Florida 2011

So I survived my first vacation by myself! haha I had no problem connecting to my second flight. The gate was 10 gates down so no biggie...even had time to grab a bite to eat at the TGIF's! I arrived in Tampa at midnight their time! I cannot even tell you how excited I was to see my cousin! When you are so used to seeing someone every day for like 20 years its hard to go 2 years without seeing them!!



Tequila loves toothpaste!



Sunday we drove for about 2 hours down to Siesta Key. The beaches were GORGEOUS!! The sand is white and shiny like sugar and feels as soft as flour! We spent the day on the beach, going into little shops, and eating yummy food!

Monday we went to the causeway in Tarpon Springs. This was cool to me cuz you just park on the side of the road and lay your towel out and sunbathe and then walk like 5 steps down to the ocean...lol and get bit by a fish! haha the fish for some reason in this area liked to bite me!! Later that night we got all dressed up and went to Club Venue! It was SUPER fun...if you're a fan of Jersey Shore...DJ Pauly D goes there every once in a while to DJ-bummed we missed him by 1 week!!!

Tuesday we spent the day at Honeymoon Island! The beach was as gorgeous as ever! We were out there for quite awhile...just sunbathing and talking about life. It really made me miss having my cousin close by to just talk about anything and everything! Later that night we went out for Sushi...yummm I love sushi!

Wednesday was spent in Clearwater. The beach was just that...clear! The water is so beautiful and the beach is white as sugar! The town is really cute too! Lots of shops and beautiful hotels! Our trend seemed to be beach in the morning, come home shower, and then go back out! That night we went to the "Sponge Docks" it was really cool. People go out to the ocean and harvest sponges and then sell them! Sponges everywhere and homemade soaps to go with them! Lots of litle shops filled with anything you can imagine...even puffer fish!! haha After the Sponge Docks and yummy Greek food, we decided to go to the movies! Went in and the weather was normal...came out and it had apparently poured down rain while we were inside!! haha I guess thats Florida for ya!

Thursday was SUCH a relaxing day! I treated Amber and I to a spa day! Got mani and pedis followed by a relaxing massage! The spa was so pretty!!! Afterwards we walked around the mall, bought a couple of things, and then went to dinner! SIGH...loved this day!





Friday was spent back at Clearwater beach...couldn't get enough of it! Oh and driving home we saw Hulk Hogan! haha We visited Greg-my cousin's husband-at his work. He's in the coastguard so that was cool to see the HUGE planes he works on!! Next stop...atomic tattoo!! Yep, thats right...I am now the proud owner of a tattoo!! haha Never in a million years would I have thought I would have one. But over the past couple of years I've thought about getting one but just never really knew what I wanted or where I wanted it. I got the inititals HMS. Heart, Mind, and Soul. This is something that my husband and I have always said to each other...that we loved each other with our heart mind and soul-hms for short! I am SO happy with the results and my hubby likes it too! We ended the night by going to Indian Rocks Beach to spend some time with Greg and Ambers friends! So glad to have met some really cool people!



Tequila--she loved me and I love her!



Saturday-my last day was just spent relaxing. We went back to the sponge docks and I bought a couple of things for family. Then we ate lunch at a place with a SUPER rude waiteress...no tip for her! Then a little bit more shopping and ended the day with ordering Pizza and watching a movie!

Sunday I had to wake up at the butt crack of dawn to catch my 6:40 flight...but it got me in to Sac by 11am...so I was happy about that. Even more happy when I came down the escalator and saw my sweet Wesley AND my tricky Husband!! He was supposed to be working that day but switched with a different day! So that was SO nice to be welcomed home by my two boys!

All in all...the trip was SO much fun! It was non stop fun! I miss my cousin and Florida a lot already. If my family could move I would move us all over there in a heartbeat! I love it! =)

Catch ya on the flip side..

So it has finally come....I'm leavin on a jet plane!!! I will be flying to Florida tomorrow to spend a week with my cousin!!! I am extremely excited and extremely nervous at the same time! haha  I've never flown by myself so I'm kinda freaking out about it! Not so much the plane ride-I'm totally fine with that! Its the plane change that scares me!! I have a 1 HOUR window to get to my connecting flight. I am not even going to attempt to find the gate myself. As soon as I get off the plane I will be asking the flight attendent where the gate is located and I pray to GOD that its not clear on the other side of the airport! haha Pray for me if ya think about it! =)

I am so excited to spend some much needed time with my cousin Amber. We have always been super close-growing up down the street from each other made this very easy! So I cannot wait to laugh at all our inside jokes together and make even more memories with her!

