Our Weekend DIY project!

This weekend we decided to tackle our fireplace....so dull and boring before, in necessary need of an update!!  
Here is a picture of the fireplace before:

Let me tell you a little about what I definitely didn't like!  First of all I hated the small mantle, it felt to me like a tiny after thought...so that definitely had to go!  Next we knew we wanted to paint it...the pinkish tint had to go!  Then the part we weren't sure we wanted to take on...I really didn't like the pink tiles surrounding all the concrete.  The concrete also bothered me, but I knew it couldn't really go away!  What I didn't know was that we could "easily" hide those ugly pink tiles and concrete....here goes nothing!

As you can see we definitely changed the paint color and bought a bigger mantle...love it!!!  Now the "easy" concrete and pink tile covering...we decided to tile over them...what a project!  Nothing like learning how to tile and grout via YouTube and just going for it!  The result is wonderful and really not as hard as I thought...just messy, but maybe that is because we are beginners!  We absolutely love this new elegant look!!!

Wrigley

Meet Wrigley....our new Golden Retriever puppy!  In this picture she is about 10 weeks old...this is the day we brought her home! At this point she is probably about 10-12 pounds.  

 This is another photo the day we brought her home!  To be honest she was kinda lazy and totally spoiled us....now she is a bundle of energy!!!

This picture is from Wrigley's first trip to El Paso and first chance to play with the pugs....she loved them!!!

This picture is from her first swimming lesson!  While unsure are first I am pretty sure she will constantly be in that pool next summer!

These last couple pictures are of her playing with a toy at about 4 months old.  My mom got her this toy and she decapitated it. She now loves the fox head and fox body separately!  She is 4 months old now about probably about 30 pounds.  She is now a bundle of energy and is getting walks in the morning and either walks or runs in the evenings.  This is somewhat tiring her out and giving us some peace.  While she is a chewing and biting challenge...we love her!

Bedroom Makeover

Blake recently brought to my attention just how brown our bedroom was.  We have dark brown furniture and we also had a dark brown comforter.  I had been looking for months for throw pillows to brighten it up, but we couldn't ever agree, haha!  Well we found something we could agree on...a new duvet cover and pillow ensemble.  It brightens up the room so much! Got to love a great sale at Macy's!  All items at least 50-75% off!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

What do you think??? I specifically love the pillow mound!  We are thinking of putting some floating shelves on the wall above the night stands and of course some more pictures or artwork on the wall!  We could also use some bedside reading lamps, but I think we are off to a great start!

Backyard Bobcat Cubs

It's not everyday that you have baby bobcats just on the other side of your backyard fence!  I was doing some ironing in the living room when I look up out the back window and notice a bobcat wandering around our patio...likely looking for food or drink!  So I run around like a maniac to find a camera and by the time I find one the bobcat has jumped over the fence and into the wash.  You can bet my crazy husband did not let that stop him...he goes over to the fence and finds this absolutely amazing scene on the other side....

Oh how I absolutely love the desert!  Blake of course was very worried about their hunger and thirst, but no he did not feed them.  Thank goodness for a FABULOUS monsoon this afternoon that I am sure provided them with water...as well as all our thirsty plants and grass!

Washington D.C.

Recently Blake and I were able to travel to Washington D.C. basically free of cost.  The National APTA (Physical Therapy) Conference was just south of D.C. in Maryland so my company basically paid for half of our trip.  We were able to go a few days early and stay in Washington D.C. to see all the historical sights.  Blake being a history buff was very excited about this and had never been before...at least not at an age where he can remember :)  Blake had a free southwest flight to use before July so all in all it was a perfect week long vacation.  Not so lucky for us was the record high temps and humidity, but none the less here are some pictures to high-light our vacation! 

The first day we spend the morning and some of the afternoon wondering around to see all the monuments.  The first pic of course is the Lincoln Memorial...major bummer was they are renovating the reflection pool so pictures in the opposite direction were not so pretty.  The second picture is from the new WWII memorial...very cool!

We also had the pleasure of having several tours arranged for us by Gabrielle Giffords staff.  We took tours of the Capital, Library of Congress, Pentagon, and White House.  We don't have any pictures from the Pentagon tour as we were not allowed to take any pictures, so we did not bring our cameras.  We also don't have any pictures of the White House because on this tour we could not even bring a purse or camera...only our wallets, car keys, and cell phones although we were not allowed to take our cell phones out of our pockets.  Below are pictures of the Library of Congress and Captial. 

