Snow Day 2011

Today we received the gift of SNOW! What a beautiful sight to wake up too this morning. We all have patiently been anticipating our Snow Day. Luckily, my job is pretty flexible, and I am able to work from home on days like today. It was so nice, waking up early, enjoying a relaxing cup of coffee and my PJs all day, as excited as Christmas morning running outside to see the snow! Unfortunately, Adolfo still had to brave the weather, but he made it home safe and sound, and after I put in my hours, it was nothing but R&R for us both this evening.

Snow Day in Texas, 2011

I could hardly sleep early Friday morning, waiting for all this!

Our view....

I can't imagine harsh snowy winters, but what a BEAUTIFUL morning!
After I forced myself to get some sleep, it still looked so pretty when I started my day, just look at the roof tops, and snow in the trees....

Tay and I decided to take a work break and play a bit outside!

Taking it all in, I can't believe my hubby still had to work, but I guess it was ok, because then I probably wouldn't have wanted to work either, lol....

Tay's first "REAL" snow day!

Poor little red hot!

What an exciting way to begin February, I only hope this is not what we are experiencing almost a year from now, for Claudia's sake! It was such a beautifully rare sight, but I miss our crisp Texas coolness, no rain, no snow, just coolness and sunshine please. We are so grateful for the roof over our heads and the comfort of our home in moments like this, we are blessed.

Home yall all enjoyed your Snow Day, until next time....

~C~

Is it the end of April yet? I am so ready for it. The first quarter of the year is always such a blur. I love how my job challenges me, I grow and am better for it. But working 7 days a week can really ware a girl out!

I was so ready for Friday, and Adolfo had a sweet little date night surprise for me. We LOVE to dance, it's so relaxing, clears our mind, and not to mention it's a pretty great little work out.

All dressed up for a welcomed night out on the town!

Adolfo burnt me a CD awhile back from this guy I'd never heard of, Jon Wolfe, and he found out he was opening for Aaron Watson on Friday night, so we went, and it was awesome! He is so much better live than in my car. I personally think he was better than Aaron Watson, great sound, very entertaining, and great dancing music! Yall should check him out, one of his songs that's on the charts at the moment is, Let a Country Boy Love you.....

Sunday, Adolfo made us a wonderful breakfast before I headed to work, French toast and fresh fruit, YUM!


All in all it was a productive weekend, we enjoyed a little down time together, and I got to break in my boots a little bit! I survived my first full week of taking my lunch, and I picked my word for 2011: FOCUS!

More on that next time! I hope you all have a great week ~ C.

Girl's Day Out

This past weekend was just what I needed, a nice Saturday with my mom and sisters :)! Claudia was off this weekend, so we decided to do all things wedding, and just enjoy some quality Mother/Daughter time.

Of course I had Adolfo take a girls only picture, lol...

All excited for our breakfast at La Madeline!

We finally got to see/drive my Mom's new car, we LOVE it!

We spent the day shopping, well looking, browsing and making our Spring shopping wish lists, who really needs to be shopping right after Christmas?

I don't know why, but for some reason January/February is always a season of reflecting/re-organizing and setting annual goals for us. One of the items on my chores list has been to organize my shoes. Adolfo does a pretty great job at keeping his shoes and hats pretty organized, me not so much. So, this weekend I finally got my door organizer, and I LOVE it!

Every shoe has a home, and now we have TONS of walk in closet space.....

Happy Shoes, Happy Ces, Happy Husband!

One of my goals this year is to take my lunch to work more often. It helps me be more aware of how much money I spend on eating out/lunches as well as what I am putting into my body, saving and losing weight, how could this not be a great idea?

Adolfo is already really good at taking lunch, and Tay is also, me not so much. It cuts into my AM routine, and if it isn't easily accessible, I talk myself out of it, it's hard enough for me to focus on breakfast, haha.

I have found planning ahead really makes things a great deal easier. I have found that it is easier for me to plan a week at a time, and shopping on Sunday is way better than having to do it during the week. I have also decided if things are pre-packaged/washed and ready to go, it is easier for us all to ensure we are getting a great lunch....I am so excited about how our fridge looks for the week, all ready for lunches ;)!

I've had my eye on this little beauty for awhile now! Now it's packed, in the fridge, and I can't wait for lunch manana! I figured we don't use plastic bags anymore (my old lunch bag, haha), and if I'm going to commit to this, I might as well treat myself a little bit....LOVE it!

So that is pretty much it, that's about all the randomness that's happening at the Castro's. Adolfo and Tay are back into the swing of things, since class started last week. Busy season is well, keeping me busy. Adolfo had a great weekend hanging out with the guys, watching football, and playing a Domino tournament with the guys. Sunday has been really cozy and productive, so we are still pretty much loving our 2011.

