Fabulous Las Vegas!

The calendar of activities and events at AIDS Arms finally came to the end this year so Yossi and I took off for a few days of rest and relaxation to "Fabulous Las Vegas"! We stayed at the unusual Luxor Hotel that follows an egyptian motif and walked quite a bit. We enjoyed some cute shows and ate some okay food. No longer can you find the cheap buffets of yesteryear. Long gone. Everywhere you walk you are acosted by people selling just about everything. Hard times in Vegas!

Apparently we were in the City fabulous on the slowest week of the entire year which was fine with us. Right after the Rodeo and before the holiday season really kicks off.

The stores were pretty empty - I mean who has moncy to shop at Cartier, Tiffany's and Hermes. You could shoot a cannon and not hit anyone at the upscale malls. Now Ross Dress for Less was packed and so was the Macy's.

We did make a special bus trip all the way down to the end of the strip to see the famous "Gold & Silver Pawn" shop seen in one of our favorite shows - "Pawn Stars". Wow - is it so much smaller in person and we don't think they really sell anything there except the t-shirts featuring Chumlee and the other reality stars. Look out Rick - you've got some competition there!

One super fun thing was running into family that were serendipitiously in Vegas at the same time. Got to reunite with my cousin Brent Mills who was working a ballroom dance competition. My aunt (him mom) was there too and her new husband Jack. We had a really fun night out. My daugther Becky and her family were going through Vegas on their way to visit their Grandpa Hobbs and then onto Disneyland. So fun to see them!

Fundraising?

Sometimes I wonder what is the next crazy thing I will be doing to raise money for AIDS Arms. Halloween found me checking bags for contraband for 6 hours in the freezing cold. I've moved tables, chairs, set up silent auctions, torn down silent auctions, played security guard at a festival and so many other fun activities.

Well ... this Christmas found me dressed as an elf, acosting bar patrons for extra cash and toys! We had a great time - really! I even got to dance the Cupid Shuffle with a whole bunch of Santas! Everyone was a really good sport and we collected 4 bags, 2 huge boxes of toys and $1,300 in our stockings. You should have seen all the toys we gave out this past two weeks to some very deserving boys and girls whose families are impacted by HIV/AIDS.

Dream Vacation

Words cannot describe what an amazing vacation we went on. We saw some beautiful places, enjoyed some fabulous shows, laughed with some hilarious comedians, ate some fabulous meals and enjoyed the blue carribean sea. However, what made it an an amazing vacation was being with Yossi. I've never had so much fun just sitting by a pool and playing gin rummy. And by the way - he is good. Don't challenge him to a match - he will win. The current score is 17 games to 10 (I think).

Towels animals were super fun! Every night we returned to our cabin to find a new fun creature!

Here we are in "Hell" - Grand Cayman Islands.

One of the craziest sites were chickens all over Grand Cayman. They were all different colors, shapes and sizes. Here we are in El Cedral in front of an ancient Mayan Ruin that is right next to the village church. We got there on a moped! Yes, mom rode a moped.

Every night we had a fabulous multi-course dinner in the Monet Dining Room. We were at table 416. We had the best table crew on the ship of course. They took great care of us every night. One night the fish was so fabulous we sent our compliments to the chef. Lo and behold - out came the chef to personally recieve our compliments. Three of the nights the dining room staff performed a fun musical number for us.

Sweetness

On Saturday, April 2nd I met two very sweet children: Alexandra and Michael. I love them already.

We looked at the art and made tons of "springs" out of fuzzy pipe cleaners and colored wire. The girls made the most springs.

We also had lunch at the Spaghetti Factory. A lovely time. I'm so happy.

Spring at the Arboretum

Last Sunday we went to the Arboretum. I love going to the Arboretum. It is probably my favorite place in Dallas. We missed most of the tulips but the azaleas were in full show. The pansies were also very sweet. Made me think of my grandma, Theo Hughes. She used to sing the sweetest little song to me. Little Purple Pansies.

More joy of home ownership - The Garage!

Saturday my amazing guy built an amazing shelf in the garage. I think you could jump up and down on this shelf and it would not budge. We discussed at length how the shelf should be constructed - me thinking I know so much about shelves - he has actually built them. In the end we went with his concept. Good thing as I think my concept would not have held one box!

Sam and Brianna's Wedding

March 11, 2011 my baby got married. In some ways I can't believe it - in other ways seems perfectly natural. I am so very happy for them both. They seemed incredibly happy and content. Ready to love and support each other.

My sweetheard took nearly 500 pictures over the weekend - documenting all the important moments. Below are some pictures for you to enjoy.

Best Valentine's Day ... ever

Today is Valentine's Day. My love had a dozen roses delivered to my office. That in itself was so wonderful. What really made me cry tears of joy was that fact that he had set it up before he left on his latest gig ... even going to the florist and inscribing a wonderful card to me.

Made me feel so loved that despite him being out of town today he wanted to make sure that I knew he was thinking of me lovingly. I truly feel that I am experiencing a new dimension and level of love with this very special man.

Today a friend of mine Steve Glavan, described what Valentine's Day was to him. I'd like to include it on my blog so I can remember it always because it really is describing how my relationship with Yossi is evolving. I've put my edits in red.

Today I get to celebrate Valentines Day for the 1st year with the love of my life. What have I learned? . . . that love is all about taking risks, putting your heart out there so that the bond between two people has room to grow. I've learned that love is more than a word, it is an action, demonstrated by how we live, how we treat each other and how we sacrifice for the good of another. And I've learned that Valentines Day can happen 365 days a year. When you're with the right person, every day is flowers, candy and snuggling in front of the fireplace. I love you, Yossi. Happy Valentines Life!

Snow and my pool

Crazy Dallas weather! Today the sun is shining but not after we have had 4 days straight of subzero weather. I can't wait to see my electric bill ... not. I feel bad for all the businesses who planned on hosting the thousands who were coming here for the Super Bowl on Sunday but probably had their flights cancelled.

What happened is it started raining, then sleeting, then a sheet of ice covered everything. So no school busses, school closed ... work closed. The craziest thing was the huge snow storm that dropped 6 inches on Thursday night. You can see it for yourself. My poor pool pump has been working over time. Finally this morning the kitchen faucet thawed out enough to start running again. Yeah!!!!! No burst pipes!

Super Bowl Sunday should be dry and sunny. However, I think another storm is rolling in on Tuesday ... sigh.

A Full Life

One of the easiest pitfalls is to think "I'll be happy when...." fill in the blank. I didn't realize that I'd fallen into that way of thinking until last night when I realized that I am actually very happy right now and to quit worrying that everything wasn't the way I wanted it to be. Is everything perfect in life? No - but who wants perfection. My life is perfect for me!

The best part of my life right now is being in an amazing, supportive, loving relationship with an intelligent, good looking, fun man. He is really my best friend and I don't think I would have made it through the past 6 months without his consistent love and support.

Thank you for everything.