Baby You're A Firework

This 4th of July was an odd one. It was in the middle of the week, a number of fireworks shows were cancelled or rescheduled, and Jose had to work the night before and the night of so that meant Joaquin and I were on our own. Despite all this, it turned out to be a very fun, festive and busy day!
We started out by going to Hap Magee again, this time to meet up with Joaquin's cousin Sydney and her mommy Lauren. Sydney is about 9 months younger than Joaquin but it is still so fun to see them interact and "play" together.

After a nap (for Joaquin at least), we headed out to Dublin for a good old fashioned 4th of July block party! It was complete with volleyball, water balloon tosses, a jello eating contest, BBQ, drinks, and of course fireworks! They're legal in Dublin, so the bottle rockets and sparklers were out in full force. I wasn't sure how Joaquin would react to all the noise and craziness, but let me tell you this boy LOVES fireworks. Seriously, is there anything this kid isn't afraid of?! Needless to say, it was a pretty great Independance Day. The only thing missing was Jose, but here's hoping he'll be able to celebrate with us next year!! xxoo

Hot Fun In The Summertime

Before I start this post, let me say I am using the Blogger app for iPhone for the first time so let's see how this turns out...

ANYWAY, now that summer is here Joaquin has been spending more and more time at the local park scene. One of our faves is Hap Magee in Alamo. It's walking distance from our house, clean, fun and beautiful. And, they have this really awesome water area (basically glorified sprinklers for the kids to run through). We didn't come prepared to get wet the other day, but of course that didn't stop my little risk taker. He was more than happy to run around in just a (soggy) diaper, and I was more than happy to snap some photos.

Memorial Weekend Outings

One of the reasons I love living in the Bay Area is there is always something to do... Whether it be an event, museum, theme park, sight-seeing, you name it... and being able to enjoy it through the eyes of a child makes just everything that much sweeter (even if it is a huge production just to get out the door when an 18 month old is involved).
On May 27th, the Golden Gate Bridge turned 75 years old. Naturally, there was a big festival thrown so Joaquin and I met up with Heather and Rob, and headed down to Fort Mason/Crissy Field to say "Happy Birthday" in person.

I am slightly obsessed with the "toy camera" effect on my new Canon

Soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Batzloff

Go Niners! (even though I am forever surrounded by Raiders fans!)

Me and my little man at the Golden Gate Bridge :)

The following day, we were lucky to have a day to spend with Jose, and decided to check out the San Ramon Wind Festival. Growing up, the Wind Festival was one of my mom's favorite events, and we used to go every year. I was very excited to share this little tradition with my own family.

Train ride #1

Big Slide!! The boys went on this ride as well

Train ride #2 (that little girl talked my ear off the whole time. So cute:) )

xxoooxxoo

Deep In The Heart of Texas

Last week I ventured down to the one and only Dallas, TX for the Mended Little Hearts national convention. Travelling sans baby and husband was much easier, but it also made for a looooonnngggg flight. I'm pretty sure it took about 19 hours to get to Fort Worth International from SFO (ok so it was only 4). Anyways, I was quite nervous to leave my guys for four days, but once I got to Dallas and realized how busy we were going to be over the next few days (and nights), I was able to relax and focus on all the awesome new people I was going to meet and of course lots of leadership training for MLH.

The training was great. I learned so much about the organization, and about Congenital Heart Defects. Did you know that more children die each year from a CHD, than from all forms of childhood cancers combined? And about 1 in 110 babies are born with a CHD? Pretty scary stuff. As sad as these facts are, it is so great to be a part of a group that is working so hard to spread awareness, advocacy and support for this extremely worthy cause. 

It was kind of surreal for me to be among so many "heart moms". Being a CHD survivor myself, I loved hearing everyone's stories, and being able to tell mine. Some stories were happy, some were heartbreaking, but all were powerful and inspiring. 

