Before the trip started, things got a little hectic. I was trying to wash clothes before we left and well, the laundry room flooded. Then right before I went to bed, I went to the refrigerator for something only to find out that it was not working. This is especially devastating for a nursing mom that stores breast milk in the freezer! We saved what we needed and transported it to my parents home. After all that, we still managed to leave San Antonio on time. We got to Corpus around noon and left Jacob to visit with Jason’s parents. By dinner time, Jacob didn’t look too well. We took his temp and it was at 102.8! Turns out, he had fever all weekend. I managed to get him to the beach a couple of times for a few minutes.

So I guess our weekend didn’t go as planned but you know what they say, “when it rains, it pours.” I think the good thing that came out of this was:

1 – at least we discovered the fridge not working BEFORE we left on a long weekend
2 – at least Jacob got the attention from all four grandparents while he was sick
3 – at least we had beautiful weather in Corpus (no hurricanes or tropical storms)

Sometimes you just have to laugh at the stuff that happens when it doesn’t go your way. We did manage to get some photos of Jacob for his minimal time on the beach. That boy is such a happy child – smiling even though he was sick.

Click here to see all photos.

You might be thinking, “this has nothing to do with me.” Well, it does. Every time you update your Facebook page or upload a photo to Flickr or send a Tweet, you are using the power of a computer sitting inside a data center. As we transfer more and more data across the Internet, the more and more power we use. This is why Facebook launched the OpenCompute project – to showcase how they’ve built a green data center – and with the hopes that through collaboration with other technology providers, like Rackspace, we can build greener data centers.

We’ve collected a series of videos across the Internet from each era and it’s interesting to see how much has changed over the course of 50 years. Check it out.

Data Center

My parents hosted a fun rehearsal dinner at Acenar and as favors, they had beach towels embroidered with Layla & Wayne’s name & wedding date. I was in charge of making a slide show with photos of them. I added some video footage for a surprise. Tears filled the room which let me know it was a success.

They married at the historic San Fernando Cathedral, had the bridesmaids & décor pretty in pink, had the reception catered by local favorite True Flavors and had a rockin’ band out of Austin, Texas (where they reside now).  We love Layla and are so happy to have her join our family. She is definitely a girly girl and if it were possible, she would have been born with a wedding veil atop her head. We were all so nervous because we wanted the wedding to go as she planned. I think it did and if it didn’t, she didn’t notice

Check out more photos here.

Download the Slide Show here.

Summer went by so quickly. We finished our wedding thank you cards and got our house back into to order. But even after that was completed, Jason and I have been on the go. There is always something to do or something to see.

Jason and I took a weekend trip to visit my cousins in Chicago in July. I was just in Chicago this past April for my bachelorette party which was a blast.   Jason and I hit a Cubs game, shopped in Wicker Park and on Michigan Avenue, and I got to do a long run with my cousins down Lake Shore Blvd. I also caught up with my friend Regina who I had met when I studied in Spain. Good times!

Then of course our traditional Labor Day weekend in Corpus Christi, Texas. Every year my entire extended family on both sides go to to North Padre for the weekend. We have been doing this since I was a baby and even before that, my parents had been going since they were kids.

It’s always a fun weekend with my crazy family. Good food, good drinks, sand volleyball! My in-laws live in Corpus so Jason and I spent time with his family as well.

This past Labor Day was a very special one. My brother, Wayne Anthony, proposed to his girlfriend of 6 years. It was beautiful how it happened. The condo we stay at is a beach front property. Our entire family, about  80 people, went down to the beach at around 8:30pm. They held up a 10ft by 5ft sign that said “Will you marry me Layla?” They also lit huge sparklers! They were all facing the condo. If you were at the condo and looked out to the beach, you were looking down to the beautiful sparklers and glowing sign. Wayne Anthony took Layla to the balcony on the 5th floor. She looked down to see what was going on and when she read the sign, she turned to Wayne Anthony and he was on one knee. She said YES! Another year of wedding planning.

My brother and Layla live in Austin and we are going to go visit them this weekend and hit up ACL on Sunday. I haven’t been to ACL in about 6 years! It should be fun.

We are going to the Grand Canyon for the weekend in November. Jason is looking for a new lens for our camera. We want to be able to take some great photos without having to use software for touch ups. Lens aren’t cheap so we want to make sure we get the right one. If you have recommendations, let me know!

And most importantly, we are going to Rome! It was somewhat last minute. Jason and I have been wanting to take a trip to Europe but wanted to wait until next fall when flights are cheaper. I received an alert for a pretty low round trip fare to Rome in March and I acted upon it! We will be there for 2 weeks and plan to visit Paris, Milan, Venice and Florence in addition to Rome. Any recommendations for hotels in any of these cities would be greatly appreciated!  I really wanted to make it to Spain so I can visit my friends but we will have to make that another trip due to all the things we want to do and see within a short time frame.

It’s going to be another adventurous year. I will keep you posted!