Merry Christmas 2007!

Grant and I have had a wonderful Christmas!


On Saturday we drove down to Orlando to visit our favorite mice, Mickey and Minnie!! It was REALLY crowded, but festive. I love how they decorate Disney for the holidays.

That's Mickey's house behind us.

The gingerbread house inside the Grand Floridian Hotel lobby.

We stayed at the Orlando Peabody Hotel. It was really nice and I got a great deal on LastMinuteTravel.com! At the Peabody they are known for their ducks. Every day at 11AM the ducks are brought up to the lobby where they swim in the fountain until 5P. I made sure to stop by and see the marching of the Peabody Ducks on Sunday morning. It was quite a production!

The Peabody Ducks get the red carpet treatment!

They get an elevator reserved just for them too!!

Custom "caution slippery when wet" signs.

And they're off!

How cute are they going up their little staircase into the fountain?!

Staying at the Peabody was fun, but we were excited to get home and celebrate Christmas with our family.

Our first Christmas Tree

It's beginning to look a lot Christmas!

I cannot believe Christmas is almost here. Last week Grant and I traveled to Chicago for my friend Marin's wedding. It was COLD and it snowed twice while we were there. We flew up on Tuesday and back on Sunday. We were able to see family and spend some time with our friends. I also got a little shopping in!

Me, Meghan, Tess, Jessica and Amy - The girl cousins. :)

Visiting with Grandma and the Gamboneys

While we were in Chicago we went to dinner with Jordan and Ryan's friends Amanda and Buff. They recently added a new addition to their family, Sarah. I am obviously a natural.

Marin and David's wedding was exquisite! Marin looked beautiful!! They both looked so happy. The ceremony was beautiful and the reception was amazing. It was sad leaving, but we were excited to come back to 80 degree weather!!

3 days after we got back Grant left for Vegas. He was out there with his friends Richard, Nate and Colin. He's on his way back right now and I cannot wait to see him. This was the first time I was here without him here. The condo was a bit lonely. Luckily I was able to watch my friend Erin's dog Lily. =)

Grant and his friends stayed at NY NY and went to some of our favorite spots in Vegas. I am definitely jealous. While Grant was gone I was able to spend some quality time with my friend Laurie and with my family. Laurie and I braved the crowds at the mall and got a lot of shopping done. It seemed like everything was on sale. :)

This is the last week of work before Christmas. At the TOUR we get the whole week of Christmas off and two days for New Years. I am in need of a break! It will be so nice.

In other news, this past week Grant and I almost became parents. We were seriously considering getting a Cavapoo puppy from Texas. In the end I decided that we should probably wait until we get a house to get a puppy. It was REALLY cute though!!

Family Updates

Lots has been going on in the world of Grant and Becky. This past weekend was Thanksgiving. We spent our Thanksgiving in Jacksonville with my family. We were joined by my Uncle Jim and Aunt Sandy from Illinois. It was really nice having them in town.

This year I thought about making a homemade apple pie. I had never made a pie from scratch before. The idea sounded really good until I saw the apple pies at CostCo. ;) Maybe I’ll attempt my first homemade pie for Christmas!

Last year Grant hung out outside Best Buy over night on Black Friday and got us our wonderful plasma TV. This year we caught a few Black Friday sales online and slept in. It was relaxing. When we got up we decided to drive down to Fort Myers to see Grant’s parents (who got back into town on Saturday afternoon) and a few of our good friends (Richard, Mike, Mandy, Josh & Adrienne). We were lucky enough to have homemade ravioli at Richard’s house on Friday, go to lunch with Mike on Saturday, see Josh and Adrienne’s house, watch the Gators beat FSU and go midnight bowling with the group on Saturday night. We also stopped at a few jewelry stores along the way in search of the perfect pair of diamond earrings. ;)

The next few weeks are going to be pretty busy for us. This weekend we are planning on going to Disney World and Sea World, next weekend we will be in Chicago for Marin’s wedding, the following weekend Grant will be in Vegas for a guys weekend and the weekend after that is Christmas weekend! I better get to the mall!

