so happy to have visitors...

jones was very happy to see his cousins!!! we love our visitors...

we shared "dinos" with them... (marshmallows covered in sprinkles on a stick)... as a welcome to oceanside treat...

love thursday... santa and his reindeer...

did you know that santa visits disneyland....

...he promised jones that he would be sure to visit soon...

... then we went to visit santas reindeer... i promise they are in the background...

the princess and the frog parade...

has anyone seen this??? was it good??? would jones be entertained enough to go... i really want to see it...

donuts

it was raining saturday so... we found a donut shop...

... "donuts" in carlsbad...

we are having so much fun discovering and finding new places

the real pictures...

remember this post...

well...

i finally got the real pictures that have brent in them... here they are!

brent was just promoted in this picture...

the top three of the class standing here... martindale, hinojosa & donnelly

the whole class...

rainy day...

it is so so super rainy today... 70% chance of rain all day and night... and crazy gale force winds...

so...

i just found this website.... and i am in love with some of the ideas... i already liked to recycle... but being in california makes you want to recycle even more... the city gives you different bins to sort your recyclables and you can even go and turn some of your stuff in for $$$ back... anyhow... i think we could all do a little better about helping our mother earth and recycling more...

plus... the website also has some fun ideas for a green christmas...

... then...

who doesnt like granola...

this company lets you order your own granola the way you like it and then delivers it to your door... yum!!!!

thank goodness the sun came out for twenty minutes so we could get out of the house to take pictures of us in our rain boots... i knew they would come in handy someday...

...and thanks for the great ideas design mom...

what is on your fridge?

so we have been a little busy and i cant believe that i have not posted for a whole month...

brent returned to mesa after finishing up his mos schooling in north carolina...

he gave me a very thoughtful belayed anniversary gift...

5 years = silverware...

well we already have that... so thoughtful brent decides to have his brother jason and dad help to find an old antique spoon and make it into a pendant... as his dad says... "who thinks of this stuff"... i love him for being so thoughtful!!!

too bad that the gift i got him didnt make as big a scene as i was hoping... he told me that he would have to open any packages in front of his staff sergeant... so i got a box full of some of his favorite candy and a miley cirus cd, 'put your hands up... party in the usa' (you know everyone loves that song!) embarrassing... right... i wrapped it all so pretty in victoria secrets paper hoping to embarrass him like crazy having to open it with everyone watching...

too bad for me that they just handed it to him and he opened it by himself... and then he was disappointed that the victoria secrets tissue paper was just a front...

anyways...

he then had to report to camp pendlton after a short few days of leave... after just over a week in oceanside while he was getting "checked in", which turns out it is a week long process and not just a day or two like we thought. and then some more house hunting for the second time... the first house that we thought we had fell through... another couple offered more $$$ and a faster move in date... at first i was mad and heart broken... i had already mentally moved us in the cute little house... but now, like i knew it would be... we are grateful for this happening... we are so much happier with our second find... even better and even more perfect for us... so perfect, we are both so in love with the house and neighborhood that we dont want to even think that we will have to move away from here someday...

so after a crazy month of back and forth between mesa and oceanside we are all settle and even had my family over for thanksgiving only a few days after moving... i made my first turkey which not to brag... ok i am bragging... turned out so good! i was so surprised... i was a little nervous... having never cooked a whole turkey but thanks to this recipe: altons thanksgiving turkey it was amazing!

thank you family for coming to visit and to trust that i could make a turkey... thanksgiving was so yummy and so fun! i love a house full of people you love... i think thanksgiving just might have been officially made my favorite holiday!!!

i love thanksgiving!!!

we are also so grateful for awesome neighbors... we have not even been here that long... and have been so busy enjoying brents time off and unpacking that we have only shared a quick hello and wave as one or the other is passing by... but yesterday while outside and our neighbor said she had a bought a present for jones... a house warming/welcome to the neighborhood...

a dog...

