operation paradise: part two

are you ready for part two of our caribbean palooza?? i could just sit and look at these pictures all day. i want to go back asap!

knock knock puerto rico. we're here!

god bless america...

cute cute cute.

umm, there's a bird on my head.

pb&j cupcake. coming up on the blog soon.

you can't have cupcakes without some milk, right?

"zachary, take a picture of me by this pretty fountain!" *spills snow cone everywhere*

mmm, so serene.

did i mention i'm prego? pretty sure this belly popped out overnight.

smoking hot alert.

let's get our snorkel on!

oh, hello mr. turtle.

and how are you today, mr. stingray?

got fried. had to wear a t-shirt whilst snorkeling. felt like an ugly teenage boy all day.

we read on the boat. a lot.

all dressed up for formal night.

two words: room service.

frog legs, anyone?

our besties.

every night. #nofilter #totallylegit

i really can't get over how great this vacation was. if you are thinking about going on a cruise - do it. if you're too scared to go on one {like i was} - get over it and just do it! you won't regret it. you'll never want to vacation any other way. that's all.

-the mrs.

operation paradise: part one.

so, rather than try to tell you how awesomely fantastic our vacay was, I thought it'd be easier just to share some pics. in a two segment series. because there's so many of them. gosh, this makes me want to go back, stat! without further ado, here is our trip in megapixel form. {beware, i snuck a movie in there as well!}

"this is our house for the next 8 days? uh, yes, please."

bon voyage!

random horses. everywhere.

can't spend time in a tropical paradise without a pina colada!

Tortola - you're really pretty.

don't worry, i'm just getting warmed up. this is only the beginning! stay tuned for the second half of our blissful adventure.

-the mrs.

10 facts/tips for cruising.

some of you may or may not know that zachary and i just got back from my very first cruise! {i say my because zachary has been on 2 of them, prior to knowing me. i know - what was he thinking?} anyway, it would be an understatement to say that it was awesome. it was seriously the best vacation i've ever been on. even better than hawaii {if you can believe that.}

now that we're back in the states and we have some time at the airport to kill {only eight hours is all}, i decided to come up with a list of 10 things i learned on our cruise that i wanted to be sure to share with all of you. here they are:

1- if you eat a hamburger all 8 days of your 8 day cruise, you might get just a tiny bit sick of them.

2 - before you shower and get looking all cute, go outside first and check the weather. you're going to be ticked when it's cold and windy and your adorable little swim suit cover-up keeps flying up over your head.

3 - the casino always wins. always.

4 - when it comes to sunscreen - reapply, reapply, reapply. then reapply some more.

5 - when you order room service, make sure you're done showering before they stop by to deliver your food. that makes for an awkward moment outside your bathroom door.

6 - it is possible to gain ten pounds in one week.

7 - flying by the seat of your pants at every stop, with no plans and some cash in your pocket is the way to go. unless you're given the option to swim with turtles, sting rays, and squid. that's when you just fork over the 160 bucks for the cruise's excursion package and experience the coolest thing you've ever seen in your life.

8 - the first night with your dinner-mates may send you into shell shock at how awkward it is. but do not give up! hang in there and by the end of your cruise they'll feel like long lost friends and you'll miss them every time you sit down to eat afterwards.

9 - multiple soft serve ice creams in a day is awesome. but it's okay to say no sometimes too. which would probably help with the troubles of #6.

10 - when you can't understand your waiter through his thick foreign accent, just nod your head and laugh a little. unless he just told you his wife got knocked up by another dude and left him last month and now he's depressed. this would not be a good time to laugh.

there you have it. the ten most valuable things i learned this week. i hope you learn something from our mistakes experiences as well and in the meantime, be looking forward to a picture overload from our trip. it's going to be wild.

-the mrs.

the holidays/averetts 2.0

disclaimer: i wrote this post like a month ago and never put it up. don't judge me and just roll with it.

merry christmas, happy new year, and all the big shablang-blang! can you believe that a year ago, we spent christmas on the beach and this year it was spent with a foot of snow, sledding down the mountain?

it made me miss the tide pools we played in last year and the lovely picnic we had, but i wouldn't trade this year's christmas for anything. we went all out in our decorating for it and best of all - we spent it with some really great people. 