It wasn't all business though. Remember, most of the participants of the convention are busy moms and wives, and being away from home/husbands/kids meant it was time to blow off some steam and let a little loose! After the meetings were done each day it was time to hit the town, Dallas style! We enjoyed delicious BBQ at Sonny Bryan's Smokehouse, went (mechanical) bull riding at Trophy Room, experienced some real cowboy line dancing at Cowboys Red River, and somewhere along the way we were able to get our own limo driver for the weekend! xxoo

Our Mended Hearts logo in the lobby of the Hyatt, Dallas                                                                                                                                                                                              

Me and our Silicon Valley lead coordinator, Andrea

That's a nice pair of hooters! - Outside of Hooters in Dallas      

Just a few of the awesome ladies I met. I'm already excited to see them all again  next year!

With our limo driver, Coley and the stretch Hummer limo!

Love to L.O.V.E.

Since I went, oh, a year without blogging, I feel like from time to time I need to back track and post about things that happened during my hiatus. One of these things was mine and Jose's Christmas gift to each other - a trip to Vegas! So here we go...
This year as I was thinking about what I could possibly want for Christmas, it dawned on me that I really didn't want anything. I mean, sure I could think of things if I really tried but nothing seemed enticing enough to ask Jose to buy me. And since I was having trouble figuring out what to get him as well, I offered up this suggestion: we forego presents and instead treat ourselves to a trip to Vegas. And since my birthday is just two weeks after Christmas (Jan 4), it doubled as my bday gift.

Vegas in January is the way to go (as long as you're not itching to lay by the pool all day). It wasn't hot out at all, and it was so cheap! We only went for 2 days, and didn't have a lot planned so it was nice to just relax, party a little bit, and spend time together. The only thing really on our agenda was to go see L.O.V.E., the Cirque de Soleil Beatles show. Being a huge Beatles fan, I had been wanting to see this show FOREVER! I've had the soundtrack for a couple of years now, and I love it. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint. There was a point in the opening number where I actually teared up, I was so excited! Jose loved it too, the first thing he said when it was over was, "I can't wait to see that again." I hope we do get to see it again someday soon!

All and all, I have to say that a trip to Vegas with your honey is a must. And if you can swing it, go see L.O.V.E. It's super expensive but worth every penny, and something you are guaranteed to never forget. xxoo

All dressed up and ready to rock!

Outside of the L.O.V.E. theatre

Little Trip to the Big Tomato

Hello all you blog enthusiasts! Well this past weekend was a busy one. Since Jose has been working every weekend for the past few months, I try and find ways to keep myself and the little man entertained when he's not here. This weekend, we took a little road trip up to Sacramento to visit my friend Kimberlyn. Kim is someone who I have know for almost ten years now. She was one of my 5 roommates while studying abroad in London (when I was 19), and lucky for us we have managed to stay in touch over the years.
So off to Sac-Town we ventured on Friday afternoon. I guess we beat traffic, because we really didn't hit any until we actually got IN Sacramento. After arriving at Kim's house we decided to have a nice night in with pork tacos and some white wine. Mr. Sanchez Jr. was a bit of a pill to put to bed, but that is to be expected in a strange place with lots of new things to discover. Once he was finally out for the night, it was so nice to just be able to sit with Kim, drink some wine, and catch up on each other's lives....

...Enter the next morning, where it became clear as day to me that I should no longer participate in the consumption of white wine (maybe all wine, but the jury is still out on Syrah). The past 2 times I have gotten even a slight buzz off white wine, I have woken up sicker than sick and this was no exception. And when I say sick, I don't just mean your average run-of-the-mill hangover. I'm talking can't keep anything down (not even water), throwing up your empty stomach, hurts to lay down and stand up kind of sick. Very food poisoning-esque. Anyways, after a full morning of that drama, and dear Kim was so sweet to watch/take care of Joaquin while I recovered, I finally started to feel better around 4pm. We decided to hit the town of Old Sacramento for a little Cinco De Mayo fun!

