Productive Weekend

May 1st- 3rd:

This was a nice, productive weekend for us. First, we kicked off the weekend by heading over to the movies and watching "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past". After the movies, we were invited to meet up with some of our friends at Top Golf. I wasn't planning on going anywhere after, so I stuffed myself with popcorn, chocolate covered almonds, two $.99 bags of Flamin' Hot Cheetos and a large pickle at the movie theatre. Needless to say, I had a tummy ache afterwards. I told Chris he should go out and I stayed home, slept off all my stomach issues, and made a spreadsheet for all the things we'll need for the house when we move in (see, I was productive). Chris had fun with our buddies, Adam, Justin and Rozz, playing mini-golf and going to one of our fav little bars, The Loon, for some cheese fries and a couple of drinks. :)

Saturday morning, we met Suzanne at Sur la Table for a book signing for Curtis Stone's new cookbook. If you don't know who Curtis Stone is, he is the star of "Take Home Chef" on TLC. Suzanne heard about the signing and thought Chris and I would be interested in going. It was really neat! The store prepared several recipes from the cookbook for us to enjoy while we were waiting. For those of you who really know me, you know how much I love food, so having snacks made the experience even better. ;) Curtis signed our book, had a brief conversation with us and even took a photo with the three of us-

We were told they have famous cooks/chefs there all the time, so I can't wait for the next book signing! Thanks for the invite, Suzy Q- Chris and I had an ab-fab time! :)

After, Chris and I did some shopping and watched "X-Men Origins: Wolverine". Then it was time for another gig (May is a packed month for gigs...we have four scheduled!).

This show was for a private Cinco de Mayo party in Wylie, TX. Unfortunately, the weather did not want to cooperate and we ended up not really doing much at the show. :(

Sunday was where the word "productive" really fits in for us. Chris and I went to the new house to sign some more papers and give Chad the coach light we purchased. We measured all the windows so I can start getting drapes for a few rooms and we met one of our new neighbors! After wrapping up everything we needed to do in the house, we went to Sears to look at their refrigerators and washers and dryer sets. We found the fridge we wanted, but decided to wait and see if the price will drop any further. We did, however, buy our washer and dryer; our first major purchase for our new home! :)

Gig and Photo Shoot #2- Cohen!

April 24th- 26th:

This was a very busy weekend for us! On Friday, we met Christopher's mom, his Aunt Iris and Uncle Gilbert, and his cousin, Sonia, and her son, Caleb, at Babe's Chicken in Carrollton for dinner. We loooooove going to Babe's- it's Southern home cooking with all of the fixin's. ;) After dinner, Chris, his mom and I decided to go see "State of Play". The movie was interesting and definitely kept you guessing. Would recommend if you like political suspense movies. :)

Christopher's mom and Shamrock hanging on the couch

Saturday morning we helped Kyle move out of his apartment. Note to self- do NOT help someone move the same day I have a gig. That night Genepool band had a gig at the Irish Rover in Frisco. I was SOOOOO exhausted from that morning that I really didn't have my best performance. In fact, during the last set, I think was asleep for almost half of it! Still had fun, though! We're playing there again on May 30th and I'll definitely be awake for that one. :)

Genepool~

Christine, Sheri and Mary Jane :)

On Sunday, Chris, Shamrock and I met with my friend and co-worker, Erin, her husband, DJ and their son, Cohen, for a photo shoot at Serenity Park in McKinney! Yup, my second official shoot! :) I was so excited to have this opportunity to practice a little more, especially since Cohen is at that age where he is just out to have fun and isn't aware of the camera.

This shoot taught me that little boys are definitely full of energy! Cohen loved running around, tossing his little football. He was shy at first, always clinging to Erin, but after about 15 minutes (and getting his football) he was all set to have a great time. This was a photo shoot/ workout for me. Cohen never really stood in one place too long, which made for more interesting photos (at least, in my opinion). The big lesson for this shoot- when working with younger kids, use a super-fast shutter speed. :)

Thanks to the Jones family for spending the afternoon with us and letting us snap some shots of your cute, little guy!!!!

Below are photos from the shoot (more will be loaded to my Smugmug account later...will post the link when done):

Family portrait...yes, that background is totally real and in the same park!

Hanging with Angeleque, Hunter and Georgia

Saturday, April 18th:

Chris and I didn't have any set plans for Saturday, so we thought we would see if some of our favorite people, Angeleque and Hunter, had any plans for the night. Fortunately for us, they were free so we set up a dinner date.

Before dinner, though, Chris and I decided to take in a movie. We had planned on seeing "State of Play" but didn't quite make it to the show on time, so we chose to see "17 Again" instead. I have to admit, it was quite a cute film. Chris and I both thought it was funny and would recommend if you're interested in watching something purely for entertainment purposes (not very thought provoking, if you know what I mean).

