THE MEADS

My Heart is Aching Today

2013-05-20T20:24:00.000-07:00

image via weheartit

Nicholas lost a good friend of his yesterday in a tragic accident. And, I can't stop thinking about those affected by the tornados in Oklahoma.

In this time of grief, there is only one thing to do... Pray.

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that your loving presence may be felt in the community in Oklahoma that has experienced this tragedy that claimed so many lives. It's hard for me to imagine the magnitude of so many lives lost so suddenly. I also pray for one life that was tragically cut too short in San Francisco this weekend. May your love pour forth through the prayers, presence and service of your caring people to begin the healing process. Heal those who have suffered injury and comfort those who are grieving the loss of loved ones. Bind together the community in grace and faith. Send in your helping angels. In the name of Christ, I pray. Amen.

Happy Mother's Day!

2013-05-12T10:10:00.000-07:00

I've decided to break my unintentional blogging hiatus (whoops!!) for a very important reason...

my mama!

Happy Mother's Day to the most amazing, beautiful (inside and out), caring and loving mom out there! Life would be so dull without you. Wish we were together today.

Love you!

XOXOXOX

PS. Happy Mother's Day to my mother-in-law, Debbie! Thank you for raising Nicholas to be such an amazing man!

(Photo of my parents with my older brother, 1984.)

A Full House

2013-04-30T22:15:00.000-07:00

We recently had a very full house! Nick's dad (Mike), brother (CJ), sister (Melissa) and her husband (Todd) and kiddos (Olivia and Emma) all came to visit!

We had a lot of fun...

Playing in the backyard

Picnic and wine tasting at Testarossa!

And, playing in the sand at Testarossa, too!

Exploring San Francisco...

Checking out the piers...

Fisherman's Wharf...

Chocolate at Ghirardelli!

Yummy!

Chowin' down on some chowdah.

A visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium...

Looking for sharks...

Spotting sea lions...

Bocce ball in the backyard

And, my favorite night:

alfresco family dinner

It was a quintessential gorgeous California evening!

The girls were the highlight of the trip... they are so smart and sweet and adorable. They have gotten so big so fast! (It seems like just yesterday Olivia was the flower girl in our wedding and not that long ago that we were in Seattle for Emma's baptism!) I LOVED playing with them in the backyard... looking for lady bugs, watching how fast they ran and finding treasures (rocks, sticks, flowers... you know).

I still chuckle out loud thinking about when Todd told the girls (jokingly, of course) that he was going to spray them with the hose if they didn't settle down. He walked over to the hose and turned the knob and before we even heard the water spraying on the ground Emma (the younger one) had sprinted all the way across the yard like lightning. She moved so fast we couldn't even believe it! She did not want to get sprayed and she did not hesitate one second to see if Dad was bluffing! I seriously couldn't run that fast if I tried. Lordy, I am in tears just thinking about her little legs carrying her that fast. What a smart and savvy little munchkin!

I am lucky to be a part of this amazing family and so happy that they all came to visit!

A Week in South Texas.

2013-04-20T17:21:00.000-07:00

When I told my California friends and coworkers that I was going back home to Texas for a week, most of them pictured something like this...

Cows in the street and cowboy boots and barbeque and open pastures in the middle of nowhere...

Which is definitely true in some parts of the state.

(And, that's one reason why its the greatest state ever!)

But, when I was in Texas for vacation with Nicholas this April, this is actually where we spent our time...

Ahhhh.... yes, believe it or not, Texas has a coastline!!

We spent a week on South Padre Island with my parents at their condo. I grew up spending summers on the beach and (if my blog archives are correct) we hadn't visited since July 2011.

(My hometown, La Feria, is about half an hour inland.)

I hadn't seen my family in over 6 months, so it was so great to spend some good ol' quality time with my parents and my older brother, Allen.

^^Just landed in Texas at DFW airport and immediately found some Mexican food!

^^View of the bay from the balcony

We even got to spend some time with the doggies...

^^Misty, my brother's dog who lives with my parents.

^^And, Pepper.

The sweetest fishing dog there is.

She just LOVES to come on the boat with us!

