a & z

Get Motivated Conference

2009-02-27T14:47:00.001-08:00

Our church staff was invited to the "Get Motivated" conference in Sacramento. I tagged along with Zach & I must say it one of the coolest things I've ever attended. We were definitely motivated by day's end. :-) We were also really excited to find that nearly every speaker was a born again Christian, and gave credit to God for all their success. There was even a presentation of the gospel message & an alter call! So cool. Here are pics of some of our new favorite people...

MICHAEL PHELPS

KJ 52 (he led us all in the "Thriller" dance, it was amazing)

RUDY GIULIANI, standing RIGHT in front of me!

GENERAL COLIN POWELL

STEVE FORBES (as in Forbes Magazine)

Krystal & Jon's wedding

2008-12-19T23:37:00.000-08:00

Our friends Krystal & Jon had a BEAUTIFUL wedding on Dec 19th! Everything from the trees, the wood centerpieces, and the tree stump serving pedastals was absolutely perfect. We were so happy for them both, and Krystal made a STUNNING bride! The highlight... cotton candy served off tree branches! Krystal's favorite dessert made for a very unique & memorable treat! Congratulations Krystal & Jon!

Ruby

2008-12-19T23:15:00.000-08:00

Our new puppy, Ruby- she's an Bluenose American Pitbull Terrier, now 4 months old. She weighs in at 32lbs and she seems to be growing bigger every day! She loves to dive under the couch & play, but we wonder what will happen next month when she doesn't fit in her favorite spots! While extremely well-behaved, quick learning, and very sweet, she has definitely had her "naughty" moments. That's why we included pictures of the garage destruction of 2008... Ruby now has a doghouse to sleep in outside. :-)

Christmas time!

2008-12-19T23:01:00.001-08:00

This season has been a whirlwind! Here are some pictures of our very tall (but crooked) Christmas tree, Anne's cookie exchange, our Christmas card "photo shoot," and our gingerbread house creations with friends Glen & Charmaine! 'Tis the season!!!

Zach's Birthday Dinner

2008-12-19T22:51:00.001-08:00

Zach's 28th Birthday called for a celebration! We had a great night hangin' out with close friends- playing games & eating JR's Texas BBQ (Zach's favorite) and Anne's homemade baseball field cake. It wasn't Martha Stewart worthy, but pretty good for an amateur. :-) Thanks for celebrating with us everyone!

Nate & Kayla's Wedding

2008-10-28T21:01:00.001-07:00

Anne's brother Nate, married Kayla on Sunday night! Here are ALL the pics! We didn't bother with caption b/c it would've taken too long, but enjoy!

Memory Walk '08

2008-10-13T21:09:00.001-07:00

On October 11th we walked 3 miles around Treasure Island, San Francisco to raise money for the Alzheimer's Association. Anne walked in honor of her grandfather who's suffered from Alzheimers for several years now. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time. Anne raised over $1,000 for the cause!

This was the most people I'd ever seen at a Memory Walk. It's become very popular & I'm so grateful for the HUNDREDS of people who came out to support the Alzheimer's Association.

Alcatraz

the beautiful skyline

The Golden Gate Bridge

The view of the San Francisco skyline couldn't have been any better.

The beautiful Bay Bridge

We made it!!!

flower power

2008-10-11T16:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, this may seem silly, but I'm posting pictures of the flowers in my yard and on my patio, because I've come to discover that I have a certain healing power when it comes to plants. My flowers were all dead or dying about a month ago- some were just too dried out and others were sick with a weird plant disease that had turned the leaves and stems black. NOW.... look at them!!!! I revived them!!!!! And they're gorgeous!!! Just had to brag. I never thought I had a green thumb, until now. I still have no idea what any of them are called though so don't ask. It took me years to even learn how to read the little tags that come with them!

the Imbodens and the giant pumpkin

2008-10-02T22:17:00.000-07:00

Our 3rd annual trip to Bishop's Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland!!!

We named our pumpking "Rolly." Cuz we had to literally roll him from our car all the way up the driveway and onto the patio. Notice that Anne's feet don't even touch the ground when she sits on it!

Piglet races at Porko Arena! I think "Green Eggs and Ham" won this round.

The pumpkin patch guys (God bless 'em) trying to haul our chosen one from the patch and onto a tractor.

Kayla's wedding shower

2008-09-14T12:51:00.001-07:00

My future sister-in-law, my mom & me- somehow we all ended up in blue...

