrived he perked right up, and the presents seemed to help too!

Look at all the gift bags...and you really only see half of them in this picture!


Here he is enjoying a quick look at one of his new dinosaur books. He is in LOVE with dinosaurs, and almost every gift had something to do with them.


My parents bought Nolan a new snowsuit...and, my mom had to get him a hat to go with it! I laughed when I saw this because I used to have one just like it, except it was pink. I probably had more then one actually, my mom loves these things, but I remember the pink one.


My mom made the birthday cake - and of course, it was a dinosaur.


And, although you're probably already in picture overload, I have to throw one in of Abby and I - she is in such a fun stage right now! This is a picture Curt took of the two of us playing on the couch while Nolan opened all his presents.

Something was really funny...too bad I can't remember what we were laughing at.


Unfortunately, we had to eat and run...as soon as we were done with our dessert we decided to hit the road. It felt a little rushed, but it was nice to get home at a decent time. So, although it was a little rushed, we were really glad that we could be there to celebrate with the Robertson's. It was also nice to see the rest of the family - especially the Watson's! And this is the perfect time for a shout out to my Uncle John, one of my few blog readers, I got this post up tonight just for him!