^^ Pepper... "Nope, I'm not on the couch, this is just a blanket"

^^Enjoying a little glass of wine on the balcony.

Most of our time was spent out on the water, fishing for trout. Catching is way more fun that fishing ... and we had a lot of FUN! I was on fire the last day and caught 6 keepers! My dad is the best captain and fishing guide there is, so he makes it easy for me! He gets the lure set up, tells me where to cast, take my fish off the hook and even fillets all the fish for us! Not sure I'd like fishing so much any other way!

^^Please ignore my crazy hair... a little saltwater and a lot of wind aren't working in my favor here!!

^^Trout in the ice chest!

We sure ate our share of fresh seafood. Trout Veracruzana, fried gulf shrimp, Trout Almondine... all scrump-diddly-umptious!. Some of the restaurants down there let you bring in your own fish and they cook it up however you'd like. So, after a tiring day of fishing, you can let someone else do the work while you relax with a glass of wine (or tequila)!

^^Fried Shrimp!

^^ Our trout cooked up at a restaurant.

We spent some time on the beach, too! Clayton's is a new (since I've lived in South Texas) beach bar with a huge deck and yummy beach cocktails!

We ended up staying an extra night because strong winds delayed our flight and we wouldn't have made our connection in DFW. Our last night, we went back to La Feria and ate good Mexican food before flying back to CA the next morning.

We froze some of the trout and brought it back to San Jose with us. We've been cooking it up a little at a time.... yummy!

Biggest FAIL of the trip... no group pictures. Dangit!!

Love you, Mom and Dad... thanks for having (and spoiling!) us!

Backyard Birthday Party!

2013-04-09T12:19:00.000-07:00

For my birthday, Nicholas and I celebrated with our amazing friends at our home. We actually had a little rain the morning of the party... which had me on edge until about 3:00 when the sun came out and the rest of the day was gorgeous!

We played cornhole in the backyard and I served Pulled Pork Tacos, this yummy Grilled Corn and Avocado Salad and Palomas!

After our grocery run...

Fresh flowers and strawberry shortcake from Flower Flour in Willow Glen...

Such an adorable shop and an clever concept... bakery and florist in one!

I forgot to take pics of the set up until after people started showing up...

One thing that we didn't count on was the abundance of tiny little wisteria flowers falling from the arbor. We had to keep the food covered with saran wrap to prevent flowers from getting in all the food! Oh well, we made it work.

My favorite guy...

Cole hole tourney...

My birthday would not have been the same without these lovely ladies from work...

{Chelsea, Ashley, Jana, me and Annie}

My new drink of choice: Palomas!

So happy these pretties came to celebrate with me!

{Courtney, Alyssa, me, Kristin, and Allison}

And then it was time for cake!

I honestly feel so lucky to have met such wonderful people over the last couple of years in California. Not only am I thankful to have had another healthy, happy year with Nicholas by my side, but I have amazing new friends surrounding me, too!

Birthday!

2013-04-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

I turned 27 yesterday and today is my mom's birthday!

Happy, happy birthday, Mom! Love you tons!

(I won't tell you how old she is, because frankly, I'm not really sure... 39 again?!) Hehe.

We are celebrating today in California with a Backyard Birthday Party! Thankfully, it seems like the "April Showers" will hold off another day or two.

We have cornhole and bocce ball for the backyard and I'm serving Pulled Pork Tacos, this yummy Grilled Corn and Avocado Salad and Palomas! And, a bunch of other apps and bevies! Oh, and cake, too! I mean, it IS my birthday afterall!

We have about 25 people coming over (which is a good thing it's not raining today because our house in TINY but our backyard is big and perfect for an outdoor party.)

Next week, Nick and I are flying to Texas to celebrate again with my parents and brothers! It's almost been two years since I last visited my hometown in Texas... so being surrounded by all of our Cali friends this weekend and then being surrounded by my family next weekend is the best birthday present a girl could ask for!

Cheers!

Happy Easter!

2013-03-31T15:28:00.000-07:00

Nicholas and I continued our Easter tradition of going to church and then brunch! We tried brunch at the Table in Willow Glen and it was delicious.... the Easter bunny brought me eggs benedict and a bloody mary! Yummmmyy.