Our New House!

2008-09-14T12:22:00.001-07:00

Here are the long-awaited pictures of our new house! I didn't post pictures of EVERY room, b/c a few them are still empty (ie: office, spare room, formal living & dining rooms)! Once they're furnished I'll post those too. Oh, and somehow I forgot to snap a picture of the kitchen... duh.

the 1/2 bath, downstairs

the front patio- my favorite spot :-)

the guest room

the guest bathroom

the family room

the front entryway

the backyard

the master bedroom & bathroom

kitchen/dining area

Lauren's 21st Shindig

2008-08-28T21:23:00.001-07:00

Anne's good friend Lauren turned the big 2-1 on August 13th, so a shindig was absolutely necessary! A small gathering of pals for drinks and desserts was all it took to have a fabulous night out! Happy Birthday Lauren!!!
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Laura & the Birthday Girl, all dolled up!

Me & Kristin, kickin' it up a notch with margaritas!

Caitlyn & The Birthday Girl

Amazing Grace

2008-07-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

Pics of Anne's parents' beautiful vacation home in Mendocino, which they very appropriately named "Amazing Grace." We are so blessed to have a retreat like this in our family for many generations to come.

Our weekend away

2008-07-14T19:00:00.000-07:00

A picture from my reading spot. I sat out on the cliff & read through almost an entire book through the weekend. It was the most time to myself I've had in a VERY long time. I am so grateful for the time away to relax and enjoy the peace.

My husband in ALL his cuteness!!!!

4th of July Parade in Mendo

2008-07-14T18:38:00.000-07:00

We spent 4th of July in Mendocino... a small hippie town full of peace craving, pot smoking, tree hugging liberals. :-) So, needless to say their 4th of July parade was very entertaining. If you love to people watch, THIS was the place to be! My favorites were the "Straight Pride" guy & the bulldogs. :-)

Our awesome Hume counselors

2008-07-08T22:04:00.000-07:00

We are SO blessed by our volunteer staff- we had a great team w/us serving as camp counselors. THANK YOU: John, Lisa, Stephen, Lissa, Devenie, Matt, & Shawn!!!

Anne & Lissa!! We're too cute for our own good. We were definitely the cool counselors.

John & Lisa Knapp- by far our favorite couple. They make marriage & parenting look fun... seriously.

the youth pastor and his wife... picture perfect :-)

Picture it: Merry Christmas! Love, the Imbodens hahahahaha :-)

BRAD PAISLEY!!!

2008-06-30T20:46:00.000-07:00

My husband was AMAZING and let me drag him to a Jewel & Brad Paisley concert last Saturday night! He danced amongst drunk cowboys and sang along with us all. We had a GREAT time, me with my cowgirl hat and Zach with his baseball cap. :-) I LOVE LOVE LOVE Brad Paisley, and I was so grateful to have a dancing partner at the concert! It was the night before camp and we were exhausted the next morning, but I think it was worth it. :-) YEEHAW!!!

Giant beer glasses for "the best song I'll never remember"... ALCOHOL

BRAD!!!!!

JEWEL!!!

Padre's Day

2008-06-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

We LOVE our dads! We were happy to celebrate with both our dad's this year- John on Saturday and my dad on Sunday. My dad LOVED his new bird bath and John was very happy with a giftcard to buy a new iphone. :-)
Here are pix from our Father's Day with my padre.

Anniversary Party!

2008-06-18T19:51:00.000-07:00

My brother & I surprised our parents with a 35th anniversary party on June 7th. It was tough keeping it a secret from them, but the look on their faces made it all worth it! We had such a good time celebrating their marriage with all their closest friends. We even coaxed them into playing "The Newlywed Game." They passed with flying colors! :-) I had a lot of fun putting it all together, but I'm relieved it's behind me! Congratulations on 35 wonderful years, and many more time come, Mom & Dad!

Grandma's Birthday

2008-05-23T17:47:00.001-07:00

Zach's grandma turned a whopping 75 years old on May 21st, and the whole family threw her a big party! We had so much fun! Grandma LOVED being surrounded by all her friends, kids, and grandkids. She told us lots of stories from when she was a girl, and we were so blessed to watch her embrace her long, amazing life. Happy Birthday Grandma Phyllis! :-)

John was entertaining the ladies. :-)

Awww... poor Whitney. Chris wouldn't pose for a picture with her. Whitney & Chris are 2 of Zach's many cousins.

