tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67361877094770193692024-03-08T04:28:41.207-06:00Dara May PhotographyFor everyone to keep up with my photography business and us personally.Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.comBlogger133125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-81181366724400174442012-10-16T17:39:00.001-05:002012-10-16T17:39:47.098-05:00We've Moved!<div style="text-align: center;">
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I'm baaack! I know I often have lots of time lapses on this here
blog, but this time its for a good reason. I promise.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We Moved!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Not only did we move once, we moved twice. Also, Matt got a new
job and I left mine. So see, it has been busy around here for us. We first moved for Matt's new job, which led us to stay with my brother while we house searched, then we moved when we finally found our house. I will catch
everyone up in another post, but for now lets take a look at our house/homestead progression.</div>
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Our first house back in Louisiana, great size. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">1175 sq ft </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">lived here: 2 years</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XdP6-4GCulA/UH3d5e6xB_I/AAAAAAAACE8/ifP3dID4m14/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XdP6-4GCulA/UH3d5e6xB_I/AAAAAAAACE8/ifP3dID4m14/s320/DSC_0023.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I love our first little house. We moved to Texas from here for Matt to get his MBA at Texas A&M.<br />
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Our tiny little apartment in a four-plex building </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">800 sq ft </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">lived here: almost 3 yrs</span> </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-h5zoptQ7rXw/UH3du8ULuII/AAAAAAAACE0/ejcc7Fz2Sjc/s1600/apartment.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-h5zoptQ7rXw/UH3du8ULuII/AAAAAAAACE0/ejcc7Fz2Sjc/s320/apartment.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It was pretty cozy. We gave more than half of our stuff to our parents and anyone that would help to store it all for us.</div>
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Our duplex </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">1300 sq ft</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">lived here: 1 year</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6eIFs4_71BI/UH3dqFBhTXI/AAAAAAAACEk/NWMkRqPrwIk/s1600/2012-06-17+17.04.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6eIFs4_71BI/UH3dqFBhTXI/AAAAAAAACEk/NWMkRqPrwIk/s320/2012-06-17+17.04.39.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It let us loosen our belts and breath a little. It felt like a home. Mac finally had a backyard to run around in, unleashed at that (finally). </div>
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My brothers house</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">the second floor </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">lived here: a little over 3 mths</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPK6QSEuKuQ/UH3fCL6FR4I/AAAAAAAACFE/J9mxOxzoyeg/s1600/cams+house+-+no+numbers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPK6QSEuKuQ/UH3fCL6FR4I/AAAAAAAACFE/J9mxOxzoyeg/s320/cams+house+-+no+numbers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Got to spend great time with family and become closer with them. <br />
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Our new home!!! </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">2290 sq ft </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">will live here: for a long time!</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dsypCRZWDZI/UH3fJSNNhUI/AAAAAAAACFM/_0CveP8xdtY/s1600/new+house+-+no+numbers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dsypCRZWDZI/UH3fJSNNhUI/AAAAAAAACFM/_0CveP8xdtY/s320/new+house+-+no+numbers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I will post pictures of the inside along with more details soon. I am just so excited that we have a "house" of our own again. I know no matter where we lived it was "home" but it is great to have something that is ours again. </div>
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Did anyone else have big changes over the summer? I felt like I was completely out of reality for the past few months while we were house searching, does that happen to anyone else? </div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-13511178505587571922012-05-25T12:28:00.000-05:002012-05-25T12:28:01.254-05:00sweetest picture ever<div style="text-align: center;">
Happy Friday!! </div>
I am so glad it is almost the weekend, how about you? Especially since its a 3 day weekend. I will be out most of next week for medical stuff so my weekend will be even longer, even though it won't really be fun. What plans does everyone have for memorial day? I am afraid mine will be spent in bed, so maybe we can grill out early on Sunday. Does everyone else usually grill, go to the movies, take it easy?<br />
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As I was scrolling through my camera looking for pictures to post on, I ran across the sweetest picture ever. At least for me, it is the sweetest thing I have ever seen, and makes me fall in love with my puppy all over again. On one of our many trips to Louisiana, I captured my cutie while he was napping on my lap.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l8BgUUORFgk/T7-9btN2SZI/AAAAAAAACC4/OfvfLm13yTE/s1600/DSC03343.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l8BgUUORFgk/T7-9btN2SZI/AAAAAAAACC4/OfvfLm13yTE/s320/DSC03343.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nXA9ynSj7LQ/T7-9iAETVJI/AAAAAAAACDA/h8eQLoKTtY0/s1600/DSC03342.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nXA9ynSj7LQ/T7-9iAETVJI/AAAAAAAACDA/h8eQLoKTtY0/s320/DSC03342.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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(close up)</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_i-n9JJMmq8/T7-9lsUCkZI/AAAAAAAACDI/G0EBiG4_h1U/s1600/DSC03344.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_i-n9JJMmq8/T7-9lsUCkZI/AAAAAAAACDI/G0EBiG4_h1U/s320/DSC03344.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a rare occurrence since he LOVES to look out the window. Every time he settles down and starts to knock off, we get caught at a red light, stop sign or make a turn. Since we live far away from the interstate system (ha) we take mostly back roads till we get to Louisiana. So neither of us gets much sleep till we cross that state line. Mac used to chill in the back seat until we took a long trip through Tennessee and Illinois and ever since he likes to be up front. We even got him a seat belt, but he just cries till he gets his way. He is just like a child, I know. Needy and stubborn. That's why images like these just melt my heart and remind me of how sweet he can be. </div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-60409627875436120232012-05-23T08:00:00.000-05:002012-05-23T08:00:04.459-05:00Another new family member, Tapas!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">A few weeks/months ago I </span><a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2012/03/meet-my-new-nephew-gaston.html" style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">posted</a><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> how my brother and his wife got a new puppy, Gaston. Well, just a few weeks ago, they adopted another lil puppy, Tapas. She is Gaston's half sister, and they were able to get her from the same breeder. Since she was from the same breeder, they got to pass through town and stop by to let us meet her. Here is Matt holding her. She was only 6 weeks old at the time. I can't wait to get more pics of her and her older brother, Gaston. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BVuS_5KJU1U/T7vNYuhodUI/AAAAAAAACBw/vjf7Xz4AaKQ/s1600/2012-05-05+20.40.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BVuS_5KJU1U/T7vNYuhodUI/AAAAAAAACBw/vjf7Xz4AaKQ/s320/2012-05-05+20.40.21.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pPKxQL_l01g/T7vNZCmqkMI/AAAAAAAACB4/d9D-9OkFvhM/s1600/2012-05-05+20.40.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pPKxQL_l01g/T7vNZCmqkMI/AAAAAAAACB4/d9D-9OkFvhM/s320/2012-05-05+20.40.38.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Tapas' name means spicy appetizer and I think her name is very fitting. From what we have seen and what my brother tells me she is very feisty and already picks fights with her older and much bigger brother. We will soon be spending a lot more time with them, but I'll have to let you in on that later : ) </div>
