Happy Love Day

Oh Valentine's Day. It's a great day, but I will say who needs a day on a calendar to tell you when to love? Not I, said the fly! We decided to head to the club for brunch and then to play a round of golf. It finally warmed up a bit and the sun came out, so it made the day that much better. Afterwards, we met with a couple friend of ours for dinner and now we're at home, relaxing and watching the NBA All Star game and Winter Olympics. Speaking of the Olympics, J's parents are there (his last assignment as VP had him in charge of the event) and enjoying themselves...so much so, that J said they were in a rush to get off the phone when he called! We think it's a little bittersweet for J's Dad because this really marks the end of his career. J and I did joke that his Dad was definitely asleep during the opening ceremony. They will be there until March 1st and then they'll be visiting us in mid-March. We can hardly wait to hear from them!

Other than that, we hope y'all had a great Valentine's Day and most of all, that it was spent with the ones you love. :)

This little piggy wore tights, This little piggy went to the Alden...

We celebrated our 2 year anniversary by having dinner at *17 at the Alden. Chef Ryan Perra isn't at *17 anymore and what a bummer, since J had actually tried to surprise me with the crab and avocado salad served at our wedding reception. No worries though, dinner was fantastic! The new chef is just as great, if not better! We found out that Chef Ryan is now the chef at The Grove. What a coincidence, since we ate there not too long ago and thought it was great too.

The Alden - formerly known as the historic Sam Houston Hotel.

It was great to be back at the Alden, especially together. We had such a great time! It's amazing how being back there can spark so many feelings and memories. I still can't believe that 2 years of marriage has already approached us. It seems like just yesterday J kissed me at the Shell station. Yes, that's true. Our first kiss was at the gas station. Smooooooth! (Apparently so, since I married him!).

View of lobby from where we were seated.

We decided to head upstairs to the veranda to reminisce. It was awesome being back up there and re-living all the great moments!

The dance floor was laid out in a different spot, but we still managed to get a little slow dance in. ;)

You can't see it that well, but there's the courthouse.

I always loved that view from the veranda!

*************

On another note - who says you can't wear tights with open toe shoes? Well, actually, I do. It always bothered me before, but I decided to give the trend a try last night. And? I likey!

Does it look weird? Hope not!

One last shot of me on the dance floor...some things never change.

And for your fashion pleasure, here's what I wore: Coat: Hayden Harnett; Dress: Free People; Tights: Banana Republic; Shoes: J.Crew; Bag: Marc Jacobs.

To wrap up this post - I'd like to give a huge thanks to all of you who have supported J and I through the years. We appreciate all of your love and look forward to sharing more memories with you! xoxo!

10-20-2007

October 20th, 2007:

It was a good day. Really good day.

I'm Lovin' It!

Time for a break! I'm taking a quick break from my teacher module training to finish up this blog from over the weekend. I have been going non-stop with my training because I've set mini-goals for myself and I'm determined to reach them! I registered for the state teaching certification exam and I'm trying to wrap up the modules so that I can concentrate on studying...this test scares me! So, I'm just trying to get prepared as much as I can. There will be time to chill later! ....but a 5 minute break sure won't hurt! :)

Okay, so. Back to the blog. Here are things that I'm loving right now.

1.

OPI Matte Collection: love love love this!! My favorite colors are now in a matte tone. Y'all know I have about five colors I rotate. Three of them are from OPI and the other two are from Essie. Well, the three that I love are now available in matte! They are: Lincoln Park After Dark, Russian Navy and Alpine White. LPAD is one of my absolute faves and I actually gave this color to a few members of my wedding party as one of their gifts in their pink suitcase. (The others got a pinkish that I also love). Russian Navy is cute and fun, but I only wear it on my toes. I love the Alpine White, but Jim thinks it looks like I have white out on my fingernails and toes...eh, what does he know?! lol. Anyway, for all you beauty junkies, go out and get these now...I guarantee they'll be flying off the shelves. ps - the other two colors from Essie that I love are Mademoiselle and Wicked.

2.

The Rachael Zoe Project: Oh. Emm. Gee.

My friend, Maggie, has been telling me to watch this and each time I've said, eh, okay, whatever. I finally caught an episode and now I am obsessed. This show is so awesome and it makes me laugh. I love the scene when Ms. Zoe was in Van Cleef & Arpels and she gasps and says: "I'm dyinnnngggg!!!" upon viewing some vintage diamond pieces. Hilarious! Looks like I have another show added to my tivo list.

3.

This picture from Glamour Magazine: I live for this woman's confidence. Her body is not perfect, but you wouldn't be able to tell by the all over glow she's exuding. What is confidence? This picture right here!

4.

Ruggles GREEN: Wow! This restaurant is positively devine! Y'all know I love eating organic and eat organic as much as I can (even though my husband thinks 'organic' is a bunch of crock). Well, the joke's on him because what he doesn't know is that I sneak it into his foods. Ha!

Ruggles Green was recommended by my yoga teacher and I gave it a try. Talk about delicious! I've been back a handful of times already and I'm seriously addicted. My favorite is the hydroponic butter lettuce wedge salad. The lettuce is so fresh and crisp that it practically melts in your mouth. They have amazing pizza too...even my picky eater husband was chowing down on it! My favorite drink is the organic melon green tea over ice. So freaking good! Give them a try...I promise you'll love it!

5.