since we didn't get to go home for christmas, we made a new years trip. but only after we spent one heck of a second anniversary in vail, co!! zachary had been planning the trip for weeks and wouldn't even give me a hint as to where we would be going. i had no idea until we showed up. it was such a surprise! i'd be lying if we said we didn't feel kinda outta place there with everyone and their fancy clothes and cars. we weren't exactly able to blend in as well as we did last year in san fran, but it was still everything i could've ever wanted for an anniversary trip. we actually didn't stay in vail, but rather a little town a mile or two away called minturn. that was probably the best decision we zachary could have made. we were able to get the city/busy feel of vail, but then we were able to come home and relax at the bed and breakfast we stayed in, all nestled in the woods under three feet of snow. it was a winter wonderland! i couldn't have asked for a better way to spend our anniversary.

and besides, isn't my husband just adorable? i'm one lucky girl. i love that after two years, being together is still my favorite place to be. i love you babe! happy anniversary. {even if this is a month late...}

-the mrs.

christmas time.

it's december 9th {depending on where you live} and all i've done today is go to church and watch 5 episodes of surburgatory. right now i'm cuddled up on the couch, freezing my butt off with my dog. {who happened to be very naughty today.} cue picture:

yes. an entire stick of butter. i'm just as disgusted as you are. i wouldn't be surprised if he dies from obesity one day.

despite the cold {it's 8 degrees right now, mind you} and being without the mister, i am loving this holiday feeling! our house is officially all lit up,

and the tree is officially bought! {but not decorated...} we wanted really bad to go chop down our own christmas tree this year, but it was kind of difficult to do so without a truck. so we went to lowe's instead and found the perfect tree:

then we got all redneck {which, if you've been to cheyenne, you'd know that'd totally acceptable} and tied said tree to the top of our '96 honda civic with twine. we felt really cool.

we brought it home, set it up, watered it, and then it died the next week. so instead of a gorgeous, sparkly, smell-good tree in our living room, i'm looking at a puke green, wilted looking one instead. we're going to fix that this week hopefully. it still adds to the mood nonetheless! i just love this time of year. that's all.

-the mrs.

top five friday.

i'm not even going to draw attention to the fact that i've been a slacker over here and haven't blogged in weeks. i really don't have any excuse other than i work 4+ hours every day {soon to be 9}, i have a growing blog that needs taking care of, a puppy that needs immediate attention always, and not to mention my sweet, sweet mister that, as sad as it is, has basically gotten nothing more than my left over time after doing all of these aforementioned things. thank heavens for a supportive husband! i know all of this may seem like nothing to some people, but it's been a serious change of pace around our house and it's taking some getting used to. bear with me, friends! anyway, i vote that it's time for another top five friday. here goes:

#1 - my sister-in-law, arika,  is in town!! i picked her up from the airport the other day and have been loving every moment since. it's always fun to have family around. we have learned to cherish it so much with not living close!

#2 - bicycle rides. in denver. yep, that's right. arika and i got brave and rented bicycles in downtown denver and rode them all over town. this was the first time i'd ever ridden a bicycle in traffic before and i almost got hit by a bus only once. talk about success! i have now decided that bicycling is the only way i want to tour any big city from now on. i'm not kidding! not only was it nice to get some exercise in, but it was so freaking fun! i couldn't stop smiling the entire time. my favorite part? riding in the park and some black guy yelling, "hello beautiful white ladies! how y'all doin'?" haha! totally made our day. i highly recommend this activity to everyone!

#3 - pinkberry. don't know what pinkberry is? imagine some of the most delectable frozen yogurt you can think of. it's not self-serve, which is annoying, but it tastes so delightful! maybe it's my imagination, but it actually even tastes healthy compared to most frozen yogurt.

my friend whitney has told me on more than one occasion that i need to try this place, but i haven't ever gotten around to it until now. thanks whit, for officially getting me hooked!

#4 - job upgrade. as i already said, i am officially going to full time work in a week and a half. i am beyond excited, but let's be honest - i'm also scared half to death. i worry about how i'm going to take care of everything i need to here and i also worry about having enough to do in the day. we stay pretty busy while i'm at work now, but a few of my co-workers have said that it gets slow in the afternoon/evening. there's nothing that will make me feel more uncomfortable than having nothing to do when i'm on the clock. i want my boss to feel like he's getting his money's worth outta me! speaking of money, my boss told me i'm getting a raise as well. hooray! i don't know how much it'll be, but i'm grateful it's happening at all considering i've only been there just over a month. talk about some serious blessings! i absolutely love love love my job and i hope it continues to just get better and better!

