Christmas 2008....

This year Christmas morning the three of us opened gifts, had breakfast together, then went over to Corinne's in our jammies and had a mini Christmas with her. After that we came home and cooked and headed out to the clubhouse where Stephanie and Larry live. We had so much fun! Charise flew in from Atlanta, Rosie and Ja'Lisa flew in from Arizona, Sherome and her family came down from L.A., Shaaron and her girls were there, Desco's daughter, and some family friends. Family, food and fun..what more could you ask for!? It was a fantastic Christmas! Check out the family photo album on the right for more fun and festivities...=)

Merry Christmas!

Christmas is just beautiful!

The tree decorated the week after Thanksgiving

and the stockings were hung by the chimney with care......
So festive!
Ho ho ho...Santa stops here

Miss Corinne and Jamie putting up the outdoor tree

This is our favorite time of year. =) Here are some pics from the weekend after Thanksgiving just after decorating the house. All of the neighbors were out that day putting up lights and decorations. What a beautiful time of year. We hope all of our family and friends have a wonderful Christmas and that 2009 is our best year yet! Merry Christmas!

Girls Day into the Night....

Alyssa & Tatiana ~ Canterbury Gardens

Amy & Angela ~ Canterbury Gardens
Christmas tree at our local mall

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Yesterday Tatiana, Angela, her daughter Alyssa, and I spent the entire day into the night having a wonderful holiday girls day. It started at Starbucks for Angela and I and Jamba Juice for Tat and Alyssa. Then we headed out to Canterbury Gardens for some holiday cheer. It was packed full of people and beautiful as ever! Talk about putting us in the holiday mood! We went in saying we were not ready for the holidays and came out saying let's go home and decorate! =) Then it was off to the movies to see Four Christmases which was truly one of the funniest movies we have seen in a long time. I mean hilarious, side splitting laughter! A must see for the holidays. After that we went to IB for some beautiful holiday beach scenery and to see Angela's parents condo. Then we went to our local mall for some Sushi and more holiday cheer! The decorations there were just beautiful, there were carolers, and even a choir, so all of that put us even more in the mood! You gotta love the holidays and especially girls days!

Gobble, Gobble.....Family Fun......

Tat learning how to make Jamie's mac n cheese..finally!

The real china....Jamie and Tat laughed
Scattegories....tradition...and such competion!
Buzz.....hilarious!!

This year we had a nice quiet Thanksgiving with just the 3 of us. Too much else going on around us right now so we decided to keep it simple. It was soooo nice. Jamie showed Tatiana how to make his "famous" mac n cheese recipe that he said he was taking to his grave! It was delicious as always! We all cooked together and then ate waaaaayyy too much food! Then we played multiple rounds of Scattegories and Buzz. Lots of laughter and competition. It was hilarious! After that we watched movies and then crashed and burned. It was such a great day! I am blessed with a wonderful family! Happy Thanksgiving!

Lori & Dani Rocked the 3 Day!!!!!!

Inspirational, amazing, fantastic, emotional, incredible, tear jerking, eye opening, wonderful...oh how I could go on and I didn't even do the walk! Lori and Dani just finished the Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk yesterday. 60 miles in 3 days!!! From Del Mar to Downtown! Unbelievable!!! Tatiana and I went to pit stop 4 yesterday in Balboa Park and cheered and cheered with our signs as they came through! Then we got to honk, honk, honk as they walked downtown to the finish line. We met the weary walkers in the Gaslamp for a quick snack before closing ceremonies at Petco Park. The tears flowed and the night came to a close for all of the survivors, walkers, and supporters. I have to say it was one of the most amazing things to witness. The spirit of these women battling this disease (my amazing Sis), the dedication of the walkers, and the joy of the supporters....simply amazing! I am so proud of Dani and Lori for doing this walk. I have never seen so many bandaids and blisters in my life! To my Sister who continues to be an inspiration to me......you did it and I am so glad that we were able to be a part of it with you. Congratulations Lori and Dani!!!!

Lori & Dani Rocked the 3 Day!!! More Pictures....

The Choreographers from the Pulse......Vegas '08

This pic is Tatiana's group with the choreographers from the Pulse. Left to right, front row in chairs....Shane Sparks, Tyce Diorio, Laurie Ann Gibson, Mia Michaels, Cris Judd, and Dave Scott. The rest of the "crew" are the teachers, owner and students from her studio that went to the Pulse. What memories, what an experience! (click on the photo to enlarge)

The Pulse......Las Vegas '08!

Tatiana and Mom at the Bellagio late late at night!

