A Very Special Day...

The holidays are coming so soon, and sometimes, like this weekend when White Christmas came on the radio, I think of my GiGi, and how I miss her so much. But this year, it seems like I miss her even more, and the joy she had brought to not just my life, but everyone around her. If you knew her, I don't even need to explain.

And so this year, as December 10th, 2007, 20 years to the day since she passed, I have decided to reflect upon the time that we have with family, and the time we had with family.

My last Christmas with her was so special. GiGi had a special jewelry box where she kept my dress up jewelry, jewelry she wasn't ready to give me, but that sure made me look stunning, at 9 years old, for a grand party with her mink stole. On the Christmas after she passed, that jewelry box was wrapped up for me, with a card from GiGi, and I remember thinking, even at 9 years old, she knew. She knew that she wasn't going to be there in body for Christmas, and had to find a way to be there otherwise, and to show her love and support for her family.

So as White Christmas played on the radio this weekend, one of her favorite songs to have me play on the record player, I think of her, and the special moments that she brought to my life, and just how lucky I am, to have known and loved her for my first 9 years. Okay, no tears.

Which ever way the wind blows!

Our little town of Shell Beach was hit very badly with wind last night. Fortunately, our home didn't have any damage, just a rose that was knocked down, that Mike promptly planted this morning. However, the noise was so loud, that I think I have about 3 hours of sleep running through my body! Trash cans knocking, trees whistling, and I posted a few pictures of the damage some of our neighbors have...

This house is directly across the street. The carport caved in on their car (which was inoperable anyways) and we saw a few people out there trying to figure out how to resolve the matter... my solution? Bulldozer...


These are our next door neighbors... all of her plants fell down, and in the front of her house, a few of them broke... I think this was the noise that kept me up last night!

No need for "Trading Spaces"!

So this was a weekend of great accomplishment. My MIL came into town on Friday night, and spent the weekend with us to help us get settled in to our new home. She knew I had a slew of projects to complete, so she offered to help us on what we needed, and we picked the kitchen. In light of the baking season coming just around the corner, we decided to revamp the kitchen a little to get it to a more usable state. There are a couple things we are still going to do, but here is the kitchen after a weekend of redecorating! My mom came to help, and we got most of it done on Saturday night!


This is a dark picture, but we added curtains and a towel hook, plus some of my bread baskets.

We needed to get the microwave off the counter, and added two shelves with chrome accents.

We also added two shelves here, to eliminate the wire shelving unit that was here before. Now, the dogs have an actual place for their dishes by the trash can.

And in this picture, you can see we added a utensil rack above the stove. We also reorganized the top of the fridge, so Mike can have easy access to the panini grill (which he lives for).

So not too shabby for a weekend worth of work! Still to come, we are planning on painting the kitchen and redoing the cabinets. We have all the hardware, just need the time, and with Christmas coming up, it may wait until January!

the post thanksgiving blues... or blacks

Thanksgiving is right around the corner... literally like a week away... and I, like most people am completely unprepared. So I decided really, in order to keep up with the holidays, to skip Thanksgiving, and go right into Christmas.

Okay, no, I won't skip it... we are doing the traditional fare, but with just a 14 lb. turkey, and six of us, which is a huge step down from our usual holiday.

However, I feel that if I get a jump on Christmas now, I can actually enjoy the weeks before it... trimming the tree, sending out cards, shopping, wrapping, and baking... all in preparation of my favorite holiday of the year.

So with that, I give you the hideous black friday ads... yes, I have already started scouting and scouring, hoping to find great Christmas finds... hope I don't sound too much like the all American consumer...

the babies are here! the babies are here!

The babies are here! My friend Monika's twins did indeed bless us with their presence on Friday, November 9th, at about 12:45pm (that is my estimate)... and they are beautiful! For me, this experience was surreal. To be present through this entire pregnancy, and then all of a sudden watch her as she embraces her two boys, there are no words. So now I know what all the fuss is about. And although Mike and I aren't ready to add to our family yet, at least I know, that between the both of us, we will cherish that day, above all others, when it does come.

Meet Dustin Matthew and Conor Edward

Don't drink the water!

So my friend Melanie is correct... fertility is in the air, and tomorrow will be the birthday of two very special boys that my dear friend Monika will be having. For those of you that don't know, she is currently full term with twin boys, Dustin and Conor who will be gracing us with their presence tomorrow!

And yes, through the six degrees of separation, there are probably at least a half dozen women that I know who will be having a baby in the next 8 months, not to mention the half dozen women I know who have had babies in the last year.

So with that, I pass on Melanie's Chinese Birth Calendar, (click on link), which, I do have to say, Mel, was incorrect for Monika's twins, but lets see about the rest of you! Please post a comment to show us if it was correct in predicting the sex of your child(ren).

Oh, and PS: as if it wasn't hard enough having to deal with the Bleske male sperm dominance, it looks like the Chinese have depleted my odds even more...

Halloween came and went!

Halloween came and went so fast this year, we barely had time to plan anything considering the whole moving process... but I have some great photos of Lady and Thor, and of my mom's new dog Lucy...

Here's Thor as a bumble bee...

Here is Lady Bug!

And of course, the little stinker, Lucy...