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Again, sorry for the bad photos, camera phone!</div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-56028611746721622012012-05-22T12:25:00.003-05:002012-05-22T12:25:32.895-05:00Who me?Sorry I haven't posted in forever. I am a true slacker when it comes to posting. Life has just been a whirlwind and I cant believe May is almost over. There are so many things I am trying to catch up on from April still. So I thought I would just post some recent pics of Mac to hold you over till I get my act together again.<br />
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The other morning when Matt and I were getting ready, I couldn't find Mac and was looking all over for him. I called his name and out he popped from my closet. Not sure what he was looking for in there. There are no dirty clothes on the floor, just stinky shoes. I guess he just wanted to take inventory? Here was his cute lil face when I called for him. Melts my heart.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlsFgjqTni0/T7vLxx0RMWI/AAAAAAAACBg/7XRcUMvXUFA/s1600/Mac+in+closet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlsFgjqTni0/T7vLxx0RMWI/AAAAAAAACBg/7XRcUMvXUFA/s320/Mac+in+closet.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>
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Sorry they are bad quality, they were taken with my phone. I knew he wouldn't stay there very long, so I had to get them fast. </div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-18719560642726884132012-04-11T23:00:00.002-05:002012-04-11T23:00:51.447-05:00Holy cow!<div style="text-align: center;">
Mac's birthday week continued!</div>
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Sorry I didn't get this post up as expected on Wednesday. Work has been super crazy and doesn't leave for a lot of free time. So I am trying to play catch up tonight and get the rest of these Mac posts up. I plan on making two posts today, so I hope you enjoy!</div>
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For some reason Mac has started noticing cows recently. He goes crazy when he sees them and loves to find them. I wonder if it has anyting to do with their dark color, but whenever we pass horses or other animals, he doesn't get as excited. Strange. We do pass a lot of fields with cows here in Texas, but its usually not daylight when we are driving. I decided to take a video of him acting crazy on our way home from Louisiana this weekend. We took a detour through Lake Charles due to construction and chaos and while on the backroads we passed lots of fields with cows. His reaction was not quite what either of us had expected. </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dz7B2ltjC5Jcdh4IbkJe0WJ7nr1aEkneLqiJc9MHDERsjA-cMNdah7-62smwYPbqzItw3SuytNJVAaxjPumHg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Mac was so excited to see the cows, he wanted to get a better view and dove into Matt's lap while driving. Neither of us expected that, and realized it wasn't very safe, so now I will have to make sure I have both hands on him or just point out the cows on my side of the car. <br />
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<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-38559680829175663452012-04-10T08:00:00.000-05:002012-04-10T08:00:12.626-05:00Happy Birthday Mac!!<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Today is Mac's birthday!! </h3>
My little boy is now two. Wow how time flies. I sound like a crazy lady talking about my puppy like that, but until the good Lord decides its time for a real little one, I am blessed to have my fur puppy.<br />
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Here are some pictures of Mac when he was a few weeks old, when we went to meet the breeder. Every website suggested going and meeting the breeders, to see their house and also meet the puppy beforehand. I had a bad experience with one breeder before we found Mackie's momma, so I was trying really hard to not get attached. But look at his little sweet face, who could resist it. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yIhFyYpDIFw/T4OUH-PRUTI/AAAAAAAABwM/HYeeYpFf3x0/s1600/_DSC5568.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yIhFyYpDIFw/T4OUH-PRUTI/AAAAAAAABwM/HYeeYpFf3x0/s320/_DSC5568.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here is one of the two momma's the breeder had, she is not Mac's mom, but I guess an aunt?<br />
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I have this picture on my desk at work. It's so hard to remember him this size. </div>
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and now here is Mac these days. (Awww)</div>
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A handsome lil boy huh? However, since he is two that makes him 14 in doggy years, so he is technically a teenager and a stubborn one at that. We still love him, it's what makes him who he is after all. </div>
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And here is his picture from last year when he turned one!</div>
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I will be posting all this week on all things Mac. I'm sorry if it's an overload, but remember he is my fur-baby, and the main entertainment at our household, so what else are we supposed to do. I also just assume everyone loves him as much as we do, lol. (he does too) I also have some fun little videos I can't wait to post. </div>
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<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-31119237882916752732012-04-04T08:00:00.000-05:002012-04-04T08:00:04.397-05:00My hubby is a HUGE history channel fan, as am I. Expect I like to watch the actual educational shows as opposed to the reality shows. Either way, we watch TV together, so I end up watching what Matt does, and he ends up watching what I watch (a lot of HGTV). I think we watch just about every show on the History channel, so if we ever lost it, it would be a crying shame. In November while we were in Vegas, we got to stop by the <a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2012/02/vegas-day-3.html">actual store</a> from the show "<a href="http://www.history.com/shows/pawn-stars">Pawn Stars"</a>. We also watch a little Discovery channel. Not as much as the History channel, but if Myth busters or Sons of Guns is on, then we are usually watching it. Last time when we were in Baton Rouge to visit Matt's family, we got to stop by the "<a href="http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/sons-of-guns/">Sons of Guns</a>" shop. Well, we didn't really stop, we kind of just drove by a few times, to catch a few pictures.<br />
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The shop is actually really close to the house where Matt was born. Since we were in the area, we decided we should drive by and check it out. Here's a picture below: </div>
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I think it looks a little different from when he was little, but it was nice to see where they used to live. </div>
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Does anyone else have pictures from famous TV places? I love driving around and seeing where things were filmed. I think if we just drove around Louisiana we would find tons of Movie and TV spots. Especially now in New Orleans. Do you watch Discovery or The History Channel? What are your favorite shows? Remember when they used to be all educational? </div>
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-12414686089562381442012-04-03T08:00:00.000-05:002012-04-03T08:00:01.535-05:00Houston Rodeo weekend - continuedHere is the second half of the Rodeo weekend. The first half is here.<br />
