The Happiest Place on Earth

Last Monday Jim and I got to be kids again with Andrea and Reggie at Disneyland. Anyone that knows Jim knows that he tends to be one of the luckiest people when it comes to winning free stuff off the radio. Back in July he called me to tell me he had just won a four pass of park hopper tickets to Disneyland. Then about a week and a half ago he called me at work to tell me he just found out he won a paid day off of work. Since Andrea had Columbus day off, Jim and I took it off too and decided to spend it at Disneyland.

We started the day at California Adventure where our favorite ride was the Tower of Terror. The unexpected drops made it a definite thrill ride. We ended the day at Disneyland riding Space Mountain and Indiana Jones. Even thought it was a holiday and the park was a little more crowded than a normal Monday, the longest we had to wait for a ride was like 30-40 minutes.




It was a fun filled day and a great time spent with Andrea and Reggie. Maybe when Corban is a little older and we have kids of our own we'll all have to repeat the trip except that it will probably be a little more expensive.

Our little girl turns 1!

Maddux turned one this week and what better way to celebrate than with a birthday party! A birthday party complete with guests, cupcakes, princess party hats and presents. I hate to admit it but I have turned in to one of "those" people.


What had first started out as a "joke" turned into an evening of fun. I had mentioned to my friend Vivian that I was thinking of having a birthday party for Maddux and maybe going to the dog beach and then having cupcakes or frosty paws (doggie ice cream). One day I was telling my mom about my idea and she said, "don't you think her grandparents want to come", so the guest list grew. We went out with Andrea and Reggie and jokingly said if you want to come we are having a party for Maddux next week and they said they wouldn't miss it. So evites went out and in the end we had a house full of three dogs, seven people and a baby. There is no doubt that Maddux is loved :)

The night started out with a trip to the dog park with Roxy, Chile, Viv, Andrea, my mom and me. The guys stayed home to watch football. Maddux, Roxy and Chile all had a blast at the park and definitely got a lot of energy out. After the park we went back home for dinner, cupcakes and presents. All three of the dogs continued to wrestle and play until it was present time.




Maddux is one spoiled little puppy. The fun thing about getting gifts from friends is that they were able to buy all the girly dog stuff that Jim won't let me buy. She got a pink and black doggy sweater, pink hawaiian collar and leash (now everyone will know that Maddux is a girl!), pink dog dish and some bling for her collar. In addition she got a ton of dog treats that will last her a year and toys.


We ended the evening with puppy cupcakes courtesy of Vivian. We even went as far as to sing happy birthday before Maddux could eat her cupcake. She didn't waste any time once we gave it to her. All three of the dogs loved their cupcakes.



In the end it was a fun evening for everyone that came. I do realize that having a birthday for your dog is over the top and that Maddux really had no concept of what was going on except that she got to have "treats", but I still would recommend throwing a first birthday for your dog. If anything it is a good excuse to have friends and family over.

Jim's Weekend Renovation

When Jim and I first starting looking for our first place, I made it clear to him that I wanted a say in all of the decorating that would be done. Realizing that I should let Jim have a say in some part of the decorating of our first place, I told him that if we had a second bathroom that could be his room. He was OK with this idea since he thought a Cubs bathroom would be cool. Our first place only had one bathroom so he was out of luck until we bought our condo. We have been in the condo a little over a year and his bathroom renovation has come to fruition. The one thing I requested was that the bathroom still look classy and not too baseball cheesy. He decided to go with more of a vintage theme, incorporating different baseball memorabilia in a shadow/display box. His great ideas and hard work paid off. He did an awesome job and we both love it!

Flowers, Flowers, Flowers!

I have always loved flowers. If I could afford it, I would buy a new arrangement every week to have in the house. Fresh flowers brighten my day and are a constant reminder of the beauty God created for us to enjoy. Seeing all the beautiful arrangements in the store and at weddings I have thought to myself, "It can't be that difficult to arrange my own flowers", but for some reason when I buy flowers and attempt to arrange them myself they never quite end up looking like they did in my head.

For the past couple of years I have received catalogs in the mail for a local community college that offers a variety of classes, including floral design. Taking a floral design class has always peaked my interest but I never signed up for one until a month ago when I decided I just needed to call and register so that I didn't have any regrets. Today was the last class of the first session and I decided to sign up for the next class as well. Below are some of my designs. Enjoy!

So what started out as "let's stop by Home Goods store to see what they have" turned into an afternoon of rearranging. Jim and I have been looking for some art work to finish decorating our living room and dining room. Jim had seen some ads for Home Goods so we decided to stop by and ended up buying some art. I think I may have found my new favorite store. They have so much cool stuff at good prices.

Once we got home we couldn't decide exactly where we wanted to hang everything so Jim suggested we re-arrange the living room. Every so often I like to rearrange/redecorate because it gives me a feeling of something new. Most people that know me know that I don't like keeping things the same for long periods of time. We now have access to our fire place which will be really nice as the weather starts to cool down.

Earlier in the day we made a trip down to El Cajon for my best friend Andrea's sons' dedication at Gateway. I am excited to see what God has in store for Corban's life. He has blessed Corban with two amazingly godly parents that will help raise him and lead him in the right direction.

Since my nephew Elijah lives out of town, the next best thing is my "nephew" Corban. In addition to being part of this speacial day with Andrea, Reggie and Corban, Jim and I were able to see some friends we hadn't seen since we left Gateway to find a church closer to home.

My Worst Fear

My worst fear in starting to blog has come true.... forgetting to update. Life has been busy but we are enjoying every minute of it.


Earlier this summer Jim and I decided to the leave the church we had been attending the last couple of years and look for a church closer to home. We wanted to get connected more in our community and meet new people. After looking at a couple of churches, we decided to make The Church at Rancho Bernardo our new home. We really enjoy the pastor. Jim has been going to the men's group and we are joining a small group for young marrieds. This is something we have been looking forward to for a while now.



While Jim is at the men's group, Maddux and I have been getting together with my friend Vivian and her dog Roxy for playdates. What started as just a playdate has now turned into a playdate for the dogs and devotional/fellowship time for me and Vivian. Usually I am not one to just start talking to random people but about a month ago while at the dog park I noticed Vivian's sweat shirt that had a verse on it and said "Sin is dead" and decided to ask her about it. We started talking and I found out she was a Christian and goes to one of the churches that we checked out. It's nice having a friend nearby that shares the same beliefs and provides encouragement. You should check out her company's website, crossrocktv.com. Below are some pictures from Maddux and Roxy's playdate.

Guess who the agressor is?

Poor Roxy wanted to rest but Maddux wasn't going to let her

Now I am not one to show off my undergarments but for a good cause I will. A good family friend of ours is taking part in the 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk here in San Diego in November. Her team held a "Bling Your Bra" fundraiser last night to raise some money. We used swarovski crystals to bling out bras, undies, shirts, tanks and hats. It was a good time for a great cause.

Elijah's Birthday Weekend

This past weekend Jim and I made the trek up to Bakersfield to celebrate our nephew Elijah's 1st birthday. Elijah is one of the happiest little boys, always smiling. He also gives the best hugs.


Here are some pictures from his birthday:

this is good...I need to enjoy every bite and lick of the finger.

Elijah sure knows how to go to town on his cake.

birthday presents!!!

his first pair of crocs

I also got to meet the newest member of our family this weekend, my cousins little girl Josephine. She is a month old.

my other little cousin Sophie...she's five months old.