Happy Easter y'all!

Spring Skiing in Tahoe

2013-03-21T21:21:00.000-07:00

I hadn't been to Tahoe since we went last year with friends

(and it was ELEVEN years since I had skied before then!)...

and guess what?!...

I went skiing last week, and I did a black diamond run!

It was exhilarating and terrifying all in one.

And, a very proud accomplishment for this novice skier!

Let me back up a bit...

last week, our entire HR department went up to Tahoe for a work offsite.

It was a quick trip.

We drove up on Wednesday and came back Friday afternoon.

It was great to get out of the office with the team for a couple of days.

And, thankfully we didn't do any of those cheesy "trust fall"-type team building activities...

we did ski, dance, gamble and laugh together!

(Not that I thought we would do any of that cheesy stuff... our team just isn't like that.)

The weather definitely felt more like Spring Break than a ski trip!

By lunchtime, my ski coat (that I got at Rummage Sale) was off,

and I was just wearing a fleece and tank top.

After lunch, we sat in the sun and I peeled off another layer and just sat it my tank top.

I usually run cold, so for me to be sitting there in a tank top - you know it was warm!

I just love Spring Skiing!

After a day of skiing, we had a big team dinner at Stateline Brewery...

Then we went to an Irish Pub across the street...

and had a lot of fun dancing and being silly and winning raffle prizes from the bar.

Then those of us that felt lucky spent some time at the casino.

I love playing blackjack and ended up leaving richer than when I started playing - cha-ching!

Such, such a fun trip.

(And, now I want to get a season pass for next year! Eek!)

Just one last selfie in my pretty new ski coat...

xoxo

Hi, Spring!

2013-03-20T20:42:00.001-07:00

Spring has sprung in California!

Happy Spring! How is it almost Easter? How it is almost April? I have not posted since Valentine's day... shame on me! Nicholas and I have been loving the extra hour of sunlight after work... when we can, we've been sitting outside, gardening, grilling dinner on the back porch, which means by the time we come in and do dishes, there isn't any time to blog! And, we've both been busy with work and Today's Young Professional (him) and Junior League (me) meetings. But, I have lots to catch y'all up on... concerts, a trip to Napa, a trip to Tahoe, a trip to five different countries in 9 days and lots in between. I'll be busy this weekend making sure that I get this thing up-to-date.

Just wanted to pop in to say we're still here and happy first day of spring!

xoxo

Rummage Sale 2013.

2013-03-10T19:15:00.000-07:00

From Preview Party. It was a "Hollywood" theme...

Just a quick picture from this year's Rummage Sale Preview Party by the Junior League of San Jose. Every other year, we have a HUGE "garage" sale (in the County Fairgrounds Expo Hall) where all the members donate items to sell for very, very inexpensive prices in the community. We then use the proceeds to help in the community! Over the course of 2 days, I volunteered for 15 hours! It was a busy couple of days for me, but it came together nicely and I even benefitted... The night before the sale opens to the community, we have a big Preview Party with silent auction, etc. JLSJ Members are able to have first dibs on all the sales items (for double the price) and I found the perfect ski coat for my upcoming trip to Tahoe! Score! And, I even won one of the Silent Auction prizes I bid on! :)

Too bad I didn't take any pictures on the actual Sale Day... but here's a video from the last Rummage Sale that sums it up pretty well:

My Jetsetter.

2013-02-28T15:07:00.000-08:00

The morning after our amazing day in Napa, my husband was whisked off (at 4am!) for a whirlwind business trip!

He went from SFO to JFK to London to Budapest, back to London, then to Cork, Ireland, then Dusseldorf, Germany and Venlo, Netherlands, then back to London and then home!

Wheew! Doesn't that just sound tiring? Oh, and this was all in about 9 days. He travels a lot for work, but this was the first international work trip and lordy, I missed him.

I asked him to take lots of pictures and this is what we ended up with... Bless his heart.

Granted, his primary purpose of traveling was work, not taking pictures!

Funny story... when he was in the London airport, I asked him to bring me a souvenier from Miu Miu. He has no idea what that is (or, how much it costs!), and he was all set to go and get me a "souvenier" from there. I couldn't let him go through with it though... as soon as he saw the prices he would have said You've got to be $*#$%*$@ kidding me! So, I said just kidding... maybe one day.

