The big day

*Warning- picture overload! I have to add so many pics for my mom and sister who weren't able to be at the wedding. My mom would have loved to attend her niece's wedding (and be with her own sister) but gifted me the trip and also stayed home with my kids so that I could go! I have an amazing, giving mom!

The wedding was beautiful and FUN- just like Taty! :-) I loved being there to celebrate with my cousin and it was the perfect way the end such a great trip.

The BIG day! Getting ready at the salon!
Me and the bride

Cousins- Taty, Adriana, Luciana and me

Eating lunch at the salon- it takes a while to make us all look so good! :-)

On to the makeup table- holy makeup stash!
Bubbly time!
2 bridesmaids in waiting.
(Bridesmaids in Brasil don't wear the same color or dress, we got to pick our own dress within guidelines- so much easier!)
Tatiana- a stunning bride!Let the celebration begin!
With the happy couple- Taty and Thiago.

Cousins- me, Joana, and Luciana. We tease that we all have the same DNA= cheeks!

More DNA proof!
Waiting at the drink bar with Joana for my new favorite drink- Caipirosa (like a caipirinha),made with fresh fruit, sugar and vodka.
More cousins- Adriana, Natalia, Caca, Ana LuciaAnd more cousins....
Uncles: Joao, Vasco and Orlando (my mom's brothers)

My Aunt Maria Emilia (my mom's sister and mother of the bride)
Luciana & Leo (who live in California but we rarely get to see each other) and "Uncle Johnny" as he likes to be called. :-)
Me and my adorable little cousin Eduarda (Luciana's daughter)
I soon ditched the heels for these cute wedding favors- Havaiana flip flops!
The next day was my last full day so I got up early and made the most of it. Shopping for gifts, more food at one of my favorite places and more family time. What else could I ask for??
Brasilia- you will always have my heart.
Tchau (bye) for now.....

Brasil!!!

I travelled to Brasilia, Brasil for 10 days to see my extended family (my mom is originally from Brasil) and to be a bridesmaid for my cousin, Tatiana. It was an amazing, unforgettable, fun trip! It had been almost 7 years since I had been there last- way too long! It was tough being away from the girls for so long but they loved being with Chet and my mom who came to help (thanks!!).

Even though I have always been thousands of miles away from my Brasilian family, they have always been such a huge part of my life. My sister and I had the BEST time spending our summers in Brasil! Every time we visit Brasil, we condense years of memories into a few short weeks. I cherish every moment there and have such a hard time leaving (seriously, I make a spectacle at the airport with all my tears!). No matter how much time passes, I will always consider Brasil my second home.

I landed in Brasilia at 7am after a long multi-flight trip. After getting settled in at my aunt's house and showered, I wasted no time in diving right into my trip- I went to a BBQ at my cousin's house, visited another aunt and uncle, and still had time (or the appetite) to go for Brasilian pizza (yummy!). My mom has 7 brothers/sisters and there are 20+ cousins so there are a lot of people to see! I was so happy and exhausted when I finally fell asleep that night!

First night in Brasilia- eating pizza with my cousin/sidekick Andrea and our friend Melanie.
I love Brasilian pizza- especially the banana and cinnamon/suagr (without sauce)! Sounds odd but is so good!

The rest of the week was spent visiting family, walking around, eating every favorite food of mine (twice!), and helping my cousin Taty with her wedding. No matter what country, there are always bridesmaid duties! :-)

Let the pre-wedding festivities begin!
Taty (the gorgeous bride) and I

Andrea and I... again (we are connected at the hip so lots of pics of us together!)

Standing at the beautiful ceremony site! It is also the place where my parents met. My mom and her friends knew where the cute American service men hung out- one of them happened to be my dad. :-)

At the ceremony site- isn't this an amazing tree?!

Andrea and Maria Clara (Tatiana's daughter, and adorable flower girl!).
Camille looks exactly like Maria Clara did as a baby.

Eating one of my favorite foods (pastel) with a few of my cousins.

This blog post could easily be titled "How I ate my way through Brasil" since many of my pics are of us eating!

More cousins (with my Aunt Maria Emelia who my sister used to call Amelia Bedelia) and more pizza!

I LOVE walking around Brasilia- it's such a neat city and so green! This is the apartment building where I stayed (with one of my aunts) and would walk back and forth to my other aunt's house every day. Sounds corny but I love how comfortable I am in a city that is miles away from home but still feels like "home".

Wedding pictures to come....

More than just a name

When we moved to Maricopa, I noticed a lot of references to Wild Horses- Wild Horse Pass Resort, Wild Horse Pass Blvd, etc. I thought it was just a touristy name for these places until we started seeing herds of wild horses along the road! The area between Phoenix and Maricopa is all desert and a perfect place for the thousands of wild horses that still remain there. When we drive home, the girls love looking for blowing dust which usually means running horses. Who needs a DVD player in the car anymore? :)

Our neighborhood sits on the very outer border of the city (bordering the desert) and our cul de sac backs up to a wash that leads into the desert. This last weekend, instead of driving somewhere to go hiking, we decided to explore the wash. This wash is often filled with water so it's very lush with overgrown trees and green shrubs. About 5 minutes into our adventure, we actually spotted a wild horse about 30 feet in front of us and evidence (horse poop) of a lot more! It was so neat to see- we all stood there with our mouths open (I'm sure the horse was just as surprised). We can't wait to go back and leave some apples for our wild friend!

(view of the wash behind the girls- picture not taken the same day)

Picture of our neighborhood to prove we do live within civilization-
we just got lucky to have the desert in our backyard.

Ahh, the life of a 2 year old

While I was making the bed and tidying up our room, Camille was playing in the playroom and then to the backyard. Since our master bedroom window looks out to the backyard and she was safe, I didn't immediately follow after her.

When I did, this is what I found:

Camille pushing her doll stroller in my wedding heels (from the girls' dress up trunk).

She was wearing clothes but got very messy after lunch and had to ditch the pudding stained shirt. :)

Also, check out her poor dolly- Camille may need a few lessons in child rearing!