Litter Box Chat

Our BIG DAY... when two became one!

2011-12-28T07:45:00.001-08:00

First of all, many thanks to this wonderful lady. Without Santa, this day would have NEVER happened. She is the one that introduced Jay and I and I owe her big time for introducing such a great, handsome, loving and wonderful man into my life.
My sister was my official photographer (and videographer... and maid-of-honor). She wore many hats this day and I am so fortunate to have her in my life!

I put together my own bouquet and the day before got 3 roses from my Dad's garden to include in it. There is a red, yellow and white rose. I remember when I lived with him he used to leave me a freshly made juice and a few roses at my bedroom door. Since he is no longer with us, I wanted to included him some how.

Our wedding was non-traditional. Jay and I drove together. Here we are taking care of all the legal stuff.When I got to the wedding location and was going over the details with the minister, I asked if my Mom could walk me down the aisle. His response "don't you have a dad?" Me: "No, he passed away." Minister: "don't you have a brother?" Me: "My mom WILL be walking me down the aisle!" She was squeezing me so tightly. We laughed about it and she said she was excited. I was so happy that I felt myself tearing up. She was also very happy with the dress I was wearing. You see, we had gone wedding dress shopping together and she hand picked this dress.

The minister asked if we were religious and we didn't know what to say. We think of ourselves as more spiritual and I thought "isn't this something you ask BEFORE the ceremony?" He then saw our looks and said "do you believe in God?" We answered yes and wondered where he was going with this. He then asked if someone in the audience wanted to bless our rings. Naturally, we called up my Mom who is an ordained minister.

I just love this picture! It captures our wedding ceremony... we were having such a good time!

So out of nowhere... the minister asked since we were a small group if people would like to congratulate us. We were like what??? No pressure! He asked if we had a Best Man and if he could say a few words. Jay and I had not planned on having any brides-maids, best men, flower girl, etc until our full blown wedding, but I guess things were about change. One of Jay's best friends was appointed as Best Man and he said some really nice words.

Next the minister asked who my Maid-of-Honor was and without a doubt it was my little sister and best friend Jessica. She to said some special words and the ceremony continued with words about love, marriage and our vows.

And we sealed it with a kiss!!

Tah Dah... the moment has arrived... Mr. & Mrs.

The girls in my family minus my sister in who lives in Colorado. I think the minister was hitting on my Mom though... he said she was a model!

Jay and Archie

My oldest sister, Sharon.

Jessica and I!

My Niece and her boyfriend!

My sister, Jessica and brother-in-law, Rudy

Archie and his wife Rosa

Sharon and the gang

Sister picture!

Mom and I

Santa and in her tummy is little Carlos :) She has less than 7 weeks to go and looks GREAT!

Our wedding reception

2011-12-28T07:27:00.001-08:00

We were surrounded my family and close friends at one of our favorite local Cuban Restaurants.

We started off with drinks and Jay and my favorites - chicken empanadas. Then ordered individual meals. I had the chicken fajitas with moros and platanos. Jay had the Arroz con Pollo. The food was amazing! Even though there was only one server, he did an excellent job make sure our drinks we always refilled and checked on us often.

My little sis got us a cake. Jay and I normally split a slice of Ralphs' lemon cake, so she ordered us that same cake for our reception. She even brought sparking cider, toasting glasses and cake cutting knife to complete our reception. I felt SO special!

I am so into my story that I clearly didn't know pictures were being taken.

What a special and intimate reception! I truly feel blessed and honored to not only have supportive family and friends, but to have found a wonderful man to share the rest of my life with.

Cheers to us!

Behind the scenes

2011-12-28T06:59:00.000-08:00

There a lot that goes into planning a wedding, even if it's a small scaled one. Jay and I had searched for a place to have our wedding. We had settled on going to Vegas since I work weekends and he works weekdays and Vegas is 24 hours. We found a place in Cali that was cheap and had a beautiful backdrop of Lake Tahoe. For some odd reason I thought Lake Tahoe was a lot closer than it really was...400+ miles ONE way! Their website said CA/NV border and I just assumed it was the state line closes to us. Nope, I was wrong (rare form). On to plan B or was it C at this point? We looked up places in Vegas and they were reasonably priced. We debated when we would go and the drive. Jay still had to go to work the day after our wedding, so the drive was looking very appealing. THEN, I stumbled upon a place less than 10 miles from our house. SCORE! I called to make reservations literally one week before our wedding date. Talk about luck cuz they had an opening.

The weekend before our wonderful wedding I went dress shopping with my Mom. I totally forgot it was Christmas time and the malls were packed. We visited the major department stores and then my favorite store, Windsors. I had a certain dress in mind and couldn't find the right look. Plus, I had gained some weight, so finding a dress was not easy! My Mom kept pointing at a certain dress but it wasn't white or what I was looking for. However, being the loving daughter that I am, I was a good sport and tried it on for her.
This one I really, really like and it was on sale for $29.00. Although it's not the dress I wore for the wedding, I did get it. Heck, for that price I couldn't pass it up.

This dress cracked me up! Sure it was white, but SO not me. But my mom liked it and surprisingly a lot of people I showed also liked it. My eyes zoom in on my hips and I clearly see that it's not flattering. So I passed on it!

This dress however had great reviews from everyone! Including my Mom. This is the one that she had spotted and found the hook to get it off the top rack and insisted I try it on. I didn't get it that day, but after a second day of shopping, I went back for it. It was truly "the one."

Christmas day we spent it at my sister's house and she kept my Dad's roses on the side of the house. I asked her if I could take a few for my bouquet and she said of course I could.

The morning of the wedding I stopped by the grocery store and got a dozen roses, got some ribbon from a gift Jay gave me for my bday and my glue gun and got to work.

Tah dah... my bouquet! Only $9.99!! Florist over charge to make these things!!!

And as part of my wedding/Christmas gift my little sis got my toes and nails done. She highly recommend I get the crystal gel on my nails, so I did. I love the gel! It makes my nails feel so smooth and the color looks better then it normally does. I am told that it will stay on for a longer time too.

Our wedding day was also Jay's bday. I had stayed up making him an apple pie the night before. I figured since we were having wedding cake I might as well make a different celebration sessert for him. I blew up some ballons and left them on the table with his gifts and card. We had planned on waking up around 4:30ish to go on a run and then out for breakfast, but I was too sleepy for the run. Mind you, I am not a morning person and had got to bed after 1:00AM. I know, no excuses! Ha! I work up after 5:00AM tho and we went to IHOP for some yummy veggie omelets with turkey bacon. Sooooo good!!! Jay then had some errands to run and I was off to get ready.

Mud mask is a must! I was PMSing and had a nasty pimple on my face, so thought this might help. I am trying to smile in this picture BUT the mask was drying so made it difficult. My sister in Colorado couldn't make it down, so I sent her pictures of me through out the day. This was one of them

I didn't want to stink... so made sure to get clinical strength.

And I was getting nervous. Not a bad nervous, just super excited so needed to calm my ass down!!! I cracked into Jay's bday Jamaican rum! Two shots later and I was feeling good!! Ready to go off to the chapel.

The world does NOT revolve around you

2011-12-25T00:49:00.000-08:00

Sometimes people amaze me with there kindness and other times by their self centered actions.

Of course I am venting... I think because I am shocked.

Well let me start from the beginning with GREAT and EXCITING news, Jay and I are getting married. In late November, I got a text from Jay's BF asking about our wedding time frame. I told him that we were planning to get married before the New Year and most likely it would be on Jay's bday. We would have a full blown wedding later on, but wanted to be official. He said that he looked at flights around that time and the price was too expensive and hopefully I would postpone it until later. Was he serious??? I was floored that he would make a request like that and told him that I would text him once we got a date set in stone.

Well Jay is in the police academy and it's not like you can easily request a day off. We learned in early December that Jay's only day off this year would be December 26th. Ironically, it's Jay's bday and we had talked about getting married that day. As Cindy put it, it is "fate!"I sent the bf a text confirming that it would indeed take place on the 26th and he said he won't be able to make it out to Cali for the ceremony but had an idea. He saw on some TV show that hey used Skype to watch the ceremony. All I had to do was 1.) Call around and find someone with a laptop with a camera and 2.) if the wedding place had WiFi. I couldn't find a person with a laptop equipped with a camera locally, but did ask the wedding chapel if they had live feed. They didn't. So I text the bf and his next request is that someone download the app for Skype and hold up their phone. WOW... I was just shocked about how inconsiderate that was. Who would really want to hold up their phone for 30 minutes. That person won't be able to fully enjoy the moment and have to make sure the camera was always facing us. I also thought about how uncomfortable just the act of holding something up for that long. I texted him back stating that I felt uncomfortable asking someone to do that. So you think that would be it, right? Nope, he asked what time the ceremony started because he want to call RIGHT after and informed me that he would be calling my phone. Seriously??? Hello, right after the ceremony we will be taking photos and being greeted by those that attended. I seriously felt like this guy thinks the world revolves around him. Jay told me I should have told me that. I am sure he was kidding about that. I wished he would have said something more along the lines of, "I really wish I could be there and would love to congratulate you two when you have a free moment. Please call me when you can. Maybe on the drive to dinner."

And that is the end of my venting....

I am sure the day will go without a hitch and that this guy isn't thinking. I know he probably just trying to be part of the day.

Thank you!

2011-12-21T22:35:00.001-08:00

Got a text from Jay saying "thank you!"

My reply was "Thank u for what?? But whatever it is ur welcome!!"

He replied:
"For EVERYTHING bay! Ur goona be a great wife"
"Thx for taking out and picking up the trash"
"And vaccuming"
"And straigthening up"
"And helping me out!"
"And for... Being u!"

Fall Qtr

2011-10-01T14:32:00.000-07:00

Good bye summer days of sitting outside and reading a book, sleeping in, and having nothing really to do besides what I wanted to do. Summer was great. Sure, I had a calculus class for 6 weeks of it, but overall I got to spend time with friends & family, exercised, I joined a book club and just chilled. Jay and I also went to Jamaica and Vegas... which I will eventually post pictures and write about. I can't complain... it was great!

Now it's back to school time. I am taking water pollution (which doesn't have a lab, yay!), bio internship class (for the research work I am doing), organic chemistry, evolution and marine ecology (which has field trips). I am super excited for this qtr. 18 science unit in total. For the most part my teachers are enjoyable, knowledgeable and will keep me awake. Right now I am going into my 2nd week, so most concepts are review and seems easy, but I have been warned to not let that be a false sense of security. I

I feel very blessed to be able to go to school and be so close to getting my B.S. I want to make the best of this school year! I haven't been to many events or that involved so plan on doing so.

Other then that... 8 days away from checking off another item from my bucket list -- running 26.2 miles... YEAH BABY!

The "White" Party

2011-09-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

So neither Jay or I read the invitation all the way. But to our defense there were multiple invites and they were LONG. Well, we found out days before the wedding that there was going to be a white party, where we had to... you guessed it... wear all white. Do you know how are it is to find white clothes??

