Dad's 48th Birthday Bash!

Dad's ice cream cake, because he's just incredible! :)
Avery and her two boys (Reggie and Josh). This girl loves the boys! Matt you better start cleaning those guns now.
Uncle Rich whipping up on Josh. My money is always on Uncle Rich in these situations. :)
Avery giving her Daddy a kiss.
Matty and I.

The Birthday Boy! Does he really look 48? I'd say only 40, it must be those haircuts every three weeks. :)
Grandpa Erickson, Morgan, Sami Jami, and Susie Q.
Eric (aka Rico Suave) taking some ZZZZs during the party, after the excellent Prime Rib though.
Grandma Berry enjoying the afternoon, to celebrate her baby's birthday.
Amie serving up some delicious cake.

My Photogenic Brothers

Matt washing the dishes. It is a very dangerous task, so Matty had to wear Josh's snowboarding goggles, just in case that soapy water got in his eyes. :)
Can't you just feel the love? These two boys of mine are just not very serious characters at all.

Josh standing next to the best looking girl he'll see all year. Hehe.

Avery After Eating Spaghetti

No other explanation is really needed for this post. :)

Oakland Temple after the BIG GAME

Ben, Allison, Craig, Alex, and Nicole at the Oakland Temple after the Big Game. Stanford versus CAL. The Oakland Temple lite their palm trees in Blue and Gold (Cal colors), I think they missed the memo that Cal LOST that day!


Alex and I before...............and then after I grew at least 1 1/2 feet! :) Alex with two (Nicole and I) of his very large and popular harem! He is the 2nd most sought after Bachelor in Berkeley. :)

Thanksgiving in Idaho!

Me and My girls. Avery (aka Averina, my Russian Ballerina), Samantha (aka Sami Jami), and Morgan (aka MoCo). My three very cute and spoiled girls!!


Josh and Morgan. This is pretty precious Josh. What will the all girls think?
Auntie (aka My Mom) and new baby Morgan.

Matt, me, Mom and Josh at dinner one night. Josh is the funniest kid you'll meet. My Mom was introducing Matt and I to the daughter of the owners while I was paying the bill and then she said "And you know Josh, right?" The girl said in this high-pitched voice "Of course I know Josh". We then got in the car and my Mom thought this girl's response was so hilarious that she was reacting it. Without missing a beat Josh flexes his biceps and says "Obviously, I give every girl a free ticket to the gun show". I thought I was going to die laughing.

This is the Rexburg, Idaho, LDS Temple. These pictures just don't do the sacred building justice. It is nearing completion and will have the Open House starting at the end of December thru the end January before it is dedicated where anyone can come and view the Temple. For those of you not aware of what a LDS Temple is, I've posted below just a little bit about LDS Temples. It is such a beautiful building and I'm so excited to attend the Open House!

To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the temple is the "House of the Lord." It is a sacred building, and after its dedication only faithful members of the Church may enter. Inside, members learn more about the purpose of life and make covenants to serve Jesus Christ and their fellow man. In addition, they participate in religious ceremonies that reach beyond mortality, such as baptisms on behalf of deceased ancestors and eternal marriage.

This picture of the Tetons was literally the view from my backyard growing up. Now all we see from the Bay windows is a big fat wood barn that apparently is an Art Gallery inside.

My First California Earthquake!

The story begins Tuesday morning when my roommate Mikey and I were chatting about her purchasing supplies for her 72 hour survival kit. I told her how when I moved here my Mom sent me fully equipped with a 72 hour survival kit because now I was living on the peninsula in the Bay and so when a earthquake hit I'd be the first to fall into the ocean. We laughed about the joke and headed to work. After a very long day at work, my legs and arm were hurting pretty badly. So I decided to soak in the tub. This was at 7:30 pm. At roughly 8 pm, I decided to quickly shower. Typically I get dizzy from the hot water anyways, so when the quake started my first thought was: Man, I am really dizzy tonight. Then I realized that it wasn't me shaking but everything around me. It lasted around 20 seconds and was a 5.6. That is right, my first earthquake happened while in the shower. Not the most ideal place for survival or quick evacuation if necessary - but makes for a good story. I can read the headlines now: "Girl found in shower rubble in P.A. after quake because she just couldn't leave the warmth of the water." Thank goodness for railing in the shower. :) It might not be me falling into the ocean but falling in the shower, Mom. So good thing I've got that 72 hr kit. Maybe I'll start storing it in the bathroom, just in case I find myself in the shower during our next quake! :)

Attempting to Rock Climb....keyword "attempting"

Attempting to rock climb at Nicole's house in Sacramento. I learned one very important lesson for all. Rock climbing requires three things: TWO able arms, TWO able legs, and BALANCE! If you don't have these three things, which is the case for me, then I would highly recommend that you avoid rock climbing. Otherwise you'll have a very similar look on your face. Let's just say a certain someone fell down from this position several times (5 to be exact) directly into Nicole's face. Bless her little heart for wanting me to try.

