Los Cabos!

For the week of Thanksgiving, my little family joined my in-laws for a vacation in Los Cabos, Mexico. We spent the week swimming at beaches, shopping, and eating delicious food. 

Ready to go, Mom and Dad!

Welcome to paradise would have been more accurate ;-)

Michelle has flown before (over the summer on a quick mini-vacation to SoCal), so we weren’t too worried about how she’d be on the plane. Luckily for us, our 100% booked flight had an extra seat, and the woman in our row decided to be the coolest person ever, and give up her seat to Michelle. She offered, and we ended up getting three seats for the price of two! I really hope that nice lady had some positive karma go back to her :) 

Our private row! Lol

Nursing on the plane to pop those ears

Our hotel was in San Jose del Cabo, and it was very beautiful. We roasted marshmallows at the hotel’s fire pit, swam in the pool with a swim-up bar, and lounged in the hot tub. Michelle had so much fun in the water, and loved being able to play with her cousin Nichole. 

Michelle and Nichole sitting by the fire

Roasting mallows

Sitting by the pool - little cuties!

My sassy girl, posing on the beach at the hotel

We went to Chileno Beach a few times, and it was by far my favorite spot! The waves were high, but gentle enough to swim in, and there were SO many fish. Michelle’s Nona held her the whole time in the ocean, so Michael and I were able to play in the waves. It was awesome!

Swimming with Nona

Mama and Mish

Gorgeous!

Watching the waves

Move over Coppertone Baby! There's a new cutie in town!

 

On Thanksgiving day, we had a fish dinner that the men caught, and Michelle and Nichole wore matching dresses (a gift from Diann, Michelle’s Nona!). 

Michael, his uncle John, and dad (Gramps)

Festive girls!

All in all, we had a great time, and we are forever grateful for the generosity we experienced. Michael’s family likes to take care of each other :)

Kisses and cuddles from Nona and Grandpa

We had a whole day layover in Dallas Texas, so we thought we’d make a mini-vacation out of our home trip. Well, it was horrible and Texas left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t think I’ll ever go back to visit – it was dirty, ghetto, and frustrating in the town we were in. We tried to make a trip to downtown Dallas to shop, but we experienced a horrible cab ride and things kept preventing it. Boo. We had high hopes, but it was a bust. Thankfully we had such a fun time in Mexico! The Texas trip can fade into the ether. Lol

Autumn Love

I think it has taken me a million years to update, but since we had such a fun weekend I felt inspired to write again.
It is my very favorite time of year - Autumn. The brisk weather, the smell of rain in the air, and comfy cozy clothes. This Autumn is especially lovely because those fall colors are particularly vibrant up in Northern California/Southern Oregon. If it weren't for the flawlessly blue skies, I'd bet we'd have snow by now (it's been SO COLD), but instead we get a prolonged Autumn and I'm definitely not complaining!

Playing at the park in Y

This past weekend my in-laws came up to Y to spend time with our little family. We were super excited to have them up here, and we made sure to do something fun all weekend long.

Spin spin spin!

Saturday we went up to Oregon and had breakfast at Morning Glory, this amazing breakfast place with the best Lemon Ricotta Stuffed French Toast! Then we spent the first part of the day in Ashland shopping and hanging out by the duck pond we love so much. Fall colors were out, and the pond was stunningly beautiful.

Ducks, leaves, fall colors, oh my!

Mama and her best girl

After, we went to Medford and spent way too much at Victoria's Secret (hey, our boobs deserve some love now and then!), walked around the mall, then had sushi at a restaurant with great food and despicable service.

She is always happy when on the go!

Sunday we made breakfast at home, watched the 49ers game, then went to a pumpkin patch close to Y. It was at a small family run farm, and was so flipping cute. It was the last day of pumpkin selling, so we got 4 huge pumpkins for only $5! Good deal!

Wagon ride

Michael's shadow says hi ;-)

A few weekends ago we hit up another pumpkin patch in Napa with my in-laws and got the CUTEST pictures! I'll share all of those below :)

We can't wait until Halloween! Our little lady is going to be dressing up as a cow! AH!

Look at that pose! Diva!

With Grandma and Gramps

A Big Move!

As I mentioned in my last post, Michael got a one-year transfer to a job in Yreka, Ca. Yreka is a super small town, that seems as if it was made to let people rest on their way from Oregon to California. There are 2 grocery stores, a Walmart, and a few other known stores. No Starbucks, no Target, no Safeway. There are the typical fast food places (McD, BK, Taco Bell), lots of places to get tires, snow chains, and other necessities before filling up your tank and heading off to your destination. I think Yreka's town motto should be "Yreka: a beautiful pit-stop before going on your way." I mean it, Yreka is surrounded by hills and the gorgeous Mt Shasta. Every morning we are greeted by deer on the lawn, and a cool breeze through the windows.

