Let’s rewind to 2010.  In February, Oved and I were engaged to be married.  And on July 3^rd, we tied the knot.  We decided to have our wedding at Springdale Church, the church I grew up in.  My brother officiated.  Sarah was my maid of honor and Katrina (my sister-in-law) was also in the wedding party. Tyler’s daughters Ella and Kayla were our flower girls.  Oved’s brother, Jonathan, was the best man and his father gave the benediction.  I loved including so many family members.  It was a beautiful ceremony and a fantastic reception.

We honeymooned in Key West, which was great.  The weather was beautiful! In fact, it only rained on us one day (and that only lasted about thirty minutes).  The food was fabulous.  And the touristy stuff was pretty cool, too.  I especially liked the six-toed cats at Ernest Hemingway’s house.

The following Christmas, Oved, Sarah, Mom and I all traveled to Costa Rica.  We spent two weeks there.  It was very special to meet all of Oved’s family and see where he grew up.  Also, we were able to experience the holidays in a completely new culture, with entirely different customs.  Christmas included fireworks and BBQ.  And New Year’s Eve was quite different, as well.  Instead of going to parties (like I normally do), we went to church.  We spent the service hearing from its members.  Each reflected on the past year’s blessings.  We concluded with prayer as we counted down to the New Year.  It was a unique and humbling experience.

In January of 2011, Oved and I started our own business.  We decided to sell Costa Rican coffee under the name, La Cumbre Coffee.  The first half of the year was spent filing papers and building the website.  Then in July, we launched.  It has been a lot of hard work.  But, it’s slowly beginning to grow.  I’m excited to see its progress.  For those interested: www.lacumbrecoffee.com

I also returned to school last January.  I was accepted into West Virginia University’s graduate program, Integrated Marketing Communication the prior summer.  The classes, so far, have been challenging, but fun.

And if that wasn’t enough, in February of 2011 we learned of some exciting news.  I was pregnant!  On October 7, we were blessed with a beautiful, healthy baby boy, Lucas Oved (Luke) Jimenez.  Now at two months of age, Luke is smiling and cooing all day long…when he’s not sleeping…or eating.  And, his most recent discovery is his fists, which he’s decided taste pretty good.  He also loves staring at lights, and of course, watching TV.

As you can see these past two years have been very exciting for us.  I can’t believe how drastically my life has changed, for the better.  I have so much to be thankful for. God is good!  I hope each of you find yourselves equally as blessed this holiday season.  May all that He is bring you all that you need this Christmas!  Much love to you!!

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

The greatest offense is bathroom lingering.  If you’re not the only one occupying a stall, you’re on a clock.  Once you’ve finished the task and washed your hands (yes, this goes without saying), get out.  There’s no need to poke at your hair, straighten your collar, or even wipe smeared make-up from under your eyes.  Just get out.  Obviously, your stall neighbor needs to finish her business…you probably interrupted her.  Politely leave.

Talking while in the stalls…is it really necessary to carry on a conversation?  It forces you to listen to the other person.  I can’t filter out certain sounds and be expected to respond to questions at the same time.  In my opinion, conversations can wait.

Repeat flushing is my biggest pet peeve.  In a world where green is envied, please don’t flush the toilet 87 times just so fellow restroom occupiers don’t hear you toot.  And if, heaven forbid, a toot does sneak out unfiltered from the neighboring stall…out of courtesy, you need to leave as soon as possible.  Obviously, she is willing to go to great measures to keep you from hearing what’s going on.  It’s the right thing to do.

And lastly, look before leaving the stall.  If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat.  Seriously, take a second to clean up after yourself.  If toilet paper is hanging over the edge of the toilet, properly place it inside the bowl and flush.  If not all of your toilet bowl contents have flushed, flush again.  And, please, make sure the trash can is shut.  There’s no need to leave it hanging open for the next visitor to see inside.

Those are my bathroom etiquette requests.  Am I asking too much?  Let me know if you think I’ve left anything off of the list.

He bought me the new Canon T3i camera…and, it’s amazing.

The features on this camera are incredible.  First, it’s 18 MP, which means fantastic photo potential.  I’m also a big fan of the swivel LCD monitor.  This means I can either take endless amounts of pictures of myself…OR I can flip the monitor over and keep it from being scratched up while I carry the camera in its bag.

The camera also has a Scene Intelligent Auto mode, which makes it easy for anyone to take a decent picture.  It’s effortless!  Plus, it’s got a million other modes for when I’m feeling more adventurous.  The portrait setting, for example, takes excellent low-lighting photos.

