Downtown Disney and Disneyland Parks

Saturday, I was fortunate enough to go see my Sis and her family again and spend about 5 days with them. We started out the trip strong with a weekend trip to Disneyland! My sis, Darrin, and Reagan picked me up at the airport and we headed straight to Anaheim. We made it to the hotel around 4pm or so and took some time to get ready before going downtown. We spent the night walking around shops, listening to live music, and dining out. It was so neat, we all really enjoyed it.

Then Sunday, we woke up early and headed out to Disneyland! First thing we did was ride Space Mountain (Darrin and I) before the lines got too long. It was a little crowded but not too bad. Then we walked around looking for characters to take pictures with, stopping at different things along the way. We rode It’s a Small World and Reagan loved it. We all really liked it- it was truly AMAZING all the work that goes into that place. Plus, we had front row seats on our little boat- Reagan looked like our little captain up at the front!  Toontown was really neat- we got pics with Mickey and Minnie and got to walk through their houses. The Tea cups might have been our favorite. Darrin got the best pictures and Reagan liked it enough to want to ride it again. She just smiled the whole time. I love that I got to share that moment with her. Just to be there for that I would fly across the world!

The bugs world area was another favorite- all of the little details in the decorations and rides were so cute. And Reagan looked so cute enjoying her churro on the popsicle bench- we couldn’t get enough pictures! We also went to California Adventure Park right next to it since we got the “park hop” pass. It was really neat. My sis and Darrin rode this Hollywood Horror ride and I entertained Reagan with a smoothie. The parade there was our favorite thing- it was super fun. Really all of it was neat, even just the walking around park. We were all pooped by Sunday night and headed back to San Diego. From there, I spent the next few days with my sis and Reagan- more pics to come! :)

        

   

Welp, Scratch that!

In my previous blog I said we would be moving soon but made it seem like it would be awhile. Well, as of last week (actually right after my last post), we found renters for our house. Yep, we listed our house on Craig’s list and within a few minutes had a few people interested. A nice couple in their forties/fifties came by the next day to check it out, really liked it, and called us early the next morning to tell us they would like to rent it. This all happened in a matter of TWO days! We had no idea it was going to take that quickly. The couple is just PERFECT and Forrest and I just had a feeling they were going to say yes when they called us back.

Everything has just been working out great and we are so excited. Only thing is- now May is even busier for us. This week I have 6 tests (2 down, 4 to go), then Saturday I leave for California for 5 days. I come back Thursday, then Friday and Saturday we have wedding festivities for Jarrad & Elisha. Sunday morning we leave for our camping trip and plan to get back on Wednesday sometime. That leaves Thursday through Memorial weekend for us to pack and move. Then guess what? Summer school starts for me June 1st!  I don’t think we could fit one more thing. O yes, and don’t worry- I will not let Forrest forget that my birthday is right around the corner. :)

Some of my favorite things about this house:

Entrance- really the whole Castlegate Community is beautiful- all the landscaping, fountains, pretty houses and parks.

Kitchen – this is to me one of, if not THE, most important thing in a house. It is like MY territory and I want to feel like Martha Stewart when I am in it.

Jacuzzi tub - don’t take baths that much anymore but it was there just in case.  I liked knowing that I had the option to take a bubble bath if I so desired.

Backyard/trees behind- just made the house feel more secluded and we could enjoy being outside with a little privacy.

As of today, we have 21 more days of living here then it is on to the next chapter of our lives!

Daddy gave life to Momma’s dream….

As I am cleaning and cleaning out our house today, I have on CMT as usual. I guess I get that from my Mom and Sister- we all three love to play CMT or GAC while we are home. Well in the midst of my sweeping, this song happens to come on by Miranda Lambert called “The house that built me.” If you haven’t heard this song, you’ve got to, it is probably my favorite song right now and today was the first time I got to hear it all the way through.

Funny thing is I was cleaning extra good today and getting rid of things we don’t use or need to make packing easier. Yes, that’s right packing. Packing because Forrest and I will be moving soon. We are not moving right away, we still have a lot to get in order, but our plans are to move out into the guest house of Forrest’s parent’s ranch. Our goal is to live there long enough to save money to put towards our next home.

