happy birthday Piper!!!

november 12th.

today our son turns 2 years old.

happy birthday piper!!

i remember the night we brought you home. we found you at a

miniature schnauzer breeder in Austin, Texas.

{you are the only true Texan in our family!}

Daddy wanted a puppy before going to Iraq. Seriously though, how can you tell a man about to go to war --- "no you cannot have a puppy???"

So one day, during a long trip to Lowe's. mommy and daddy were bickering {as usual.}

daddy thought mommy was buying wayyyy too much stuff for their brand new house in Texas.

{me?? buying too much?? never!} ;)

i was insistent upon getting a brand new throw rug for the living room.

Bumbee rolled his eyes and said "fine.... but if we buy a carpet. we are getting a dog!"

ummmm.... sure! win/win situation really... right?

so later on that VERY night we researched for a bit, found a good place, and took the drive down to Austin.

Piper Chiang became a part of our family mid-February 2008.

...and the rest is now history!

veteran's day.

i dream of giving birth to a child

who will ask,

"Mother, what was war?"

--eve merriam.

on this Veteran's Day say a prayer for all our brave servicemen and women

who allow us to live free.

a very special thanks to my soldier... i love you!

you make me proud to be your wife everyday.

hiking at the highestttt point.

yesterday i put on my hiking boots and hiked to the highest point in New Jersey!

{see Bumbee? i told you i'd get good use out of my Columbias again!!}

my friend Jessica and i covered about 10 miles.

Jessica and i taught at the same Middle School last year...

{we ran to get cupcakes in the pouring rain once!

---- signs of a good friend}

we hiked at High Point and apparently went a LITTLE too far and

wound up in New York State!!

Woops! Thanks to GPS we were able to navigate our way back to the correct trail!!

{merci iPhone!}

i love hiking.

Bumbee made me fall in love with it

my first time in Colorado.

And I think I'm forever hooked!

happy friday!

Things to be cheerful about right now:

- less than 50 days until Christmas

- 20 days until I see the Husbee

- less than a week until our "son" turns 2!!

Hope you all have a Bon Week-End!!

I can't wait for it to get started!!

I have some hiking and lots of shopping planned...

what's everyone else looking forward to??

Sam is A-okay.

There was a shooting today at Fort Hood, Texas. The Army base where Sam is posted out of...

12 died and 31 were wounded.

A psychiatrist about to be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan went on a shooting rampage. Oh, and he also happens to be a Major. You can find the story in its entirety here.

Luckily, Sam was not on base today. Thank goodness! He is currently in California training soldiers at NTC... {Everything happens for a reason.}

I wasn't going to blog tonight {as I just finished up a mid-term online a few minutes ago}, but the love that my readers have shown is just incredible.

Thank you so much for your e-mails & kind words tonight.

It means the world to us.

My heart still goes out to all the families and friends affected by this tragic event.

Please keep those at Fort Hood in your thoughts...

<3

And to end, a thumbs up "A-okay photo" of the hubbs apple picking

our last weekend together...

{you know...

Bumbee really needs to come back soon before i start running out of photos of us!!}

:)

hurray for the yanks and 4 day weekends...

Tonight the New York Yankees play in the World Series

and yours truly will be cheering them on.

I love my hubby but I love Derek Jeter too.

{it's true.}

I also love random date nights with good friends, meeting in coffee shops, and listening to Jazz music, preferably some Ella Fitzgerald.

Am I alone here on this??

Last night was one of those chill Fall nights with my friend Dina.

As for today I served my civic duty in court. First time ever.

Jury Duty = no fun.

But at least today also marks the beginning of a

4-day weekend!! yayyyyyyy!!!

courtesy of the NJ Teacher's Convention...

it's good to be a teacher in New Jersey!

Now let's go Yanks!

*Random fall photo taken at a high school football game this year where i paid student admission.

yes, i still look 16...

chocolate tasting in nyc!

This weekend best friend Vanessa and I went to the 12th annual Chocolate Tasting in Chelsea.

