My Family is a Comin'!

Just a quick post to say how esctatic I am that my family is coming tomorrow! We are getting the new house as put away, clean and ready as possible! The pool is up to 83 degrees...yee haw!!!I will have a ton of pictures to post and blog about in a week. My sister, Ryan, Kiara and Vera will be here as well as my parents. They are staying in a rental house for the week...but hopefully up at our new place at the pool for a lot of the time! My parents stay for a few more days at the end of the week, which is awesome. We have the girls that weekend, so they will get some 1-on-1 time. We also have them on Sunday (special request) since all the family is here...and a few days during the week...so there should be plenty of time with them anyway...it's the first time that Kyndall and Megan will meet Vera! I'm excited for that, and also to see her again - and see her walk! And then of course, Kiara...she's just a cutie period...and is very excited to come. She will be going to ride a horse during the week here...somehow that was promised for this trip by her dad, I think. She can't stop talking about that! And the Cubs game we are going to on Monday night (my family plans trips to see us based on when the Cubbies are playing the D-Backs in AZ!).

Everyone pray for a safe flight tomorrow for them all...and a great week! I'll leave you with a few pictures of the cuties I get to play with all week! =)

New House Pictures!

Okay, so I know it's been FOREVER since my last blog...but I promise I had a good reason! My mom came about two weeks ago and stayed for about five days to help us get a jump start on all the cleaning, painting, and remodeling that we planned doing to the new house. We are now well on our way to being in the house permanently - finally! We plan on being all the way in by this weekend...so we have been sooooo super busy split between two houses for the last 2-3 weeks...and now have another few crazy days ahead, but with a definite light at the end of the tunnel! Whew! I guess all the work and busyness got to us because the girls came down with a nasty bug on Sunday and started puking their guts out (literally...it wasn't pretty...Kyndall slept on the bathroom floor with a comforter and a pillow!). Bobby got a version of the bug by Monday morning, and so the three of them were down and out the whole day yesterday. I felt a little funky...but no where near the puking (and other stuff!) that they were all doing. Luckily, it was a quick recovery...they all feel almost 100% normal...girls back to school and Bobby and I back to packing and working on the new house.

My Dad has been asking for pictures of all the updates for a while now (sorry Dad!) since he didn't get to make the trip out with Mom. She, by the way, was a rock star and helped us out soooo much with cleaning and painting! We couldn't be where we are without her help! Thanks Mom! Anyway...thought it would be fun to post a few before and after pictures...mostly of the kitchen and few rooms that now have paint. The kitchen is our big project. Bobby and I decided to paint the cabinets black and add silver/nickel hardware...change out the countertop (not done yet) and then also add a mosaic tile backsplash above the countertops (not done yet either). The cabinets have been a HUGE project...all done by Bobby. He worked his butt off on these and all his worked paid off big time...they look AMAZING! I was the painting foreman...and took care of all the painting projects (with a lot of help from the girls and Mom!). It's amazing how different the kitchen and family area look already with a change of cabinets and paint color! We are so happy with it so far. I can't wait for the countertops to come in and then lastly the mosaic tile! These last two things should be done by the end of April.

The theme of the kitchen, by the way, is a classic black with an accent of kiwi/lime green. No idea where the idea came from, I just started running with it at some point and bought green slip chair covers for the eat-in kitchen area, which will just make the kitchen so amazing (on top of the hot cabinets, countertops, and mosaic tile!). We are so pleased with everything so far...and also so impatient for it all to finally come together like we have been imagining in our heads for months now!

Here are some before and after pics...then also follow the link to all the house pictures that are on my Facebook page.

Kitchen - Before

Kitchen - After - AMAZING!

Close up of the corner cabinets - love it!

Our inspiration - green and black

Finished paint and lighting in the kitchen. Imagine the picture below with a round glass table and four of the green covered chairs!

Finished colors in the family room (and cleaned carpets!) - open from the kitchen

Bobby and I's room - Posh Red (love this color). Also, this is Bobby's new desk for work that we got off of Craigslist...cute eh?

Lots more pictures here -

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=70309&id=511058149&l=19a16c5d91

We also just went to a fiesta birthday party for my good friend, Jen's kids - Addie and Abe. Addie turned 3 and Abe will be 1 soon! It was so much fun packed with everything a fiesta should have - sombreros, Mexican food, pinata...and even mustaches! It was so fun...we each got a fun mustache and sombrero to fully embody the fiesta spirit! There are a few pics below and then several more linked below them too.

