The bon voyage book

Kristi brought me the book people signed at the going away party last weekend, so I finally got to read what people wrote. I, of course, cried when I read a couple of the entries, particularly the one from Toby. This was by far the best good-bye we got because Toby wrote a letter to Inara detailing his role in our life. In case you didn't know, Toby was our officiant at our wedding and has definitely become one of our best friends. He is such a great guy with a huge heart. He also has an awesome way with words as his entry shows. So thank you so much, Toby, for making me cry yet again! I also want to thank Diane and Tony for writing such heartfelt good-byes. It makes me feel good knowing we have such awesome friendships we can always turn to during this rough transition. I'm now going through that stage of questioning whether I made the right decision to move. I am going to miss my family and friends sooo much!!! I am already looking forward to coming back in July for sure and perhaps even sooner. Thanks again to everyone who came out to celebrate with us last weekend and for our going away gifts. We love you all and hope you will come visit us in Colorado. (This will likely be my last entry because the computer is getting packed tonight. I'll try to write from my dad's computer before I fly out on the 6th.)

It's been a rough couple of days

I have a few minutes to do a quick update on how things have been going. It is with great sadness that I write that my Uncle Vance passed away on Thursday. I know that if he were to survive the stroke, he would have lived a life dependent on constant care and may have never regained his speech and memory, but it is still a significant loss to our family. We have had to face some great losses in our family. Uncle Vance's passing will definitely leave a mark on so many of us. As always, I am in complete awe of my dad's strength when it comes to handling the loss of a loved one. This is just one of the many reasons that my dad is my hero! I love you, Pop. I collected some more articles about my uncle, which I posted below.

Other rather sad news I have to report is Shawn came home from his soccer game Thursday with a swollen ankle. He was in so much pain and was unable to sleep that night. He iced and elevated his foot all night yet in the morning it was still super swollen. I feared the worst but I didn't say so to anyone. We ended up getting into our family doctor first thing Friday morning and received the bad news that his ankle is broken. I seriously was about to start crying when I heard the doctor utter those words. The doctor put Shawn in a splint until the swelling goes down. Then on Wednesday he gets a cast on. We were told it should take between 4 to 6 weeks for him to heal. This couldn't have come at a worst time. This is our last weekend of packing and the moving trucks arrive on Tuesday. Shawn is officially unable to help with any of the packing and lifting boxes now. I told him the best thing he can do to help me out is to keep Inara quiet so that I can blast through the rest of the packing and get everything else done in the next couple of days. I feel so bad because I know Shawn is seriously kicking himself in the butt. He even apologized to Kristi today for all of this. Seriously? Who apologizes to other people when he gets a broken bone? That's the kind of guy Shawn is though. He feels so horrible because he knows others were counting on him and now he feels like he's letting them down. He is truly self-less at times. I am so worried about the pain he's in, and he's beating himself up for adding to my stress level. Yes, I think I am now going to crack, but I don't blame Shawn for it. I do blame the 200+ pound guy who took Shawn out of the soccer game. The good news is I think Shawn is officially going to retire from playing soccer. Heck, it only took him breaking his ankle to hear those words I've been waiting so long for. At least he went out on top: he scored 4 goals in Thursday's game. Hey, I've got to keep looking for humor in all this. Well, I best get back to packing while Shawn and Inara are sleeping. Hopefully I'll get to relax for a few hours and enjoy some of the Oscars tomorrow. Too bad I'll be doing laundry while watching though and feeling guilty for relaxing. I'm just wondering if all the events of the last week are signs that I should not be moving to Colorado. Everything just reminds me how important it is for me to be close to my parents. They are the two pillars who are getting me through this emotional, tough time right now. God how I love those two!

Here are the latest articles I found on my uncle.