I'll be gone June 11-19...so expect to get a blog update with LOTS of pics when I get back!!!

5 Years and Counting...

"The more you invest in a marriage, the more valuable it becomes."

--Amy Grant

Over the weekend my husband and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary. FIVE YEARS!!! I cannot believe it has been 5 years already! Where did time go?

We met at the end 2004 at the church-although I do not remember this. :-/ And then again at the beginning of 2005. He was working in the jr. high department and I had been asked to be on the committee for the jr. high department. So I figured since I would be helping make decisions on what goes on in the department, I might as well help out and really find out what the kids want! After the evening services at church I walked up to the Jr. High Pastor-who my husband just happen to be talking to-and told him since I was on the committee I should probably start helping out! He then "introduced" me to James and asked if we had met yet. To which I replied No and James replied Yes...awkward!!! haha Well the following Wednesday I showed up to youth group. I was excited to see James but was quite surprised when I was completely ignored the entire 2.5 hours by him! In my head I assumed well he must have a girlfriend then-bummer!! In fact I even think I txt my mom and said "well I think he has a gf :-(" After youth group was over he came up to me and said "Hey, the rest of the leaders are going to Carls Jr. would you like to join us?" HECK YES I WOULD!! haha After about a 3 hour conversation at Carls we were hooked. The weeks that followed involved us practically attached at the hip, spending all our free time getting to know each other. We officially began dating Superbowl Sunday in 2005!

 

When we began dating, we both had the same mindset in that we were dating with the intentions of getting married. After 8 months of dating we were engaged!!! Every girl dreams of the day she becomes a bride. The wedding was beautiful and the reception was fun. I could not have asked for anything more. It was such a special day that neither of us will ever forget.

After our wedding in June 06' we moved down to Sacramento. James was scheduled to start his Masters Program in the fall so during the summer we both worked at Phantom Fireworks in the office. Because of this we didn't really get to take a big trip for our honeymoon! We spent a couple of days in Tahoe and then began working immediately after since it was firework season! Because we didn't get to take a trip for our honeymoon we decided to go big for our 1 year anniversary-Sandals resort in Jamaica!!! The trip was such a blast and Sandals makes it so easy to vacation. The resort was all inclusive so everything was paid for-makes it SO relaxing and enjoyable! Happy 1 Year to us...

2008 was a pretty big year for us. In July our family grew to 4...we added 2 cute lil pups to our family! They are a chihuahua poodle mix and we were SO excited to welcome them to our family. They are brothers from the same litter and we named them Chitto and Timmy. Also another big change in 2008 was a new job for my husband! Good-bye school Administrator...hello Apple!!! My husband has loved macs ever since I've known him so when he got the job at Apple he was thrilled!! He is still currently working for the company and it has been such a blessing for us. The company itself is wonderful and we've had no complaints thus far! Happy 2 years to us...

2009...a fabulous year and a horrible year all in one!! We began the process of searching for a home! With the economy the way it was it was actually more expensive to live in an apartment then it was to live in a home!! So we figured...gosh, we should start looking for a house!! Little did we know what we were getting ourselves in to! The process of finding a house is not difficult whatsoever..there was a TON of houses on the market! However, the part that became torturous was getting the bank(s) to agree to our offer, the current owners to agree with us AND the bank(s), and then the timeline and multiple signing appointments! In August we thought we had finally found our home-long story short the day we were to move in, it fell through. So here we are in the middle of all of this...and on July 10, 2009 we found out we were expecting our first child!!!! I was blessed with a very smooth pregnancy. I was never sick and never had to take time off of work due to my pregnancy! We ended 2009 still in our apartment, with all of our posessions in boxes...haha Happy 3 years to us...