#5 - photoshoots. did you know that arika is an awesome photographer? because she is. zachary and i haven't had pictures taken together since our engagements, almost two whole years ago and arika was kind enough to take some for while she's been here. i am so excited about how they turned out! there will be more to come, but here's a little sneak peek:

i can't wait to blow all of them up and put them in our house!!

i hope you have a fantastic friday folks {wow, that'a tongue twister} and that you can get some relaxation in this weekend! we're headed on a roadtrip to utah and i'm so excited to see everyone! peace out.

-the mrs.

giveaway winner!

i'm so sorry i'm late in getting this up. my family came to visit this weekend {hooray!}, so we were busy having fun and bonding. i am so excited to announce though, that the winner for the free pearl earrings and the $15 target gift card has been announced! behold:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

congrats mary! i will be e-mailing you shortly. thanks a million to all of you other wonderful people that entered and have supported this blog. love you all! i hope you're enjoying this fun fall weather with september having rolled in and everything and i hope to see you around these parts again real soon!

-the mrs.

3 things. {including a giveaway}

first off, i have to apologize for being so neglectful to this little blog and to you, my fellow readers. i started my new job last week and since then, it's been one crazy rollercoaster. not to mention i have had some psycho haters on my new blog as well, so let's just say that it has not been my week. i'll try to be better though!

second, i know the word 'saturday' is nowhere to be found in 'top five friday', but i'm going to do it today anyway. because this is my blog and i can do what i want. here goes:

#1 - my job. as crazy as it has been and as much drama that has already gone on there in the last two weeks...holy crap, i love it!! not even kidding, i probably think to myself at least five times a day how much i enjoy it and how i know that i'm meant to be there. it all feels like second nature to me! it's nuts to see how much comes back to ya when you haven't even looked at the subject material in 2+ years. hopefully, as i learn more, it will just continue to get better.

#2 - this pillow:

my dad and my brother are obsessed with memory foam pillows and i didn't think they were worth all the hooplah. that was until the mr. bought one and i found myself stealing his every time he was gone. they're so comfortable! then i came home from work last week and when i went up to my bedroom, the mr., being the sweet husband that he is, had this laid out on the bed for me. first off, i about melted at his thoughfulness and second, i was so excited to have one of these pillows of my very own! it has been so worth it. it feels like i'm sleeping on a cloud!

#3 - family. the mr.'s dad and step mom were able to come visit us last weekend and it was so good to have them here! it was the first time we've been able to host them since we've been married, so it felt pretty special. i've also been able to 'hang out' with my sister-in-law and best friend (she falls into the family category, because she's now my cousin. ;) lucky me!) via skype and it sure makes me miss them.

4 - golfing. i'd never been golfing before, until last saturday. there's a golf course on base and we decided to take the mr.'s parents to check it out. technically, i didn't even golf, but the driving around in the golf cart was fun enough for me! i felt like i was four wheeling all day. 

the mr. checked out every thrift store in town and was able to get some clubs and a pretty nice bag all for 13 bucks! i have a feeling there will be a lot of golfing in our future.

5 - the odd life of timothy green. umm, have you seen this movie yet? if you haven't, you need to change that tonight. actually, change it right now. it was seriously the best show i've seen in a long time. i know it may seem cheesy and all, but it was so touching! it took everything in me not to bawl my eyes out the entire time. of course i went home and dreamed about raising babies and adopting kids all night. weird brain. you really do need to see it. i don't want to go as far as to say that it's life changing but...it's kind of life changing. or at least day changing!

finally, the third thing i wanted to talk to you about today, is the fact that i'm finally getting to our '100 followers' giveaway! hooray!! when thinking about what i could give to you guys for being so faithful to me {thanks a billion!} i thought about some earrings i just got from a new website called my freshwater pearls. they came in the mail last week and holy cow, i'm in love with them! i'm pretty sure i've worn them every day since receiving them. haha anyway, i thought i'd spoil you guys a little bit and give away a pair of these earrings for free! they come in peach, rose, white, purple, and green. i got the rose colored ones.

this picture doesn't even do them justice.  it's hard to tell you how gorgeous they are until you see them in person. seriously, you will love them! and since it's taken me so long to get this up, why not throw in a $15 target gift card, just for kicks and giggles? :) to enter, just fill out the rafflecopter below. {since this is a giveaway to honor our followers, you must be a follower of this blog to enter.}

a Rafflecopter giveaway
also, if you don't happen to be the lucky winner, all is not lost. my freshwater pearls is giving all of you one awesome discount just for participating in this giveaway! here's the breakdown of it all:

you get $5 off when you spend $20 or more with the code: freefive
you get $10 off when you spend $40 or more with the code: freeten
you get $15 off when you spend $60 or more with the code: free 15

this is such a good deal guys! i really hope you take advantage of it. thank you again for following our blog and for all of your kind words over the years! we appreciate each and every one of you.

