Maturity does not always come with age

Two weeks ago, D and I drove 6 hours from Midland to Elk City to spend the weekend with friends for D's 29th birthday.  D and Clif share June 10th as their birthday (as does my mom and my Aunt Nora) and Amber's birthday is June 9th.  Since Clif and Jessee just moved into the new house that they spent the last 8 months slaving over every detail in the construction process, they kindly hosted us all for the weekend.  Friday night we took it easy and grilled out.

Just the girls.  From left: Jessee, Sheena, Olivia, me, Michele and Amber.

Clif and D took the Razor out for a ride.  I'm always a little scared when D agrees to participate in playing with Clif because there is a good chance it could end with a broken bone, medical or dental bill.  Luckily, they both walked away in one piece.

On Saturday, we spent the day at the pond enjoying the sun and the birthday party honoring Amber, Clif and D was that evening.  D and I got an extra special treat that night.  Our friends John and Aleisha Argo were able to leave their kids with Aleisha's parents for a free night with us!

Scott, D and Clif making fun of how girls pose for photos.

Jessee and I

Amber, Michele and Sheena

Arrash and Josh

Jessee, me and Melissa

So glad Aleisha and John could come out and play with us!

This has been a running joke now for a while.  D and this wooden statute have the same nose!  

Clif and D

John and D

Aleisha and I took Clif's hummer golf cart out of an evening stroll.

From left: Melissa, Amber, Sheena, Jessee, Aleisha and me.

Since Jessee is the hostess with the mostest, she had individual cakes made for the birthday kids.  As is typical with our group, a food fight ensued.  So that begs the question, does another year require better behavior?  I think not.  How else does one stay young at heart?  Despite my occasional rants saying otherwise, I feel fortunate to have married a man that has the ability to keep it young.    

This is my favorite picture of the bunch.  It captures the split second before Clif realizes what is about to happen.

D said, "Don't worry, I caught the cake with my eye."  LOL

All's well that ends well.

So, I believe I have learned a lesson coming into my 29th birthday.  I have been fearing turning another year closer to 30.  But, I now believe it is something to embrace.  You are only as old as you feel and I still feel 25 years young.  It is hard for me to believe I have reached the benchmarks I have: married 4 years, with D for 11 years, undergrad and law school, 5 moves in 4 years, 2 cats & 2 dogs, and more memories than I can keep track of.  I have lived a blessed life and look forward to my next birthday.  You never know when it could be your last.  So I challenge all of you to consider this and think about doing something "young" before your next birthday.

Until next time,  XOXO

Up and Running

Well, I finally took the plunge.  I am hoping that this blog will be a good way for me to keep friends and family informed of all the craziness in my life as well as help me remember all sorts of details about this short sweet life.

So I suppose I will start with a quick recap of 2012: At the beginning of March, D took a new job which moved us to Midland, Texas.  As if trying to move isn't enough, D and I fit in a quick trip to Vegas with some of our best friends.  We stayed at the Cosmopolitan and enjoyed a brief but inebriated St. Patrick's day weekend.  On Friday night, we saw the Zumanity Cirque show and I really enjoyed it.  It is pretty risqué, so beware!  St. Patty's day was on Saturday so we spent the day gambling and enjoying adult beverages.  What else is there to do in Vegas anyway?

Madison, Me and Jessee

View of the Bellagio from our room

The boys: Justin, D, Clif and Garrett

Aleisha and I molesting the cute Zumanity boy before the show!

We love the Argos!

This Michael Jackson impersonator performed at New York New York and was awesome!

There were so many people totally decked out in costume for St. Patty's day.

Aleisha, Angie, me and Jess enjoying a day of shopping at Caesar's Palace.

Love of my life.

While we were in Vegas, our house went under contract less than 24 hours of being on the market.  We are so lucky.   4 weeks late, I quit my job and became moving project manager.  Midland is the exact opposite of Tulsa.  It is dry, hot and brown.  Tulsa's flora is much prettier.  Since the move, I have been devoting my time to getting us settled in.  I'm not going to lie, unemployment is the sweet life.  I regularly work out and cook great meals at home.  That was a luxury when I was working.

At the beginning of May, my family lost a dear friend, Emily Milstead.  She was my little brother's best friend and my family had always embraced her as our own.  She was such an amazing person and I hope I can learn to be a better person from her.  She will always be remembered.

After Emily's funeral, I went on a road trip to Ohio with D's mom, Ava, to visit Mammy.  I know what some of you may be thinking: 16 hours in the car with your mother-in-law?  Yes.  I feel so fortunate to have married into such an amazing family.  I was only in Ohio for 2 days before I had to turn around to make it back to DFW for Todd and Abby Arnold's wedding, which was beautiful.

Last week my parents, brother, D and I traveled to Sayulita, Mexico to celebrate the wedding of our friends, Kris and Paige Branam.  That was a great trip and a much needed get away.  Sadly, it isn't very often that my family can coordinate schedules for an international trip together.  We haven't traveled together since my wedding 4 years ago.  Speaking of which, D and I celebrated our 4 wedding anniversary while in Mexico and 11 years of being together.  Not to shabby!  I love D more each day.  Here are some pics from my phone of our trip.

Our view of Sayulita from our house, Casa de los Defines

Pool y cerveza anyone?

My three favorite men: Pops, Hubby, Reggie

The beautiful bride to be, Paige

Old friend from college.  Good to see you Jin!

Kris and I at the Tacos y Tequila night

Kris and Paige had the awesome idea of providing party props that turned out to be so fun!

Sancho y Pancho

This 5 foot plus iguana enjoyed afternoon dips in our pool!

Mrs. Branam

Had to take a pic of the tablescape.  Perfection.

I now pronounce you husband and wife!

The reception had a cigar bar and I just loved this sign!

So there you have it.  It has been a crazy busy month with many emotional ups and downs.  I am so lucky to have such a great support network to comfort my sorrows and share my joy.  I hope you will share my journey with me.  Until next time.  XOXO