I'm going to be an aunt again! My brother's going to be a father, and I should have a new family member in August this year. I continue to pray for the baby's continued healthy growth and for the new mama since Matt deployed last week. He'll be back in plenty of time before his son/daughter is born, but I'm sad he will miss ultra sound appointments and such.
Cheers to being Aunty Rah-Rah for a second time!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
Tears of Joy
For us, Christmas isn't measured by how many items you received on one's wish list, but by the combination of moments throughout the day that make one happy. Based on this, I had a very wonderful Christmas.
We drove to Cypress in 2:35 on Saturday--record time. It was raining the entire time, and we haven't seen that much rain in a long time (merry Christmas, Grass and Trees). Shortly after arriving, I realized that I had forgotten our basket of items, which included the rosemary dinner rolls I had stayed up baking the night before, our homemade applesauce, and my salad for dinner. I cried. I can't believe I forgot it on the kitchen island. I wasn't going to be able to stick to WW very well without a salad. Click the "panic" button. Marshall was sweet enough to offer to take us to the grocery store and pick up a replacement salad and rolls, which we did.
Before dinner commenced, we opened crackers, put on our paper crowns, and read the jokes that came with them. Marshall's parents put a lot of effort into the meal, and everyone enjoyed it immensely. Afterwards Marshall and I took a nap, then as a family we watched A Christmas Story. When it was through we drove around the neighborhood and looked at Christmas lights. I love looking at Christmas lights, especially when you can see decorations inside the house through the windows. I like seeing other people's trees too. I have no idea what time my husband came to bed, but I was asleep by 11pm. My body got me up Christmas morning, bright and early, and the ripe time of 6:30am.
My father-in-law made us breakfast, and then Marshall woke up. Afterwards we opened presents one by one. Santa brought me a book of card game rules, an ornament, a pinball game with a prize inside and electronic kitchen timer that can track 4 different things at once. Joy gave me an amazing set of boxing targets and ladies' gloves. I've wanted these so I can do cardio and strength training indoors. Jeff gave me a Le Crueset skillet that looks amazing for stir fry vegetables! Marshall gave the the exact same timer (hehehe), fuzzy socks, and a gold plated venetian mask with diamonds on it. I absolutely love it! In fact, I wore it the entire way home to Austin yesterday.
After presents we cleaned up the now empty boxes and shredded wrapping paper. Joy and I looked through a digital scrapbook her mother had made of her time at BYU in the 1940s. We left at 2pm for Austin. On the way home, Marshall wanted to know if I still wanted to wait until Monday morning to open all the remaining gifts at our house (from my family and each other). Since we were coming back earlier than expected, we decided to continue Christmas when we arrived home.
I made french toast, scrambled eggs, and browned some left-over ham slices that was sent home with us. We lit the candles on our table centerpiece and had a nice little dinner. I had been craving french toast. Now I'm much better. :) The first presents we opened were the cat's stockings. They must have been good babies because Santa Cat brought each of them a can of Fancy Feast, something they had never had before. Maggie doesn't seem to like wet food very much because she didn't eat much of her turkey & giblet flavored treat. Misti and Santa went to town though!! Then I asked Marshall to open to other present that Santa Cat had given the Reeske Cats--it was a set of three Christmas themed picture frame ornaments with a picture of each cat in black and white already in it. Marshall thought they were adorable and wants to keep them out all year long because they also have a stand.
We opened our stockings first. Mine had two books and a gift certificate for a massage! His had new pens and a bag of his favorite cookie mix. Then we opened gifts from my family. My sister Rachael got me make-up and Marshall a three-step shaving package. My parents got Marshall a WW scale, which at first he thought was for me. I had to tell him it was for him even though it was a WW brand. It calculates BMI and body fat too. He's really excited. He also received a book light for late night reading. I received little baking loaf pans with size appropriate spatulas, mini tart/quiche pans, two mini bundt cake pans, WW chocolates, little cow clip magnets for the fridge, and an electric skillet. I can't want to go through my new WW cookbook and find recipes I can make in it.
Marshall loved all his gifts from me, and it seems his favorite is a sea sponge I picked up at Bed Bath & Beyond. He's wanted one that can really clean him up well. He liked the stand-up fan for the garage, new air hose, bamboo cutting boards and socks. I had written him a Christmas themed non-fiction story, and it came with a gift associated with the narrative. He opened the story, but read it later that night. Then he opened the present and was baffled at the wooden yo-yo. Later that night while we were in the first living room reading, I saw him get to the end of the story and pick up the yo-yo. He finally understood, and absolutely loved it. It even made him tear up, and I've never been able to do that before!! He brings me happy tears all the time, but I've never been able to do it to him.