This is an article with words from Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_firecapt23.419339c.html

Here is another news article about my uncle's passing
http://www.firefightingnews.com/article-US.cfm?articleID=45679

Updated Rim of the World story on my uncle
http://rimoftheworld.net/columns/neufeld/captan

I also came across a couple comments in a chatroom of sorts at www.wildlandfires.com/theysaid.html

From 2/21:
Had the pleasure of working along side Capt. Tomaselli on the Butler 2 fire. He was a riot! So much experience, so easy going and a great all around guy.
Our hearts are with Jim and his family during this difficult time.
ES

From 2/20:
Re SBC Fire Captain Tomaselli, how he's doing:
Our hearts and prayers are with you, Jim, and your dad . You have done so much for the fire community. It is our time to be there for your family. I would hope to see that all that you have helped will be there. I have had the experience to meet your dad. He was a guy that you could talk to till the sun went down and beyond. I have not heard any news since the crash. I would hope that updates could be posted on this site. signed Former BDF Firefighter

My favorite picture of my dad and his siblings

I love the top picture of my dad and his siblings because that is such a typical image of the foursome laughing away, having a blast. As far back as my memory goes, I always remember tons and tons of laughter when the Tomaselli's were together. There was never a shortage of jokes, especially with my dad around. God how I love my family!!!

Shawn's blog

He's been wanting to do one for awhile but was always a bit lazy. But he finally started it last night. It's funny because while most people would probably be stressing a week before moving and scrambling to get things done, my husband sat at the computer for a few hours to build the blog. This is a good indicator of how far ahead of the packing game we are. So visit www.shawnandmarisa.com to read Shawn's blog.

More articles on my Uncle Vance

My dad told me there were several newspaper articles written on my uncle, so I Googled his name and found a couple more, so I'm posting them here for others to read. For those that know Vance, the first one may make you cry. I have to share though.

http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_B_bstroke19.3ddb3d1.html

http://rimoftheworld.net/columns/neufeld/angelus

My heavy heart

As some of you already know, Saturday was even more difficult for me to get through because I received word that my uncle, my dad's elder brother, Vance Tomaselli had a stroke. This weekend has been a rough one for our family, and, unfortunately, my uncle's condition has worsened. Such life experiences remind we why it's going to be so hard to move away from my parents. I hate the thought that I will be 16 hours away from them, especially given how close-knit my family is. This has been one very emotional week for all of us. Please keep my uncle and his family in your thoughts. Since I was crying off and on pretty much all day yesterday, I decided to cheer myself up by playing with baby girl and ended up taking a couple videos of her too, which Shawn has posted on www.shawnandmarisa.com. This was the best way I could think to help me through my tears. Love to you all.

The latest photos

Pictures have been updated on our website. Be sure to look at the Timeless album for her 5 month birthday photo and Shawn made a new folder called Inara and Friends where he will put all the new photos of Inara. Notice her new favorite toys: Giddy Up the horse and Jason T. Turtle from Uncle Jason.

