Joe & Candice

Just another day at the beach...with the Evans!

2010-06-14T20:19:00.001-07:00

Latin Festival

2010-06-11T19:59:00.000-07:00

So this weekend at the Oceanfront was the Latin Festival. I wasn't sure how it was going to be. For the most part, there arn't very many "Latins" in Virginia Beach. We decided to go with our good friends Mike & Dana. We went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant called "Cancun Fiesta." Do you have any idea how hard it is to find decent Mexican food? Super hard! It was pretty good. I had carnitas and Joe had Pollo Yucateco. After we walked down the boardwalk and saw a free Latin concert. They were really good. We had lots of fun. I was sooooo surprised to see how many hispanics there are here. I flet like I was home :)

Our Date Day!

2010-06-04T09:48:00.000-07:00

It is VERY rare that Joe and I have a day off together. His days off are Sundays and a one weekday, and mine very from week to week. This past Thursday, we both had the day off. A miracle!!! We both slept in together, and at around 9am we were trying to decide what to do on our "date" day. Joe suggested on going to Busch Gardens. I am a planner. I'm not good at doing things spontaneously. I really had to think about it. All these questions started popping in my mind, "Is it too late to go? Is it too hot? Do we have enough money to go?" Finally I said, "Let's go!" I hurried and got ready and we left by 10:15am.

We got to the park a little after 11:00. It was the perfect day to go. The park was practically empty. We didn't have to wait in any lines and we got on everything twice. Joe finally convinced me to get on the "Griffin." Holy moly was that scary!!!! The weather wasn't too bad and we were able to do everything in 2 1/2 hours. We left at 1:30. On the way home we stopped at Bass Pro Shops (Joe's favorite store ever!). Joe doesn't go very often because it is sometimes a pain to cross the tunnel.

Before we went home, we decided to visit the Evans family. Joe usually only gets to play with the kids at church (I on the other hand play with them almost everyday). We had fun talking to Kirstynn and playing with baby Smith (Nora was fixated on her Barbie princess movie). After, Joe and I had dinner at 501 City Grill, his favorite.

It was a wonderful day! It was really nice to spend the entire day together. We really need to do it more often! Love you babe!!!

My Birthday Weekend!!!

2010-06-04T09:19:00.000-07:00

As many people know, I love my birthday!!!! Every year I start counting down once Christmas is over. My poor husband has to listen to my "only _______ days till my birthday," every single day. He is very relieved that it is over and done with so he doesn't have to to hear me talk about it all the time.

There was only one thing I wanted for my birthday this year, and that was for Joe to take me to Busch Gardens. We hadn't been to a theme park with roller coasters since before we started dating, 4years ago (I'm not counting Disneyland). I was very anxious to go. We planned on going on Friday the 21st because the park was only open on the weekend. We invited our good friends, the Wheelers, to go with us.

My birthday was on Thursday the 20th. I didn't really have any plans that day. I didn't have work and Joe was working most of the day (from 12pm-9pm). So to keep myself busy, I decided I was just going to do some laundry and house work. I know, totally boring!!! At around 11am, my great friend Dana called and asked if I wanted to go to the beach with her. I said, "Heck yes! That's way better than laundry!" We went to the beach for a few hours. It was so nice and relaxing (the way your birthday is supposed to be). She then went to work for a couple of hours while I did some laundry. Since she knoew Joe was working late, she invited me over for dinner. We ate yummy chicken and rice (my favorite) and she even had some ice cream for me with a candle on it. Mike and Dana sang happy birthday to me. It was awesome. She really made my birthday special. Thanks Dana!!!!

On Friday we were all set to go to Busch Gardens! We had an awesome time together. It wasn't too hot and the lines weren't too long. Though, I think it was the first time I actualyl felt a little old. Those rides were kind of intimidating. 10 years ago, I could practically get on anything over and over again and not feel a thing. This was a little different. I did go on most of the rides (the Griffen looked way too scary for me) and by the end of the day, I had the biggest headache! It was a long day. Super fun, but really long! Can't wait until we can go again!!!On Sunday, Joe's family threw me a birthday luau. It was really fun! Erin picked out all the decorations and Kristan and Trina made me a yummy strawberry cake. Larry grilled terriaki chicken and corn on the cob. Yum yum!!! We were planning on swiming, but it started to rain :( Overall, I had the best birthday weekend! Thanks to everyone for making it so special!!! Can't wait for next year!

