HERE'S THE STORY

And I may lose some readers over this...

{circa 2005. my family all rallied together to show the spurs some support. they won the championship a month before we got married}

Yes, I was born and raised in the Los Angeles area, but I was raised by a serious anti-Laker fan. When my dad moved here from the Philippines when he was only 7, the first basketball game he ever watched was a Lakers-Celtics game. His family decided to be Laker fans, my dad, at the very young age, defied his family and became a Boston Celtics fan. I was raised a Laker hater.

Well, as a little girl I wanted to be a Boston Celtics cheerleader and I remember saving my monies to buy my dad a Larry Bird book at the school book fair. Then as a I grew older, I vowed to not marry a sports loving man because I got tired of my dad hogging the television when the games were on. It all changed when I met Ben. Ben is from San Antonio, Texas transplanted in southern California and he introduced me to the Spurs. As I fell in love with Ben, I fell in love with Spurs and basketball. I enjoyed watching basketball games and it stuck. In college, I used to even log into Spurs Talk to read all the discussions in the forums. The Spurs are such a classy organization and they were easy to fall in love with.

The fact that I was raised by an anti-Laker was a dream come true for Ben. For someone who detests them, but moved to a city of Angelenos, he kinda lucked out that he ended up marrying a girl who was raised under an anti-Laker. We're kind of rare commodity here in southern California. If I had been a Laker fan, that may have been a deal breaker for him.

Here we are. The Spurs went out on game 6. What makes this even tougher is that San Antonio won 20 straight. It was an unexpected season. Then to lose 4 straight games, it was an unexpected ending. That's how God planned it though. God knows better, right? As game 6 began to unravel and my stress levels increased because of the sadness that seemed to be imminent, the thought that stood out to me was that I don't even feel this heavy for God's kingdom. God's using these losses as heart checks for me.

We're sad over here. We sat in the dark as the game ended. Stunned in disbelief. We were so hopeful. Then Ben asked to cuddle (he's cute!) and he told me stories of when he was little and a huge Spurs fan in the 80's and about how much he loved the Spurs even when they were losing and not so great of a team and watched them grow into the great team they are. We gotta give it to OKC. They put up a good fight and won.

The girls were in bed and Ben had to break the news to them. True came out of her room and said, "Papi, I'm sad that there's not going to be a parade." She really wanted to go and we might have just made it out there for one.

Yeah, I know this isn't a basketball blog, but it's part of our family. The girls know all the players and we all get into it together. It's all part of creating memories together as a family. Now, we might need to move out of state to ensure that the girls don't marry Laker fans. That's gonna be a tough one though. What are the chances that all four girls marry anti-Laker fans? Hmm... not sure about that.

Now we wait to see who OKC will play. If you have been following this story, then you know who we will be rooting for. We don't like the Heat. We don't really want OKC to win because frankly, we don't care for Derek Fisher, so, come on Boston... let's do this! And now the basketball coverage will continue on with baby sister because she loves the Celtics just as much as we love the Spurs.

Good job Spurs! We still love you!!! #gospursgo

LET'S DO THIS

{circa 2005, a month before we got married}

Dear Spurs,

Okay, three straight losses after a 20 game win streak really hurts. Like really. Like so bad that I really couldn't even watch the game and had to go to the grocery store just to get out the house because the stress was too much hurt. 

Here's the deal. You got two more chances. I do realize if you lose, and I hope you don't, it's cause it wasn't God's will for you to win. I get that. God's got a bigger picture in mind and somehow this comes into play even though I don't understand, so I will trust in it. But I would really like it if you somehow got out of your slumped and just nailed it. I know you can. Be smart. Capitalize. Make some stops. Get nasty.

