Happy New Years!

Jenna and I were known for waking up at 5:30am on Christmas morning because of how excited we were that Santa had visited. I remember that one friend of ours went to bed really early so Santa would come faster. As we get older we appreciate sleeping in a little more. This year we woke around 8am. We opened gifts with my parents and then drove to my Aunt Sandy's house for more presents and breakfast. I will have pictures of the presents in my next post. Jenna showing off her bling and new Hello Kitty flannel pj's at Sandy's house:


Dad didn't get off Christmas so he had to leave during our celebration to go to work at Oakland airport. I picked up Dan on the way back to our house and we exchanged gifts and hung out.

We went to Christmas dinner at our cousin Lynn's house in Novato (60 minutes North). My favorite part of the evening was when I broke out my friends trivia game and we all answered the questions until it was time to go home. I had a very relaxing holiday and I hope you all did as well.

Wednesday night I went to Tom's Christmas party with my mom and Dan. We are standing in front of his tree that has over 200 birds on it. From left to right: Tom, me, and Dan. I always look forward to Tom's parties because of the killer smoked salmon that he serves.

The Sundance Spas girls, plus me. From left to right: Kat, my mom, me, and Leah. You might notice that I am holding a Nintendo DS lite. I spent a bit of time that day searching for one and I was thrilled to successfully find a black one at game stop. I'm completely addicted to the game Brain Age.


I had Friday off for the first time in several months. Jenna managed to get her hand stuck in the car door. Next time we're doing the drive through! Jenna, Kelly, and I went on an adventure and arrived at the PEZ Museum of Burlingame, California.


The Museum is located at 214 El Camino Real in Burlingame. It is fairly small and costs $3. Its so small that the "tour" guide walks you back and forth in a tiny room to make the tour last longer. I did learn some cool things about PEZ!

PEZ was originally sold as a breath mint in 1927. It wasn't until the 50's that the Austrian company decided to produce dispensers with heads as well. The PEZ candy got the name from the Austrian name "pfefferminz" for peppermint. Here is a poster of the original PEZ dispenser.


Two PEZ vending machines in the museum.


The original neon sign from the PEZ factory. The owner of the museum won it from an Ebay auction. Ebay was founded so PEZ dispensers could be traded and sold on the internet. Can you believe how much its grown since Ebay started?


The rarest PEZ dispenser was the Super Spiel. It was supposed to be similar to Mr. Potato head but on a dispenser. It was recalled almost immediately because it was considered a choking hazard.


The biggest display of PEZ dispensers. I recognized at least 5 dispensers that I have from this display!


Friday night Dan surprised me with an XBOX360. We have Tetris and Need For Speed Most Wanted. I love Tetris! Guitar Hero 3 has shipped but we haven't received it yet. I was hoping we'd have it for New Years Eve but we'll be fine.

Saturday night we went to Jessica's surprise graduation party. I had a lot of fun and took plenty of pictures. It was nice to catch up with a bunch of friends too. I am so incredibly proud of your achievements Jessica. You are so strong and I admire you for it. Congrats on your BA! Left to right: Brian, Jessica, and Lily.


Then dance floor towards the end of the evening had really cool lighting. Hope you have a safe and Happy New Years Eve!