After the movie, Chris and I went straight to the restaurant, Cyclone Anaya's, to meet with Ang and Hunter. This was the first time in months that we've all been able to hang out together! We had a great time catching up. In fact, we had so much fun at dinner that we decided to extend the evening by going over to Hunter's house for a game night! Since we didn't have the board games with us, Chris and I went back home to pick them up.

Angeleque and Hunter were dog sitting their friend, Stephanie's, dog, Georgia, for the weekend. Since we were heading home, we thought we'd ask if Shamrock could tag along. We thought this would be a great opportunity for Shammy to make a new friend. :) Ang mentioned that Georgia was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel so I thought I'd take my camera along to get some shots. I've liked that breed of dog since "Sex and the City" (Charlotte's Elizabeth Taylor"). :)

We all had a great time playing with the dogs, watching Shamrock get jealous, playing Seinfeld Scene It and Jackass and taking pictures. Chris and I were so glad to spend some quality time with one our favorite couples and can't wait to do it again soon!!! :)

Below are a few of my favorite photos from my mini-shoot:

Hunter, Angeleque and Georgia

My favorite shot of Georgia

Our House!!!!

So last I left off, Chris and I had decided to put in an offer on a house we had been looking at for some time. It took our families giving us their blessing and approval to help us feel like we were making the right decision.

Tuesday, April 14th:

Chris and Mary Jane had already put the terms of the offer together and were making sure most of our requests were met. Once we felt comfortable, we set the time to meet with the builder's sales associate. Chris and I met Mary Jane at the builder's sales office to meet with Chad, the sales associate, and sign a contract.

It was a little shaky for a while because I didn't understand everything that went into an offer and all the little fees that can be tacked on. For a minute there I was seriously thinking of just tearing up the contract and walking out, but this house was one of the few that met most of our criteria.

At that point, I decided not to be a "flake" and sign the papers. I'm always nervous when it comes to making long-term commitments. Something about saying I will do something and not have an option of taking it back without consequence is so difficult for me. I totally get that from my dad. ;)

But when all was said and done, Chris and I signed the contract, it was accepted and now we're on our way to buying our first home!!!! We're scheduled to close on May 22nd (the Friday before Memorial Day).


*Photo courtesy of our friend (and soon-to-be neighbor), Elaine, who happened to be driving by with her husband, Geoff, and offered to take our picture. Thanks!!! :)

Easter Weekend!

Hmmmm...obviously I like to write about events that happened weeks ago. ;)

April 10th- 13th:

Chris and I drove to Corpus Christi on Thursday night to get into town early Friday morning. We never look forward to the actual driving part, but it does give us time to just talk to each other without any distractions. This was perfect timing as Chris and I were still thinking about what we should do with the house in McKinney. We decided we'd see how we felt after the weekend ended and decide on the ride home.

In Corpus, we spent most of our time with my family. Friday we went to a victory party for my mom's friend, Larry Elizando. He was re-elected to the city council. Congrats, Larry! :)

On Saturday we celebrated Easter with family, my Aunt Cookie and Uncle Manual, my cousin, Alex, and her husband, Dustin, my little cousin, Allison and my Uncle David. I know...we were a day early, but Allison was driving back to San Antonio on Sunday and we didn't want her to feel rushed, so we celebrated early so everyone could relax and enjoy themselves. We kicked off the day with a barbecue. Everything was SOOOO yummy!!!

After eating and chit-chatting, we started watching "The Ten Commandments" (an Easter tradition). Later that evening, my Uncle Horacio came over and set up his karaoke stuff so we could all sing along and have our little private karaoke club! :) It was great because everyone had a chance to sing whatever we wanted without waiting in line for other people. Plus, it gave all of us a chance to sing things we normally wouldn't because it was just us, so who cared it we didn't know it or sang it totally off key- we're all family! :)

Below are photos from our day and big sing-along:

Chris and I on our first Easter as a married couple! :)

My Aunt Cookie busy in the kitchen
Jason, my mom and Uncle David before the feast!

Dad cutting up some meat

Chris rockin' out!

Alex and Aunt Cookie

Mom and Dad "So Happy Together..." :)

Uncle Horacio- The Karaoke King!

Singing sisters, Allison and Alex

Uncle Manuel and his dancing toy singing "Wild Thing"

The ladies jammin' out...and Aunt Cookie stealing the show. ;)

Dad and I singing our duet, "Unforgettable"

On Sunday, Chris and I decided to visit the T-heads and get a few shots down there:

The bird Chris would NOT stop following~

Near the water

Chris by the gulf "Los Barcos" exhibit- The "Nina" replica
Photos Chris took of pelicans :)
My favorite of the day...