Amidst the heart crushing loss of tonight's game and Ben and I really feeling down in the dump sad about it, like seriously we got some real sadness going on here, there is more to life than basketball. As much as we love you Spurs, you will never satisfy. If we base our happiness on you, we will be left more empty than full. We will only find true joy and satisfaction in Christ. We struggle with loving God and more often find excitement in things that don't matter. Ahem... in things like you. Sorry to say as much as we love you, our loving you doesn't make a dent in eternity. In fact, you pretty much are just a time waster. With all of this, we gotta thank you for making this game be a heart check for us. Our hearts being so sad after your loss, makes us realize we aren't loving Christ and living our life the way He has called us to, so for that we thank you. 

Anyways, we got game 6 in two days, so get your act together and let's give them Thunders a big spanking! Come on Spurs... let's do this!  #gospursgo

Love,

the Bratchers who really want to go back to SA for a championship parade!

OUR HANDMADE CHRISTMAS GIFTS

Yes, I am really going all the way back to Christmas. It seems like so long ago now, doesn't it?! Next thing you know, it will be Christmas again!

This past Christmas, Ben and I decided it would be fun to make each other's gift. We wanted to make this a bit more interesting, so we wanted to compile a list of up to 10 things that we could use to make the gift. We were going to come up with the list ourselves, but thought we might be too biased with the materials we are familiar with, so we sought help from the the most creative duo out there... Shauna & Stephen from Something's Hiding In Here. Anything those two come up with is pure genius, so we know by asking them, we were sure in for a challenge.

These are the ten items they came up: old book, kids' painting, well-worn shirt, paint, reclaimed wood, glass jar, recycled leather, something from nature, photograph, and wire.

We also added one little bonus called "a secret ingredient" that meant we could use an additional item of our choice. All ten items didn't have to be used in the gift either. We were both excited about the challenge, but were both so nervous cause we really wanted to make something special for the other.

Here is my gift to Ben...

I wanted to give Ben something that had a little message on it and this is what I came up with. The reclaimed lumber was purchased on etsy because I don't have the time to go looking for reclaimed wood with 4 girls in tow. The old book page was from a vintage book we already had. The photo was printed onto the book page and was taken at our engagement shoot by David Jay. The kids painted some other old book pages and those are layered under the painting to give it some texture. They also painted the left side of the piece. In total, I used 6 out of the 10 ingredients. Plus, my "secret ingredient" of mod podge to get the book page onto the wood.

I really do love Ben very much and wanted him to know so!

Now, Ben's gift to me made my jaw drop. His gift was so darn creative that I was just in awe the moment I saw it (he gave me his gift first that I wanted to hide the gift I made him because his was just so cool!)...

Seriously?!! A ship in a bottle?!! Using 9 out of the 10 things on our list?!! Dude has got some talent!

He found the glass jar at an antique shop and it had to be the perfect size for his ship. The kids' painting and paint was the blue for the ocean. The ship base was a piece of reclaimed wood from some vintage moulding. The wire he used was cut from hangers. Wow! I wouldn't have thought of that! His something from nature item were the little sticks from a tree in our front yard that make up the mast of the ship. He used a scrap from an old t-shirt of his for the one of the sails, a little piece of an old book page (that was leftover from this v-day present) for the front sail, and a photograph, along with a homage to the list givers (their mustache on a sticks were used in the picture), for the middle sail and his secret ingredient was black thread to hold up all the sails!

I was floored by the amazingness of his creation. I kept staring and staring and it (and still like to stare at it!). It can even fold flat to come out of the bottle and be put back in. I am in complete wow and love it so much!!!

Both our gifts are near each other displayed in our home. I even put little lights behind the bottle so it gives it a little twinkle at night. I really loved coming up with something for Ben and I love seeing how he used his creativity for me. Giving handmade gifts are the best and we may just make this a new tradition every Christmas! Maybe we'll ask a different couple each year to come up with a list. I would love to have a nice collection of handmade Christmas gifts for each other!

Thanks Shauna & Stephen, your list was pure genius and it was super fun for us to make something for each other using it!!! You guys seriously rock!!!

a six-nniversary homecation

Not only did we do a staycation to celebrate our Six-nniversary, but we did a homecation! We dropped the girls off at my parents' Friday night, went a quick little dinner date, did some grocery (had to do extra on Saturday morning too) then headed home.