What’s also really great about this camera is all of my old lenses and even my flash for my Rebel 2000 (an SLR) work on this model!

Here are just a few examples of photos I’ve taken…

The Coffee lovers appreciate the mood kick and mental boost a delicious cup of java provides. The enhanced learning, memory, and speed of information processing caffeine delivers has been well documented scientifically. New research published on-line in the current issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, reports that coffee can also ward off some effects of aging on the brain. Previous research has shown that caffeine lessens the damage of Alzheimer’s disease caused by the toxic peptide that forms the senile plaques in brains of Alzheimer’s patients. This new study examined 641 elderly persons (over the age of 65) living in three cities in France, Bordeaux, Dijon, and Montpellier. Researchers found a relation between coffee consumption and prevention of cognitive deterioration including the loss of brain tissue in the elderly.

Click here to read the full article.

I guess most of my year was preoccupied doing other things, like getting married.  In fact, I think I’ll blame my husband for not following through with any of my resolutions.  Clearly it’s his fault.  Maybe he’ll do better in 2011…

In 2011, I would like to actually improve my landscape.  That resolution is a top priority.  I would also like to send out the rest of my thank you notes.  I know, I’m behind.  But, I have a whole year, right?

I also plan to work on being a better wife to my husband; a better daughter; a better sister; a better aunt; a better friend.  This should occupy most of my time.

Well, even if I didn’t convince anyone, I think this video will do the trick. Welcome to Tianjin…

Well…

On Sunday, our yellow lab brought a little friend into the house…by friend I mean a dead rat.

He was so proud of his toy.  He trotted into the kitchen with it in his mouth, dropped it onto his big pillow bed and plopped down next to it.  I almost vomited.  I screamed, “NO!”  And, then I made him go outside.  That was when I realized it was just me and the rat body.  I suddenly missed my husband more than anything.  I had to talk myself through it, “don’t get scared, now” (bonus points for whoever can name that movie).

I got a million paper towels and plastic bag.  I threw the wad of towels on the rat and then grabbed it with the plastic bag, which I turned inside out.  EEEeeeeewwww!!  I immediately threw it away in the outside trash can, screaming all the while.  It was disgusting.

Why do these things have to happen while my husband is gone?  I mean seriously.  I can handle laundry. I can handle cooking.  I can even handle the dishes.  But, I don’t need rotting carcasses to be brought into the house.

Going into the evening I was already feeling my age.  The thought of going to dinner was fun, but the “clubbing” that would follow…that meant a late night was coming.  I like to be in bed by 10 PM.  Sure, I might not fall asleep right away.  But, I would be warm and cozy under my covers with the TV turned on.  Besides, I hadn’t been clubbing in years…and that was only once…

Anyway, we arrived at Howl at the Moon and I paid my $10 cover charge (cause the price of alcohol clearly isn’t high enough).  The room was absolutely packed.  To our immediate left were two grand pianos facing each other.  This was the front of the room.  The ground level was filled with people standing shoulder to shoulder.  There were a few tall tables and chairs sprinkled throughout.  The raised perimeter also had tables and chairs that faced the stage.  The bars were along the outer walls.

Thankfully, our rather large group was able to find three tables side by side on the lower level.  It was unexpected and appreciated.  Our backs were against the partial divide that separated the lower level and the upper level.  The crowd was young and energetic…at first.

As the night wore on, the age of the crowd seemed to advance.  As I sat in my seat, sipping on a Pink Paradise, I couldn’t help but notice the table to my left.

Why is it that some 45 (plus) year-old women feel the need to dress and/or dance in a way that demands sympathy?  It makes me want to say things like…

Lady, red is a nice color on you, but you should really button your shirt.  Your black, lacy bra isn’t as cute.  Or, ladies, please stop dancing like that.  That is neither cute or impressive.  Or, lady, nice black thong with your extra small jeans.  May, I suggest you not borrow your 16-year-old daughter’s clothes?

And then, I just feel mean.

Then there are the dirty old men.  I understand that alcohol can act as some sort of courage for people.  But, seriously.  Are you so inebriated that you think at age 67 you actually have a chance leaving a bar with a married, twenty-something woman?  I mean, does that happen?

Anyway, thankfully, soon after these special moments, the rest of the girls were tired, so it was time to go home.  Ultimately, I left there feeling really thankful.  I was thankful to still be in my twenties.  I was thankful to be fully clothed.  I was thankful to be with a group of quality girls.  And, I was thankful for a night fun that only happens once every five to seven years.

Oh, and I was thankful it was time for bed…