On another note, I was recently promoted at work and am now the sales manager for PGATOUR.COM focusing on sales to PGA TOUR, Champions Tour and Nationwide Tour Title Sponsors. I am excited about the challenges that lie ahead in my new position!

I will be sure to post some photos from our weekends out of town this month. I cannot believe the holidays are here already!!

I'm in love

Grant and I have been pretty busy getting things done.

Last weekend we went to the mall for the first time in a while. Football season really cuts into my shopping time! We needed to get Grant a suit for my friend Marin's wedding in December. We were going to go to the Men's Wearhouse, but it was gone...so we went to JCPenney where it seems like everything is on sale. Sure enough, all of the suits were on sale for 1/2 off. I picked out a very nice suit and Grant was very patient trying on everything.

While we were at the mall we made a stop a the Puppy store. I fell in love. In the front window were about 6 of the cutest puppies ever. They were Cavalier-Cocker Spaniel-Poodle mixes. Absolutely ADORABLE! I stayed there for a bit and played with one of them and decided that I am ready to get a dog of my own. I asked Grant what he thought. He said I'd have to check with our landlord. So I emailed her today. =) She called me and basically said that there usually is a no pet policy, but if this was something we really wanted she'd consider it.

However, the more I think about it the more I know that this is not the right time or place for us to have a dog. I will have to wait until we are not living in a condo on the third floor...

Happy Halloween!!

Grant and I have had a busy October -- we went to Halloween Horror Nights with our friends Mandy and Scott, carved pumpkins with Danielle when she came to visit and went to the Florida Georgia football game.

Here are some photos --

Happy Halloween!!!

The Saga of the Bicycle

For Grant’s 25^th birthday I bought him a bicycle. I also got myself a bicycle so we could ride together. We enjoyed riding our bikes around the neighborhood and to the beach. Grant started riding his bike to the gym every day before work.

In August I left to visit some friends in DC and Chicago. Grant called me while I was away and asked if I had locked my bike after I used it last. I told him that I had. He then told me that my bike was missing. I was bummed, but told him we could go to Target and buy another one when I get back.

The next day Grant called again. He said that while he was working out at the community gym he saw my bike! Our HOA has bikes that you can rent from them. They store them outside the gym. I told him that the bike I had was pretty common (a Schwinn from Target) and that the community probably had just purchased the same bike as I had, so chances are that it’s not my bike.

When I came back from my trip we went to Target and bought a new bike and a new lock. We continued to ride bikes together like old times. Until one afternoon last week…

Grant usually gets home before I do. One afternoon last week he called me when he arrived home. He told me that there was a note on my bike asking us to return it to the office, as it was their bike! That was obviously not the case. He called and told the office staff that it was not their bike, and that it was my bike. They insisted that it was theirs, stating that they had receipts from Target with the serial number that matched that of our bike. Apparently they were not aware that the number on their receipt was the UPC code, the same code on each and every navy blue Schwinn Beach Cruiser. To make matters even worse, they also said that a couple months earlier they lost another bike and “found” it locked at the bike rack near our building. At the time they decided to “reclaim” the bike and cut off the lock and took it back. So not only were they trying to take my second bike, but they had in fact stolen my first bike!! I was furious when Grant told me this.

I called the office. They insisted that my second bike was theirs…again. I informed them that the number on the receipt was the UPC code. They did not believe me. I told them that we’d prove that both bikes were ours. They said to bring it on (in so many words.)

The next day Grant went to Target. He got our receipts reprinted and took photos of the UPC codes on the bikes they had in stock. He took his “proof” to the office staff. When he met with her she wouldn’t even let him speak. She began to apologize for her actions and for how she treated us. Grant left and called me and told me that they were sorry and that we could keep my bike.