-the mrs.

top five friday.

#1 - this face:

we've been trying to wean him off of being on the couch lately. it was fun when we first got him and he was tiny and wanted to be all cute and cuddly with you, but now he just likes to jump around everywhere and hit you in the face with his tail. not cool. we were doing good until he pulled this card on me - the "i know i'm not allowed on the couch, but will you let me just this once?" look. if that doesn't pull at your heartstrings, i don't know what does!

#2 - the mr. had his first alert (24 hours spent in a missile capsule) this week and he survived! he came back exhausted after getting only four hours of sleep, but he said it went well. luckily, while he was gone, my night was spent skyping with the sister-in-law and hanging out at a friend's house, eating smoothies and talking girl talk. thank heavens for good people! otherwise, i probably would've sat at home all night, eating a tub of ice cream, and crying that i was home alone.

#3 - buffalo wild wings. i don't know how you could not love that place. although, my sister-in-law and her husband did introduce us to a wing place, called buffalo wings and rings, that is just a little bit better - but bww is still awesome, nonetheless. my favorite part would be the fried pickles. mmm, it takes me back to our alabama-living days.

#4 - this lil' blog just reached 100 followers! i was so excited to see that!! this definitely calls for a celebration! (aka a giveaway) i'll be sure to give you all the deets on it next week. i've been a little preoccupied this week, so just give me some time and it will happen. promise!

#5 - "what have i been preoccupied with?", you may ask. remember that job interview i mentioned last week? well, the results are in and it looks like i am officially employed! hooray!! this might even call for another giveaway! (ok, maybe that was a little overkill.) i really am that excited though! at the same time, i am scared out of my mind. the job was for a pharmacy technician position and i haven't picked up a pharmacy book in over two years! i've beeen studying my brains out for the last couple days, hoping some of it will come back to me. of course, every time i get on a roll, my body all of a sudden thinks it's exhausted and needs to sleep - just like the good ol' college days. i don't even know how many textbook pages i've ruined in my life because i fell asleep and drooled all over them. it's a bit ridiculous. anyway, prayers are appreciated because i'm going to need them to help me from looking like an idiot. i seriously cannot wait though!!

happy friday to ya! i hope it's swell.

-the mrs.

top five friday

#1 - blake shelton. the mr. and i volunteered for his squadron at cheyenne frontier days last week and it has now been decided that we are going to do this every year for the entire time we live in cheyenne. they had us selling sodas right inside the stadium and we had a clear shot view to blake for the entire concert.

i hadn't ever been much of a blake shelton fan until this concert...at least that's what i thought. more than half the songs he sang were ones i love and have listened to a billion times on the radio, but i had no idea he was the one singing them! he put on one fantastic concert. and the best part? it was absolutely free!

#2 - the olympics. has anyone been watching them nonstop like we have? seriously, they're on when we're not even in the room - and i've loved it! my favorite events have been the gymnastics and kayaking {which i didn't even know was an olympic event}. what about you?

#3 - chimichangas. you know, the el monterey kind that you buy at wal-mart? i'm pretty sure those things are the reason i gained ten pounds when i moved out on my own in college, but they are oh so delicious! i may or may not have eaten one for lunch and one for dinner/afternoon-snack/i'm-so-hungry-so-anything-will-work. slap on some cream cheese and salsa and you've got the best gourmet dinner that you ever did see!

#4 - date night - on a week day mind you!

i sure do love this cute boy of mine. doesn't he look so good?! he's been doing so well on my fitness pal and has lost thirteen pounds since we moved here! i'm so proud of him!!

#5 - this whole pile of stamps that i scored for only 15 bucks!

i can pick out at least three of them out that would be 10 dollars each at hobby lobby. ca-razy! i'm going to try my hand at card making here soon. can't wait!

hope you guys had a fantastic friday. hooray for the weekend!

