***Shmancy***

Shmancy.  I think Webster's dictionary would define it as "super fancy."  Now, I know what most are thinking.  Samm-yes, she's fancy...in fact, many people make fun of me and call me Fancy Nancy.  I get it.  I like big rings, I LOVE to accessorize (maybe to the point where I over-do it a bit), but I found a way in which I am NOT fancy!!!  Ready?!

So...David and I celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary last week and we thought "Let's do something fun!"  David and I tent to be, what most people would describe as, a "boring married couple."  Now, don't get me wrong-we're a riot, but as far as the things we do...kinda the "boring married couple" stuff...date nights consist of: movies, a quick dinner at a local restaurant, etc.  Nothing in the least bit "shmancy."  So...we decided-for our anniversary, we are gonna be shmancy.

I had heard about a restaurant called The White House in Anaheim.  I knew it was a nice restaurant, but I was more interested to hear they provide 150+ meals for children a day who are less fortunate.  I was sold.  If they're helping kids, then I will support them.

We made reservations, and off we went!

Once we got there we were very impressed with the fancy-ness.  However, it was sooooo quiet in there.  We could barely whisper without feeling awkward.  So...we just whispered the whole time.  THEN, it was time to find something to eat.  Literally EVERYTHING on the menu was some sort of concoction.  I asked David if he saw any "normal" food. LOL!  Everything looked DISGSTING!  They had bacon pasta, and all of these weird things.  David ended up getting the bacon pasta (they had a prettier name for it) and just the smell of it made me sick.  My meal was no better.  I had a few bites and told David I was full.  Then I asked if we could go to McDonalds afterwards! :) 

Moral of my story...it was not our idea of a good time.  We had each others company, so we made the best of it.  But, we promised that next time we would resort to our "boring" ways.  We like our boring, simple, conservative lives just fine, thank you very much!  :)

Bradley Andrew Hoang Dornan

David's best friend, Derick and his wife, Lan had their first baby last week.  David and I were really excited to meet Bradley.  He was born on August 31st, 2010.  We went to visit them Monday (Labor Day).  It was so much fun!  He is SUPER cute, and a very good baby.  Congratz, Derick and Lan!

4 years down...FOREVER to go...

4 years ago, today David and I were married.  I am such a lucky girl to have such an awesome husband.  He takes such good care of me.  I couldn't have asked for a more caring, thoughtful, loyal husband.

...this is all on top of the fact that he is a stud! ;)

Lucky us!

My friend, Ashley called me one day and asked me if David and I would be willing to go in to a photo studio and be subjects for her sister.  Her sister, Kelly is pursuing a career in photography, and needed to have different shots for her portfolio...one being couples.  So, of course, I thought it would be awesome to have some pictures taken of the two of us.  Afterall, we haven't had any good picture taken since we got engaged. 

With that being said, I think we got some good shots.  Here are some of my faves...

My Parents' 25th Wedding Anniversary...

July 20th, 2010 marked 25 years of marriage for my parents.  I was born 11 months after they were married, so I feel like I had the opportunity to watch their marriage throughout the years, which is neat.  I have always wanted to throw them a 25th anniversary partty, and had honestly been planning it for years.  These days, I feel like 25 years is REALLY something to celebrate.  So, I applaud all the couples who have made it through THICK and THIN.  YOU are something to celebrate!  And to my family...my mom and dad, my Aunt Terri and Uncle Jim, and My Aunt Cindy and Uncle Rick...THANK YOU.  Thank you for making it! :)

Here are some pics of the party.  It was held at our new house...that proved to be challenging, especially since we had only lived there for 6 days.   :)

This is a picture of our front room.  I decorated with their wedding albums.

These are the decorations.  We had the party in our backyard.  I chose my mom's favorite colors: Red, black and white.

Of course I thought the party would NOT be complete without a chocolate fountain.  THIS was WAY worth the investment!  It was a HIT!

David's best friend owns a catering business, so we had him cater it for us.  We had a taco bar.  It was really YUMMY!

I wish I could take credit for this AMAZING cake, but I can't.  My friend's sister did it for me.  It was BEAUTIFUL, and really good too!

This is a picture of my parents and their friends from high school.

My grandpa was hamming it up with all the ladies! :)

My mom wrote this letter when she was 9 1/2.  It was saved in a safety deposit box and taken out for her wedding, and NOW for her party!

Here are some more photos:

Overall, it was an AWESOME party.  Thank you to those who came, and ESPECIALLY those who traveled from out-of-state!  I SO appreciate your presence. :)  To another 25 years...

House Hunting

David and I decided in October that it was time to find ourselves a home.  What an exciting time in a couples lives...or so we thought!  I have come to despise the house hunting process.  What once seemed to be an exciting adventure, has now turned into a stressful limbo between extreme highs and lows. 

Now...I suppose I should be somewhat thankful for the opportunity we have to purchase a home, because, let's be honest...without the downfall-correction-PLUMMET-of the economy, there would be no way we could have afforded a shack here in good ole' $outhern California. :)

So, I just felt the need to share.  I have been really irritated with looking lately and not finding anything.

David After Dentist

This is one of my favorite youtube videos of all time.  This little boy just got back from the dentist...

Christmas Eve!

This Christmas we were lucky enough to travel to Utah to be with my family. We spent Christmas Eve at my Aunt Cindy's house in Logan. For dinner we had meatball sandwiches...they were VERY good!

After dinner we had a white elephant game. THAT WAS A LOT OF FUN! I ended up with Jenni's gift, which were lottery tickets. I won $25! David won some lotion...LoL! Looks like I really lucked out! :)

We also played a family poker game. It was a lot of fun. My dad and David really enjoyed it! David ended up winning after him and my dad went "all in!"

We opened presents after dinner...then went back to Aunt Terri's for the night! Christmas in Utah is always wonderful!