Hello again!

Hello friends! I know it’s been a while since I’ve last blogged, but I’m back, and hopefully my recent adventures will be found interesting by everyone.  Since my last blog, Team Boyd has been busy as usual. We are still remodeling, traveling and enjoying life.   

Cody is teaching me the meaning of patience by the never ending master-bedroom remodel project. The goal was to have the master-bedroom finished by now, but now, I’m just hoping it will be finished by the end of the year. Additionally, we have been lucky enough to visit Boston, MA and Yukon, Oklahoma. While those destinations aren’t as exciting as some of our past destinations, we had a great time and loved every minute of it. 

We visited Boston in April, where  my mom took the train down from New York to spend time with us in Boston.  It was great to see her and all three of us had a great time.  Boston is a beautiful city, ful of lots of charm and personality.  We even spent a day in Salem, visiting the site of the Salem witch trials and learning more about the history behind the witch trials of that day.  Our only wish for the trip was that the weather had been better, but it didn’t slow us down. 

We recently return from a trip to Yukon, Oklahoma.  Cody’s bestfriend from the Marine Corps lives in Yukon with his wife and son (little Cody) and so we figured it was time for a visit to meet the little guy.  We had a wonderful weekend in Yukon, playing with little Cody, riding horses and experiencing all that Oklahoma has to offer.   We look forward to when Shane, Julie & little Cody travel to Oregon, so that we can show them all the wonderful things that make Oregon great. 

So in closing, I will attempt to keep my blog more updated with all of our adventures and stories.  I hope you enjoy reading them as much as we enjoy living them.

The Master Remodel

As many of you know, if Cody and I aren’t traveling, then we are remodeling.  So, with the start of the new year brings the start of a new remodeling project.  It started as a simple, “oh, lets tear down the paneling upstairs, dry-wall it in and then we can move our bedroom up there” to “lets tear down the paneling upstairs, dry-wall it in, add in a 2nd bathroom and hey, let’s add a walk-in closet too.”  Ah…ambitions I have, skills I do not.  Thank goodness that Cody is fantastically handy and is able to pretty much tackle any ambition I come up with.  While I’m still fighting for a full 2nd bathroom, Cody has conceded to a half-bathroom (just watch though, it will be a full bathroom!).  So, the simple remodel project that we started thinking would take us about 2 months to complete is now hopefully only going to take us 6 months to complete.  In the end though, we will have a fantastic master-suite, which will in compass our entire upstairs.  To show how much hard work Cody is putting in up there, here are some pictures of the progress that he’s making. 

     

The above pictures show the initial stages of the remodel, which started with Cody tearing down all the paneling off the walls.

     

See the white boards on the wall directly ahead?  Yeah, those boards are from a reclaimed picket fence!  Shady Hank is at it again!  The wood beam in the middle of this photo is now gone, which really opens up the room. 

    

This photo is taken standing with my back to the picket fence wall.  You can see that Cody has framed out a half wall to cover the stairs.  On the left, you can also see the start of a small half wall.  The empty space between the half walls will be the “doorway” to the sleeping area of the master suite.  The empty space towards the back of the picture is (hopefully) where our new master bathroom will go!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

I want to take this time to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.  I hope you are able to spend it with loved ones, where ever you might be.   My Christmas has been wonderful, even though it hasn’t gone as planned.  The Pacific Northwest got caught in one of the worst snow storms and has ruined many Christmas plans.  While I wasn’t able to see as much as my family and friends as I wanted to, in the end, I think everything has worked out.  I think this snow storm has taught people that Christmas is not all about gifts, and presents, but really spending the time with your loved ones and knowing that everyone is safe and sound, has been the biggest gift this year. 

With the new year approaching, I am always asked about my new year’s resolutions.  A couple of years ago I decided that making new year’s resolutions was a waste of time, because by January 3rd, they have typically fizzled out.  Now, I make new year’s goals.  Many will say that goals and resolutions are the same thing, but I disagree.  I find that when I set a goal, I typically achieve it – unless we are talking about weight loss!  This year when I’m thinking about the different goals I want to achieve I find that giving back to my community is a high priority for me.  In the past few years, and especially with 2008, Cody and I have been incredibly blessed, and lucky with all that we’ve been able to do.  For 6 years I worked in social services and didn’t have the money to afford many of the things that I am now able to afford.  Because of my current job, I am able to afford fantastic trips and home remodel and more.  I feel that with all that I have been given, it is only right of me to give back to my community.  That is why I have applied to volunteer with 2 different domestic violence organizations.  In the end I will only be able to work with one of them, but I am looking forward to learning more about each program and how my skills and time can best be used. 

So, to keep me organized, here is a list of Molly’s Goals for 2009:

1. Volunteer with a domestic violence program
2. Continue to lose weight
3. Workout 3 times a week
4. Focus on my piano lessons more
5. Remodel the upstairs!