Our hotel in the D.C. are was in the Dupont Circle area, which is not far from Georgetown University Area.  We went to this area one night after dinner.  That is where the following picture in from.  The area is also home to the Swedish Embassy, which we saw and did not go in or anything as they were having a private party.

We enjoyed several good eateries while in D.C. Including Ben's Chili Bowl where we met up with one of my friends from High School.  We also packed in a trip to Arlington National Cemetery and The Air and Space Museum.  Thank goodness for a great metro system!


Half-way through our trip we moved our vacation down to National Harbor, Maryland.  A Small community that basically caters to conventions.  It is full of hotels, shopping, and dining.  We stayed at The Westin across the street from The Gaylord, where the conference was.  Very convenient!  Below are some pics from that area.

Finally, while down in Maryland we were able to venture over to Manassas, VA where Blake was born and lived until he was two years old!  Below is a picture of his first home.  We also drove over to the battleground of Bull Run, we didn't stay long as there was a threatening storm and we had about an hour drive back to the hotel!

Let the planning begin for our next big trip :)

Belated Birthday Weekend

So being in Washington D.C. I have been thinking I will need to blog a little bit about the trip etc. but I have yet to blog about my Birthday Weekend Extravaganza.  So we are a little belated as it was May 22.  But if I get this posted then after we return from D.C. I can blog a little about our trip and all the exciting things we experienced.  So we started the birthday weekend with a trip to the Reid Park Zoo.  Neither of us had been since college and I love zoos and animals, especially monkeys.  So as you can imagine we spent about 20 minutes at least watching the monkeys...they were swinging EVERYWHERE...they were super entertaining!  It was hard to get a picture honestly due to how active they were, very surprising! We did get some nice pictures with the Giraffe....

I then enjoyed an absolutely gorgeous afternoon relaxing on my new raft (courtesy of my wonderful husband....great gift!) The pool is so refreshing and I look forward to many, many more summer days in and by the pool!

My wonderful parents gave us an outdoor accent table to go with our lounge chairs, a perfect addition to our backyard!  Thanks mom and dad!!

In addition, my in-laws gave me a new outdoor umbrella....perfect for our bricked patio area...it provides an extra amount of much needed shade from the western setting sun!! Thanks Bart and Patty!!

Finally, to top of the birthday weekend we had family dinner with my in-laws at a fabulous Italian Restaurant near our house called Piazza Gavi's!  I definitely recommend this restaurant for dinner, but they also have an unbelievable breakfast for not very high prices!!  Take notice of the flowers Rachael bought me...not ice cream, but flowers :) 

Thanks everyone for helping me celebrate another great year!  I look forward to what is to come!  And I promise I will post Washington D.C. quicker than this massive delay!

Our Newest Visitor

We are thinking at this rate we can open a Desert Museum at our house....free of charge!  Come visit us and you won't need to fork over the money for the Desert Museum; we have it all right in our backyard!  I didn't share this in the blog but last week I had my first experience with a Black Widow and a Scorpion...YUCK!  Then of course you can see my previous post of the Bobcat!

Tucson Desert Museum

I guess I should also post some pictures of one of my favorite places in Tucson....the Desert Museum.  It had been years since Blake and I had been there!  Too bad most of the animals were sleeping!  I can't wait until a little later in the year when all the cacti are blooming, hopefully we can get some more great pics!  If you visit Tucson, be sure to visit the Desert Museum.

Backyard

Our newest upgrade to the backyard....outdoor curtains! Love them, but the wind has already done it's damage and because of wind we haven't had them down much.  They do provide great shade and a fabulous look. Oh, and the lanterns too...we put candles in at night when we are out there....so nice!  Now, more landscaping to come :)  What to do with our dead grass area in the desert?!?!?!

Oh and I don't think I shared a photo of our early morning backyard visitor...BOBCAT!

Catalina Foothills Church

We have found a church home and are now both officially members!  Blake and I are super excited to find a place where we can grow together and in the family of God.  This is the church that Blake grew up in as well as we were married in.  We continue to look forward to what God has planned for our future!

Our Home

We had a housewarming party not long ago and that inspired me to take pictures of our new home!  Enjoy! 

 Formal Living Room Area

 

Guest Bedroom

Guest Bathroom

Office/Study

Kitchen

Dining Room

Family Room

Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom (Of which I want to renovate)

Outdoor space....my favorite space