round two

Hello everyone!
Last weekend we had our second round of parents, and our fourth round of visitors: My mom and Joe!
They got in late on Friday night and we all went to bed almost immediately because P & I were exhausted from work and they were exhausted from flying. On Saturday we woke up early and went to brunch at this amazing place called Morning Squeeze. They have literally anything you could ever want for breakfast (and lunch!) and crazy good coffee and plus! They serve almond milk for all of you lactose intolerant people such as myself. Basically, it was perfect. After breakfast we ran some errands including going to Costco to get dog food and essentials for the next week (a normal Saturday activity for us down here), and then headed back home.
After some seriously needed naps and snacks we got to catch up with my cousin Scot who lived in Phoenix and popped over for an hour. My mom and Scot are really close, and even went to Oregon State together. I think it was great for them to be able to catch up, and fun for us to hang out all together. Once Scot left we all headed to Ikea and my mom spoiled us rotten by getting us two nightstands for our guest room and new lamps for our room, and a bunch of other "really need this but would never buy it for myself" stuff like artwork, frames, lighbulbs, etc. Thank you so much, mom!! 
That night we [Paul] barbecued up some steaks, made quinoa [mom] and salad [joe]. Basically no one lets me cook.. ever.. and for good reason! After dinner we played sequence, an awesome board game thats kind of like connect four and dominoes with cards and I don't exactly remember who won but i know it was a ton of fun! Also, Joe is a complete card-shark! Who knew!?
Sunday morning we woke up early and ran to the dog park with my mom to wear out the pups after a weekend of being crated. Afterwards we came back and had Mother's day brunch with Scot and Tom which was amazing. My mom made her famous breakfast casserole- seriously this stuff is like crack, and we had mimosas too. Perfect brunch! After brunch mom & i quickly ran to the mall where my mom amazingly spoiled me with new work clothes.  Thank you. 

It was so wonderful being able to see my mom & brother, but super weird to have them stay at our house! Paul and I felt so grown up having my parent be our guest. Definitely a weird feeling!! This visit made me realize how lucky I was to be able to pop over to her house at any time and see them every day. I miss you and love you two so much! Thank you for coming!

A seriously belated post

Last month we had our first parent visitors- Paul's dad and stepmom, Mike and Kristin! Told you this post was belated!
Mike and Kristin (and their service-dog in training Elliot, a St. Bernard) flew in on Friday morning, so Paul took a half day to spend with them! Once I got home from work the four of us (plus Elliot) went out for dinner and drinks in Scottsdale. We stayed out late catching up, playing pool, drinking martinis and whiskey and laughing our butts off. Paul and I were so excited to have them here and it was so fun being able to show them around our new city. The next day Kristin went to Sun City West to stay with her dad for the weekend and the following week because they were in a golf tournament! (which I think is totally kickass). After Kristin left, Paul Mike and I went out to explore and wound up at the Casino! We spent quite some time there and actually won some money!We headed home and made a steak dinner and hunkered in for the night :). Our last day I wasn't feeling very well so Paul and Mike got to spend some quality father-son time together. Paul showed him all around Scottsdale, Tempe and Chandler including the Intel plant, where P works.
It was so much fun being able to see Paul's parents (round 1)  and definitely made Paul and I feel more grown up because his parents were staying at our house. And! Penn and bear got to have their first taste of playing with a dog that was WAY bigger than them! It was a hilarious and wonderful weekend, and we can't wait to see you two again!

may the fourth

Happy Star Wars day to all my nerds! Here's to our fifth month in Arizona!

Making: plans for this month. We have four rounds of visitors in May and a busy June so we're trying to make some time for just us.
Cooking: Nothing right now but Paul and I are reading tons of recipes of yummy things to eat when it's too hot to cook.
Drinking: Water, water and more water. A beer-filled camping weekend + 100 degree weather makes for a veeeery dehydrated girl.
Reading: Real Simple Magazine a.k.a. the best magazine in the world!
Wanting: a hammock so bad right now. perfect for nights like tonight
Looking: at Pauls tan. I wish I was half Italian too!
Playing: corn hole! I just made a set with Paul and my friend Skyla and they are finally finished!
Wasting: seriously nothing right now. Well probably something but today is a pretty happy Sunday
Wishing: it was next weekend already! My mom and brother are coming to town and I am really excited
Enjoying: how busy we have been! Sometimes I wish things would slow down but honestly? it's kind of nice.
Waiting: for Bear and Penny to calm down! We boarded them this weekend and they have been going nuts all day!
Liking: the heat.. kind of.
Wondering: where we'll be in a year, if we'll be in Arizona still, where we will go next
Loving: camping in Arizona! Though it was 100% more dry than Oregon camping and probably 20 degrees hotter it was so nice!
Hoping: that the heat will kill all of the bugs in Arizona. Wishful thinking? probably
Marveling: at how much life has changed between last year and now.
Needing: a duster
Smelling: so much sunscreen. and bug spray. I just started using this sunscreen that smells like old school Coppertone and it is sooo yummy
Wearing: shorts and a sports bra. too hot to wear anything else. <<same as last month. seriously.
Following: some foodie blogs!
Noticing: How big Bear is! When did that happen?!
Knowing: that in less than four hours Paul's sister will be 21! Happy Cinco de Chrissy!
Thinking: how nice it would be to have your birthday on a Holiday
Feeling: very excited for the next month
Bookmarking: work clothes. Tryin to figure out what the hell I'm going to wear to work when it is 120 degrees here. No ideas so far.. << Again, same. Still wondering, still nothing.
Opening: nothing actually but I think I'm due to start my next knitting project here pretty soon!
Giggling: at Paul dancing with Bear and Penny. all three are so uncoordinated its hilarious
Feeling: settled

catching up

Hello neglected blog!
We've had an insane amount of activities going on in the past few weeks that I've barely had time to think let alone blog, and honestly I'm still crazy exhausted so here is a nice little photo dump about our past few weeks: A trip to Crown King with our friends Phil and Kelsey, Bear's first trip to the dog park, some house renovations, a DIY experiment, and our first night of camping (more on that later)!