Day 4- Tennis, Swim, Veg....

...AND WHITE SANDS!!!!!!!!

As stated in the title, we did the regular this Sunday Morning- actually we even watched some of the Sunday Morning Program which is celebrating 30 years on air.

The day was pretty chill until we headed out to White Sands National Park to do some sand sledding!

The whole evening was sooooo awesome! We packed up an Italian lunch of bread from Zeffiro's in town, and procuito(sp?), salami and lots of cheese...oh yeah and Smoking Loon wine too! The dunes look like snow in the winter, and the sand is finer than any other sand that I have experienced. Aaron said it was like walking on velvet. We hiked out a little ways and found a killer dune with a great incline and blazed a trail down it. The more you use the same trail, the faster you go. Not to mention the friends of my mom's that loaned us the sleds waxed them up before we left- so they were super slick! Some other people followed after us, and used our trail so it kept getting faster. The Scenery was spectacular too. This post will have ALL White Sands picutres since it was the highlight of our day and freakin awesome!

Las Cruces Day Three- Saturday

Saturday was another great day. Getting up is getting harder, especially with the thought of work on the horizon...but I trying not to think about that quite yet!

Today, of course, started with tennis. We are averaging about 2-3 hours of tennis per morning. This morning Aaron signed up for a lesson with the club pro to work on his serve, which proved very helpful! Getting a new serve in tennis is always a difficult taks. It's new moves throws you off, but once you get in the groove of the motion things start to even out and your serve really starts to come along. Aaron is on the new end of the serve, but each time he serves you can see the progession into an awesome swing starting to shine through.

The day also took us on some more errands, and a great stop for lunch at Sonic! Yum Cherry Slush!!!!!!!! I am still drinking it as I am sitting here writing this- YUMMMMM and no freezing headache yet!!!!!

I had to share this great video with you of Katie, unbeknowenst to her, rocking out on film to knock three times. I hope you get a good laugh out of this as we all did, watching her.... It's all in good fun kate! hahahah!

Las Cruces Day Two

Well lets just say Friday was a much better day than a slighty chaotic Wednesday and Thursday.

We Played some more tennis, as per usual and ran some errands to the mall and target, etc, etc, etc.

In the evening we dined at this AWESOME local pizza place- gourmet like pizza- that makes thier own bread and everything- think Boudin's meets CPK. It's called Zeffiro's and I can't stress to you how absolutely fantastic the food was and the bread and the desert and the staff! Super YUM!

Mom bought us all tickets to see a play at one of the community theatre, called Look Homeward Angel...and we did, at intermission....the spa was much more tempting than the less than mediocre acting we were painfully sitting through! I always feel bad about leaving a preformance early, especially at a small venue where your presence or lack thereof is clearly apparent....but we just couldn't take it any more!!!!!!

Anyway, another great day full of great memories!

1+1+1 Does NOT Equal TWO!

Well, it must be said that we got off to a really rocky start for our vacation ala Resorte De Borsodi~~

First Katie and Aaron were 40 minutes late picking me up from work so that we could catch our flight.... I am not even going to get into WHY that happened... Then we practically ran through the ariport....but made our flight with 15 minutes to spare. We had GOOD, yes Good layover in Pheonix but were greated with only TWO bags when we got to El Paso....we checked three... and guess who's bag was missing? MINE! OF COURSE!!! So needless to say, Wednesay evening was anything less than ideal for the start of what should be a great and relaxing vacation.

Thursday morning we got up, expecting that my bag would arrive around 1 in the after noon. We played some great tennis, and then mid way through our "match" I got a call

"Mrs. D- We have yet to locate your baggage, but are doing our best and will notify you when we have found it."

To which I replied:

"You told me last night that you knew where it was and that it would be on the first flight out from Pheonix this morning! What do you mean 'you don't know where it is'?!!

We exchanged a few more words which consisted of me going out and buying some items that they would reimburse me for, etc. So we finished up our tennis match, went home, went swimming, and then headed out to the Mall to pick up some stuff for me. On our way to the mall we get a call from Emery- The airline just called and my bag should be at the house in 30 minutes~! THANK GOD! Not that I was not looking forward to shopping, but it was just a releif to know that I had all my own clothes and that I wouldn't have to go comando any more! hahaha~!

We did pick up a few things at the mall, including a super cute one piece bathing suit~! Woo hoo!

A happy end to the last two days....THANK GOD~!~~

P.S. We just got back from dinner at Chope's- a sizth generation restaurant that was converted from an old house! It was AMAZING mexican food and super Margarita's- 18.00 for a pitcher that was good for 5+ people! YUM!