It was super duper nice to have peace and quiet in the house, wake up late (9am is late for us), go to the grocery together, cook together (okay, Ben cooked and I watched and chatted), have romantic dinners by the candlelight, watch movies, not change any diapers, and just do a lot of loungin' and lovin' all weekend long. We weren't in the mood to be out and about. We spend so much time making our house a home, working to pay for our house and getting caught up in the busyness of life that we never just get to really enjoy our home and relax in it. The weekend was exactly what we wanted and needed. I think I am about ready for another homecation!

On Saturday night, the menu included Brown Rice Paella (substituted soyrizo for chorizo) and rice pudding for dessert. The paella was amazing, but my rice pudding... um, not so much. We even got a paella pan and Ben got fancy cooking it outside on the grill (thanks to a crash course from Alton Brown). We set up a little romantic spot outside for us and enjoyed the food, each other, and being under a canopy of twinkle lights.

Sunday night's menu was Chicken Tikka Masala (substituted greek yogurt for whole milk yogurt and heavy cream) on basmati rice accompanied with some fresh Mango Lassi. My dessert this night turned out much better than the rice pudding! The recipe was pretty good, but it did have a bit of a "canned tomatoey taste". We will be trying another recipe in the future.

We totally loved being able to enjoy our home, kitchen, and our backyard. The best part was just being together. We are able to have 6 years under our belt only by God's amazing grace. There is nothing special about us that we are able to sustain a happy marriage, the only reason we are able is because of Christ. When we celebrate our marriage, we are celebrating Christ and the covenant we are in with Him and with each other.

The girls came home late Sunday night and we continued our celebrating with them by taking them to the beach the next day and we ended the night grabbing some yogurt at our favorite place around the corner.

It was an utterly perfect and completely chill weekend. We definitely need to have more of these!

And in case you missed our slice of life videos, I made a couple for our homecation. I couldn't find my Zumi so these were made using Ben's iphone and the iSupr8 app. It is pretty cool, but the developing is kind of a pain. I will be definitely looking for a much more quick filming friendly app.

Every time we go on a trip, we normally have a special playlist to help us mark that time, even though we didn't go anywhere, we still had one, so all weekend long we listened to Me & Mr. Cassidy. Love them! Hope you enjoy our videos...

{song is Seven Seas by Me & Mr. Cassidy}

{song is All I Need by Me & Mr. Cassidy}

And in case you are wondering, the workshop went fantastic! There is so much to blog about it and that will be coming some time this week. And now that the workshop is over, I promise our love story will continue too...

our little love story: the invite

Our church youth group used to put on these "coffee shops" where we would invite our friends, have live music, the Word of God, and just hang out. These coffee shops would usually take place in my parents' backyard. We had one in mid-November of '01 and I so badly wanted to invite Ben, but decided not to because 1) my ex-boyfriend and I had just broken up and didn't want to cause any drama bringing a guy around even if he was just a friend 2) he was much older and cooler than me, so why would he ever want to hang out with a 19 year old 3) I didn't even know how to invite a guy like Ben. He was too dreamy and just made me nervous all over!

But then a God-thing happened... the day before the coffee shop, while Ben and I were working the fitting rooms together, he told me that my ex-boyfriend (well, he didn't say ex-boyfriend then, but used his name) had invited him to the church event going on at my house and to talk to me about it! Aye carumba! You bet I was excited!!!

You may be wondering if Ben knew that guy was my ex-boyfriend and he did, not from me because I didn't dare tell him, but my ex-boyfriend had mentioned to him that I was his ex-girlfriend and that we may eventually get back together, yada yada... I told you, usually that relationship was a never ending cycle. Not healthy at all, but it is hard to let go and takes some time (or in my case, someone) to do so.

