Lisa's return to Intel

I returned to work just after dropping Joseph off at school. It was about 9 am when I arrived and I managed to "chat" with my peers for another hour prior to really getting down to business. My team surprised me with a phenomenally decorated cube: A huge thanks to Susan, Wendy, Terry, Penney and Nichole. You guys rock and make work fun, I couldn't ask for better friends.

Well this completes our Sabbatical 2008 tour. I can't thank you all enough for "coming along". I'll be posting to www.goesturbocreative.blogspot.com if you want to see what we're up to next.

God Bless see ya in 6 years 3 months for our 2015 tour!

Joey's first day at school

I look at this picture and no longer see the baby I have known. Instead I see, peaking from this face, the grown man he will become. I pray that he keeps his smile and sense of humor, his willingness to help others and gentleness. He is such a wonderful gift to this world and I can't wait to see what his future holds.
Okay, enough sappy stuff. 3rd grade, watch out here comes JOSEPH (yup, big boy name this year - Joe or Joseph). I love this picture cuz it shows how much he has grown, and well the tree, too as we post by this tree each year. Oh, and what's he holding? It's his die cast star wars ships. He must have 30 0f them and looks everytime we go to Target for more.

07/25/08 Last full day

Dan went back to work yesterday. His group decorated his cube in a Bay Watch theme... in honor of his Heroic moment in Rocky Point. They even photoshopped his face on David Hasselhoff's body in a Bay Watch picture... his group is awesome. :)

I've spent the last two days scrapping like a crazy woman... and LOVING IT! Almost have the sabbatical book done and have been creating digital pages as well. Check my creative blog for updates on the pages and pictures I've been working on.

Today, I'm heading to the public pool for laps (got new goggles... SO excited!) and then hopefully to see my girlfriend's new baby! (Who may not be here quite yet. EVEN MORE exciting!

Tomorrow an overnight trip to Tucson and then back to work. So sad to see this time come to an end, but I have to admit without Dan here it is kinda boring.

07/24/08 Dan's Return

Dan returned back to work today and arrived to a decorated cube themed to his heroic rescue in Rocky Point.If you note in the swimming pool there is a baby doll in need of rescue...
Ryan does a phenomenal job with photoshop. As you can see from these pictures, this is not his first masterpiece. I wonder if he has a collection? He should they are priceless!
In my personal opinion, David Hasselhoff ain't got nothin' on my baby! Dan loved his cube and his team did a fantastic job!

07/19/08 The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Have you ever felt that you have something you should be doing but just haven't done it? Do you have a dream? Are you a creative or entrepreneurial type?



This book addresses and motivates one to take the steps to pursue those dreams and fill your purpose.



Broken into three sections:

Book 1: Resistance - Defining the Enemy is just that, VERY insightful and applicable.



Book 2: Combating Resistance - Turning Pro highlights ways to beat resistance and overcome it in your life.



Book 3: Beyond Resistance - Higher Realm talks about your Muse, where creativity comes from and how living your dream benefits all.



I found some of it a bit "new-agey", but the over all concepts and insights are sound and general enough to apply to an artist or business person. I was motivated to take action on a couple of dreams/ passions that I have.



Great quote from the book: “Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor. It’s a gift to the world and every being in it. Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got.” – Steven Pressfield.


View all my reviews.

Has inspired me to start a creative blog: www.goesturbocreative.blogspot.com

07/17/08 The Dark Knight

Yup, I specifically took a three hour nap today just so I would be awake for the midnight show. We're here with Trevor and Katrina and two of their friends. Dan is totally pumped to see this show finally. He's been waiting since right after we saw Batman begins.

Assuming I'm still awake I'll let you know how it is.

07/15/08 Just a lazy? day at home

Spent a lot of time picking up house for the our wonderful house cleaner today. LOVE THAT WOMAN, Lynn is great and team house cleaning takes fantastic care for us. The best money I spend twice a month! Lynn, send me your web address and I'll make sure to plug and link you in! :)

Got a number of items posted to ebay today, still need to finish sorting through the scrapbook room and posting scrap stuff, but got almost all of the CAbi clothes I'm too small for up. (YEAH!) Let's hope I can make a wee bit of cash of the effort.