However, I still felt they owed us for the first bike that they stole. I called again and asked for a check or for them to return my first bike. The office staffer said that the first bike was not necessarily mine and that they have lost several bikes since then. She said that she kept the bike lock and that I could come by the office the next day to identify it.

Even though I thought it was ridicules that she kept a cut lock for a couple months, I agreed to stop by the following day. When I stopped by she did not have the lock. She took me back by the bicycles and asked me to identify my bike. Surprise surprise it was not there. She felt that this proved that she did not take my first bike. However, she had told me that they have had several bikes stolen from them…so who is to say that my first bike was not one of them! I told her that and she said that she didn’t think she took my first bike.

I decided that I was getting no where with her. I told her that I planned to write a letter to the editor of the local papers about this incident as they are still trying desperately to sell many many condos in the community. She asked that I not do that.

For the next week I tried to contact her supervisor. When I finally got a hold of her she claimed that it was a “he said she said” argument and she didn’t know who was right, but could not do anything about my first bike.

I just cannot believe that my condo HOA would admit to cutting locks off bikes that they obviously cannot keep track of and “reclaiming” them when those bikes could easily be the property of their own residents!! There is no marking on the bikes they have available for rent saying property of the management office. The whole situation is horrible.

Lesson: don’t trust anyone…the people you least expect might be out there stealing your stuff!

The Hair Cut

I have been growing my hair out for quite some time with the goal of donating it to Locks for Love. However, I had not been quite ready to introduce my locks to scissors...until yesterday.

I hadn't found a hairdresser in Jacksonville that I really liked. On Friday night I spoke to my friend Erin. She had just gotten her hair cut and had great things to say about her hairdresser. I decided to make an appointment.

I called the salon on Saturday morning, hoping to make an appointment for later in the week. I asked the receptionist for an appointment with Carl, she told me someone had just called and canceled leaving a 1PM appointment open that very same day. I took it. Grant offered to join me.

Before the cut

One last photo!

Bye bye hair!

11 inches later...and it's all gone!

The after!

Me and my handsome husband!

Viva Las Vegas

Last weekend I went to Las Vegas. Unfortunately, this was a girls only trip and Grant had to stay back. =(

I went to Vegas for my friend Marin's bachelorette party. It was a blast! We stayed at the Mandalay Bay hotel, where Grant and I stayed on our honeymoon. It was definitely strange being in Vegas without him.

On Friday night we all got in around 10PM and decided to have a low key night at the hotel...or so we thought. We decided to go to The Mix, a bar at the top of The Hotel at Mandalay Bay. We got in line not knowing how much cover was. Jordan and Krista went to ask the bouncer how much it was and somehow got us all in for free! When we made it up to the bar we went straight to the bartender to get a drink. I decided to just get a water. The bartender said that water was $8!!! So I decided not to get anything. That was a bit much for a glass of H2O! We started dancing and met some guys who were there for a bachelor party. They had a private table and bottle service. We all got free drinks for the rest of the night! We danced a bit more and noticed that the bar was not as crowded as it was before...probably because it was about 5:30AM!!

We all left. Some of us went to another bar, others went to play some blackjack. Then, we went to bed around 6AM. At that moment I had been up for 26+ hours, but for some reason did not feel that tired.

The next morning we got up around 9A and got some breakfast at the buffet. After breakfast we headed straight for the pool. The pools at the Mandalay Bay are amazing. They have a large wave pool, 2 other smaller pools, a lazy river and some hot tubs. They also have a sand beach with a bunch of lounge chairs. We managed to find 8 chairs together. While we were getting settled a guy who worked at the pool invited us to a private pool. Jordan and I went to check it out and see if they had 8 chairs together. We got up to the pool and they tried to charge us $10 cover!! We refused and they let us in for free. This pool had a DJ and nice padded chairs, but only a few were open. We decided to stay where we were and left.

We hung out at the pool until about 4PM when we left to get ready for dinner and another fun night. We went to dinner at the Border Grill at our hotel. It was yummy! We were all going to order different margaritas and some sangria, but decided to get a couple pitchers instead. When the bill came we were shocked when each pitcher (about 5 drinks) was $65!? Crazy!