C.

2011, A New Year Begins...

Happy New Year, haha! For 20 days know I've wanted to share a new blog with you all, but this is just the life of Professional Accounting, it consumes you! For New Years we had all the plans of heading to the Hill Country to hang out with my family, but after the rush of Christmas, it was nice to just stay home and rest!

Adolfo and I rang in the 2010 at home, in our pjs, with movies and pizza, and our own special time square countdown, which has really set the town at The Castro Casa for 2011...LOW KEY! The weather has been a little yucky which has given us the perfect excuse these past 2 weeks to stay inside, and just be home :). Not going to lie, I am REALLY enjoying staying in my PJ's ALL Saturday, haha!



So why MIA, what have we been doing from New Year's week to today you ask? Keep reading, lol....

Arts and Crafts...I bought this beautiful yellow arrangement, and it inspired me to paint! It's never to early to start setting the tone for SPRING!

Adolfo and I, and all my family went to the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio to support my cousin's football team! Who knew we had so much Red, White and Blue!?!

Since we've been home, we've gotten pretty creative, haha! Last week was SUPER busy, and Adolfo pretty much took over dinner duties, it was awesome! So, Friday night was my turn, so I took him out, lol.

He told me he had a special treat for Saturday morning, and tada, he made buttermilk biscuits from scratch, AMAZING! Saturday, we had a beautiful sausage biscuits and gravy breakfast, and Sunday we had biscuits with jam. I was so proud of his new endeavor, our kitchen was probably in shock! It blew my mind how simple and quick they were, and how many the recipe made, we will definitely be doing more of this! Maybe a new recipe a month, haha.

Today, we had a relaxing evening enjoying our Texas Longhorns dominate the Aggies. Adolfo got us tickets for tonight's game. This was my first UT Basketball game, and it was so much fun, we had such entertaining fans around us, great seats, and our Longhorns did awesome!

So that is where we've been :)! I am so excited for 2011, and the journey God has in store for Adolfo and I. I've given myself till the end of the month to make my 2011 resolution, it's taking me some time!

~C~

Christmas Blessings continued...

This year we celebrated Christmas with my side of the family. We've always celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve, so as soon as Adolfo got off on Friday, we loaded the car and headed to the Hill Country!

Once our car was loaded down, it raised a great question, How would we ever be able to have kids, when we do a great job packing our car with just the two of us, ha!

Car loaded down and headed home!

We had Christmas Eve at our cousin's house this year. We had tons of family come home from all over, but it got a little hectic because my Aunt was put into the hospital at the last minute. We decided to continue ahead with Christmas celebrations, and family time, and on a side note she is well, and home getting better.

We got to spend the whole evening with this little angel! Baby M and my sisters, Christmas 2010

Our family played a new ornament game!


We did our part to help teach Baby M to walk! I LOVE this picture Baby M, her Daddy, and her Great Grandma! These moments you just never get back!

My sister won the Christmas Cookie Contest! But on a side note, and to make me feel better, Grandma said I placed 3rd overall, so that made me smile, haha!

The Alamo Bowl brought our cousins, The H's in from Arizona for Christmas, and for that I am grateful!

We ended the evening with our Christmas Eve gifts from our parents, Pajamas of course, but we still LOVE opening them!

The Castro's Christmas Eve 2010

The soon-to-be Rincon's, Christmas Eve 2010

Sister Christmas PJ picture, Christmas Eve 2010 What can you do with a red bow?

I love the beauty of Christmas morning. Our family wakes up and sits together in the living room because it takes us girls a bit to wake up, haha. My mom always makes us hot tea or cocoa, and we just chat a bit before we jump in! It's just our time to be together, before the business of the holiday kicks in!

My little sister playing with a new toy....

C&J opening presents!

2010 will go in the books as the first year Adolfo's gift was a REAL surprise! Since forever, his polo jacket has been on his wishlist, but it's always been a want not really a need. So this year I wanted it to be special, and I got it!

Boots have been my want, not need. So my gift was semi-surprise. Earlier we went and got my size, and I picked out a few styles I'd be more than happy with, but the choice was his, this is me finding out!

Next, we do Christmas lunch with the Summy's. We always have an abundance of food, family and BABIES!

TONS of granddaughters, make the perfect little helpers....

more girls and presents...

The littlests played so well together...

Our generation of girls all grown up!

Our Christmas always ends with a visit to our Grandpa and Grandma Ribera's house. It's such a special time to wind down, enjoy an amazing dinner, and just be together. We did presents, and the guys watched sports, and us girls went for a walk on the ranch. It was exactly what we needed to end our day!