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After we left the rodeo that night, we decided to eat in the city since there would lots of traffic from everyone leaving. We headed over to <a href="http://www.goodecompany.com/our-restaurants.html">Goode Co</a>. for some good BBQ. Goode Co acutally has a couple of different restaurants; BBQ, Seafood and a Taqueria. We lost my sister and her family that night and they ended up at a different one, the Taqueria, I believe. We stayed at the BBQ joint and had a great time.<br />
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My sis in law, Mariamgely and I</div>
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Matt & Cam</div>
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It was a cute little place that had tons of character. I love when my brother takes us to new places in the city. I get so excited and feel more cultured. haha. </div>
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On Sunday we barbecued and celebrated my Bro's bday. We couldn't start the day without going to the park down the street from his house first though. The girls LOVE going there and it wouldn't be a trip to "Texas" if they didn't go to the park.</div>
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Even Mac gets to go. He loves going to the park and dog watch.He usually gets to meet lots of new people and dogs. </div>
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The girls swinging away!</div>
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Back at the Hacienda! The girls took to the hammock like bee on honey.</div>
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Here's T, getting her food ready.</div>
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Mac had a lil fun in the sun with his bottle. </div>
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Birthday cake for the birthday boy!</div>
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Presents!</div>
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Shortly after the family left to head back to Louisiana since they had quite a drive ahead of them. Luckily we stayed for a little while and chatted before we had to leave. It is always great to get the whole family together. It can sometimes get crazy with all of us, but I wouldn't have it any other way. </div>
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-3554905190660008022012-04-02T08:00:00.000-05:002012-04-02T08:00:08.271-05:00Mac - Picture of the week<div style="text-align: center;">
Matt caught Mac laying on the couch one day like this. It is pretty funny that he had the pillow turned over under his head. We wonder how on earth he did that. </div>
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It looks like he is just chilling watching TV with the remote next to him. Does anyone else's pet chill out and watch TV? </div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-89536271944990141642012-03-29T08:54:00.000-05:002012-03-29T08:54:10.239-05:00Meet my new nephew - Gaston<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Welcome to the family, Gaston!</h4>
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I got to meet my new nephew on Wednesday. I was soo excited all day and couldn't stand waiting to meet him. My brother drove up from Houston to a nearby town to pick him up. Since he had to pass through on his way home, he stopped by our office to show us his new pup.<br />
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His eyes look a lil crazy in this one, but he was super sleepy.<br />
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He didn't want to get out of his kennel, I guess he really liked it in there and was still tired.<br />
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Me, my bro, and Gaston.<br />
(look at his tongue hanging out)<br />
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Back in the kennel for the ride home and to meet his momma.But first he had to get a couple of licks in. <br />
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Sad face.<br />
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Now here he is getting back on the road to meet his momma.<br />
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We are so excited about the new addition and we hope Mac will be able to share the spotlight. I hope he will be a good big cousin to Gaston. Next weekend is the big race so they will get some quality time then. I'll keep you posted</div>
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-61326907020486991672012-03-28T08:53:00.000-05:002012-03-29T17:21:35.060-05:00Let's go for a rideFor my Birthday last year, Hubby bought me a cruiser bike. We were out of town for my birthday on memorial day weekend having a great time in Dallas with my college besties. When we got home I found a box on my front porch that had a bike on it.<br />
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(Here is where she lived before we got our dining table. This is before I tricked her out w/ a bike bell and sweet basket.) </div>
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I was soo excited. I wanted a cruiser bike for a long time. My ten speed from when I was 12, just wasn't working for me anymore. The chain keeps skipping, and Matt pretty much refuses to ride it at all, and when he does, it isn't very pleasant. The bike came with a front basket, a cup holder and a large rear, ready for a future basket for the pup. I haven't ridden it too much because I am waiting on Matt to finally get a bike as well, so we can ride together. Also, I didn't want to leave Mac at home while I was riding because I knew he would love to ride with me (or so I imagine). We tried one of us walking him while the other rode, but it just didn't work out. So for Christmas, Matt got me a basket from <a href="http://www.cynthiastwigs.com/">Cynthia's twigs.</a> We finally could ride together, Mac and I! <br />
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(Here she is tricked out (bling bling). I forgot to mention we put lights put on her since its a requirement in our city. So she now has a white laser beam in the front and red lights in the back that can flash or be steady. I feel nerdy and fancy at the same time.)</div>
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I got Mac to sit in the basket on our living room floor so that he could get used to it for a few days, and he did great. (treats helped)</div>
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(Doesn't he look excited? note the sarcasm)</div>
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So the next test was putting it on the bike and walking him around on it. </div>
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He did very well, so we set off on a ride up and down the street. </div>
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Now look back at the pictures, it is so funny to see him looking at the camera in all of them. He cracks me up. Especially the one where Matt is riding down the street and you see Mac looking back. haha. It could be confused with his <a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2012/03/mac-picture-of-week-stare.html">creepy stare</a>. Either way it is pretty funny.</div>
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Here are some more recent pictures from our bike rides. Since Matt and I are training for a 10k in April, Matt would run, and Mac and I would ride alongside him. We tried this for a few days, then Mac got kinda heavy going up hills that weren't even really hills. All I have to say, is that it is a great work out riding with a 16lb dog on your bike. </div>
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I am also thinking that we should have gotten the front basket for him since he is very nosy and likes to see everything. He often rocks the bike back and forth because he is trying to see. We are still working on that with him as well with him staying seated. We keep loads of treats in the cup holder and in our pockets when we go out. </div>