When I first found out about the transfer, I was devastated. Yreka is 4 hours away from home, and 45 minutes away from the creature comforts we're used to. However, I decided to adopt a positive mindset. I figure, I'm a stay at home mom so I can care for my family, and it's my job to make sure everyone feels happy, safe, and loved. Michael brings home the proverbial bacon, and it's my job to maintain our mental well-being. I think it's helped Michael and Michelle with this big transition. And you know what they say, fake it til you make it (in some cases!).

Our house is quaint and adorable. I am going to be sad to leave a one-story house. Michelle loves the freedom of running from her room to the kitchen and the livingroom without me at her heels I can hear/see her from pretty much any place in the house. We're actually only going to be here for a few months before the Yreka job is down for the winter, then we're most likely off to Redding until the spring, when we come back up here. I feel conflicted about that. On one hand, I'm sad to leave this cute little house we've already set up, but at the same time I'm excited to be closer to home, we're familiar with Redding (we lived there for a year on another job), and we won't have to worry about getting stuck in the snow on the mountain over the holidays. I can handle a 2 1/2 hour drive home almost every weekend; it's the 4 hour drive that makes me want to stay up here as much as possible.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!

July in Review

As much as I love July, is as horrible I am at updating my blog! I swear, the moment life gets too busy or too quiet, I just forget to update and spend my time frolicking around like a loon.

Fourth of July

The 4th was a super fun day with my family! Michael, Michelle and I went to American Canyon for their local 4th of July celebrations. My dad usually drives a firetruck in the parade, but this year he was on call with the city.

We watched the parade, then hung out at my parents' house before going to the town's small fair. It was really nice! I ate two pieces of delicious roasted corn, while my nieces helped roll up the giant flag with the fire station. It was so cool! If you look hard enough you can see Mish in the background watching her cousins :)

In the evening we went down the street to a local park to watch the fireworks. We got an amazing view of the fireworks - it was like they were going off just for us! Michelle slept through the first 3/4 of the show, and sleepily watched the rest from my arms. That's TWO years of 4th of July fireworks shows that she's been to without crying :)

SoCal Trip

We went to Southern California for a little vacation with my in-laws at the end of the month. We flew down there, and Michelle did amazingly! She is definitely a kid who likes to go, go, go!

We stayed in a hotel and went to beaches, swam in the pool, and did lots of shopping. It was so fun :) Michelle loved the ocean and the pool. She's a mermaid like her mama!

The day before we were to fly home, Michael got notice that his job was sending him on a 1-year job rotation (transfer) to Yreka California. In case you're like me and wondered where the heck Yreka is, it is right below the border of Oregon and California (and FOUR hours away from our house). It's 1 1/2 hours past Redding and 45 minutes away from Ashland Oregon. We're here now, but I'll write about that another day.

Birthday

And lastly, the month ended with me turning 27. I'm an old woman, blog. I'm old. My day was actually really nice! Michael and I went thrift store hunting all day, then had a BBQ with my family at my parents' house. A great day!

Happy 3rd of July!

What better way to kick off my favorite month, than a holiday to celebrate our country! 4th of July has always held a special place in my heart because of the great memories I had growing up. I'm from a small town that used to go big on the 4th (not so much now due to the economy and whatnot) so I always make sure to go back for their teeny parade (my dad usually drives a fire truck in it) and small "carnival". Michael thinks it's a joke, and maybe he'e right, but I can't get myself to go anywhere else! We'll see how tomorrow plays out, but we're definitely going to the parade and stopping by the small fair. Maybe we'll watch the fireworks in our town, maybe we'll drive into the city.

My nails are extra excited! 

On other big news, we're planning a trip to Southern California for fun and relaxation. I've only ever been down there to go to Disneyland, and once on a road trip with my sisters (we went to Santa Monica and Hollywood), so I'm not sure what to plan for. I know we want to hit up a gourmet food truck, go to Venice Beach, San Diego (and do who knows what), and the LA fashion district, but I'd love ideas for fun trips and cool things to do/see.
This trip will be the first time we fly with Michelle, so we're nervous about how she'll handle a plane. It's only an hour and 15 minutes of flying, so hopefully it is a breeze. This trip will be our test run for when we go to Mexico this winter.