http://shawnandmarisa.phanfare.com/9999

Our See You Soon Fiesta

I've decided I don't want to say good-bye to friends and family nor do I like the sound of Going Away, as in our party yesterday, so I've now titled it "Our See You Soon" fiesta. We had such a great day and tons of friends came out to wish us well on our new adventure. It meant a lot to see so many special people there: Erin, Tony, Toby, Kate & Andy, Elizabeth, Sierra & Mike, the McCarthy's, the Rauh's, Lisa & Kylie, Eric Do, Thien & Brenda, the Wongs, Katherine & her sons, Brenda & Clay, Dan & Diane, Wes, and a ton more of our friends and family. A lot of Shawn and Thane's co-workers also came out to say hey, which was really nice of them. Of course, there were some tears shed. Actually, lots of tears on my end. I told Shawn I felt like I cried more than Kristi. Darn it, I was hoping she'd be the emotional wreck yesterday. Ha ha. We got some special gifts yesterday, starting with the one from Jason. He made Kristi and I photo albums documenting our 7 years as friends. I had a feeling he might do something like that and initially when I say the package I thought maybe he just framed a couple pics or made us a new digital pic, but once I saw the Mac box I knew exactly what he had done. The book is awesome!!! It's one of the best gifts I've ever received, even though it started the waterworks for me. Then Jason's mom, Diane, also referred to as Grandma Di, got us webcams, so, as she said, she can see her granddaughters grow up. That totally made me cry. Diane is like a mom to us and to hear her say that about Avery and Inara made me super sad. And it of course made me think of my mom and being away from her. Jason's dad, Tom, also got the girls a little gift: these super cute monkey plates. The Turnbaugh's are more like family to us and I'm going to greatly miss the 3 of them. My next big cry came when Thien and Brenda gave us their gift. Thien wrote Shawn and I a letter thanking us for our friendships and sharing how much we mean to him. He framed the letter with a few pictures of us through the years. While we don't get to see Thien much since he moved to Vegas, he's still one of our best friends and we'll miss him and Brenda a lot too. My last big cry came when I was saying good-bye to everyone. It was especially hard when I saw Greg and gave him a hug. Greg is like a brother to me and I'm going to REALLY miss him and all the fun things we used to do together, like bagels and fraps on football Sundays. It's really hard now that he's going to be a dad. I wish we could be here to share that with him. I sure hope he gets to come visit us at least once before the baby comes. Ugh! Moving is so hard because of the "see you soon's". It's only going to get worst. I've got two more days that I'm going to spend with my girlfriends and I know that's going to be super hard for me. I better go stock up on Kleenex this week. It's going to be a rough two weeks. Thanks again to everyone for coming to the party yesterday. WE LOVE YOU ALL!!!

Happy 5 Month Birthday, Inara

It's hard to believe Inara is turning 5 months old today. She's getting to be such a big girl. Sniff, sniff. Of course, we took her monthly picture this morning. I'm sure Shawn will post it this weekend with all the other pictures I've taken lately. There's quite a few for everyone to see. We also measured her today. She came in at 16 pounds and close to 25 inches long. Happy 5 Month, Baby Girl!

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope everyone has a great heart day! In the Valentine's Day spirit, I thought I'd write about some of the things I love right now. First off, I have to write about my lunch yesterday with Jason. Jason is one of our best friends and one of those people who goes out of his way to do something special for others. Yesterday, he took me and Inara to Downtown Disney so he could make Inara a special going away doll at Build a Bear. Just the thought was super sweet. And he was such a trooper and did all the fun little things they make you do when getting a doll there. In case you've never gone, when stuffing the doll, you pick out a heart to put inside but before hand they have you hold it to your head so the animal is smart, your tummy so the animal doesn't go hungry, your legs so the animal is a good dancer, and then you kiss it and make a wish. It sounds kind of silly, but I love Build a Bear. Although we first thought of getting a monkey since Jason is nicknamed Monkeyboy, instead we picked out the turtle because it's super cute and come to find out Jason used to have turtles when he was younger. I also loved that its shell is a backpack. So adorable. He then picked out a beating heart so that when Inara hugs it she will be able to feel the little heart beat. And of course, we had to get clothes for the turtle that make him look like Jason: a black pinstriped vest with a white shirt, jeans, and black converse. We couldn't find glasses that looked like the ones Jason wears, but later he called me to say his mom found some, so the outfit is now complete. He then named it Jason T. Turtle. He's such a good uncle and an awesome friend. Afterwards, he treated me to lunch and we hung out for a bit. Then on my way home emotions got the best of me and I broke down and started crying. I called Shawn and told him I can't move any more. I hate leaving family and friends and we truly have the best friends in the world. It's days like yesterday that remind me just how hard this move is going to be because of all the awesome people we are leaving behind. It sucks! I just wish I could convince everyone to pack up and move with us. Maybe someday. I know Saturday will be hard because our friends are throwing us a going away party at Jason's condo complex. It will be a rough day but also fantastic in that we get to see everyone one last time before heading to Colorado. I can't say it enough: we have the best friends in the whole wide world!!!