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Has anyone else tried a basket for their pet on a bike? </div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-85050430281318683952012-03-27T08:00:00.000-05:002012-03-27T08:00:12.691-05:00Houston RodeoMatt and I have gone to the Houston Rodeo ever since we moved to Texas. We really enjoy seeing all the animals in the livestock area, the baby animals, the shows and of course the real rodeo. This year my family came over to my brothers house to experience it for the first time. All of us armed with our cowboy boots, we were ready. There will be lots of pics, so I apologize.<br />
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I want to note how awful I look in this picture, but my Mom and Sis look great, so I had to post it.<br />
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Matt and I on the bus after parking.</div>
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Mom and Dad</div>
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I told Matt to not look at the camera and he did, so I got this creepy smile from him. bahaha.</div>
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Inside the livestock area, you got to see the piglets and calf's that were just born within the past few days. It was so fun. </div>
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Here are some really "pretty" tractors that 4-H students rebuilt and painted. </div>
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Here is T and me with our matching red boots. She is definitely the cuter of the two of us. </div>
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The girls w/ their boots on. </div>
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I love this picture of the three girls where T is crying. </div>
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The rodeo! Here is the covered wagon race. </div>
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They also had the calf chase and Muttin Bustin', but I didn't get good pictures of those. </div>
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The performer that night was Brad Paisley and he was great! Matt and I really love his music and were excited that we were going to get to see him. I was worried about my brother since he doesn't like Country music, but he really enjoyed it. He put on a good show. I kept thinking my Dad would love him, since he is really awesome on the guitar, but I forgot that my Dad isn't used to the electric guitar. He told me it was too loud when I asked him if he liked it, oh well.<br />
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His stage turned in a circle so everyone could see, it was really neat. </div>
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The fairgrounds outside</div>
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I will post some more pictures soon of the weekend since it was my brothers birthday too. </div>
<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-27114621300800546812012-03-26T11:09:00.001-05:002012-03-26T11:09:56.071-05:00Mac - Picture of the week - The stareDoes anyone else's pet give them the stare? Mac is notorious for that. He will sit at the end of the hall way and either stare off into space or just stare at us. It is sometimes kinda creepy, in which we call him the creeper, but he does this all the time. Here are some examples:<br />
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Chilling in the chair across the room</div>
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(The close up)</div>
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(don't look at all the stuff on my counter tops, its always that messy.)</div>
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Staring at me in the hallway. </div>
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Staring off into nothingness. We were in the middle of playing ball and he just stops and stares.</div>
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Here he is in the yard just looking off into the distance. </div>
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Here he is staring at nothing while sitting in his half empty pool. </div>
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See nothing! nothing to look at.</div>
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(I guess another question to ask is why is he sitting his his half empty pool. You've got me on that one. I am not sure if he doesn't realize there is no water or not.)</div>
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Does anyone else catch their pet staring off into the distance? Does anyone else think it's kinda <strike>creepy </strike>odd? </div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-65681603090421402442012-03-23T15:33:00.004-05:002012-03-23T15:43:06.761-05:00Friday's lunchToday for lunch when I went home, this spring weather was just amazing! I told Matt that we had to eat lunch outside and enjoy the temps since it won't last for long. We like to watch Mac sunbathe and stare into the sun. I wonder what he thinks about.<br />
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A happy boy!</div>
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After I finished lunch, I pulled out the wonderful Hammock hubby gave me for my bday a few years ago. It was chillin' in the old <a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2011/08/decisions-decisions.html">storage bench</a> during the <strike>winter</strike> cooler months. </div>
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Here was my companion. He didn't quite know what to think of it.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-84qQDVHiuG0/T2zbrywVHDI/AAAAAAAABiM/BShV9YhE1G0/s1600/2012-03-23+12.58.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-84qQDVHiuG0/T2zbrywVHDI/AAAAAAAABiM/BShV9YhE1G0/s320/2012-03-23+12.58.55.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3VYT4jHni0/T2zcxRuwdfI/AAAAAAAABis/707_9DNwpts/s1600/2012-03-23+12.58.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o3VYT4jHni0/T2zcxRuwdfI/AAAAAAAABis/707_9DNwpts/s320/2012-03-23+12.58.35.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Oh, and check out my new glasses I got for $3 @ TJ Maxx yesterday. They were from American Eagle. I love great deals!</div>
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I can't wait for the weekend, so I can spend the whole day like this! All I need is for hubby to come out and feed me grapes and fan me w/ a palm leaf. </div>
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However I have a feeling I will be helping Matt fix my car. Or just watch him, I get nervous when people work on cars by their selves. Sunday we might got and see 21 Jump Street or the Hunger Games. What are your plans for the weekend? Going to see any movies? </div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-50904049642942819162012-03-13T08:00:00.000-05:002012-03-13T08:00:10.388-05:00Mississippi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
My Hubby's family has property in Mississippi that they go and visit/hunt/camp at often. For as long as Matt and I have been together, I have never gotten to go out and see it. Until now. We finally had some free time when we were visiting in the summer, to go out and walk around . We brought the dogs and thought it would be good for them to run around a bit out there too. </div>
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The old house</div>
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The road diverged. </div>
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Pups on the leash</div>
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Off their leashes and trusting that they won't run away. I was so nervous that Mac might run off chasing something and that we would loose him. Luckily he stayed right behind my father in law and did great!</div>
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The side of the old house. </div>
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Inside the floors are falling apart, but just look at how beautiful this floor covering is. I believe it is some kind of laminate. I wonder if they still make this? </div>
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Mac covered in stickers from the tall grass. He so happy and having the time of his life!</div>
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The three of us with the pups before heading back to attend a crawfish boil!</div>