jones was so happy and utterly in love...

thank you neighbor...

you made our little boys day!!!

now... the real reason i started this post...

both brent and jones are sick today... and so i was bored... found these magnets from college days... so i wrote a little something for my love that is sick in bed...

our love story:

"love story

you are hot!

smile drool

first kiss

lets be 2gether

yes boyfriend trust me i crushed 4 ever

gorgeous

sexy

attractive

sexy

romantic

like i heart you for sure

dates

love letters!!! time! heart throb

the ? is

4ever ?

devoted yes love

sweet with you rrr

crazy sweet luv forever

'heart'

he she will be always true soulmates

throb"

so what is on your refrigerator?

congratulations lance corporal

*

**

brent graduated this morning and was promoted to lance corporal... he finished first in his class with an average of 99.3%... (only missed one question on one test...)

this morning went something like this:

he was one of three that were honored... they take a few minutes to call out the top three of the class to come forward and present them with a special certificate... they started with the announcement of lc martindale graduating with 99.3%... then pfc ??? with 93.5%... then pfc ??? with 92%...

kind of looks like the picture above...

funny thing... one time when we were playing the newlywed game with some friends (hi aaron and vicki) we got the question, who has the higher iq? and i said myself and brent said himself... we lost at that game... and then as soon as we went home we took iq tests... and of course brent won... i was determined to beat him, but only made it worse on myself, because each test we took, he still won... and of course he was so sweet as to print off our scores just to make sure to remind me who had the higher iq... i should have known...

he is dang smart... and i am dang proud!

to:brent

from:errin

congratulations for graduating and even more for being first in your class which earned you an early promotion! love you and cant wait to see you!!!

*ps... no that is not brent... no that was not his graduation... no we dont even know those people...

**pss... since we couldnt be there i found the above picture from google/some guys promotion at cherry point nc... brent said that another marines girlfriend was there and she took a bunch of pictures... i hope to get those soon...

love thursday:hair cuts...

thanks auntie karen...

you rescued my eyes from my hair...

and made me look like this...

football, trunk or treat and halloween...

i totally forgot to take a picture of brandon, my brother at his last football game... but of course got one of jones with my parents... brandon did such a amazing job staying so dedicated to football and working so hard to be a part of the stapley football team. i am so proud of him...

why does jones have his halloween costume on for brandons football game... yeah... we got a lot of weird looks walking around... at least he was warm... it was about 40 something degrees that night... anyway... we went to our wards trunk or treat and then straight to the game so we could catch the last quarter... stapley 28:poston 7...

10/28/09

halloween... jones loved it... it was so fun to see him get into trick or treating... his bucket got so heavy that he would go to the door get the candy and then bring me the bucket to hold until we got to the next house... i had so many good laughs...

we were in cali looking for a house for the weekend... so we met up with my aunt and her family and friends for a chili cookoff and other yummy food... there were at least 10 different chilis to try... so good... and i only tried two... then the corn bread... homemade mac and cheese... guacamole and chips... and so much more... it was so good!!! those cali people know how to make some chili...

ps... i have no idea where he found a spiderman bat or to whom it belonged... but he would not let it go...

10/31/09

cheers to five years...

love...

there is so much to say... but none of it will tell you how the heart... my heart really feels... thank you for a wonderful five years! i couldnt have asked for better.... and i cant wait for the millions more to come... love you with all my heart and soul!

tu eres mi media naraja y sera para siempre...

happy anniversary love...

xoxox

10-24-09... the human race...

today i am out running the human race...

what are you up to???

yeah nike... i cant say enough how much i love this company and the amazing stuff they come up with... then pair them with apple and you get even more amazing things... = nike +... if you even mention it to me you will be stuck hearing all about how awesome it is... sorry to everyone who has already had to hear how much i love it... but you asked...

i guess the only thing that could make these two things become more amazing is if pinkberry somehow joined in on it all... i have no idea how that would ever work or happen... but those three together make me so very happy...

