Sunday, April 26, 2009

Senior Formal

Hola Familia,

Just thought I'd update you all on my last Senior Formal. I've uploaded some pics from the night of the dance; so,I hope you like them. They were the only ones I really had.

Well, the dance was a blast and my date was phenomenal. At the beginning of this week, I thought for sure it was going to be a terrible night, because Nicolette and I were doing a bad job communicating with each other about the plans before the night of the dance. However, in the end, she fell into my arms and all was well. All's well that ends well, right? haha ;) Ahem...anyways, I had a great time. It was probably the best dance "date" I have ever been on. But then again, it is very fresh in my mind...so, I don't know how much credibility that statement has. haha, Anyways, although we said there would be no corsages or beutineers, I still surprised her with a corsage on the front seat of my van. And as I was opening the door for her, I said, "Excuse my manners, but that's just the way we Tompkins men do it." Needless to say she was very pleased and so was I. Then, we went to Carrabbas and hit it off pretty well there. Then we went to the dance and hit it off again and after the dance, we went to the beach with Andrew, Veronica, Ryan, Tara (his gf), and Pete Van De Voorde. We hit it off again and boom!!! We had our arms around each other for the rest of the night. It was a lot of fun and as many of you know, I've kind of had a thing for Nicolette since Freshman year so I was pretty happy. Now, if you are wondering, how did this happen so fast? Well, here's your answer...we really started talking again this semester during "Oklahoma." We always hung out in the same groups, but I really paid her no attention since my freshmen year rejection was always fresh in my mind whenever I saw her. So, after hanging in the same groups for a while, there was one night when we hit it off really well and my interest was sparked again. It was at a restaurant, swing dance place called "Norms." We stayed out walking and talking for the whole night. However, I was very cautious since I was rejected during my Freshman year. For the following week, we continued to keep talking and I started sensing the signs...however, I was still very cautious. So, right before Easter break, we pulled another all-nighter just talking and walking, flirting a little bit...but we were both being very cautious. Yet, I knew I needed to press my advantage that night so I invted her to the dance and she obviously said yes. We continued to talk a lot over Easter break as mom and dad and the family can attest to...But then when the week of the dance came, she was giving me mixed signals like saying it wasn't a date or anything like that. She was giving me a hard time with the plans...and so I just kept staying positive and put her back into her spot with this great line: "Man!!! What kind of men have taken you out on dates?" haha...I was a bit upset, but I do like a challenge and women with back bone. You know, a lot like my own sisters and mother! I like women who aren't afraid to voice their opinion even if they're being a brat. haha :) Anyways, we worked everything out but there was still some tension before the dance, but when I showed her that I was the man with a plan...she stopped worrying and became the best date I think I've ever had. So, once again, I opened myself for rejection at the dance and beach, but this time she didn't reject me...finally, all that hard work. hahahaha....anyways, we've been talking a lot lately and we're going to see where it goes. I've been really happy lately just hanging out with her and stuff. We definitely have chemistry and that's something that I've kind of been waiting for. So, we'll see, we'll see. :) Anyways, these are pictures from the dance. I hope you enjoy them. God bless you guys and I love you all.

Oh and btw, thank you for your prayers for my thesis. My presentation went very well, but I kind of got stumped on the question. But that's okay, the presentation was awesome and I definitely could tell Dr. Sugrue loved it. Love you guys and thanks for everything!





Thursday, April 23, 2009

Almost there...

Why hello everyone....I know it has been quite a while since the Lantigua's have posted anything, and for that I am sincerely sorry. David and I have been very busy preparing for Sofia's soon arrival. We have been in the nesting phase for the past month trying to get everything ready; nevertheless, I check the blog every week enthusiastically awaiting a new update from all of you. And I am so excited to see the Tompkins family has finally figured out the blog! Yay! So, let's forget the excuses, and move on to the update....oh boy...how far back should I go? I will start with my baby shower.

My baby shower was on February 21 in South Bend. A good friend of mine, Ana Hahn (yes she is married to Scott Hahn's son, Michael), hosted it at her apartment. Because I do not have any family in town, it was mostly friends from my old job and Notre Dame, but I was so happy that Jack and Christina were able to fly up for the event! Christina represented the family at my shower and I was so proud to have her there with me. Overall, it was a great shower! Everyone was very generous! I felt very thankful to have such a wonderful support group here in town, but also to be showered with so much love and support from my family and friends from out of town who also sent gifts or sweet notes. One of the highlights of the shower was a surprise guest, our neighbor from our old apartment, who is an amazing baker and brought the most wonderful, beautiful, tasty cakes! Check out the pictures below: the teddy bear is also a cake. He made them both from scratch! He is so talented! Thanks to David, I was very much surprised and so delighted!