Tiffany Key Collection: Back in March, Hubby and I were in the midst of going through sadness and also dealing with the craziness of moving back to Houston. We were at home one day and he told me to go get dressed so we could grab lunch. We didn't have many days left in NYC and I knew that. We were walking around and Jim said he wanted to make a quick stop somewhere before we ate. Much to my surprise, we ended up at 5th Avenue and 57th Street...Tiffany! He gave me a really long hug and said that he'd like me to pick something out to have in our hearts for this journey we've been on and continue to live out. It's times like these that confirm that he truly makes me a better person. I can only hope to make him feel this way at times when he needs it too. We walked in and as I was looking around and he called me over to a case. The salesperson said that the collection was a few days new and hadn't even been featured in the catalog yet. Jim looked to me and said, I think this is it. I looked down and saw two keys. I teared up as I tried it on. I knew exactly what he was thinking the moment he picked it out. I got the two keys on a long chain and I wear it often...keeping the journey close to my heart.

Happiness Is...

...knowing my Husband is coming home today from being out of town for work.

It's cold and I need a hug. Hurry and get home, Bun!

Congratulations, Miller Family!!

A huge CONGRATULATIONS goes out to Courteney and Chris (& their families)! Courteney gave birth to a healthy and very beautiful baby girl! Ella Michelle was born early yesterday morning, weighing in at 5 lbs. 13 oz and is 18 in. long. Both Mom and Ella bear are doing fantastic!

Courteney sent me a picture of Ella via text and she is soooo adorable!!! It's times like these that I wish I were in Houston. It's very surreal to me that one of my best friends has a baby. I've known Courteney for many many years(almost 20!) and to see her become a Mom brings tears of happiness and joy to my eyes.

I pray that God watch over Ella and the Miller family as they embark on this new chapter of their lives.



I made Ella's monogram above based on her nickname...Ella Bear!!

XOXO!!

Happy 1st Anniversary, Honey...

One year ago, I saw you all the way at the end of what seemed like the longest aisle I had ever stepped foot on. I knew I had to walk slow, but all I wanted to do was run. Run so fast that by the next time I blinked, I was standing next to you. You were standing there, all dressed in your tux – Kenneth Cole nonetheless – looking all handsome…with a touch of irony – you had tears in your eyes, but you also had a huge smile on your face. We met face to face and all I kept thinking was wow this is really happening – I'm marrying the most amazing man I have ever met.

To rewind how we came to this day – the most amazing day I've had thus far - would be like replaying my favorite movie over and over…and over. I absolutely love reliving the day we met – me in the red hat and you offering to help me with the weights; what a classic pick up move by the way…the day fate brought us back together…our first kiss – thank goodness for that automatic pump at the shell station ha ha...the night we got engaged – you knelt down at Rockefeller Center!!! …and all the other moments in between. We made it through the long distance when I was still in Houston and you were already in New York. You made a pact with me that no matter what, we would not let more than 3 weeks go by without seeing each other. We spent more money on plane tickets than most people spend on in a lifetime…for one common goal – to be with each other. We've been on quite a few road trips – exploring the great cities of the East coast and also because we craved philly cheesesteaks. We've made it through you having hair and then not so much hair and me with blonde hair and then back to the basics as a brunette..and maybe now a little bit of both. We've made it through the countless trips to Ikea, Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel –even though I know you secretly love these places. We made it through the insanity otherwise known as re-doing the apartment – boxes everywhere, living out of the boxes, paint buckets, tarp, brushes and tape everywhere. We've made it through heat, rain and lots of snow. We've made it through a lot…all the while building up inside jokes that could be enough material for our own sitcom.

I love you not just for one reason – but for so many reasons…even reasons you may not even think would exist. Like how you use a flashlight to pick out what shirt you want to wear in the morning so the light doesn't wake me up because I'm still sleeping; when you walk around the store a million times making sure they really are out of Aquafina water because you know it's my favorite; when you check to see if my Ipod is fully charged…and then charge it without me knowing; how after such a long and difficult day you can call me and say hey let's go on a date tonight – instant happiness; how you and i will pass each other in the apartment and you stop to kiss my forehead just because; how when we go shopping you won't let me hold my own bags - i know how much you dislike shopping too; how you wash the 8 thousand dishes i use even if all i did was boil water; and all the million and one things you do on a daily basis that shows me...wow...he really loves me!

Thank you for being a part of my life. Thank you for giving me unconditional love. Thank you for being here to laugh with, cry with and love with. You are my absolute love and I am a better person because of you.

I love you!

Love - your Wife,
Mrs. PJD

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad de Leon!!!

A very very special HAPPY 38th ANNIVERSARY to Mom & Dad de Leon!!! We hope you have a wonderful trip filled with love, laughs, reminiscing and golf!

We truly admire your devotion to one another and look forward to the day we celebrate 38 wonderful years.



With lots of love,

P & J

Our Wedding Video!!!

Our wedding video is finally here!!! WOO HOO!! We are so thankful to Ashley Chiles of LadyFlash Productions for putting her talent on our wedding video! This was supposed to be the first cut - Ashley told me to get back to her with any changes after we watched it. Well, guess what?!? We had NO changes!!! The first cut was PERFECT! Believe it or not folks, I'm not changing a THING!! I'm trying my hardest to get some of it uploaded on here. The music used on our movie is awesome...and there are some hilarious shots...we were all smiles the entire day and the video shows our 'just married' glow.

Moms and Dads: We're sending you your copy next week, once Ashley has completed copying to the 6 dvd's we'll be receiving.

Also, we will be receiving one dvd with the raw footage (8 hours worth!) just in case there's a certain part of the day/night that didn't make it to the cut...THANKS ASHLEY!!

We had an amazing night tonight watching the video. Both of us shed tears and relived the most wonderful day of our lives thus far. We've been married for 7 months and watching the video tonight made it feel like it was October 20th yesterday. We hope you love it as much as we do...Enjoy!!