Had success at Runner's Den yesterday and came home with some new shoes. Tested them out this morning and jogged my 1.5 with no pain all day, yeah! (Thanks again Pam!!!) ALSO JUST down 16th street from Runner's Den is Tall Girl, a shop I found YEARS ago that sells... yup, tall girl clothing! I've always wanted to check it out but never made the long journey to Phoenix for a visit. Well, I came home with two pairs of pants and a jean jacket and a ton of other items I COULD have purchased but didn't. Most of the pants they carry are a 36 or 37" inseam... which means even I would need to hem them. Crazy cool for sure!

Other than that, Dan hooked us up with a convertible mustang rental car for a brief overnight to Sedona Friday to Saturday night and we saw Hellboy today. Not too bad as far as action flicks go.

Well, it's WAY to late for me to be up, so I bid you good night! Till tomorrow!

07/15/08 Home again

We made it back safely from Mexico yesterday with no drama (always a good thing!).

Today, Dan got up super eary and trimmed the trees and picked up puppy poo (ahh it's good to be home... NOT!) and I helped by weeding and doing cat pooh. Two comments: 1) I want a poopless cat and dog and 2) We may need those rains and they are just great for our wanted plants (our one ocotillo is FINALLY leafing after 3 years) but the weeds do abound! The back yard looks fantastic but I think the front yard needs some work.

I'm excited to head up to Runner's Den today to buy some nice shoes for jogging. I was too lazy to get up this am to run/walk and not quite ready for swimming laps yet. Also on the agenda, put up more stuff for ebay and amazon, unpack & do laundry, and clean the scrapbook room (is that possible???)... I'll let you know if my list is bigger than my eyes!

07/13/08 Final day in Puerto Penasco

Spent a lot of time on the beach today and in the water, enjoying the coolness for our last full day here. The kids ran themselves silly while the adults all snuck off for naps during the afternoon (taking shifts to watch the kids).
I was able to get a few more scrapbook pages done, hunted for sea shells and enjoyed the low tide. We didn't like almost getting run over by jet skiers, but such is life.
Lastly, we played some Uno, luck was with the youngest Synk clan as both Samantha and Joe won. Finally, we lit the last boxes of sparklers and the kids danced around with joyous abandon. What a wonderful week and so sad to see it draw to a close. This has been our final planned trip for sabbatcial.
We drive back to Phoenix tomorrow and then have about a week off before Dan starts back to work. Just enough time to squeeze in some errands and get caught up on laundry before we head back to our normal routine. These weeks have FLOWN by... so sad to see them drawing to an end. I need to win the lottery.

Stay tuned, I'll post more till we return back to work!

07/12/08 Puerto Penasco

Ahh, life is so relaxing in Mexico. Slow pace and no rushing anywhere. Just sitting on our bums trying NOT to get sunburned. So far, we've been pretty successful.

Thursday found me celebrating the 6th anniversary of my 29th b'day. It was a good day and a good place to celebrate. We went to lunch at El Capitan Restaurant on the point. Had the Shrimp wrapped in bacon... oooh so delicious! Also enjoyed some guacamole and a margarita. YUMMY! For desert, my favorite b'day cake - angel food cake covered in cherry frosting. That has been a b'day treat of mine for YEARS!!! (..And obviously there have been a lot of them)

Today we hit Rodeo Drive for some shopping and then came back for a swim and to walk on the beach. The tide is out so we had a wonderful time playing in the surf and sand. Lots more people at the resort now than there were even yesterday... and drunk folks abounding. They are always very amusing to watch!

Tomorrow is our last full day in Mexico before we head home. Sounds like we've missed some fun rain storms in the valley, hopefully the monsoon season isn't over yet.

07/08/08 Las Palamos

Did some scrapping of the kids playing on the slide. Also got the tripod out and took some fun night shots.

Enjoy!
Kenzie cooked tonight making scrumptions chicken quesadillas. We had grilled cheese for lunch and Papa made french toast for breakfast. We've also got eggos, an assortment of cereals and enough junk food for a 2 month transatlantic voyage. Each family is responsible for bringing enough food for 2 lunches and 2 dinners.
Everyone has read a ton of books while Joey has enjoyed some quality time with his game boy (when he and Samantha aren't busy cruising down the slide or playing in the lazy river and pool.) Today; more of the same!

