Friday, December 26, 2008

The Castanedas Do Dallas

Last Monday night (the 15th) Jose and I decided we wanted to go to Dallas to visit his family and our friends. We booked our flight at about 11pm and flew out at 6am the next morning. We didn't tell his family we were coming and surprised them that morning. We had such a great time and we were happy to spend some time with them. Here is the highlight reel.....



Christmas Shopping and seeing friends at the Neiman Marcus Flagship Downtown. This holiday window was made entirely of cards.

Three of my favorite Mexi-mans...Jose, Ron, & Gilbert out to dinner.

Seeing Katie and Issac and meeting sweet baby Laura (who was sleeping during this picture).

We had an early Christmas with the family and had fun opening presents with the kids.

We also got to spend some time with Jose's sister Sonia & her husband Carlo who are moving to Italy in January. We love you guys!



Our Christms jammies were quite a hit! Who knew that both of us could still fit in the kids section!?!?! You wouldn't belive how comfy these things are!

We also took a tour of SouthFork ranch up in Parker. That's where they filmed the TV show Dallas.


Don't we look like the Ewings?


Making Bunelos with my mother-in-law Martha. They are a traditional Mexican dessert to eat on New Year's Eve. We celebrated a little early.

The finished bunelos. They are fried and covered in cinnamon & sugar. How could they be bad?
All in all it was a great trip and we had so much fun surprising everyone!




Saturday, December 20, 2008

My Sincerest Apologies...

For my incredibly lame blogging during the month of December. I'm promise a real post(s) when we get back to AZ. Hopefully it will be awesome enough to make up for abandoning the blog temporarily. Sorry!

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Hard Work

Isn't it amazing how good a little old-fashioned elbow grease can make you feel? Well today was one of those days where I woke up with a bee in my bonnet and just felt like cleaning (they don't come that often, so I have to give it the gusto when they do!)

I turned this:
Into This: I took everything out of the pantry and washed the shelves, made new liners, and scrubbed the floor. Then I reorganized it all, and put it back in. I was so happy with it I ended up cleaning out and reorganizing every cabinet and shelf in the kitchen! It was a solid days work and I'm tired, but I feel great knowing everything has a home. I am my mother's daughter...

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Happy Turkey Day!!

Have a Happy Turkey Day and eat lots of delicious food!! :)

Friday, November 21, 2008

Happy 30th Birthday Dallas!

Well the day just wouldn't be complete without a proper ode to the greatest television show ever created....DALLAS. Thirty years ago today the world learned they loved to hate JR and to drool over Ray Krebbs with his shirt off. Luckily for Jose, me, and Michael Wilbon (of PTI fame, who is also a Dallas fan) season 10 will be available on DVD come January 13th. Or in 53 days, not that we're counting. Here's to big hair and even bigger scandals!


Do you know who shot J.R.???

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Family Pictures

So Jose and I (okay, so just me) decided it would be fun to do real pictures, with a real photographer for our christmas card. We never did a big engagment pics and we really don't have very many cute pictures of us. Jose was such a good sport and went along with another of my whims. We took them yesterday afternoon and our photographer put a couple of teaser pics up on her blog! Yea! These 2 turned out so cute and I can't wait to see the rest of them! Check them out on her blog at: http://aleiamichaelphotography.blogspot.com/. She did a great job and was so flexible with us. Thanks Aleia!

And yes, mid photo shoot a bird pooped on my head. Just my luck right? Yikes.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Our New Favorite Eats

Thanks again to the Food Network, we've found a new favorite restaurant - Joe's Farm Grill. The restaurant is actually built on a farm in Gilbert where they grow all of the food fresh and make everything from scratch. The building is a funky retro 60's "burger shack". They do american classics, but take them up a notch. I LOVE fresh food and this is the best!


Jose ordered a gourmet burger and baked potato fries (above). I had the signature BBQ chicken pizza. We shared a fresh vanilla bean milkshake that was divine. I'm excited to try new things on the menu next time! It is so worth the drive. Gilbert is REALLY far...right Tim???

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Measure Twice..Cut Once?

