New year-- New car

On Monday my car finally went to Nissan heaven.  After spending far too much money fixing up Blue Beauty it was time to retire this old beast.  After 10 years and 160,000 miles, I definitely shed numerous tears as I packed up all my memories. 

My last and worst picture with Blue Beauty

After numerous test drives, number crunching and way to much anxiety I made a choice (I think everyone knows how much I hate making decisions).  As I gave my last hug to Blue Beauty, I decided to step into the future and embrace my new color and not so new car choice.  I decided to go with a 2013 Nissan Altima (in metallic gray).   

As I went to pull out of the dealership I ran into a small problem.  My seat belt got stuck and wouldn't come back.  So after a quick stop at the service department I was told my dream car would have to wait a few more days for the new part to arrive.  Until then I will be rocking a nice Nissan Rogue SUV rental car.  Looking forward to my new wheels, coming soon...

As with any choice in my family numerous questions flew about the new cars name??  I mean this was the top asked question by family and friends... so let the ideas fly.  So far we've got 

gray ghost
silver streak

gray goose

gray girl (not my Dad's best suggestion :-)

Success

My Mom, Tommy and I had success on a rainy Sunday.  We met up at the Scottsdale mall and spent the afternoon looking for things to wear for the upcoming wedding season.  Mom and I worked our magic getting together the finally touches and Tommy did an awesome job not acting like the shopping was too painful :-)  We ran into this beautiful rainbow as we were heading home, it was definitely a sign.

Stolen: Heart

Cade is absolutely, positively the best thing that ever happened to the Bailey/Marasigan clan.  He is the best and these three pictures help to capture how adorable he really is.

We did it!

Sam, Jess and I were pleasantly surprised when we woke up at 7am on Saturday.  It was raining cats and dogs all night and while we were hoping this would let up, we had no such luck.  Jess stopped and got ponchos at Walmart (thank goodness or else I don't know if we would have made it).  While the Color Run turned into a mud run at the end, we had a great time and I am proud to say we ran the whole time.  Great job Jess and Sammy!

Time to sign up for the Pat Tillman run!

Checking things off

The best part about having a birthday right after Christmas is your spring shopping list gets checked off.  I got a new robe for my birthday so I can finally get rid of the one that is way to old and pills everywhere.  I got to use the new one this morning and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

Also I was also able to check off earrings off my spring list.  I got a large variety of earrings... studs and chandeliers.  Thanks Mom, Sam and Loomie!

When I was reading my favorite blog I happened to stumble across a good deal with this adorable sweater.  It was only 20 dollars at Limited.  I have always wanted a sequined sweater and/or dress but I was always unsure of what to pair it with.  My favorite blog helps me put together outfits and try new things.

Everyone loves a good deal and I found yet another amazing deal on TOMS.  Through a friend I was able to get black TOMS for 50% off and free shipping, can't beat that.  They are perfect for work.

and finally my Mom got me hair holders that don't make a dent in you hair :-)  They are perfect and I have one to go with every color outfit.  Now I need to start working on my spring/summer wish list.

Tommy and I are off to enjoy the rainy weather...

Friday treat

My co-workers and I needed a little treat when Friday rolled around.  Since we got to have a working meeting, we were able to enjoy lunch together (which is always nice to get to know each other better).  We ate at Zoe's and treated ourselves to Zoyo Fro Yo (it was Friday after all).  I had never been there before.  I loved that everything was labeled so we knew what was Gluten Free, also there were plenty of options between the yogurt and toppings.  Yum Yum Happy Friday!!!

Getting ready

Sam, Tommy and I spent our Friday night getting ready for the Color Run tomorrow morning.  We made a delicious dinner (salmon, rice and asparagus) and then snuggled up with the pup to watch a movie.  We were in bed by 9:30, a perfect way to end the week.

Wish us luck tomorrow! We will need it...

Birthday dinner

Along with many other great birthday celebrations, I had dinner with my family on Monday (my actual birthday).  We went to Chelsea's Kitchen and enjoyed great food and company.  I was glad that Aunt Cindy and Uncle Dan joined us too.  Thank you everyone for all the gifts, flowers, cards and birthday wishes.  It was a great birthday, weekend, week!

Here's to a great 27th year!!!  Can't wait to see what the next year brings...

Warming up

Things were finally warming up here in AZ and we actually hit above 80 degrees on Tuesday.  It definitely triggered my online browsing for swimsuits and spring training tickets.  This Ging needs some sunlight, so bring on the warm weather...

Found here

Found here

Found here

or here

these four are here

A birthday celebration

Tommy and Sammy did it again.  They planned a great birthday and I couldn't have been luckier to spend the day with most of my AZ friends.  The day started with the ASU basketball game viewing party at Tilted Kilt.  After the game was over we headed over to Luster which was a great rooftop bar downtown.  People came and went and some people even stayed all day :-)  Thanks again to everyone for a great 27th birthday!!!  I couldn't have asked for a better celebration!!!

some of the gang enjoying the sunshine

the girls towards the end

Crispy bacon and maple syrup, we can only imagine how long this lasted :-)

GF Birthday cake :-)

The perfect Birthday dog!!

Nothing better

than arriving to work on a Friday with these on my desk.  I am always impressed with the thoughtful and caring people I work with at SARRC.  My boss Alex and co-worker Jamie went above and beyond on my first birthday with our new team.  Not only was I spoiled with gorgeous flowers but the day continued with GF dessert options.  I am soooo lucky!!  Thanks again SARRC girlies, who knows where I would be without my SARRC family the last few years.

 

Date night

This week has been a mess for Tommy at work, with the Super Bowl approaching they could not be more busy.  After working numerous late nights I finally was able to sneak him away for some dinner.  We decided to try somewhere new (Buon Gusto) and 85% of the menu was gluten free.  I was in heaven... gluten free beer... gluten artichoke dip with gluten free flatbread... gluten free pasta... gluten free garlic bread... gluten free pizza... gluten free.... you get the point.  The food was delicious and the company was even better (the best).  Felt so good to get away from our stressful weeks, relax and have some alone time.  Who doesn't LOVE a date night??

Anthro

A few weekends ago I had a gift card to spend at Anthropologie.  Of course since Anthropologie can be a little expensive at times it is not normally in the shopping budget.  Somehow I convinced Tommy to tag along, which I loved having his opinion.  I had so much fun trying on everything I thought was cute, even though I still found myself looking for a good sale.  Here are just a few things that recently caught my online browsing eye...