hope you have a great saturday...

love thursday... we have a home...

we just recently found out that we will be stationed at camp pendleton, california... we should be there for the remainder of brents four year contract = about 3.5 years... we are so excited to finally know where we are going and to know that we are going to such a cool place... who can say no to california... we love it there... now we just have to find a place to live... we should be all moved in by thanksgiving... words cannot explain or tell how very excited we are to finally we together as a family again... thank you to everyone that has helped us and thought of us in any way during the last 6, almost 7, months... thank you!

camp pendleton is just north of oceanside, ca and south of san clemente ca... the above picture is the pier of oceanside ca... it is said to be the longest pier on the west coast...

(thanks to ak1 for the great picture:google images search:oceanside)

10-20-09

six months... brent has been part of the usmc for six months

pumpkins and the park...

while brent was in town we also went to the park for some fun and eat our lunch... and of course where did we "have" to pick up our lunch... taco bell... black jack tacos... who loves that commercial... i was laughing so hard... i think it is funnier on the radio...

.....

pumpkin guts...

jones was so excited the other day when we went to the store and we saw pumpkins... i couldnt help myself and we had to buy not only a pumpkin but also a gourd... whenever i see them they make me so very happy!

i was so happy when jones shared that love with me... everyday he would get so excited when he would see the gourd that we bought...

(the little green/yellow pumpkin in jones' hands)

jones was telling us what our pumpkin says... ggrrrrraaaaaaaa...

yeah... we love halloween and are so excited...

happy halloween...

oct 12th 2009

guess who came to visit...

brent...

and... although our time went by way too fast... we loved having brent surprise us and fly to mesa for the weekend...

(this was a picture of brent riding the road rally bikes with jones)

we went to schnepf farms... i had been planning on going there sometime before halloween... to take jones and have a good time... so when brent was here we had to go...

one of the best parts... we loved the hayride...

half way through the hayride it stops off where the deer are kept... so we bought some deer feed and fed them... our hayride driver gave us some lemon tree leaves to give them too... jones loved seeing them and feeding them... he was giggling so much!!!

we also loved the corn maze... jones was so funny... in awe of the whole thing... and everyone screaming and trying to scare each other... but dont be too scared that jones looks like dwight from the office... for some reason his hair loves to do that...

my most very favorite... when we got to the petting zoo... there were goats, ponies, sheep, pigs and a cow... we stopped by the goats first and they were attacking us... they knew that people meant food... this one kept ramming us and tried to eat all our feed... thankfully a worker there came in and brought a baby goat that was a lot more calm and fun to play with...

then our very favorite... jones went crazy!... as soon as we saw the sheep he went crazy saying "baaaaa... baaaaaa" really loud and over and over...

and of course the pumpkin patch...

thank you schnepf farms... we had such a great time!!!

oct 10th 2009

warning for u2 fans... do not read any further...

i had a great time relaxing while i was waiting for brents libo...

i know my greatest picture right!?!?... gatta love french green clay mud masks... made by burts bees... made in north carolina...

my favorite part of our trip... i loved loved loved the opening band to our concert...

a few months ago i found out that muse would be opening for u2 in raleigh nc... so when we found out brent would be in jacksonville for school we just had to get tickets...

it was such a great concert...

they played all my favorites and even saved my most very favorite for the last song... so great!!!!

uprising... supermassive black holes... undisclosed desires... starlight and of course my favorite time is running out... plus a few more...

but... dont be mad that we left after three songs from u2 because after they played a beautiful day we didnt recognize anything... i wish i could have given our tickets to someone after watching muse...

me... in love... with muse...

we also went exploring... in swansboro we went to hammocks beach park... it was so pretty! this was one of my most favorite places... the picture below does not even do justice... but at least i got another picture of brent... he hates taking pictures... haha...

dont you just love spending time with your love...

then... i had to say goodbye to sexy hubby... sad day...