SURPRISE Baby Shower at Work!

First, I just have to say that I am working with the nicest people I have ever worked with before. I am temping at Etude Wines, working with Melanie Edwards and Anita Dadson - as well as MANY other great people.

So, I got taken out to lunch today - to Pizza Azurro, in Napa. I knew we were going to lunch, but didn't know that it was going to be a full blown baby shower - with ALL the women from work! I was TOTALLY suprised.

Afterward, Melanie and Anita were telling me how hard it was keeping it a secret, and how last week when they told me they had an emergency meeting - it was REALLY them going to Target to buy my gifts. Also, when they told me last week that they were going up the clean the mezzanine, they were REALLY wrapping all of my gifts.

They were so worried that I would guess what was really going on - but I had absolutely NO CLUE! They were very sneaky.

This is all of us at Pizza Azurro

Left to Right: Anita, Lisa, Franci, Sally, Jess, Dana, Ann, Melanie, & Me!

(Teresa also came but had to leave before we took pictures)

This is the georgeous ( and Delicisous) cake that they got for me.

Here's another shot of the cake -I love Anita's face in this picture (she's on my left)

Opening gifts



They are SO sweet!
I had such a great time with everyone and got so many wonderful gifts. I feel so special and blessed to have been able to work with such wonderful people. I couldn't have ever asked for anything more.

Update & Vote YES on Prop 8!

From an email Brandon sent to his cousin Darren:

School is great. It is a lot of work, but I really enjoy it a ton. I am taking three classes right now, but Corinne and I decided that we will take out enough loans so that I can go to school full time starting next quarter starting in January. With that decision I can finish in a year and a half with the highest degree that I can get. We prayed about it and talked to our parents and we all agree, including the Spirit, that this is the correct decision for us at this time.

Corinne is getting a big baby belly. It is so funny to see her with a pregnant belly. She is working until November 4th.

We keep having our YES on Prop 8 signs stolen from our front yard. We found one of them and put it back in our yard. Another one was returned but all bent out of shape. So I bent it back in shape and put it in our front yard. We now have three yard signs in our front yard. We live at the "T" of a semi busy street intersection so we placed them so that any way you travel you can at least see one of the signs. We also have bumper stickers on both our cars. This guy pulled up next to me one time and said that I was doing a good job having that sticker on our car. That made me feel good, like I am having a good influence on at least some people who feel the same way that I do.
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This was sent to us by Brandon's parents:

Here is a picture of us (JB & Debbie Cunningham) taken yesterday after we had been holding up signs along Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in Corona Del Mar.

This was part of a countywide “Paint OC Yellow” and “Operation Yellow” -- an Orange County support Prop 8 event. Part of the goal was to line PCH with Yes on Prop 8 signs. We were in Corona Del Mar, the assigned portion of PCH for our ward.

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Let's do all we can and pray that it passes!

YES on Prop 8!

Halloween Family Home Evening

Tonight for Family Home Evening we decorated cookies and carved pumpkins for Halloween. It was really fun. I remembered to take some pictures, so here they are!

Here is a video I got of us tonight, kind of fun!

Robert was serenading us during the carving, after he finished decorating cookies.

Here's my belly at 31 weeks! Our baby sure is getting BIG! I wish there was a way to give him more room - he feels all squished!

Mariah was helping hold the pumpkin for the picture. :)

Here are our Halloween cookies (the ones we hadn't already eaten), and yes, one IS a Christmas tree...Brandon's...

So by the end we have a spider, a goofy face, and a haunted house!

Karina's Birthday

Today was Karina's Birthday!

This is me! I'm 30 weeks along now!

We went to a bounce house for Karina's Birthday - it was really fun!
It's a place called P B & J's Bounce House

This is Rebecca doing Karina's hair before going in

Here is Saila, Karina (behind her) Walter with Mariah, and Rebecca

Here is Saila and Karina climbing the Bounce Stairs

Saila having fun

I thought this was a cool action shot - Walter, Rebecca & Saila

Here's a shot of some of the bounce room




This is a video of Brandon and Walter racing... I really like it!

This is Brandon going down the big slide

Here's Mariah chillin - she LOVES being talked to and getting attention. It always puts a BIG smile on her face. She is SO cute. She is 7 months old now and is crawling a little now. She is also VERY responsive to music. Just sing to her and she listens right up!

This is at home - how we decorated for Karina's B-day

Here is Saila and me, holding Mariah (it's hard to hold a baby with a big bump in the way!)

The rest of the pictures (of the cake and everything) we got with Rebecca and Walter's camera because this one ran out of memory :( So I will post it later!

Brandon is OFFICIALLY a MASTER'S STUDENT!

It's Official:

Brandon is now a Master's student at The Art Institute of California - San Francisco.

He is now working on his Master of Fine Arts degree in Computer Animation. He started today and although the program is year and a half long - he will be working part time, so it may take up to 3 years, which is exactly how long my parents are going to be in Mexico

He is taking 3 classes this quarter, 2 on Mondays and 1 on Thursdays. He drives from Napa to Richmond and then takes the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) to San Francisco which works out well because it drops him off almost RIGHT under the school. It takes him about 45 mins to get to Richmond and then 45 mins riding the BART to get there, so it's a LONG day, but worth it.

Here is some more information on the degree:

Computer Animation — Master of Fine Arts
The Master of Fine Arts program in Computer Animation is a six-quarter, terminal degree program designed to prepare students with the skills needed to function as animators and as professors in the field. It offers a forum for advanced study and rigorous discourse, integrating art history, criticism, and advanced studio exploration and experimentation. Students study and examine computer animation from many different aspects based on the individual interests and experimentation. Students also connect with faculty committed to providing ample opportunities for collaboration, inspiration, growth, and exploration. The graduate program is also focused on the creative process, with advanced study that combines studio work, research, and each student’s interests, abilities, and chosen concentration. Students in the Computer Animation program develop skills as traditional studio artists, storytellers, art historians, and critical thinkers, as well as develop their technical animation skills with hardware and software. The curriculum is designed to place dedicated, hardworking graduates in the computer animation and media fields. Program Objectives 1. Graduates will apply theoretical underpinnings of art history, critical thinking, and storytelling to the traditional and emerging forms of computer animation. 2. Graduates will demonstrate proficiency with the tools and techniques of animation, and derive effective technical solutions that meet professional standards. 3. Graduates will demonstrate experimentation and originality with the tools and techniques of animation, and present advanced conceptual and practical solutions. 4. Graduates may enter the fields of advertising, broadcast TV, film and video production, games, virtual reality, and location-based entertainment games. Furthermore, the merging fields of courtroom graphics, scientific illustration, education/teaching, military design, transportation design, electronic design, and product design are additional avenues that our graduates can pursue. Graduation Requirements To receive a Master of Fine Arts degree in Computer Animation, students must complete a minimum of 90 quarter-credits with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

For information on the specific classes he will take go to: http://www.artinstitutes.edu/sanfrancisco/Academics/Default.aspx?discipline=6&subdiscipline=&command=Programs&program=378

WAY TO GO BRANDON!

I LOVE YOU AND AM SO PROUD OF YOU!