Urban Ore

This past Saturday Aaron and I cleaned the house a bit and then took off to Urban Ore in Berekely; a place we have...ok I have...been wanting to go to for about 1.5 years! It's a mecca for the "refurbished"- or soon to be. They take in loads from contractors daily, who are renovating homes, buildings, etc and need a place to get rid of house hold and construction items that are still "usable" or "refurbishable".

From the moment Aaron and I first moved in to our condo I knew that there were a lot of things to be done, and so far we have pretty much turned this place upside down (in more ways than one), but there are still some projects that I am hoping to get to one day. My next three projects for this palce are: renovate the bathrooms, put in French Cafe doors to the laundry room and change all the door knobs. When I first heard about Urban Ore on a weekend news feature I was totally excited I knew this would be the place to go to find my french cafe doors and vintage door knobs. Though I didn't find the doors YET, I did find the vintage glass door knobs I have been looking for...though they are kind of expensive.

For the true "vintage" all glass door knobs I am looking at 15.00 per knob! YIKES! They have some fake ones for $1 each, wich is what I will probably put on the closests since those don't really matter. Never the less, I didn't get anything today, but Aaron and I had a great time walking the place! I can't wait to go back and do some purchasing when the time is right!

Old Radiators

To Mothers House We GO!

We are heading to my mom's for our annual trip, this year a little later than last. We are really excited to get to spend time with her and Emery and are really looking forward warm days, filled with Tennis and more!

We are brining some extra baggage along with us too, as Katie will be in tow for her last trip to see mom before she departs for Bristol England for a year! I can't believe we won't see her for a year! That is crazy!!!! But never fear, we have big plans a-brewing...plans to see Katie just slightly before a year! woo hoo!

Stay tuned for updates from our trip DAILY! YES! DAILY!!!!

Donner Party- Going Home!

On Sunday, after the Reunion, we packed up the cabin and headed out to Truckee for the rest of the day. We walked around downtown Truckee which has seemed to really grow in the last 5-10 years. It's full of shops and eateries and has a general happy buzz. With the whole fam. hangin' around we decided to ditch Truckee and head back to the lake.

We went to the Donner State Park area of the lake and found a great little spot on the beach. The weather was overcast, yet warm and it looked like a storm was about to blow in. We hung out there for an hour or so, made friends chip....or was it dale....?....a chipmunk at any rate and skipped some stones along the waters edge. We had such a good time hanging out as a family together, ther is something to be said about family time....something good!

We packed up David, Davina and James in our car and prepared ourselves for an easy car ride home....that was not to be. After 4.5 hours on a regular 2.5 hour drive we finally made it home. I dropped Aaron off and went to gas, but it wasn't to be had....the gas cap was stuck on the car and our tank was rediculously EMPTY! We ended up breaking the gas cap, not getting any gas, and leaving the Mazda in the "Cash for Clunkers" car lot across from the dearlership overnight....what a day.....

Donner Party....Family Reunion!

So You FINALLY Get to Here about our trip to Donner Lake! How excited are you?!! HAHA I know not really at all...hahah!

Aaron's family was celebrating his Grandfathers 80-Something birthday and decided to make a full family reunion out of it! We had such a blast! Our immediate family (Aaron's parents, siblings and significant others) all went in on a cabin so we could make the most of the weekend. We stayed 3 blocks from the lake and were able to walk back and forth super easily! I would say that there was a pretty great turnout- all in all I think we were missing about 6 direct family members- that is not bad for this EXPANSIVE family! We spent the day at the West End Beach and played Volleyball (yeah right-I didn't, the rest of them did!), Tennis, swam, ate and Erin S. Kaitlin and I (yes we are all GREAT friends AND SOOOOO Close to being ALL family!!!) took out the Challenger 2000....a rubber boat and cruised the lake with a Corona in hand for about an hour. Erin S. was nervous that we weren't going to make it back to shore, but with my direction and her and Kaitlin's paddling we were VERY successful!

We had such a good time with the family and friends. I got to meet some of Aaron's cousins that I had never met before which was fantastic! Of course I got harrassed about "when are you going to have a baby!!" , but I cooly shrugged them off saying "LAY OFF ME! GEEEEZ!" Hahaha Ok I wasn't that harsh, but it was close with a good laugh at the end...EVERY time!

I am so excited for the next family gathering and to get to spend more time with my new family, and now friends!

A baby shower, A night out and a funeral... What a week!

So this week (saturday through Thursday) has been a full one to say the least.

Aaron's cousin Rachael is due with our third to last baby due this calendar year... It's a girl and her name will be Amara Jordan Redford! We spent the better part of Saturday celebrating her and her mommy-to-be at her sister Nicole's house (in my old neighborhood). We had so much fun. Nicole did a fabulous job putting together the party. There were so many games to play and activities to participate in. My favorite was the "design your own onsie" with puff paint, I drew a stick figure balerina that had the title "dancing queen" underneeth it. I also enjoyed the baby food taste test, mostly because they had Banana's which is my favorite baby food....I know you think "gross" but I say "YUMMM!"

