This will be the last blog post......

.....until we get back from vacation! 

Of course, since we're leaving on a trip there was tons of things to get done.  You have to think in advance and try to make sure everything is covered at the business while you're gone.  It's a lot of work to try and get out.....and then you have all the vacation stuff that needs to be considered as well.

And since we are going to foreign countries, it's even more difficult to do research and figure out how you're going to get from Point A to Point B.  And after doing some research on Paris, I'm not sure why anyone goes there to visit.  It's amazing the amount of scams and HUGE amount of pickpocketing that goes on there.  This is going to be a wild experience.  But, we are adventurers and love the challenge!

So, not much to say so I'll share what's been happening with us the last couple of weeks.  Hang on to your hats......there's a whole lot of excitement here:

 Paul and I each had the lucky opportunity to take Zoney to two different elementary schools to build up excitement for Pizza Nights.  I love it when I can get one of the employees to do this job.  I'm too old for this stuff :-)  But oops.....she had the sign turned around the wrong way!

 My computer on the right is my workhorse.  However, last week she didn't want to open any Microsoft documents.  The computer on the left is a brand new one I've had for about 6 months, but can never find the time to move everything over to it.  Due to problems with the workhorse, I had to set up the new one to do some of the stuff on it.  Actually, it's quite nice having two computers.  Makes be feel important......lol

 Sadly last week, our neighbors didn't have a good day.  Not good when the Sheriff's office, the Medical Examiner, and the Coroner have to come visit.

 Paul's PIC:  not sure why he took this picture, but I do think it's funny that I can see him taking the picture in the picture. 

 Checking out a new space to possibly move our store.  It's about a 1/2 block from where we are and is a much nicer, more modern, and cleaner looking strip center.  OMG......having to make these decisions all the time just kills me.  We'll keep you posted on this one.

 Remember that new floor that we just had installed in the back kitchen at Pizza Zone?

 Well two weeks later, it's still seeping glue and drying on the floors and making a huge mess.  We keep calling the guy out and he keeps cleaning it up and trying to get it to stop.  I guess we made our decision about whether to use him to do our house flooring.  NOT!

 Got the new vacation haircut and highlights!

 

 Doctor's visit and blood work.  Didn't get the best news, but it's fixable

 

 Paul's PIC:  a bag of moldy feta cheese.  He sent this to our sales rep so we could get credit.

Don't you hate when this happens?

 

 Not only did this list of things get longer during the week:

 

 

 It got done!!!! 

 If I don't keep a list of things that need to get done, I seriously forget stuff.

 

 In our constant search to find an amazingly awesome store bought salsa, we tried this one.

Nope.

 

 Taking pictures of the past resident's mail.  This is to remind them to get over to my house and pick it up.  But the good news is......he can start earning his own free airline miles now.

 I assigned Paul the task of getting us 2 new fleece throws for the long airline trips.  It's always nice to snuggle up with your own blanket when traveling, instead of those cheap things they loan you.  He sent me this so I could pick out the pattern.  I didn't care.....so he got the leopard.

Wrigley posing for her portrait.  We sent a picture to the Wrigley's "2nd family" to let them know she was ready for her visit and what time we would be there on Saturday.

This was the first picture we tried to take.  She ran away before the camera snapped the picture...lol

Wow......it's been an exhausting and busy week. 

And last, but certainly not least, no Gainor vacation would be complete without the checking out every book in the library about the places you are going to visit. 

Unfortunately, we've been so busy trying to get the business ready for us to leave that we haven't had time to do much planning and research.  My day today will be spent with a couple of PZ errands, laundry, weather research (so I know what to pack), organizing, and packing all the things for us to go.

We'll catch you on the other side of the vacation.  I'm sure we are going to have lots of awesome pictures that we'll need to share! 

Auf Wiedersehen and Au Revoir!

Hallo and Bon jour

Spent the last couple of days making some more trip decisions.  There is so much to do when traveling internationally......and we have to do it all in 3 weeks!

 We had to buy new luggage.  Our other suitcases are too large and we needed to get smaller ones to lug them around Europe (what an awesome thing to be able to say!!).  The cat is not going with us.

 Had to start getting all the electronic devices in order and charged up.  Taking 2 tablets and a Kindle

 After several days of looking at all kinds of options of places to stay......WE FINALLY got our accommodations booked.  Staying at this hotel in Frankfurt.  Very conveniently located right across the street from a train station.  Should make our traveling around this area a little easier for us.