Sponsored by the Food Network, this event was {literally} to die for! Dark chocolate, Belgian chocolate, Machu Pichu chocolate, chocolate covered bacon {yes, bacon.}, chocolate covered pomegranate, peanut butter brittle, truffles,

...and even gluten-free chocolate!

Free samples of chocolate and chocolate body lotion!

This is my kind of trick-or-treating.

One thing is for sure...

we will not be missing the 13th Annual!

How could I pass up a French Kiss cookie??? ;)

i married this man.

His talent never ceases to amaze me! ;)

Perhaps I should dress up as the hubby for Halloween??

Ok off to chaperone the

High School Halloween dance tonight!

{i decided to keep it simple and dress up as a Chat Noir...}

what's everyone else's costume?? i'd love to hear!

Hope you all have a

Happy Hallow's Eve!!

crepes, cali and scandale!

Yesterday I took a group of 50 students on a field trip to NYC along with another French teacher. First stop --- La Creperie in Montclair, NJ for a yummy breakfast!!

Crepes made with Nutella. Mmmmmm tres delicieux!!

{flashback photo taken in Italy ~ Summer '08}

After breakfast-ing, we took a bus to 60th Street in Manhattan. The Alliance Francaise was showing the film, "Pas de Scandale." -- Ok, so maybeeeee this film wasn't the best movie to bring a group of teenagers to.... did the film have nudity? yes! did the students mind? no.

Did everyone have a good time despite the rainy weather? Oui!

Hmmm do you think I can get away with saying "but it was French" ... if ever questioned?

In other news, Bumbee heads to California tomorrow morning.

As Captain, he is going to be training other soldiers who are about to deploy to Iraq. I'm so proud of him.

Unfortunately, this training requires him to be in Cali for the entire month!

No worries... he will be back with moi and Piper just in time for Turkey Day!

Big Apple

hello lovely readers! i've missed you so much!!

so many big changes have happened since i last blogged:

1. we officially have a "For Sale" sign on our first house together as a newlywed couple!!!

Sam put our house on the market in Texas and our pretty little red door has a sign in front of it.

One step closer to the Hubby coming to NJ to live with me!

hip hip hurrayyy!

2. i went to a Haunted House with my sister and some friends last night.

3. i was serenaded by a Mariachi band Friday night at Mama Mexico with my best friend.

4. i arranged a Field Trip for all my French classes to go to NYC tomorrow!!

we are heading into the Big Apple to see a French film!

how was your weekend??

hope the Fall has been treating each and everyone of you well.

little italy and a little dina...

nyc for the second weekend in a row! friends {from high school} and i went to dinner at

Angelo on Mulberry Street in Little Italy.

saturday night was filled with lots of laughs and lots of good food.

dinner reservations were for 8:30

we were seated by 9

dinner served at the table?

by 9:14.

welcome to the fast pace world that is...

new york.

{i had the baked clams and lobster ravioli and they were deeeelish

no matter how super fast they came out.}

for dessert we went to Ferrara's for some chocolate canolis and tiramisu.

kate {fellow seton hall alum...yay!}

was visiting from brick, nj so we took some pics:

and of course, you can't go to little italy

without taking pics in front of the cheesy cut-out of an Italian chef!

that last one is my best friend from birth /kate's college roommate, dina.

...believe it or not, dina was wearing heels that night.

;)

hay hay! it's friday!

{Bumbee and me on our haystack ride last weekend}

It's Fridayyyyy!!

i am so excited to finally take off my shoes!

last night i was at work until 9pm for parent/teacher conferences...

{seriously, i should have just slept over.}

Today then called for a treat to Salon 5 ... love it!!

Next appointment is already booked for the day before Bumbee comes home again

...yay!

Hope you all have a great weekend!!

what is everyone doing?

fall in love.

this weekend Husbee and i went apple picking...

he's already back in Texas now

but the time we spent together {as always}

is unforgettable.

i love this man...

chinatown with my china man.