DISCO Jamaican Style

2011-09-01T14:56:00.000-07:00

Random pictures while in Jamaica

2011-09-01T14:36:00.000-07:00

Me outside our hotel room... I feel in love with this place!

Visiting the bride and groom to be in their suite
Here we are with the couple

Heading off to go kayaking

We are official on vacation mode!

Eating dinner then off to the disco!

Us on the way to get some food :)

Look at the ocean behind us... wish we could stay forever!

Wedding rehearsal

Found a place and reason to wear my dress

Last day... checking out in the lobby

Torch being handed... And yes it is the AM and we are already drinking

A wedding count down thing

Our meeting place... THE BAR... every day... all day

Dining at the Mexican Restaurant... I know what you are thinking, in Jamaica???

Coming back from the disco and I think I was pretty buzzed

Jamin Wedding

2011-09-01T14:08:00.000-07:00

The whole reason why we went to Jamaica was to see Jay's BF get married. The had the rehearsal wedding the day before on the beach. The sun way out, there was a crisp breeze and the waves lightly crashing gave hope for what the next day would hold.

However, Mother Nature had other plans. It pour rain minutes before the ceremony and the wedding ceremony was delayed almost an hour as it was moved inside. It got dark quick, clouds rolled in and you could hear thunder in the distance. Jay was doing his Best man duties, but stopped by for a photo opt. Can you believe another guest had the very same dress as me. I was embarrassed at first. I had another dress in my hotel room that I thought about changing into and then decided not to. But seriously this would only happen to me. But I talked to the girl and we had a little laugh about it.

The wedding was hard to view. The stair case was beautiful, but blocked our view.

The wedding/reception had a baseball theme and at each table we were given a player. This was ours.

Jay walking into the reception with the bridesmaid. The Maid of Honor was taller then him, so he switched out for one that complimented him. HILARIOUS!

Dancing with the groom

Toasting to the new couple

Before the night was each table lite a Chinese lantern and said a prayer for the newly weds.

Jamaica thru pictures

2011-09-01T12:45:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting around to posting pictures from our trip to Jamaica back in August. It was Jay's first really vacation. He had been to many countries with the Corps but normally took vacation time to visit family. At first he didn't understand why people would take off from work sometimes weeks at a time. Well, he was about to find out why and the benefits of "all inclusive."Here's us moments after arriving to the hotel. Our room wasn't ready yet, so we were headed to explore the hotel and find food.

On of the options for lunch and dinner :)

Our hotel was breath taking. On the property there were 3 different hotels. What I remember most is around sundown a sound would suddenly start that sounded like a fire alarm. I would hear it through the lobby. I was thankful to not have a room right outside the center lobby. The second night I heard it and then realized that they were frogs in the tree.

The minute we got to the hotel room we changed out into our swimming gear and went kayaking in this beautiful, clear ocean. Naturally, will some drinks in tow.

The pools over-looked the oceans and you could swim up to the bar. Unlimited drinks and tip was already included so we didn't have to carry money with us.

Left view from our room. Imagine living in a house like that?

And these stairs are VERY memorable to Jay and I because we kept getting off the wrong floor to go to the lobby and had to continuously climb the stairs because of our error.

Another view from our room.

Isn't it beautiful???

Our room...

It's raining and it still looks so lovely!

Eventho it's raining we still enjoyed the water

We highly recommend Iberostar! We are thinking of visiting their hotel chain in Spain.

Last day in Jamaica... What a memorable trip and a memorable sunrise

2 months away until race day

2011-08-15T10:06:00.000-07:00

So whose idea was it to sign up for this race? Oh yeah, mine! I only have 8 weeks left and am confident that I will cross the finish line, but am not so confident I will do so in the time I would like. I did 15 miles yesterday and must say the latter part was rough and my sprinting at the end was slow, but I felt like I was pushing so hard. At least at the end of this run I didn't have the same thought as I normally do, which is subtracting what I ran from 26.2 and questioning myself how I am going to do it. I do know one thing, I need more songs on my ipod ASAP!!!

Here was my workout for this passed week:
Mon: Ran 3 mi
Tue: Rest
Wed: Ran 6 miles, even though I was supposed to do 4
Thur: Was supposed to do 7 miles, but after mile 2 my shin was hurting really bad, so did the elliptical, stair climber for 20mins, and the row machine for 500 yards x 5.
Fri: Rest
Sat: Rest - It was Jay's graduation and I worked graves, so no way I was squeezing in a workout.
Sun: Ran 15 miles.

My Baylementi FOREVER!!!

2011-08-08T22:08:00.000-07:00

The last of four sisters is officially being taken off the market so to speak. This passed Thursday(8/4), Jay popped the question and I said YES!!

The day started with Jay and I going to watch Pirates of the Caribbean 4 at this renovated theater in Brea that only charges $3.00. My sis told me about it and what a deal!!! Jay wanted to make the day perfect, so when we got there ask if I wanted a snack. I said no, but when we sat down and he got up to go to the bathroom I all of a sudden wanted either something with chocolate or sour, so asked for it. He must of thought "THIS GIRL and her cravings!!!" but came back armed with Reese's Pieces and Sour Patch Kids. The movie was excellent, but I do miss the characters Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan from the previous movies.

Afterwards we headed off to Beverly Hills for lunch at The Stinky Rose. It was a romantic lunch where we laughed, ate well and talked it up. We were greeted with yummy rolls that have a hint of garlic and onions, but we packed on the mix of garlic, olive oil and something green (I think it was parsley). Between both of us we ate 10 of them!!! For my meal I ordered a mojito to drink and the chicken & asparagus, fettuccine with roasted tomatoes and pine nuts. It was out of this world! Jay had the iron skillet roasted shrimp and a Guinness. Last time we visited this restaurant it was Jay's bday a few years ago. We left this time with the same thoughts as before, "when are we coming back???" Plans are in the works to go back THIS weekend for Jay's Masters Degree graduation celebration.

We hit up the local shops looking for luggage for our upcoming Jamaica trip and Jay got me some new running shoes and dress shoes. It felt good to walk around after eating such a big meal. My back had been hurting me a lot lately, which its probably due to working out and my core not being as strong as it such be. Luckily, Jay had the perfect cure... a massage! Someone had recommended this place that had an hour massage for ONLY $15! What a deal! Jay had to get cash, since the place didn't accept debit or CC, so we searched and searched for a business with English writing and about 2 miles away we bumped into a Rite Aid. When Jay first left the car he asked if I wanted anything and I said no. I honestly didn't, but THEN I saw people walking out with Thrifty's ice cream and I drooled patiently waiting for my love to return to the car. Clearly we were about to have a repeat of what happened in the theater earlier. He came back to the car and I somewhat thought (hoped) he would've came back with an ice cream cone for me, so when I expressed my desire for ice cream, my sweet honey bun went back and got me a single scoop of rocky road. Clearly I was living it up with food this day (maybe I am PMSing???). The massage was FANTASTIC! My back feels SO good after my massage.

We headed off to Ontario Mills for more shopping, but before we stopped there we went to King Taco to grab burritos for later and had dinner at Wing Nutz. Did I tell you this day was food filled??? Wing Nutz reminded me of Buffalo Wild Wings, but MUCH, MUCH better!!! Jay's BF is coming to town in a few days and I hope we stop by there :)

It started getting late and the mall was closing, so we headed home where Jay suggested that we go for a walk when we got home. I LOVE WALKS!!! Could this day get any better, I thought? I love taking walks with Jay through our neighborhood. We point out houses we like and talk about ideas for the house and other random stuff. We took this path we both had never been through and headed to, as Jayla refers to it, the "orange" park. We sat on a bench, looked at the stars and I rambled for about 30 mins as Jay tried to being the topic back to us. Typical girl, running my mouth about everything and anything. Haha! And then the moment came... Jay got on one knee and asked if I would marry him. *sniff!!!!* And OF COURSE I said YESSS!!!!! I wouldn't let this great, handsome, caring, loving, intelligent, thoughtful and great team member get away! So I am happy to announce... WE ARE ENGAGED!

Completed week 9

2011-08-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

... of my full marathon training. I am pretty excited that I am training and even though I don't always stick exactly to the plan, I am working out more then I have for any other event that I have signed up for. *patting self on back!*

Monday: Swam laps for about 45mins with my sisters and niece.
Tuesday: Ran 6 miles (52.42), even tho my training calender said 3 miles
Wed: 10 miles (1:46), but was supposed to do only 7mile
Thur: Rest
Fri: Rest
Sat: 4 miles (36.45) and weights
Sun: Rest

SLACKIN'

2011-07-23T15:39:00.001-07:00

I know, I know... I thought posting my weekly workouts would force me to keep up with my training, but this past week I have been slacking. I don't know what has gotten into me, but working out seemed more like a choir than an escape. Last week's workout was supposed to end with a 10 mile run that I was thrilled about at one point. I wanted to run the new trail but Sunday came and went. But Sunday wasn't all a waste... My hilarious, cute and active niece and I went to the beach. I need to work on a base tan before Jamaica and of course, spend some time with fam. She is a smart cookie who wants to be a vet or marine biologist when she grows up. We stopped by Pacific Marine Mammal Center were we got to see rescued seals.

At the front entrance there were actual whale bones. I love that my niece is so into these things. Then we were off to Laguna Beach. The water was so beautiful and clear. We splashed in the water and at times got knocked over. One wave hit me so hard it felt like I did a belly dive. My niece got a kick out of my grunt. So my 10 miles was moved into this weeks workout. And did I mention, I was SLACKIN'??? Here is my pathetic workout week...more like a "rest" week.

Mon: Rest
Tue: 5 mile run x 2.
Wed: Rest.
Thur: Still nothing
Fri: Yup... nada
Sat: 5K run with my sisters. Planning a second run after work.
Sun: Planning on doing a 12 mile run.

So.... that means I owe myself (not including the runs I have not done yet) 12 miles (2-3 mile runs and a 6 mile run) I will "pay" myself back these miles tonight and next week.

I will NOT walk!

2011-07-23T15:19:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up at 5AM. It's no secret that I am not a morning person, however, I was surprisingly alert and upbeat this morning. My youngest sister wanted to run a 5k without stopping or walking, so we trained some and signed up for a pretty flat street race. We ran it in 40 mins flat. Not bad for my sister's 2nd 5K and she accomplished her goal!

We took advantage of waiting in line by the porta-Johns for a photo opt. And waiting at the finish line was my love and lil Ms. Jayla.

Afterwards my mom treated us to breakfast. I had a veggie omelet with potatoes and a pancake. It was a little hole in the wall place, but really good. I love it that my family does active things together and as the years go by I feel like we are growing closer and closer.

Catching up with some H.S. buddies

2011-07-16T14:51:00.000-07:00

Wow... it's been 12 years since I've seen these gals. It's crazy how much time has passed and to see where people are in there lives. We started off at Chomps Sushi which has to be my favorite sushi place. There tons of great memories there and they have a Sexy Mutha roll that is out of this world!!!

