It's A Boy!!

No, Mike and I are not becoming parents. We are, however, becoming an aunt and uncle to our very first nephew! Chris and Char found out the sex of the baby and we couldn't be happier. We have been so blessed with our four beautiful (and I mean BEAUTIFUL!) little nieces that we adore, and we are so excited to welcome a little boy into the family.

Izzie will be an awesome big sister. She really is such a sweet and caring little girl. I have a feeling that between her affinity (or obsession?) for playing dress up and the sheer amount of princess dresses/high heels from Grammie, this little guy is in for it.

Can't wait to meet him!!

I foresee a little tiny Yankees or Giants onesie in his future...

Birthday Weekend!

I'm going to attempt to keep this somewhat short, because I'm sure I can ramble on and on about my fun birthday weekend! It was great! Mike and I took our first trip to San Francisco and we both absolutely loved it. Why I loved San Fran/my birthday weekend:

1.) We stayed at an amazing hotel in the middle of everything! They sent me wine and cake to wish me a happy birthday....that's a good hotel in my book ;)

2.) I loved those freakin' sea lions at Pier 39. We have seals in La Jolla, so its not like I've never seen these funny creatures (although I still don't know the difference between a seal and a seal lion) but they were just so cute- and SO big!

3.) Alcatraz was really cool and totally satisfied my inner history nerd- the audio tour was really interesting and the boat ride to and from was breathtaking...check out my awesome pic of the Golden Gate bridge below.

4.) We got to see so much of the city and did a lot of walking just taking it all in (oh and being lost on one occasion). It was so neat to just to explore a new city and see how people live. When we were walking through this cute neighborhood park, we stumbled across a giant neighborhood picnic. It was the most innocent, All-American looking scene I've ever laid eyes on!

5.) Mike made my birthday super special! Between the subscription to my fav mag, filling every space of our wine rack with wine (a personal goal of mine), the roses he gave me when I met him in San Fran and the whole San Fran trip-- He really outdid himself! What a special birthday- I'm a very lucky girl!!

Fisherman's Wharf

Pretty Shot

Trolley Car

By the way, thank you all for the birthday wishes! I felt very loved on my birthday!

Home Is Where the Heart Is

They say "home is where the heart is." While I think that sounds like a sweet sentiment, it is a little vague. With my travels back East last week, I realized that my heart belongs to many places, each for different and special reasons.

I started off my travels off on a red eye into Raleigh and to my parent's home in Apex, NC. I never lived in this house, so it is a bit peculiar that it would feel like home to me. It is a place where my whole family has gathered, and this time it happened to be Ms. Emmabelle's 3rd birthday. Having my whole family together (minus my hubby, which was a bummer!) is something that I truly cherish the most in my life. It is LOUD and always seems a bit chaotic with four little girls running around each wanting the other's toy, but the sheer volume and activity makes my feel right at home.

From there I headed up to Northern VA. Obviously this place feels like home since I lived there for 26 years of my life...even more so because I stayed with my brother who now owns the home I grew up in. It was nice to be back in the old house, able to walk across the street and into the Aceto's house to chat with Katie, like I've done countless times in the 15 + years we've been friends and neighbors. With my work training in Arlington, I managed to drive by Mike and I's first home together- the little white house on 19th street. While we only lived there one year, it will always have a special place in my heart as our home during our engagement and preparing for our marriage.

Next up was Radford to watch Mike's sister, Katie, graduate. It was so nice to be there with the McDermott family for this special occasion. This was my home for 4 of the most fun years of my life. I was surprised by how sentimental I got while I was there- remembering all of my favorite places during the time I spent there and the amazing people I met along the way- Mike, of course being the most important. I went by all the old spots- my dorm, 1101, the Delta Zeta house and immediately felt how special this home was to me in that time in my life.

I flew home Sunday, exhausted from a long week. I caught a cab and took the familiar ride from the airport, as I've done many time either flying out or picking up/dropping off visitors. As I chatted with the cabbie, we talked about all the things we loved about San Diego- the weather, the people, the variety of things to do, the beaches. It felt so good to be home.

The next night I picked Mike up from the airport. We'd hadn't seen a whole lot of each other in the past two weeks between business trips and travel and it was so great to be back together, just the two of us. While my heart belongs to many places I've called home in my life, I know that as long as Mike is by my side I'll truly feel at home and at ease.

I'm feeling a little sentimental today, if you couldn't tell.....

Sunday=Farmer's Market Day!

Now I'm no expert on farmer's markets- its not like I've been to a lot of them- but I'm pretty sure our local market in La Jolla is one of the best out there. Every Sunday dozens and dozens of vendors gather on the black top at La Jolla Elementary with all the freshest fruits, veggies, flowers, honey, breads- you name it, they've got it. It is such an amazing atmosphere and has become a part of mine and Mike's weekly routine. I genuinely look forward to Sundays just to go to the farmer's market. The sun is shining, people are in great moods and its nice to get very fresh food that is grown locally!