After dinner we opened Marin's gifts and went to Excalibur for a special show, the Thunder from Down Under!! It was hilarious. Marin got to go on stage...it was really fun. After the show we headed to Tao at the Venetian. We met a promoter for Tao at the pool earlier. He put our names on the guest list and told us that if we got there before 11 we wouldn't have to pay cover. We barely got there in time. When we did arrive there was a 2 hour line to get in!?! Luckily we met a group of guys in the VIP line who offered to let us in with them.

Apparently this is how it works in Vegas: Guys pay thousands of dollars to have bottle service. Bottle service includes bottles of vodka (Grey Goose at Tao, Ketel One at The Mix) and a private table in a VIP area. The tables have different mixers like OJ, cranberry juice, etc. along with ice and glasses. In order to get tables in the best part of the club, the guys have to go into the bar with groups of cute girls.

So these guys at Tao paid for all of our cover (about $200 total) and we got to hang out in their VIP area for the night.Tao was VERY crowded. It was crazy. They had dancers all over and bath tubs with girls in flower petal covered bikinis dancing in them. It was an experience.

We hung out at Tao for a while and then left to go to the Hard Rock Hotel's Body English club where some guys were that we'd met the night before at the Mix. We had a good time there and then went back to our hotel. We got back at around 4AM. There is no concept of time in Vegas.

We woke up around 10AM on Sunday and headed straight for the pool again, this time we remembered the lazy river tubes that I bought at CVS on Friday for $6 - they try to charge you $20/day to rent tubes at the hotel!? We had breakfast/lunch at the pool and hung out there all afternoon.That night we went to Paris for dinner - they have a great Crepe stand there and then went to the Bellagio to see "O." It was AMAZING, although I could barely keep my eyes open in the dark theater! After the show we walked around the lobby at Bellagio and then went to the new Planet Hollywood hotel (formerly the Aladdin). Grant collects casino chips, so I wanted to get him one from the new Planet Hollywood hotel. They completely redid the casino and lobby. It was really nice! We played a little roulette and blackjack.


We headed down to get a taxi back to our hotel. While waiting for a taxi we saw this HUGE limo come by. I looked at the driver, hoping that he'd take us back to our hotel. He motioned for us to come over and offered us a ride!! This limo was AWESOME!! I wish the ride was longer!!!

We hung out at the casino for a bit and then headed up. We were all exhausted. The next morning I left to go home. I miss Vegas already! I cannot wait to go again with Grant!

I have some big news - will post more soon!!

I won!

I had two teams competing in the PGA TOUR Playoffs Challenge fantasy game.

1. Camilo is Awesome
2. Camilo is my Hero

In the end, I tied for first place with whoever "Moose1" is. After the tie breaker (we had to predict the winning score for the TOUR Championship victor, Tiger), it was official. I won!

I beat out over 10,000 competitors in a nationwide fantasy game. If I didn't work here I would have won a fabulous trip to Hawaii for the Sony Open and a Pro-Am spot. Instead, I got a lot of congratulations and shocked faces from my coworkers who would have never thought I'd win. Next time I am putting my teams under my friends names so they could at least take the prize!

I guess there is always next year!

Free Chick-fil-A

You can get a free Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich and medium drink at freechickenandcoke.com. Check it out!

Fantasy

As most of you know, I work for the PGA TOUR. The PGA TOUR season has changed a bit this year. In fact, we are nearing the end of the first ever PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. To help support the Playoffs PGATOUR.com created a special Playoff fantasy game. Employees were encouraged to join.

The game was pretty easy, you pick 4 players from 3 tiers. 2 players from the first tier, 1 player from the second tier and 1 from the third. I picked my some of my favorite players: Tiger, Phil, Aaron Baddeley and Camilo Villegas (a fellow Gator!). I didn't really expect to be in contention to win.

