So, yesterday was Memorial Day. I am very thankful to all the military service men/women who sacrificed their life for my country's freedom. On Saturday we had a BBQ at my house and Brandon's sister's family came as well as Brandon's mom and 2 brothers. We had a great time hanging out and swimming in the diving pool. I originally had set my mind on not swimming seeing as it was only 100 degrees out and still not warm enough for me to swim. However, once I saw how much fun everyone but me was having swimming, I determined to get in, however long it took me. After about half an hour of inching my way in, I decided enough was enough, mustered up my courage, climbed atop the diving board, watched one of my nieces-in-law beckon me a few times, assumed a crouching position, quieted my terrified and screaming thoughts, and dove in! BRRR! Of course, the initial shock was horrible, but after a few seconds it went away and I was good to go! My first swim of 2011! It was really a blast except when one of my toes wouldn't quit cramping downward... ouch!! I drank a bottle of water and ate a banana, upon Andrea's suggestion, and that seemed to help.
I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've blogged. A lot has happened since my last post, for real!! In my last post I had mentioned how I went to the Desert Botanical Garden... I was complaining about it a lot and I wish I hadn't. That was the last time I saw Michelle Pagano. She passed away a few months later on Oct. 28, 2011. She was driving home from her aethsetician class to go pick up her 4-year-old daughter, Téa. She was heading east on the 202 and a drunk driver was going the wrong way down the highway and hit her head-on at about 100mph. He survived, of course... It's really such a tragedy and she is dearly missed. http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/traffic/wrong-way-driver-kills-36-year-old-woman-10282010
On a lighter note (well, actually, a very happy note), I am excited to announce...drum roll, please... Brandon and I bought our first house last year!! :oD We closed at the end of September, 2010. It is a 4br/2ba home, about 2,100sqf, 2 car garage, RV gate, and a diving pool! We're sooo happy we finally have a home of our own and we're not wasting our money sending in a rent check every month anymore! We've already done a little bit of remodeling and a few months ago Brandon built us a backyard shed from scratch!
Also, last year in May, we adopted another doggie! His name is Josh (he came with that name) and he is a brindle Pit. He is the sweetest, most mellow thing you will ever meet. Brandon's mom and also his sister have already said they want to steal him ;o) He and Berlin are inseparable, as you can imagine. The only sad thing is that Josh ruptured his cruciate ligament in both his knees so he limps :o( The vet said the only option is surgery and each leg will cost $1,500!! Holy smokes!! Suffice to say, we're still saving up to afford it.
And speaking of money, thanks to Dave Ramsey, Brandon and I are paying off a lot of debt! Currently we only have 1 other debt besides the house to pay off and we're really excited about it!! We only wish we had started Dave's Total Money Makeover plan years ago! I recommend everyone look into it! He has a nightly show on KTAR at 7pm.
My parents and sister, Emily, came out to AZ to visit about 2 weeks ago. It was a really fun time. Emily stayed at my house so we had a lot of good quality time together. She made me a very cute stuffed panda bear (my favorite animal!) and a beautiful green beanie (my favorite color!). We watched Pride & Prejudice together while eating Taco Bell one night... two of my favorite things in life! Haha... It was fun hanging out with the rest of the fam, too. We playing games like Pass The Pig and video games on the Wii/N64. I am disappointed, however, that I forgot to ask my dad to play a round of Pente with me. :o( Oh, well, they should be back in August anyway because...
...Katie's pregnant with baby girl # 2! She's scheduled to deliver via C-section Aug. 20, 2011!! We're all really excited!!
Well, I best get going before I write a novel!