She's ready to travel!

Lately Michelle has been calling her daddy "Mike" and yelling his name through the house. We think it's hilarious! She *really* loves that guy - and so do I!

Introductions are in order...

Well, I think a little background info is required. I'm Jessica, and I'm newly married to my best friend and partner of 7 years, Michael. We own a house in Fairfield, CA (smack dab between SF and Sacramento). Michael designs bridges and roads, and is a UC Berkeley grad. I'm a senior at UC Davis, studying Sociology. Below is a picture of us, being sexy and awesome on our honeymoon.

On said honeymoon we got some amazing news; I'm 4 weeks pregnant! Being a senior in college you probably think I am all worried and stressed about being pregnant; on the contrary! I'm 25 (took my sweet ass time in school, thank you very much), and my husband has a kick ass job that will help until I finish grad school w/o a job. So, now that you are all up in my business, how about some pictures to lurk into my life some more.

This is my husband Michael in Maui next to an awesome and old ass bridge on the road to Hana. Pretty cool huh? He's bearded, and smart, and funny, and probably the coolest guy ever. I am so lucky to have that yeti in my life.

Up there? That's me trying to look all nonchalant on the top of a crater in Maui. After this picture was taken, I jumped all around an squealed about the beautiful view. ;-)

Below is what I wrote on the plane about this past week and my pregnancy news. It's a copy and paste, and I was exhausted when I wrote it, so don't expect some gem..shooooot. <3
...........................................................


Baby Notes
9/23/2011

LMP: 08-25-11
Ovulatuion: ~09-07-11
1st test: 9/19 Technically positive. Super faint line; almost thought it was a line meant to be filled in for a  positive test
2nd test: 9/20 Positive. faint line, but definitely there.
3rd test: 9/21 Positive. Used different test and line was less faint.


Energy: LOW; not sure if it's from the wedding (planning, stress, etc), jet lag/traveling, or the adventures we've gone on
in Hawaii.

Notes:
Started trying, and conceived during my first ovulation. Basically Michael and I are super baby-making people, and he has super sperm that found my sexy egg too awesome to resist. I suspected something was up due to my low energy level, my crazy mood swings the week before (rage over lame stuff), and getting really dizzy/sick from flying, driving, and riding on the boat. The day we got our first real positive (2nd test) was the day we went snorkeling in the Molokini Crater. I was super excitd and when I told Michael (he was sleeping), he opened his eyes, smiled, and said "that's great" and then went back to sleep. Ha. That day I got very seasick (baby or genes, who knows) on the boat and while swimming in the ocean (LAME! There were cool turtles swimming two feet from me and I had to get out of the water or risk feeding the turtles a non-natural food source).
My appetite has been flaky and irritating. I am either VERY hungry or full to the brim after a few bites of my meal. Seems like I have to start eating more smalls meals throughout my day. Also, and I don't know if this is food-related, I get the worst stomach aches! It's like a dull cramping in my lower abdomen (i'm guessing it's that pesky uterus); It makes me feel like I have to use the restroom (#2 if you catch my drift). I'm normally not a daily-pooper, but it's becoming an everyday occurance. Maybe it's the island food I've been getting down on.
We told Diann about the pregnancy the day before we told my mom. She asked if I'd been having any alcohol and I sent her a picture of my positive test. When I told her she seemed very happy, and told Mike who said "oh yeah? Good job!". Hahaha.
I called my mother today and she immediately asked if I was. I couldn't lie, and even though I wanted to tell her in person, I spilled the beans. She sounded to excited! I asked to tell my dad over the phone on my own, and he seemed happy. I told him I got something cool in Hawaii and he asked what it was..I said "oh, just a positive pregnancy test!". He laughed and said congrats.
I am so excited to tell my sisters. I think I'm going to have to call or text Ash, as she's on an impromtu trip to Vegas with some guy; however, I am going to try and see Nikki tomorrow and tell her. I hope they are excited for us! My friends, on the other hand, I am debating when to tell them. I am enjoying the privacy. Now I know why Cass keeps her's secret for so long; it's fun to have that crazy news in your pocket, ready to launch it at the drop of a hat! >:)
Right now we are on the plane back home. Our little island fetus will now be a stowaway in CA to my classes at UC Davis. My little aggie <3 Michael says the baby will have UC Berkeley stuff, but as it will attend Davis for 9 months, I say it's an Aggie! Ha!

This is the 3rd test I took to confirm my first one!

The Mama-To-Be, 4 weeks pregnant!