Ariel's Visit

2010-05-19T07:37:00.000-07:00

Me, Ariel, and Kirstynn

I have been sooooo blessed to have family come and visit me since I've moved here to Virginia Beach. Last year my mom was able to visit me on my birthday, last month Jackie came to Williamsburg, and this month Ariel came. It was wonderful to have my family see where I live and to reassure them that I am happy and well here in Virginia Beach. Hopefully the rest of my family will be able to come soon. I would love to show them around.

Ariel stuffing her face at Five Guys

Ariel flew in on Thursday, May 13th at 5pm. We went straight from the airport to my favorite hamburger joint EVER, Five Guys. She loved it!!! Right away she says, "This is WAY better than In-N-Out!" Sorry In-N-Out lovers, I have converted another person to Five Guys. After dinner we went home and slept. We were both exhausted, Ariel form traveling all day, and me from working 3, 11 hour work days in a row. On Friday morning we made yummy egg and ham burritos and relaxed a bit. Later went to the mall and did a little shopping and saw "Letters to Juliet." Cute, typical, chick flick movie. I enjoyed it :) For dinner Ariel made yummy terriaki chicken (Jimma's recipe), steamed rice, and corn on the cob. We ate it at Kirsynn's house. Thanks Kirstynn!

Our day at the beach!

Ariel loved Five Guys soooooo much that she wanted to go one last time before she went home the next day. So, for lunch we went to Five Guys again. Yum! After, Joe and I took her to the beach and we walked awhile on the boardwalk. We treated her to Kohr Brothers Frozen Custard. A must have in Virginia Beach. For dinner Kirstynn invited us over for homemade Lasagna. Double yum!!! The girls then ditched the boys and went to Cheesecake Factory for some Cheececake. So, we pretty much stuffed our faces all weekend long. My kind of vacation :)

Girls night at Cheesecake Factory

Ariel left bright and early Sunday morning. We had such a great weekend with her. I only wish she stayed a little longer. My goal is to get all my siblings to visit me. 2 down, 4 to go! Who will be next?

Better late then never...

2010-05-16T18:30:00.000-07:00

This post is a little late. I probably should have posted it last month. Oh well, better late than never!
My little sister Jackie had an awesome opportunity to visit Virginia last month. Her best friend Laurel works for a company that puts together festivals for high schools around the country. Laurel had emailed some friends to ask for volunteers to work festivals, all expense paid. Jackie saw that one festival was going to be in Williamsburg during her spring break. It was perfect!!! I was so excited when she told me. Because of her wired schedule for the festival, she wasn't able to come to Virginia Beach. So, I went to her, Joe and I actually went together on Thursday, April 8th and did some shopping with her and went to dinner. That night we took a ghost tour in Colonial Williamsburg. It was really neat, though not very scary. On Friday, Jackie had to work the festival all day. I drove up on Saturday morning (joe had to work) and spent the day with Jackie and Laurel. It was such a relaxing day. We hung out in their hotel room and talked, we put our feet in the hotel jacuzzi for awhile and talked, and we went to lunch together and talked. It was great catching up with both of them. The best part of the entire trip was when she told me she is PREGNANT!!! I know she is going to be a great mom. Thank you Jack for coming!!! I had an amazing time with you.

New Calling!!!

2010-04-11T18:20:00.000-07:00

So, I've been in primary since we've moved into our ward here in Virginia Beach. First, as the CTR 8 teacher, then as the 1st councilor in the presidency. I loved being in primary. We have great kids in our ward and I got to work with some amazing women. A few weeks ago the Young Women presidency was released. I didn't really think that I might be called into the new presidency. After all, I've only been in the primary presidency since August. Then, a couple weeks ago, Joe and I were walking into sacrament and Bishop was at the door and asked to speak to both of us. I didn't really know why he wanted to speak to both of us. He pulled us in some random room. I started to get nervous. He said that he actually really wanted to talk to me. I immediately knew he was going to call me into the Young Womens presidency. He asked me to be the 1st councilor. I immediately started to cry. Bishop and Joe just stared at me. I felt so embarrassed. Bishop asked if I was okay. I just said (in crying voice), "I just really love my calling!" I of course said yes to the calling. I explained to him that I wasn't crying because I was going to be in Young Womens, I was just sad that I wasn't going to be in Primary anymore.