Like father like son. Josh was workin' the ladies too. :-)

Grandma with her son Alan.

Cousin Stephen being so silly!

All the grandkids made a special tribute to Grandma. Josh is up! He shared a story about how Grandma cleaned Paul's barf off his Gameboy on road trip to Sea World... so sentimental.

Paul is next!

Nicole & Rory's Wedding

2008-05-12T21:50:00.001-07:00

We attended the wedding of our friends, Nicole & Rory, on May 10th. It was a beautiful outdoor wedding! It seemed all the guests in attendance were from Sunrise, so we had a great time with all our friends. My friend Michelle sang during the lighting of the unity & she sounded amazing. She & her husband Perry looked great out on the dance floor! My boss, Dave, however... let's just say line dancing isn't on his resume. :-) Julie & I decided we needed a picture together because we just looked too good for words. :-) And after 2 years of friendship, we FINALLY got a picture of us with Trevor & Mindi! It's about time! Too bad the camera angle is so weird. Maybe next time. ;-) Congratulations Nicole & Rory!

San Francisco Zoo

2008-05-12T18:21:00.001-07:00

My husband is amazing & took me to my favorite place... the San Francisco Zoo! I love going because it reminds me how incredibly creative our God is, and what a great sense of humor He has. :-) We got some great pics of Coit Tower, Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge too! It was a BEAUTIFUL day in the city!

Spring Training in Arizona!

2008-03-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

Sorry Aunt Susan. You won't see Zach drinking a beer at a baseball game... but my parents do! :-)

OMG, my BFF Jen! :-) Jen joined us for dinner since we were, after all, in her town!

Awww! Madre & Padre!!!!

Zach and his beloved cactus. He was in desert heaven.

Diamonds are a girls best friend. :-)

Go A's! Woohoo!!

All our favorite boys. :-)

Bobby Crosby! Right there in front of us!

Zach LOVED getting up close and personal to the field, the players, all the action.

Madre & Anne got festive for St. Patty's Day! That's what real divas do. ;-)

Jelly Belly Mania

2008-03-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

My Aunt Debi is visiting from Iowa, and she is a Longaberger Basket conossieur? collector? crazy basket lady? The Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield hosted a Longeberger Basket Fest, so of course, Debi had to be there! My mom & I came along and we had a lovely girls day out. We took the factory tour & bought ourselves some beautiful baskets. Just fyi: the paper factory hats were REQUIRED for the tour, and the picture of us in the giant Longaberger basket... ok that was just silly.

My big brother Nate turned 28 in late Feb, and we finally had a chance to celebrate with him. What better way to celebrate than with a giant chocolate coconut cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory? Happy Birthday Big Brother!

A Day at the Zoo!

2008-03-12T14:37:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was a BEAUTIFUL spring day here in Sacramento! Zach & I decided to spend the entire day outdoors. We went to Land Park- a huge park by the Sac Zoo with big ponds, gardens, ducks, etc. We had a picnic & brought our croquet set for a "friendly competition." :-) I, of course, had to see the zoo while we were there. I love seeing all the different animals. Zach thinks I get too attached because I name all the animals & give them personalities... whatever. :-)-

I was a kangaroo in another life.

So, if Zach were a bird, his wingspan would be the same as a Bald Eagle. Now, if you know Zach at all, you know he has no hair on his head... Tell me this isn't FUNNY?!?

Tiger! Lauren, this one is for you. :-)

Hyenas are umm.... ugly.

Peek-a-boo! :-)

Zebras!!! They are SO cool. Did you know every zebra has different stripes? Just like humans with their fingerprints. Amazing.

A Bongo! An awesome cross between an antelope & gazelle. I love these things.

Paul's birthday

2008-03-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

Zach's youngest brother, Paul, has a Leap Year Birthday! We celebrated 20 years of his life, but technically... he's only 5. ;-)
I busted out my new cake decorating kit (compliments of my mother & father-in-law) and produced what I thought was a pretty nice looking cake for my first time using a pastry bag! Happy birthday little brother!

Kings Game

2008-03-12T14:05:00.000-07:00

Anne's parents were very generous this Christmas & gave Zach tickets to a Sacramento Kings game for the 2nd year in a row! The seats are fabulous- practically courtside! We got some great pix of our favorite players, & before the game we ate at Center Court restaurant, owned by NBA player Chris Webb. So fun!

Our 1st Annual Super Bowl Party!