However, I noticed that Aaron was doing pretty well and Camilo had moved up quite a bit. Tiger won the BMW Championship and Phil won the Deutsche Bank Championship. I went to check on my team to see how well I was doing compared to my coworkers in my league.

I was shocked when I saw that I was in first place in my league...and 8th place overall! I started to get excited. Could I actually win the entire game - finish first out of over 10,000?? I checked out the players picked by the 7 people in front of me. Only 2 of them have all four players playing this week (the game ends on Sunday). It was looking good.

I wrote down all the teams and saw that I have a very good chance of pulling it off! Here is what needs to happen::

1. Camilo has to play better than Brett Wetterich
2. Phil + Camilo's points earned this week must be more than the points earned by Steve Stricker

If those two statements are true come Sunday I win!

You may be wonder what I win...well the grand prize is:
The Grand Prize Winner will win: an 8-day/7-night trip prize package for the Grand Prize Winner and one (1) guest to attend the 2008 Sony Open in Hawaii, from Monday, January 7, 2008, to Monday, January 14, 2008. As part of the prize package, the Grand Prize Winner earns one (1) Pro-Am spot that may be filled by either the Grand Prize Winner or its guest, and who will play with a TOUR pro during the Wednesday Pro-Am Tournament. The prize package also includes round-trip airfare for two adults, a rental car, and hotel accommodations. Approximate Retail Value ("ARV") for the complete package for two is $20,000.00.

However...
Employees of the Contest Entities and each of their parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising, promotion and fulfillment agencies and members of the immediate family or household of each are not eligible to win.

So if I win, I cannot get the fabulous trip to Hawaii. :(

You can follow the fun here. I'll let you know how I do on Monday!!

Go Gators!!

I don't think I can manage to stay more than two weeks at home over the summer!!

Two weeks ago Grant and I decided to go down to Fort Myers to visit his parents and our friends Mandy and Scott for Labor Day weekend. We left after work on Friday, arriving in Fort Myers around 10:30P. On Saturday we got up and spent some time with Grant's parents and then met up with Mandy and Scott at a local bar/restaurant to watch the Gators kick off the 2007 season with an easy win over WKU. It was really nice to see Mandy and Scott!! They brought their honeymoon photos from Hawaii -- further lighting the fire for Grant and I to plan our own trip to the Aloha state!!

We went to dinner with Grant's parents at one of our favorite restaurants, Cantina Laredo, in Fort Myers. After dinner we stopped by Grant's grand parents' house. Grandpa Ed and Pearl were in rare form. Pearl was telling us about how important it is to vote. She began to talk about the first presidential election that she voted in. Pearl is 98. Grandpa Ed chimed in stating that the first president Pearl voted for was Washington. It was pretty funny. We all had a good chuckle. We talked about golf, a favorite topic with the pair. Then, we left. When Camilo wins this weekend I'll have to give Grandpa Ed a call -- he always reminds me how Camilo, my most favorite golfer, has yet to win a TOUR event.

We left Fort Myers on Sunday, stopping in Orlando for a little pit stop at the Mall at Millenia. I was able to find a really cute dress for my next big trip:: Marin's bachelorette party in Las Vegas. I'll be leaving on the 21st for the fabulous girls weekend in Vegas. I cannot wait!

Last Friday at work we got an email. "Who ever responds to this email first gets 2 free Gator tickets." I must have amazing reflexes because I won! So Grant and I went to the Florida/Troy game on Saturday. It was super nice to be back in Gainesville and see our National Champion Gators in action! We stopped and had lunch at Leonardo's Pizza and walked all around campus. It was kind of strange being back as most of my friends have come and gone. It seems like every place that used to be covered in grass is now under construction! The game was fabulous. The day was fabulous. It certainly is GREAT to be a FLORIDA GATOR!As for this weekend, Grant and I are toying around with the idea of going to Orlando. We have Disney passes that expire on 9/17 and season passes to Sea World that we have only used twice. I'll keep you posted!!