After that the girls and I went to The Tavern (where sister Katie works) and had a drink with Erin S.'s cousin who was in town for the weekend. We had a great time, finally found an awesome bartender there, who not only knew what St. Germaine was, but was able to locate it in the stock of liquors and pour me a glass! WOO HOO! (ok now you all think I am a lush, but fear not, I not that much of a drinker, I just know what I like!)

Tuesday brought us to the funeral aformentioned above. Cheryl is Aaron's brother's OT, and has become a member of our family over the past 16 years. Her husband of 39 years past away after several years of illness (unkown). It was a said event, as funerals usually are, but we were happy to celebrate his life with his family. Like my mom and step-dad he was also a Pac-Bell lifer!

After the funeral, Katie (S-I-L to be), Paul, Aaron and I went out for a final toast to Stu ala Irish Wake at the local wine bar. It was so nice to sit outside at 3:00 in the afternoon and dream about having a job in the town you live in, no commute, and a rightful happy hour (again I am not a lush...).

This weekend will bring us to Donner Lake for a family runion and one good time on a longboard skate board....more to come, so stay tuned!

Peace out!

Last Sunday....We DEMO'd

Well last weekend wasn't a total waste. I actually got a chance to get out of the house on Sunday. I was feeling much better and so I told Aaron- "we are leaving as soon as I finish getting ready!" We headed out at 9:30 to Sonic burger for a cherry slush, then ran over to say "howdy" to Erin and see her new place, then we ran a couple more errands and finally I kicked Aaron to the curb and went back to Erin S.'s and we demo'd the closet!
We had such a blast! Her dad and Nate were there, but us Ladies did a lot of the hard work. Erin and I took off the door, I took out all the tackboarding from the carpet and we all had a hand in the destruction of the closet.
There's nothing more satisfing than slinging an ax through a wall...and not getting in trouble for it! hahah!
The picture to the side is a little collage of our successful day. It took about 3 hours to bring the whole thing down. Nate rewarded us with his mom's Taco Salad....MMMMMMM!!!!!! And we all pretty much collapsed....well sorta.

Baby Pictures!

Well le top is back at it again! Our company is getting ready to re-launch our Daily Darlings segment of the blog, where a new baby's face appears each morning on the Daily Darlings page. We are in GREAT need of baby and kid pictures. Please send me your kids, nieces, nephews, friends, etc baby & kid pictures (the more the merrier). If you are sending a friends childs picture in, please make sure you have thier permission to do so. Please make sure all picture submissions are in JPEG format. Once your "baby/kid" has been scheduled to post I will email you letting you know so that you can share this 15 minutes of fame with your family and friends. Always feel free to comment, and check out all my postings at http://blog.letop-usa.com.

sick...

There won't be much to post this week as I missed all the fun events- I had the 24 hr flu. Sucky!

I came home from work on Friday just totally exhausted, achey, & fatiqued. I slept pretty much till Saturday morning, moved my self to the couch, attempted to watch some TV and slept till almost 3pm. I finally started feeling somewhat better, but remaind on the couch the rest of the evening, forced aaron to take me with him when he went to pick up a pizza for dinner so I could at least breathe some fresh air and think about the beautiful day I had missed. Today I woke up at 6:45AM-wide awake! I am feeling pretty much my regular self today, thank God! I think I am going to head out and help Erin S. with her new place. Enjoy your Sunday!

Missed: Davina's Birthday, Erin's Key Acquring Party for her new home, and a absolutely spetacular Saturday- weather wise...

SUCKY!!! I hate being sick on a weekend!!!!!!!!

In A New York Minute

I just got back from one of three yearly business trips to New York. This visit we were debuting our Spring 2010 clothing lines for le top and rabbit moon. We had a GREAT reception to the line. I would say probably one of the best since I have been working for this company! Whew! I really feel like this recesion is starting to come to an end. HEY! Ben Bernake (sp?) says the recession ended two weeks ago!

So anyway, I didn't get to do any shopping but I did get to go to the following places:

• Hair Party 24 (a 24 hour hair/nail/make up/tanning Salon- SWEET!- but expensive)
• Il Cantinori (where I have seen "Mr. Big" from SATC and John Goodman- but no stars this time)
• Rosa Mexicana (super mexican food and some of the best guac ever! - see pictures)
• Gotham Bar & Grill (one of the top restaraunts in the city)
• Parma (has the best gnocchi ever)
• Fresco by Scotto (fairly famous italian restaraunt)
• The Coach Store on 57th Street (ok so no big deal, but I had to mention at least one shopping spot even though my pocket book will not afford anything in there!- ps- the picture on the store locator is of the store we went to on 57th street)

New York is super fun...if you are not working. But I am not complaining too much, because I definitely appreciate the fact that I have dined in some of the best restaraunts in Manhattan. Here is a collage from my trip.