It is just funny how God works, letting things happen at certain times to make you stop and think. The lyrics to this song just makes me think of how sentimental a home is, and I especially like  the part when she says “Daddy gave life to Momma’s dream…” I just think that is the sweetest part.

I remember like it was just the other day, when Forrest surprised me with the house we live in now. I had thought it sold after they didn’t take our offer and didn’t know they had called Forrest back to tell him they would accept it. I remember that moment and how excited and emotional I was when we showed up here and walked in to see all of our family waiting inside. It was a perfect way to celebrate the beginning of our life in our first home. We moved in right after we got married- everything has just been like a dream: graduate college, get married, buy a house….

I know this song is about remembering the house you grew up in and earlier I said I get the whole CMT watching from my Mom & Sister. I just couldn’t help also, thinking of the videos my parents have of my sister and I dancing around and watching music videos in the living room, just capturing those typical “being at home days” where you never change out of your pjs. I know my sister has a lot of those days with Reagan now and how much they mean to her, I just smile thinking about it. I know that will be me one day just like my Mom…just like my sister, and most likely in our next home. It will be everything we have dreamt of  just like this one has been. Now I have only a few more months to just soak up living here…in our“first home.”

“If I could just come in I swear I’ll leave….won’t leave nothing but a memory….”

Amanda’s Big Day!

This past Saturday was my dear friend, Amanda  Bradshaw’s wedding day, and I was extremely fortunate and honored to play the role as one of her bridesmaids. I have known Amanda for over 10 years now and feel incredibly grateful to have had her in my life for so long.

It is hard to come across people like Amanda- her attributes are magnetic. As long as I have known her, people seem to gravitate towards her and I can understand why. She cares about everyone she meets, especially her friends and family. She is a one of a kind listener and giver of her time, but she hardly demands these things in return. She is never negative and her positivity is contagious- it is almost impossible to be in a bad mood around her. She really is one of the most easy to love, likeable people I have ever known. I truly love and admire her and could not be more thankful to have her as a great friend all these years.

Before I get to the big day, I want to mention how nice the rehearsal dinner was. The event was held on the patio of Primo’s Mexican Bar & Grille which overlooked Lake Ray Hubbard. Everyone enjoyed a nice dinner on the patio overlooking the lake. The weather was beautiful, food was beyond great, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

So now, on to talking about the big day! Saturday started with a  bridesmaid breakfast at Breadwinners in Dallas and man is that place GOOD! The food is to die for and the mimosas and bellinis just made things even more fun.

After breakfast, we headed to the reception site at Hickory Street in Dallas to get a few last things in order.

Then we all went to the spa/salon to get our hair done and just relax a bit. Here is a picture of Amanda after getting her veil on!

Then we headed to the church to finish getting our little bride ready before walking down the aisle! Doesn’t she look gorgeous?!

After the beautiful (and quick!) wedding, we took off in the limo towards the reception site to enjoy the rest of the night!

  

Congratulations Grandma on your new marriage and such a beautiful night to celebrate it. I thoroughly enjoyed playing such an important role in your wedding and seeing you and Adam come together as one. May your marriage be filled with so many happy memories and blessings, I hope to be a part of some of them! I love you and thank you for your friendship. –Love Grandpa

Diary of a TRI-wife: Entry #1 LoneStar Triathlon

Then this past weekend, we had a very exciting weekend. Forrest did his FIRST triathlon at Moody Gardens in Galveston and did an OUTSTANDING job! The swim portion got cancelled do to weather conditions (the weather had been out of control all night, the night before and the wind was terrible!) For the bike he did 13.1 miles in 39:59 minutes and ran 3.1 miles in 22:58 minutes. He met all of his goals and we were all so proud of him. This was Aaron’s first triathlon as well and he did a great job too, I think even better then he thought he would do. We stayed at their beach house and just made a fun weekend out of it. O, and I finally got to hold Abigail. She was the most precious and easy baby, just slept the whole time.

More posts to come regarding triathlon details, events, and training. Forrest plans to do another sprint in the fall before the half Ironman and who knows what else he commits to at this point!