Last Saturday was the Spanish Branch's Temple Trip to the Washington, D.C. Temple. We had quite the drive there; the normally 2-hour drive there ended up taking almost 4 hours!

Instead of thinking ahead and getting cash for the toll roads, we jumped on in the car and started driving. Once we realized that we didn't have cash, we optimistically decided on taking the scenic route which would tack on another half an hour. Well, we followed the GPS and "avoided toll roads" at the cost of driving through some pretty obscure neighborhoods in Baltimore:

Yes, our GPS took us through an alley about 35 minutes from the temple! Crazy directions.

Once we got there, it was a wonderful experience and we were glad we made the trip.

The annual Christmas Tree display was set up and Siena could not help but try to pick-off every ornament from the trees. We have proof of that as well:

This is where we went yesterday with Jen and Olivia. Siena had so much fun, if not just because she got some social interaction.





What else?

Yesterday Juan decided to stay home from school because he wanted to spend time with me... Awww. It was a simple day, but relaxing and sweet none the less. I guess looking back, this year our anniversary was all about memorable food. (Yeah, that doesn't sound weird.) We reminisced about our honeymoon to Mexico with molletes for breakfast and shrimp cóctel for dinner (which we ate almost every day of our honeymoon.) The night before, we made Thai/Chinese fusion pad thai, chicken satay, broccoli with black bean sauce, and fried rice; this was to tribute the night of our first date after his mission when we went to Thai Siam.

I made this in honor of our anniversary, but we (and when I say "we", I mean "I",) got too anxious and cut into it the night before for an "Anniversary Kickoff"... at least that's how we justified it.

And here are the rest of the pics:




Anyway, ummmm.... I don't do "mushy" for the blog too much anymore, so: "Yay Us! Three Years Baby!"

Since life here has been pretty boring, I have been jumping at every opportunity to find something to blog about; I have felt devoid of anything scintillating enough to relate in type. So I guess we're scraping the bottom of the barrel right now:

For FHE last night, Juan and I decided to organize the basement office. I will spare you the "Before", but here is the "After":

I had to do something with my wall, so I bought cheap frames at IKEA and a yard sale, and cut fabric to fit each one. The biggest "fix-er-up-er" was the organizing grid. This has been ransacked nearly every day since we've moved here because Siena is fascinated with what is inside and can't help herself from pulling everything out. It holds my ribbon, paper, felt, Sunday manuals, batting, quilt tops, envelopes, paper cutter, scissors, sewing supplies,... EVERYTHING! I'm sick of cleaning it all up every day, so last night I decided to use some fabric (that was going to be used for certain Christmas presents) and made a cover. "Desperate times...."

I happen to have a close connection with a clothing designer who has been "in the thread" of sewing for her entire life. She is my mother. When I was younger, she would take pains in teaching me how to sew. I would complete a small quilt occasionally, and maybe a piece of clothing, but nothing ever gave me the same satisfaction as making a simple satchel. I have a theory for this: I hated following patterns and bags were simply easier to produce. In short, I was lazy. But my mother would not let the tradition that was passed down from her own mother stop at me. She tried very patiently to spark an interest in sewing in me, but alas, I threw aside the needle and thread and went for the rake and trowel to pursue a different kind of "sowing".

Now that I am the keeper of my own house, I realize that a knowledge of sewing is actually quite beneficial. Not only does it fulfill its primary purpose of being useful and self-reliant, it also keeps me from boredom on the cold days when one does not want to go out of doors. The tragic part of the story is that I have forgotten many of the methods and techniques that my mother worked so diligently to teach me. Any time I sit down to the sewing machine, I make sure I have my #1 tool by my side: the seam ripper.

Habits are not usually dropped once one reaches adulthood. Sloppy sewing is a habit I thought I would lose once I was a mother, trying to teach my own children how to sew. However, I now realize that I need to practice more in the "slow and neat" style rather than the "Let's get it done" style. Hmph! Too bad the magical mommy fairy does not exist because I could really use a dose of "Instant June Cleaver" right about now.

• Siena drew on the wall today for the first time (I'm thinking about framing it)
  
• I made my first child's apron
  
• Juan took another test
• Siena is still teething (she's up to four teeth now)
• I tried to clean up after Siena, but it never stayed clean (yep, we're there)
  
• Juan is upstairs wondering when I am going to stop blogging
• Siena is constantly saying "Uh Oh" with this expression on her face:
• The Pennsylvania leaves are rapidly disappearing

Something new to keep me busy. These are way too small for Siena and she's outgrown the booty stage anyway, so one of my pregnant friends will get these. I'm so excited to make more.

And do you want to know what stared me in the face when I went to take out the trash last night?

I am looking for a part-time job. I thought I would try using the "Who You Know..." method along with Craigslist first. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

(Oh, and for the record, I decided against opening up my own floral shop here for the time being for many reasons.)

Funny story:

When I was in line to vote today, the man in front of Siena and me started playfully teasing Siena with a "Vote For So-and-So" pamphlet. She loved it so he kept it up for a couple more minutes. Afterward, we went back to awkward silence and I started talking quietly to Siena to keep her from getting fidgety.

About a minute later, the man looked at me and said, and I quote, "Did she just get here?"

I knew exactly what was thinking. He thought I had just adopted her. I wasn't offended, more like humored at the thought. So I replied with, "She's about 15 months old, so she's been here a while."

He didn't catch the quip. He said, "No, I mean, I heard you say "Gracias" so I ...."

I didn't let him finish his sentence to avoid more uneasiness and just cut in with, "Oh, my husband is Hispanic, so we're teaching her Spanish. She actually understands more Spanish than English; she'll learn English soon enough."

He didn't do anything but nod his head once and turn away.

I'm still laughing about it.

This year, we went to a Halloween party hosted by Amber and Kurt. They put in so much effort to pull it off. Take a looksie to see the party details.







Chelsea Wood put together an awesome Halloween party with her friends, and it was so cute that almost all of her ideas were implemented at this one.