i am a coconut.

today, i want to remember...

that it was a wonderful night last night and it has been a good day so far. :) I have a horrible short memory and can't really remember what I did the year before, but the blog has been a wonderful diary.

Last night, hubby and I went for a romantic dinner at Lawry's Prime Rib. It was just the two of us and we really needed the time together. Real life gets in the way of us remembering why we love each other. Busy lives, stressful work, but through it all, we know have each other.

This morning, the boys and I went for a family brunch at the Wynn Buffet. We rarely go to fancy places together because it's just too expensive but we splurged. :) I think we deserve it.

september celebrations.

Fall always marks the beginning of celebrations in our home. From anniversaries and birthdays, we are busy every weekend.

My sisters and I take time out of our busy schedules to get together. This time we went to McCormick and Schmicks to participate in Restaurant Week. Eating good food for a good cause. Portions of the proceeds help end hunger in Las Vegas.

For our 7th anniversary, we had tickets to Phantom of the Opera and had dinner at Bouchon Bistro at the Venetian Hotel and Casino. It's so convenient living in Las Vegas. There are so many things to do and see and eat, all conveniently located in one place. :) Both the show and the food was fabulous!

Today is my birthday! So we are planning on going to dinner tonight! :) Here's to September celebrations!

 

lunch date with the parents.

I won't be seeing my father for Father's Day so I took him and my mom out to lunch today at Gordon Biersh. We geenerally don't take my parents out to restaurants that aren't Chinese because ordering is such a nightmare. My mom wants dessert instead of a meal and my dad can't be pleased. :P But oh well. They're not getting any younger and I've just come to accept that they will torture me until death do us part. Ha.

we now return to our regulary scheduled program.

So. What's new? I have sadly neglected my blog for the past few months and I am happy to be back. I think. Blogging has been difficult for me lately. It's been quite stressful for us here. Hubby lost his job a little over 3 weeks ago and that has been quite challenging for our household. Living on one income is something new to us and we have definitely had to take a step back and reexamine the way we were living. We took way too many things for granted. We ate out a lot. We went to the grocery store, bought tons of food, and let much of it go to waste in the fridge. We complained about our jobs. Now, it's a different way of life. We have consciously prepared our own food at home. We buy only what we need. Junior brings his lunch to school. I bring my lunch to work. We drive only one car to save on gasoline. We returned things to the store that we do not need. We turn off anything electrical that is not in use. In this winter season, we bundle up instead of turning up the heater. We don't go out.

If anything good came out of this, it's that we don't take things for granted anymore. We are grateful for our friends and family. We are grateful that we are not starving, that we still have a roof over our heads, that I still have a room full of scrapbooking supplies that could last me for years, that I still have a job. We are thinking positive, dammit!

This past Thanksgiving has been that- a time of giving thanks. We visited hubby's family and ate there. Then we proceeded to our own home where we assigned dishes to family members and made it the best potluck ever. My sister attempted her first turkey and we both molested the poor bird while looking for the giblets. We never did find it until after it was done cooking. Ew. That bag of turkey guts looked like a big misshapen scrotum. That's for all the nurses out there. Anyway, even after the giblet mishap, we still had a lovely time.

My sisters and I took a Snuggie photo with my mom. So did hubby and Junior. You probably can't find my husband in all that pink glory. He blends right in with his pink skin.

 

My nephew is 11 months old and he can walk now! Holy crap! He is getting so big, so independent, and so bad! He likes to take the car keys and honk the car alarm. He likes the sound. In my house, we beat the children, but in my brother's house, it seems they enjoy them and spoil them. Here he is telling us that he is turning one soon!

 

In this cold holiday season, all I need is my family, a pink Snuggie, some hanky panky, and giblets. Not necessarily in that order. Amen.