1 year 'til the Big 3-0!!

The best time to ask me how old I am, is on my birthdays. Otherwise, I seriously do not know my age and pretty much lost count after my early 20s. In fact, I told the race officials during my triathlon in August I was a couple years younger when they asked my age to write on my leg - oops but I corrected it!! I always feel like I'm 25! Sometimes I wonder...how long will I feel 25?

Going to class from 9a-12p work from 1-9p, is not the ideal way to spend a birthday. However, having AWESOME family, friends, & husband...makes it the BEST birthday! I was overwhelmed with all my Facebook messages, the phone calls, text messages, packages, and cards and truly feel blessed :) Hubby made sure my night ended with a bang!

Birthday Highlights

1. My birthday celebration started on Tuesday night, Jan. 26 with a surprise, spontaneous dinner date to Texas de Brazil - where we devoured into 8 different types of steaks/meat, mashed potatoes, & Key Lime Pie! The last time (& 1st time) we ate here, was our very 1st Valentines as husband & wife.

2. After returning from dinner, Andrew couldn't wait to give me my gift! He tends to give my gifts early (I'm talking sometimes days or weeks early!). I didn't ask for this, but he did some thorough research on this facial cleaning product from Sephora. This was a gift from Mom & Dad and Andrew :) It's VERY nice!!

2. Andrew does not mess around when it comes to my birthday (even if it's just us). He blows up balloons, makes dinner, bakes a cake, and sings Happy Birthday!!

Strawberry Scrumptious - my FAVORITE!

3. My husband is a great chef...I'm a great baker :) He made homemade Turkey Meatballs with spinach spaghetti...my favorite type of spaghetti!!

4. I saved all my cards and packages that I got throughout the week - great cards from my big sis, Lana, & MeeMaw/PeePaw! Mom's gifts doesn't have to be extravagant...she's so creative and entertaining that I just look forward to what notes she puts into my gifts...1. Soap from Christmas, made by Aunt Jill; 2. Peach paper gift - common gift, different ingredient (goat lotion); 3. Lavendar gift - safe way to celebrate, relax and have a good time (champagne bottle candle - haha!!); 4. Rose gift - slightly used...but very good (I was worried but it was my favorite Bath & Body Works scented body spray); 5. Main gift is coming from Andrew (the facial cleanser electronic); 6. Card picked out especially for you! Signed by Mom, Dad, & Tilden.

5. During lunch break, I get a package from the Montoyas...a beautiful vase used to melt scented wax.

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6. All my Facebook messages, including one from my childhood playmate and best buddy, Brett: "Happy Birthday Tiffany!!! Doesn't seem like we should be getting this old. We still should be eating suckers in a sandbox somewhere!!" I nearly choked up as memories popped up...I miss my family friends so much!!

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7. My co-workers give me a cake and a few items including a St. Jude mug I've been wanting to purchase in our gift shop!!

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8. An email from Mom & my MeeMaw/PeePaw and a text from my lil sis and baby brother :)

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9. A phone call from my brother, Clayton & his girlfriend! Along with a duet from Andrew's parents and phone calls & messages from some of my close friends!!

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10. A text message from one of my besties with a picture of her new big, baby boy, Kix: "Kix says hi, & he can't wait to meet you!" Oh, I miss her so much!!

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These are just a few highlights that brightened my day, despite the full work/school day! This is why family, friends, and significant others...are the survival kit in life :) I am truly blessed!!

New Year, New Adventures

The year 2009 ended with a bang and the beginning of a new decade began with…well, it’s all in the highlights. December was another busy travel month with a couple Holidays to celebrate in 3 different states. The 2nd weekend was spent in St. Louis (the 4th state of the month), a city we never thought we return to visit for a potential place to live.

January is quickly passing by along with the months before our new life of adventures begin. However, lots to check off before we leave Memphis: Andrew’s 3 research projects, boards, graduation, office visits, deciding where to move, and planning a honeymoon. I’m just taking a couple classes this semester to wrap up before OT school but very much looking forward to the moment I’ve been longing for…a REAL honeymoon in Paradise :) Some girls dream about a wedding and I’ve been dreaming of getting lost in paradise for a week or so with my new hubby! In fact, I’ve been saving up since a little girl and been disciplined to save, save, save!

Here is what has been, what is now, and what is to come…

2009 Holiday Highlights
Before heading out to KY for the early Christmas, Andrew surprised me with my Christmas present. Fine dining with a 5-star chef: butterfly pork chops, homemade mashed potatoes, and corn! My favorite dinner combination! The best part, he served it all to me like I was in a restaurant! FYI, we do not exchange gifts at Christmas. Instead we give to charity, like adopt an Angel Tree kid or give a helping hand. Therefore, we exchange stockings which we did before we left :)

We had an early Christmas with my side of the family. PeePaw & MeeMaw needed to head down to the Sunshine State for Winter so my daddy drove them and their Coach on Dec. 20! Meanwhile, we celebrated like it was really Christmas (the weekend before Christmas)! I got to see my 2 besties, one being pregnant and nearly ready to see her little boy. I was also thrilled to see our family friends (our other parents and sibs).