{chinatown, washington d.c.}

{chinatown, nyc}

the husband flew in on friday night for the 3-day columbus day weekend

with our puppy in one hand,

and four long stem roses in the other.

we had a date night in NYC.

funny how last weekend i was in Chinatown in Washington, D.C.

this weekend? the plans were for Chinatown, NYC.

at least this time, it was with my china man. ;)

we met up with Bumbee's best friend {the best man from our wedding} and another friend to eat real authentic chinese food.

{something Bumbee can't find in Texas!}

and for dessert??

{little italy, nyc}

we literally walked two blocks away to Little Italy for some cannolis, bomba, & gelato.

mmm hmmm!! bomba with Bumbee = heaven.

while eating dessert, we made friends with the couple sitting at the table next to us.

they were from Holland and flew into nyc that day!

we explained the game of baseball to them.

{the Yankees were playing on TV in the back of the restaurant}

the couple told us that this was the beginning of their 3 month road trip across America.

can you imagine?! 3 whole months in

an old beat up '82 chevy {the car they rented}

to drive across country?

half-romantic, half-crazy.

and kinda makes our roadtrip to Colorado of 2 weeks look pah-thetic.

we told them about Texas and they so can't wait to go!

apparently they have an obsession with Austin.

can you blame them? ;)

...at the end of the night the Yankees won!

Night 1 with hubby home definitely turned out to be

THE perfect date night!

so much is happening... good good stuff!

{last weekend in front of the Washington Monument in D.C. }

the husband flies into New Jersey tomorrow!!!

i haven't seen Bumbee since Labor Day.

the best part about it?

Sam's flying on the plane with our puppy!

i haven't seen our puppy Piper since the end of August.

{i've terribly missed my son.}

So much has happened since I've last seen Bumbee and the Pipes:

- started teaching.

- taught 4 weeks of AP French.

- ran the Army 10-miler in Washington D.C.

- made a 10-minute presentation for my research seminar course for grad school.

we had to research an analytical theory of barry {in english}

and apply it to one of flaubert's stories {in french}.

this would be hard enough to do in english, let alone french! bah.

{even the french people (90% of my class} were complaining about this assignment.}

but tonight...

i just got it back and my professor gave me a 98 on it!!

holler for the non-frenchie!!

this one is definitely going on the fridge.

since apparently i am 12.

have a great weekend everyone!!!

Army 10-Miler Run

{pre-run photo @ the 25th Annual

Army 10-Miler, Washington D.C.}

Just got back today from D.C.!!! This weekend I ran in the Army 10-Miler with other Army wives and friends. What a truly incredible experience!

We were able to run while touring all of THE most interesting sites of one of THE best cities.

The run's path passed the Capitol Building, the White House, the Jefferson Memorial, and over the bridges of D.C.

21,289 runners finished the run!

Now, that's a LOT of people.

The first mile was nearly impossible to get a good pace bumping elbows with everyone around. But the adrenaline from the crowd that cheered us on was amazingggg "1 mile down, c'mon only 9 more to go!!! That's nothing!!" The crowd made me smile for nearly the entire time.

Every 2 miles soldiers handed the runners water which became dangerous {as I almost slipped several times} and definitely slowed down a minute of your actual

race time each time.

The 10th mile was all uphill and definitely the hardest. The crowd kept shouting out "You're almost there!!" After the 15th time hearing that, you want to give up! Haha... almost!

But if it wasn't the crowd making me smile, it was the runners who screamed Hooah through tunnels which reminded me of my Husband --- the reason why I was running.

All throughout Bumbee's 15 month deployment in Iraq, running gave me the stress release that I needed. His deployment was the reason I started running in the first place!

I never thought running would develop into my OWN hobby. But this weekend I realized.... I was half running it for Bumbee, and half running it for myself.

If someone told me I'd be doing this last year at this time, I would've laughed!

But never underestimate what you're capable of doing.

Amputees ran, families honoring fallen heros ran, and even a 70 something-year-old grandma was running side by side with me at mile 9!!