The Adventures of a New Home... part I

It is true... we are moving... I feel for anyone going through the horrible process they call house hunting... especially renting in a market like this... my deepest sympathies.

Mike and I were looking for the perfect house, one we can call home and can fit all of our needs, and the needs of our family. Guess what... we finally found that house! Yes, it needs a little TLC, and has been empty over the last few years, but it is exciting that we know it won't take very much for us to make it our own and make it feel like home... know why?

Yes, that is why it looks familiar, it is 221 Santa Fe! This is the house that my mother and I moved into when I was 6 months old... the one I grew up in... learned how to ride a bike in front of, and left, when it was finally time for me to move out on my own.

I have posted some pictures we took of the house, as it is now, empty, so you can see what it now looks like! In my next blog, I will post some pictures of the house growing up, and then will definitely post when we are all moved in! Move in date is right around the corner, October 15th!

Here is the view from the street...

Here is the front of our house!

Here is our backyard... plenty of room for dogs!

A very horrible picture of the garage (from the window)...

Our little kitchen! Back to basics!

Our front room... the curtains are left from my mom!

This is the future office (excuse the dark picture)...

This is the master bedroom, and the master bath (ha ha) is below...

This was always known as the middle bedroom, and will be a guest bedroom...

Stay tuned for more pictures from the past and future!

Michael's Birthday... another one bites the dust!

Most of you know that Mike's birthday is on Thursday, and we decided to have a small get together on Friday night when Jason, his brother, was in from Vegas. The theme?

It was Mike's Redneck Trailer Trash Birthday Bash! We had all you need to pull it off! The menu included pork rinds, vienna sausages, pigs in a blanket, spam and velveeta picks, and cheese whiz in a can atop ritz crackers.

Our decorations included sheets for curtains, a clothesline with socks, etc. strewn over them, and Jerry Springer playing on the tube! Prize for best costume? A ceramic gnome with a chip in it of course!

Here are some pics from the bash!

The Bleske Family is not for sale...

Well... here it is! Our house is for sale, and we had our first open house yesterday, with much anticipation... It went well, I think, with a few prospects (pretty good, considering yesterday was the first Sunday of football) and a few looky loo neighbors.

So I figured there would be some neighbor looky loos, no doubt that all of us have been guilty of this before, but what really got me, was when our real estate agent called us today and said our neighbors two doors over came to the open house because they wanted to buy our furniture! No interested in the house, just our furniture...

I know I can over react a little (god knows my family has seen it) but it makes you feel a little vulnerable when you know that your neighbors really didn't have any interest in actually seeing the house or what you have done to it, but just what possessions you have...

The best thing I think I learned from it is to remember that when you attend an open house, people are opening their house AND home to you, so be courteous and respectful... and know your boundaries...

Down in Mexico...

I just realized that I have not done anything with our honeymoon pictures! I don't think anyone has even seen any of them!

So I decided to post some pictures from our 7 day cruise to Mexico. You have to keep in mind that a) none of these pictures will be x rated... after all, I let my parents and in-laws see this blog and b) it was a honeymoon... so I think maybe there are two or three pictures of us together? Most of the pictures we took of eachother!

Here is a picture of our stateroom on the ship. When we originally booked, we booked an ocean view room, but they upgraded us to a balcony! It was very spacious (compared to the other cabin I have been on) and made a huge difference to be able to sit on the balcony with our coffee in the morning! Mike said he will never do it any other way...

Being the picture taker I am, I had to get mike in front of signs, by policemen, etc. Here is an example of my work... he he... we were in Puerto Vallarta touring our way through the city on foot.

This was our first tour of Puerto Vallarta. We woke up docked, and walked out on our balcony to see our surroundings. What's the first thing we see? A Wal-Mart! I wanted to get a good shot off of our balcony of the city, and am blocking Wal-Mart with my head.

The pictures here, though, were of our favorite part of the trip. We booked an excursion to see an old tequila ranch (no longer in production) in Mazatlan. It was beautiful. They have since turned it into a resort, named Hacienda las Moras. We sat by the pool, drank margaritas (mexican margaritas, so you know they are good) and had a great authentic lunch. Check out their website for more pictures. The picture of us was actually taken right next to an old chapel that is part of the property. The chapel used to serve all the families in the area for marriage ceremonies!

The view from the cheap seats...

This weekend we had a great opportunity... we got to go see the Oakland Athletics vs. Detroit Tigers in Oakland on Saturday! Our friends V and Trish took us up there, and we had a blast!

We were three rows back from home plate where you literally can call balls and strikes. Here are a few pictures from the game...

We were sitting amongst both A's and Tigers fans, but we were directly in front of two guys from Detroit... I felt like Uncle Barry and Uncle Dean (Mike's uncles from Michigan) were sitting right behind me! And then, of course, like any Californian, I had to make fun of them when they ordered a pop (pronounced pa-ap)... they were good sports!

I have to say, I loved the Detroit fans around us... callin' plays, having fun... drinking beers... but the A's fans around us? Drinkin' lattes and talking about the latest gallery opening... what a difference!

Okay... lets try this again...

Not too long before the wedding, I started a blog, and it was great fun... until the wedding process got to be too much! So now here I am, fresh, to keep connected with family and friends, and show you great pictures of life as the newest Bleske Family...