The main goal for the day was to spend some time with his sister, Jamie, her husband, Matt, and their kids, Julianne, Tyler and McKenzie. Tyler is Christopher's godson, so we had a special Easter basket for him that we needed to deliver. Included in his basket was a Spiderman kite, a 3D crayon set and a TON of candy. All of the kids loved the goodies and were very excited to play with us. Chris took on Tyler and Julianne with a few games on their new Wii. Julianne pretty much owned Chris on their first few games of Wii tennis, but he got better towards the end. And Tyler showed his Uncle Christopher how to be a boxing champion. :)

After visiting with Christopher's family, we headed back to my parents' home, ate and hung out with my family.

Chris and Shamrock

Mom and Dad

We left CC on Monday (yup, we took another day off for that) and made our way back to Dallas. It was during our trip back home that we decided to put in a formal offer for our house! Stay tuned for more updates!!! :)

Still Catching Up...

Saturday, April 4th:

Chris and I didn't have anything in particular planned so we decided to take a side trip to Rockwall, TX. For those of you who have never been to or heard of it before, Rockwall is a cute, little city near Lake Ray Hubbard in the DFW area.

To be honest, during the past three years I have lived in Dallas, I have never been on that side of the metroplex. It was a surprisingly short trip (approximately 20 minutes), which made we really sad that we've never thought to drive out there before. Driving into town, it was easy to spot the place I was most interested in visiting- the Harbor at Rockwall.

We parked our car, put Shamrock in his carrier bag (that's right, he got to tag along with us) and just walked around the area taking in the sights. After spending some time by the water and seeing the whole area, we were ready to eat. There were a few restaurants with GREAT views of the water, but they were all pretty packed (or not the type of food I was in the mood for). We decided to eat on the patio of a Mexican restaurant, El Potrillo De La Sandia, which faced the water fountain. The food was pretty good, but the people-watching was even better. :)

Chris and I didn't have our camera with us so I'm just going to post a few photos I found online to give you an idea of what the area looked liked:

Sunday, April 5th:

Chris and I spent our morning house-hunting and then met his mom and Mary Jane out at a property in McKinney. This was a house we had shown my parents the weekend before and my mom had fallen in love with. Chris and I weren't too crazy about the exterior, but really liked the interior (the size of the kitchen, in particular). Before we made any decisions, we wanted Christopher's mom to see it, too. We got the thumbs up from her, so Chris, Mary Jane (our friend and realtor) and I went to speak with the builder's sales associate.

After getting a better idea of what it would take to purchase the house, we decided to take some time to think it over. We also had our friend, Ryan, coming into town for a visit, so we needed to head back home so we wouldn't keep her waiting. :)

We love Ryan's visits. She has started coming into town about once every other month. We've been pretty lazy on her last few visits about taking her to "Dallasy" restaurants, so this time we tried to make mealtime more interesting. We went to a Greek place, Ziziki's, on Sunday, which was pretty good. It was a first for Chris and I to eat Greek and we both loved it. Pita's are my new best friend. :)

Monday (because Ryan was nice enough to grace us with her presence for a second night) we tried Cyclone Anaya's. Anaya's is a Mexican restaurant with a trendy, more upscale feel than what you would expect from a Mexican eatery. We really enjoyed eating there. So much so that we invited Angeleque and Hunter to join us there two weeks later!

Next time Ryan visits, we'll take some photos so you can see her beautiful face. Maybe even get a few shots of her at Cyclone Anaya's. ;)

Parents Weekend!

March 26th- 29th:

We hadn't seen my parents since Christmas, so they decided to make the trip up to Dallas to visit us. I took the day off on Friday, so my mom, dad and I slept in (a little) and then shopped for a little bit until Chris joined us in the afternoon. We enjoyed an afternoon movie ("Knowing") and then went to Northpark for MORE shopping. ;) At the mall, they had a red carpet display, so we thought we'd take advantage...

Mom and Dad on the red carpet

Chris and I

Chris and I have been scouting houses recently, so we took my parents out Saturday morning to see some of the neighborhoods we liked. We had a great time driving around and checking out all of the houses, but more importantly enjoyed the quality time we all spent together. :)

Saturday night Genepool Band performed at the Irish Rover, so we spent the evening there for some food, fun and great music. I have to admit, performing for my parents always makes me a little nervous. Overall, though, I think the band performed well and my family had fun. It was also Dan (the bass player) and his wife, Sheri's, 10th wedding anniversary so all of Dan's family made it to the gig, too. It was truly a family night at the Rover! :)

Below are a few pictures from the show:

Mom and Dad at the gig

Christopher Gene, Dan and True jammin' out!
Singing with the band

The entire Genepool Band!

We were so glad my parents were able to make it up to visit! I'm so happy they had a chance to see the band, see the houses we were interested in and just be there to spend time with us. We can't wait until their next visit!!!

Love you, mom and dad!!!! :)