As many people know, I'm not really good with change. I know being in Young Womens will be great. I'm really excited, yet soooooo nervous. It's been 9 years since I've been in Young Womens. Being in this calling will allow me to spend more time with Joe at church because he's in Young Mens. This will be good for me... right?

Baby Love...

2010-03-31T17:02:00.000-07:00

So, I have always been obsessed with babies. I guess it started when Noah was born. I was his nanny from the time he was 3 months old to age 5. I loved watching him. He was really like my own baby. I took him everywhere and he loved me almost as much as he loved his mom. We had a very special relationship. I learned a lot from him. I can't believe how big he is now. He's turned out to be such a smart, funny, little boy.

Noah with Alec

I always knew that Melody was going to be the first to have a baby. She always has to be first in everything!!! On August 10, 2009 she had baby Diego. He is sooooo darn cute!!!! I love hearing stories about him through my mom and sisters. I know he is the star of the show now. Though I love living in Virginia, I do miss all the special moments with my family. My sister Melody is a GREAT mom. I have seen her in action and she is truly awesome! Diego is so lucky to have a mom like her. I know that Diego doesn't really know me, but I hope that he knows that his Tia Cam loves him sooooooo much.

Diego

My next baby love is little Alec. Alec was born on Dec. 10, 2009. I've never seen a baby with so much hair!!!! I love it. It totally looks like zebra hair. I instantly fell in love with him the moment I saw him. Maybe because he reminds me of sweet Audrey. Mary tells me he is such a great baby. I'm sure he'll have Ariel's sense of style, Zoe's brain, Audrey's face and sweetness, and Noah's spunky personality. All of the best Zelaya traits :)

Baby Alec sucking his thumb

My brother just had his second child in January. Enzo is soooo cute. It was fun to visit with him and his family in February. Porcia made the best breakfast! It's great to have all these new boys in our family. Congratulations Hector!!!

Hector and baby Enzo

My new baby obsession has to go to Smith Evans who was born on Dec. 22, 2009. I was able to witness Smith's birth and it was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. Since then, we have been inseparable. I visit him at least 3-4 times a week. He's beginning to smile and recognize faces , and I love that he is always happy to see me. The Evans family has truly been a blessing in our life. We love hanging out with them and going over for dinner (Kirstynn is an awesome cook!!!). I'm sure that my family is a little jealous that I am always talking about Smith, but I can't help it, he's so darn cute. I only wish that I lived near all the babies so I can witness all their milestones in their little lives. I know that they are all taken good care of. I am in awe of what great moms I have to look up to. Nana, mom, Mary, Melody, and Kirstynn are truly wonderful and amazing mothers who I strive to be like everyday. Hopefully I can one day be great moms like them.

Smith and me

Friday Night Fun!

2010-03-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, Joe and I were able to go ice skating with the youth. I hadn't gone ice skating since high school, so I wasn't sure how well I'd do on the ice. It was tough at first, but then got the hang of it again. Before we met the youth, we went to eat at our FAVORITE burger joint ever, Five Guys!!! It was soooooo good! It was definitely a very fun Friday night!

My first bite... Joe's last bite!

Snow Day!!!

2010-03-08T08:09:00.000-08:00

In January we had the biggest snow day in 20 years!!! It was so fun to play in the snow with our good friends, the Wheelers!!! Here are some pics of that day...

No Doubt Concert!

2009-06-12T19:37:00.000-07:00

Last week, our friends from church, Dana and Mike Wheeler, asked us if we wanted to see No Doubt with them. We said, "Heck Yes!" It was my first concert ever! We had so much fun. Here are some pics from that night. There were thousands of people there, so we didn't have the best seats. We still had tons of fun :)

If you look closely, you can see Gwen Stefani in the middle of the stage.