My husband spoiled me this year for sure. He got me all the books on my wish list including a woman's health one that my friends had recommended. We now have our own Apples to Apples game too! I have a new bird house that is a wooden cabin that has a sign "Moose Lodge" and another towards the bottom that reads, "No bears allowed." I love it so much. I was the second to last present I opened, and the package was too big to contain a bird house. I was starting to wonder if I was going to receive one at all! He also got me a rack for inside the pantry door so I have even more storage. He's going to bolt it down for me today. His last gift was completely unexpected. He refurbished his '08 white Mac notebook for me that had liquid spilled on it months ago and wasn't working. I can lay my Dell 1200 laptop that I bought in September 2005 for college to rest. I was so shocked and completely overwhelmed. I had never received such a gift on Christmas before. We had a wonderful time having our little Christmas at home together.
We wanted to watch the Muppets Christmas Carol, but it wasn't on Netflix--can you believe that?! I think I'm going to look for some classic Christmas movies on DVD and start a nice collection for us to watch each year.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas as well!
We drove to Cypress in 2:35 on Saturday--record time. It was raining the entire time, and we haven't seen that much rain in a long time (merry Christmas, Grass and Trees). Shortly after arriving, I realized that I had forgotten our basket of items, which included the rosemary dinner rolls I had stayed up baking the night before, our homemade applesauce, and my salad for dinner. I cried. I can't believe I forgot it on the kitchen island. I wasn't going to be able to stick to WW very well without a salad. Click the "panic" button. Marshall was sweet enough to offer to take us to the grocery store and pick up a replacement salad and rolls, which we did.
Before dinner commenced, we opened crackers, put on our paper crowns, and read the jokes that came with them. Marshall's parents put a lot of effort into the meal, and everyone enjoyed it immensely. Afterwards Marshall and I took a nap, then as a family we watched A Christmas Story. When it was through we drove around the neighborhood and looked at Christmas lights. I love looking at Christmas lights, especially when you can see decorations inside the house through the windows. I like seeing other people's trees too. I have no idea what time my husband came to bed, but I was asleep by 11pm. My body got me up Christmas morning, bright and early, and the ripe time of 6:30am.
My father-in-law made us breakfast, and then Marshall woke up. Afterwards we opened presents one by one. Santa brought me a book of card game rules, an ornament, a pinball game with a prize inside and electronic kitchen timer that can track 4 different things at once. Joy gave me an amazing set of boxing targets and ladies' gloves. I've wanted these so I can do cardio and strength training indoors. Jeff gave me a Le Crueset skillet that looks amazing for stir fry vegetables! Marshall gave the the exact same timer (hehehe), fuzzy socks, and a gold plated venetian mask with diamonds on it. I absolutely love it! In fact, I wore it the entire way home to Austin yesterday.
After presents we cleaned up the now empty boxes and shredded wrapping paper. Joy and I looked through a digital scrapbook her mother had made of her time at BYU in the 1940s. We left at 2pm for Austin. On the way home, Marshall wanted to know if I still wanted to wait until Monday morning to open all the remaining gifts at our house (from my family and each other). Since we were coming back earlier than expected, we decided to continue Christmas when we arrived home.
I made french toast, scrambled eggs, and browned some left-over ham slices that was sent home with us. We lit the candles on our table centerpiece and had a nice little dinner. I had been craving french toast. Now I'm much better. :) The first presents we opened were the cat's stockings. They must have been good babies because Santa Cat brought each of them a can of Fancy Feast, something they had never had before. Maggie doesn't seem to like wet food very much because she didn't eat much of her turkey & giblet flavored treat. Misti and Santa went to town though!! Then I asked Marshall to open to other present that Santa Cat had given the Reeske Cats--it was a set of three Christmas themed picture frame ornaments with a picture of each cat in black and white already in it. Marshall thought they were adorable and wants to keep them out all year long because they also have a stand.