Jordan's 25th Birthday

After going to DC, I flew to Chicago to help celebrate Jordan's 25th birthday. She picked me up at the airport on Saturday afternoon and took me straight to the nail salon where we met up with everyone and got our nails done. We had the whole place to ourselves. :)
After that we went to Jordan's house to open presents and then went out in Naperville. A couple of the girls made a pit stop on the way to Naperville and got a cake, candles, party hats and glasses for the whole group. Jordan wore the party glasses all night.

The next day Jordan was kind enough to take me to surprise my Great Aunt Dorothy and my Grandmother (neither knew I was in town). First stop was Dorothy's. We drove over and rang the doorbell. No one answered. I called Dorothy and pretended to be a delivery person. I told her she had a package at the front door. She didn't recognize my voice. When she saw me out the window she was in shock! It was great!!

Jordan and I then went to get lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, Portillo's. After lunch we drove to surprise my Grandmother at her retirement community. I tried calling and she didn't answer her phone. So we parked and went inside to see a live band and all the retirees in the main room dancing!! I quickly located my Grandma and she was so surprised to see us! It was great to catch up with her and my Aunt Denise.

After our stops to visit my family we drove downtown and met up with Marin and some of her friends from college in Wrigleyville. I love Wrigleyville!! It was nice to be around Wrigley on gameday, even if we didn't go to the game. We hung out there for a while and then picked up some Lou Malnatis pizza for dinner. We ate at Marin and David's and were able to catch up with the soon to be Arnolds!!

The next day Dorothy drove me to the airport. I was really excited to get home and see Grant. It was a really fun weekend and it was so nice to have Grant to come home to. :)

August

It’s been a busy month!

First of all, yesterday marked the 5 year anniversary since Grant and I started dating. =) We went out to a nice dinner and I gave him some desserts from a local chocolate shop. I cannot believe it's been 5 years since we started dating!!

Two weeks ago I traveled up to Washington, D.C. and to Chicago to spend some much needed quality time with my girlfriends. While it was hard to be away from Grant for the 5 days, it was great to spend some time with my girls!

In D.C., I visited my good friend Danielle. We went into the city to surprise our good friend Jeremy from UF. We were all RAs together in Broward Hall while in college. He now works at George Washington University.

We made our way to the campus and tried to find the Registrar’s Office where he works. A couple students were nice enough to point us in the right direction. Once we got to the office we asked the receptionist if we could see Jeremy. In an effort to surprise him, we told her to tell him he had a package to pick up at the front desk. We anxiously waited for him to come down. However, she came back and told us he had gone to lunch. A bit disappointed, we decided to grab a bite ourselves and come back afterwards. We asked the receptionist for restaurant recommendations and ended up at the Foggy Bottom, a GW favorite. When we walked in I scanned the restaurant, wondering if perhaps Jeremy was eating there too! I didn’t see him.

As we sat down I saw this man rush over to our table and give Dani a big hug! It was Jeremy! He had just gotten his food and invited us to sit with him and his boss. What a coincidence that we had gone to the same restaurant!! We were able to catch up over lunch and see Jeremy’s office before he had to get back to work. We made plans, though, to get together later that night or the next.

Danielle and I then proceeded to Georgetown and shopped the afternoon away! The area was so cute! The shopping was great and the company was even better. After a long afternoon of shopping we decided to call her friend up and catch a movie or do dinner. We met at the mall and ended up getting dinner at P.F. Changs, a favorite of both me and Danielle. Her friend Ralph was hilarious! I really enjoyed meeting him. He is a typical Miami native now living in D.C.

The next day we got up and decided to travel to Annapolis, MD. While we were there we shopped some more and ate some fabulous crab cakes! We had a great time. Annapolis is really cute! That night we met up with Jeremy and Dani’s friend Susan for dinner in Old Town.

Sadly, I had to leave the next morning. It was a wonderful trip! I am so glad I was able to spend so much time with Danielle. I cannot wait to see her again!