Another thing I really love right now is watching old Gilmore Girls episodes. I had a little breakdown the other day when I was feeding Inara and watching the episode where Rory gets accepted to Yale, Harvard and Princeton. The sheer enthusiasm from her grandparents when she tells them she's chosen Yale is so totally sweet that I started crying. I looked down at my adorable daughter and said, "Sweet Pea, you can go to any college you want to because I want you to have the best life possible." When Shawn got home that night, I told him about my little cry fest and he about had a heart attack at the slightest thought of having to pay for tuition to any Ivy League school. I said, "But honey, it's our daughter." He replied, "Yea, well she better get a full ride." I say we can probably get a chunk of change if we sold an organ or two. Hee hee! Then the other episode that made me cry yesterday (yes, I had a rough one yesterday) was when Rory gives her valedictorian speech at graduation and thanks her grandparents for being the pillars in her life and her mom for being her best friend and introducing her to the important literary figures in her life. She then said that the one person she would want to be someday was her mother. Of course, that made me cry because I now have a daughter and I want to have a close relationship with Inara as Rory does with her mom and I do with my mom. And then I cried even harder because I'm moving away from my mom and that's sooo hard for me to think about. She's one of the most important people in my life and I won't be able to see her whenever I want. And that just sucks!!!

And one last thing I love...Shawn and Inara. I am so grateful for the family we have started. Everyday I am home with Inara I think how lucky I am to have an amazing daughter and a phenomenal husband. I thank the stars every day for bringing these two people into my life. They are my reason for getting up every morning and the last two people I get to kiss good night. Happy Valentine's Day Shawn and Inara and everyone else in my life!!!

New pics of our Colorado rental home

Here are pictures Barb and Ed took of the house we will all be moving into as our temporary residence as of March 1st.
http://tomlinson.phanfare.com/album/559457#imageID=37194601

Looking for a good photographer?

Our good friend Tony Perija recently created a website for his photography business. If you are looking for a photographer to take family pics, head shots, or even to shoot a special occasion, I highly recommend checking out Tony. He's in the OC area but could travel a bit as well. His work is rather impressive. Plus, he's just an all-around great guy.
http://web.mac.com/tonyperija/Tony_Perija_Photographer/Welcome.html

Some new pics to tide you over

Shawn's eliminating red eye in a bunch of new pictures I have to post to our website, so in the meantime, here are a couple to tide you over.

See what happens when I leave Inara all alone with Shawn. He takes silly pictures like this. The look on Inara's face says, "Just watch it dad. I'll get you back when I'm old enough." Or better yet, "Don't worry buddy. I'll getta when you're not paying attention and I'll spit up all over ya. Hee hee hee."

Inara is getting so strong. Look at how far she lifts her head up. The girl can't wait to start rolling over and crawling.

Here are Mom and I at the Ellen Show. It may have been a gloomy rainy day, but we had a total blast!

What I learned about non-stick pans

I recently went to Bed, Bath and Beyond to find out what I did to destroy one of my Calphalon pans I got as a wedding present. I learned a ton from the guy who helped me, so I thought I'd pass on the info to save others the grief I've gone through. To briefly explain, the fry pan has lost its non-stick coating, so now everything sticks to the pan and burns much easier than before. Well, what I found out is to ask how many layers of non-stick your pots and pans have. We registered for the low-end set, which only have 1 layer of non-stick coating, which means they cannot withstand as much abuse as the higher end set. Even though most pans are listed as dishwasher safe, the BB&B employee told me it's better to wash them by hand, especially if the dishwashing detergent I use has a lemon/citrus scent because the acid from the lemon can eat away at the non-stick coating over time. Dwayne, the employee, also told me to never use a really rough, abrasive sponge on these pots and pans, such as an SOS pad, which I did know already. Phew, one less reason to feel like an idiot. One thing I am guilty of though is not pre-heating the pan before putting the cold items in. He recommended that I put some heat on the pan first for a few minutes and then to put food, particularly cold meat, in to cook. Also, you should let a hot pan cool completely before running it under water. Again, something I don't always do. When cooking with non-stick pans, he recommended never putting them under extreme heat and instead, suggested I only go to a medium flame. Lastly, he said to NEVER use Pam or other type aerosol sprays on non-stick pots and pans because it can eat away at the coating. Only use olive oil, butter/margarine, or spray pumps like I Can't Believe It's Not Butter come in. The good news is I was able to get two new Calphalon pans for $50 when they usually have just one for $50. When I was checking out, I recommended they give Dwayne a gold star for the day. He was so helpful and didn't make me feel like a complete idiot in the kitchen. I've learned my lesson when it comes to my pots and pans though that's for sure.

