10.24.2010

...halloween in the homestead...

Halloween is probably one of my favorite holiday's. I love the silliness and fun of it all, and the chance for just one night to dress up and be a kid again. Truly, what's not to love? With any holiday, I love adding a few decorative touches throughout the house to make it feel more celebratory. This may seem like an easy task to many, however it's quite hard to walk the fine line between cute and tacky. Here are just a few photos of how we add a little spookiness to our homestead.


Boo!,
R+M

10.18.2010

...in celebration of grandpa...

Three years ago, the world lost an incredible man, my grandfather Glen Stevenson. My grandfather was taken from his loving family and wife way to soon at the young age of 74, and very unexpectedly. He still had so much to offer the world and his family. I'm just grateful my husband got to meet the loving, sarcastic and knowledgeable man that he was. Grandpa always shared his great stories from his years in the Air Force, and his travels during that time. He was a man full of wisdom and could make anyone laugh.

Losing my grandfather was undoubtedly hard, especially since it was the first death I had experienced in my immediate family. At first I thought it would have been so much easier to deal with if he was sick, then we would have expected it. But, I truly don't think loss of a loved one could ever be categorized as easy. Coming upon the three year anniversary that my sweet grandfather left us, I found it as a time to reflect on life, family and of course him. Immediately following his death I kind of closed up and avoided conversations about him as to try and save myself from tears and heartache. As the years have passed the pain isn't less, but I have learned how to deal with it a bit better and am not as embarrassed now by my emotions as I was then. Loss is essentially apart of life, and it's better to reminisce about the people we miss then to avoid it all together. I think these lesson's in life try and teach us to enjoy each day and to never take our loved one's for granted.

Grandpa, I miss you terribly and think of your every day!

xoxo,
R

10.12.2010

...birthday wishes x 4...

October is an extra special month when it comes to birthday celebrations. Four of our close friends, Gen, Christine, Tina and Coty, all have birthday's within days/weeks of each other, with two of them being on the same day. With this comes extra special birthday celebrations which we celebrated over the past weekend. We started the night with a birthday party at Gen's sister's house and continued the celebrations at Ernie's. Happy birthday ladies, here's to many more years and memories together. We feel so lucky to be apart of your special day's.

Here's a few photos from the night...


[two of the bday girls]
[birthday love]
[the other two bday girls]
[i guess something was funny...]
[gavin karaoking at ernie's]
[andrew decided to sing-along]
xoxo,


R+M

10.10.2010

...for the love of tacos...

Yesterday Mikis and I along with a few friends went on the search for the perfect taco at the Arizona Taco Festival. We mainly went in order to accomplish two things, 1. Get the word out about El Hefe, our upcoming bar/restaurant and 2. Find a taco that we love, in hopes to nail down the exact taste we want for our menu. It definitely wasn't a hard day in the office spending time with friends and enjoying a beautiful and slightly warm day in Scottsdale.

Here are a few photos from the day....

[el hefe crew representing]

[the taco fest crowds]
[tasting the competition]
[el hefe checking out the bar]
[we even branded people]
[steven cheersing to tacos]


xoxo,

R+M

10.05.2010

...hello san diego...

San Diego has been like a second home to us these last few years. Besides it being breathtakingly beautiful with picture perfect weather, it's a place we visit often and share many milestone's with, such as our engagement and wedding. There's just something about the air in San Diego that the minute our airplane wheels touch down, I can feel the stress releasing from my body and the feeling of vacation setting in. It just offers an ease to both of us that we long for often, which makes this place a frequent weekend getaway for us. 

Luckily, this past weekend was one where we found ourselves taking a quick four day trip to this beautiful city to enjoy time with friends and decompress. Thankfully, we were able to stay at our great friend's and Mikis' best man Claude & Jen's place, which is in the heart of Little Italy in Downtown. Unfortunately, Jen, Claude's girlfriend was away in Chicago for a bachelorette party which left me as the lucky girl with two "husbands" for the weekend. 

Friday evening we found ourselves enjoying dinner at a new downtown locale, Analog for dinner and a few drinks. The decor and ambiance were cool, but their gourmet take on comfort food was mediocre. After dinner, we took a trip down memory lane and enjoyed a drink at Andaz, the place our wedding took place. Then we danced the night away at Quality Social. Seriously, they had one of the BEST dj's, mixing new and old school tunes.

Saturday the boys enjoyed a "date night" while I spent the day with a friend who was also our wedding coordinator, Kelly. Afterward I joined the boys at Craft & Commerce, our new FAVORITE bar in San Diego, for a nightcap. Seriously had the BEST cocktail's, one specifically that tasted like the end of a tootsie pop, it was unbelievable and obviously memorable.

Sunday, we enjoyed an action packed Chargers game, against our home team the Arizona Cardinals. I don't think I have ever seen such die hard fans, as the Chargers fans are. It was quite contagious being around all of them and just added to the day. 


Here are a few photos from the trip....

[in flight cocktail]
[stay classy san diego]




[nothing goes better with dinner than a little karaoke]
[on to the next bar]
[andaz memories, dirty martini for him and dragonfruit mojito a.k.a. troyanito for me]
[taking a dance break]

[andrew re-hydrating]
[the unbelievable tootsie pop cocktail]

[headed to the seats]
 

[enjoying the game with an adult water]

Thanks for the memories, until next time San Diego..... 

xoxo,
R+M

10.02.2010

...the day it all started...

Six years ago today is when our story first began, the day Rachel+Mikis started, and the day our lives began to intertwine. Although moving forward we will begin celebrating a new date (our wedding date 3.21.10), October 2nd will be a special day in our lives forever. This was the day we had our first date. We remember it like it was yesterday, our first romantic date at Grazie Pizzeria (if you haven't been there, it's a perfect first date place), sharing the Sofia and a bottle of wine. Couldn't have asked for a better way to fall in love.

The past six years have proved to be some of the best days of our lives and we couldn't imagine spending them with anyone else by our side than each other. As we grow together, and as we continue to age, there is one thing that will never change, our love for each other. Here's to many more incredible years. Here are  a few photos to help reminisce and follow our story through the last few years. 

[our first year anniversary]
[mikis's first christmas tree]
[our first "big" trip, buenos aires]
[one of the many food festivals]
[thanksgiving in colorado]
[at one of the many weddings of our friends]
[ringing in another new year in san diego]
[mikis's first parasailing experience]
[another dinner with friends]
[our new home]
[during our engagement photo session]
[one of our fav ferry rides to coronado]
[halloween, where we won 2nd place]
[days before our "i do's"]
[celebrating the culinary fest]
[newlywed love]
xoxo,
R+M
 

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