We opted for a private residence rental in Paris.  We found this little gem in a great area with a balcony.  I'm sure we are going to enjoy sitting out here in the mornings and the evenings.  We also wanted a place that had a washer and a dryer, because we'll be here for 6 days and will need to do laundry. 

We went out shopping today and bought a couple of things for our suitcases and a power adapter so that we'll be able to keep all our electronics and phones charged.

Still have a few more things to do before we leave, but we did get our tickets for the French Open and our tickets to visit  the Versailles Palace.  Can't wait for this amazing trip!!

But for now, let's grub on this amazing dinner I made.......steak, lobster, and a fresh Pizza Zone salad!
Au Revoir and Auf Wiedersehen!

Photos are easier

I would love to have more time to write here.

In fact, I take lots of pictures with the intent to document our life, but then real life gets in the way and there is no time.  So instead, I just peruse the Dropbox folder (where all the pictures we take on our cell phone goes) and see what we've been up to the past week.  In fact, it's really funny to see some of the pictures that Paul takes.  Sometimes I can't figure out why he took the picture.

Well anyways, here is a pictorial highlight of our last week
(in no particular order, but with a description so you can figure it all out):

 My husband is so sweet.  While I was in Tucson on my last visit, he took a picture of my animals (my babies) laying on my side of the bed.  He just forgot to text it to me :-)

 This is a Paul picture:  we had to set a dough tray up on the oven to trap leaking water.  This was how much water there was after our epic rain storm a couple of weeks ago.  Seriously hope to have someone that can really get this fixed (we've tried 3 different people to do it).

 Had to send an employee a copy of his time sheet after getting his paycheck.  He thought there might have been a mistake.  Hallelujah......I did not make any mistakes!

 This is a Paul picture.  Looks like he needed to prove to somebody that the addition on this credit card slip was a little off!?!?

 I did that stupid Facebook thing of "what will your post be in 10 years" and this was the result.  I only shared it with the two people that it showed a response from.  This was a stupid waste of time.

 This was the next hard rain storm after the major floods.  The street did fill up and Paul had to hurry and get out before he was stuck there.  Only took about an hour for it all to finally drain.

 Advertised our dough mixer on Craigslist.  We bought a new mixer at the Pizza Expo (new mixer is on the right.  It's so much smaller.....yay!).  We got really lucky and sold this big old beast in 3 days!

 I am the type of person that needs to keep changing things.  Had the opportunity to rearrange the shelves in the living room.  Love my New Mexico treasures!

 Not sure if I've shared this before.....but these were some croutons that we sampled to decide if we wanted to change.  Verdict:  too expensive and not enough in the packet.  We'll stick with what we've got.

 Trying a new receipe for Broccoli Cheese Rice.  Delicious and a wonderful main dish!

 Paul's picture of the back kitchen at Pizza Zone before we put the new floor in.

 My lumberjack showing off his axe skills removing that crappy old bush that I've hated for 18 years!

 Our porch after renovation.  I love sitting on this porch and talking with my husband so much!

I really love this new porch swing.  Thank you Aaron.

 We had to move everything in the back of PZ into the front so that we could get the new floor installed.  We had to close for one day because it's pretty obvious that we couldn't make pizzas in this kitchen!

 This is a BIG improvement!

 Another view of the mess.

Paul suggested Falafel for dinner......and Falafel he shall have.

Here's all the trimmings to make Falafel pita sandwiches and a little crudités on the side

 

 This seriously is the BEST Falafel I've ever had.  I thought I took a picture of my completed pita, but apparently I didn't.  But it was so delicious.

 And last, but not least, is my car.  When I got in my accident 3 years ago, they replaced the hood.  Now the clear coat is peeling off......and because of that and a crappy detail that I got last year (something they sprayed on my paint destroyed it)....we are thinking about getting a brand new paint job on this baby.  Paul took this picture today to send to the paint shop we are looking at.  Love this car.

Hope I didn't bore you too much.....but this is the end for today!

The before's and the after's

Still have some stuff to finish up a little on the outside, but to us the transformation is amazing. 

Check out these pictures and see if it's amazing to you too.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

 

BEFORE:

 

AFTER:

 

BEFORE:

 

......and happily ever after!

We totally love everything we just had done.  It really changed our house. 

Can't wait to get started on the inside!

 

Even Wrigley loves the new changes. 

She got a brand new door that she can see out of!

 

 

Next blog......can't wait to tell you all the exciting vacation plans!

 

We are seriously going to have the best vacation of our life......love my husband :-)