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I love visiting our old family homes. There is so much history and character in the old houses. We are working on cleaning out my grandparents house in Illinois still. They have been gone for almost 10 years now. We are slowly moving stuff out and around as the old house is falling apart in some areas. It is mostly old books my grandfather had in his library, or libraries I should say. I will have to find those pictures and post them for you. It is quite the undertaking. </div>
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<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-66568250989126630352012-03-12T10:49:00.003-05:002012-03-12T10:49:52.260-05:00Mac - Picture of the weekI meant to post this on Friday, sorry I am a day late. Life happens as we all know. The below pictures are from a recent maternity photo session I was taking for my friend. The whole time I was running into Mac who just happened to be where I needed to be at that moment. You all know how that goes. Pets are always in the most inopportune place. I guess Mac got tired of me tripping on him and decided he needed more attention. Therefore he decided to get in the pictures.<br />
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He started as a lump, hiding behind the background. </div>
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Then eventually came out and just stood there in the picture. </div>
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Then he laid down</div>
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And stayed there. </div>
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Eventually he flopped over on his side and went to sleep. </div>
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Just look at this sad face. This is his poutty face, when he doesn't get any attention. Just pitiful huh? </div>
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Does anyone else's pet pout? What are some things they do when they don't get attention like they want? </div>
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*Disclaimer* These pictures have not been edited and are not shown as a final product. They are just for fun and to show how cute and needy my puppy can be.Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-48596769243749392352012-03-08T10:08:00.001-06:002012-03-08T10:08:43.650-06:00Beef....it's whats for dinner?Does everyone remember those commercials. haha. Sorry for the absence here on the blog. My computer at home that had all of my pictures wasn't very happy with me. Apparently he was very full, and needed a bigger hard drive. Thanks to a very good friend who is computer savvy, my computer is back up and running w/ plenty of storage space for the moment. I won't be posting EVERY day, but I hope to keep doing it a few times a week. Be sure to hold me to it.<br />
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The insides of Mac the computer, (I know my computer and the dog have the same name, talk to Steve Jobs about that, not me.)</div>
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Last night I cooked a rocking recipe from Real Simple's magazine (Aug 2010 issue). I love this magazine and the recipes they put in there are usually really good. I am so glad I saved this one and tried it last night because it will now become a regular in our dinner rotation. It was super easy and fast to make. It does really only take 20 mins to make and cook. So instead of heading to the freezer for that frozen pizza or to the pantry for some hamburger helper, you can get a home cooked meal for the same amount of time and work. Here is the recipe:<br />
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You might notice in the top right corner I wrote "great". I like to put that on recipes that I have tried for a few reasons. #1, so that I can remember that I cooked it (I have a bad memory), and #2 so that I remember if it was good or great or not. If not, then I will get rid of the recipe. If good or great, I'll keep it in the rotation. </div>
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Here is a close up of the "great" rating.</div>
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Here is our take on it. Not a great pic from my phone, but I think it still looked tasty.</div>
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Do you have a rating system for your recipes? Does anyone else have tons of recipes strewn around their kitchen? I really need to take some time and put all of my recipes taken from magazine and website and put them all in a binder, organized. </div>
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<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-18560672419178737162012-02-28T08:42:00.000-06:002012-02-28T08:42:29.905-06:00Haylee - Newborn portraitsWow, I just found this blog post that I never published. It is a little over a year old now, but the images are too cute to not post, so I hope you enjoy!<br />
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This little beauty's name is Haylee. I took her mom's senior pictures a while ago you can see them if you click <a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2008/11/ashtons-sr-pics.html">here</a>, she is a beauty herself. I got to take Haylee's pictures when she was only 7 days old. She was soo tiny, I loved it. She did great curling up and sleeping as hard as she could. She also had tons of family there to support her on her first photo shoot. <br />
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This picture is worth more than words. Grandpa wasn't supposed to make it to see the baby because of an aggressive cancer that was found. But Miraculously it disappeared and he is here to see this little beautiful girl. What a blessing!Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-13734776793253486252012-02-27T09:28:00.001-06:002012-02-27T09:28:24.150-06:00The May Family - Family Portrait<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Here is a beautiful family that I got the pleasure to work with in December. Cindy is in my ABWA group and so fun to work with. I love her girls, they are the sweetest and are so fun. They actually modeled <a href="http://darasnoplacelikehome.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-new-pettis.html">these petti skirts</a> for me. I need to post those because they were so precious. This time I got to photograph the whole family for their Christmas card.</div>
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Cindy and her beautiful girls</div>
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They are so precious</div>
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<br />Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-58700137851938310072012-02-24T08:00:00.000-06:002012-02-24T08:00:03.535-06:00Paradise<div style="text-align: center;">
Does anyone else have an obsession with Coldplay?<br />
Does anyone else go around singing Para- para-paradise, for like hours after this song? </div>
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This is my absolute favorite song at this moment. Well any Coldplay song could really be my absolute favorite, but this song just evokes so much feeling from me for some reason. I almost actually cried watching this video, it could be the hormones I am taking though, idk. In the video when he found his elephant friends though, it made me so happy for him and I wanted to cry. Which is strange because the last time I wanted to cry while listening to this song, someone had died on a TV show and this song was playing in the background. Isn't it weird how music has such an influence on how it makes you feel. </div>
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Whenever I am stressed or worried, I usually turn on some Coldplay music and it usually calms me. Do you have any band/group/song that helps you relax or that evokes strong emotions from you? Or does anyone else have a strong love for Coldplay? I am slowly getting my hubby on board with this song, to becoming a fan of theirs.Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-16295537970158602762012-02-23T08:35:00.001-06:002012-02-23T08:35:08.557-06:00Mac - picture of the weekI am back with another crazy picture of my fur baby. This picture was taken last year during the holidays. Matt and I were in his parents attic getting down our decorations for Christmas. While we were up there we could hear Mac crying. I don't know why he was so upset that we were in the attic, I guess because he couldn't see us and we were up in a dark hole. Either he couldn't understand it or he missed us? I am guessing it was the first since he is a pretty independent pup. We were handing stuff down to my mother in law who was standing on the stairs, and when she looked down she saw this! <br />