We opened our stockings first. Mine had two books and a gift certificate for a massage! His had new pens and a bag of his favorite cookie mix. Then we opened gifts from my family. My sister Rachael got me make-up and Marshall a three-step shaving package. My parents got Marshall a WW scale, which at first he thought was for me. I had to tell him it was for him even though it was a WW brand. It calculates BMI and body fat too. He's really excited. He also received a book light for late night reading. I received little baking loaf pans with size appropriate spatulas, mini tart/quiche pans, two mini bundt cake pans, WW chocolates, little cow clip magnets for the fridge, and an electric skillet. I can't want to go through my new WW cookbook and find recipes I can make in it.
Marshall loved all his gifts from me, and it seems his favorite is a sea sponge I picked up at Bed Bath & Beyond. He's wanted one that can really clean him up well. He liked the stand-up fan for the garage, new air hose, bamboo cutting boards and socks. I had written him a Christmas themed non-fiction story, and it came with a gift associated with the narrative. He opened the story, but read it later that night. Then he opened the present and was baffled at the wooden yo-yo. Later that night while we were in the first living room reading, I saw him get to the end of the story and pick up the yo-yo. He finally understood, and absolutely loved it. It even made him tear up, and I've never been able to do that before!! He brings me happy tears all the time, but I've never been able to do it to him.
My husband spoiled me this year for sure. He got me all the books on my wish list including a woman's health one that my friends had recommended. We now have our own Apples to Apples game too! I have a new bird house that is a wooden cabin that has a sign "Moose Lodge" and another towards the bottom that reads, "No bears allowed." I love it so much. I was the second to last present I opened, and the package was too big to contain a bird house. I was starting to wonder if I was going to receive one at all! He also got me a rack for inside the pantry door so I have even more storage. He's going to bolt it down for me today. His last gift was completely unexpected. He refurbished his '08 white Mac notebook for me that had liquid spilled on it months ago and wasn't working. I can lay my Dell 1200 laptop that I bought in September 2005 for college to rest. I was so shocked and completely overwhelmed. I had never received such a gift on Christmas before. We had a wonderful time having our little Christmas at home together.
We wanted to watch the Muppets Christmas Carol, but it wasn't on Netflix--can you believe that?! I think I'm going to look for some classic Christmas movies on DVD and start a nice collection for us to watch each year.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas as well!
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Milking the Moment
Merry Christmas Readers!!
It is early on Christmas morning, and I'm sitting at the kitchen table with my mother- and father-in-law at their home in Cypress, Texas. The living room next to us is dark, but the ornament tree is gently glowing in the corner like a modest queen over her servants at hand. Before going to sleep, there were our 12 presents plus about 6 that were there already. Now there must be double that amount! Santa was very generous this year.
Now my father-in-law is making me egg-in-holes for breakfast. It's a slice of English toasting bread with the center cut out and an egg in the middle cooked over easy (Marshall prefers an over-hard egg in his). My mother-in-law is doing her morning crossword in the Sunday newspaper across the table from me. My husband is still asleep. His dad is going to go wake him up when he's through cooking. Then we can all transfer to the living room and open our stockings. This is our Christmas morning thus far. More updates to come!
It is early on Christmas morning, and I'm sitting at the kitchen table with my mother- and father-in-law at their home in Cypress, Texas. The living room next to us is dark, but the ornament tree is gently glowing in the corner like a modest queen over her servants at hand. Before going to sleep, there were our 12 presents plus about 6 that were there already. Now there must be double that amount! Santa was very generous this year.
Now my father-in-law is making me egg-in-holes for breakfast. It's a slice of English toasting bread with the center cut out and an egg in the middle cooked over easy (Marshall prefers an over-hard egg in his). My mother-in-law is doing her morning crossword in the Sunday newspaper across the table from me. My husband is still asleep. His dad is going to go wake him up when he's through cooking. Then we can all transfer to the living room and open our stockings. This is our Christmas morning thus far. More updates to come!
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Onto the Next Pack
Tuesday was my 25th birthday, which meant that the traditional package of 24 candles was one short of what I needed. Here's my birthday cupcake pyramid.
You can see the lovely birthday cards that I received from coworkers, Marshall's grandmother, my parents, brother and love-of-my-life. My parents-in-law sent flowers to my work. My grandmother sent me pecans from her tree in Florida. They are so delicious!
Mom got me a griddle. Making multiple breakfast quesadillas will be so much easier now!
I was able to leave work at 12:30pm and have the afternoon to myself. Marshall set me up with a 60 minute massage. After I had lunch, I went to JCPenny and found 3 three shirts plus a necklace. Everything was on sale plus I used two $10 coupons. In total I spent less than $11--woohoo! Next came a quick trip to Walmart to get ingredients for my birthday cake. I made it to my massage appointment at 3pm. I love massages. If I could afford to get one every month I will. Until then, the hubby and I will have to use our own massage table at home more often.