In closing, I hope that everyone has had a wonderful Christmas, and that hopefully my lists of goals will inspire people to give back and/or make those long-wanted changes in their life.  It’s truly all about setting a goal, and working to achieve it. 

A Disneyland Thanksgiving

Last year decided to forgo the traditional Thanksgiving celebration in favor of roadtripping to Disneyland.  We had so much fun, that we decided to do it again this year, but on a grander scale.  We loaded up ‘Da Limo’, packed in Matty, Michelle, Brian, Cat and ourselves and we set off on our 2nd annual Disneyland Thanksgiving.  We had the best time.  The weather was perfect and we all got along great.  Here’s a group photo of us at Disneyland, but if you’d like to see more, please check out my picture pages (Disneyland Thanksgiving 2008). 

My husband is better than your husband!

Want to know why my husband is better than yours?  Well, this weekend is my birthday, and while he’s going to be out of town for my birthday, he still wanted to make sure that I was going to have a good day.  He knows that I have a favorite birthday cake, and for the past couple of years, I haven’t been able to get my cake.  This year I was so counting on getting my cake, but once again, it wasn’t going to work out.  So when I was at work today, Cody surprised me by dropping off a very sweet card and my favorite birthday cake on his way out of town!!!  How amazingly sweet is that?!?!  I am so lucky to have him!

Adventures on the horizon!

I can’t believe it, but October is near, which means our trip to Turkey is quickly approaching!  It’s almost surreal to think that in just a few short weeks, Cody & I will be on our way to an amazing 2 week adventure to Turkey.  We will be spending half of our time in Istanbul, and we will take the train down to the South-West coast of Turkey to the town of Izmir.  We will spend a few days in Izmir taking in the sights, include the fantastic archeological site, the city of Ephesus.  Then, we will take a ferry and sail to the island of Samos and spend 2 days on the island exploring the town of Vathy and other local sites.  Upon our return to Izmir, we will take the train back to Istanbul to spend our last few days in Turkey.  We are really looking forward to this trip.  It will be, by far, the most exciting and adventurous trip that Cody & I have ever taken.  I can’t wait to explore the Grand Bazaar and walk through the historic area of Sultanahmet.  I can only begin to imagine the sheer greatness of walking the streets of the old Roman city of Ephesus.  I AM SO EXCITED.   Check back during the month of October for updates and pictures.  All of our hotels have internet cafés, and so I will be attempting to blog every few days about our adventures.  As always, I will post our pictures upon our return.

Rafting the River!

A couple weeks ago, some of us went rafting down the Deschutes River for Mershell’s birthday.  It was such a fun experience, and since all of us weren’t able to go the first time, we loaded up the limo (again) and all 8 of us trekked back out to Maupin, to spend the day rafting together.  The weather was awesome, and everyone had a great time.  We booked our trip through Imperial Rafting Co.,(www.deschutesriver.com), and highly recommend them if anyone is thinking of booking a trip on the Deschutes!   If you do book with Imperial, ask for Topher, and you will get an awesome trip! 

The weather was awesome and the river was flowing pretty steady.  Everyone had a great time.  There were no injuries on this trip, and while a few people flew out of the boat, everyone made it back safe and sound.  It’s a guarantee that we will all be back next year for another trek together down the river.  Next year we might try the midnight trip, or maybe even the overnight trip! 

Here is a smattering of our photos from the trip.  Check out my picture page (Rafting, September 2008) for the whole gallery!

Lori is “riding the bull” as we go into Wapanitia falls! 

   

Lori hangs on, as the raft is drenched!

Lori hangs on as we come out of the first rapid!

   

Going into the second rapid….(zoom into to check out the screams on Lori’s, Mershell’s & my faces!)

  

Lori’s under water, but hangs on as we come out of Wapanitia falls.

As we turn into the rapids, we all jump in the bottom of the raft….

  

Only to get soaked!

Cody & Brian ride the bull together, as we go into Box Car…..

  

We all get soaked as the rapids cover the raft!

  

All you can see are Cody & Brian’s feet hanging off the front of the raft!

  

Some how they both managed to stay in the raft!

All of us happily waving after making it through Box Car!

SERIOUSLY, FREAKIN’ AWESOME!

The Birchards bought a limo!  Yes, a limo!  It has to be the most awesome purchase EVER.  Only the Birchards would buy a limo!  It’s a classic, 1993 lincoln town car strech (28 ft!) white limo.  All of us are now able to comfortably ride around together.  While this is great for gas mileage, we are also finding out that it hilarity ensues! 

Last night we took the limo, affectionately named “The Great White Whale (- or is it Hope?)”, out for it’s maiden voyage.  So what do you do when you have a limo?  If you are like us, you find a shady store to pick up some beer, you drive the limo through a pizza drive through (where the awesome manager gives you free pizza in exchange for beer) and you heckle people in the ghetto.  It is probably one of those events where it’s only funny to those that were there, but seriously, it was so awesome. 