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(his buddy Zeke keeping a close eye on him. Probably telling him he was crazy)</div>
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Mac had started climbing the ladder! I have no idea how or why he decided to start climbing. We claim that he is part mountain goat because he likes to climb rocks and stuff, but a ladder? My father in law luckily had his phone and was able to catch a few pictures for us. I was a nervous wreck looking down on him from the attic and was so nervous he was going to fall. </div>
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We figured since he made it that far we wanted to see how high he would go. With my father in law acting as a net, we let him continue. He made it a few more steps up higher than the last picture, about even with the bottom of the attic door. </div>
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I just couldn't believe my puppy was a climber. He could be in circus acts. We might just have a career for him. </div>
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Has your pet ever done anything crazy like that or something unbelievable like climb a ladder? </div>
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-52073730031307068432012-02-22T09:00:00.000-06:002012-02-22T09:00:09.184-06:00Happy Birthday Sista, Sista<br />
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I want to wish my sister Kelly Happy Birthday!<br />
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(Does anyone else remember that show with Tia and Tamara?)</div>
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K @ Disney</div>
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Here are a few pictures of us. I wish I had some of us when we were younger, but since I live so far away its hard to get those kind of things.</div>
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Us in Puerto Rico for our brother Cameron's wedding.</div>
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Us @ Cam & Mariamgely's wedding.</div>
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(Baby Talia was still in the womb).</div>
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My 26th Bday party luau.</div>
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Mom, K & Me at Wicked in Houston</div>
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My Wedding with K as my Maid of Honor.</div>
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Happy Bday sis. I love you and thanks for being there for me.</div>
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I am so glad I have you as my big sister. </div>
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Love you!</div>
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-74708697119803698412012-02-21T08:00:00.000-06:002012-02-21T08:00:00.795-06:00Vegas - day 3<div style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Welcome back for Day 3 & 4!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">On day three I made reservations to see the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><a href="http://www.neonmuseum.org/"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.5pt;">Neon Boneyard</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.5pt;">. I had been dreaming of going here for many years. The graphic designer and photographer in me was just dying to go with all the beautiful graphics and photo ops. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> I am a huge travel channel fan, and I had seen bone yard on there a long time ago. I believe it was on a<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://www.travelchannel.com/tv-shows/samantha-brown"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Samantha Brown</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">show and if she has been there, then I want to go! I love her! This was pretty much the reason I wanted to go to Vegas for the past few years. Not because of the Casino's and shows, or get remarried by Elvis, but to see the old neon signs. I dreamed of doing photo shoots out there of Matt and I, but if you wanted to take professional pictures you had to pay a phenomenal fee, so I just settled for the snap shots. I really recommend going if you love design and history. </span></span><br />
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</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">We were a few blocks away from <st1:state w:st="on">Freemont Street</st1:state>, so we decided to hoof it down and view the street during the day. Once we got to <st1:state w:st="on">Freemont Street</st1:state>we realized we were only a few more blocks away from Gold & Silver Pawn. Now if you have ever seen Pawn Stars, then you know exactly what that is. Matt is a huge fan of the show, and I honestly like to watch it sometimes too. How can we come this far and not visit the shop. The line wrapped around the front of the building, but moved, so we really didn't have to wait too long outside, maybe 30 minutes.<span style="background-color: white;"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>When we got in, we looked around a little bit, but weren't really interested in buying anything. The back section had tons of souvenirs, which you don't see on the show.</span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">So we left and headed back down to <st1:state w:st="on">Freemont Street</st1:state> past all the old casinos and under the canopy. We ended up eating at the Golden Nugget, in the Grotto, for lunch. We saw the largest golden nugget while we were there, and Matt pulled the giant slot machine. Unfortunately, he didn't win. So we<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>left after that and headed back to our hotel on the strip to take a nap since we wanted to go back later that night when it was dark.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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The framework for the zipline at the beginning of Fremont St. </div>
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Has everyone heard of this place? Heart attack grill.</div>
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I think this is the last one still standing.</div>
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lunch at the Grotto</div>
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The largest gold nugget</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Before we headed back to Freemont Street that night we finally got to go to the top of the Eiffel tower. We got to the top of the tower just in time for the water show at the Bellagio to end. Since the show was supposed to go off every fifteen minutes we waited up there and staked out a spot to get the best view. However, 20 mins after, the show hadn't started, and then 35 mins after, there was no show, finally at around 40mins after, the water show started. That was three shows we could have seen while we were up there, not to mention it was pretty chilly and wet that night.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span> I am pretty sure someone fell asleep on their shift when they were supposed to press the button to make the fountains go off. But I digress. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">While we were waiting in line to go down, I took a self portrait of Matt and I, and when I looked back at it, I realized the girl behind us photo bombed us. I turned around and looked at her with a smile on my face and she knew she was caught. We all started laughing, and she apologized. It was a pretty funny experience to catch your photo bomber. We talked to her for a while and told her we would tag her in it (Hi Brittany). </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">So when we headed back to Freemont St, the first thing we did was get in line for the Zipline, since mom had wanted to do it, I knew that we couldn’t miss it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">While we were in line we ran into our waitress from earlier that day at the Golden Nugget. She was so sweet and remembered us. She and her friend decided to adopt us and wanted to give us an experience from a local’s perspective. They showed us a few things to do and then took us to a concert where they got us in for free. We had such a great time and were so thankful that they took us in under their wing. It made for a great experience.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We got to take a picture with $1million dollars!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">On our last day, we didn't do very much. We walked around a little more on the strip and through our hotel. The Cosmopolitan was really neat inside. So were the gardens inside the Bellagio and the glass scupltures hanging from the ceiling. </span><br />