My closest friends at Notre Dame who are also all pregnant! Left to right: Christina due June 27th, Christy due October 13th, Me due May 4th, Kathryn due end of September, and Ana who was due April 2nd but had Naomi Therese on March 23rd.

The surprise guest, our neighbor, Don, and his amazing cake!

Here are some pictures from Jack and Christina's visit. We received a ton of snow while they were so they were like little kids playing in it. :)

This is after Christina pelted me with a snowball. How cruel!

Of course I got her back! (no pun intended)




My angry modeling pose. Whatcha want fool?
David fascinated with my belly. Yes, we are crazy.

David listening to Sofia.


Inspired by Ryan and Mary, David and I have also taken up playing "Scrabble" on the weekends. We have such a good time playing with each other, especially when we try to make up words and then decide if we want to take a chance and lose our turn by challenging the word. As you can see from the pictures below, our first game consisted of some very big words (ahem, a certain crude word that starts with a 't' was David's word. Oh yes, I challenged it and it is not slang). Although I did win the first time we played, David has succeeded in beating me every time since. I have decided this is the least I can do...let David win so he feels better about himself. I mean c'mon, how ego deflating for him would it be for his wife who just has an undergraduate degree to beat him, the PhD candidate, every time. It's part of my strategy for a happy home and marriage. lol. Just kidding of course. He wins because he is that good.
Our first game. Winner: Marisa

Loser: David

Our 2nd game. Winner: David

Loser: Marisa

As I said before, David and I have been very busy nesting the past month. Here are some pictures of the finished results: Sofia's nursery.


See our hospital bag? We are packed and ready to go!

The changing table.

The nursing throne. :)

Easter was a very nice for David and I. We partaked in the Triduum at Notre Dame and then celebrated Easter Sunday at the Basilica as well. It was a very spiritual weekend for us. After Mass on Sunday, we enjoyed an Easter feast at the South Dining Hall with our friends. There was so much food and a wide assortment; it included everything from lamb to seafood bisque to all sorts of cakes and desserts. We stuffed our faces to say the least.
Easter morning outside the Basilica.



David outside the Basilica.

Me outside the Golden Dome.

Well I am getting to the last week or two of my pregnancy and getting more and more anxious and excited to meet Sofia! According to our midwife, she is a long baby! I guess this explains why she sticks out so much. :) Here are some pregnant lady pictures. It's incredible to go back to my first picture when I found out I was pregnant and compare it with my latest one. There has been alot of change to say the least!
31 weeks
34 weeks.

38 weeks.

David and I will be sure to keep you all posted when the big day arrives so keep your phones on and near you. We plan to call everyone, that is family, right away. Until then, please keep us in your prayers for a safe and smooth labor and delivery, and healthy baby! We love you all very much. We think of you often and cannot wait to join you all in Florida in the summer. We bought our plane tickets yesterday so its all set! We will be arriving June 27th (Christina's due date) and leaving July 13th. And the baptism is set for July 11th at St. Lawrence. We hope everyone can be there!

God bless,

David, Marisa, and Sofia

P.S. Good luck Joe on your last few weeks of school! You are in our thoughts and prayers! And good luck Angela and Teresa on your ballet recital this weekend!

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Ave Idol Champions!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The 2009 Champions of Ave Idol - The Dreams!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diBf2vXyWTo

Watch it in HQ (high quality) for better sound and picture.

This message has been paid and brought to you by the Dreams, "a Better Future for Tomorrow."

Monday, April 13, 2009

well....i'm waiting for some celebration, we're finally writing on the blog:) doesn't that surprise you?
well now for the update, we've been very busy with preparing our Easter celebration & getting ready for all the new-borns!! Everyone is so excited and all the family, are ready to either be an aunt, uncle or grandparent!
Our Eater all started with waking up with Dad playing the music from the ''Passion'' and ''Handel's Messiah''...We, of course, missed Ryan not playing it for us, but Dad did a good job! Then we went to a very nice Mass at 7:30 a.m and came home and just chilled. People started arriving around 3:00 and we gave a little talent show. Then we ate a very nice dinner of ham, lamb, potatoes,macaroni salad, green beans, and a nice fresh salad. Everyone that came all helped, which was a BIG blessing and relief to us:) Everything was followed by a dessert of.....(apple pie, chocolate cream pie(from grandpa) Mom made this new dessert called Strawberry glazed tart which they all seemed to like. Mom also made a nice flan and banana bread. Then, came the Easter egg hunt! There were so many eggs that each kid got 30 eggs!!! Everyone enjoyed the candy and had a great time! WE definitely fulffilled the psalm: ''This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad!''
Happy Easter! WE love you & may God bless you and keep you always! Angela, Mom & Dad, Joseph, Vanessa, Robby & Teresa=)
More Easter Pictures!





















Easter Pictures















Sunday, April 12, 2009

EASTER