-the mrs.

awkward and awesome.

awkward:

-looking up from your racquetball game and seeing the base wing commander and his daughter watching you play. i'm not even in the air force and it still made me nervous!
-the hillbillies behind us in the movie theater that have no concept of whispering. if i wasn't afraid of them chucking their beer on me or punching me in the face, i would've told them to shut the $!@# up!
-always getting the squeaky cart at the grocery store, making everyone stare at you.
-taking copper on a walk and him pooping on our neighbor's lawn every single time.
-bubblegum flavored jelly beans. i don't know why they even exist. nobody likes them!
-getting all the way up to the doors at the commissary and standing there, waiting for them to open before you realize it's monday and they're closed.
-the ridiculous amount of hair that is left on our bathroom counter after every time i blow dry it. i'm surprised i'm not bald.
-that our laptop is a month and a half old and it's already running as slow as tar.
-putting a load of laundry in the washer and forgetting about it...for three days.
-that it's already august. where did the first 7 months of 2012 go again?
-getting hit on by drunk, 50+ year old man.

awesome:

-freshly painted nails.
-that i got copper to go in his kennel and i didn't even have to put him there! it's amazing what a pup will do for a little pork sausage.
-the mr. passed his final evaluation. hooray!
-we're having chicken tikka masala for dinner tonight and i'm so freaking excited! i may or may not be starving my self a little bit right now, so that my stomach can fit more of it in.
-free popcorn refills at the movie theater. i might've gained a few extra pounds, but it made for one great movie!
-this rad giveaway that i'm pretty sure you should enter right now. just sayin'. ;)
-having a clean house.
-being able to watch hulu plus on the xbox. best. discovery. ever.
-my sunday school kids telling me over and over that i'm the best teacher they've ever had. so what if it was because i clearly bribed them with brownies? everyone can use a little self-esteem boost now and again.
-getting snail mail.
-i have a job interview tomorrow. {aghhhh!} i'm terrified, but still excited. wish me luck! i'm going to need it.

-the mrs.

i'm linking up with whitney and her newest link party! be sure to check it out and join the fun!

just a couple of things.

there are a few things that i need to share:

• the mr. and i went to batman last night. after all the hype and good words spoken about it, i was expecting something awesome. i have to be completely honest - i was a little let down. yes, i understand it's a christopher nolan movie, so nothing is going to make sense until the very end and you'll be dropping your jaw in shock, but in my opinion, it wasn't near what everyone made it out to be. it didn't help that i couldn't understand half the stuff that the mask guy was saying either. did anyone else have that problem?

• i'm sure you guys are sick of hearing about our new food blog, but i am so excited to tell you all that we are hosting our very first giveaway on it!! we just reached 100 followers and to show our appreciation, we are giving you a chance to win a gift card to the restaurant of your choice. what could be better than dinner for free?? be sure to enter here.

• remember when i complained about not being a morning person and how frustrating it was? well, i am happy to tell you that i have woken up before 8 am just about every day for the past couple weeks! to some of you, this might be no big deal, but for me - it's ground breaking news! i will be the first to admit that i feel ten times better about myself when i wake up early. so what if i don't change out of my pajamas until 1 o'clock - at least i'm not in bed until then! {don't worry, i never actually did that. i'm not that bad.}

• wyoming has really bad local commercials. and i mean really bad. i tried to find a link on the internet to show you the worst one, but couldn't find it anywhere. it's probably because it's on the verge of being child porn. there are two naked little boys in a bathtub that only have a rubber duck covering their you-know-what. this is a commercial for a credit union, mind you. how on earth, two naked boys in a tub is helping to promote their services, i haven't got a clue!

• the mr. and i have talked about going on a cruise together since before we were married. i've never been on one and he's been on two and wants to take me so bad! we were planning on going on one to the caribbean next month, but when we moved here, the mr. was told not to plan on taking any big vacations in his first six months of work. so we moved our plans to february and as we were talking the other night, we decided to see if we can save up the money for a europen cruise instead. i've been researching it all morning and can i just say that i am so excited?? i get butterflies every time i think about it. also, tickets into london and out of barcelona are only $646!! i know people that have paid almost that much to fly somewhere in the u.s.! crazy right??

• i am completely satisfied with how mild this summer has been in cheyenne. everyone tells me that wyoming and utah have the same climate, but no, they do not. while utah really isn't that hot, it can sure get up there. we don't have air conditioning in our house and i didn't think i'd ever survive, but it's already august and here we are - still air conditionless! it sure beats the 100 degree heat that we lived in starting in april and ending in october last year. hopefully we will never have to live that again.

• someone needs to tell me how to decorate my house. like, seriously. comment below and give me some tips because i am out of ideas. i am sick of the bare walls and empty spaces. why can't everyone just be born with the innate ability to be decorators, crafters, and diy-ers?

thanks for letting my spill my guts on your computer screen. it felt good to get all of that off my chest.

-the mrs.