This meet up started through a social networking site where Ruby and I got caught up on the last decade and arranged a meet up. We were supposed to hang out last week but I got called into work, so had to reschedule. I remember going to elementary school with Ruby and our corny teacher Mrs. Unland. We didn't go to the same Jr high, but did meet up again in H.S.

I met Lisa in Jr. High we had some classes together like choir (yes, at one point in my life I actually thought I could hold a tune) and we went off to the same H.S. too.

I am trying to jog my memory about Debbie. She remembered me and gave me a warm embrace, so I will have to search the yearbook and jog that memory of mine. We had great conversations about travels, dreams, goals, men, school, exs and people we have bumped into since H.S. It was a really nice dinner. A common comment during the night was "you look EXACTLY" the same!!" I hope they are talking about my freshman, Sophomore and maybe Jr year and not my senior year because I was a chuck by then.
We headed off to an awesome lounge with great ambiance. We talked some more, had drinks and people watched and Erika stopped by. Later on we went to a bar that I have been to before with Jay and Santa. But it was getting late, well I guess not THAT late for a Friday night... 11:30ish. But I did have a long drive to do to get back home, was planning on running the next morning with my sis and had to work the next day AND to top it off a lot of people were smoking in the patio and I don't do well with cig smoke... so I said my good byes. It was a cool night. And I was surprised that I was able to "hang" with only 3 hours of sleep...maybe I am not THAT "old."

I've been going on many dates

2011-07-15T09:22:00.000-07:00

...with "Bob." I had to come into work this morning bright and early for day shift coverage. Yup, a 12-hr shift from 6a-6p. Tonight I am hanging out with a ol' friend at my favorite sushi place, so probably will be home late. Why is this all important? Well, that means I would have to workout tonight when I got home OR this morning before work. Last night (or should I say this morning?) I didn't get to bed until til passed midnight, so when my alarm went off at 3:30AM you KNOW I turned it off and tried to get more ZZZ's, but couldn't. Jay came into the room before 4AM to help motivate me to get out of bed. Did I mention I am not a morning person? Poor guy got to see my ugly side (just a little). I turned off my next 2 alarms and just decided to go do my run, so at 4AM before the sun was peeking thru the clouds, I was on another date with Bob. We did a 3 mile run and then parted ways. Until our next date...

Yup, I'm bragging...

2011-07-15T08:49:00.001-07:00

...cuz I am proud of myself! I'm taking calculus over the summer at a local junior college because my school requires that I take the prior prerequisites within the last 3 quarters. They offered me entrance into college algebra (which I have already taken), but I didn't want to push back graduating any more then I already have to. Plus, who wants to take more math then they need to? Unless you love it or are majoring it, most people try to avoid it.

Calculus is challenging. It's a 6 week course that covers 7 chapters and a test every week. The very first week we covered 2 chapters and about 200 pages of material and on the first test I got a D. I was feel discouraged and contemplated dropping the course. I didn't want to spend waste my summer taking a class that I would have to take again. Then came test #2. Luckily it was just on one chapter, however, I studied and studied and just wasn't getting it. I texted Jay the day of the test after studying for about 4 hours and told him I was planning on dropping the class. I didn't tho. I took the test and just hoped for a passing score and I improved a little from the first test with a C grade.

And then... test #3 and #4.. TAH DAH!!!!
This coming week I have a final that will cover 2 chapters of new material and on stuff I was tested on before. Wish me luck! After next Thursday summer will officially begin for me.

Completing a month of training

2011-07-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

Time to celebrate that month! WOOHOO!!!! A part of me didn't want to post this week because I really enjoy logging onto my blog and seeing the picture of Beyonce. It was VERY motivating. I want those abs!!! Nonetheless, I found someone else whose body also motivates me. This week was pretty exciting for me because I found a new running trail that I LOVE!! I worked 2 day shifts and one of our officers is on light duty due to pregnancy, so we got to chatting about working out. She recommended a trail by her house and even though the trail is pretty far from my house, it is well worth the drive. It used to be a railroad, but it has been converted to a side-by-side paved and dirt trail which is ideal for my training because it will allow me to ween myself off dirt paths for the marathon that is solely on asphalt and concrete. The first trail map I saw was deceiving because it has these numbers on it from 1-5 that are supposed to be mile markers (that eventually add up to 6 miles one way); however, on mapmyrun.com my run was 4.52 miles at my turnaround point. Maybe it is right mileage on the trail map, I don't know... but what I DO know is that it took FOREVER! I am used to running on a treadmill where I visually see my pace, time, and distance, but out in the open I do not have that. For training purposes this is a good trail because the race is also like that. I do know that a few time robbers that I have to account for are the stop lights, water break at a near by park and the walking I did for about 15 minutes, but all in all it took me 2 whole hrs to get to my car. Yes, 2 hours!!! That means I ran for like 1:45 which also means my pace was approximately between 11.64-13.33. Since I don't have a Nike+, Garmin or some other running device, I don't know my "true" time. No, I don't have a iPhone with an app either. I plan on getting something to track my pace next time though. When is next time you ask? Next week... 10 miles!
My workout schedule this week:

Mon: I honestly can't recall if I worked out, so by default I a will have to put it as a rest day. It was 4th of July and I know I worked from 1800-2330, but can't recall if I workout before work. Oh well.... If I did, it would've been a 3 miles run.

Tue: Ran 3 miles (29:38) and did weight training. Lunges w/ weights, kettle bell swings, squats w weights, wobble board, arms, dead lifts and calf raises :)

Wed: Ran 4 miles (39:28) AND did an Insanity DVD workout with Crystal.

Thur: Didn't workout! I should've..but I worked a 6a-5p shift AND went to class from 6-9:15 and had to work the next day, so pussed out.

Fri: I was supposed to workout with Cristy but pregnancy 1st trimester illness got to her and so I went home a took a nap and didn't wake up until midnight. So much for working out.

Sat: Ran 9:02 miles :)

Sun:.... and so here I am due for a double workout because the sleepies got to me and because I can't remember if I worked out on Monday. I am about to go on a 3 mile run and then do 30 mins of cross training. On the list is 50 burpees and the rest I will play it by ear.

All you can EAT!!!

2011-07-02T19:53:00.000-07:00

Every qtr the "bio group" tries to get together and hang out. We all meet up to catch up. Some of us have classes together, but for the most part we don't and only see each other during these times. Well what was supposed to be a group get together turned out to be a part of 3.

Nonetheless, we had fun and ate a whole lot. Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and we checked off tons of rolls off the all you can eat menu. That picture is just half of what we ordered...WOW! The forgot some of the sashimi, but we didn't mention it.

Maddy's 3rd birthday

2011-07-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

I was going to post and realized I had all these old post saved under draft mode. Oops! So I guess, I should go back and officially them! Seeing how this party was back in what May????
Our goddaughter is growing up! It amazes me how much she has developed in the last year. She is speaking full sentences and loves to share. Her party was Tangled themed and Santa made cupcakes that had Rapunzel and Pascal. They must've taken forever! It was super cute!! And the cake with a coffee and nut middle was so yummy! Nowadays the groom is having a grooms cake, well I want my very one cake too and I want it to be white with that filling. I know I am greedy, but if you had it, you would be thinking the same thing.

Any who... back to the celebration! Do you see Jayla up in front? She is getting so tall.

Naturally, I am ALWAYS trying to get a shot of Jay and I. I was some what successful but this won't be a candidate for our xmas card.

One little one that is NOT camera shy, is my niece Lizzy. She was watching a friend's soccer team and was just down the street so stopped by to take part of the party.

And can you believe she broke the pinata...YAY! Go Lizzy!!

It was a fun time! Happy Birthday Maddy!!

When I look in the mirror...

2011-07-02T14:41:00.001-07:00

I want to look like her! I JUST saw the Destiny's Child video for the song "Cater 2 You." Holy crap when I saw Beyonce is in her black bathing suit I became insantly motivated!!!! No joke, I am buying at least ONE picture of her in a bathing suit to put in front of my treadmill.

And I am pretty sure Jay won't mind having a picture of her up in the garage :)

So with that said I have 2 days left in my official 3rd week of training. I have a cross-training day and a 5 mile day left. I work 'til 10pm, so tonight will be my x-training night. And since this is where I am keeping a log of my workouts for the next 14weeks, here was this week's schedule.

Mon: Rest day

Tue: Rest day

Wed: Double run 4 miles (40:02) in the afternoon and 3 miles (28:12) in the evening

Thur: Evening 3 mile run at the track with Santa

Fri: Rest day

Sat: I will be doing a Insanity DVD, squats, lunges, and burpees after work

Sun: 5 mile run at the park is planned

And Jamaica is what, 6 weeks away? I think so, time to get a little more serious!!!!!!

2-tiered Diaper Cake

2011-07-02T14:22:00.000-07:00

Jay's marine buddy is having a baby girl and today is the baby shower. I work so won't be able to go to the shower, but just HAD to make his marine buddy & the mommy-to-be a diaper cake. The first one I ever did was for Santa after seeing premade ones online that you could order. For hers I used stuff she had registered for, but I didn't know if the parents-to-be registered and was kinda in a rush, so just bought some essentials like lotion, bottles, bibs, baby powder, etc (and of course diapers)

I placed the cake on a cute pink design decorative plate. It's only the 3rd one I've done ever and really I hope they like it!

Inspired thru my fears of being injuried

2011-06-29T23:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was supposed to run 3 miles, but after sleeping in, going to class in the evening and then staying up late working on research work I failed to squeeze in running. I was going to run it another day and take 2 consecutive "rest" days, but Jay insisted that I double up today. I've been maintaining my workout schedule and thought why not. I did my 4 mile run before class in 40:12, then when I got out of class I did my 3 miles that were due.

Now, during my last mile of my earlier run Jay had come in to the garage where I was running on the treadmill. He cheered me on and of course motivated me to step it up a notch. He said that I was playing it safe with my time. I thought about it. Maybe I was. I have been training to just get the distance down and only run for time once a week. You see, I had been training for a marathon back in 2007. I did too much too soon and got stress fractures up and down my lower legs. It was so bad that my doctor gave me a bone growth stimulator that I had to put on every night for 30 mins and told me I had to take a year off from running to help my bones heal. That is some serious stuff. Plus, during a run a few months before that incident my ankles had swollen up and were all BRUISED. It hurt to walk. The podiatrist had said I needed custom sport orthodics, which I got and he recommended that I get proper running shoes (which the running store I had got my shoes at had recommended the wrong ones).

So the truth is, yes I am apprehensive about training a little hard at times because of my past injuries. It seems like when I go passed a certain point my shins begin to hurt and sometimes for a week or two while I am just walking. And I really, really, really want to accomplish this running goal of mine.

So with that all said and done... last night I took my loves advice to heart and pushed myself. I tested myself to see if I was playing it safe and if my legs were stronger now. As Jay said earlier I might have more gas in the tank. I dedicated my 2nd run of the day to him and push hard. My slowest pace was 10:40 and fastest was 8:34 and I ran for the most part at a 6.3 setting which I think is a 9:31 pace.