But my darling husband still brought me a little treat... this fun Cath Kidston purse:

I wouldn't mind him going on these long international trips so much as long as next time I get to come, too!

How to have fun in Napa.

2013-02-21T23:25:00.000-08:00

1) Don't drive... hire a limo!

2) Only bring entertaining people with you.

3) Drink good wine.

4) Yeah, lots of wine.

5) Visit Oakville Grocery.

6) Eat a yummy picnic in the sunshine.

7) Admire the beautiful scenery surrounding you!

8) Drink sparking wine.

9) Repeat number 8.

10) Eat dinner at Bottega!

Cheers!

Wineries we visited: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Our Unconventional Valentine's Day with Swedish House Mafia

2013-02-18T22:20:00.000-08:00

When I think of Valentine's Day, I normally think of a quiet, romantic dinner at an over-priced restaurant... sappy cards... roses... and maybe even some jewelry.

This year, however, Nicholas and I did things a little differently. We celebrated our love (and youth!) in San Francisco with German food and a wild EDM dance party with 8,000 other Swedish House Mafia fans.

It. was. AH-MAA-ZING.

Dave and Justine snagged the tickets for us months ago, and flew in from Dallas for the occasion. I pulled together what I thought was a wild outfit...

... although this was pretty tame compared to most other people at the show!

Wiener schnitzel and beer at Suppenkuche was the perfect pre-show fuel. We needed a fun restaurant that could keep up with our rowdy crowd, and this place definitely delivered!

Aren't these boots of beer fun?!

(And, no! I did not drink that whole thing! We basically shared 2 boots amongst 6 people!)

After dinner we stopped my a random bar and took some silly pictures. The regulars there must have thought we just ridiculous!

Me and Justine... aka "Tiner"

My love and me.

the boys... Dave, Lane, Carson, and Nicholas!

#onelasttour at the bill graham civic auditorium in SF

Inside the venue, loving life and ready for the show to start.

Look at ALLLLLL the people!!

Swedish House Mafia played 4 nights in a row and sold out each one!

The lights were a show in itself.

Confetti from the ceiling!

Oh, and don't forget about the pyrotechnics!

The show was over relatively early... so we walked to a (sketchy!) pizza shop for a couple of slices before heading back to our hotel! (We had to get up early the next morning to drive up to Napa.)

And, that, my friends, was our lovely Valentine's Day!

xoxo

A Wicked Date Night

2013-02-15T13:52:00.000-08:00

One of the perks of going to a really small high school in south Texas was that when I auditioned for a role in a musical, I got the part! I can't carry a tune (AT ALL!), but there wasn't a lot of competition, lucky for me!

Since then, I have LOVED musicals and plays.

And, I really appreciate the talent it takes to perform!

For Christmas, my darling husband gave me tickets to see Wicked at the Orpheum Theater in San Francisco on February 8th!

Except, on Christmas Day, Nicholas didn't hand me an envelope that contained Wicked tickets.

Nope, the envelope he gave me contained CLUES!

I had to hunt for my tickets.

Here I am on Christmas Day, with my cup of tea and a lot of snow outside, contemplating a riddle which would lead me to the next clue and another riddle.

Finally, at the end I got my tickets!

Before the show, we grabbed some cocktails and a bite to eat at Absinthe on Hayes St in SF.

It was an early dinner since we had to make it to the theater on time.

And, because our reservation was so early, we were the youngest people in the restaurant by about 40 years! Regardless, the waiter was attentive and the short ribs were delicious.

We enjoyed fancy drinks and I even had a dash of Absinthe in my Wonderlust cocktail!

Cheers to a fun date night in the city with the hubs.

You wouldn't have guessed it with the sun shining in the window in the picture above, but during our dessert, it began raining cats and dogs outside!

Yes, we had a 10 minute walk to the theater.

No, we did not have an umbrella!

My chivalrous husband hailing a cab in the pouring rain, while I wait, protected from the rain, under an awning!

We finally made it to the theater, soaking wet, but happy as clams.