Seriously, that rule is terrible. Maybe it should be Measure 10 times, cut once. Although I think I maybe measured 5 and still had to cut 3 times. Let's just say my math skills are a little rusty. I decided to start piecing a new quilt top today and had a few measuring "issues". Luckily I worked through those, but couldn't quite decide on a layout. After staring at the fabric so long, I could no longer make a good decision and would like to see if any of you have a preference. I'm posting 2 pictures of possible layouts, tell me which you like better.
Also, this is the official and public apology to all of the math teachers that I ever had who I told, "I will never actually use math in my real life." Oh how I was wrong. Guess I should've stayed awake a little more often....or picked a less precise hobby. :)
OPTION A:

OPTION B:

Guy's Week


Last week was officially "Guy's Week" at our house. Blair, Ron and Adam came down for a fun weekend full of golf, eating, laughing, and watching sports. It was a nice break for Jose from school and I loved having the company. Thanks for such a fun visit and letting me be one of the guys. We love you boys!

Out on the Course!

Smiling faces after Ron finished the triple burger (1 1/2lbs of burger!) at the Heart Attack Grill. WOW.

Friday, October 31, 2008

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!


Happy Halloween! I love my new no-mess Halloween Jack-O-Lantern! He's handmade out of a real gourd that was dried, carved, and painted. It plugs in and has a little light inside and none of the sticky goop on the inside of a real pumpkin! He's from Meadowbrook Gourds in Pennsylvania. Thanks Mom!!


We spent most of our Halloween with Jose's classmates at "ThunderCares" volunteer day. We went with the Supply Chain Club to help out at the Food Bank. We had a great time helping sort and box up food for families in need, and enjoyed an afternoon bbq on campus.

We're excited to see all of the cute trick-or-treaters tonight in the neighborhood and can't wait to see pictures of all of our cute nieces, nephews, and friends! Happy Halloween!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Spooky Favors


So maybe I over did it on the "cute" for the treats for cubscouts today considering they are 8-10 year old boys, but I just couldn't help myself - I love a holiday! Aren't these little chinese take-out boxes adorable? I found them at Michael's for only $0.50! I put little candy corns/pumpkins in the bottom to hold the cupcake in place so it didn't slide around. The scouts were actually really excited about them (they're not old enough to be "too cool" yet) and one even told me "You must be a really nice lady to think about us while we were at school and make us something." So sweet. Anyway making the cupcakes and boxes gave me a fun little project today!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

WHS Class of 98


This past weekend Jose and I went to Dallas to re-live his glory days at his 10 year high school reunion. We had lots of fun visiting his family and some of our friends who we miss so much! And it was fun for me to meet his old friends from Waxahachie - Go Indians!
This is Jose with his childhood friend and next door neighbor, Santos. As you can tell from the two previous pictures, sporting the Fumanchu moustache is still the "in" style in Waxahachie.
This is me with my two adorable nieces, Mika and Gabby at the parade down main street. We've really missed having our nieces and nephews around!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

A Day in Sedona


Jose's regular classes are cancelled this week, so we figured it was the perfect opportunity to take a day trip up to Sedona. It's only a 2 hour drive and it is gorgeous! Of course it was a perfect blue sky day like every other day in Arizona!

We had a lot of fun shopping in Tlaquepaque, (say that 5 times fast!) a little Colonial Mexican style village filled with eclectic artisan shops, art galleries, and restaurants.

But mostly we just had fun spending time together!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Fun at the Fair!


Saturday night we went to the Arizona State Fair with our friends Ricky and Tara. We enjoyed some good food (Navajo Tacos and Funnel Cakes...YUM) and then rocked out at the Weezer concert. And the Sweater Song is still as awesome as it was in 1994, just in case you were wondering. We had a great time and it is always fun to get out and see the local scene. And for the record, the Texas State Fair is still the world's coolest fair, sorry AZ.

Here's a shot from the concert. Pretty good seats for it being free!! I love free.



Here's a shot of all the fair fun at night. And yes, I know that I am the palest person on earth. You think it's bad now...wait until January when my "tan" completely wares off!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Tagged.....

Thanks to Amber I am back here on the blog. I've been out of town for a week and just haven't posted since I got back. But now I'm tagged, and supposed to tell you 6 things about myself you might not know. Here's goes.

1. I absolutely cannot cook a meal without burning myself. It doesn't matter what I am making, there is always a battle scar. Same goes for sewing - I am constantly pricking or cutting myself on accident.