My HP team!

Our whole team in Las Vegas. This was the first time we have ever all been together. Our team is split between Palo Alto, CA and Sao Paulo, Brazil. We had such a great time getting to know one another better! Now our meetings will definitely be more lively! L-R Jeferson, me, Leilee, Silvano, Wellington, Peter, Lucy, Elaine, and Roy. It was also our boss Roy's birthday so we had to celebrate well!

Myself, Lucy, Leilee, and Elaine with our giant Pete in the back. We have this debate on who is taller between Leilee and I. After several measurements the majority chose Leilee but I think this picture gives me a least a couple of centimeters on Leilee!

Pete and I! Yes, I am in this picture, behind Pete. Pete gets quite the kick out of our VERY noticable size difference!

Waffle Night....Ben cooking, the rest eating!

Twins? Hmmmm.... who looks better in this shirt? Cast your vote now. It only took Alex a few minutes to realize that I had put Craig's matching shirt on, very impressive on that speed.

Ben and Meredith cooking....oh wait, correction: Ben cooking, Meredith attempting to help! :)

Meredith posing "oh so natural" for a picture when downing some delicious waffles.

Nicole, Craig, me, Alex. Waffles just make us happy!

Alex and I awaiting another batch of waffles. After some discussion the conclusion has been made that green is definitely my color. I have never been one to hide my confidence, but the picture speaks for itself. :) Or as my friend Meredith put it "Jess looks fantastic in green! Or next to Green (hehehe)". Alex's last name is green for those of you that didn't catch that one. :)

How Berkeley Can You Be Parade

And the winner for the best entry goes to Rev. Bill!!! A great lesson for us all!

In the park after the parade...playing duck, duck, goose! Haha

A better shot of the legs! :)

Who has the better shaped leg? Me or the legs on the top of the car. I'm going to go with myself.

Ben and I...oh so enjoying the Parade!

This was my favorite entry of the parade. The "Orange County Lawn Club" came up because they heard Berkeley was trying to go green so they thought they come up and help teach Berkeley how to use tons of water to water their lawns. Wrong kind of green, which was their point and it was hilarious!

Yummy...human cupcakes. :) Not really sure what they are trying to promote. Maybe over-eating.

Arnold is apparently all around the world.

This gives new meaning to "free range". These roosters were about as annoying as Grandpa Erickson's in the early morning. :)

One this picture, look past me to see the collared tie-dye shirt behind us.

Front L-R: (Jess, Meredith, Nicole), Back L-R: (Ben, Marcie, Alex). This is us prior to the big event!

Background on the How Berkeley Can You Be Parade: The only pre-req for entry into the parade is that you have to be weird and have some sort of a cause that really isn't a cause. Haha, not really. There aren't really pre-reqs but basically it is to show how Berkeley is just "Berkeley"...if that can be an adjective.

Idaho! Surprise! Home Sweet Home

The Tetons probably couldn't have looked more beautiful that Friday afternoon. My dad and I decided that for my Mom and I's birthdays that we'd surprise her with me!! It was tough keeping the secret but with the exception of telling Dan that morning we were pretty sneaky. I can't decide who was more excited and shocked to see me. Josh, who was wondering "who the heck is driving the gas truck" when Matt and I pulled into the yard with me driving the gas truck for the first time ever. I was so excited, I can't believe I never realized what I was missing until now. Eric (the one rolling dough in the kitchen), when I walked into the Racin Station to see Eric...his eyes almost came out of his sockets. :) Or Avery...because I am in the lead for the favorite aunt position and I am really good at spoiling!!

Matt, Josh, and I have never been too good at taking a decent picture...mostly because they are too busy teasing and tickling me...but we do so love one another. :)