Not only do they have great produce, there are also lots of vendors selling other stuff like pottery, jewelry, clothes, etc. They've got lots of yummy booths for lunch too. My favorite is the Greek one selling gyros...they are the best I've EVER had--to die for!!!

Another plus- contrary to what I've always thought, it really isn't that much more expensive than shopping a normal grocery store. In fact, sometimes it is cheaper. There are definitely some things that are over priced, but we've gotten to know which vendors have the best deals. I love my strawberry man!

The best part of the farmer's market is that it is close and easy. It is probably a little less than 2 miles away so Mike and I have gotten in the habit of riding our bikes there. It such a nice Sunday morning routine to wake up together, drink some coffee then ride up to the market.

Here are some pictures of our beloved market :)

So bright and cheery!

So many tents set up!

Mike's fav- his honey lady!

Mike checking out some asparagus.

Beautiful, fresh flowers!

Spring Break '10

About a week or so ago, we had Mike's sister, Kelly, and her boyfriend out for a visit. It was Kelly's spring break from her first year of teaching so we hope she had a great time being away from work and exploring a new city. How I miss the days of having a spring break! Why can't all jobs offer a spring break!? I honestly think it would help everyone to have that time off, recharge and come back to work super productive. We should all have spring breaks!

Anyways, I've been really bad about taking pictures lately, but here are a few from their trip that I stole from Kelly:

Kelly and I outside The Prado at Balboa Park! This restaurant was so yummy and had the cutest atmosphere. We ate there after we watched an IMAX movie about surfing in Tahiti. Cool movie, but it made us all nauseous because of the huge screen and the surfers bobbing on the waves.

Nick and Kelly on the beach :)

The four of us at Karen and Randy's in Thousand Oaks for Easter. They have THE coolest backyard, complete with a koi pond!

Kelly introduced Mike and I to this healthy treat- an acai bowl. It basically soy milk or apple juice with acai berries and tons of other fruit. Super delicious and nutritious!

San Diego Rocks!

Literally. As you've probably heard, there was a rather large (I think 7.2?) earthquake near San Diego this past Sunday on Easter. Mike and I didn't feel a thing, since we were up North for Easter lunch with Aunt Karen, but we heard from people still here in SD that it was quite strong. On Monday night we were sitting in the living room when we felt what must have been an aftershock. It wasn't anything big or too terribly scary but how weird to all of a sudden feel the earth shake under you.

That brings us to today. I'm at work and about an hour ago, I start to feel some shaking! Again, nothing too big or scary but needless to say, my client site building doesn't seem to be the most stable of buildings so I was a little freaked out. I think I heard someone say that it was a 5.5 earthquake that hit somewhere in Mexico.

I've decided after the last few days that I should brush up on my earthquake safety tips- especially considering the extent of my knowledge comes from that Saved by the Bell episode where there was an earthquake and Zack is stuck in the elevator with Mr. Belding's wife and ends up delivering the baby in the elevator. Was there anything that Zack Morris couldn't do?

Anyways, I guess this just shows that San Diego rocks in many ways and for many reasons! :)

Reunited and it feels so good

I’ve been just a bit behind on my blogging lately! Oops….

On the weekend on March 12 and 13 I had the great privilege to spend some real quality time with three of my best friends- Kathleen, Charlotte and Nikki. The four of us lived together our sophomore year in college and dubbed ourselves Chi Kappa Nu- our sorority girl mentality coming out with Chi= Charlotte, Kappa= Kara/Kathleen and Nu= Nikki. I know, we were awfully clever.

What a great reunion it was! I don’t think there was a moment that we were not laughing, teasing each other or reminiscing about our glory days at good old Radford. I love that although the four of us haven’t gotten to spend time together just the four of us in years, it was like not a moment had passed as soon as we were together.

We had tons of fun in Hollywood, but had the most fun impersonating Jimmy Fallon’s skit of “Robert Patterson is Bothered” (http://www.robertisbothered.com/) …in a tree…in the middle of a posh lounge.

Other highlights from the weekend:

- Going to the top Mulholland Drive to look down on the LA skyline and of course the Hollywood sign.

- Watching Kat trying on wedding dresses. I think Martin might just fall over when he sees how beautiful she will look coming down the aisle. Definitely brought a few tears to my eyes (shocking, I know!) to see Kat preparing for such an important and special day.

So glad we could reunite, Chi Kappa Nu. Can’t wait for next time!

Oh and you may be wondering where my hubby was for all of this?? Don’t worry- he was doing it up big in Vegas! :)

Three of the greatest friends a girl could ask for!

It took about 15 shots to get this one...and Char is nearly cut out! You can see the very teeny, tiny Hollywood sign in the distance.

This is our sullen vampire look.