Anyways back to the story. I was so excited that Ben knew about it and not from me that I was totally playing it cool and saying things like "Yeah, you should definitely come!" Another God-thing was that Ben and I were practically neighbors. When he decided to move out to Southern CA he moved in with his cousin's family, who happened to live 10 minutes from me! Seriously, that was all God's planning, though we didn't really know it at that time. Thus, I was also telling him that it was so close by to his house, that he might as well come by! I even got bold and told him I would pick him up and give him a ride if need be. I figured hey! I didn't invite him, someone else did, so the least I could do is reach out and be courteous, right?!! Right.

Well, I wrote down my phone number and my address and I was so nervous while doing so. I wanted to make sure my penmanship looked fabulous, but was too giddy inside that my writing came out horrible. Then, he wrote down his info for me on a Gap business card. I remember bidding him farewell because I was off work before him, but still reminding him to come to the coffee shop.

The next day was pretty busy setting up my house for the coffee shop. There were lots of kids from the youth group cooking, practicing, and getting everything ready. But in the afternoon, amidst the chaos, I distinctly remember my parents saying, "Ruby! Phone!"

I yelled, "Who is it?"

They said, "Some guy named Ben."

Ahh!!! My insides melted. Oh. My. Gosh. He called! Then, I looked at them and said, "It's the cute guy! The cute guy!"

I tried to stay calm, grabbed the phone, and went upstairs to where it was much more quiet. Once I got off the phone, I declared to my friend Nina and parents that I was going to pick up "the cute guy!" His car had broken down and he asked if I could pick him up, so he could attend. I remember my dad saying, "Take Nina with you." but I didn't want to and said, "Don't worry, I will be fine." Oh, I am so sneaky.

I picked him up and was so nervous about my driving because I didn't want him to think I was a bad driver. He came, met a lot of my friends, listened to the music and message, met my family, came into the house and looked at the family pictures my mom had up on the wall (this part is important because my mom says that at this moment and the way he was observing our family pictures, she knew this was going to be the guy for me, but she knew we had some obstacles to overcome first). He is a very well-mannered guy and a really good listener that made him easy to talk to. Though, people do say when you talk to him it feels like he is looking into your soul that you almost have to look away, but I think it is those huge eyes of his and the fact he is really attentive. The end of the evening came and it was time for me to drive him home.

As we were leaving, my ex-boyfriend walked up to the car and reminded me that we were going to go to Denny's together with our group of friends (he had no idea I was totally infatuated with our co-worker) and that he would wait for me. He asked Ben if he wanted to go and Ben politely declined and then I just said, "I'll be back" and left.

Once we got to Ben's house, we started making out. Kidding! We really didn't. Actually, we just started talking. My car was still running because I thought we were just going to chat a bit and he was going to get out, but he didn't and we didn't chat just a bit, but chatted for well over an hour with my car running the whole time! I didn't want to turn off the engine because I didn't want him to feel obligated to keep the conversation going, but he never got out, so the conversation kept going. We were just joking a lot and I remember just looking at him while he was talking and ogling about his cute face inside my head! He finally did get out and I drove home.

When I got home almost 2 hours later, my best guy friend called me saying I was in trouble because I was supposed to go to Denny's with you know who and you know who was waiting a long time for me to come back. Oops! That night did start drama and talk amongst people even if nothing was going on, but it was bound to happen. It was funny too cause when I went into my bedroom that night, I noticed all the pictures of my ex had been put face down thanks to my friend Tiff who was trying to send me a subliminal message. It worked eventually, but drama was definitely involved for a few months.

Honestly, I was really attracted to Ben, but I really didn't think anything would happen. At that point, he was just eye candy and from my conversations with him, I didn't want anything to happen because I knew he didn't even believe in God. I never wanted to get into anything with someone who didn't believe the same thing as me, but I didn't mind hanging out with him since he needed Jesus after all, so someone had to tell him, and he wasn't so bad on the eyes...

