5 days with the hubby

Time for an update. So my sweet husband has been working in Arizona, a lot. He spent two weeks there, one week home, and four more weeks there. Then this last Saturday he got to come home to me. Although it was not nearly long enough (only 5 days), it was delightful and needed. Now he is gone for 3 more weeks. I know, bummer. But while we're not looking forward to these next three weeks, we can do it.

I wish I was already done with school, so I could go with him. But I am grateful to be in school and am enjoying the program and things I am learning. We start practicum next Tuesday, so I'll be in Riverton Elementary School everyday for a month or so. I'm excited! Only one more semester after this and student teaching and then done! It is good I'm busy here at home with school, but I obviously get lonely and miss my husband. But we're being positive.

My parents came on Friday to go to the game on Saturday. It is always so good to see them. Saturday, mom and I went shopping at Target. I found some good finds: a new red Crockpot and a candle warmer (which I have been wanting for a while). It is cute and makes the house smell delicious. I love it. I also discovered why all of the gloves have weird things going on on the thumb and pointer finger. My mom and I were thinking that it was such a weird fashion statement. Then, lightbulb! it is so you can still navigate on smartphones. Cool. And it really works. I didn't buy any, but mom did. We are funny. I love my momma.

Fabulous candle warmer that fills the
house with the scent of pumpkin spice. 

Chris flew in on Saturday. After we made it back to Provo, we ate some soup and cornbread with my fam. Then Chris and I went to Pitch Perfect after they had gone home. We have been pretty much partying the whole time he was home. Sunday was wonderful to sleep in together. I suggested Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with the classy Donny Osmond. So we watched and sang the fun musical before church. It's Bible related, right? So I thought it was appropriate :). After church, we had Parker and Kevin over for some crock pot pork chops (made from my fabulous red crock pot). Yummy and the company was great.

After my one class on Monday, we went to lunch at the Olive Garden. I love the endless soup, salad, and bread sticks. Yum yum. After a long nap, I went to work for a bit. For dinner Chris has been craving nachos, so we bought a huge can of the cheese sauce and some jarred jalapenos and of course chips. It was fun and delicious.

at the olive garden

Tuesday, we carved pumpkins. We had to do this while  he was here since he will be gone for Halloween :(. We even had a fun idea for our costumes, but that's ok. There's always next year. Because I don't feel very skilled at the pumpkin carving art, I stuck with the basic: a smiling face. Chris, on the other hand, of course did something fabulous. He mimicked the typical Dia de los Muertos face. It is awesome. And the pumpkins make our front little step look so festive. Papa John's amazing pizza was on the menu for dinner.  Followed by Here Comes the Boom. We had both thought it looked great and were not disappointed. We laughed and it was refreshing it was clean. It was a fun outing and movie. We just partied, I know.

before...

a little help from the hubs

my happy face

Choco's fancy finished product

Yay for fall. The baby pumpkins were
just too cute at Macey's.
I couldn't help myself.

Wednesday, Chris worked unfortunately. But we went to Chili's for dinner. We love the 2 for $20 deal. It is always fun to have an date night out together. It was exciting to talk about ideas and dreams for the future. In conclusion, (I feel like I'm writing an essay=too much school) it was a wonderful few days with the man I love. Such a treat to be with him. I can't wait until that is the normal again. But for now, we have Skype dates, which I'm grateful for. What a blessing technology can be. Hopefully, he will be home for good soon.

His hair is getting long and is sometimes out of control.
But mostly I love his marvelous curls.
Still crossing my fingers our kids will get the
curly hair from him because it is the best. 

This is kind of silly, but I love the evidence
my husband is home: our 2 toothbrushes,
 his razor, and contacts. 

 P.S. It has been beautiful here in Provo. I think that I am ready to get out of here and have some adventures, but honestly it is so beautiful in the fall here. I am grateful for seasons and the mountains. And for Provo, this lovely place where we live.

I love when the clouds hang on the mountains.
and the overcast weather makes the mountains
even more gorgeous with their fall colors.

just my incredible view while
walking on campus.
no big deal.

