Thanksgiving Weekend in Paradise

We went to Florida for Thanksgiving to spend the long weekend with my family. This wasn't the first time AJ has been there, but considering that the last time she was there, she was 9 months old, she had WAY more fun this time!

AJ giving the camera one of her "looks."

AJ and her Obo taking on some waves.

The whole fam, posing for a pic by the beach (in matching shirts).

The Thanksgiving feast! Yum, yum!

AJ's paparazzi photo!

Gorgeous sunset the last day of the trip.

Me and my siblings!

Mimi, AJ and me, walking along the beach.

My dad and brother hanging around with the gator.

Paddle-boarding in the ocean!

Ma and Pa, toes in the water, a$$ in the sand!

Hanging on the beach!

Z and the hammer-head shark we found on the beach.

Our "good" family photo.

The pet gator.

Hubby and me at dinner.

C'mon! Let's get in the water!

The "bad" family photo. ;)

Building sandcastles.

Walking around by herself.

Surfing with Uncle B (one of my fave pics, and in case you're wondering, I was flipping out while this was going on).

B and M. So cute!

AJ hanging out in the cabana.

Studying her findings.

Swimming with Uncle B.

Posing with Uncle B.

Aunt A was not as lucky!

Beach volleyball.

And there you have it folks, our Thanksgiving weekend in a nutshell! As you can tell, we had a great time and all came back very relaxed and rested after our fun in the sun. I have another trip planned for AJ and I in March to spend some time with my sis while she's on Spring Break, so I'm excited to go back!

The Pictures From Our Travels

The first thing AJ and I saw when we got off the plane at the beginning of our journey. I thought it was fitting because AJ loves taverns. lol

AJ and her Daddy hanging out on Thanksgiving. She takes her holidays very seriously.

AJ hanging out with family on Thanksgiving.

AJ eating whipped cream for the first time. I walked in on this after the fact....

AJ trying to break out of my childhood bedroom at my parent's house. She was hilarious. She would lean over and look at herself in the mirror and just laugh her butt off!

Me and AJ hanging out at D's dad's house the day after Thanksgiving.

AJ and her great-grandpa (who happens to look just like Joe Pa).

AJ, her grandpa and Grandpa's dog, Rocco.

A Big Month!

First and foremost, Happy November! Its finally starting to feel like Fall here. I love it!

The tree in our front yard, taken this morning.

As for me, I have a lot of plans this month.

This weekend I'm heading to my alma mater to have a little reunion with all my college roommates. We (all 7 of us) lived on the same floor in the dorms Freshman year and then continued to live together the rest of our four years there. Sophomore year we were in the dorms again and then Junior and Senior years we rented a 6 bedroom house off-campus! I haven't seen (most of) them since last September when Mandy got married!

Me and most of my girls (Mary is missing from the picture) at Mandy's rehearsal dinner, 2009.

I'm super excited to see them all again but I'm leaving AJ home with D for the weekend and I'm already having mini panic attacks about being away from her all weekend! I know that she'll be fine, its not that, its me missing her so much that I'm worried about.

My second big event for the month of November is the 1/2 marathon in San Antonio. To say that I'm worried about it would be an understatement. Not only am I having the same reservations about leaving AJ home with D and his dad (her grandpa) but I'm also worried about being so sore I can't walk after the race. I have just under two weeks before race day and my vow is to get back out there and run the next two weeks. I reall wish that D and AJ could make the trip to San Antonio with me, but we just decided that it made more sense for him to stay home with her instead of spending all the extra money for them to come. With that being said, the weekend should be super fun. The race is part of the Rock 'n' Roll series, which are always a good time. I ran the RnR half in Pheonix in 2007 and had a blast!

My sister and a friend at the expo before the Pheonix 1/2 marathon, 2007.

The next weekend, my baby sister is coming to visit! Its been a long time since she has seen AJ and I think she's having withdrawals. :) My brother lives close to us, but my sister doesn't so she doesn't get to come out here that often. She's getting ready to spend part of her second semester in Australia, so she really wants to get all the AJ time she can before she leaves!

My sister and me in FL, 2010.

After that, we have Thanksgiving! We're heading back to Hometown, USA for the families' annual traditional Thanksgiving festivities. We'll most likely run the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning with my family, it should be fun!

If you are still with me after all that, I applaud you! Now just imagine how exhausting this month will be. I'm exhausted after just typing it all out. lol Even though it will be a busy month, I'm super excited about all the fun things we have planned.

What do you have going on this month? Any fun plans? Does your family have any Thanksgiving traditions?

Thanksgiving!

I have so many things to be thankful for this year! First and foremost is the fact that D is home with me this year and not in any danger. I am thankful for all the men and women who serve our country, especially those who are not able to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with their families this year.

Secondly, and just as important as the first, I am thankful for this little baby girl growing inside me. I am thankful that she continues to grow and is still healthy! I hope that she continues along this path for her entire life!

I'm also thankful for all my friends and family who have supported D and I through everything during this past year, including his homecoming and this pregnancy. We are so excited to see everyone and we are so thankful for all the wonderful baby gifts that we will be receiving this weekend. We are excited to continue to share our lives with you, and I know that little Baby Gregorio will be so loved by you all.