And finally, SHOWTIME!

The show was spectacular. When Elphaba sang Defying Gravity, I had chills.

I highly recommend seeing it if it comes to your city!

X O X O

2013-02-14T13:11:00.002-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

Nicholas is taking his final CPA exam as I type! Eeek!

(He took his first test last year on Valentine's Day...)

And, Justine and Dave are visiting from Dallas, so after Nick's test we are headed to

San Francisco for this crazy, ridiculous show!!

I know Nicholas is going to be ready to dance his hiney off.

On Friday, we are off to Napa for a day of wine tasting!

I love, love, love when we have visitors in town!

Words to Live By

2013-02-08T13:32:00.000-08:00

Adapted from a post I saw on Callie's facebook.

Super Bowl Sunday : Go 49ers!

2013-02-03T12:55:00.000-08:00

Photo from our company's 49er happy hour on Friday!

Nicholas and I will be cheering on the San Francisco 49ers today in the Super Bowl from the comfort of our living room! The hubs has always been a 49er fan, even growing up in Omaha, but I have to admit I just jumped on the bandwagon. There is just so much fun energy in Bay Area surrounding the 49ers now... I want to be part of the fun, too! :) Have a great Sunday.

xoxo

Nikki's Elephant-themed Baby Shower!

2013-02-02T16:18:00.000-08:00

My dear friend Nikki is due any day now with her first baby - a boy! Her adorable elephant-themed baby shower, hosted by Alyssa, was just so precious that I had to share some pictures from the day:

Framed invitation on the entry table.

Mimosa Bar!

Isn't that balloon and streamer backdrop so cute?

Kara's Cupcakes... ohmygodsogood!!

Elephant diaper cake, made by my friend Allison!

These are the lovely ladies that I get to work with everyday!

Everyone focused on the baby-shower game!

Opening presents.

The mother-to-be and me :)

Junior League girls!

Nikki with Alyssa, the hostess with the mostess, and her puppy, Fiona!

I am so excited for Nikki and her husband, Brandon.

Their little bundle of joy should be here soon!

Scotland, Part Five: Our last day in Edinburgh.

2013-02-01T15:34:00.000-08:00

When we got to the last day of our trip, we were so not ready to leave. How did 10 days go by so fast?!? There was still so much to explore, but we did manage to pack a lot into our last day:

We did a little shopping, and checked out a local supermarket.

Prawn Cocktail chips, anyone?

We climbed Calton Hill to see panoramic views of Edinburgh.

Below is the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the British royal family in Scotland:

Arthur's Seat^^

We originally had planned to hike to the top of Arthur's Seat, but it was freezing and windy on our last day there, so we opted for the much easier, but just as beautiful, Calton Hill.

We ventured under the city streets for a tour of the haunted Blair Street vaults.

Image above from here.

We met our tour guide at the Mercat Cross on the Royal Mile, and she demonstrated (on Nicholas!) how the monument was used for public shamings and punishment. Nicholas and another English fellow were whipped 13 times! (And she's didn't take it easy... wish I could have gotten a better picture, but I was too busy laughing!).

We actually ate haggis! When in ~~Rome~~ Scotland...

... and we also had Scottish steak at Wildfire on Rose St.

(It was delicious, but I have to admit that nothing compares to the beef we grew up with in Texas and Nebraska!)

And that concludes our trip to the UK. My heart just melts thinking about all the fun I had with my darling husband there. I cannot wait for the next chance we have to go back! Maybe we'll just have to move there for a couple of years... hint, hint Nicholas.. ;)

xoxo

My New Favorite Chili Recipe. And, It's Paleo!

2013-01-30T22:08:00.000-08:00

Since the end of November, Nick and I have been following a Paleo diet at least 80% of the time. I am absolutely loving how great I feel eating this way. Thus, I've been spending a lot more time in the kitchen and, lucky for us, have discovered and created some oh-my-god delicious(!) and healthy meals.

I'd like to just take a moment to pat myself on the back for all the cooking I've been doing!

...OK, done. ;)

I thought I'd share my chili recipe with y'all because it is SO good it would be selfish to keep it to myself!