Dana and me

Mike and Joe

Birthday Weekend with Mom!

2009-06-03T17:55:00.000-07:00

View of D.C. from Arlington Cemetery

The Kennedy's grave site

Mom and I in front of the Amphitheater in the Arlington Cemetery

The Pentagon

Joe and the T Rex

Mom and Joe with a stegosaurus

Me and Dumbo

Everyone knows that I love my birthday. This year was one of the best birthdays ever! The biggest reason why my birthday was so great was because my mom came to visit me. It was the first time my mom came to visit me since I've moved to Virginia Beach. Joe and I were so excited to show her where we live and take her to some of our favorite spots in town.
She arrived on Wednesday, May 20 in the evening. We picked her up from the airport and went to dinner to celebrate my birthday. We went to a restaurant called "Rudee's." It was yummy! The next day we went to Washington D.C. We parked at Arlington Cemetery and took a bus tour around the ginormous cemetery. It was beautiful! We saw the Kennedy's grave site, George Washington's daughter's mansion, and one of the best views in D.C. After, we took the metro to the National mall where we went to the Smithsonian American History and Natural History museums. Joe loved the Natural History museum because the was a big dinosaur exibit. My mom and I loved the American History museum because they had a "American Memories" exhibit that had cool things like Dorothy's ruby slippers, and my favorite, an original flying Dumbo from Disneyland. The next day I had to work in the morning and Joe had to work all day, so mom was able to sleep in. When I got out, we had lunch with Joe and went shopping! I went to my favorite store, and the place where I happen to work, Ann Taylor Loft. Thank you mom and the Zelaya's for the gift cards :) That night we all went to our ward's Cinco de Mayo potluck social and to the movies.
On Saturday mom and I did a little more shopping during the day and then at night we went over to Kristan's house for my birthday barbeque. It was great for her to see Trina again and to meet Kristan and Erin. She also got to meet the second love of my life, Willie (our pug). On Sunday we took mom to the Strawberry Festival (kind of like Bonitafest). It was fun, but man was it hot! Then, we sadly had to take mom back to the airport :(
I had the best weekend! Thanks mom for coming to visit me!!!! Love you...I had the best time!!! Hopefully I can get the rest of my family to visit me soon :)

P.S. Love you Dad!!!

Washington D.C. and Williamsburg Trip

2009-03-22T18:34:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday, Joe and I had the opportunity to go to Washington D.C. and visit the temple. Going to the temple frequently has been a little difficult for us. Joe usually has Sundays and Mondays off, and the temple is closed both of those days. He finally had a Thursday off and I happened to have it off too. We decided it would be the perfect day to go. We were a little apprehensive about going because the weather was going to be crummy. We decided that we should go anyway. Who knows when another opportunity like this would come again.

We had such a great time! The temple was wonderful. It was our first time doing endowments in the D.C. temple. If you live near a temple, don't take it for granted!!! We are so blessed to have temples all around the world. Here are some pictures we took. After the temple, we took the metro to the city. We walked around the Smithsonian American History museum, the Washington Monument, and the Capital building. Hopefully we will be able to make another trip soon!

In December we made a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. We never posted the pictures, so here there are. It was such a great day.... cold...but great. It is so neat to see how people lived in the 1700's. We live in such a historically rich state!

2009-03-10T08:42:00.001-07:00

I finally took pictures I our new apartment. It's not completely decorated, as you will see, enjoy!

Living Room

Dining Room

Kitchen

Bathroon

Our bedroom. As you can see, it is very boring. We haven't done anything to it. I love my walk in closet!

Our 2nd bedroom. We use it as a computer, sewing, ironing, and storage room. Do you like our nice chair we use :)

Cam's Creations

2009-01-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

I have finally made new purses for spring! Check out my blog at camscreations.blogspot.com. Let me know what you think :)

New Purses!!!!