Happy Autumn!

As I opened the door to go outside this morning, there certainly was a nip in the air. I discovered frost on the grass and even a thin layer on my car. My hands were cold on my way to school in my sweater and jeans. It is fall! I love love love fall and am excited to be enjoying this wonderful season again. Here's to hot chocolate, crunching through leaves, sweaters, and all the other wonderful things that come with autumn.

On the agenda:
Buy some pumpkins and maybe mums to be by our front door. Apple pie (or maybe just apple crisp) baking this weekend. Choco home again on Saturday (hopefully for good). And of course school, lots of school. But practicum is coming up, which is exciting. Halloween costume planning-We have a good idea, and it's going to be too fun.
P.S. I love the leaves changing. On our way up to Midway on Friday to visit Midway Elementary, I had a hard time keeping my eyes on the road because it was BEAUTIFUL! What a blessing to have such beauty surround us.

Viva Mexico!

Last Friday we had our Mexican Independence Day party! It was fun, a little rushed to pull together, but fun.  We made molletes (which is just bread with beans and cheese). It didn't sound super exciting or appetizing to me, but Choco worked his magic and they were delish. He sauteed onions and chorizo and added the beans. I could seriously eat these beans all day long. We also made homemade jamaica, which is a drink made from hibiscus flowers. We bought them dried then boiled them (seen below). Then once it's cold, we added sugar and more water. It was yummy.

Erin and Tyson (and baby Mae) brought homemade delicious churros. We also had some salsas and chips and watermelon. Thanks to my wonderful mama we ended the evening with an incredibly moist and scrumptious chocolate bundt cake to finish it off. Thanks mom!

Besides food, we played a couple of games. First, pin the tail on the donkey. Parker and I found the dollar store version of it, and it was actually really fun even if a little silly. Choco and Park created a pinata for us in 20 minutes before the party started. And can I say it was awesome. It turned out to be some kind of robot construction man full of candy of course. We have fun singing the song and swinging. Of course I don't know the words to the song except for uno, dos, and tres so the rest of the time I just make up words. I know the tune :) does that count for something?

making the robot piñata

Park and me

Amy and Jamir

lovely Erin (Tyson and baby Mae are behind)

pin the tail on the burro

 bad picture: but we even had lights up. it was quite quaint

I sure do love him

Anyways, all and all a good time had. Viva Mexico!

School is going great. Busy but good. It is too fun to have Park in Provo now. He is just a quality man and I love him.

Fall is coming... I love love love it! Sweaters, apple cider, cool weather, scarves, etc. etc. I'm so excited.

Also, I have been riding my fabulous bike to school. Here are the pros: First, it is too cute. Second, it is a little exercise (granted I don't live very far from campus but still). Finally, it is faster than walking so I can sleep a little bit longer. And I'm also not using gas and struggling to find a parking spot. In conclusion, win win win. I love it!

Choco is gone, again, for work to Arizona. Thank goodness I'm busy with school but of course I still miss him. Three weeks this time. :( We are grateful for work though and for skype. I love to see his lovely face. We will survive :) 

My husband

My husband is gone to Arizona for two weeks :(  He is working there because they were short-handed.  

I just miss him. I'm a bit lonely. And I realize what a blessing it is to see him everyday regularly.

 I sure do love him.

We really do have fun together. One example: A bubble gum blowing contest in the car.  

I think he won. I love that we can be silly. We try to enjoy life and all of its moments. 

Here's to Livin' la vida Lopez!

1 Splendid Year

As of Monday, Choco and I have been married 1 splendid year. To celebrate we had a little getaway to Park City. We went on Saturday afternoon. First, we went to the outlets and wandered around. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) we did not find any things we needed.

Then we checked into our hotel I found on Priceline: Park City Peaks. It was cute and perfect for our evening away. After taking a nap, we got ready for dinner. Choco had made reservations at a restaurant called Grappa. It was quite the experience and really memorable.