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Inside the Cosmopolitan </div>
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A giant high heel, awesome! </div>
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Inside the Bellagio</div>
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The Bellagio fountains</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"> I picked up a red velvet cupcake at the Sugar Factory inside the Paris hotel and saved it for our wait at the airport. I would recommend going there and checking out all the candy.</span></div>
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YUM!</div>
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Has anyone else gone to vegas recently? Share you story with me, I would love to see what you did on your trip. I am soo glad we finally got to go to Vegas. We got a lot done, saw a lot of sights and spent a lot of money. We had a great time, but we don't plan on going back anytime soon. </div>
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Viva Las Vegas!!!! </div>
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-59647939689116264102012-02-20T08:00:00.000-06:002012-02-20T08:00:02.766-06:00Vegas - Day 2<div style="margin: 0in;">
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Welcome back for day two of Vegas!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The second day we walked around the other end of the strip that we missed the day before. That’s when we saw the lions at MGM Grand, <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">New York</st1:city> <st1:state w:st="on">New York</st1:state></st1:place>, The Cosmopolitan and Planet Hollywood Hotel. </span></span><br />
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My shirt for the morning!</div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">We had a forgettable lunch at the buffet in the Planet Hollywood Hotel/Casino, but it was good enough. We raced back to our hotel next door after lunch to get ready for our vow renewal. </span></span><br />
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Our clothes </div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Our vows were renewed by none other than <st1:state w:st="on">Las Vegas </st1:state>legend Elvis Presley. I knew that Elvis had to hold our service because he has special importance in our relationship. Our first trip ever was to <st1:state w:st="on">Memphis</st1:state> to see <st1:state w:st="on">Graceland</st1:state>when Matt and I started dating. There was a group of us that went on that trip and we stayed at the Heartbreak hotel campground one night, kind of fun huh? Our wedding song was also an Elvis hit, Can't help falling in love. So we have a small love for him and knew that he had to <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>renew our vows. We went through<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://elvischapel.com/"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">"A Elvis Chapel",</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">and were really happy with the company. Our Elvis was really sweet and fun. He was also genuine and didn’t try to rush us through. Our package included a photographer, photos on a cd, and a limo ride to and from our hotel, which ended up being a blessing. I only wish it was in a pink cadillac instead, but hey I'm just glad we didn't have to take an expensive taxi. We also paid to have the renewals live on the web and got a dvd of the service as well. So all of you lucky readers will get a chance to relive our 5 year anniversary vow renewals as if you were there with us. Some of you will even feel like you are flashing back to our original wedding day, either way, we are glad you can be here with us ; )</span></span></div>
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Us singing "viva las vegas"</div>
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Us in the limo on our way back to the hotel. </div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">That night we walked around Cesar's Palace and the Forum Shops. I got to see a three story H&M (drool), and a Christian Louboutin shoe store (more drool). </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">But there wasn't much time or money in the budget to shop, so we forged on and decided to eat at P.J. Clarke's. It was a great ‘lil place to sit and people watch as we ate. Our next stop was the Bellagio to see "O". I bought tickets for the show 1-2 months before our trip and the tickets were practically sold out. I did find a discount ticket section on their website and was able to find tickets on row F, stage left on the aisle. It was either there or ALL the way on the back row at the top of the auditorium. I figured we might enjoy the show a little more if we could actually see and it would be neat to view everything so up close. We weren't disappointed. We did miss a few unimportant things that happened on the side, but for most part, we had great seats. The fact that everything was done in water, over water, and under water, was amazing. The costumes were unbelievable and had to withstand being wet and dry and still move like they needed them to. On your way in and out of the show you had to walk past an art gallery of sculptures done by an artist Richard MacDonald. He worked with the Cirque du Soleil performers to make these beautiful pieces of art. The reason I tell you this is because it will come up later in another post, so note to self, remember the Cirque du Soleil sculptures.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Tomorrow there will be the last installment of the Vegas pictures. It will cover our last 1.5 days there and tons of pictues to show. </span></span><br />
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</span></span>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6736187709477019369.post-50745943597740062502012-02-17T08:00:00.000-06:002012-02-17T12:30:11.789-06:00Viva Las Vegas...We got hitched!<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am finally posting on our Vegas trip! It has taken me a while to write it, then get Matt go over it and make sure I didnt forget anything. So after much anticipation, here's the trip! Enjoy!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">For our 5 year anniversary this past year, we decided to take a
big trip to renew our vows. Ever since day one of our marriage, I couldn't wait
to get married to Matt again. I wanted to get married everywhere, on the beach,
in the Mountains, anywhere really on God's beautiful green earth, even in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Las Vegas</st1:city></st1:place>. Earlier in the
summer our company held an auction to raise money for one of our coworkers
whose daughter was going through cancer treatments.(Check out more about Faye’s
fight<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://fayesfight.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">here</span></a><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">. She is a wonderful and brave little
girl). One of the auction items was a trip to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Las Vegas</st1:city></st1:place>, which included airfare and hotel.