And tah dah... I beat my last time by about 2 mins. My right shin did hurt, but I'm not out of commission. I felt very proud. Now if only I could keep up this pace for the entire race. :) Only training and time will tell.

My weakness, my true love...Ice cream

2011-06-28T13:31:00.000-07:00

Yes.. a post to my favorite snack.

I have to confess, as I got off work Saturday night I was craving chocolate ice cream. Rite Aid was closed by then so I couldn't get a scoop of chocolate goodness, so would have to settle for something in the ice cream aisle at Starter Bros. Crystal had recently introduced me to mochi chocolate that are to DIE for and I hoped that I would find them there. No luck. Then I saw some Skinny Cow Mint Fudge cones. For the most part, many ice cream makers cannot get the mint flavor right, so I thought I would get these and probably not like them and just throw away the box. I know I am weird to want to throw it away, but if I don't then I have a horrible snacking habit that will allow me to devour them all. I got in the car and unwrapped one right away and floated off to my ice cream heaven. The blend of fudge and mint was excellent and then what proceeded to happen makes me think I am OUT OF CONTROL! I came home and had another one immediately after walking thru the door. Thank goodness they are 150 calories instead of the ususal 250-400 range of other ice cream favorites, but still I now consumed 300 calories and am still wanting more. I believe I was a obese person in a previous life because I even hide the wrappers in the trash as of almost ashamed that I was losing control of my impulses. And then... yes... I ate another one! And the taste was so good I didn't even want to brush my teeth so I could continue to taste it. Something my love does and now I see why. I suddenly felt like Max (from the movie Mary & Max) with his chocolate hot dogs. His eyes roll back and he enjoys his favorite snack. Sad things is... this is just me with ice cream. Nope I am not PMS. I just <3 ice cream!! It's my weak spot.

So with only one cone left in the box, what did I do in the morning? Yes, I ate it! And then proceed to throw away the box in the outside trash can. It cracked me up... I must have a addiction or something cuz isn't this what addidict do, they hide? Haha... well, luck for me there is worst things to be addicted to.

5 years ago...

2011-06-24T19:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the 5th year anniversary of my Dad's passing. It was a weird day. I started off here at work working a 0000-0600 shift. I had a CD of pictures of my Dad that were acting up! Maybe it was my Dad playing with the computer to let me know he was here with me. The pictures wouldn't load unless I started from the last one. It would still take forever to load and had tons of errors one second and then display the picture the next. At one point instead of appreciating the moment that it might be my Dad, I said aloud "C'mon Dad.. let them load!!!!" And then I thought "how rude am I???" and just patiently waited. Sorry Dad!

I thought of him throughout the day and had some moments where I teared up. I went to class from 6-9pm and was lost as the teacher explained applications of differentiation. I thought about going to the beach right after class and just being with him. Changed my mind and decided to go swim some laps at the pool instead. I don't know why I changed my mind. Maybe because it was late, a long drive or that I don't have to go to the beach to be with him. It's strange how everyone goes about there day and never really know what someone is going through. There's this world out there that doesn't know about what this day means to me.

I like this picture... it's my Dad a lil buzzed. Hehehe! There are somethings my Dad shared with me about this day during counseling. I really wish I would've talked to him more this day and let him know I loved him. I know he knows that now and glad he could open up to me during our sessions. My oldest sister recently told me that she was talking to her daughter and telling her the importance of honoring her parents. My sis has always been good at remembering to honor and remember our parents.

So I end with a happy picture of my Dad who I got to know as a parent and a friend... and remember him always. And I will continue to be a good daughter and honor my mom in memory of him.

Week 16

2011-06-24T18:29:00.000-07:00

Received sad news yesterday (well for me that is)... I'm losing my workout buddy for about a year. She went off and got knocked up. In all seriousness, I am happy for her and just being selfish.

Cristy and I have been working out once a week for over a year. She is one of the reasons that I actually workout on Fridays. We've done track workouts, lifted weights, ran and even did a race together. She is a great workout partner! She definitely motivates me and I am super happy that she says the same about me. There are many Fridays that I know I wouldn't have worked out had it not been for her. I will need to push myself to keep it up, so when the time comes that she is ready to workout, I'll be ready.

This passed week marks 16 weeks before the race. My shin is flaring up again. I Googled the anatomy of the leg and figured out which muscle/area is bothering me. I plan to stretch my calves more and add more muscle to my legs to help that area out. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to lose some weight so less pressure and weight is bearing down on my leg.

My workout this week was as follows:

Mon: REST
Tue: Ran 3 miles in 30:18. Last week I did it in 31mins, so I am improving :)
Wed: Ran 3 miles Thur: Swam 40+ laps. I lost count after awhile. (Yup... me after my laps @ about 11:15PM and the gym was still pretty packed)
Fri: 3 mile run and squats with 45lbs and lunges with 16 lbs.
Sat/Sun: Either Sat or Sun I am going to run 7miles and take the other day off. I work graves tonight and Sat 2-10p, so we will see when I squeeze it in. I really enjoyed last weeks run on the trails. Maybe I will do this run at the park near my house. It's a dirt track and while not like the trail, it will be outside and different from my treadmill view of a white wall.

The DrEsS..

2011-06-17T13:33:00.001-07:00

So with a wedding there comes finding the right outfit. I looked and LOOKED and came across some winners.
This one I kinda liked, BUT I felt like I was too young for it. However, it being my favorite color my heart was torn AND I had tried on SO many freakin dresses I was starting to get a little desperate.
THEN... there was THIS one!!! It was $79.00 which was out of my budget and needed tailoring done as the back was too big. The sales lady was pushing me to get this but I am sure that has to do with her wanting her commission to go up.

The dress above didn't get Jay's OK via text but I think he had to see it in person. I loved it!!!

This next dress was literally a draw. I saw it on the hanger and at first was lik e"NAH!!!" But then thought why not? I felt like I was hearing Stacy and Clinton (from the show "What not to Wear") urging me to try it on during one of their make over shopping sprees. I am super happy that I went out of my comfort zone and tried it one, because it was the one!

Jay gave me the thumbs up via text and my niece who was shopping with me liked it and I did too. And it was only $44.00!

So here I am riding shot gun on the way to Natalie's wedding. I'm only wearing mascara, eye liner and lip gloss and Jay thinks I am wearing "too much" make-up.

It's always so hard to get a picture with Jay since he is anti-picture taking, but here is at at a beautiful wedding.

It was a typical Armenian wedding with lots of traditional elements. The ceremony was at traditional Armenian mass wedding with every word in Armenian. Jay and I could only understand the couple's name. Haha! It was so nice to see tradition. I asked my mom if there were any Costa Rican or Nicaraguan traditions when getting married but she couldn't think of any. The reception was grand, with TONS of food. The couple danced a lot and were showered with love! It was a great evening!! I asked Jay does going to wedding make him want to get married... naturally he said no. I told him that I think it's a "girl" thing, cuz I watched Natalie and Art so happy dancing and everyone so happy and thought... I want this.... but for now am gonna settle for family gathering and seeing the twinkle in everyone's eyes and love as we hang out :)

15mile week

2011-06-17T12:56:00.000-07:00

Week 17:

I thought I might as well keep a log of my workouts and what better place then my blog. I started training 2 weeks ago. It was one week of ok working out and then a week off due to my shins flaring up and finals. But time is ticking... and I need to jump on a program and STICK with it! I am planning on doing this schedule.

This week has been awesome. I have had energy like I wouldn't believe and am fighting a cold, so wasn't expecting that. I think that is remarkable.

Sun - Ran 3 miles
Mon - 30 mins of cardio and 30 min of weight training
Tues - REST
Wed - Ran 3 miles
Thur - Ran 3 miles
Fri - Tonight I will be doing cross-training for at least an hr
Sat - 6miles on trails (hopefully with my sis' dog Diego)

Challenging cervix

2011-05-27T13:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marks a day of perseverance. Last December Jay and I decided to find a different method of birth control. I had been on the pill for 4 years and every time I went in to get my thyroid blood work checked out my T4 levels would be high. The doctors said it could be due to the pill and even though they were not concerned, I was. I struggled with the decision to stop taking the pill because let's face it, condoms are not the funnest alternative. I did some research on non-hormonal BC and found Paraguard. It's a copper mechanism that the insert inside you and is good for 10-12 years. My sister has used it and has had no unplanned pregnancies, so I called a local clinic a few months ago and go the ball rolling.

... and then hiccup after hiccup occurred.

1st"hiccup" - I was honest at the first appointment and told them that Jay and I had unprotected sex. We had gotten the morning after pill right away but the clinic didn't want to take any chances so I had to reschedule no earlier then 2 weeks and next time they wanted me to be on my period. WHAT?!?! Ew! I guess the cervix is more open during that time. Honestly, the last place I want some in that area is during that time of the month. But what ever...

2nd hiccup was with appointment #2. The unsuccessful procedure was painful. I don't know what it is about female P.A.'s but they are not as gentle as male P.A.'s!!! After signing all the waivers this lady tried to open my cervix up and no go :( So strike two it was. I would have to take some medication to dilate me and would have to wait for my period to come around again. Annoying! It's like all the stars have to align just right. With doc appointments being what they are, I would have to pray that I was lucky enough to have everything work out.

hiccup #3 - I had called the call center to make an appointment and tell them I had lost the prescription . They made the appointment anyways and told me to go in anyways. This time I had 2 different ladies try. It's bad enough that I was now visiting the clinic for a 3rd time, but having all these instruments in me, being poked etc isn't fun! I really thought it wasn't for me at this point. We would just have to settle for me going back on the pill or condoms. By the way, Jay also mentions I am a happier person and my ol' self no that I am off it. So I guess the pill isn't really an option... so it would have to be condoms. ICK!

And then came my 4th appointment where I was told my cervix was challenging. The 2 PA's that helped me during my 3rd visit where there. I was on my period (I know... TMI!) and this time had taken the medication that's supposed to dilate me, but STILL my stuff was tight and they couldn't get it to open. After many tries and being repositioned they called over to surgery and asked for different instruments - A steel dilator. WHAT in god's name is that? All I could think was a big metal instrument was going to be poking around doing god know what. A 3rd lady came in and told me she was a cervix expert and would be trying to get this device in me. Mind you by this time I had my legs up for like 30 minutes and I was in an akward poistion. My legs were a lil shaky from me tensing up too. I don't know how women go through delivery for hours with there legs up, your stuff out there in the open for everyone to see and all these medical professionals around. There were 3 and at time 4 people in the room. Seriously? They joke about it being a party... haha... NOT FUNNY! I heard the 3rd lady ask for a "block" and when the PA return with this "block" it was 2 HUGE syringes... they were going to give me a numbing shot in my cervix HOLY CRAP!! I kept saying it wasn't meant to be but this 3rd lady was determined. She used a smaller clamp to kept me open so she could, as she explained it, "pull my cervix forward." So after many tools, people watching/assisting, a freaking shot, they finally got the device in. It was well over an hour at this point. I am a wuss... and I am not afraid to say it. I felt light head after and felt like throwing up. It was so traumatic. This reconfirms my beliefs that I am not meant for child labor. Adopting seems like a better route if I ever want kids. The way I look at it, if I can barely go through a 1 hour challenging procedure like this, how could I make it though HOURS of child labor. Clearly... this is the whole reason I was in the clinic in the first place, to prevent a lil one for forming :)

On the plus side... all these visits were free :) YAY! Another plus is that I don't have to do this for another 10-12 years double YAY!!!