7/8/08 Our Hero

While at the pool today; Dan was lounging near the pool when (cue dramatic music) Dan saw a woman gesturing frantically. Being astute and quick of mind he saw a tiny girl floundering just under the water in the pool… with no thought to himself, he grabbed his red bay watch life float and dove into the water, rushing to the small girl’s aide and lifting her heroically to the side (cue bay watch happy tune). The mother ran over to scoop up her small child and lavish words of thanks on Dan for saving her favorite child. The child, somewhat shaken, also gave Dan and big hug and kiss for saving her life.

Okay that was Dan’s version…

What REALLY happened; Dan was hanging out in the pool and saw some woman gesturing frantically… he kinda looked around trying to figure out what her commotion was all about. He finally noticed the little girl not really swimming in the pool and put 2 and 2 together. He pulled her out and plopped her on the side of the pool where Mom did rush over to make sure her daughter was okay. The lady said “gracias” to Dan before they wandered off. No music was heard.

Buenos Dias from Puerto Penasco

Hola Amigos!

We made it down to Rocky Point yesterday. We're spending the week at Las Palomas hotel. It's farily warm, but the pools are refreshing and fun for the kiddos. Crossing the border was cake, we just drove right through, however the line to get back into the US was about 1/2 mile long and 2 to 3 lanes wide. Thus the reason we travel to Mexico AFTER the 4th.

My mom and dad, brother, sis-in-law and neice are here as well. We each brought food to cook/make 2 dinners and 2 lunches during the week, and breakfast goods for our family. Last night we had chicken marsala and salad. It turned out fairly well considering I smoked up the ENTIRE apartment! Fortunately there was a nice breeze blowing and we cleared the place out in a few short minutes. Our condo is HUGE!!! 3 master suites, and a patio at least as many square feet as the living area. With a BBQ... I think I'm in heaven!

After dinner, we went for a walk on the beach. It was gorgeous out and the plan is to head out tonight a little earlier so we can look for sea shells, something I think the kids will really enjoy.

07/05/08 Happy Post July 4th

Our adventure for yesterday was meeting two of my very dear friends, Pam and Jenn, for lunch. I love these gals cuz they'll eat sushi with me! Dan is not a huge fan of raw fish. It was wonderful to see them, as always!

Pam turned me on to a shop call Runner's Den in North Phoenix... I need to find some time to "run" up there and buy some decent shoes. Went for a jog/walk this morning and did 1.5 miles non-stop... a personal best. Pam, running on the asphalt was a big help! Thanks YOU!!!

After lunch Dan and I went to see Get Smart. It was okay... Joe Bro loved that show when we were growing up so I thought of him the entire time we were there. Sadly, that has now exhausted the list of movies we felt we MUST see. Thankfully it is summer so lots more stuff opens soon.

Okay, in one of my digital scrapping classes got turned on to this cool website called EZ actions by Photoblast they offer plugin's to photoshop to get some cool effects on your pictures. I purchased and downloaded three, they turned out very cool and are a fun change.

original photo

Vivid Color Pro


Sharp Shot Color Pop Pro


Acid Wash

07/02/08 July, already?

How did that happen? Sabbatical is half over and I've got tons more books to read, new recipes to try and chores to complete (like painting the guest bathroom and ebaying some scrapbook supplies).

I did complete my final assignment at big picture scrapbooking: A portrait photo essay. I chose my brother's birthday as my assignment and took more pictures that I ended up using. Thought it turned out fairly well. Can't wait to get my hands on Jenn's Luke! :)


Today is Kung Fu Panda, a dentist appointment for Joey and then he goes to his Dad's house. This week Joey and I have been to the pool 3 days... he's so sick of me making him do laps but he loves to play in the water. This morning I got up early enough to feel motivated to jog but any later than leaving the house at 6 am and it's too hot! Joey, although I'm sure he'd love to go to the pool, is happy NOT to swim his laps today.

Dan finally went to the doctor for the back/hip pain he's been having as a result of his sprained ankle. He got some good drugs that are finally allowing him to sleep.

