Long Overdue...

Summer is long gone and the holidays are right around the corner...so I figured it might be a good time to update the blog. We have been very busy since the last update, with too many things to remember, but I will hit-upon some of the main events. I am obviously back in full swing at school and Mark continues to work at both of his jobs. Our fall has consisted of many events...some more fun than others. First of all, my family took our annual Apple Picking trip to Graves Mountain Lodge in the mountains of VA back in early October. This year's weather and apple harvest were awesome! Many an apple pie was made when we returned home. Later in the month, my (Kristin's) other grandfather passed-away somewhat expectedly, about 2 months after his wife (my grandmother--dad's side) passed away. God was truly gracious in his timing and the way everything happened. They will both be dearly missed. On a happier note, Mark and I are very much excited about the upcoming holiday season. We will be joining my family for Thanksgiving in southeastern Virginia followed by a Birthday Weekend Get-Away to the Asheville the first weekend of December. I've been dying to see the Biltmore all decorated for Christmas since we moved here 3 years ago and I will finally get my chance. Mark has arranged for us to stay in a cute B&B and even go on a candlelight tour of the mansion! If you can't tell...I'm totally psyched! I will most definitely take lots of pics and try to post some on here soon after we return. Promise to post again soon!

Here are just a few pics from Apple Picking 2k8:

















I had to add some pics of the food from this year's state fair...here's Mark eating a piece of fried pecan pie and me with my frozen chocolate-dipped banana w/ sprinkles...both were so yummy!

3 Years of Wedded Bliss! ;-)

This past Wednesday, July 9th, Mark and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary! It's amazing how quickly the years fly by! Since we have such a full schedule of beachweeks and other trips, we decided to go low-key this year. Mark surprised me with some beautiful flowers (pictured below) and I surprised him to dinner at Kanki, a local Japanese Steak House he has been wanting to try. On our way home from dinner we saw some awesome rainbows which we were lucky enough to capture on our camera. Once home, we enjoyed a dessert (my other surprise to Mark) of banana pudding. All in all, it was a wonderfully relaxing evening and a great time to reflect on memories of the past 3 years. God has been so good to us! We can't wait to see what our 4th year of marriage will bring! :-)







We had to strike a pose in front of the awesome fish tank!











Another shot of the fish tank...wish I could have one of these in our house!










Mark did an awesome job capturing the rainbow(s) on the way home!













If you look closely, there are actually 2 rainbows in this picture!












My beautiful flowers from Mark...so fun!

Quick Catch-Up!

Summer is in full swing and Mark and I are loving every minute of it! We spent the 4th of July week in Emerald Isle, NC with some fun friends from church. Some of the highlights of the trip included: a trip to the NC Aquarium, Sanitary Fish Market, exploring Ft. Macon, a round of golf (this was Mark), fireworks on the beach, some ocean kyaking, and of course plenty of beach time! It was a great time to meet new friends and just relax. Here are a few pics from our week!









































No comment on this one! ;-)

Summer is Here!

So much has happened since my last post, so I will just pick up with the most recent events/news. Mark and I have been pretty busy with work and church stuff recently. Lucky for me, school ended this week and I'm officially on summer vacation. The summer brings much excitement for us this year. Just a few things on the agenda are:

June 29-July 6th Emerald Isle Beachweek with church friends
July 9th: Our 3rd Wedding Anniversary! :-)
July 13-19th--Annual At Lee Family Vacation @ VA Beach
July 24th-27th--Off to NYC for a wedding of one of Mark's College Buddies

Phew! So that's the schedule so far...if we are MIA during those days...now you will know why! I promise to be much more faithful in posting recent blog updates and pics, but for now, here are a few pictures from some recent birthdays/events. Enjoy!




Caleb and Bekah (our twin nephew and niece) on their 3rd b-day...props to my older brother, Rick, on the awesome Barbie and Race Car Cakes he made!











Mark and Ben with Margaret at her JMU graduation in early May...so much fun!













So our friends Scott and Julie have a mini-dachshund named Ozzie, whom I think is hilarious! Well, last week their AC was broken for a few days and Ozzie joined Candy at our house while all of the "parents" were at work. Here are a couple pics for you to see the drastic difference in size between the 2 dogs...I'm seriously considering adopting a mini-dachshund for our next "dog child". ;-)




















We celebrated Isaac's 5th birthday at this sweet gym-type place called Romp and Roll...as you can see, much fun was had by all...especially Isaac!











Erin and I chilling while Isaac opened his gifts...love the little sis!

Mark's 26th Birthday!

This past weekend was a busy one, as we celebrated Mark's 26th birthday with his brother and parents. Mark had a blast golfing and playing baseball with his bro on Friday, followed by a huge meal at a Raleigh landmark, the Angus Barn. I was able to take a few pics at the restaurant...where much food and fun was had by all...enjoy!





As you can see...Mark was pretty excited to go to Angus Barn for his B-day dinner!










Too cute!










Ben's "Fred Flinstone" platter of beef ribs...aka my worst nightmare!











I <3 my hubby! ;-)

Christmas in February

After much anticipation, our nephews and neice finally received their Christmas presents from Uncle Mark and Aunt Kristin. Long story short, due to various medical issues involving various family members, our Christmas present delivery was continually delayed. However, on the weekend of February 24th, I (Kristin) was finally able to make the trip to Lynchburg to deliver the long-awaited gifts...and yes, I had purchased them prior to Christmas. ;-) The visit was full of laughter and memories...some of which were captured in the pics below. Enjoy!





Bekah in her "princess wear"








Caleb showing of his new trains








Isaac cheesing with his new transformer...I can't believe these things are popular again!








Jacob was loving his new transformer too! :-)

Smells like paint!

Well, as I stated in the previous blog, the painting of Casa de LoPresti has begun. First up was the kitchen, which had absolutely no color to its walls. After much time spent (by me of course) analyzing EVERY shade of red imaginable, "luxurious red" was the color of choice for this room. Here are some pics of our new kitchen wall color (sans the final touch-ups). Enjoy!

Here's the before...or should I say "in the process" pic:













And the after....

The Couches Have Landed...

Since we moved into our new home a few months ago, Mark and I have slowly been working on our "home improvement" list. Buying a new couch, as ours was over 13 years old, was ranked pretty high. So, Mark and I ventured out to various furniture stores last Sunday, and finally found the sofa of our dreams. For me, it was squishy and perfect for napping....for Mark, it was very long and deep, perfect for his long legs (to help you with the visual, my feet dangle over the side). Well, we decided to forgoe the usual purchase of a couch and loveseat and decided to buy two couches instead, as the price difference was only $20...and we really wanted as much seating as we could get for entertaining guests in our home. So, this past week, we waited in excitement for the arrival of our 2 new sofas. Today, the truck pulled-up and two guys proceeded to unload 2 massively packaged pieces of furniture. The sofas were unwrapped, the truck left, and Mark and I just stood there staring in awe at the HUGE green sofas. For the next 20 minutes we arranged and re-arranged the living room lay-out, trying to find the best possible layout for our living room. I must say, that it was then that I began to understand why most people buy one couch and one loveseat...2 couches, especially of this design, is quite a bit of furntiture! Mark is in love with the new sofas, but has agreed to look into a possible exchange of one of the sofas for the loveseat. Who would've known buying our first sofa would turn into all this craziness! Update to come soon...but in the meantime enjoy the pics of our oversized sofas...which make all of our previous furniture look miniature! ;-)

P.S.--> Please ignore the hideous paint color on the walls...we're hoping to begin painting this week...another task that was ranked high on our "list."