Decisions, decisions

2011-05-21T15:26:00.000-07:00

So becoming a vet it is no longer "the plan." Let me start off by starting I am at peace with the decision and let me tell you why.

Originally I had wanted to join the Army, so they could pay for my schooling plus I would have a job right after I graduate from vet school. Not only that but I would not have to worry about additional training (as they would provide that) and insurance, etc. I had even though of making military life a career. I thought about retiring and being set for life with medical benefits. If I didn't get the required GPA to enter vet school (as I had worried about in previous post) Plan "B" was to get a M.S. at the vet school I wanted to go to. It is a year long program and if you get B's or better in all your classes, then you automatically get accepted into their vet program. So in my perfect world, I would be accepted into the Army, I would get accepted into the M.S. program and get B's or better and go to vet school.

But there was so math I was doing in the back of my mind. Well, besides financial budgeting. When I graduate with my B.S. I will be 31. I would graduate with my M.S. when I am 32. Vet school is a 4-year program, so I would be a whooping 36 when all is said and done. Not the end of the world, but there were a few hiccups, issues, thoughts, concerns... you get my drift.

1. There is a significant other I have to consider. Would our relationship last with me being deployed or station away? This wasn't what he signed up for when we got together. It's a lot to ask of anyone and it's not like Jay would just follow me. I understand he has Jayla to think about and can just leave his job etc.

2. What if... I change my mind and want to have kids. How would that work out? I can't have a kid right after graduating... I will be going through boot camp and being shipped off. And even if I funded school, then I would be starting a business or joining a medical group. I would have to wait at least a year to be protect under family medical leave act for job protection. Good lord... I would be having a kid at nearly 40!

3. Funding was the next thing that made the list. I had always thought I would pay for school on the government's dime. But if I didn't join the Army, then I would have to take out loans. ICK! I already have school loans and don't like thinking about having to pay them back. I can't imagine medical school loans.

4. Money while in school... so I wouldn't be able to work for 5 years if I did both the M.S. and M.D. route, which means Jay would be the only source of income for our household. Another thing he did not sign up for. Plus, it's not like I am in my late teens or early 20's living at my parent's house. I am a grown women who has bills, mortgage, etc. I don't come from a rich family and can live of a trust fund. I am just regular me... no scholarships, lotto $, or family royalties to bank on.

So Jay and I came to a pretty good compromise. He is helping out A LOT while I am getting my B.S. Since I am about a year away from graduating, we thought I might as well finish. Right after I will sign up for an online A.S. program that requires two 9 week internships. What is the A.S. program in you ask? Registered Vet Tech... basically a animal nurse. I will still get to work with animals in the medical field, be able to do research, not go more into additional school debt and if Jay and I want to start a family then we can move forward with that.

I think it is a good plan. I really appreciate Jay being honest with his feelings, but not making me think that he wouldn't support my decision if I decided to go the vet school route. He was being realistic about the whole thing. We are being a flexible couple with each other's goals and dreams and I think this was us growing and learning to understand each other.

In the end I will still have a loving and wonderful guy at my side who isn't going crazy thinking about me being deployed or about piling debt and I will also get to work with animals. Win-win!

Sprouting

2011-05-20T19:38:00.000-07:00

Wow... it's been a year since I posted. I remember times where I would think about posting some random thoughts or cool events in my life and then weeks would go by and I never made time for it. Then, I got busy just living life. Sometimes recording life in writing takes so much energy(for me anyways), but I must say there is a bright side to posting -- it is great way to go back and relive special moments.

A year a go Jay and I were on rocky ground, school was overwhelming, I had started a new job and was going through some very long 10hr days of training with evenings filled with summer school. Since then somethings are the same and others have changed. I am still overwhelmed by school. CA is having some major budget cuts and since the younger generations in general does not vote, politician seem to think cutting back on education is a fix to $ problems. So with that being said classes are being offered less and less. I want to graduate already and not being able to get into classes really sucks!!! So I loaded up this quarter because some classes (which are prereqs for others that I need) will not be offered for another YEAR! I know... INSANELY stupid!!! This quarter I am taking 17 units, plus was taking a California mandatory 120hr class in the evening and some Saturdays for work that thankfully has ended. I am crossing my fingers that I pass my classes. I felt like this quarter I was always playing catch up.

Things between Jay and I are better than ever! The break up was an emotional, draining, frustrating and confusing thing to go through, but it really helped us out. There was all these little things that weren't being communicated that became one HUGE ugly monster and some not so little things that really needed to be addressed. We chipped away at issues and committed to working it out. I am so happy we did! We are a lot more open with each other and I am learning to not take things so seriously. Life is to short and I am going to make it shorter if I stress out so much! Jay has really helped me relax more and laugh at things instead of getting butt hurt and all EMO. I am not saying I am 100% cured of my ways... and a part of that anal retentive personality it who I am. But I have loosened up.

My research work is trickling in, but I think that will end soon. I am still working at the PD, but very part time.

So a quick update:
- Today Jay and I celebrate 2 years of officially becoming homeowners. YAY!
- In about 13-14 weeks, we will be heading off to JAMAICA! So excited!! It will be a mini vacay to celebrate the wedding of Jay's BF.
- I did the math and *if* I take 17 unites for Fall, Winter and Spring qtr... I will be graduating next Spring :)
-I signed up for a full marathon. Haven't told the world yet. Only Jay and my oldest sis know (and now anyone who reads this blog will know too)
- Career goal changed... no longer plan to go to vet school, but will still work with animals. Planning on becoming a RVT (animal nurse). That deserves a post. Since I am working a 12 hour grave shift tonight, I might post about that decision later.
- And finally... it's crazy but 5 years of my daddy passing is coming up. How time flies! Now I understand when people say "it feels like it was just yesterday..." I can relive that time period in my mind with such detail. Strange how the mind works. I am thinking of getting a tattoo of a hummingbird towards the end of this year in remembrance of him. I've been wanting to get it for sometime, but just haven't gotten around to it.

.... and that folks is what we call a wrap!

Happy Birthday too ME!!

2011-02-01T19:55:00.000-08:00

Saw this saved as a draft and can't believe I never came back and finished this post. HELLO... it's almost a year later, but naturally I will change the date to this post to reflect the actual time this event took place. For the big 3-0, Jay took me to on a road trip to central Cali. We stayed at a hotel I have been wanting to stay at for a very long time -- the Madonna Inn. Jay had planned out the entire weekend. He picked out which the room we stayed in and scheduled a couples massage when we got there. Each room is different and he picked one with a fireplace. It was outside and we had a private patio to enjoy it.

We just arrived and he's a little camera shy.

The places is so beautiful!

It was really a magical weekend. We enjoyed some local Thai food for dinner and some of the award winning desserts from the hotel's bakery. What a perfect romantic get-a-way!

student pains

2010-05-27T15:04:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my 3rd quarter is coming to an end. It feels like so much as gone on during this short period at school. I love my study groups and all the cool people I've met here. Although I love the campus and the friendships, I'm hoping to be out of here in 6 qtrs (2 years). I signed up for Fall qtr and am taking
- biometrics lecture and lab
- genetics
- chemistry
- scientific communication

I'll be here M, W, F.... which I'm not a fan of. I like to squeeze all my classes on Tue and Thurs, so I am here during club meetings and only have class 2 days a week. That third day of class just makes me feel like I'm seeing my teacher too much and get burned out quickly. I have a 4 hour break on Wed, so am thinking of adding a physics lab and lecture, but am just at the thinking of it stage. It would put me at 16 units and not sure if that is too heavy of a work load. I'm taking Trig over the summer, which is a prereq for it, so I have some time to think about it. Originally, I wanted to take chem over the summer, but the college is only offering one class and it is full. All these budget cuts are getting on my last nerve! It's definitely getting in my way of getting the classes I want and need.

Well, as this quarter comes to an end, I realize I'm not doing as good as I was hoping. While I have received many A's and B's, there are a few C's in there too. I can't get into vet school with many of those darn C's, so need to FOCUS! Or come to the realization that I won't be applying to vet school.

What it took

2010-05-10T20:33:00.001-07:00

Back in October I filled out an application for an on-call/part-time police dispatcher position at my school. What followed was a lot of tests, $, and time! I really didn't it would be such a lengthy process.

The first process to be considered for the position was a 4 hour POST test that was a bubble in questionnaire as you listen to a recording. Passed it and was off to the next phase which was a panel interview. I passed with flying colors and got compliments from the interviewer about how well I was prepared and polished I was. Word got around about me, because when I came in for my second interview the Chief's assistant gave me the "I shouldn't be saying this but" people were impressed and there was a buzz about me. It was a nice compliment and I was happy she shared it with me. I had an interview with the Chief and finger prints the next day. After all that the pain in my ass "fun" began. I had to fill out a damn near 30 page application with so much detail about y life, family, friends, places I've worked, current places my references word, things I've done, etc, etc. It had to be accompanied with my transcripts (from 3 junior colleges mind you), copy of my birth certificate, credit score, H.S. and A.A. diploma. There was a page that had to be notarized, too. After it was submitted there still needed more info! Ugh! I had to provide them with a copy of my SS card, driver's license, reason why I don't have DD14 and proof of automobile insurance. The private investigator took almost two months to "clear" me to the next level.

My physical entailed meeting the doc and him checking my medical history and oddly enough being able to touch my toes and do a squat. I had to laugh when he asked me to do it. The place also took a urine sample, preformed a hearing and eye sight test and took some blood work. You would think I was being hired for physical intensive job! A dispatcher sits for almost 12 hours straight... was this all really necessary?

Any who... next was the psychological exam. 4 hours of IQ test, more bubble questionnaires, and fill in the blank crap and I was told that I needed to come back for my one-on-one with the shrink. I thought it would be done all in one day, but seems like I would have to back the hour drive once again. When I went back for my mental clearance check I was in the room a total of 20 minutes and all done. Seems like I am good to go and started training this passed Monday. Seems like a chill job. The only thing I don't like is that I am a one-man show and when I need to use the restroom, I need to find a police officer, my boss of someone to cover for me. That can get annoying! But other then that, things seem like a good decision.

