home is where the heart is.

i'm so glad to have had this man by my side throughout 2011.

 i can't wait to see where we're headed in 2012. 

have a happy new year's eve.

a holiday at home.

this is the first time ever that we've stayed put for a holiday. any holiday. if i'm given a day off, i'm prone to book a trip somewhere. but not this christmas break. we're staying home for 10 full days of "doing anything we want" time (well, with the exception of one mini road trip to tucson). 

i cashed in five vacation days and had a week's head start on danny. i like to be on-the-go, but not gonna lie - it's nice to be home with all our stuff, no luggage, no airports, just sleeping in, all-day movies on the couch, daytime cocktails, fun projects around the house, dinners with friends... it's relaxing and grand. 

it only took eleven years...

but lacey jaye & the chad are engaged!

(her words, not mine!)

lacey jaye, my dear lifelong friend and her chad are officially fiances! after eleven years together which have included a whole lotta love, a french bulldog daughter and the recent purchase of a beautiful home, chad popped the question and lacey jaye said yes! the proposal was picture perfect and a total surprise... he got on bended knee on an insanely gorgeous beach in big sur, california. we couldn't be more excited for the happy couple.

when i saw a missed call from lacey, i just had a feeling. the kind girlfriends have when they know something exciting is up. i looked at danny and said, "i think lacey jaye is engaged." and she was... talking a million miles a minute and seriously glowing through the phone. the excitement you feel for your girlfriend's big news will never fade. it never gets old and i feel like it's me all over again. i can't stop smiling, looking at her photos or telling danny all the details she shared. 

{the beach where it happened}

{a photo chad took of lacey right before he asked her. she had no idea what was coming}

 

{hiking the next day as fiances}

{their footprints in the sand... walking towards their future married life together!}

lacey jaye, i love you & our friendship more than you'll ever know. 

to think we've gone from Roxy surfer obsessed tweens to brides... wow

you're going to be stunning. 

congratulations & tons of love to you, the chad & little leila! 

(hooray! her mommy & daddy are gettin' hitched!)

the many faces of our frenchie.

our little man has probably had his photo taken more times in his six years than some people's entire lives (his mom is a bit of a photo freak). because of it, he's become quite the canine model slash actor. for his birthday, he wanted to showcase some of his skills.

happy sixth birthday, hunter.

you're one badass pooch & deserve all the treats in the world today.

all the reasons we love huntie here in last year's birthday post.

makaela's first christmas eve

danny's sister and brother-in-law hosted both of their families for makaela's first christmas eve. at almost 10-months old, she was surprisingly super into the holiday tearing into gifts and excitedly playing with her new toys. she's standing up on her own but hasn't quite taken that first step yet - it'll be soon though. the best part was watching her zoom around the living room with her new walking toy - laughing all the way.

we had appetizers, cocktails, desserts and enjoyed the company of two families while we watched the newest member take it all in. it was a wonderful christmas eve.

 

{sweet little henry}

{santa baby's little tutu}

{the little scraps of wrapping paper were almost as exciting as the toys themselves}

{she really loved this musical learning toy}

{could she be any sweeter? her profile looks just like tricia's baby pictures}

{danny having some fun with makaela's elf on the shelf}

{mommy and baby girl}

{earl and his parents}

{just look at those legs. don't you want to just squeeeeeze them?}

{happy family on baby's first christmas}

{i'm kinda in love with this photo}

{the originals}

{makaela's grandpas in the holly jolly spirit}

{vicky and her daughters}

{makaela loved this toy and was entertaining us all night by flying around with it}

{so sad this picture is blurry. she'd start smiling so big when she saw herself in the mirror with her new hat}

{standing up all on her own. just no steps yet}

{makaela's new beanie from aunt teri. could she be any more precious?}

our first christmas at home.

our "every other holiday family swap schedule" landed us in phoenix for christmas this year... our home to be exact. after a great christmas eve at tricia & earl's we woke up on christmas morning in our bed. it was a little strange at first but ended up being a wonderful new twist on the holiday. after sleeping in, we lit a bunch of candles, got the fire going, all the christmas tree & garland lights turned on and danny made the coffee while i set the table for christmas brunch with vicky and joe. being away from home, it was important to me to bring my family's traditional holiday breakfast to the desert, so we made our first batch of eggs benedict and orange frappe (danny did most of the work and they both turned out perfectly). after brunch, we popped some champagne for mimosas, opened gifts and played a round of apples to apples before heading to the dine-in theater for sherlock homes (having the option to reserve seats is perfect for the holiday movie-goers). the night ended with  take-out chinese and an hour-long skype session with my family in san diego watching our 4.5 year old niece jayden open our gifts, my brothers playing christmas carols on the piano and messing around with their toys, primarily a remote controlled helicopter. 

it was a beautiful christmas and reminded us that home is where the heart is.  i believe christmas tends to make us feel like kids again and we imagine the holidays a certain way... the way things have always been. but as we get older things will inevitably change, so all we can do is stay positive, enjoy the friends and family we are blessed to have nearby and blend our favorite family traditions into new ones.

{vicky & joe delivered our christmas tamales from grandma peggy}

{we splurged on La Grande Orange english muffins for our eggs benedict}

{huntie opening his presents from mimz}

{showing off his dumbbell squeaker toy}

{the bocktings with the orange frappe drink}

{breakfast morning table for four}

{the cooks in the kitchen}

{ting opened up a couple gifts early so he could use them. new griddle and silicone egg rings}

{b-joe stepping in to give some pointers on the eggs}

{the finished product. homemade eggs benedict. a delicious christmas tradition}

{post-breakfast mimosas}

{gift opening in the sitting room}

{vicky is officially a hot chick}

{d showcasing his totally awesome onion chopping goggles}

{annual bockting family calendar}

{checking out my new "parking mat" for the garage. complete with a hump to stop me}

{an awesome tag ting picked out for my gift}

{quite excited about his new garment bag - the patagonia burrito}

{my new rainbow camera strap handpicked by ting}

{my man loves him some herdez salsa. which we've only seen in little cans. this. was. exciting.}

{post-gift game time. apples to apples}

{good times during game time}

{so, these are the 8 cards i won... notice anything funny about them?}

{pajama rama on christmas morning. and yes, i actually found lace pj pants. yup.}

{skyping with the schramm family in san diego. miss jayden opening her guitar from us}

{miss jayden showing off her pembo penguin}

we hope you had a very merry christmas with your loved ones