Matt and I had been making plans to go to Vegas the previous year, but plans had
fallen through, so this time we jumped at the chance and beat out others to win
this trip and all for a good cause. After we won the trip, I couldn't decide
when we should go. There was a Photoshop conference in Sept that I had free
tickets to attend, but I just couldn't make up my mind and ended up not going.
Then a few people from work were going to a trade show and I thought about
meeting them there so we could all go out after the trade shows had ended and
hang out. After I talked to Matt about it, he decided he wanted a trip that
just the two of us could go on since we hadn't done that in a while. So after
that decision, I thought it would be a great idea to just go for our
anniversary. This would mark our 5 year anniversary. Big milestone right? We're
practically not Newlyweds anymore.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Us at the Dallas airport waiting on or flight out to Vegas. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">I talked to everyone I knew that had gone to Vegas to get ideas on
what all to do and not to do. Scarlett let me know about free stuff to do that
included the Lions at MGM Grand. Co-workers let me know about last minute
ticket places and buffets. My mom told me about the zipline on <st1:address w:st="on"><st1:street w:st="on">Freemont St.</st1:street></st1:address> and how
she wished she could have done it. And others gave me their opinions on where
to stay.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YdeOG3GH-Vk/TzWAQ_Z9bgI/AAAAAAAABOA/v4tyF-EoXcY/s1600/2011-11-03+16.41.33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YdeOG3GH-Vk/TzWAQ_Z9bgI/AAAAAAAABOA/v4tyF-EoXcY/s400/2011-11-03+16.41.33.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The view from our room. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">In the end we stayed at the Paris Hotel. We had a little problem with our check in, but upgraded to a room with a view of the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Eiffel</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Tower</st1:placetype></st1:place>, and all was made better. The upgrade was totally worth it because our view was amazing. We had a view of the strip, the Eiffel tower and the Bellagio as well as most of the famous fountains. </span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9hiWVH-UmIU/Tz3Gvt3LwEI/AAAAAAAABRU/L9GNQGTJu5g/s1600/DSC02444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9hiWVH-UmIU/Tz3Gvt3LwEI/AAAAAAAABRU/L9GNQGTJu5g/s320/DSC02444.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looking a lil rough but excited to be in a room! Especially this room.</span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our outdated but spectaucular room. Our other window to the right of the room (not in the picture) was facing Bally's and the strip. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">We got to see a lot of the fountain shows but
didn't get to hear the music that went along with it for most of them. Along
with our upgrade we received free breakfast in the morning and free cocktails
and hor d’ourves in the evening. This really rocked our socks off since we
wouldn't have to worry about getting breakfast every morning. We had planned on
getting our free drinks and snacks in the evening and then head out to sight
see then grab a dinner at a great place. However the snacks would always fill
us up, so I think we only ate dinner out once which happened to be the night of
our anniversary. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From Paris with Love!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">View from the club where we had free breakfast and <span style="font-size: medium;">hor d’ourves.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The first day/afternoon there we just walked around the strip going in and out of the casino/hotels to check them all out and see what all there was to do at each of them. We saw the awful show at TI, where the best part is the whole ship sinking thing. We rode the gondola at the Venetian where we were serenaded by our boat captain. It was a pretty slow night, so we got the whole boat to ourselves for the cheap rate, which was pretty awesome.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q_EycADx1qY/Tz3H7Wv8G6I/AAAAAAAABRk/3TcSFbVBm-Y/s1600/_DSC0038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q_EycADx1qY/Tz3H7Wv8G6I/AAAAAAAABRk/3TcSFbVBm-Y/s400/_DSC0038.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Venetian where we had our gondola ride.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the TI sirens show</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> The Volcano at the Mirage</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WiyrLkSfOOg/Tz3K3DidghI/AAAAAAAABSE/4wpidLlfFjE/s1600/_DSC0059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WiyrLkSfOOg/Tz3K3DidghI/AAAAAAAABSE/4wpidLlfFjE/s400/_DSC0059.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The strip</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Eiffel tower at Paris, I am a lil obsessed with the Eiffel for some of you that don't know me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The balloon at Paris</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> I have three more days to write about, but it will be condinsed down to two posts. I hope you come back to see what we did. You won't want to miss Monday's post, it's when Matt and I renewed our vows! It will be so worth it because we even have a video. </span><br />
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<br /></div>Dara M.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00286627784166263897noreply@blogger.com1