2008-11-17T09:41:00.000-08:00

Here are some of the new purses I made. They are great gifts for the holidays. The pricing ranges from $30-$35. If you're interested please let me know. If you live in San Diego, I'll be coming home on Thanksgiving weekend. I can bring it then. If you live somewhere else I am happy to ship it to you. Shipping usually costs about $6. Thanks and enjoy!

Halloween Night

2008-11-01T14:28:00.000-07:00

Joe and I were invited to a murder mystery dinner party on Halloween night. It was lots of fun! We have finally made some friends!!!! Yay for us :) Everyone who went to the party were young married couples from our ward. They were so nice and we had a great time. It was nice to hang out with some people our age (don't worry Trina and Kristan, we still love you).

The theme was a pirate murder mystery. We all dressed up and acted like a character the whole night. We had to find out clues and make alliances with each other and try to find out who killed "Merciless Morgan." We were all suspects, but needed to find the true killer...

"One-Eyed Wanda" & "Commodore Clearing"

"Merciless Morgan" & "The Galley Wench"

"Thumbless Jack" & "Mad Rose"

"Seaman Sam" & "Brethless Betty"

Trunk or Treat!

2008-11-01T13:55:00.000-07:00

The Bug Family

On Thursday, October 30th, our ward had their annual "Trunk or Treat" night. I guess it wasn't really trunk or treat because it was held inside the church, not outside with people's cars. I guess last year was really cold so they changed it. Good thing because that night was freezing!!! They did a great job with it. There was a cupcake walk, a pumpkin toss, pumpkin bowling, and much more. Of course, we were the best dressed. Everyone loved our costumes! We had lots of fun. Here are some pictures of that night.

The Butterfly & The Preying Mantis

The Bumble Bee, The Lightning Bug, and The Ladybug

The Puggle Bee

8 Reasons we know we're not in San Diego anymore!

2008-10-29T17:05:00.000-07:00

Since we've moved, I have noticed that the east coast is very different from the west coast. Here are 8 reasons we know that we're not in San Diego anymore...

1. The Atlantic Ocean.

It is so wierd to see the sun set away from the ocean. Also, the Atlantic Ocean has NO waves (we think it is so funny when we see people with surf boards).

2. Lays Chips.

In San Diego, my favorite chips are Flaming Hot Lays. THEY DO NOT SELL FLAMING HOT LAYS HERE!!! Instead, they have flavors like Crab Spice Lays. Gross!!!

3. Spiders.

Everyone knows that I hate spiders. In San Diego we had spiders like Daddy Long Legs, but in Virginia, it seems like they have the biggest ones! This spider was found in our backyard. It was enormous.

4. PungoPizza.

I lovvvvveeeeeeee pizza. Pungo Pizza is a great little family restaurant that it about 10 min. from our house. "Pungo" usually refers toan area that it out in the middle of no where a.k.a. "the sticks."

5. D.C. Temple.

The San Diego Temple will always be my favorite. For now, the D.C. Temple has been our closest temple. It too is very beautiful. Joe and I were able to visit it in September

6. Missy Eliott's House.

Yup, this is one of Missy Eliott's house. It is just down the main street from us (about 3 min. away). We pass by it almost everyday. It is ginormous! They just completed it a couple of months ago and I don't think she has moved in yet. I keep you posted if I see her.

7. Gas Prices.

Growing up in California, I have always been used to high gas prices. It seemed like we were always paying a ton more than everyone else. Gas is soooooooo much cheaper here. I didn't really noticed until I went to San Diego a couple of weeks ago and everyone was excited that gas was $2.99. I was like "dang, that's expensive!" I guess I've become accustomed to our lower gas prices over here. Haha...

8. Fall.

Fall is my favorite time of year. I really start to get excited for all the holidays. In San Diego, we only have one season (74 degrees, sunny, with some clouds). I am actually very excited for experiencing all four seasons. Just in the past week, the leaves have already started to change color. It is soooooooo beautiful! The cold is also starting to set in. Tonight is supposed to get down to 37 degrees. My days of wearing flip flops all day is coming to an end. I think I need to buy real shoes now :(

Home Sweet Home...

