Beatrice

Beatrice is getting to be so big and she is adorable as ever! Here is a cute shot Doug took of her from earlier this week.

Scrap Pillows

I have had several big pieces of scraps from my aprons so decided to utilize them and create some fun pillows.

New Apron Design

I have been happy with the my original apron design but I decided to come up with a new design so that I have multiple options. I tried out a few things and this is what I came up with.

New Bikes

Doug and I have been thinking about purchasing bikes for quite awhile now. We have thought about how fun it would be to go for bike rides and also thought it would be nice to have bikes when we get to Hawaii. We expect that most things will cost more in Hawaii so we decided to do some shopping around. We ended up going down to the Mystic Cycle Center this past weekend and found some great bikes on some good deals. They are having a big sale so after thinking about our decision a little more we went back on Tuesday and decided to buy ourselves mountain bikes. Our next step is to find Beatrice a bike-friendly leash so she can run along beside us while we bike.

Centerpiece Competition at the Sub Ball

On Wednesday evening Doug called me as he was leaving work to tell me that he was going to need my help with creating a centerpiece for the Sub Ball. Each Wardroom creates a centerpiece that is part of a large competition. As the least senior officer, Doug was given the task. And, as the wife that doesn't have to work all evening - I was given the task. Talk about some serious delegation! I got my friend Joy to pitch in and we came up with a pretty great centerpiece (minus the water being really hazy because the sand got all swirled up on the ride over).

Here is the theme: "Chained to the Shipyard"
Explanation: The boat has been in the shipyard for some time now and the joke is that they will never make it to Hawaii and they just can't seem to get away. We created a General Dynamics building (that has a striking resemblance to the actual building), a crane made out of Knex, and a dock full of navy men (that are even painted to look like their uniforms) who are wearing hardhats (made of painted bolt covers). The submarine is chained to the pier and actually has a working motor so it was moving but unsuccessful at getting away. Our Hawaii side is pretty cute too but needs less explanation. Inside the tank we actually had live fish! You could have seen our great underwater decorations but the water looks really muddy so that made it hard to see all of our underwater work. Sadly, we didn't win the competition but we did win the respect and laughs from several men on the sub.

Submarine Birthday Ball 2010

Last night was the 110th birthday of the US Naval Submarine Force. We went to the ball which was held at the MGM Grand at the Foxwoods Casino. It was fun to get dressed up with friends and enjoy a night of great speakers, good food, and fun times.

Duffel

This week I finished my project of sewing myself a quilted duffel. Although it is far from perfect I am pretty proud of it and excited for our next weekend away so I have a chance to use my homemade bag. I lined the inside with the same yellow fabric that I used for my initials on the side. Each end has a pink pocket that matches the top.

Oh, I forgot!

I am so excited about my recent crafting adventures! I completely forgot to give an update about the apron that I made and took to the SOSA auction last week. I ended up taking the second apron I made because I had made some adjustments that I really loved and thought made it much cuter. The apron ended up auctioning for.... (drum roll please)... $50! I was so amazed and really excited. I talked with the woman in charge of the Dolphin Store on base (sells cute crafty thing and all proceeds go to the scholarship fund) and I am going to make some more aprons to sell there. I am very excited about this and am looking forward to my sort of venture-capitalist hobby I have started.

Happy Easter, Happy April

It is hard to believe that it is April already! After the downpour we had earlier last week the weather has decided to make up for it and we have had nothing but sun for the past few days. It is gorgeous and warm outside - which has meant lots of walks and play day for the whole family. Doug had Friday off so we took Levi up to Plymouth, Mass. for the day. We toured Plymouth Plantation and had a great day. It was really beautiful out and a perfect day for a little trip. On Saturday we had a small Easter at our house so that Levi didn't have to miss out on Easter altogether. We also got to meet up with our friends Mike & Jess. They had been up in NY with us but are now living in Virginia. Mike is from Waterford, just down the road, so they are up visiting family this week. Sunday we had to say goodbye to Levi - it was such a great visit with him and I was really sad to see him go. Seeing so much family/friends this month has really reminded me how much I miss everyone. I am now looking forward to seeing everyone in June at Luke's wedding so much more than I was before. Sunday afternoon the beautiful weather continued so following our delicious Easter brunch we headed out to Bluff Point for a walk. It was gorgeous and is always nice to see the ocean (even if it has to be the Atlantic Ocean). In general things are great. Doug and I can not believe our first year as a married couple is almost over! We are excited for our anniversary and can't believe all of the amazing things we have gotten to do together this year. We are also so excited for all of the adventures and new places we will see in the next year.