Old Sac is a great place, so cute with so many little shops to explore. After enjoying some pizza (the only thing that sounded good to me at the time), we wandered the cobblestone streets and got to observe Sacramento party people of all kinds. There were (of course), many people out to celebrate Cinco De Mayo, as well as the kids having their high school prom near by, who were for some reason roaming the streets in their prom dresses and tuxes. It was a little odd, but so fun to see the "kids" all dresses up. We got back to Kim's house that night pretty tuckered out and ready to just chill and watch Bridesmaids (she had never seen it!). Joaquin slept better the 2nd night, which was awesome, as we both needed a good night's sleep.

When we got home Sunday afternoon, we were both pretty exhausted. Joaquin went straight upstairs for a nap, and I continued to recover from my Friday night stupidity. :) All and all though, I would say it was a pretty successful trip, I look forward to hanging out with Kim again, and for the days when Joaquin is old enough to be able to enjoy the state capitol is all it's glory :) xxoo

Bachelorette Party!!

This past Saturday night was my "Bay Area" Bachelorette party, hosted by one of my bridesmaids, Jenn. We went to the Radisson Hotel in Dublin, where Jenn had gotten a two-story hotel room. She had gotten there early along with Nichole and Tina and decorated the whole place:

They had a blow-up penis that they named "Jose", and made me carry it around the whole night!!

After everyone got to the hotel, we were off to PF Changs for some fun with drinks and dinner! We had a FABULOUS time at Changs, and afterwards went back to the hotel for a quick rest, take some pics, and then went to Hooters.

In addition to carrying a blow-up weenie around all night, I was given a list of things I needed to do by the end of the night. I got almost everything done including:

Having someone buy me a shot:

Get kissed by a girl:Writing my name on someone's boxers:
Have someone propose to me: And get a lap dance!

It was a really great night!! Thank you so much to Jenn, the ladies who helped with putting it together, and to those who came... I had SOOO much fun!! :)

This week I'm working on more wedding stuff, Jose and I just got our marriage license and we're meeting with the minister on Wednesday to talk about our vows. Then on Thursday night it's off to Vegas with Holly, Heather and Ashley for Bachelorette party number two!

XOXO,
Nikki

Pink Showers and Lemon Drop Shots

So this weekend was wild, crazy, and fantastic! First on Saturday was my bridal shower!! I had been looking forward to my bridal shower for sooo long, so when the day finally arrived, I couldn't believe it. My bridesmaids planned everything, with help here and there from my mom and fiance, and everything turned out perfectly :) We played 3 games, all of which were unique and I hadn't played at a bridal shower before.... For the first one, Heather put out 10 pictures of me at all different ages (including my "Awkward Stage"... thanks Heather), and everyone had to guess how old I was in each pic. Then, Holly did a game that was like Scattegories, and it was really fun. Lastly, we did a "Newlywed" style game... Heather had video-taped Jose answering questions about us, and I had to guess his answers. It was really fun, and everyone was so impressed!! I only got 11 out of 20 questions right though.... Or maybe I should say Jose got 9 out of 20 WRONG! Haha ;)

The bridal party: Holly, Ashley, me, Robyn, Heather, Jenn and HelenI was so happy that so many people came, and I got some really great gifts, which I am so grateful for! It couldn't have turned out better :)

After the shower, we all went home and took naps, and later that night it was time for us to go out to celebrate Holly's 25th birthday, which was on 7/16. We went to this really fun bar in Berkeley called Thalassa...

Robyn had come up for my bridal shower, so it was sooo great to be able to go out with all the girls, and have everyone be together... When we all get together it's pure madness and I love it!

Sunday I got to just relax and hang out with Robyn and Jose, and then Jose and I went to his dad's house for dinner.... All and all it was a very fun and memorable weekend!! This coming weekend is my bachelorette party here in the Bay Area, hosted by Jenn... No doubt it will be another crazy night, with lots of fun pics!! For now, I have to get back to work on planning the wedding.... Only 3 1/2 more weeks to go!

XOXO,

Nikki