Grappa was a beautiful, quaint little restaurant. And it was fancy. Much more fancy than anything we've had before, which made for a fun experience. The ambiance was worth it. It was too cute. We sat on a balcony outside with lights strung and trees surrounding us. It was in this fabulous old building which was full of wonderful little details. I went into the bathroom and couldn't get over the decor. I came back and told Choco he had to go check it out. After seeing people with their popular antipasto appetizer, I figured that we should have the experience and go for it. One thing I discovered from this whole experience is that I am not as fancy as I thought I could be. I don't think our taste buds are super refined for some interesting items. For example, the antipasto included some horrible tasting items including super stinky cheese that was not delicious. There were some delicious components, including duck (who knew we would like that) and some different meats.

For our entrees, I ordered beef cannelloni which turned out to look like some kind of Mexican food (maybe little chimichangas or something) and Choco ordered "lasagna" which was like no lasagna we had ever seen before (no red sauce and it was just one roll). All and all the food was pretty good, but I expected it to blow my socks of considering the prices.

It was too fun to have the experience: observe the fancy old people around us drinking wine, enjoy the ambiance, and pretend like we were also refined.

We love love Chopped on the Food Network. Right now we're kind of obsessed. And because we watch it, we like to pretend we are experts and can critique foods. This experience maybe proved us wrong. I guess it really is a good thing because we cannot afford to eat like that every weekend. Maybe once every five years.

Afterwards we strolled down Main Street and got some amazing ice cream to share. It was a wonderful getaway, and we were back in time Sunday for church.

It is crazy but wonderful it has already been a year. We both feel really blessed to have had such a splendid year. I truly am so grateful for Choco and the blessing of being his wife. What a blessing that this is only one year of eternity. It has been good to learn from each other and enjoy life together. Choco is the best!! All and all I am very very grateful for my husband and the blessings we have. It sure has been 1 splendid year!!

The Lopez family visits

The past four weeks we've had Chris' mom, little brother, and sister staying with us from Mexico. It was a long trip, but we had some fun and memorable times. Unfortunately, I seem to be the worst picture taker ever. I did capture a few of the fun times. Some of the others I will just have to give a report on.

Amy, my sister-in-law, works at Creativity Art Studio so we were able to go in and all paint mugs. It was very fun. Everyone is quite artistic (except me :). Choco had to work, so he did not get to participate. Here are some pics of the artists at work:

Some of my favorite times were barbecuing, swimming, and playing volleyball at Amy and Jamir's. We ate some delicious food, enjoyed the refreshing water, played games in the pool, and had a lot of fun with volleyball. Even though I am not very good at volleyball, I had a great time. We laughed a lot and even got a little competitive.

Other fun activities included shopping (of course) and some painting. We bought some wood things and spent a bit of time painting and being crafty. It was great to spend time with Mama Lopez and Amy. The following pics: Amy painting her "Lopez", my wreath in progress, and Mama Lopez' sled.

We also went to the Manti Pageant. Mama Lopez was sick for a quite a few days which was a bummer. So, Choco, Kenia, Jair, and me took a trip to the pageant. I had never been before, so it was good to have the experience. It was fun. Pics: eating before the show and at the performance.

Movies:
We watched Brave, which I just loved. I loved the scenery and of course her crazy red hair. Kenia and I watched the Katy Perry movie, which I enjoyed quite a bit. We had fun. I was glad she was here to go with me because I don't think that is what Choco would like to watch.

Food:
Mama Lopez was so great to cook a lot, so we enjoyed delicious Mexican food. We also made a few visits to the Golden Corral. The day the Chris' dad flew into Salt Lake, we ate at the Cheesecake Factory which is always delicious. It was an eventful dinner because Jair opened his mission call!! He is going to Oaxaca (in Mexico. Fun fact: it is where Nacho Libre was filmed). He leaves in November and is super excited. He will be a great missionary. He is kind of the go-to man for anything that we needed to be done: laundry, dishes, moving cars, etc. etc. He is very sweet and funny. We're excited for him.  