2008-03-12T13:19:00.000-07:00

We hosted our 1st Annual Super Bowl Party on February 3rd. We had so much fun preparing for it. The whole apartment was decked out in football decor, and I tried lots of new recipes. We had a blast!

Tom, Dave & Kevin. Extraordinary friends, men of God, and sports fans. :-)

Brent & Nick give their reactions & comments from the peanut gallery.

Stephen & Lissa! Our jh interns & one of our very favorite fellow married couples. :-) They're awesome friends with a huge passion for jr. high students.

Our big groupie. We had a great mix of friends at the party- some football fans, others not so much. All in all there was a lot of laughter and a lot of insulting each other's favorite teams. :-)

I was so proud of myself after I made these football cakes! I found the Martha Stewart within!

Wedding guests

2008-02-03T22:13:00.000-08:00

Zach's friends, Ryan & Helyna, were married on January 11th. They had a very fun, very festive wedding. Zach & I had a blast- lots of good food, lots of dancing, and we knew most of the other guests which made it worth staying for the entire reception. :-) It was the first time Zach & I had danced together since our own wedding, and we realized after a our year long hiatus... we forgot how to dance. :-)

Ceremonial Cake Cutting

2008-02-03T22:05:00.000-08:00

As tradition, we froze the top layer of our wedding cake. However, it was kept in a pastry box & there was fresh fruit filling... one year later it was pretty darn gross. Lots of mold and yuckiness. The outside of the cake was still perfectly intact though! It looked just like it did on our wedding day! It's amazing what fondant can do. :-)

We took one ceremonial picture & then decided to pass on actually eating it. We didn't want to be up all night with stomach pains on our anniversary. :-)

Anniversary in Oregon!

2008-01-08T19:29:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our very first wedding anniversary with a weekend getaway to Klamath Falls, Oregon. It was a BEAUTIFUL winter wonderland! We went iceskating, stayed in by the fireplace & even fed wild deer right outside our room! It was perfectly relaxing & romantic. :-) Our favorite- getting the PERFECT view of Mt. Shasta on our drive home!

Camp Silverspur

2008-01-07T21:09:00.000-08:00

Zach had the honor & privelage of being the camp speaker at a high school winter camp last weekend. His good buddy Brandon was the youth pastor. The weekend was very relaxing for Zach & me- we had our own cabin and got to hang out with the most awesome high schoolers. Plus... Brandon & Zach performed their wildly acclaimed "eagle song." Words can't even describe. But yes, that IS Zach with a guitar. Funny isn't it? :-)

The most RANDOM thing ever! There was a horse parked outside the drug store in the pouring rain! We felt so bad for it! But we had to laugh too. What the crap is a horse doing in a parking lot?!?

Zach had to make an emergency phone call to his brother Josh from our cabin. The powerpoint capabilities at this camp were less than average & Zach's entire message series relied on it.... let's just say it was good Josh was available. :-)

Christmas x2 (part 2)

2008-01-07T20:15:00.000-08:00

My family- Madre, Padre, & big brother Nate. Awwwww.

Grandma Sisler is ready to hit the Caribbean on her cruise!

And then there's MY family. :-) My mother (also known as "Madre"), the diva.

Christmas x2 (part 1)

2007-12-30T21:40:00.000-08:00

All the Imboden boys. This is their typical gathering during holidays. Kathy & I are usually in the kitchen, making fun of them. :-) Whatever, at least they bond.

Our gift to Josh, my brother-in-law. He's been going to school in Canada this year. Now he'll fit right in! Hahaha :-)

How on EARTH did Santa fit this in his sleigh?!?!

My little brother-in-law, Paul. I adore him. We click. 'Nuf said. :-)

My father-in-law, playing with the new potholders we got my mother-in-law... now we know what to get him next year.

One of our few evenings at home together, might as well make it a kodak moment. :-)

Awww.... this is our sappy picture in front of "Sappy" (our Christmas tree).

Zach, opening his brand new BOWLING BAG! Ok, it sounds geeky & lame, but I swear it was a totally desirable gift.

Me in my festive garb on Christmas Eve, opening one of the many glorious presents my husband "Santa" brought me. :-)

I don't think we get any cuter than this. :-)

The newlyweds! (Even more newlywed than Zach & me!) My beautiful cousin Mandie (can you see the family resemblence?) & her husband Nick, married in February.

My cousin Libby opeing the super cute reindeer gift box (from Hallmark of course). :-)

My cousin David with my uncle Charlie.