Another Night Out

The other night we patronized The Rellik Tavern, a local pub that Katie, David and Davina work at. I must say at the opening of this place the only thing that impressed us was the venue. The service was less than adequate, the owners had no clue, and the place was, as many yelp authors put it, "full of cougars and douche bags". The cougars and douche bag thing hasn't changed, but our experience gets better and better with each visit...and maybe each drink! haha! This was just a little more than a "usual" night out...but we won't go there...will we?

Our Own Kind of Fair

July is the month that the local county fair comes to town. When we were growing up the fair was two weeks long, but in the last couple of years they have shortened it to a week, whether it was budget restraints or just pure ghettoness I am not sure. Either way, I have always loved going, even if it is only for an hour or two. I love the "fair food", funnel cake is the ultimate, and cotton candy is a close second. This year "the crew" joined up to go on a friday night after work. I had to opt out as I had a Mary Kay thing to take care of, but planned on meeting up with them right after. Everyone met at our place and I took off to do my errand. When I got home everyone was still there to my surprise! They were bummed I wasn't going to make it and I guess pretty much decided that the thing they were all going for was the "fair food" too. So they busted out our Deep Fryer that we had received as a wedding gift and had NEVER used. Erin S. googled a batter recipe and we had a super fun night of funnel cake, deep fried twinkees and deep fried snickers. We were all pretty much sick at the end of the night, but we had fun and we had "fair food" so we couldn't complain much!

Sift it and sift it good!

Who doesn't love cupcakes? They are my very favorite!

Sift is a gourmet cupcake shop in Napa and Cotati, that makes fantastic cupcakes! I just drool over their Pink Chamagne cupcake and Aaron loves the Guiness one! They even have a cupcake devoted to us Snickerdoodle lovers- that is my very favorite!

Today Sift is offering a free cupcake coupon if you take thier 4 question survey. Just click on the link below and take the survey and presto!- You have a free cupcake!

Click Here for your Free Cupcakes!

Just fill out the questionaire at the bottom of the home page (signs you up for the newsletter)

Enjoy!!!

Mi Wuk!

So the next day after aaron's birthday we packed up, kicked Matt out of the house (he stayed the night... it was a sleep over! hahaha), woke Jame's butt up and hauled ourselves up to Senora to stay the rest of the weekend with Aaron's family in a cabin they had rented up there. We had a blast hanging at the beach and hanging with the family! There is not too much more to say about it, but that it was relaxing and nice to get away for even just a night- and to spend some time with the fam!

Don't Tell DAD....

...but someone puked at the party!

Well Bloggers, it seems no one is reading my blog, so it doesn't really matter, but just in case you happen across this and want to know whats been up this past week here it is.... well at least friday!

It was an unlikely source, the throw up I mean...or maybe it was the most likely source! Emma got a little drunk off her usual serving of milk and then Aunt KK decided to Airplane her in the air, and got the residual effect of PUKE ALL DOWN HER SHIRT!!!!

Now that the "third person" is done, let's divulge a little of Aaron's 27th birthday party happenings!!!

Aaron turned 27 (ooo getting so close to 30!) last monday the 13th, and we celebrated on the 17th at my dad's house as our group of friends keeps getting larger and our home stays the same- at 918 sq/ft! Not to mention it was blazing hot and we would have been like sardines in a sauna at our place! So dad, Katie and Davina opened their home to us (not that they had much of a choice) and we threw a great party- beerpong and all!

We ordered Mecca for Din and had a great time eating with all our guests...then we had an even greater time playing Flip-cup and beer pong. And to top off the night we had a Girls V. Guys Catch Phrase game....the guys "won" by cheating and later- like two days later- Aaron finally admited that they had cheated to win.

YAY! I posted again!

On the 3rd of July aaron took me to see Wicked! This was a on-time, late Birthday present. My mom and he went in together to get the tickets, but had to purchase them so far in advance that we had to see a showing in July! Oh well it was definitely worth it. The funniest thing was/is, that I have been "singing" Popular and Defying Gravity for about two years, and Aaron has hated every chorus of it...until he saw the musical on the 3rd! hahaha! those were his two favorite scenes! haha!

Before we went to the play...which Aaron said was not as good as Mama Mia, but was still good,I took him to this new bar that had just opened called Rickhouse, on Kearny St. in SF. It boasted of a huge selection of Scotch's....there were 5 PAGES of choices!!!!!! Aaron was, needless to say, in HEAVEN! Here are some great photos we took from the evening.- Enjoy

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