1st comes love, then comes marriage, then.....

First come love, then comes marriage, then comes.....  well you know the rest.....

Yep, that's right, our family is expanding!!!

Just a week after we were married, we found out we were preggers!! We were elated!!
A little new life coming into the world. An absolute miracle.

Here's the belly progression....

13 weeks, I thought my belly was SO big here, hahaha

17 weeks

19 weeks

This is the first photo we saw of our munchkin's face. We found out it was a BOY!!!

3D ultrasounds are so crazy. I can't believe how clear it turned out. This is the cutest face I have EVER seen. EVER.

We were in Nicaragua until I was 19 weeks, then went to Jamaica for a week, then home to California by the time I was 20 weeks.  The original plan was to return to Nicaragua and have the baby down there, BUT, I changed my mind.... I felt much more comfortable with the thought of giving birth in the US.

24 weeks

26 weeks

27 weeks

30 weeks

34 weeks

35 weeks

36 weeks

36 weeks

38 weeks

And then POP!!

This little angel came into our lives and changed everything......

Our Nicaraguan wedding

Our wedding in Nicaragua was very laid back. Dinh and I didn't want anything fancy. It was a ceremony to show our commitment to each other and we didn't need to spend a ton of money for that. 
I really think it's foolish to spend thousands of dollars on a wedding that only lasts half a day. Can you believe some people spend $50,000 on their wedding?! And even more!! That's nuts!!
It's frivolous and, honestly, I would rather spend that money on something more important. Sometimes people lose sight on what's really important in life. 
Our wedding was perfect, in our eyes. We had the ceremony at the resort where we live in Nicaragua. It's a small community and everyone showed up to celebrate with us. 
Now I'm married to my best friend. I know everyone says that, but he REALLY is my best friend. I'm so glad I found him :)
Here's a few pics from the wedding:

Hawaii to California

After soaking up all that Hawaii had to offer, Dinh and I decided to move back to California. We were both getting a twinge of island fever. 
It was time to go. 
Hawaii is an island, it's expensive. What we were paying for a one bedroom cottage, we could pay for our mortgage in our 3 bedroom house in California. Dinh owns 2 homes in Laguna Niguel, California. It made more sense to live in one of them, rather than fork over a ton of cash each month in exchange for a tiny living space. 
So, off we went.... again. We gave the renters in California a couple months notice that we were returning, and we moved into our Orange County home. 

South Orange County beaches

Hawaii is amazing, but it feels SO far away from home. Dinh's parents, brothers and sister all live in Southern California. And my family is only a 3 hour plane ride away in Minnesota. 

 Even though the water is a colder in Southern California, compared to Hawaii, it's still a great place to live. 

After taking a few months to settle into our Cali home, this happened......

 Yep, Dinh asked me to marry him!!!
We decided to get hitched in California and then have the ceremony in Nicaragua. A beach wedding. Couldn't be more perfect....
Wow, I was actually "settling down". But I knew this would not be the end of my vagabonding.....

Hawaii video

Here's a silly video Dinh and I made while in Hawaii :)

Hawaii bound

While in Antarctica, I did a lot of thinking. I had planned to travel for longer than I did, however, circumstances came up and I decided to end my trip earlier than planned. 
Dinh and I were unsure of where we would live after the trip. He was still at our house in Nicaragua. 
I honestly didn't know if our relationship would survive the big trip. I mean, there were times when we seriously wanted to kill each other.
You think I'm joking. 
Imagine spending 24/7 in a car with someone for 2 months straight. It was rough sometimes, but it definitely made our bond stronger. We worked through our differences and are much better off because of it. 
As I was shivering in Antarctica, I thought about how badly it sucked to be cold. 
I seriously hate being cold. 
It was then and there that I decided we should move back to Hawaii. I emailed Dinh from the ship and he was on board with the decision, too. 
Done deal. 

So, after Antarctica, I made the long journey back home to Minnesota from Argentina. I was excited to be back "home", like usual. Familiar lands and familiar faces. 
Straight away, I got to work trying to find another job in Hawaii. It happened a lot quicker than I expected and I ended up having to head to Hawaii about a week after I got home. The job would not wait. So off I went. Across an entire ocean, back to my well known paradise. 

Allllooooohhhaaaa!!!!
The plane touched down, the doors opened and that intoxicating tropical air hit my face. I realized I had made the right decision. 
I rented a car and stayed in a hostel for a few days while I looked for a place to rent and waited for my car to arrive. I had shipped my vehicle from Seattle. Dinh would be meeting me in a couple weeks. 
I left my furry daughter, Harely, with my parents in Minnesota until I could get settled, then flew back about a month later to get her.  

"Don't forget to bring me to Hawaii!"

In case you didn't know, the process of bringing a dog into Hawaii is quite tedious. It involves blood work, lots of paperwork and then waiting for 4 months. You don't have to put your dog in quarantine if you follow certain steps. My vet back in Minnesota is excellent and she had helped me with the process last time. This would be the second time bringing Harley to Hawaii, and it's never a simple affair. 

Enjoying the view

Travelin' dog

It's not the most pleasant experience to take 3 different flights with a dog. But Harley has become accustomed to traveling in planes and does pretty good. I actually hide her on my lap under a blanket once the plane takes off. She stays really quiet and sleeps most of the time. No one ever knows she's there, except the person sitting next to me. I think it's totally cruel to leave a dog in a little bag under the seat for the entire flight. Serrrrriously. 
Harley was totally happy to be back in warm weather. She loves Hawaii, as you can see from the pictures. 

She actually smiles on the beach

Does it get much better?

Since I only had to work 3 days a week (and Dinh doesn't work because he is retired), Dinh, Harely and I had plenty of time to have fun in Hawaii, like we usually do. 

A trip to Kauai

Dinh in Kauai

We hike A LOT in Hawaii!

Surfin' dog

Our happy little family

Port Lockroy, Antarctica

My very favorite stop on the Antarctica expedition was Port Lockroy. 
It used to be a British base back in the day. Today, it functions as a museum and gift shop. There are actually 4 girls that live on the little island during the summer months. They have the important job of counting penguin eggs, and running the gift shop, of course. 

Port Lockroy is a popular tourist stop. The coolest part about Port Lockroy: you can mail postcards there! I sent about 15 postcards to my friends and family back home when I was there. Let me tell ya, it's pretty groovy to get a postcard ALL the way from Antarctica. 
I give the girls that live here a lot of credit. They have to endure the harsh elements, be without internet or shower, and deal with tourists all day long. We had the honor of letting these brave girls hitch a ride back to Argentina with us on our way back home. It was the end of the summer season, and time for them to head back home. I was able to talk with a couple of the girls over dinner one night. It was so interesting hearing their stories. They told me about how they had gained weight due to their diet consisting mostly of canned and dried foods. They were so delighted to have fresh fruit on our ship!
Here's a few photos from Port Lockroy:

Mailing my postcards

The gift shop

curious guys

And here are a few odds and ends pics that I wanted to post:

The route our boat took

Polar plunge