I remember Ruby's ex-boyfriend inviting me to this "coffee shop," which sounded like a large number of people from their church hanging out and fellowshipping on a Saturday evening. It was a polite offering, but let's just say at the time it wasn't at the top of my list of things I really wanted to be doing on a Saturday night, even though Ruby had followed up his invite with an invite of her own.

I had gone out with a co-worker, and a group of his friends that Friday night before (a night that involved a limo, clubbing, and dancing on tables in LA). After crashing at his place in Long Beach, I was ready to head back home Saturday afternoon... to get ready for a night of hanging out with "religious people?" Heck no, I had plans to go out with an old HS buddy living in LA to a real par-tay...

And that's when God showed me He had different plans for me. As I drove off, there was this horrendous grinding and shaking coming from the engine. I was so rattled by the sound that no more than a mile into my commute back to Walnut, I pulled over and though it would be best to have it towed. (Turns out the problem was that the transmission needed to be replaced. Wow, God really didn't want me going to LA that night!)

Well, as you can imagine, I wasn't thrilled at that time. I got home, bummed I couldn't enjoy the Saturday night as I had anticipated. So, being grounded, I did the unbelievable... I called Ruby to see how I could go and hang out with a bunch of "church people!" (I present it this way as "church/religious" people not out of disrespect, but rather out of complete naiveté and ignorance.)

Looking back, if I was to label myself, I think I'd say I teetered between atheist and agnostic. Yeah, I know, pretty confused. But what I was sure about was that attending church or Christian gatherings, while fine and respectable for others, just wasn't for me.

So, if you knew me at the time, vehicle or no vehicle, for me to attend a function like this, on a SATURDAY night, was pretty inconceivable. Even as I write this, I still have trouble believing it. But, as mentioned in the previous post, I had a carefree attitude, open to trying new things. I remember thinking at the time, what's the harm in learning about another religion? All of this, evidences of God's grace and Him working in me and changing my heart.

I explained my predicament to Ruby and she kindly offered me a ride. When I arrived at her backyard I really stuck out. Completely innocent to the dramatics surrounding her ex-boyfriend, I thought people were peering because I was one of the only (if not the only) non-Filipinos present. I did feel as though all eyes were on me. (Remember in ScoobyDoo, when Scooby and Shaggy would be in a haunted house, and there would be a picture frame on the wall and the eyes would move and follow them? And then when they looked at the frame the eyes would cease to move? Kinda like that.)

I remember meeting Ruby's mom and dad, amazed at how young they looked. I was impressed with the spiritedness and effervescence of Ruby's mom; I could see where Ruby got all this from! I also got the pleasure of meeting the 4th grade version of this little cutie (now my sister-in-law); Ryan and Reinna weren't there for some reason; there is a funny story of meeting Reinna for the first time over the phone though!

After trying Boba/Thai tea for the very first time, and listening to this young guy with a shaved head, preach for what seemed like an eternity, especially after advertising he'd be doing it for just a few minutes (he's now my pastor, and I'm so blessed to be led by him now; the irony is that when he's done with an hour-long sermon, craving for even more I say, "That's it?"), it was time to go back. Ruby drove me back in her white Toyota Celica GT. We ended up talking and laughing in her car, with my door open and a cat lingering, for like an hour in front of my cousin's house. Were we flirting? Maybe.

read part one: when we first met...

read part two: the days after...

*****

last call. see sale. and shop stocked with rosy posies (once gone, it's gone).

*****

our little love story: the days after

After our first meeting, I was so intrigued with Ben. I remember asking other fellow co-workers about Ben and where he came from...

Someone told me he came from NY, so in my mind it made sense why he always came to work dressed nicely but with sneakers on.

Another time, I asked a gay co-worker if Ben was gay (he was just quite well dressed and stylish) and he replied, "Oh honey! He is too rugged to be gay!" With relief, I sighed.

