Brian and Marion's Wedding

Our good friend from college tied the knot this past weekend at the ranch where he and his bride met. After traveling up Hwy 101 for 2 hours and then along a dirt road for half an hour we finally reached Emandal Ranch - a serene location in the foothills of the coastal mountains here in California. The ranch was an oasis of vibrant flowers, fruits and natural beauty - a true representation of Brian and Marion!

The festivities included mounds of food grown and raised at the ranch. The ginger scones were amazing!! We also swam and adventured along the Eel River and learned how to Line Dance and Square Dance at the postnuptial Hoe-Down! Good times!!

Another big plus of the gathering was the reunion of a bunch of friends from college who are spread out across the country.

Viva Mexico!

Peggy and I decided to leave Paul and Michael home to work on their theses and head to Puerto Vallarta for 5 days of relaxing in the sun! We got massages, went snorkeling and kayaking, and we ate lots of food!

And probably the most memorable...I got sea sick twice on our snorkeling trip. As bad as it was at the time - it was easy to laugh about after the fact!

UCLA Graduation! (June 14)

Two weeks later Paul Wilkinson did it too! Another almost "doctor" until December. Both Mike and Paul were quick to remind us that they weren't done yet. But still, it was a monumental experience for them to be walking the stage and showing off their handsome hoods.

UCB Graduation! (May 24)

Dr. Grass...well almost!

Mike will be getting the last of his signatures on his thesis in August - allowing him to walk in UCBerkeley's Department of Chemistry's 2008 graduation ceremony. We will officially be able to call him "Doctor" in December when his completion paperwork is filed.




At the left Mike is standing with his Research Adviser, Professor Somarjai. He had very cool robes that had what appeared to be decorative rabbit fur as the bars on his sash and shoulders.






Here Peggy helps Mike show off his hood. I'm not sure, but I think PW is working on learning the Cal fight song... "Go Bears!"


And I even got a chance to pose with the grad! It still surprises me that four years has passed. All of those long days in lab seem so far away. Next up is a Post-Doc/Fellowship at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab in conjunction with a university in Korea.

Oooo! Fancy Machines

Mike and a colleague spent a few days working on an experiment at the Stanford Synchrotron. He came back with these pictures - I think to include in a presentation. I thought it looked pretty important, look at all of those wires! So I decided to share an image of what Mike gets to "play" with while he is working!

Little Dougy turns 7! (March)

Doug is one of Michael's good friends from high school. Doug is fortunate enough to have his birthday on February 29. This year he had an actual birthday so it was decided to celebrate by hosting an ultimate tournament in his honor. Doug is pictured in the sexy blue number at the left - some friends thought it would be fun for him to dress up for the occasion!







Mike was asked to put together and captain one of the teams for the tournament. As you can see, he is a very inspiring leader - giving clear and concise strategy, enthusiastic motivation... ...although I am not quite sure how to interpret our teammates expressions...

Mike runs the Kaiser Half-Marathon (Feb)

After many months of training Mike and our buddy Nick participated (and finished!) the Kaiser Half-Marathon. The route goes through Golden Gate Park and then makes a loop back on the Great Highway, which runs along the coast. The weather wasn't great, windy and raining for part of it - so I cheered them on from my warm and cozy feather-bed! I know, pretty puny, but what can I say - the race was early and wet!! Fortunately, they send us these great, professional photos - so I can still admire his form!

Delinquents!

We apologize for the many months of no posts. I'll try to do my best to capture the last 6 months and then keep up with all of our upcoming adventures!