Grandma opening presents...

J cutting the turkey!

Grandpa taking care of the gravy....


Grandma waking up sleeping beauty, ha...

And the Castros, ready to eat ;)!

I am so grateful we have this time with our family, to just be together and remember the true beauty of this season. We still have Christmas to do with Adolfo's family, and then Christmas will be done till next year!

I think I've worn myself out just remembering everything, ha...

C.

Christmas Blessings

I find my peace in preparation! With that being said, we start preparing for Christmas right after Thanksgiving. You know... decorations up, shopping on black Friday, and hopefully presents wrapped by the end of the 1st week in December. If we follow that schedule we have alot of down time to enjoy Christmas festivities and reflect on the true meaning of the season!

WARNING: Since, it's becoming a trend that I don't update but once a month this blog is picture packed and full of stories, pre-Christmas Day!

Our little apartment tree is so special to me, it's part of the first birthday present Adolfo got me while I lived in Abilene. This year he surprised me, and the night we decided to decorate we went shopping for new decorations!!!! This made me so happy, I loved our gold balls and red bows, but I've always wanted a more rustic tree, with berries and pine cones, and that is just what my wonderful husband gave me!

Our new rustic themed tree, Castro Christmas Tree 2010

We enjoyed my firms Christmas party, and enjoyed a night out on the town with friends! No night out is complete without a Ropollo's pizza run!

We celebrated our cousins, Heather's pinning ceremony and Darnell's Birthday!

This Christmas, I organized our firms first Adopted a Family program. This was such a special and humbling experience. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of all the wonderful people I work with, and because of their big hearts, we were able to provide a beautiful Christmas for a family right here in our own neighborhood. This program was different than any I'd ever participated in before, because I actually got to deliver our presents and meet the family. They were so sweet and grateful, and it made it all 1000 times worth it. I can still see the Mom's big smile and feel her hug as she welcomed me into their home!

Just a little of what they found under their tree....

And a little bit more.....

More!

More, continued!

All wrapped and ready to deliver! Christmas morning, as I sat with my family ready to share in our special day, I couldn't help but be excited thinking about their big smiles, and how special Christmas morning would be for each of them too! I know Christmas isn't about things, but just the fact that we got to create that special family memory for them made my heart smile! He were able to give them a harm meal, more than they wished for, and tons of family date nights! I am truly blessed to work with such AMAZING people, and that I have a job that allows me these creative opportunities!

Our office had a cube decorating contest the last week of work, before I went on my 2 weeks vacation! Here is my homemade Christmas wreath, I LOVE it, it smells like Cinnamon!

This December, Adolfo and I have definitely had our fare share of coffee dates :)! One night we got Starbucks and enjoyed the Macy's Tree and strolling at the Domain....

Another night he surprised me with Starbucks, Christmas carols, and a trip to see 37th street! This was my favorite house....

My first official day of vacation started off in Albert, TX. My little sister and I had a date to see our cousin's band, Hilltown, open for Kevin Fowler!

Tay and I with our cousins, before their big show!

Re-uniting with old friends....

Hilltown!


And Kevin Fowler, of course! He was awesome!

This year, I got to attend my Grandparent's restaurant Christmas Party for all their employees and their families. My Grandparent's have owned Janie's Mexican Restaurant for over 30 years, and employee over 30 people, alot of them working their for over 10 years! I love seeing the beautiful family environment they've created for their employees. It is such a blessing to share in moment's like these with them, and see how much their employees respect, and care for them.

Each year, my cousin host's a cookie decorating party. This year was awesome, it's always fun to see how everyone steps up their game each year!

Christmas Cookie Party, 2010

Sisters, sporting our aprons...

My little sister, making her own colors!

Can you see the concentration?

My sister's first year to participate, we never knew she was such a wonderful cookie decorator!

cousins...

Why do all Tay's aprons turn into capes?

Waiting on Chica!

Finally, The reigning champ!

So, out of all the cookies we decorate, only one can be entered into the contest. On Christmas Eve, our Grandma picks her favorite, and then it's bragging rights until the next year, cookie decorating is serious business in our family!

WOW, I can't believe all this took place between Thanksgiving and Christmas week, no wonder I am not having any problem going to bet by 10 this week! No matter how hectic, and activity packed this time of year is, I wouldn't change it for the world. The most precious gift to me is my family, and the one thing I can give them is my time, to create beautiful moments like above. I am so thankful for times like these, it reminds me everyday, how truly blessed Adolfo and I are in our lives.

I promised a Christmas post, but I'm going to have to break it up! Hope you enjoyed part one of our Christmas festivities, to be continued - Christmas Day :)!