My BFF and I would sit in the very last row of our American History 101 class and be passing notes back and forth. One thing that I could be found doing during that class was signing my name Rubyellen Bratcher (and that was before Ben and I even started hanging out, letting alone really talking as friends!). Another thing, BFF and I did during that class was ditch it and I made her go with me to work (she worked at the Gap too) because I just wanted to go check out Ben. He was just the cutest guy ever and I was in love! At least with his face cause I really didn't know him yet.

I really didn't work that much anymore, maybe one day or two days a week, but I would look up his schedule and if someone was trying to get rid of a shift when Ben was working, I would gladly pick it up.

I also remember working at the cash registers and Ben would often be working on folding clothes at the front of the store and when the line would die down, I would just stare at him. I know, so strange! He was (and still is) so hot that I couldn't (and still can't) resist. But I remember getting nervous that he would look up and catch me and I would be found out! Good thing he never caught me.

Ben and I were friendly at work and I was always so happy when we were working together because I would make sure to talk to him. I would even get to work 15 minutes early, cause I knew he might be in the back working on stock and that means I would get to just chat with him a bit. He laughs about it now because I am always late and never on time! But back then, he thought I was just a timely person.

My 20th birthday rolled around, just a little over a month after I met Ben and us becoming friendly at work, I was thinking about chopping off my really long hair. I thought I would ask the "cute guy" what he thought and and base my decision off that. Silly, I know. Well, I asked Ben if he thought I should cut my hair and he said, "Go for it." and so the next day, on my 20th birthday, I did. That decision is funny now because he actually prefers my hair long and just said that because he was just carefree like that. He didn't know I was basing my decision just on what he said.

After work, I would always go home and rave and rave about the "cute guy" to my mom and my closest friends. I know my slight stalking, for lack of a better word, was kind of a strange, but I really couldn't resist! He was hot and I couldn't help it!

Now here is the thing... I too had just gotten out of a relationship. I had my first boyfriend at the age of 14 and he broke up with me once a year until I was 19 when I finally did the breaking up myself. It was one of those things where you break up (usually cause he liked another girl), but then we would get back together (yeah, I was kind of dingbatty that way). Really, just young kinda stuff.

It was hard though cause I was always one of those dreaming girls who wanted to just have one boyfriend my whole life and I think that is one reason that kept me holding on for so long. Plus, we were also good friends, had the same circle of friends, knew each other since we were like 6 & 7 (he was younger than me), went to the same church, and our families were good friends. It is tough to get out of that cycle in those circumstances. At that age, I thought that was as good as it gets and my dream guy was really just a "dream," only stuff you see in movies. Now I see it was just not healthy to try and be in a serious relationship at such a young age, we were both just too immature, but I am thankful for that experience because God really used it to grow me and make me more appreciative for what lay ahead.

Anyways, we had broken up in August of '01 (of course, drama was involved with that as he liked one of my closest friends, but thankfully her and I are still close now and she was in my wedding!) and I met Ben in September. I didn't really think anything would ever happen with this cute guy at work. Oh, did I mention my ex-boyfriend worked at the Gap too?! Yup. He did. Awkward. I thought I would just admire Ben, be friends at work, and life would go on... end of story. Little did I know, God had other plans...

That fall, while working at the Gap at Brea Mall, I continued to actively pursue employment in the advertising field, but God kept closing doors (though I did not know it was God at that time), keeping me there. I remember when Ruby and her cute self would sit there in the stock room waiting to clock in. We would chat briefly, but nothing more. She was such a sugar-coated, adorable girl; she possessed an effervescent personality that was quite addictive; endorphins were released just from talking to her.

I also remember when she asked me if she should cut her hair, and being so happy-go-lucky with an open mind to trying out just about anything new, I said, sure, why not? Little did I know she thought so highly of my opinion! While I do prefer her hair a little longer, she was (and is) so pretty, the hair cut couldn't take anything away from her beautiful glow.