All and all we had some fun times. I must confess it is nice to have the house back to ourselves. Our basement apartment is not that spacious and seems to have been full to the brim the last month. It is nice to have some breathing room and also alone time. I feel like we're newlyweds again :). Speaking of which we are coming upon our one year anniversary!! Crazy how the year has flown by. We are still very happy and loving life together. So that is good news.

It was fun to have the in-laws here with us. I really do love them and am grateful to be a part of a wonderful family.

A little Disney magic

A few weeks ago I got to go with my mom, dad, and Park on a trip to California. Unfortunately, Choco had to work. He is so wonderful and got this new job that as great opportunities for him. So, he stayed at home working 12 hour days in the hot sun, not eating very often :( while we were partying. He is a trooper, and I love him so much!

Our trip was so fun, full of delicious food, exciting days in Disneyland, enjoying the beach, and Hairspray at Tuachan. Here is is in pictures.

The Most Magical Place on Earth:
Although Parker and I may seem too old for Disneyland, we really did have such a fun time. I kind of felt like little kids again. Park is great to bring excitement and fun. I loved him as a little boy, and now I sure do love him as a man. He is so grown up, all graduated and such. We're very excited for him to be here in Provo in the fall. Anyways, it was kind of good all being adults because we could go hard. We still got tired but didn't have to worry about exhausted little kids. We played all day (except maybe a few naps :). I must confess though, I was kind of wishing I had some little kids with me to experience the magic.

Our favorite ride: the Screamer (such a fun roller coaster with everything a good roller coaster should have. rode it three times). I looove Churros, especially from Disney (as is seen in this picture as it is almost gone). 3-D glasses for the classic Star Tours. "Mountain Splash" as Park called it when he was little. Some Thunder Mountain Railroad. Space Mountain. And wet from Splash (we went at 9am which meant no line but we were a bit chilly for a minute)

California Adventure has a Ferris wheel. I normally think it would be fun and a great view. But we were in a rocking car, so it was a little scary for me. I almost had a heart attack. :( But I survived. I don't think I will be riding this one again though. 

Ready to go in the car. It's a Small World was actually fabulous this time. I think they've updated it. I even bought a picture book that came with a CD of the familiar song. Park and I rode the classic teacups: I think I am getting older because I was a bit dizzy after. We had to pose in Mickey and Minne's house in Toontown. The train around the park was great, minus the hilarious dinosaurs. Fun. fun fun.

We watched the fun parade twice. Gotta love some Disney magic, music, dancing, and characters. Mom and I loved it. Mickey was playing the drums, Donald was hitting a pinata, and we saw some princesses and Tink too. Rapunzel was our favorite. She was so cute! Loved the parade. 

Minus Disneyland and the beach, food was incredible on our trip. We ate a variety of foods and treats. Everything was so so delicious, even a Taco Bell chalupa late at night. Included above: Haagen Dazs, The Olive Garden, Miquel's delicious Mexican food, my first time at P.F. Changs (extremely yummy), and incredible Italian ice. Fun times and good food. 

Our Sunday adventures: church in the morning. The church had an open air center or like a courtyard. We thought it was so weird and unique. It would clearly not work in the snow of Idaho or Utah. Church was wonderful full of good people. Then we visited the Mormon Battalion visitor's center. It is very well done. We were really glad we got to go. We went to Hotel del Coronado, which is really old and lovely. It was fun to walk along the beach as well. We visited the temple and walked around. It is lovely. Overall, a nice day with the fam. 

The beach was fun. Unfortunately, it was a little chilly our day at the beach. Mom and I kept on our sweatshirts the whole time. Park and Dad were a bit more adventurous and had fun in the water. Parker was also hilarious with his ukulele throughout the trip. He played in the car... a lot :) and even on the beach. He is so cute. We visited Huntington Beach our last day in California. It was beautiful with the sunset. Very picturesque. I was wishing my Choco was there to kiss me on the beach.

We also saw Hairspray at Tuachan in St. George. We had great seats, and the musical was super fun.

All and all, it was a fun vacation full of good times and food. I love my family, and it was fun to spend time with them. It was also good to get back to my husband. He is a hard working man. His family is coming to today to spend a few weeks with us. We're excited to party with the Lopez family.