Yummm.... Do not forget the avocado garnish - it's almost the best part!

(Avocados are hands down my favorite food!!!)

Yields 8 servings

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 large red onion, diced
3 bell peppers, red and green, diced
1 Tbsp minced garlic

2 lbs grass fed ground beef

2 Tbsp chili powder

2 Tbsp cumin

2 tsp crushed red pepper

4 squares of 73% cacao dark chocolate

2 tsp kosher salt

pepper to taste

26 oz chopped tomatoes (I use Pomi.)

2 cups beef stock

Scallions and avocado for topping.

Saute onion, peppers, and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add ground beef and saute until browned. Add seasonings, chocolate, tomatoes, and beef stock. Simmer for 20 minutes to a few hours - depending on how hungry/inpatient you are! Top with scallions and sliced avocado.

See... super easy and so, so good!

Scotland, Part Four: Glencoe, the Highlands and Loch Ness.

2013-01-29T21:57:00.000-08:00

The Scottish country side is just breathtaking. We spent the whole day oohhhing and aahhing at every glen, ben, and loch in the Highlands. I could have spent a month there. Easily.

On our wee trip, we saw Linlithgow Palace (the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots), the Wallace Monument in Stirling (think Braveheart), Duone Castle (where some of Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed), the charming town of Callender, the majestic scenery in Glencoe, Fort William, Ben Nevis (the highest mountain in the British Isles), Fort Augustus, Loch Ness, Dalwhinnie Distillery, Pitlochry, and Edradour Distillery. We heard stories about the "kelpie" that is now known as Nessie and the infamous MacDonald clan massacre in 1692. We saw the smallest distillery in Scotland and red deer grazing in the Cairngorns National Park and hunting lodges just like the one in Skyfall (which was filmed in Scotland!). It is truly amazing how dramatic and gorgeous mother nature can be.

Here are some pictures from our day...

It was eerie how quiet the Royal Mile in Edinburgh was at sunrise:

A quick stop for "dough-rings" and tea at a charming bakery in Callender:

My love and me:

Scenes from Skyfall:

Just a wee bit of snow on the ground... it was freezing!:

Exploring the ruins of a castle:

I guess I'm a bit taller than the Scots were back in the day:

Loch Ness monster sculpture in Fort Augustus:

Hoping to spot Nessie:

If I remember correctly, this is a private residence that can be used for weddings. How amazing is that?!:

In Pitlochry:

We ended our day with a glass of mulled wine in Pitlochry:

Click here for Part Five!

This and That.

2013-01-20T20:22:00.000-08:00

Wow, how is it already mid-January?! I've started the year off with lots of home cooking and housekeeping and working. And, Nicholas has been traveling a lot for work lately. I still have lots to post about from our trip to Scotland and Christmas and a friend's baby shower that was so cute... but, I can't seem to find the time!! One of these evenings, I just need to sit down and get it done. I love looking back at my posts, so I really do want to document these things in this online journal of mine.

On another note, last month, Nicholas and I joined the wine club at Testarossa, a winery in Los Gatos and our first shipment was ready for pickup this weekend.

We had planned on just running up there to pick up our shipment and have a quick tasting, but the 49er game was on, so we ended up watching the whole game there!

(This is totally random, but one of my friends has gorgeous long hair and she swears by only washing her hair twice a week and always letting it air dry... so I am trying it! I would love for my hair to keep growing longer, but I feel like its staying at the same length. We'll see if this works...)

Half time break for some food on the patio!

The 49ers won and we got to bring some wine home - Sunday Funday!

Note to Self

2013-01-03T20:49:00.000-08:00

Our Adventures in 2012

2013-01-02T22:47:00.000-08:00

In January, we rang in the New Year at a fantastic french restaurant here in San Jose. I stayed involved in Junior League and continue to pursue my love of hiking! Nick and I were catching up on Mad Men on netflix... which affected our drinking habits and wardrobe.

Nicholas took and passed his first CPA test in February, so we celebrated that and Valentine's Day with lots of great wine (and food!) tasting in Sonoma. I tried my hand at painting... and I think I did a pretty good job! Oh, and this year was leap year - so we celebrated the extra day with a pub ~~crawl~~ leap.