The results amazed me. I beat more than half of the people running, including soldiers.

The results:

9,771 out of 21,289 runners.

pace: 9:25

chip time: 1:34:16

{sweaty post-race photos

with our finishing coins!!

hey, we earned those!}

cross-dressing in the classroom?!?

today in my french IV honneurs class, my students dressed up as characters from notre dame de paris. {we are reading the abridged story in class.}

so as an assignment they had to give a 3-minute presentation in French as one of the characters Quasimodo, Frollo, etc. chosen out of a basket.

their costumes were incredibly creative! and i SOO wish i could post my photos here to show you all. {yet unfortunately it's illegal to post them online.}

we had a Fete des Fous and some baked brownies and cookies for us to celebrate.

{my favorite part of the wholeeee day... i love, love, love brownies!

almost as much as i do cupcakes.}

they did a great job!!

--- even the one and only male student

who chose La Esmeralda out of the basket.

...but now i'm feeling slightly concerned.

have i just promoted cross-dressing

in my classroom????

our President would not approve. ;)

and speaking of El Presidente...

i am meeting up with Lola in Washington D.C.

bright and early TOMORROW!!

our BIG Army 10-miler race is almost upon us!!

*so pumped*

{picture taken of me and Lola in NYC

@ Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum}

NYC avec mes amis!!

this weekend a bunch of my friends and i drove into nyc for dinner.

ever see the film Forrest Gump?? we went to Bubba Gump's restaurant

located smack in the middle of Times Square.

the meal starts out with Forrest Gump trivia. and in order for you to get a waiter's attention,

you need to flip the sign from "Run Forrest Run" to

"Stop Forrest Stop." I had the Lieutenant Dan drink with the fried shrimp.

we had a blast!!!

...and even pretended {oops..} it was Joe's birthday which meant he got free dessert if and only if he danced on a chair.

Embarrassing? Yes. But that's what friends are for!

Here we are dining in Jenny's house...

one tiny tidbit i forgot to mention is that now in NYC, restaurants are required to put on exactly how many calories each meal has! {ex. Fried Shrimp platter 990!!!}

gasp* let's just say it's a very good thing that I ran 10 miles after work today!

Last long run in New Jersey until the big race in D.C. this weekend!!

10 mile run today,

10 minute French presentation that I recorded and posted online

for my Grad Course last night,

& just 10 more days until I see Bumbee again!!!

Lots of 10's in my life right now. ;)

Hope you are all having a good week!!

fun friday!!

happy friday everyone!!

So so happy it's a three day weekend + pizza night + no papers, quizzes, or projects to grade!!

loving this combo.

Last night "Back to School night" was a success!

one parent actually came up to me and gave me a hug.

she said she missed me teaching her daughter while I was away...

{SUCH a good feeling...}

For new readers: I left the job I now currently work at {a High School in New Jersey} two years ago to live with Bumbee before he left for Iraq.

That's where all the random Texas talk comes from! ;)

in other news, a few of us teachers walked to Panera before Back to School Night

and i discovered a newfound love ----

cinnamon bitesized Boggles!!

if you haven't tried them go out and get them... now!

p.s. this little piggy is already feeling better

and is back to his gardening.

thanks for all the well wishes and e-mails about Bumbee!

Hope you have a

Bon Week-end!

pigskin and pigs that fly.

I've lived in Texas. Got Married in Texas. Have a house in Texas. And I have yet to ever go to one of THESE!!!

Ohhhh so jealous!

Bumbee and his best friends {all Army buds} went to

the football game this weekend at UT.

They blended in and swam in

a sea of orange...

The good news? Texas won!!!

Hooray!!

The bad news?

Husband got sick right after the game.

He went to the doctor this morning.

{Husband never goes to the Doctor.}

Apparently, he has the swine flu(?!)

{Yeah, not joking.}

on a plus side, we live in two separate states.

on a not-so-plus side, i wish i could be there...

at least he has Piper there to take care of him.

as far as i know, dogs can't catch it.

can they??