Great Grandma Sara

two weeks ago today, my great grandmother passed away.

While there is great sadness in imagining a world without her bright smile, quick wit, strong independence, and loving spirit,

she spent 95 beautiful years on this Earth and lived each one to it's fullest. 

I have countless memories with Grandma Sara...

from summers spent with her at Hart Ranch

to comparing notes of our European travels. 

But this is my favorite memory...

I am so grateful I was able to introduce her to Lauren.

This picture is in her baby book. 

Because meeting your Great Great Grandma...

Well that is special. 

nine.

Nine years ago today I began the greatest adventure that would lead to all the other adventures...

I married this man.

While today will look like any other day in the McQuinn household...

a birth story

hospital from Sarah on Vimeo.

seven

seven years ago today...

266/366

Expat life can be fabulous.
Expat life can be difficult.
I'm often reminded about what an amazing opportunity this is...
what an adventure,
an incredible lifestyle,
but sometimes it is easy to forget all the favorable parts of expat life
and focus more on the frustrations...
the language barrier,
the incredible lack of customer service,
no access to simple pleasantries that were once taken for granted,
or the fact that yesterday I was told it is illegal to use a cell phone in a bank {text, respond to emails, phone calls, all of it} regardless of the fact that you are expected to wait in a ridiculous line.

I've always been the type to have my nose in a book,
even more so now that I am an ama de casa.
I'm always looking for recommendations and trying to find some piece of literature to take me away,
something to learn from,
something to speak to me.
When I was in graduate school the book, The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews, was mentioned as a cognitive behavioral tool to use with clients. I made a note of the title and focused on the rest of my required reading.
This week I came back to the title and decided to put my nose in it. An easy read with a message, one that resonated with me...

...especially this...

Today I will choose to be happy.

I will greet each day with laugher.

I will smile at every person I meet.

I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.

Today I will choose to be happy.

Today, these things bring me happiness... 

Fall begins

{source}

sweet strawberries

an afternoon glass of wine and a book

...drumroll please...

{yay!} my computer's back {yay!}

Somedays are easier than others to be happy. 

Somedays bring struggles,

utter confusion when trying to communicate,
missing friends and family,

cab drivers who argue over one peso, 

broken air conditioners,
no Bella,

no soy milk,
no Diet Coke in a can,

and people who don't understand the concept of 'personal space'.

But happiness is a choice. 

There are 100 days left in 2012 and I choose to spend them being happy. 

Even if it's hard and I have to self talk myself into my happy place until I am blue in the face. 

I will choose to be happy.

How do you plan to spend the next 100 days?

seis

two continents

two countries

four states

five apartments

one house

six years

Happy Anniversary

According to Dad...

Question: What makes a photographer a professional?




{You're probably thinking someone who gets paid for their photos....}

According to my dad, it is when your photos are published.
It is a valid point.

Therefore, 'according to him', I am now a professional...



My dad used a picture I took of Lola {my parents very photogenic dog} in an advertisement/flier for their Invisible Fence business.

I will admit. I smiled when I saw it.

Now you will have to excuse me...

I'm off to go update my resume.

a decade | a difference

This weekend,in Ankeny, Iowa,

our 10 year high school reunion

is taking place.

AHS Class of 2001

While we are not there to catch up with 

acquaintances 

and celebrate with the many friends we have 

maintained close relationships with 

{far beyond the halls of Ankeny High School 

and the 'infamous' Pit}

the occasion has brought on a lot of 

reflecting

as to where we are

10 years later

and who we

were

as 18 

{cough, cough, I guess one of us was 19}

year old high school graduates.

Where did you think you would be in 10 years?

From age 8 I knew I wanted to be an elementary school teacher, so I had a clear vision for career goals although I am certain I did not see the term 'juvenile delinquency' on the horizon.  I thought I would be married by 28 {however it is doubtful that I had any idea it would be to my friend & classmate and I definitely did not think I would be one of the first to be married among my friends}. Probably the biggest discrepancy about where I thought I would be and where I am... I saw myself living in the Ankeny/Des Moines area and having a child {27 was my magic number}. One of the most amazing things 10 years later has to be the friendships. I can't even form words for the gratitude I feel to share such history with so many amazing people all while participating in one another's future. It's beautiful. Really.

Matt's answer wasn't as straightforward. When I asked him over dinner he responded with sarcasm and stated something like,

"I thought I might be in Bogota, but not Cartagena..."

He then told me as a senior in high school he was likely not thinking about what the next 10 years would look like {in full disclosure, he is still likely not thinking about what the next 10 years look like}

After I shared what my 10 year plan had looked like, he played the game with me and said that he too did not see himself marrying a classmate and was going to settle in the Des Moines/Ankeny area...

Well, we're only 3,000 miles happily off track...

6.7

Happy Birthday Dad!

"My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me" 

-Jim Valvano

Feliz Cumpleanos.

Happy Birthday to the only person that I could accompany on this adventure.

xoxo.




if you already read this and used the link, you will now find that my spirited persistance
(or lack of being able to let things go) resulted in uploading the video the right way.

2006-2011 celebrated

Well, hello there.

In the midst of a pretty chaotic time 

(remember, house has sold and we still haven't the faintest about 

where we will lay our heads in a month) 

Matt and I had the opportunity to remember what its all about and how it started 5 years ago.