My brother Nate... and the dog, Gizmo.

Christmas card rejects

2007-12-18T22:26:00.000-08:00

Ok, so they aren't really the "rejects." More like the runners up for our Christmas card picture. Plus a really awesome picture of "It's a Small World" lit up for Christmas at Disneyland. If the ride wasn't so obnoxious we might have used THAT as our Christmas card picture. The one we DID pick? Well... coming to a mailbox near you. :-)

My bday

2007-12-07T21:59:00.000-08:00

Wow I had the world greatest birthday given by the world’s greatest wife!!! Now that we are home I am suffering with Post Disneyland Syndrome. This morning as I woke up my body was ready to go back and experience the magic of Walt Disney, not the workload that awaited me at work. All day today all I wanted to do was ride Splash Mountain or Buzz Lighter again but back to reality, I guess. Well here are some more pictures from our amazing trip.

Disneyland Day 2

2007-12-04T22:25:00.001-08:00

Woohoo! Day 2 in Disneyland! Zach's birthday week continues!

We slept in a bit this morning & then hit all the best rides before lunch. We sang "Zipppity Doo Da" on Splash Mountain and screamed our way through space on Space Mountain, lived "a pirate's life for me" on Pirates of the Caribbean & lots more!

Then we took an awesome Holiday Tour through Disneyland where we were shown all the cool Christmas decorations throughout the park & learned all kinds of fun holiday facts. We also were able to skip the lines at the Haunted Mansion & It's a Small World. The Haunted Mansion was by FAR the most impressive ride yet! It's been COMPLETELY transformed into The Nightmare Before Christmas! There are no words! To conclude our tour, we had reserved seating for the Holiday Fantasy Parade, full of beloved Christmas & Disney classics.

Last, but not least, my best birthday surprise for Zach- I arranged to have his best friend Chris & wife Stacy meet us for dinner. We haven't seen them in MONTHS, and they drove 2 hours from Santa Barbara to surprise Zach! We had so much fun hanging out with them & their little girl Amaris, in Downtown Disney.

After they took off, we finished off our night with a ride on the Hollywood Tower of Terror. SCARY! But thrilling. :-)

*And YES, those are REAL reindeer in the pictures!!! There were 8 actual reindeers there in Frontierland as part of "Santa's Reindeer Roundup." Only at Disneyland.

We are here!!!!

2007-12-03T22:58:00.000-08:00

Well we left this morning to start a birthday adventure. We were so excited to get here to Disneyland today, so after getting through some LA traffic we finally arrive to "The Happiest Place on Earth." We check into our most beautiful hotel, the Grand Californian hotel. Which is amazing, especially now at Christmas time. So we check into our room grab our stuff and took off. First on our list the Firework show. It was amazing. Disney does it right when it comes to fireworks, they pull off the most amazing firework experience that you could ever imagine. Words or pictures does not do it justice, Im just going to leave it at that. After that we ran over to ride one of Disney's coolest rides, Buzz Lightyear. Yes Anne and I saved the world from the evil doers again. You can send us thank you cards later (if you don't know what I mean than you are just missing out on the coolest ride ever and I also decided that Buzz Lightyear is my favorite character.) After saving the world then we stroll over to Cal Adv which was decked out with the coolest Christmas stuff. Rode Cal Screaming (in line for less than 20 minutes eat your heart out). Then got some clam chowder over at Fisherman Warf. Then rode Soaring over Cal which is just breathe taking every time you ride it. Did some shopping in Downtown Disney and just hang out in room which overlooks Downtown Disney.

Man my wife is the best!!!! :) Enjoy our pictures and don't be to envious of us.

Yes its my birthday

2007-12-02T14:16:00.000-08:00

Well last night we started to celebrate my bday!!! Yes I know that it is a little early figuring my bday isn't till Wed but why wait. My wonder wife really wanted to do a "birthday cake" for me. We have company over tonight, and then we leave for Disnyland tomorrow morning!!!

Tis the season

2007-12-01T22:24:00.000-08:00

Decking the halls for our first Christmas together! We love our tree, and have lovingly named it "Sappy" (because Zach's hands were covered in sap after hauling it from the tree lot to the car). Our favorite ornaments? Zach's is the cactus wrapped in Christmas lights (symbolic of his love for the desert and hot weather), and Anne's is the little toaster with heart shaped toast popping out of it, called "Toast for Two."