Getting my gifts to look presentable!

The story behind the mustaches...mom usually gets a gag gift each Christmas and this one was related to looking like PeePaw.

Yes, more SpongeBob! Oh know! We got lots of great gifts including 20 more Alfani t-shirts for Andrew. Mom and Mallory didn't talk their gifts over after I said he needed more t-shirts - ha! And I finally finished off my China and Holiday stemware!!! Now, I just can't wait to host a big Holiday party!!

Mom and dad got a little surprise. Mallory had the greatest idea to send them off on a weekend getaway. Mom being frugal, I said we need to get a gift card so she can't take it back. Needless to say, we all pitched in to give them the best weekend ever with 2 nights at the only 5-star hotel in TN & KY - The Hermitage!!

A shot with the grandparents before escaping the cold and gray!

Christmas with the Dills in Alabama!

What I wasn't prepared for, was getting up at 5am to open gifts!!!! Yes, the Dill tradition is to get up early, early, before the kids peep at what Santa has brought! This was the 1st Christmas in 10 years all the Dill kids had been together at once...it was priceless!

Little Thomas in his reindeer outfit we got him for Christmas! I LOVE it!!

Mom sent us our stockings to open on Christmas day! So we could still have somewhat of a tradition carried over on Christmas.

The Dill grandkids! Just imagine how many shots we had to take to get it decent :)

The Dill kids

I had to shop for Andrew's stuffers while in AL. Thought he could use this in the clinic :) I took the GRE the day before we left, so I was glad I didn't procrastinate on the family gifts since I literally had no time to shop in Dec.

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New Years in Dallas

So the year ended with a bang hanging with the Montoyas and began with yet, some more Dill moments! It seems that the Montoyas are our lucky charms! Ashley surprised me with a pedicure and manicure spa treatment (my Christmas gift) and I LOVED every minute of it!! There's never a dull moment with the Dills!

Ashley and Jose took us to a swanky restaurant our 1st night in Dallas, at Javiers - a scrumptious Tex-Mex place!!!

New Years was spent at a fine restaurant, where the New Year began with a, "WHOA". Andrew found $630 in cash in the restroom on our way out to start off 2010! Nevertheless, we had to wait until morning to make sure it was real and called the restaurant to make sure no one reported it missing. Hubby, the good samaritan, said it's not our money. However, a waiter claimed that he lost his end of the night cash. We gladly returned and he served us a free meal! Andrew and I felt bad so we spilt dinner and Jose ended up paying for his and Ashley's. He was elated and couldn't believe there were people left like us in the world :)

Hubby's New Year's Kiss -- mmmwah!

We headed over to Ft. Worth to experience Stockyard Station and Billy Bob's Texas (the largest saloon in America!!). Where Ashley, Jose, and Andrew experienced their 1st rodeo show!

Once again, we LOVE the junk shops! Inside joke, we shopped at Blommingdale's in Dallas and I was drawn to the "earrings so large, they touch your shoulders". So Ashley and Andrew said these earrings weren't quite big enough - haha!

The 1st bull of the night...would not leave the arena for the next bull and his rider. Andrew, Jose, and Ashley were amazed and wide-eyed and asked me lots of questions! No, I don't ride bulls, I used to go to these shows with family and grandparents :)

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Office Visits

Andrew has made his last office visit in Nashville this past week! He is exhausted but so relieved, however, he has big decisions ahead. He has opportunities in the following cities: Charleston, SC; St. Louis, MO; Elizabethtown, KY; Louisville, KY; & Nashville, TN. We will be keeping everyone posted!!

Since Andrew's last office visit just ended in Nashville, I decided to prepare a care/goody package for him with a card attached for his 3 day trip. We have no idea where we will be, but I wanted him to know that regardless, I support him 100%. I admire my husband and just know that he will be the best pediatric dentist out there! His passion, skills, and patient management truly shows in his profession! We have faith that God will lead us. We want to do God's Will, not ours - which is very hard at times when making life-changing decisions!

New Year, new woman! Yes, it's black, it's bold, but I like it!! Note: haircolor does not always turn out to be the color you'd like. I've gone as dark as dark brown, however, not black. Even though Andrew loved my natural highlights, he got used to the bold and spicy look :) It's fun to play when it's not permenant!

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Here we were getting ready for one of our hot dates to Pei Wei - YUM! This where I had 2 fortune cookies back-to-back with the same fortune. Andrew says, "we need to buy a lottery ticket!" So we went to purchase our 1st lottery ticket together despite me taking 30 minutes to complete the form (it was confusing but we got help)! We got one number on the PowerBall! Not into gambling so that was a good fun $2 spent :) I said, "if we win...no need to even worry about where we live, we'll just move our families to Hawaii with us and retire!"