The Marins living up to their Spanish name!

Birthday girl Addie - loving the icing on her sombrero hat birthday cake!

Jen and her birthday boy Abe - he's so stinkin' cute!

Birthday girl looking stylish

Jen and I and our sombreros

The HOT Mexican Man - the girls and I LOVE this picture and Bobby hates that I am posting this...I think there will be payback for this at some point!

Could these two be any cuter?

A few more party pics here -

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=70308&id=511058149&l=72eaa17bf9

Quicker than I thought!

I got to this post a lot sooner than I thought! I posted all my San Diego pics to Facebook, and then linked them below. It is soooo much easier to post pictures to Facebook than on Blogspot, so I just did it this way...I did upload a few pictures right here for a little preview!

All in all the five days were awesome...we kept it cheap and didn't do the typical Disneyland or Sea World...but I will tell you this...there is PLENTY to do in San Diego for free...and I know there was so much more that we didn't even get to! We did a lot of beach time, obviously. Also went to Balboa Park, which is a neat park that has 14 museums around it - and on Tuesdays several are free to the public. So we hit several of the museums while walking around the park. Also, La Jolla beach - gorgeous beach and area and then the sea lion at La Jolla Cove is a must too. They just sunbathe on this cove, and you can watch them. It was actually very interesting if you stayed around and watched for a while - we even saw a fight break out because a mommy sea lion was protecting her little one! It was really neat - but didn't smell too nice! =) Oh, and downtown San Diego is cool too - we found a little area called the Gaslamp Quarter, which had tons of shopping and cool restaurants - the girls loved that area and just walking around. Coronado Island is so pretty too with the big ol' bridge over to the island! And if you like to hike and are in the San Diego area ever - make the short trip to Torrey Pines Park. We had really foggy weather, so we couldn't see the gorgeous views, but it was still soooo neat to hike up these mountains, right off the ocean. It is said that you can sometimes see whales and dolphins at certain spots on clear days....not so much for us...we couldn't even see the ocean that day with the fog and it was right in front of us! All in all, great times with the girls...had a ton of fun, especially since it was a cheap trip! It just shows that great times with the family making memories doesn't have to cost a bunch of money!

The drive there

Gorgeous Drive!

One of my favorite pics - right when we got to San Diego

Ocean Beach - Our hotel was located directly on the beach, which was perfect!

La Jolla Beach - gorgeous!

La Jolla Cove - Sea Lions!

After a day at La Jolla Beach!

Cuties!

On our hike at Torrey Pines

More pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=67263&id=511058149&l=859e8c24db

I had to post a video of the sea lions...especially how they get around! I mean...I guess it makes sense that they look goofy, since they don't have legs to walk on, but the flopping around is funny and cool to watch!

San Diego Post Coming Soon!

Hey there! I meant to have pictures up by now since getting back from San Diego...but haven't. Just wanted to let you know that I will post about the trip soon! We are going to get busy this week as the new house closes, painting, moving, etc....so I will do my best to get them out here soon!

Talk soon!

We are moving!

As if moving twice in one year isn't enough...I am going to make it a third time soon as we bought a house and are moving within the next month! We are very excited about this next phase for the family...the house is great - several hundred more square feet than the current house, an additional bedroom and bath, a great location just north about 10 mins from where we are now....AND....drum roll please.....an incredible backyard with a POOL! =) Oh...and we have orange and lemon trees too! We have already sampled the oranges and they are YUMMY! We can't believe how great of a deal we got, it almost still doesn't seem real to us. The housing market definitely worked in our favor to be able to afford this house...and even though we are going to be taking a hit on the current house, we will be definitely gaining an amazing house at an awesome price. This is a smart move for us, the family and our future. My parents were a HUGE help in this process with all their expertise - they have made this process soooo much easier!

We couldn't be happier...the girls already have their room colors picked out and Bobby and I are going to take on some projects, starting in the kitchen. The house overall is in great shape, but we wanted to do some things to make it "ours." I will hopefully be posting some of our progress along the way!