Disconnected

2010-04-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

My heart is literally racing as I sit here at work. I should be focusing on work, graphs and follow-up emails, but instead my mind is bombarded with thoughts of the last few weeks and this morning. I went for an individual counseling session today to work on me, what I want from my romantic relationship, to understand Jay and the areas that I can improve on. Jay and I have been rocky and a week long break-up and then make-up have us back at square one. The square gets claustrophobic at times with all the thoughts, comments, conversation and uncertain future. Our definitions on compatibility are way different. My counselor for my individual session was good. Very productive first session, she is honest, straight forward and could read me like a book. She said she couldn't get a sense of "who I was" and asked me to describe that person. I went blank. Normally I hear that question in interviews and have a answer, but outside of an interview I didn't know how to answer that. Is that weird? I mean was she asking hobbies? Likes or dislikes? How I view my personality? Time was running out and she gave it to me as a homework assignment to come back with an idea/answer next week. I am normally one who is very upbeat about self-help/improvement but right now I don't feel so upbeat. I feel beaten up and like I want to throw up...literally!!! I fear the worst and get discouraged. *sigh*

Jay and I also had our "intake" for couples counseling where they get to know us, our backgrounds, issues that brought us there, to discuss the program, etc. I hope that we both start seeing eye to eye, establish common goals, communicate more clearly and decide to work on "us" long term.

puke

2010-04-07T00:10:00.000-07:00

Trust is an interesting beast. It can blind you, open you up, make you vulnerable, or close you off to the world. Walls are back up, I have doubts, confidence is lost, worry is here and skepticism blanketing my every thought.

Mini B-day Celebration

2010-02-17T13:44:00.000-08:00

I got to my sister's house to carpool to the TAO: Martial Arts of Drumming and here is a lil preview of what the show was all about. I was surprised with a lovely and delicious ICE CREAM b-day cake. My nieces, her friend and my sister sang to me.

I hear this chipmunk voice and it was Lizzy singing on behalf of her 7 Zoo Zoo hamster.
It was too cute!!! The cake was yummy and off we were to the show. My Mom was giving a speech in LA that night, so was meeting up with us at the theater. The show started with some stick fighting, which totally blew me away. I kept thinking "wow... and I thought I knew some moves with sticks" or "oh...so that's the way it's supposed to look!" The show was on point! These people were is excellent shape and at one point they did drumming for like 5 minutes with their backs facing the crowd. All we saw were muscles flexing with each stroke. Made me want to go to the gym immediately. Haha... but I didn't. All in all, a great night!!

Rays of sunshine

2010-02-12T15:09:00.000-08:00

Right when I start complaining and thinking "why me?!?!", rays of sunshine start pouring down. I got an email that I passed the 4 hour long, written, P.O.S.T. exam to proceed to the next step in the hiring process. It's for a dispatcher position at the PD on campus that I applied for not too long ago. I scheduled a sit in with the current dispatcher for next Thursday and interviews will be the week on the 22nd. Since my research assistant position is temporary and the project is coming to a close, I was searching for a position that paid higher then minimum wage and flexible with my school schedule. I hope I pass the interview panel and background check (20+ pages mind you) and get offered the position.

Then, I got an email with work to do. Not homework, but work that pays you the green. :)Originally, my current job didn't have any work for me for two weeks, as my supervisor was busy interviewing potential student candidates for the coming year. But seems like my student leader who is supposed to oversee this research project didn't code all the surveys she was supposed to, so I was asked to do them and some other admin work that popped up. Perfect timing as I need $$ for my aunt's wedding/vow renewal present and for Santa's baby shower gift.

I started reading my school paper and good thing too. There is so much information on school events and offers that I was oblivious to. One of them was an offer to have your taxes done for free. The event is put on my the accounting department at my school. How cool is that? It's definitely a money saver and on my student income, I need to save every penny! The rays of light are plentiful this week.

I also got news from my uncle in Nicaragua saying he will pay us (my sisters and I) the remaining money from the sale of some land down there on Feb. 19th. Awesome news!!! We were going to put the money towards remodeling our kitchen, but Jay wants me to put it towards my debit. Not a bad idea.

And finally... my poor lil heart was broken when my sister want to cancel or reschedule my b-day celebration with the family. She text me not too long ago about a martial art drumming show in LA titled TAO that she wants to take me to. This is TOTALLY up my alley! She ordered the tickets for us to go tomorrow night. Awwww.... I felt so special!!! What a great way to start a weekend!

Tomorrow, Jay is picking up Jayla and we get her until Tuesday. Her b-day is tomorrow, but since she will get home late, we will be celebrating it on Sunday. The tentative plan is to head to Scooter's Jungle, a bounce house with my lil niece Lizzy. :) If we don't go there, we will definitely hit up some kid friendly place.

B-day Sushi

2010-02-10T12:39:00.000-08:00

I miss my old town and the convenience of knowing where everything is. Yesterday. Santa and I headed over to Chomp's Sushi (in my old neck of the woods) to enjoy their Sexy Mutha rolls and celebrate my b-day. It was nice to catch up over some great food. We started off with edemames and a cumber salad that had squid, seaweed and crab meat on it. Next came the long awaited rolls and at the last minute Santa ordered a banana tempura and ice cream dessert. The celebration had come days after my sister wanting to reschedule or shorten my b-day celebration so she could go to a workshop, which ended with us cancelling the whole celebrating all together, so it was very touching. Sometimes people do something kind, like inviting you to lunch, not knowing what perfect timing it is and how extra special the act of kindness was.

Ramblings of a student

2010-02-10T12:15:00.000-08:00

I've been a weird mood lately. It could be for a lot of reasons - I am fighting a cold, school has become extremely stressful this quarter, I'm working less and less hours at my research job, and finances have me worried.

I don't know why, but I can't handle bad news well or just seem like there is a little gray cloud hanging over me lately.

I broke down after my chem mid-term last week. It was my b-day and failing my mid-term just got to me. Granted, I could just take the class over and start fresh, but I felt like a failure. I hate chem. Even times were I have had a weekly tutor, studied and did all the work, I barely got by with a C. Reality of "how am i going to do this" and get only A's and B's is setting in.

Yesterday, I drove practically 40 miles round trip to see my counselor to removing a routine advising hold so I can register for classes. Traffic was a mess and so was parking. My regular 30-45 drive was about an hour and finding a parking spot damn near took 30 minutes. I had to go to this office called SEES to get one of the 3 forms I needed for the meeting. They were closed! Luckily, when I went into the SEES study room, there just happen to be on of the forms I need. Then I headed to the biology office to get my curriculum worksheet and planning form and headed off to my advisor office. A lot of walking and three buildings later there was a yellow posit-it saying he wasn't having office hours that day. Ugh! I went there today 30 minutes early to ensure I was the first student to be seen and he arrived 30 minutes late. WTF? During the advising session i learned i needed to take 3 additional organic chem classes. *crying!* Makes me want to rethink being a vet. I mean taking these classes doesn't even guarantee I will make it into vet school. Why put myself through such hell? I know, I know... I am not looking at the big picture.

Saturday, I drove in a big rain storm to take this math placement test at school in hopes of being able to take Trig on campus, instead of at the JC. Got my results and I scored at algebra level :( I either have to take the class over at CPP, wait to take the placement exam again in October OR take it at the JC. My school has a weird rule that if you haven't taken the prereq class within a year, you have to take the placement test and pass to be let in. I don't want to waste more money on classes I already took or spend more time studying for a placement test, so the JC it is.

FaceBook findings

2010-01-23T11:24:00.000-08:00

So I finally joined FaceBook and see tons of people from H.S. The first two years of H.S. was a lot of fun, raising animals, being on competitive teams and making friends that I had a blast with. My later two years of HS were darker. I started ditching school a lot, gained weight, was partying and drinking to escape, etc, etc. So I found this old buddy of mine on FB. I'll give you the short version of what happen. This girl and I were really close and one night I left her at party. Instead of coming to my house that night, she went home and drunk!!! We never talked about that night again (from what i can recall) and we stopped hanging out. I've always wanted to say sorry for being a bad friend and not having the balls to talk to her. I have a tendency to avoid conflict when i know I am in the wrong. Anywho... today i found her on FaceBook and sent her a message basically saying I know many years have passed, but I am sorry for being a sucky friend!

I feel good for finally being about to tell her that even tho it's was so long ago.

The writing test

2010-01-23T10:15:00.000-08:00

Woke up hella early today to make it on campus before 8:00AM. I wanted to get up, eat breakfast, get ready, wash dishes and re-read what this test was all about. It's the Graduate Writing Test that has to completed and passed before I walk across stage. Once you have 90 units completed, you get this wonderful hold on your registration. I paid the $18 and was her in the freezing cold by 8:40AM. There was a HUGE line outside one of the buildings, so I had no problem finding where to sign in. The yest was easy, write an essay on what a role model is and write about a good one or a bad one. There are 3 people that will read it. Two that grade it and I have to get at least 7/12 points and another that is the last say on your paper. I am pretty sure I passed and will be pissed if I don't!!!

During the beginning of the test they tell you that they have been doing this test since the 70's, which means my Dad took this test took. Pretty cool!

Well, I am taking advantage that I am at school, so am in the library and going to attach my lab that is due and my online chem homework.

Going in a cave

2010-01-07T14:44:00.000-08:00

Since I no longer have a desk job, it's harder and harder to get on blogger. I find myself writing blogs in my head, but they rarely make it onto the actual thing.

The holidays were great!! A mini recap since I don't have time to upload pictures yet. We hosted both Thanksgiving and Christmas at our new place. My little sister and bro-in-law were in town for Christmas and stayed at our place for a few nights. We went to the shooting range, ate A LOT, watched movies, went to Oak Glen Apple Rance and hung out. Jay turned the big 3-0 and we celebrated the night with one of his old marine buddies. Jayla was in town for a few short days and Jessy's b-day was celebrated early since she was in town. School started up shortly after.

This past Monday was the official day of my 2nd qtr. I am taking the next biology series with a lab, chemistry and English. I feel the pressure of school already and the budget cuts. There was only ONE class offered for the next bio series class forcing me to sign up for M, W, F classes. UGH! I prefer T/Thur since that's when clubs meet and more school stuff occurs. Plus, I prefer to jam all my classes in two days, not three. My schedule is ALL day Mon and Wed. From 9am to 8:50p. I know it's a long day, but I have a 5 hour break in the middle, which allows me to head over to my job and put in some hours, study, or hit the gym. Friday I have class from 9:00am-11:30 and then head over to work from there. Did you know because of holidays and stupid furlough days I am missing 2-3 weeks of lectures/class, but am STILL responsible for the material?!?! What?????? I have to log into three website as well to stay up on all my assignments. Luckily, I am extremely organized for the most part and that will help me stay on track on when things are due. Hence, I will be in a cave studying, looking for more work, finishing my research work for the next 10 weeks...

Pix of a pic

2009-12-13T14:31:00.000-08:00

Yup... my oldest niece, my sistas and Mom at Knott's for a photo opt. My mom wanted to take a funny or crazy picture for her b-day and here we are. My Mom is the madame and we are her saloon gals.

House painted

2009-12-13T14:16:00.000-08:00

It been like two months or more since we gave our house a face lift...

When we first got the keys to our house it looked like this.

The bottom and some parts of the backside even had a mint green color.

But now our house is fabulous!!!

It makes such a huge difference and even our neighbors have noticed the transofrmation.