Now what I don't remember is the cuckoo-sounding infatuation she had! I'm not denying any of it was there, but looking back, it's truly hard for me to believe for two reasons: 1) It just doesn't really match her personality. Yes she's passionate, yes, she can get quite giddy, and yes she knows how to dedicate herself wholly, but she doesn't think irrationally! 2) I still don't see why she would be so infatuated with me. She's been blessed with jaw-dropping looks, paralleled by a creative, sharp, sharp mind. I ask her all the time what in the world she sees in me. And while it still boggles my mind, I'm actually glad it doesn't make sense, because that's exactly the way God operates. He's the one who changes people's hearts. He's the one who made, and continues to make, Ruby view me as someone loveable, as she overlooks my faults. Only by God's grace!

*****

More of the story to come in a day or so (Ben isn't used to blogging daily), but as Ben and I write this out, we are discovering it is longer than we thought, so you may just get more than a week's worth of lovey doveyness from us! Hope you don't mind...

And don't forget to check out Snap It Pretty! Hurry up, spaces limited!!!

*****

our little love story: when we first met

I love Ben and I love remembering and retelling "Our Little Love Story" over and over again...

I was working at the Gap during college and had already been working there for over a year before Ben came along. Ben was a new hire and I remember walking towards the middle of the store to go and meet him. My first thought was "This guy is HOT!!!" and I proceeded to introduce myself.

"Hi, I'm Ruby."

He then introduced himself and we shook hands. Mind you, I was 19 years old and he did seem a bit older to me, so then I asked him, "How old are you?"

He said, "26."

I said, "Dude, you are so old you could be my grandpa!" and I walked away back towards the cash registers. Okay, he couldn't really be my grandpa, but to a 19 year old, 26 was ancient.

Maybe I said something funny like that out of sheer nervousness because really, he was super hot! I tended to say funny things around cute guys because they just made me nervous, but I can tell you it hasn't happened since. Everyone has paled in comparison to Ben. Guys I thought were once cute, suddenly weren't. After that day, my life has never been quite the same...

I had been living and working in the Washington DC area (Northern VA) and got laid off Summer 2001. I figured it was the perfect time to move to Southern CA where I had always envisioned living, so I did (thanks to my cousins Lupita, Alex, Gabriel, and Rafael who let me crash and invade their house!).

I couldn't find employment in what I had been doing (advertising), so in desperate need to have at least some income, I started looking everywhere, and I mean everywhere. After a few odd jobs, and being turned away from every fast food outlet imaginable, the Gap hired me (thankfully I had worked part-time at Banana Republic for a number of years prior).

Within the first few days of working at the Gap, this cute, young, and sassy girl bounces over to the section of the store where I was and introduces herself. She follows this immediately up with a question about my age. Kinda odd, but she was young.

I guess she thought I was old, so she said something like, "you're old enough to be my grandpa!" What?!! And then this little whipper-snapper bounced away in the same fashion she approached me with her cute little self.

As cute as she was, and as nice as that derrière was, it wasn't "love at first sight" for two main reasons: 1) I had just gotten out of a relationship and that was the last, last, last thing on my mind, and 2) She was only 19!.

But she was very cute, and that derrière was very nice...

we went away

Early Friday morning, we dropped True and Brave off at Grammie and Grumpy's and made our way north to the Napa/Sonoma area to celebrate our five year anniversary. It was kind of a spontaneous trip as we just decided on Wednesday, but we are so glad we got away for a bit, with our special little companion because I am her breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Friday consisted of a nice long drive, but I love road trips, so this was not a problem for me and we made a quick little stop in San Francisco. I have to say that I absolutely love that city! Then, we were off to Sonoma to check into our hotel, which we got an amazing deal on via priceline, then we headed to a yummy dinner at The Girl and The Fig.

Saturday started off at Cornerstone Gardens and we had fun looking at all the different areas (and taking fun pictures in each area) and came home with so many good ideas for our garden.

Then, we grabbed food for a picnic lunch at Jack London State Park, after which we decided to visit a few wineries. Then for dinner, we just picked up food from The Girl and The Fig again and ate it on the balcony of our hotel room.