2010...HOORAY!!! This year was by far the most jam packed year. Back in November we found a home that we absolutely loved. We put the offer in and on February 26th we officially became HOMEOWNERS!!! What a huge relief to finally be in our own home, to unpack our boxes, and to get our soon to arrive son's room set up! Little did we know just how "soon" his arrival would be. On March 7th, 2010 (the very next weekend) we welcomed into our family Wesley James Gregory- 6lbs, 3oz, 19in and absolutely perfect! I was able to take 3 months off for maternity leave-such a HUGE blessing. An even bigger blessing was our childcare for when I went back to work in June...family! James' grandpa lives here in Sacramento and was willing to watch our Wesley while I was at work. It is so neat to see their relationship...Wesley loves his Papa! We had a lot of fun watching Wesley grow and reach the different milestones. There is something so amazing about having a child. The bond that it creates between husband and wife is amazing! I am very thankful for the little blessing God gave to us. Happy happy 4 years to us...

Well, here we are in 2011!! We have been in our home for a year now and are finding being a homeowner is a never ending process. There is always something we need to do, want to do, don't want to do...haha I guess thats how it goes though! We are loving every minute with Wesley. He is the center of attention-and knows it!! Even though 2011 is not over yet...we are so grateful for the blessings thus far. We both have steady jobs, we have our health-although we've all been hit by the cold bug lately, but nothing serious-, we have wonderful families, we have each other! Happy 5 years to us...

Thank you Lord for the blessing of marriage...

Second time around...

"Working mothers are guinea pigs in a scientific experiment to show that sleep is not necessary to human life."
~ Author Unknown

So this was my 2nd Mothers Day! It was somewhat bitter sweet for me. Bitter because this was my first Mothers Day spent away from my own Mother and because my husband had to work all day. However, my awesome brother made up for the bitter part of my day by taking Wesley and I out to lunch! I love this picture of us:

Hubby made up for his absence too! Sent flowers to my work on Friday! I absolutely LOVE getting flowers!



After our lunch date Wesley and I just hung out around the house together. The weather was somewhat cold so the park wasn't a very good option-which I was bummed about. But we made the best of our day by taking pictures together! =)

When my husband got off work around 6:30 we met up with his family at the Elephant Bar for dinner. Had a great time celebrating and chatting away!

Overall--it was a fabulous 2nd Mothers Day. I know since Wesley is still too young to understand, it was really my hubby making sure I felt special! He did a great job...even ended the day with a fabulous foot massage! Love you babe!!





Monday Nights

"Children will not remember you for the material things you provided,

 but for the feeling that you cherished them"

--Richard L. Evans

Being a child once myself, I know this quote to be true. I do not remember all the material things my parents bought for me-sorry mom and dad! However, what I DO remember is how loved and cherished I was! That is something you cannot put a price on. Knowing this, it has been and will forever be my goal, as a mother, that Wesley know how loved and cherished he really is. I look forward to every Monday night so I can do just that...love on him and cherish OUR time together.

Every monday night my husband teaches a greek course from 7-10; which means its just me and bub--a nickname that has seemed to stick over the past couple of months. We usually do the same thing every Monday. Eat dinner, then either go for a walk or play (weather permitting), then head to the grocery store.

I know going to the grocery store is not a very exciting event to most...but to Wesley its the highlight of his day! He absolutely loves it!!! As soon as we walk in he gets this smile on his face as if he says "yay we're back!!!" He loves riding in the cart and we play this game where I push the cart away from me and say "Wesley where are you going?" and then I run up to the cart and he just laughs and laughs-thinks its the greatest thing...as do the rest of the shoppers! haha After grocery shopping we come home and he "helps" me put the food away. I say "help" because it consists of him pulling things out of the bag and taking laps around the kitchen with it! haha but eventually he brings it over and I help him put it away. Then from there its bathtime! Wesley would stay in the bathtub for hours if I let him-kid's gonna be a fish just like his mama! Then its jammies and night night.

Most people hate Mondays...I hate MonDAYS but absolutely love Monday nights. I love having Wesley all to myself. I also love Monday nights because after I put him to bed it allows me to have some "me" time. I think it is extremely healthy for us moms to have that time. It allows us to recharge and put ourselves first-something that is important every once in awhile...otherwise we would get completely burned out!...at least I would!

Thank you Lord for Monday Nights! =)

Trickery!

"Winter is nature's way of saying Up Yours"

--author unknown

For those of you who really know me, know for a fact I absolutely HATE winter. The only good thing about winter is Christmas...other than that, I could go from Autumn to Spring and be completely A. OKAY. I would have to say a good 75% of the reason why I hate Winter so much is because my eczema gets SO bad in the winter months. For the longest time I have not been able to make it through winter without taking at least one round of prednisone...until now!