2008-10-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

Well its been 4 months since Joe and I moved to Virginia Beach. We are loving this beautiful city. Though we love and miss San Diego, we are finally getting used to calling Virginia Beach home. Here are some pictures of where we live and our wonderful family.

Me & Joe and our home

Katrina (Joe's mom) and Kristan (Joe's aunt)

Erin (Joe's cousin) and our dogs Willie and Kishi (doesn't she look like a fox!)

Our Honeymoon

2008-07-26T18:03:00.000-07:00

After the wedding, Joe and I went on a fabulous honeymoon to Cancun, Mexico. It was incredible. I have never seen beaches sooooo beautiful! We stayed in a great hotel called Fiesta Americana Condesa. It was a beachfront hotel with awesome views. We loved it! Only, we hardly stayed in Cancun at all. I'm so glad we rented a car because we were able to leave Cancun and visit other surrounding towns and beaches. The day after we got there we went to a town called Puerto Morelos (only a 30 min. drive). It was a typical Mexican little town. It wasn't a touristy place so the beach was practically empty. We loved it here. We ended up coming back to this town 3 more times. We also liked going to this small loncheria. Do you know how hard it is to find tacos in Cancun? We finally found some in this little restaurant. It was cheap and good! Our kind of place :) We even found some missionaries at a ice cream shop.

The only tour we took was one to the ancient Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza. It was a 3 hour bus drive. It was really neat. We had a great tour guide who taught us a lot of things about the Mayan people (a lot of it I don't even remember, ask Joe). On our way to the ruins, we stopped a saw a cenote. A cenote is an underground lake or river. It was incredible! We could have gone swimming in it but we were only there for 45 min. and we didn't want to go to Chichen Itza all wet. Chichen Itza was amazing!!! The Mayan people were highly advanced in mathematics and astronomy. You can definitely tell by the architecture.

Our favorite beach we visited was definitely Akumal. It was breathtaking. The water was clear and calm. It was also the best snorkeling we did the whole week. In a one hour, we saw 4 sea turtles, a bat ray, a shark (one that doesn't bite), and a ton of fish. We also ended up coming back to this beach a few more times. We absolutely loved it!

We were able to go to an island called Isla Mujeres, only a 30 min. ferry ride from Cancun. The funnest part of the day was when we rented a scooter and drove around the entire island. It was so much fun!!! It was neat to see the town outside of all the tourism (it looked a lot like Tijuana). We also spent the day at a great beach called Playa Norte.

The day before we left we drove to Tulum (another ancient ruins). These ruins were neat because they were right on cliffs over looking the water. We had fun exploring the ancient town.

We had an incredible time in Cancun and can't wait to visit again!

Our Wedding

2008-07-18T17:53:00.000-07:00

On June 21, 2008, Joe and I were sealed in the San Diego Temple. It was the perfect day! I have waited 25 years for my dream wedding, and it finally came. It was everything I had hoped it would be. My mom did awesome in putting it all together. She definitely should be a wedding planner. My whole family was great! They all pitched in and gave me the perfect wedding. I am so blessed to have such a great family.

The reception was sooooooooooo fun! My dad and sister even surprised me when he started playing the trumpet while Jackie sang "Solamente Una Vez." It was beautiful. He never plays for us, so it was very special.

One of my favorite parts of the reception was the family dance. Of course, my aunt Mary had mentioned to me a week before the wedding about maybe doing a fun family dance for the wedding. And of course, I said no. I finally gave in and Jackie whipped up a fun, easy dance that we all can do (my mom finally had her "Music Machine" moment). Noah and Nana had solos in the dance and at the end, we had a soul train. It was awesome!!! I can't believe everyone in my family agreed to be in it (especially Uncle Joe). I think everyone enjoyed it.

It was great to see all are close family members and friends there. We are so lucky to have great people in our lives that love and support us.

11 weeks and counting...

2008-04-08T15:36:00.000-07:00

In eleven weeks, Joe and I will finally be sealed for all time and eternity in the San Diego Temple. We are both very excited and anxious for June 21st to arrive! Shortly after, we will be moving to Virginia Beach, VA to pursue job opportunities. We love California, but we both feel it is the right time for change.