06/28/08

Spent time shopping, reading, and watching lots of movies the past few days. Dan's hip has been bothering him... a side effect of the sprained ankle so rest and recoop is what he needs!

Books: Undead and Unworthy by MaryJanice Davidson, A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin, Fifty Years in Pictures by Harry Benson

Movies: In Theater: Wanted, Sex & the City, The Incredible Hulk. Rentals: Chaos, No Country for Old Men, and Disturbia. Also caught up on the Deadliest Catch... does Capt. Phil have cancer??? :( Have I mentioned my sick fascination with Dirty Jobs? Hmm, what's "dirty" in semi-conductor that we can have them come do a show on? Any suggestions?

Been working through some scrapbooking, here's my latest page. It seems kinda simple, compared with the stuff I've been doing in my digital classes. However, I think my scrapbook style is more the "Simple Scrapbook" kind - focused on journalling more than the "Creating Keepsakes" style of creating art. If a page takes me more the 20 to 30 minutes, I feel I've spent to long on it!

Journalling says:
"One of the things that I looked forward to most on the cruise was dressing up to attend the formal meal. We had two meals, one on Monday night and the other on Saturday night. Unfortunately, Dan had other plans and did not pack any type of long pants nor semi dressy shirt. I hadn’t planned to take Joey to the formal so not packing pants for him was not a big deal, but I admit I was disappointed to find that Dan had neglected to pack anything for himself. Dan, being the wonderful man that he is, appreciated my desire to go and so the search for PANTS began. At each port stop, Dan looked for both a pair of pants and a nice shirt that he could wear to the formal on Saturday. Because of our full excursion schedule, shopping time was minimal... however on the last day in Roatan, Honduras, we had the opportunity to do some shopping. We walked to Yaba Ding Din’s and found the above shirt for $30. After asking directions to a clothing store we headed back to the ship and found, in the window a stack of pants. Dan walked and and picked through the pile, surprisingly we found a perfect khaki pair (also pictured) for only $5! No, we didn’t even try to bargain for a lower cost. My dress cost about $15 on clearance and was purchased at Target before Joey was born. So, for about $50, Dan and I were able to attend the ship’s formal. It was a glorious meal and a fantastic time. We even enjoyed some wine with our scruptious meal!"

06/25/08 & 06/26/08 At home

Well, we are home safe and sound. Our flight landed early yesterday morning and after early morning naps, Joey went to his Dad's house. I purchased groceries at Costco and then we went to see The Incredible Hulk... a much better movie than I expected.

Today, went for a run and lost my bracelet from the cruise so Dan went with me to search for it... we somehow got lucky enough to find it, YEAH!!! :) My mom joined me for lunch and then to see the movie Sex and the City since Dan decided that was WAY too girly for him and seeing it would impact his testosterone level.

Nothing else exciting planned for the next couple of days... catch up on laundry, chores and work outs before we leave for our next adventure, a trip to Rocky Point with my family.

06/24/08 Animal Kingdom

Welcome to the animal kingdom! Susan was our beautiful, smart and FUN tour guide for the day, showing us her favorite things in the park. Where Magic Kingdom was fun, Animal Kingdom was AWESOME! I'd go back here any day!

Our first stop was a ride on the park's coolest roller coaster The Everest Expedition. Although Joey and Susan did not ride, Dan and I rode the coaster FOUR times that day! It was certainly addictive and a HUGE thanks to Susan for keeping Joey entertained so we COULD ride The Everest Expedition four times.

Our next stop was to see a very cool bird show, I think it was called Fantasy of Flight. They did a fantastic job with the birds and the show was pretty darned funny. Highly recommended.

We also saw two other shows, Pocahontas and her Forest Friends (and cuz it's stuck in my head, "...can you paint with all the colors of the wind...") and Festival of the Lion King - which was our last adventure of the day and an AMAZING show...

We also went on the Safari ride through Africa. Dan was happy he got to see one of his favorites, the giraffe. Susan is amazing with kids as she spent time with Joey on the safari and the bird house helping him look for and identify the animals while I photographed away.