I wanted to go to the Driskill Grill for my birthday dinner because it was fancy and I had a $25 gift certificate. The Driskill Grill is now my new favorite "fancy" restaurant of choice. The atmosphere, service, and food were mind-blowing! I was a server for 4 years, and I'm a hard judge on servers because I've been there. I was amazed at how good our server Scott was. We of course shared that it was my 25th birthday, and guess what they did for me!
The general manager Charlie even took a picture of us in front of the adjoining Driskill Hotel's Christmas tree in the lobby.
When we came home, I had one last present and one last card to open. I bawled at how sweet Marshall's card was. I told him I purposely didn't wear mascara because I was going on a date with him. If there's a chance he can make you sentimental in a happy way, he will. Well, he gave me a clarinet! I haven't been able to find my old one, and Mom hasn't had time to look for it in Oregon. I can play again! I have to basically start from scratch, but I'm so excited to fill our house with music.
I had a wonderful birthday, and an astronomical amount of well wishes from friends and family all over the country and world! I felt really cherished, which was best of all.
December Plans
Here's a little update about what is happening for us (so far!) for the rest of December:
*12/16--Marshall takes a tour of Lufkin Industries in Lufkin, Texas. He's stopping by Cypress to crash at his parents' house then coming home Saturday afternoon.
*12/17--Christmas part at Leslie & James' new apartment. Bringing a bottle of malbec wine.
*12/20--Sarah's work Christmas party at the Highball 1-4pm. Half a day of work plus bowling and fajitas. Good times, right?!
*12/24--WW meeting for Sarah, then we're on the road to Cypress to send Christmas with Marshall's parents.
*12/25--Merry Christmas! Marshall gets to find out everything I got for him!
*12/26--Drive home to Austin. Off of work.
*12/31--No plans for New Year's Eve, but hoping something will be brought up at the Christmas party on Saturday.
*12/16--Marshall takes a tour of Lufkin Industries in Lufkin, Texas. He's stopping by Cypress to crash at his parents' house then coming home Saturday afternoon.
*12/17--Christmas part at Leslie & James' new apartment. Bringing a bottle of malbec wine.
*12/20--Sarah's work Christmas party at the Highball 1-4pm. Half a day of work plus bowling and fajitas. Good times, right?!
*12/24--WW meeting for Sarah, then we're on the road to Cypress to send Christmas with Marshall's parents.
*12/25--Merry Christmas! Marshall gets to find out everything I got for him!
*12/26--Drive home to Austin. Off of work.
*12/31--No plans for New Year's Eve, but hoping something will be brought up at the Christmas party on Saturday.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Questions Answered
Here are some Q & A about us as a couple.
*When did you first meet?
June 29th, 2007
*Where was your first date?
First place we went together alone was Little Tokyo for hibachi; however, our first fancy date was to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.
*When did you get engaged?
April 24th, 2009 at my college graduation party.
*What are your top three meals to cook at home?
Pecan crusted chicken, baked eggplant parm, and veggie tacos.
*What is an activity that you do together the majority of the time?
Go to the gym.
*What is your favorite TV show to watch together?
All three of the Stargate series!
*What are the three restaurants you frequent the most?
Jason's Deli, Patsy's Cowgirl Cafe, and probably Chili's.
*What are three restaurants you want to try but haven't been to yet?
A crepe place downtown, the Driskill Grill, and the Salt Lick.
*Name something you want to do in your city but haven't yet.
Take a picture with the Zilker Christmas tree in the background.
*How long have you owned your house?
On December 22, it will be two years--wow!
*What are your three next house projects?
We need to finish priming the trim around the house, install gutters, and put up a retaining wall in front of the house to cover some of the exposed foundation.
*What is your favorite CD to listen to together?
Flight of the Concords' second CD.
*What are any traditions you've started for your family?
Every birthday we get a massage. Each year I write him a fiction story for Christmas and give him a gift that relates to the story. Geez, I think that's all. I need to start some more, huh?
*How many pets do you have?
We have three cats: Misti (female), Santa Ana (male), and Maggie (female).
*What vacations would you like to take next year?
We'd like to fly to Utah to see Marshall's mom's family and spend a few days at the family cabin in Wyoming.
*What is your dream vacation?