We are now trying to figure out all the fun that can be had with the limo.  The limo is screaming roadtrip, which we are anxiously trying to plan.  The first roadtrip will be to go rafting together for Michelle’s birthday in a few weeks.  After that, we are hoping to make another trek down to Disneyland for Thanksgiving.  We went last year (well, the Birchards, Cody & me), and now that we have the limo, all 7 of us can go!  It looks like we might be making the trip to Disneyland our annual Thanksgiving plans!  Besides, how cool is it to roll into Disneyland in a limo?!?!  Maybe I can convince my sister to come with us so that we will have an even number of people for the rides.  Sarah – wanna go to Disneyland for Thanksgiving?

    

I’m sure we’ll have more pictures of our wild times….

Good bye, Sophia Petrillo…

Picture it.  Gladstone, 1985, my mother’s living room.  On any given Friday night, you would find my mother, my sister and myself curled up on the couch, with a bowl of popcorn between us waiting for the latest installment of “The Golden Girls” to begin.  While I was too young to understand the sarcastic jokes and sexual undertones of the show, I recognized the friendship these 4 women shared.  To this day, I am not ashamed to say that “The Golden Girls” is my all-time favorite show.  I swear, I’ve seen every episode, and I love catching the late re-runs on the Lifetime Channel.  I own seasons 1-4 (and don’t understand why Cody hasn’t gotten me the other seasons!), and when I want comfort, I always turn to “The Golden Girls”.  “The Golden Girls” showed women that life after 50 doesn’t mean that your life is over, it just means that a new chapter has begun.  If I ever loose Cody, I know that Sarah and I will become our own version of the Golden Girls.  You may not find us in Miami, but I’m sure somewhere, we will be together, in a house, sharing our lives with our closest girlfriends, and encouraging each other to live our lives to the fullest. 

So with saddness I must announce that Estelle Getty, the loveable pint-sized actress who played Sophia Petrillo (always my favorite character), has passed away.  Ms. Getty had been sick for a number of years and so in the end I’m sure that she is happier now, but a part of me is saddened.  There will never be a Golden Girls reunion, and a part of history is lost with her passing. 

Cody’s Birthday Weekend!

For Cody’s 30^th birthday, I (along with the help of some wonderful friends) planned a camping trip to the Mt. Hood National Forest at the federal campground, “Indian Henry”.  None of us had ever camped there, but we all decided that the campground was beautiful and totally worth coming back to again.  The campground is situated on the banks of the Clackamas River and is full of many hiking trails that lead to the river and through the forest.  After many long months of scheming and planning, Cody’s SURPRISE adventure birthday weekend was pulled off without a hitch!  What an amazing weekend we had too! 

The weather was beautiful – high 80’s to low 90’s, the campsite was beautiful and amazing, and overall I think a good time was had by all.  Thursday afternoon saw our months of planning come into effect as we grocery shopped, packed and got organized.  On Friday, Cody was off to work, blissfully unaware of the weekend plans that lay ahead.  I was up early getting us ready to go, packing backs for us and Bernie, and with some help, I got the jeep packed and ready to go.  From there, we all met at the Birchard’s to finish packing and then off we went! 

 

  

 

As we headed out of town, we put the scavenger hunt in place for Cody, that would lead him up to the campground, and he would earn some goofy prizes as well for his efforts. 

 

  

 

Upon arriving at Indian Henry, we hurried to get the campsite all set up and organized so that when Cody arrived, all he had to do was drink some beer.  We had just finished setting up the campsite when we saw his truck coming down the path.  We all jumped up, hootin’ and hollerin’ as he drove in.  He was awfully surprised at all of our hard work and efforts to make this a great birthday weekend for him.   

 

  

 

Since Cody had deciphered all of the scavenger hunt clues and made it to the campground, he got to open up his prizes.  The highlights of his prizes were the giant foam cowboy hat and rainbow-clown-afro-wig combo that he’s always wanted.  They also became quiet the entertainment for the weekend!

 

  

 

  

 

On Saturday we hiked down to the Clackamas River and let Bernie swim around.  Bernie loves the water, so he was having the best day.  Our friend Shane, who had flown in from Oklahoma early to participate in Cody’s birthday weekend decided that he wanted to test the waters, so he took a jump off some rocks and into the icy waters of the Clackamas River.  As cold as the water was, it did provide some relief from the 90º weather! 

 

             

 

In the evenings we enjoyed playing games, and hanging out around the campfire together. 

 

  

Matty finding out what happens (again!) when he falls asleep at the campfire!

 

  

 

Cody & Shane crash after the long weekend.

 

All-in-all, this was a wonderful weekend, which I’m sure Cody will remember forever.  I’m so happy and thrilled that everything was pulled off so well, and that things were able to remain a surprise for him until the very end.  Thank you SO much to all our friends who participated, helped me plan, kept me from going crazy when I thought he knew what was going on and for putting up with my neurotic-self!