One of the coolest things we saw were the fruit bats. They were fanning themselves to keep themselves cool as it was a hot day. Fruit bats have a wing span of up to 6 feet and are absolutely beautiful creatures. They were fascinating to watch and we spent a good 15 to 20 minutes just marvelling at them while they slept. Joey's favorite ride was to the Kali River Rapids ride. Joey and Dan were in the "hot seat" one time and got absolutely drenched. Now on a hot day like it was for us, that's not a bad thing. The water was refreshing after walking all day in the hot weather.
We had lunch at the Yak and Yeti restaurant (no, not yakking yeti restaurant like Dan thought) and although it was a bit more pricey, it was delicious and worth every penny. I recommend the Miso Salmon!

In the center of the Magic Kingdom you'll find the fairy castle. At the center of Animal Kingdom you'll find the tree of life. The tree is fake and about 14 stories high, 50 feet wide and houses over 1000 carved animals. You can look at it for hours and each see something different. It is fascinating!

We had a fantastic day in the Animal Kingdom and can't wait to go back. If you head to Disney World, make sure to stop at the Animal Kingdom as it's worth every penny of your ticket!

06/23/08 Disney's Magic Kingdom

Today we hit the Magic Kingdom. Jason and Susan where super cool and let us borrow their awesome sporty car to drive down to Orlando and visit with Mickey. The drive is about an hour and went by quickly.

Rides we hit: Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Space Mountain (Joey was soooo scared that he waited for us at the end of the ride), Pirates of the Carribean, Liberty Square Riverboat, The Barnstormer at Goofy's Wiseacre (to EASE Joey into roller coasters) and finally, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. After dramatic tears at Space Mountain, we were able to ease Joey into Barnstormer and then with some extrapolation onto my favorite Thundermountain Railroad. The attached picture is from Joey on Barnstormer.

It was a busy hot day in the happiest place on earth which led us to only hang for 7 hours. Ride lines were incredibly long, but we had a great time!

Jason and Susan were also kind enough to take us to Bo's for our obligatory soft ice cream. They have the most amazing chocolate, vanilla or mix ice cream... and hard dips of butterscotch, chocolate, cherry and blue raspberry... YUMMY!!!

06/22/08 Tampa

A pretty lazy Sunday for us. We hung out with Jason and Susan, eating pizza and wings, watching TV and enjoying the rain. I was able to squeeze in both a nap and jog to burn my 350 calories so I could totally enjoy my Columbo's Ice Cream. (I'm telling you that stuff in mana from heaven!)

After the rains Jason found a HorseShoe Crab Spider spinning a web. We watched for a little while. It was so neat to watch him methodically spin the circle part and attach it to each of the supporting strands. So precise! Isn't it beautiful?

Monday... House of the Mouse! We're going to Magic Kingdom & then Tuesday, Animal Kingdom. Let's hope we don't get lost on our way.

06/21/08 A Day at Sea

Time to return back to Florida. We really enjoyed the day at sea as an opportunity to relax and rest after our whirlwind adventures. We took a nap and packed and took in some of the shows. It was sad to have our last dinner in the Truffles dining room with Skip, Amy and Kaitlyn. We got to know our waitstaff so well that we gave them hugs before we departed. Yunita and I Nengah took excellent care of us and knew us by name.

06/20/08 Isla Roatan, Honduras

The view of Roatan from our stateroom.

Our final stop before returning home was Roatan. I woke up early to work out and got to watch as our boat docked and see the sunrise. It was a very pretty way to start the day. Then, off to breakfast where Joey ate 4 boxes of cereal and a slice of bacon. (WOW!!! where did he put it all?) Dan and Joey pose on the pier.

Now one with Mom.

On the pier there were local musicians playing the drums, singing and dancing for us. They kept up their entertainment from the time we docked to the time the last blasts from the horn announced our depature from the island.

Our adventure for the day was a sea spi trip to view the coral reefs of Roatan. Unfortunately, the coral reefs are probably not at their most glorious as there were many brown and grey dead corals in the area we viewed. What was alive was very pretty though and the tropical fish were stunning. Joey LOVED the sea spi ride, although I have to admit the closer we got to the ocean breaks, the less I liked it... SEA SICK!!

Another lovely site with lovely sandy beaches. Here the boys pose with the pretty sand & sea behind them.