We head to San Diego for the girls' spring break next week and the week after that we should close and have the keys to finally get started on some of the painting and kitchen stuff. We can't wait to get in there and get settled! My family comes out at the end of April, so we are shooting to be officially in the house before that - mid-April.

Enjoy the video and pictures below!

It's so cute!

Oh my goodness...this is our pool! What?! How cool is this pool????

That's right...there is a waterfall in our pool!

An aerator to cool off the water in the pool in the HOT summer

The orange and lemon trees are in the background

Still can't believe this will be our backyard!




Here's a video walkthrough of the house. I apologize if this is a little bumpy and quick - I didn't have enough space left on my memory card, so I had to hurry, but you'll get the idea!

Palm Springs

My great friend Charity from college called a couple weeks ago and said that they would be in Palm Springs, CA soon....and who knew! Palm Springs is less than 4 hours from Phoenix! I haven't seen her in about 3 years...she's had two little girls since then! She lives in Michigan with her family, and with all of my changes over the past year and before with traveling to AZ so much...and not to mention that she's had two babies in three years...we haven't been able to see each other. So, this was awesome how this worked out. Bobby and I drove there Monday morning this week to see them. It was my first trip to Cali! Woohoo! I've always wanted to go, and actually our family will be going to San Diego next week for Spring Break....so I will be there twice in a couple weeks!

We hung out at the resort they were at...which was super nice, by the way...and just had a nice time catching up and then also getting to know their cuties! Ella is the oldest and is gorgeous! She is a girly girl that loves her mommy and daddy. So cute...she's at the age when she says and does some completely cute stuff! And then Johanna is about 10 months, and is just as content and wonderful as a baby can be. Whenever she smiles (which is A LOT), she is infectious. She seemed to like Bobby a lot and you could always catch her smiling at him. =)

Charity is a friend that you can be away from for a while, and then pick right back up like there was no time apart. I value Charity so much...she is an amazing mother and wife and friend! Her and Derek (her hubby) do life right - put God first, family and then their work (which is a lot with church, as Derek is a youth pastor now). I know that Charity literally feels like she has zero time in her life, as she works 30 hours a week too...but she is a super mom and wife...and all the work and effort that Derek and Charity put into their lives is paying off and will continue to.

Yes, we pulled over on I-10 to take these pictures!

My first steps into Cali!

Gorgeous views driving into the Palm Springs area

That's Jo Jo! Could her eyes get any cuter?

And that's Ella...too cute for words!

This is literally how she looks at all times - and it makes you smile back! (Charity is holding her)

Derek and Ella - watching a movie before bedtime

Resort picture at sunset - the place was gorgeous!

The drive home - stupid poles in the way!

A dust devil on the way home!

Also, I have some exciting news to share in a day or two...so keep your eyes peeled for another post soon!

Parent's Visit

Bobby, the girls and I were lucky to have my parents come for several days last weekend. All in all, it was a great weekend together...the time spent was awesome. We got to catch a Cubs spring training game at the facility near where we live (against the Padres). It was fun to go there, see some of the big names (although not as many as I thought there would be playing!) and see the facility. The downside was Mr. Ineverstoptalking sitting behind us. It actually was interesting after you got over the annoyance factor, listening to what he talked about - CONSTANTLY. From pregnancy to his girlfriends hair color to tattoos....wow! We heard it all! =) Anyway, the Cubbies lost...figures! But it was a good day with my parents.

Also, I finallly got up to a mountain to hike...my Dad had been a couple times before, and we all went with him this time to Thunderbird Mountains. There are tons of trails, ranging from flat trails to steep climbs. It was a blast. Dad, Mom, and I went on another day to a harder segment of the mountains and trails...and those were difficult! It was some steep climbing over rocks! And then on the way down it was pretty rocky with gravel...going on a significant downhill slope with loose gravel was a bit scary sometimes...I slipped a few times, but luckily caught myself in time! Sure got my heartbeat going though!

I am so excited to go more! In fact, Bobby and I took the girls with us yesterday to do one of the milder trails. We all had a great time then too! The entire family (sister, bro-in-law, two girls and Dad and Mom) comes at the end of April, so can't wait to try some trails with them as well. Here are a couple shots from the the first day's climb!

It looks a lot higher in person!
Dad, me, and Mom midpoint

Me, Bobby, and Mom midpoint

Another good shot from the top