2. I am addicted to Lifetime Movies. Did you know they have an entire channel that plays them all day long? What a discovery! My new housewife status helped me find that one! They almost always end with a big box of kleenex and me feeling like I have the most wonderful life.

3. The older I get, the more shy I am. Those of you who have known me for a long time may find it hard to believe, but it's true.

4. I am completely creeped out by all of the critters outside in Arizona. I've seen one too many scorpions, and I'm so afraid of snakes, and coyotes, and javelinas, and all the other nasties we find in our neighborhood. Eww. I have a firm policy that I will not go outside without Jose anymore.

5. I love to make complicated recipes. The more complicated the better. Anything from scratch is fun.

6. I can't do ANY housework unless I have my music on. I like to turn them up really loud and sing along while I clean. I work really well with Broadway showtunes, but if really wanna rock my face off I get out my Plain White T's CD, because they are the best band ever.

Okay, so there it is! Maybe embarassing, but all true!! So now I Tag: Katie Arredondo, Michelle Castaneda (welcome to the blog world!), and my favorite sister Anna.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

His & Hers Saturday Projects

We finally had some cooler weather today...only about 85!! It was a much welcome change and the perfect opportunity to get outside! After an early morning walk Jose and I split up to work on our projects.

Here's Jose and Dad's GTO after it got a nice wash and a quick spin around Scottsdale. It was the perfect day to have the windows rolled down!


And this is what I was working on...a cute new apron. I thought this fabric looked like the perfect print. It's a little retro, but then again so are aprons!



I had fun embellishing the fabric with different sizes of yellow buttons on the centers of the flowers. The backing and trim is a cute micro-polka dot fabric. Now it just needs to find the perfect home, or kitchen rather.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

Life's Simple Pleasures

There seriously are not words for how excited I was yesterday when I was picking out a birthday card for a friend and I found Paco again. Our favorite spandex wearing, high flying, Omaha man has 2 (yes 2) new cards available!!! I bought all that they had and left with a huge smile on my face. He might possibly be the best birthday card on the market! I've have sent and received Paco dozens of times in the past 5 years or so and I laugh just as hard each time. The card has gotten somewhat of a cult following and there are now many people that love Paco. It's kind of ironic considering that I found a Jose and he whisked me off to Dallas! Hmm.

AND...after a little internet research, Paco is actually a real person and he is actually a real trapeze artist/instructor! Who knew?! I certainly will sleep better at night knowing that costume is not a rental.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Happy Birthday Jose!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSE!! Today is Jose's 29 birthday. He's been out celebrating by playing a round of golf today and another round tomorrow. This is the special birthday cake I made for him. It's a three layer, double chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, topped with his favorite treats - pecans and ferrero rocher candies. I hope it tastes good, it's a new recipe and a LOT of cake. Enjoy honey!!

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

My latest creation

So don't ask me where this came from, but I had an idea for a new craft and just whipped it up. It is a portable baby changing pad with a pocket to hold diapers and wipes. The whole inside is made out of terry cloth so you can just throw it in the washing machine and not worry about it. It is much thinner (and cuter) than the ones out there that I've seen. And it's much more sanitary than changing your baby right on top of those nasty things in the ladies room. And to go with it I made a matching bib. That way you can take your baby out to dinner with you in style!

If you want one, let me know and I'm happy to whip it up for the cost of fabric and a small fee.


This is the inside of the changer. It measures 27"L x 17"W when it is open.


This is the pocket side. It will fit up to three size 6 diapers and wipes! Or anything else you want to fill it with.

And the cute bib!

Monday, September 22, 2008

Sew So Cute!


I did it.... I finally finished my first quilt! It was a lot of work (and there are a few mistakes) but overall I am really happy with it! Machine quilting the whole thing was definitely a new challenge. I had no idea how incredibly difficult invisible thread is to work with. I was originally making this just to practice and then going to donate it to charity, but after all those hours I put in I'm having a hard time wanting to give it away. Anyway, I'm sure I'll have many more quilts and sewing projects to come.


Oh, and please don't look too carefully (especially you Amber!) because I'm afraid you'll see all the flaws!

And thanks Anna for sending me the fabric!