HYMini Charger

Check out the HYMini a portable charger for your cell or mp3 player that powers up using solar and/or wind energy ($60).
http://www.hymini.com/eshop/index.html#a1

Give a little

Just because the holidays are over does not mean we can't still give a little something to those in need. Here are a couple great organizations you can make donations to. First off, as many of you know one of my best friends, Nina Taylor lost her mom in December to cancer. Laurie truly was an amazing woman and I feel I am a better person for knowing her. Nina and her brother Carlos would love it if people could make donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in their mom's honor.
Send checks to
Team in Training
Silicon Valley/Monterey Bay Area Chapter
675 North 1st Street, Suite 1100
San Jose, CA 95112
Write Laurie Taylor in the memo line of the check

Because of my upcoming move, I will not be able to participate in the Huntington Beach Relay for Life which was a life changing experience for me last year. My good friend Sara McCarthy will be organizing a team for the 2008 RFL. The relay will be at Ocean View High School on June 21 & 22. I know she's looking for people to join her team and to help raise money for the American Cancer Society. To join her team and/or make a donation, please visit her website at http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeCaliforniaDivision?fr_id=4505&pg=entry.

I am an iceberg

I am known for always being cold, especially at night. Yes, I know I have a lot to prepare for with my move to Colorado coming up. That's why I'm concerned about the clothes situation. I need more winter wear, which will be a good reason to venture out and go shopping once I get to Highlands Ranch. Anyways, the other night Shawn saw how cold I was so he took the sleeping bag out and put it over my side of the bed. So now I have a sheet, a comforter, 2 blankets and a sleeping bag on top of me. I was finally nice and toasty. Well, Shawn admitted last night that he put the bag on me as a joke thinking I'd be super hot and toss it off. He was shocked that I have kept the extra cover on me for the past 3 nights and have not totally overheated. Oh, silly boy. Doesn't he know me better by now? I told him to ask my parents about how I used to sleep with a sleeping bag over me during the winter months when I was younger. I hope my body will eventually get used to the Colorado cold. Gulp.

We have a place in Colorado

As you all know, me, Shawn, and Inara are heading to Colorado at the end of February and we're moving in with Shawn's parents, Barb and Ed, along with Thane, Kristi, and Avery. Barb and Ed were in Colorado last week and found an amazing house for all of us to rent. We will be living in this house while we start house hunting, but this place is the total dream house so I don't know if we'll want to move out actually. Just kidding. It's 5000 square feet with 7 bedrooms (it has two studies that can be used as bedrooms) and 5 bathrooms. I'm most excited about the huge kitchen with 2 islands and granite counters. It's so my dream kitchen. Here's a link to see pictures of the house http://www.rentals.com/Home-Rentals/Display.aspx?ListingNumber=748001. Also take note of my new address (effective March 1st) via this link. I will be keeping my same cell number.

The littlest things are so amazing

So just now I was sitting at my desk working on closing out an order from my Arbonne party last night and stopped to inconspicuously watch Inara playing in her chair. At first she was rubbing her horse dolls face almost as if she were petting him. He's super soft, so I'm sure that's why she was touching him. (By the way, I've named her little horse Giddy Up. Hee hee. I love naming her toys now.) Then she found the pacifier laying on her dress and was able to pick it up and put it back in her mouth but not before playing with it for a few minutes. She kept passing it back and forth between her hands all the while making the funniest, cutest noises. They're not quite raspberries but almost. They're super cute is all I can say. She then noticed I was watching her, so she decided to stop all the playing and just smile at mommy. I swear every day I notice her doing something new. I can't stop watching her all the time now. Besides she's just so damn cute. Who can resist?