"Thank you for being a friend" (RIP Blanche)

This past weekend my 4 best friends from college came to Vancouver! We try to get together at least once a year, now that we live all over the place it's not as easy to do as it use to be. Kelly flew in from LA, Abby from Houston, Katy from Minneapolis, and Christy from Dallas. Unfortunately even though it was the end of May, the weather in Vancouver was real sucky. Cold and drizzly the whole time. We made the best of it though! We had plenty of hanging out time watching old videos of us from college (so embarrassing), ate lots of sushi, drank lots of wine, went crabbing - which the girls LOVED, also spent 1 night in Seattle which was a blast. If you're ever there - go to a place called the Crab Pot, they pour all this amazing seafood all over the table and you just chow down. SO YUMMY! It was so good to have everyone here, even though 5 girls and 1 bathroom is a bit tough...Sam stayed at a friend's house half of the time, ha. I have known these girls for 12 years and I know we'll get together at 40 and watch videos from this trip and find them just as embarrassing as the videos from our 20s! LOVE AND MISS YOU GIRLS!!

Chilliwack B&B

A couple of weeks ago, Sam and I decided we needed a weekend away from the city with the dog. We especially needed a weekend together since we are pretty much away from one another the whole month of May! Me in Houston, Sam in England, now he's on his way to the Yukon, Reno, and finally my girlfriends are coming for a visit, yay! We went to this B&B in Chilliwack (1.5 hrs east of Vancouver on the Fraser River) last year and loved the owners so much and had so much fun so we knew we'd be going back. It's also such a beautiful place. We visited Harrison Hot Springs and also Bridal Falls which is the 6th biggest water fall in Canada. I heart British Columbia!!

Little Corn Island, Nicaragua

One of the many secluded coves/beaches on the island

Our little (& VERY simple) hut on the tiny island

Sunrise on our last morning on Little Corn Island

Rum & Cokes!

Me on my 30th bday

After our "life-affirming and harrowing" boat ride to the island. SO HAPPY TO BE ALIVE!!

Granada, Nicaragua photos

Katy and I trying to choose pottery after just learning how it's made by a local potter.

Sunset at the Cathedral

Katy, Bo, Sam, Tiff on top of a Spanish Fort in Lake Nicaragua.

Learning how to make cigars, turns out it's not easy...ours looked awful!

The local kids loved watching videos of themselves on my Flip.

Locals still use horses to get around, it's not all for tourists.

Gorgeous Cathedral in the Parque Central.

Dirty 30 Trip to Nicaragua

(Finally have a pic to post, sam is working on the others)
We're back from Nicaragua!!! And I'm in a new decade of my life and VERY excited about what is still to come in this short time we are all blessed with on this earth. We have 700 pictures to sort through before I can even begin to upload them to this website or anywhere else. We spent a few amazing days in Granada, pretty much the oldest city in the western hemisphere. Then we flew a tiny (scary) plane to Big Corn Island off the Atlantic Coast. After 1 night there we realized it just wasn't what we wanted so we caught the first (SCARY) boat ride to Little Corn Island, 1.5 square miles, no roads or cars, hardly any electricity, lots of backpackers, and gorgeous white sandy beaches. What an amazing trip! Lots of hilarious stories of no electricity, no toilet seats, mice, lots of pepto bismol, and never knowing what the next day would bring us. But also soo many great stories of private lagoons, dollar beers, 6 dollar lobster dinners, me being the dog whisperer to the strays, monkeys on strings, oh and i have a tan!!! What an amazing 30th birthday, couldn't have asked for a better birthday really...and getting to spend it with Sam and 2 of my best friends Katy & Bo, she turned 30 too! So much fun...I have a hankering for a rum and coke right now.

Pictures to come soon, stay tuned!!

Vacay Here We Come!

We leave in 3 days!! YAY!! I can't wait to go somewhere new, be with great friends, have lots of time with my hubby, get some sun, drink some beers, have some laughs, and see my family during our Houston layovers. I've got all my tank tops, shorts, and skirts ready to go. Lots of travel size bottles, we're up to date on our shots, and have taken our first malaria pills. They're suppose to be good for your face but of course I'm breaking out, ha. Sad to take Marley to the kennel on Monday though, that's the only part that I hate about leaving town. I'm sure I'll have lots of great photos to post when we get back...oh and I'll be 30 the next time I write, EEK!! xo to you all!

Nicaragua!

So, I kept saying that this was going to be the year that Sam and I finally take a trip. We've really only been on our honeymoon together and that's about it as far as "just us 2" vacations. I also turn 30 this year so was hoping to do something special for my big day. Well it turns out some of my bestfriends from college, Katy and her husband Bo were thinking the same thing. Long story short, tickets are booked & we're all 4 going to Nicaragua for both of our 30th birthdays in March, yay!!! Above is a picture of Big Corn Island, it's off the coast of Nicaragua, in the caribbean waters. First we'll go to Granada for a couple of days in the "city", and then we'll spend the rest of our time in huts, in the white sands, in the sun, driving golf carts, drinking $1 beers, and eating lobster every day for lunch!! They live in Minnesota and I know are getting sick of the cold gray days like we are - so it'll be a much needed trip with plenty of natural vitamin d haha, good times with friends, and a big adventure! We go to the travel clinic in a week or so and I'm hoping we don't need a bunch of shots...I at least need my tetanus, while I'm there we'll probably get malaria pills, hepatitis a shots, and maybe the h1n1...who knows. I'm terrified of needles but I figure let's just get it all over with and totally protect ourselves!

I can't wait, March 16th could not come soon enough! For now though, this beautiful city of Vancouver that we live in will be hosting the winter olympics soon and we're all praying it doesn't suck on us residents as bad as we're preparing for! I hope they show you all some great shots of this city I've grown to love and you'll all want to come visit. Let the games begin!!