We'd really like to take 2 weeks and travel to Stokholm, Copenhagen and Berlin.
*What are your career goals?
He wants to be an engineer in the manufacturing or foundry industries. I don't have any career goals at the moment because I'm going to be a SAHM within the next two years.
*What are your degrees in?
His will be Industrial Engineering--Manufacturing in 2014. My BA is in Spanish with a minor in Political Science.
*Where would you like to move to after your current city?
Ultimately I'd like to move to Couer d'Alene, Idaho, but I'm willing to move to a different city that meets the same requirements as CDA. If M gets a job offer in a different city in Texas, we'll probably take it though.
*What is key to your marriage?
I believe we have a strong marriage because we don't hold each other's faults against that person.
*What is an activity that you each like but do not do together?
He really likes paintball, but I'm afraid of bruising so I don't go with him. I love to hunt, but he has a hard time killing a fly.
*Ever thought about getting a dog?
Yes, but we don't have the time or energy for a dog. He would want a yellow lab, but I wouldn't. I prefer a medium size dog or a swiss mountain dog.
*How many children do you want?
Probably three.
*What are your current financial goals?
Pay as much as possible towards our house and contribute to my 401(k). Adding funds to our baby/car fund has been slow.
*When did you first meet?
June 29th, 2007
*Where was your first date?
First place we went together alone was Little Tokyo for hibachi; however, our first fancy date was to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.
*When did you get engaged?
April 24th, 2009 at my college graduation party.
*What are your top three meals to cook at home?
Pecan crusted chicken, baked eggplant parm, and veggie tacos.
*What is an activity that you do together the majority of the time?
Go to the gym.
*What is your favorite TV show to watch together?
All three of the Stargate series!
*What are the three restaurants you frequent the most?
Jason's Deli, Patsy's Cowgirl Cafe, and probably Chili's.
*What are three restaurants you want to try but haven't been to yet?
A crepe place downtown, the Driskill Grill, and the Salt Lick.
*Name something you want to do in your city but haven't yet.
Take a picture with the Zilker Christmas tree in the background.
*How long have you owned your house?
On December 22, it will be two years--wow!
*What are your three next house projects?
We need to finish priming the trim around the house, install gutters, and put up a retaining wall in front of the house to cover some of the exposed foundation.
*What is your favorite CD to listen to together?
Flight of the Concords' second CD.
*What are any traditions you've started for your family?
Every birthday we get a massage. Each year I write him a fiction story for Christmas and give him a gift that relates to the story. Geez, I think that's all. I need to start some more, huh?
*How many pets do you have?
We have three cats: Misti (female), Santa Ana (male), and Maggie (female).
*What vacations would you like to take next year?
We'd like to fly to Utah to see Marshall's mom's family and spend a few days at the family cabin in Wyoming.
*What is your dream vacation?
We'd really like to take 2 weeks and travel to Stokholm, Copenhagen and Berlin.
*What are your career goals?
He wants to be an engineer in the manufacturing or foundry industries. I don't have any career goals at the moment because I'm going to be a SAHM within the next two years.
*What are your degrees in?
His will be Industrial Engineering--Manufacturing in 2014. My BA is in Spanish with a minor in Political Science.
*Where would you like to move to after your current city?
Ultimately I'd like to move to Couer d'Alene, Idaho, but I'm willing to move to a different city that meets the same requirements as CDA. If M gets a job offer in a different city in Texas, we'll probably take it though.
*What is key to your marriage?
I believe we have a strong marriage because we don't hold each other's faults against that person.
*What is an activity that you each like but do not do together?
He really likes paintball, but I'm afraid of bruising so I don't go with him. I love to hunt, but he has a hard time killing a fly.
*Ever thought about getting a dog?
Yes, but we don't have the time or energy for a dog. He would want a yellow lab, but I wouldn't. I prefer a medium size dog or a swiss mountain dog.
*How many children do you want?
Probably three.
*What are your current financial goals?
Pay as much as possible towards our house and contribute to my 401(k). Adding funds to our baby/car fund has been slow.
What You've Been Waiting For...
Hurray for our the annual mRs Christmas photo! This year we recreated our first date picture by wearing the same clothes and striking a similar pose. The inspiration for this photo came from my weightloss and being able to fit into the dress again, which I bought in July 2007. Wow, huh?!
I mailed out Christmas cards on Friday, so they should be arriving on Tuesday for most people I think. I really hope everyone likes them and appreciates the "homemade" aspect of them.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)