So, here’s my lame attempt at getting you caught up in our lives. I am really hoping that from here on our updates will be more frequent.

When we last left off it was November, and we we had just gotten back from spending a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend in California. The food and company was glorious as always, and we enjoyed staying up late chatting with Eric’s parents.

Also in November, Sarah and Jason added to our Austin family- they adopted a puppy named Max! Max and Reese are already great friends, and it is fun going to the dog park and running into the Colemans there! Sometimes Max and Reese will find each other before we even realize the Coleman’s are there, it’s weird.

Ok, please read below- I separated each month since I last wrote into it’s own post.

This year we did Christmas in Austin, so we really got into decorating the house. My sister Samantha made Sarah and I replicas of a “The Twelve Days of Christmas” banner that my parents had while we were growing up, so it was wonderful to put that up in our home. She spent two years making it (she would work on it every morning before work!) so it really meant a lot to me.

Eric and I really went all out this year on gifts for some reason. We didn’t really talk about it, but it just ended up being a big Christmas morning. After we opened gifts at our house we went over to the Coleman’s and opened gifts there and then ate brunch. Later we took both dogs to the dog park where the tower bells were playing Christmas Carols. It was the perfect day. My parents drove down from St. Louis a few days later so we got to extend the Christmas joy even longer.

Eric and I were very boring on New Years. We went to see Juno (very cute) and then came home and were in bed by 11. Haha, we’re so old!

1) My Birthday- On Saturday Eric took me to dinner at a nice restaurant downtown. Unfortunately neither one of us were really too thrilled with our meals.
2) Valentine’s Day- we celebrated at The Melting Pot. It was yummy!

In addition, we:
1) Got stone work and landscaping done in the front yard (loyal readers will know the yearly battle I have with my garden- so this was HUGE for us!)
2) Got granite counter tops in the kitchen!

Yep, in a recession, just call The Falcaos. We’ll save the economy with our spending! Luckily when we go to sell the house we will get a return on our investment!

1) Sarah became a Catholic and I was her sponsor!
2) My Mom came to visit!
3) Amelia had her first of many Easter Egg hunts at our house!

On Saturday, Sarah and I went to the Travis County Democratic Convention as Obama delegates. It was an awesome experience! There were over 10,000 people there (about 9,000 more than last time!) so it was a big confusing mess, but everyone was in great spirits. We did “the wave,” sang “99 bottles of beer on the wall,” and chatted it up with like minded neighbors until the leaders of the convention were ready begin. Sarah and I loved being a part of history and I’m sure we will both become more involved in the future.

Today Eric and I spent some time working in the yard and planting our new vegetable garden. This summer we are hoping to grow several different kinds of tomatoes, peppers, beans, onions, strawberries, watermelon, basil and parsley! We will take pictures as it grows, and you are all welcome to come over when it is time to harvest!

Whew, going forward hopefully we can do a better job of keeping up with the site. I’m guessing 2008 will be an exciting year for us!

The Friday after Eric got back we flew to Chicago for a part weekend getaway, part HR training trip for my new position. Since Eric can fly so cheaply, my company had no problem with him coming along on the trip with me (don’t worry- they even brought up the idea before I considered it.) We stayed at a really cool hotel that was right in the middle of downtown- within walking distance of the train and Michigan Ave. and all the other fun things. When we got there on Friday we immediately bought a three day train pass so we could easier go all over town- and did we ever! WE went to the Shedd Aquarium, ate Indian food in Little India, went to a few different pizza places (I am still craving Lou Malnati’s heavenly butter crust!) and, best of all, saw the musical Wicked! Here’s the story: Sunday morning we woke up wondering what we were going to do that day. We had already eaten a lot of really good food, walked and hung out on Michigan Avenue, and visited the Aquarium (the only touristy thing we didn’t do while my parent’s lived here). Everywhere you look in Chicago there are advertisements for Wicked. The ticket prices were a little too high for what we wanted to spend, so I called our concierge to find out if she knew about discounted tickets. She told us about a drawing they have everyday at the Borders next to the theater. Each day they draw 10 names out of a hat for front row tickets. The drawing allowed the winner to purchase the front row tickets for $25 each (as opposed to the full price amount of $90 per ticket.) We thought, hey, lets walk over there- it was three blocks away- get some books, cozy up with a cup of coffee, and see what happens. All this time Eric was very confident we were going to win, but as each name was drawn, my hopes dwindled. BUT, the second to last name called was Eric “FKS” from Austin, Texas (luckily my husband’s horrible handwriting didn’t disqualify us!) We were thrilled, but not as happy as some of the other winners who broke down in tears! We didn’t really realize what a big deal this was until we saw the winners crying, and the 100+ losers sulk away begrudgingly. An hour later we were sitting in the beautiful theater, front row center, looking down on the orchestra pit. It was so unbelievably cool! It felt like they were performing just for us. I highly recommend the musical to anyone- Eric loved it too, even though he isn’t really into musicals typically.