Tatiana and Dave Scott (her "boyfriend" as she calls him)

The Giant Piano at FAO Schwartz
Jamie and Timmy at the Hilton

Break and goof off time in between dancing
Awww Paris...okay the next best thing......=)
We just got back from 5 glorious days in Vegas. Tatiana attended The Pulse http://www.thepulseontour.com/ for the second year in a row and she had, in her words, "An amazing time!!" Mia Michaels class was her favorite and she didn't want it to end. Such a cool dance they learned from her! Her other teachers were Dave Scott, Cris Judd, Tyce Diorio, Laurie Ann Gibson, and Shane Sparks. Amazing talent and an amazing time! We ran into people at The Pulse we hadn't seen in years, it was great. We also got to spend time with friends that recently moved to Vegas, do the Vegas tourist stuff, hang out with Tat's dance teachers, shop at the gazillion shops in Vegas, and eat lots of really unhealthy delicious food! A fun time was had by all!

Yes We Did!!!!

There are no words to describe what an incredible feeling it is to have the Obama's as our next First Family. Inspirational, life changing, history making, I could go on. Tears flowed all night for so many reasons. Here's to our future and to America's new beginning! Yes We Did!!!!

Today is the Day! Get out and VOTE!!

Today is the day history will be made! Make your voice heard if you haven't already. Vote, Vote, Vote. America is forever changed because of this election. Let us never forget what we can all achieve.

Happy Halloween!

Okay I just had to share this adorable pic of our great niece Janessa. How cute is she!?! Jamie and I spent Halloween on our front porch with Miss Corinne and all of the various neighbors passing out candy. Our house was decked out and we had so much fun checking out all of the costumes. Tatiana went trick or treating with her friends and went to a sleepover. I have no pictures. Sadness. The funny thing is she came home this morning and said, "that is the last time I will go trick or treating, it was so awkward because people kept asking how old I was." She said they didn't believe her when she said 14. Funny! Hope you all had fun!

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer........

Tatiana just finished the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk at Balboa Park. Jamie dropped her off at the high school early this morning so she could participate with a group from her school. She told us she wanted to do the walk for her Aunt Lori. She just called from the park and said the walk was great! I will add pictures from the walk later. Lori and Dani are you ready for next month!? 3 day, wow!!!!! Let's all pray for a cure and let's make it soon!!!
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/MakingStridesAgainstBreastCancer/MSABCFY09California?sid=16393&type=fr_informational&pg=informational&fr_id=11602

Canterbury Gardens...Beautiful!

Okay we both couldn't resist getting this! How funny...Obamaccino! =)
Today turned into such a fun day. =) Angela and I rarely get to spend time together anymore unless it has to do with this mess of a lawsuit we are in with Otay Water the City et al. So ironic considering we used to see each other every single day in our adorable store that we used to have. Today we both took the day off for more hearings but ended up not having to go at the last minute. Yeah! So instead we spent the day together just like old times. We went to Broken Yolk for breakfast...mmmm, then off to beautiful Canterbury Gardens and Gifts in Escondido. We were in heaven looking at all of the wonderful decorations for the holidays. If you have never been you must make the trip. What a great store full of wonderful items and friendly people. Such fun! After that we went to Plaza Bonita so Angela could finish her class reunion shopping and we ran in to two of our favorite customers from our old store. Bittersweet but wonderful none the less. Lots of hugs and a few tears. They said it was so nice to see the two of us together. =) I have to agree! What a great friend I have and one day hopefully a business partner again. So here's to today (it was much needed) and all that the future holds as well!

Army of Women.....

Ever wonder how you can help the fight against breast cancer? Well now we all can. Please go to http://www.armyofwomen.org/ and sign up to help with ongoing research to find a cure for breast cancer. As most of you know this one hits close to home for me because my wonderful Sister had breast cancer, was cured, and now has metastatic breast cancer. She is doing great thank God! We all know and love someone who has had or has breast cancer...let's all find a cure together!

Debate Day.....what is there to debate?

Really, is there still a question? Why? How can anyone at this point in time truly vote for a ticket that has possibly the most inexperienced VP choice in history. Please. Could she truly step in as President..better yet would you want her to? America is in a downward spiral and there is only one way out...Obama.

Tatiana is 14!!!

Yesterday was Tatiana's 14th birthday! We can't believe she is already 14! Time truly does fly! Her day started at midnight with tons of texts and calls wishing her a happy birthday. =) Then at 8:00 in the morning the doorbell rang and it was her friend Brenna with Jamba Juice and cupcakes! Mmm Mmm good! Then.....Jamie and I took Tat and her "cousin" Alyssa to Sushi, the mall to shop, the movies, Mexican food for dinner, back to the house for cake, and off to Alyssa's for a sleepover! It was the never-ending day of celebrating! What fun we all had. =) Happy 14th Tatiana!! We love you bunches!!!