In March, we hit the slopes in Tahoe with our friends and thankfully didn't break any bones! A walk on the shore of Lake Tahoe was gorgeous after a long day of skiing. We watched my favorite movie of 2012, Like Crazy, and celebrated St. Paddy's Day by drinking green beer in downtown San Jose. I performed an ACL replacement on a cadaver knee at work and we wound down with date night.

I celebrated my 26th birthday in April, and although I was sick on my actual birthday I still felt the love from all of my family and friends. I got a cute Easter basket from my hunny bunny and enjoyed the beautiful spring weather with an afternoon at the shooting range, margaritas on a patio and girls' night. I capped the month off with an unbelievably fun trip to Fredericksburg, Texas for Justine's Bachelorette
party (which made me desperate to move back to Texas!)

In May, I really took advantage of living close to the wine country... my girlfriends and I took a limo up to Napa on Cinco de Mayo, and then Nicholas and I toured Sonoma/Healdsburg (and Sausalito and SF!) with my brother-in-law CJ. I changed up this little ol' blog and then headed down to Dallas for Dave and Justine's wedding! It was SO much fun to dance the night away with our close friends from Texas.

In June, Nicholas and I basically just had fun. We visited a Greek festival in town, "swam" in our pool, ate frozen yogurt, and spent time at the beach in Capitola among other fun things! It between all the fun there must have been some studying because my smarty pants husband passed his second CPA exam!

We had a festive Fourth of July in San Francisco, followed by a concert in the vineyard at Robert Mondavi in Napa. We fostered a dog for a couple of weeks, which was so much fun, but in the end we decided it was best not to keep him. After watching the Olympics in London, we booked a trip to England and Scotland for October! I definitely did a happy dance that day!

In August, we went to a speakeasy in San Francisco with our friends from Texas and also spent time planning our trip to the UK. Hobby Lobby and Chick-fil-A opened in the Bay Area which made me giddy and we wrapped up the month with another trip up to Sonoma! Nicholas passed his 3rd CPA test, too.

September was a super busy month... which is typical for us. We celebrated two years of wedded bliss and went to Austin, Texas to celebrate our anniversary. While in Texas, our friends Krista and Jake got married. Nick's mom and her husband came out to visit us, and later Nick and I drove up to Awesome Ashland, Oregon to spend the weekend with more family. I loved that town!

October was the month that we took our big vacation to England and Scotland. Oh man, was that fun! We had afternoon tea and went to Buckingham Palace and listened to wild music at a pub in Edinburgh and drank whisky and (almost) saw the Loch Ness monster! Whew. Now, we got that out of our system we can start having babies! hehe. For Halloween, we passed out candy at the house and I made us into vampires.

After a whirlwind trip in October, November was full of resting. I was under the weather for the beginning of the month, but still managed to re-decorate our living room and see Breaking Dawn, Part 2! We had a low key Thanksgiving feast of cornish game hens prepared by yours truly!

And last, but certainly not least, we wrapped the year with a pretty tree, holiday parties and a trip to Omaha for Christmas. Yep, I had a COLD, white Christmas! We went ice-skating and saw a Beatles show and tried a few new restaurants in Omaha. We came back in town just in time for Nicholas to turn 28 as we counted down to the new year with our friends.

If there's anything that I've learned from my look back at the year it's:
1. We drink a lot of wine!
2. We had some of the best time with our friends and family.
3. My husband is very, very handsome.
4. Living in California isn't so bad, afterall. (But I'd still move back to Texas in a heartbeat!)

We have it pretty good, don't we?!

Wishing that everyone's 2013 is the best year yet!!!

Happy New Year.

PS. 2011, 2010, 2009

Ringing in 2013!

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Last night, we rang in the new year at a friend's get-together! I felt so lucky to bring 2012 to a close with the incredible friends that we've made over the past 2 years. (And, I promise we didn't wear those silly glasses the whole night, but seems like I have them on in every picture!)

the birthday boy and me!

^even alyssa and michael's dog, fiona, got in on the fun!

me + alyssa + kristin

^we had an abundance of delicious food.

Wishing everyone a wonderful 2013! Happy New Year!