Some of the highlights from January 28, 2006 to January 28, 2011

(this is a microscopic view of the incredible amazing experiences and memories we have made the past half decade)


We felt like celebrating year 5 needed to be something special. A few months ago Matt and I began speaking about planning a trip to mark the occasion. While we travel quite often we realized it had been a while since we had taken a trip just for us. Matt came to me about a month ago with a few different destinations he was looking into, we discussed and in the end he informed me that he would be making the final decisions. So, now I get to tell you all about the amazing (long) weekend my husband and I had in....

WARNING. This post is going to have a lot of information. A lot. Mostly, because I want to remember all of it and this is a great way to do so. So, if you're not feeling it, I apologize, and will not be offended in the slightest if you just want to look at the pictures or want to skip it entirely (and it's not like I will ever know anyway, right?)


Thursday, January 27

Matt had filled me in the day before about our destination so I could pack accordingly. We landed in San Francisco and headed straight for Napa Valley.

 Let me sidetrack for a moment... 

I love the Bay area. Like want to move there. absolutely gorgeous. 

Matt had done quite a bit of research and we visited three wineries that were highly recomended and were new to us 

(our first trip to Napa was summer of 09 and we fell. in. love)

St. Supery

Really kind staff, some great wine, beautiful grounds...

but they have some seriously awesome artwork that they change with each vintage that I was loving.

On our way to the next destination, we stopped at the most adorable local market for a sandwich and other goodies. Another reason I want to live in Napa... the markets. I could make some amazing food with all those fresh deliciouso ingredients.

 And don't get me started on the cheese selection. 

We enjoyed our picnic lunch on the grounds at a winery... purrr.fection.

Grgich Hills

Here we enjoyed a little education from a former Texan. It was fun to discuss things that

 only a person familiar with SETX would understand. 

We definitely realized that visiting during the off season really allows you to learn and 

interact with the staff. We had another round of great tastings and left with some wine and some "chocolate covered wine"... 

imagine a chocolate covered cherry, take out the cherry and fill it with wine. 

Yep. AH-mazing.

We had some fantastic dinner reservations. Yes, had. I was reminded what 

marriage is really about.

 the good with the bad. 

in sickness and in health.

 Matt didn't feel so well and he tried to go to dinner, but we made a decision that if he couldn't really enjoy it, it wasn't worth it. So room service it was. But, the weekend was 

full of so many fabulous moments, we really don't have time to focus on the "not-so" ones.

Friday, January 28

Our Anniversary

We started our morning off with a fabulous breakfast at Boon Fly Cafe. 

One of the most adorable places I saw through the weekend. The food and coffee was fantastic and I want to decorate my kitchen like Boon Fly.

 And I could totally live in a barn,

if it was a chic as Boon Fly.

The rest of the weekend was full of surprises. 

My favorite wine is Cakebread. 

Matt and I have shared many special moments with a bottle 

(when we found out we had a contract on the house we opened a bottle of Cakebread Chardonnay Reserve).

 So, I was thrilled when Matt informed me that we had a food and wine pairing scheduled at Cakebread. If you have not ever had a bottle of Cakebread, 

I highly, recommend it. 

Their Chardonnay is on another level. 

The surprises kept coming as Matt had found a winery in which we had the opportunity to blend our own wines. 

Conn Creek

 offers an experience to learn about, taste, and blend wines from the various regions that make up Napa Valley. 

It was an absolutely amazing experience and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in wine and taking a trip to the Valley. 

The staff was so kind and helpful and it was both a fun and educational experience. 

Matt and I each have our own that we blended and bottled. 

We are looking forward to some celebratory moments in the future to taste each of our unique creations.

I know, I know, it's hard to believe, 

but the day got better at dinner. 

We ate at Bottega, a restaurant by Chef Michael Chiarello. 

Some of you may be familiar with Chef Michael from his show on Food Network, Top Chef Masters, or his retail store NapaStyle. 

It was amazing, the food, the ambiance, the service. 

What topped this dinner off was that handsome charming Italian chef... 

stopped by our table and complimented the lady at the table. 

The perfect ending to a perfect day.  

Saturday, January 29

The surprises were not yet over. Matt had yet another

 incredible day

 planned for us. We had plans to do a limo tour through some wineries in Napa. Accompanying us was 4 others. We had a great group, 

2 woman that were friends from college, and "co-workers". 

The tour took us to 4 different wineries 

(that's a lot for 1 day)

 but we thorougly enjoyed it and got to see parts of Napa we weren't 

familiar with while visiting both small and large wineries. 

Including:

 Rubicon Estate, a gorgeous winery that is owned by

 Francis Ford Coppola (yep, the guy who wrote & directed The Godfather is a wino). 

It was a beautiful estate, had great red wine, and had one heck of a "gift shop".

Bravante Vineyards, a smaller winery 

with beautiful views and fabulous wines. We had a great wine educator on this tour

 and we even had his dog accompany us on tour 

(can't you see Bella as a wine dog)

Frank Family, first thing I noticed here, pictures of Oprah. Apparently she is 

friends with the Franks and had a birthday party at the winery.

 Enough said.

Stags Leap, our final destination, has a connection to the movie Bottle Shock 

(movie recommendation) 

They also submitted a wine for the tasting in Paris. 

Chateau Montelena was the winner, 

which is a stop I intend to make on my next trip to Napa.

We finished our incredibly romantic and fabulous long weekend with dinner at Brix.

So, I have to say Thank You

to my best friend, 

the man who makes me smile,

laugh

and at times....

scream.

But there isn't a person I would rather be on this journey with.

And I know.

That I am.

I am.

The Luckiest.

Oh.

and check out the

 loot.

(if you are still with me, i promise not to make it so long next time. xoxo)