At the beginning of the winter when I first noticed a change in my eczema I went to my dermatologist right away thinking if I caught it early enough I wouldn't be so misserable and have to be on such a long round of steroids! I don't think I was quite prepared for what she prescribed to me. Trickery! I was like what? Is that a new type of steroid??????

Because my eczema is basically non existent in the summer she wanted me to try something. As the bath tub is filling up with water, pour 1/2 cup of bleach in and soak for 15-20 min. Now I know some of you are thinking, is that safe?!?! Well after I got home from my appointment I researched it and come to find out, it is a very common prescription to treating eczema. So I figured, why not give it a try! Another reason why my skin does so well in the summer is that I'm out in the sun--I think it fries my eczema off! haha Obviously I cannot lay out in the sun during the rainy winter months-so once again trickery-hello tanning bed!!

With all of that being said--I am happy to say this has been the best winter yet (as far as my eczema goes)! Not one prednisone pill was taken and my skin looks fabulous!!!

Thank you Bleach baths and tanning beds!!!!!! I <3 you

Bleach Baths    3-5x a week 

Tanning bed 2-3x a week

Sacrifices

Sacrifice: The sense of something given up for the sake of another

- - Dictionary.com

I've really debated whether or not I want to blog about this next subject. I, in no way, want to turn this blog into a place where I talk about negative things all the time...thats just not me.

However, the more I think about this particular subject, the more irritated, hurt, annoyed, and sad I become. I cannot stress enough the fact I am not writing this to make you feel sorry for me, or to make myself sound like a debby downer. I think it is healthy to talk about your feelings. This is just a subject that has been weighing heavily on my heart.

Plain and simple...I am tired of being a working mom. I'm tired of having someone else watch my child for 10 hours Tuesday-Friday (that in no way means I don't LIKE who watches my child because I am very grateful for the childcare I have-family-doesn't get better than that). I am just tired of not being with my child throughout the week.

When I first went back to work after having 3 months of maternity leave, it was extremely hard. Then as time progressed, I had the attitude of "well, this is what has to be done, so I might as well make the best of it." I went about my day, tried to keep myself busy and looked forward to the evenings and weekends.

Well here I am after 9 months of working and I'm tired of having that attitude. To be completely honest, I'm tired of convincing myself that its okay...lots of moms work full time-I can totally do this! Can I totally do this-yes...do I want to-NO. Here is where I find my mind wandering lately: Why can't I be a stay at home mom? Why can't I take my child to the park in the middle of the week instead of waiting until the weekend? Why can't I meet up with other moms for lunch/play dates? And you know what word comes to mind EVERY time I have this stupid conversation with myself? Sacrifice

As a mother, it is impossible to not look at your own mother as an example of motherhood. I have been blessed with an amazing mother who is not only my best friend, but an amazing example to me of motherhood. As I reflect back on my childhood, there is not one event that I can remember her not being involved in. She home schooled me until 8th grade-obviously during that time she did not work. She sacrificed her time to teach me. Also, because she did not work, I'm sure my parents had to sacrifice a lot  due to lack of income on her part. What a huge sacrifice! During those years of course I did not realize or really think about that but now looking back...wow-thank you mom for sacrificing things so that you could teach me at home. When I went to school my freshman year she worked at the school and eventually worked at the church. We rode to school/work every day and then if I had practice or school activities she was there or picked me up afterwards. She was at every game I played in, every award ceremony, and every big event. She sacrificed once again. She went to work so that I could have a high school education, have money for sports, buy prom dresses, and be an expensive teenager! =) So once again mom, thank you for sacrificing your time, energy, and wallet for me.

With all that said, no matter if I am a full time working mother, or a stay at home mother...I've realized sacrifice is inevitable. Yes, I work full time-but I sacrifice so that my child can grow up in a nice home. I sacrifice so that I can afford to buy diapers, food, clothing, toys, and healthcare. When I look at it that way, it makes it easier to swallow.

I pray every morning, as I drive to work after dropping my child off, that someday God would allow me to experience the sacrifice of a stay at home mother. However, until that day comes, I will continue to sacrifice my time, energy, and wallet for my child.