Happy be-lated Halloween

2009-12-13T13:58:00.000-08:00

I'm going through my camera and noticing that school and work had me so busy that I never posted about our very first pumpkin carving event. How could I forget such a momentous occasion seeing how we have been trying to crave pumpkins for forever and a day now.

I had checked out our local farmer's lot for pumpkins thinking they would be cheap and had a heart attack when some were priced for $25-$30!!! People are insane! We headed to Ralphs instead and got some for $5.00 each.

I cheated and got some stencils and made a scary monster. He made his guest appearance outside, but Jay wanted it inside so the neighborhood kids would be tempted to steal it.
I carved "Nessa" in the back.

Jay's was all done by himself. Yup, no stencils and it came out awesome looking!!!

Can you tell which team he's rooting for?

The actual day of Halloween we avoided being home and leaving lights on because we hadn't gotten candy.

First qtr down

2009-12-13T12:59:00.000-08:00

My first quarter at Cal Poly Pomona is over! YAY!!! University life is much different then the junior college. You have to figure a lot of crap out yourself and there is definitely no hand holding processes. I never realized how much the JC helped out through process until making an appointment with my counselor at Cal Poly took me going to my major's home office, finding out who my counselor was, finding his office, finding his office hours, downloading my major's map, transcripts and some other form just to be prepared to meet him. Ugh! At the JC you walked into the counseling office and forms were there and they pulled you up on the screen. No need for all the running around and bull crap.

During the beginning of the quarter I got an email that I was accepted to some honor society. I went to two meetings and for club points gave blood for my first time. Fun thing is I stop going to the club meetings because the people were lame.
After giving blood though I got wrapped in my favorite color... PURPLE! And it's this bandage that isn't tape. What an awesome invention.

Now I have like 8 more quarters to go.

Lab final blooper

2009-12-13T12:51:00.000-08:00

It was the day of my lab final. I had only been sitting for less then ten minutes and somehow my whole left leg had fallen asleep without me knowing. There was no heavy or tingling feeling. The teacher opened the door and people started to file in. I must have lifted myself completely up with my awake leg 'cuz when I went to step my ankle caved in, my leg gave out, I heard a pop and was thankful for the wall in front of me that I grabbed onto with dear life.

This my friends is my first sprained ankle!!!

I was wheeled into class so we could start the lab final which required me to go to 20 stations. I hopped myself to each station. Imst have looked like a funny sight.

October 11, 2009

2009-11-20T15:45:00.000-08:00

Yup, that last picture speaks volumes about that day. It seemed like something really, really didn't want me to go that day. The night before I set my alarm for 4:00 AM to give me enough time to get up, shower, take my thyroid pill and give the allotted 30 - 60 minutes before eating and drive time. My phone has been acting up and decided not to sync with Verizon's towers and when my alarm went off saying it was 4:00 AM is was actually minutes before 6:00 AM. AHHHH!!!! I only knew this because when I woke up something told me to reboot my phone. Well... Verizon ISN'T the most reliable network after all. Somehow I brushed my teeth, put on my workout out fit, took my thyroid pill and made it to my sister's house in 20 minutes. Yes, I was doing 80mph.

The race waves started at 7:00 AM!!! I ate my apple and finished getting ready on the drive there. My sister said she woke up late too. She was worried when i wasn't there and not picking up the phone because I am normally the on-time type.

We hit the road and weren't the only late ones. As we waited to exit we saw people running in the distance... the race was already under way.

Fearing there would be no parking for this international race we parked at the first parking lot we could find and ran to the race line. By this time I had to use the restroom and we were so excited that it didn't dawn on us how far we were running.

So I found the porta-potties, stood in line and did my business only to find NO TOILET paper. AH! Well, good thing there were toilet seat covers. We were going to run the 1/4 mile to the start line and then start the race, but thought nah and started where the porta potties were. By this time we didn't know it but had ran about a mile to the race and was about 40+ minutes late.

Jay was kind enough to put new songs on my iPod the night before but a mile into the race it stopped playing... 13.1 miles with no music. Ugh! My sister and I chatted and laughed about the days events. I confessed to her that I had only ran up to 8 miles in my training. I could feel my toes hitting my shoes and regret not cutting my toe nails the night before. I had tied my shoes loose because I knew they would swell and didn't want to stop to retie them or cut off my circulation which ended up being a bad mistake.

I ran straight for about 9-10 miles and started to crash. Not eating breakfast had finally gotten to me. Plus I was pushing myself further then I had in training. Around mile 11 there was an aid station were we got a protein drink for fuel. I was happy to finish it, but bumped that it took about 3+ hours (well we think since we were late).

On both feet my toe nail next to my big toe are black and I was SO sore. But I was happy that through every obstacle we made it and finished the race. There nothing I rather do then set a goal and have great company along the way.

Me arrested for??

2009-11-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

I got a text forward from Cindy which said:

FWD: PLAY ALONG: you see me in a police car, what would u think I got arrested for? Answer me, then fwd and see how many crimes you get accused of!

I had stayed home sick that day with some virus and it made my day to reply and forward it. I was getting a kick out of people responses and these were them.

My oldest sis: "U got accused of beating up a girl who was talkn shit. U put ur hair in a ponytail...took ur earrings off...and said....awww hell no...and took her to town!" OK... if you saw me at my niece's sweet 16 party you could totally believe this!!

Jessy: "For stealing an injured horse or animal from their cruel owner. Or for slappin tia Patricia in the face ;)" Yup, I have a soft spot for animals and if you knew the terrible women my aunt is, and the upsetting things she did after my father's death, you would want to slap her too!

Paul: "Sex in a public place."

Teo: "Accused of indecent exposure."

David: "Line steppin!" which I reply "what is that? Line dancing?" and he said "Or pulling a Houdini" - I STILL don't know what that means. Do you?

Cindy: "Defending ur sister in a catfight." This is so me! I would totally back up any or all my sisters, but hopefully escape before the cops come.

Natalie: "Lol oh boy just don't get arrested."

Archie: "I think you would have got arrested for beating up someone for being cruel to animals...But you would never get convicted." Damn straight.. I watch Animal Planet all the time and would love to prosecute animal cruelty cases for a living.

So all in all my friends and fam think I am a animal lovin, kick ass, sex kitten... not bad!

Last call

2009-11-08T09:06:00.000-08:00

I have a part time training schedule next week with my replacement; however, my good-bye celebrations happened throughout this week. How awkward for my replacement to have to be there through out it all. I felt bad as people would tell her they have big shoes to fill or the bar has been placed really, really, really high as they raise their arm higher and higher with each word. Wednesday I had flowers delivered from my back up support admin and my team. I also got a sweet card and earrings from my boss's wife saying thank for taking good care of her husband. How sweet is that?

Friday I had a small group of gals (many I barely knew) give me a book with stories of extraordinary women. Only the gals that wrote it in were invited to the breakfast, so later I had people apologize they didn't write in it because they felt it was Merriann's way of saying good bye and they didn't want to spill their hearts out and have others read it and others felt like it was a homework assignment. I totally understood, but I wasn't the planner of my good bye events. Had I been I would have invited the admins and NOT my replacement. Yes, she was invited and wrote in the book. I don't get it, but I can't complain. The gesture was very nice.

The second celebration of the day was at Claim Jumper's for lunch with all the admins from my floor. My boss is a crack up and mentioned that even though he would be leaving early he wanted me to know he was "funding" all the events. What made it even funnier was we had purposely changed the afternoon celebration just so he could join, but hey he got tickets to the UCLA basketball game, so you KNOW he wasn't going to miss that just have good bye cake with me!!! Anywho, I've never been to Claim Jumper's and since it was on someone else's dime, I decided to try something new. I would be bummed if I were paying for it and didn't like it. I got the Citrus Salad and Chicken Tortilla Soup... YUM! The conversations were fun and a lot of reminiscing since three of us started at the same time. I'm going to miss these gals. Tam the most and hope my non-social self makes an effort to keep in touch.

Later that afternoon we had cake with the whole floor where I got well wishes, good bye cards and tons of gift cards. I made out like a bandit -- Target, Carl's Jr, Starbucks, and Visa, MasterCard and American Express gift cards. Shortly after that celebration some of the admins stopped by with more cards and gifts.

Here's all my loot! (minus a travel bag) :) Which reminds me... our couches came in.

Here's a better picture of the sofa. The love seat is our office, but looks the same.

I don't miss high school

2009-10-03T09:20:00.000-07:00

School is coming along. Its definitely a completely a different environment going during the day then at night. I get to see clubs, gatherings, rallies and the social aspect of college life. It's definitely cool. We had hot dog day, with free chips, drinks, ice cream and games I was stoaked when I saw they had veggie dogs. I was so happy that I even texted a few people and thought, what did people do before texting? I guess actually call people and share with them what ever. The most annoying thing about going to school during the day is all the kids straight out of high school. This one boy sitting next to me on the first day of lab was swiveling around and around in his chair and so amazed we had lab chairs that did this. Then he proceeded to open EVER drawer that was at our station even the one right in front of me. Had I not stopped him from opening it all the way, he would have pushed the drawer straight into my stomach. Then we introduction came up, I stood up (as 1/2 the class did) but he had to comment "woe... she stood up." Needless to say the next lab I made sure not to sit by him.

Another high schooler was shocked that every hall way she passes people are quiet and studying. In high school everyone talks because if your studying you're a "nerd!" She said she just wants to talk to everyone and then proceeded to go to people that were studying and start up a conversation. In college studying and seeming like a nerd is not a bad thing!

Earlier in the week I trained my (hopefully) future replacement. I thought it was nice of my bosses to offer her a trial run for the position before she committed. One day with me and another day on her own to see if she liked the job before giving notice to her current job in this economy. It seemed like she enjoyed herself and my bosses liked her, so they are extending the offer on Monday. She might give a three week notice, so I will be at my work for another 3-4 weeks. The money is definitely coming in handy and having access to a printer helps with homework that I need to print out.

Quarter verse semester is a lot faster. I have already had two papers due, a lab done and a quiz. I got 100% on the quiz and on the paper that was returned. Not too bad...but we are in the easier parts of the class, so I should be doing well! It would be a bad sign if I wasn't getting the material this early in the game.

Crazies thing I've experiences on campus was seeing a Caiman alligator. It was a tiny one, but it's on campus in a jungle green house.

Exciting news... tomorrow is our 2 year anniversary! :) We are playing it low key and our only solid plans are having a picnic. Maybe he will surprise me and will go take pictures. We talked about it last night, but he said he needed a haircut. Maybe the photo session will have to wait.

Also, next Sunday is the 1/2 marathon. My sister ran 11 miles on Friday and last week I ONLY RAN 3 miles. :( Uh-oh... I better do some last minute long runs to some what prepare.

Shutters are here!

2009-09-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

Came back from the gym not too long ago. It was a good workout and I wanted to finish with a at home ab workout. I came into the office to get my weights and what do you know? A camera jumped into my hands and I decided to take pictures of our new shutters! They are finally here. Yes, the shutters that I mention off and on for what seemed like forever.

After a long wait, prepping for them to arrive twice, and a lot of BS and the run around (more like us chasing them around) from the unprofessional B&B Blinds company they finally were installed 4 months later from the original 2 months (max) we were told they would take.