Sunday we made a few other stops before we headed back home... Chateau Sonoma, Bouchon Bakery, Woodhouse Chocolates, and then a picnic lunch at Oakville Grocery. All lovely and perfect to end our little five year celebrating and to send us back home full, excited, and more in love with Northern California.

So that was my weekend and thus the reason I have been absent in this little space. Also, because first thing Monday morning I took off running and am working like crazy for Renegade, but a nice little vacation was just what we needed! Plus, I just like being with my Benny!

Thanks for the anniversary wishes friends! We definitely had a fun time celebrating five years of God's goodness and grace in our marriage and we are excited to keep experiencing God's goodness for many more years to come!!!

five

{taken by david jay}

We still really love each other five years later.

hats off to papi week

Last week, we declared it, "Hats off to Papi Week!" We decided that Ben shouldn't just have one day of Father's Day, but a whole week worth! So everyday, when he least expected it, we surprised him with a little something, with a little card that had a special picture and always read this:

day one: work hat

We surprised him at work and he was completely bewildered because the receptionist called him and told him he had a patient waiting, but it was just us! His little surprise was a new work bag, so he could finally get rid of the ratty old backpack that he has been carrying around for years, which was also the backpack I used when I was traveling all throughout Europe about 7 years ago, so you can bet that thing was ready to retire.

day two: work out hat

I originally hid his surprise in a box that he normally takes to work, but that day he decided to not take the box, so I had to change up the surprise and we went back to his work for lunch and surprised him there again. This time with balloons. To go with the work out hat, we gave him a heart rate monitor for when he works out and a bandana to keep his long hair out of his eyes.

day three: chef hat

We slyly went to the other medical office he works at the day before and put his surprise on his desk, so when he came in on that day, his surprise was already waiting for him first thing. He is the chef in our house and we gave him this recipe book that he had been wanting.

day four: handy man

Ben was expecting us to show up at his work, but this time around, we just waited for him to come home and gave him his surprise then. He is our handy man, but his tools are scattered everywhere, so we got him this vintage toolbox to help keep his stuff together.

day five: gardening hat

This day we surprised him at work for lunch with some sushi and a big number 1 balloon because his is our #1 PAPI. I think you all know by now how how much Ben loves gardening, so we gave him the diy garden markers and this book to read to the girls.

When he came home, the girls were waiting at the door with a little note for him that basically told him that tonight they were going to take him on a Papi and kids date!

With a ring pop in hand (because he is their POP), they got down on their knees and asked, "Will you be our Papi forever?" It was really sweet and of course their Papi said, "Yes!"

So the two older girls and Ben went to out for dinner together and Papi also took them on a special trip to what they call "the hello kitty store." I think it is so important for fathers to take their daughters on father-daughter dates.

day six: cool man hat

One thing you must know about Ben is that he never buys anything for himself. No electronic gadgets, no shoes, clothes, no nothing. We live on one budget, so we are very careful where we choose to spend our money, so he doesn't like to buy anything for himself because he would rather spend it on me or the girls. The last pair of jeans he got was almost 3 years ago when I called a store to order them while I was in labor at the hospital (that is a story for another day), so his were getting pretty worn. For his last present, we gave him two pairs of jeans! I am guessing these will last him for the next 10 years! He was pretty excited and they looked really nice on him! Even after that, he said it was too much and we should return it so he could get me something instead, but we aren't going to let him do that. It is his turn to get spoiled.

day seven: his favorite hat

It was Sunday and actually the whole weekend he was sick, so instead of breakfast in bed, we gave him lunch in bed. We had other plans to celebrate for the weekend, but we had to change them because he was sick. We will just have to save them another day!

We love our Papi so much and we give him a hats off because he is by far our #1 Papi!!! Thank you Benny, you are the most amazing man ever and I am so glad that God has blessed me (and our girls) with you!!!