On Monday I had training and Eric went to a local coffee shop to code. During training I got some bad news that doctors had found a clogged artery in my dad’s heart. Miraculously, after an exhausting Monday and Tuesday of traveling and then getting back to work, and then a day full of tests and procedures, the doctors said my dad’s heart had healed itself, and it should continue to work perfectly for a very long time. Thank God! That scare really made Thanksgiving special this year.

Happy birthday to my beautiful mom! I put together a little photo album to celebrate her big day, please check it out in the photos section.

In honor of the day of your birth, here are 10 random memories from my life with you so far:

1) Upon driving into our campsite below Mesa Verde, the view was so beautiful that the only thing you could muster to say was “Hecky Magic!” It has now become a common phrase in our family.

2) Before the Winter Formal Dance my sophomore year of high school, you (and dad) helped me with my nerves by blowing on my armpits so the sweat would dry before my date arrived.

3) When you came on my school field trip with my class when we lived in Lafayette. I felt like such a cool kid because my parents came.

4) Hearing you sing “Bye, Bye Miss American Pie” on road trips.

5) The time you sat next to my bed all night when I had the stomach flu and couldn’t sleep. It really helped having you there.

6) Hundreds of times when I layed in bed with you and talked for hours.

7) Waiting at the Santa Ana DMV with me for like 4 hours so I could get my driver’s license.

8) The time when you thought dad was “saying” your name in the middle of the night.

9) When I had spinal meningitis you had my lay on your stomach- I can still feel the warmth.

10) Sitting in the cafeteria with you after Amelia’s birth just staring at eachother- there were no words to describe it.

Thank you for all of my memories mom! I look forward to many more year’s worth of them with you!

We hope everyone enjoyed their Halloween festivities. We had a ton of fun this weekend at our friend’s costume party. Eric was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and I was Amy Winehouse. The other costumes at the party were awesome and there was a really good band.

Last night we hung out and gave out candy of course, but there was one trick-or-treater that was our #1 favorite- Miss Amelia! She looked unbelievably cute in her costume! While we were waiting for the door bell to ring we finally watched the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The movie takes place in Travis County (where we live!) so I had been putting off watchig it because I was too afraid. Turned out it wasn’t really that scary, although I bet the original probably is better.

November and December are big months for us, as I’m sure they are for most people. This weekend Eric is heading home to California to visit with his family. It has been quite a while since he has seen everyone, and since there isn’t a 100% chance we will make a flight for Thanksgiving, we thought it would be good for him to go now. I was given a promotion at work, so next week I will be going to Chicago for training for two days. I am trying to convince Eric to go with me so we can make a fun weekend out of it, but it all depends on his work schedule. Then it is practically Thanksgiving, then Christmas and then 2008!

….I had just witnessed the birth of my amazing niece, Amelia Eleanor. I feel so greatful to her parents for letting me be there to experience it with them, and the beauty of the event is something I will cherish forever.

From day one Amelia has brought joy and excitement to all of our lives. On her first day of life I remember holding her while she was sleeping and marveling at her beauty. As her dad and I looked on, Amelia smiled for the briefest moment, which lifted out hearts even higher.

The night Sarah and Jason brought Amelia home from the hospital opened my eyes to what parenthood is really like. Amelia didn’t have a soiled diaper the whole time she had been home, which worried her doctor enough to tell us to go to the emergency room. As I drove a nervous grandmother and two terrified new parents to the hospital, I realized in that moment that having a baby was so much more than cute clothes and nursery themes. Amelia had enchanted me in only two days of life and I couldn’t even begin to imagine how her parents must have felt sitting there in the back seat. When we got to the ER, we sat in the waiting room overwhelmed at the idea that we were there for a baby who was less than 3 days old. Well, Amelia taught me a good lesson that night as she comfortably soiled her diaper while we all cried worriedly over her in the waiting room- babies are on their own time schedule!

Thankfully, every moment since then has been (at least for me, ask her parents! haha) worry free- she is the happiest most wonderful baby and Eric and I are so thankful that she is in our life.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl! We LOVE you!