It makes the rooms look so much different compared to the temporary blinds we have been living with since we moved in.

Sorry to bore you with house improvements, but I gotta show ya.
Our living room shutters. Jay is going to put up the curtain rod and new curtains on the sliding door.

Our bedroom shutters.

Jayla's room and the new shutters.

The office's shutters and you can see one of our new ceiling lamps. Another improvement I forgot to blog about. I am going to make a photo album before and afters. This used to be the purple room before we official moved in.

This is our guest bedroom. Jay put the bed together this morning. Can you believe this room used to be that half white half blue painted room? It's come a long ways since our take over.

Ok... now I am off to finish my workout.

1294

2009-09-27T13:08:00.000-07:00

It was my bib number for yesterday's Boot Camp Challenge Race in San Diego. Like most race morning, I wake up and want to go straight back to bed, but don't. Yesterday was no exception. My goal for the race was not to walk any part of it. Granted it's not a 10K or 1/2 marathon, but 3 miles is a good distance and this one had obstacle course in between the run. I am so proud to say I made my goal!

I am not sure what my official time was since I didn't stay for the posting of the results and don't see them up on their website yet but know we started at 9:28 AM and I crossed (according to my watch) at 10:03 AM, so it took me 35 mins. Not bad at all. I'll let you know what the website says once it's posted. :)

A little hurdle

2009-09-25T16:44:00.001-07:00

Today was the interview for the job I really, really , really wanted. What I found out during the interview was it's a "work study" program. Meaning there is a Federal Grant with X amount of money and students have to apply for a work study program and be qualified. The employer pays a portion of my salary and the grant kicks in for the rest. *sigh* I called the Financial Aid office and couldn't get through, so I think this is the Friday that they are closed due to budget cuts. :( I will call on Monday and see if I can get through otherwise I will visit them in person.

Otherwise, the interview went well. A little short, but good. There were two people interviewing me, they told me about the school, themselves and the position. Then they asked me to tell them a little about myself. I kept the answer on a professional level, talked about my employment history, current change of careers, school schedule and future career goals and that was pretty much the interview. I had a questions about the work environment, expectations, etc and then was back on the road to my job.

I'll let you know if I am qualified for the word study program and if I get a job offer.

Campus life

2009-09-24T23:00:00.001-07:00

Today I woke up super early. Actually all morning I kept waking up every 30 mins or so and checking the time. I guess I wanted to make sure I didn't sleep in on my first day of school. Jay's alarm went off and he was too sick to realize where his phone was and that it was even his phone going off. I decided just to get up then. I made us both tea and turkey bacon and made myself some oatmeal, too. A girl needs a breakfast for champions on her first day of school. My first class was at 7:45am and I thought an hour would be enough time to drive the 17 miles to school, find parking and get to class on time. After all, on a work day I give myself 30-45 mins to drive 27 miles. Little did I know that traffic would be horrible!!!! Once I got off the freeway it took 30 mins JUST to drive 6 miles to campus. UGH!!!! Needless to say, I was late to my first class! But I was relieved to not be the only one. People we popping in 40mins late. CRAZY!!! It was my bio lecture class and the teacher seemed cool, laid back and informative. Best news she told us was the book we bought for $161 will be used for Bio 121, 122 AND 123. YAY!!! I was stoaked that i wouldn't need to buy a book for the next two quarters. Because of budget cuts there were no handouts and we were referred to an online site to download everything. I spaced out my classes with an hour between each, so I am not rushing right after one class to the next.

My next class was Dance in Contemporary History. A GE class that I need. The teacher was definitely different, but in a good way. She talked about getting politically involved, so our congressman know we are not please with the recent budget cuts and how it is effecting our lives, school career/plans, etc. Since my classes land on a Thursday, I will be missing 2-3 classes because of the mandatory furlough days, so I will either need to double up in a week or miss a section completely depending on the teacher. She had a good point. Education is not cheap and we should take advantage of what we paid for, so maybe I will write my congressman.

My next class was Multicultural psychology. The teacher looked the first lady. She was very by the book, but the class seems interesting and applies for two section for my graduation requirement... NICE!

My last class was my bio lab which doesn't meet until next Tuesday. Not bad for my first day.

I do notice that I will definitely need to watch what I eat as the quarter progresses and make sure I don't gain my weight back. They have some healthy options for lunch but I want to find something I can make and bring with me without having to refrigerate. Something low calorie, high protein that will fill be up for my 3 hour class that follows lunch time. Any ideas? Today I brought two snacks with me celery with peanut butter and sliced cucumbers. The lid on the cucumbers must've came off because mid-day my backpack was wet. Arrrgggg!!! While in the restroom drying my bag a girl shared with me that something similar happened to her except it was Italian dressing. I guess my situation could've been worst. For lunch I bought a subway sandwich on campus, but can't be spending money like that every school day. Oh... and I have to confess... I bought a Starbucks drink during one of my breaks :( I know, I know... I shouldn't be consuming so many darn calories. I got the Tall size though, so my drink was 325 calories.

Well, I back to getting readying for my interview tomorrow and taking care of my love who is still sick (and may have passed it on to me).

I picked it and he loved it :)

2009-09-23T22:45:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is a big day, my very first day of school at Cal Poly Pomona and while I should be resting up for my 7:45am class, I can't sleep! Jay on the other hand is passed out which is unheard of for him, but he has a "cold" but I think he has the flu. Early he took his temp and it was 103 :( But took it again and now it's down 1 degree. I am trying not to get sick, so am going to sleep in the guest room for the 2nd night. Is that mean of me not to sleep with him? He normally sleeps with me when I am sick, but he does have a stronger immune system then I do.

Our house furniture is slowly making it's way back into the living room and dining room area. Here are some photos of how the texturing and paint job came out.
The entry way is yellow (I should know the names, but the paint cans are in the garage and I am too lazy to go out and see what name it is) Our lighting is those energy saver light bulbs and it brings out a duller yellow at night, but that's ok. I think the brown accent is called Eureka.

This one you can see a little better of the yellow and brown.

The more and more I look at it, I start to like it. I was a little worried that Jay was not going to like it, but he did. YAY! Good thing, because getting it painting for the third time in 4 months would be over doing it.

The TV commercial looks funny in this pic.

That is a duvet cover covering our table. Please believe we are not decorating with that Victorian scheme. Not that I don't like it, but for our every day living space, it's a little too formal.

Walking down the hall from the rooms, you can see both colors and I think that is pretty cool. The painter was loving that you could "appreciate" the color scheme from every entry way.

Shutters are FINALLY getting installed on the 28th and in about a month our couch and love seat will be here. Our house is coming together. I think our next project should be getting closet doors. We looked into custom ones, but those are ridiculously priced!!!! But we are in desperate need of some in every room because the previous owners decided to duck tape them together and make a wall in the garage, so we trashed them. Little did we know it would be hard to find the right fit, style and type.

Cell Phone Pictures

2009-09-21T09:24:00.000-07:00

I've been having problems with my phone and when I took it in, they gave me a new phone same model. The transfer of data took some time because I had close to 200 photos. I decided to go thru and delete some. It cracked me up that I had a ton of Jayla, sleep, eating or doing an activity. On the days that Jay works and I am watching Jayla I like to update him on what we are up to and send picture of those moments.

Here are some that I wanted to share.
This table was left in my Dad's garage still in the box. My sister said I could have it for our patio and I put it together all by myself :)

These are my new running shoes and I think I picked them over the other style only because they have shades of purple through out and everyone knows I am a sucker for my favorite color purple.

When we were getting the door frames redone we needed more material and my car came in handy. I love that I can do so much with my car. I know it might sound funny but this is one of my dream cars and LOVE IT!

Jay had to spend $5 to use his ATM and super sized my Monster drink. It took three days to drink all 32oz! I am sure there are tons of people out there that gulp this puppy down in one sitting.

My niece, Lizzy, is IN LOVE with Elvis!!! The day after Lizzy's b-day I treated her to a Mexican lunch at Azteca's Restaurant in Garden Grove. It's dedicated to Elvis and has memorabilia all over the place, plus his movies playing on the TVs. My niece was grinning ear to ear until she saw a picture with Elvis and another female. She said she wished a storm would go over these women and be replaced by her. Haha... she has the jealous gene showing already!

They even sell Elvis glasses, which I couldn't resist purchasing for her.

Jayla had to go in time out and it cracked me up to see this view of her in her Mini Mouse ears and Christmas necklace.

Jay and I at Raquel's wedding.

The before picture where Jay was being Jay and making a funny face.

I was *trying* to be cute and text Jay this picture. If you are like Jay and can't see it, my stuff is spelling out "I miss u." Jay thought I was cleaning and showing him all the crap I was getting rid of.

At Cindy's B-day bash, this was one of the shot glasses. I though it was awesome and went with the theme of the party.

Picking up Jayla from daycare one day she said she drew something for me, took me by the hand and showed my the beautiful yellow flower. How touching!!!

He trusts me to pick it out

2009-09-19T16:34:00.000-07:00

Jay at work today and is leaving tomorrow very early in the morning to AZ to visit Jayla, so today's decisions were all left up to me.

We are getting the entry way and living room/dining room textured and repainted and *I* had t pick the color scheme. It was a lot of pressure for me because I'm not really go at being able to see the end product. I have not 1 great decorative gene in me and for heaven sakes I was raised mostly by my dad who had a single's pad.

The guys came in, did the prep work and painted some color samples. We were going to go with having an accent wall, too, so that meant I had to pick two color. Ugh...

I text Jay and he gave little to no input and wanted and trusted me to pick them out. Dunn Edwards is closed tomorrow so the color I pick is what we are stuck with since the painter was going to the store TONIGHT. Talk about pressure!!! Not only that, but I had to envision our future couch and make sure the walls complimented it. Here's what our future couch looks like.

Out house has very nice warm earth tones with accents of medium to dark wood furniture. Here were the color schemes I was choosing from.

I ended up going with the top left corner yellow sample for the main color of two walls of the living room/dining room area and entry way and accenting the other two walls with the warm brown on the top right corner sample.

The painters left and will return tomorrow. This is how our house looks now, but tomorrow it will be an all new color scheme.

I hope I picked the right colors. I'll make sure to take some after photos.

Foot in the door

2009-09-18T15:05:00.000-07:00

I was seriously praying at my desk today asking for a really good job to call me back after sending my resume out earlier this week and wouldn't you know right at the moment the ONE I really, really, really wanted to call back did!

I have an interview next Friday with my #1 choice for my future vet school. When I saw the position I was really excited. I would be a "Student Research Assistant" working in the College of Veterinary Medicine. The job seems very scientific and maybe something I would need extra training on, but I hope I get offered a position!

The description says I would participate in educational and research projects of their Disease Investigation Laboratory and their Wildlife and Environmental Health lab. Some of the responsibilities listed were

- isolation, identification and propagation of bacterial species of veterinary importance
- Participate and conduct restriction endonuclease analysis and other diagnostic methods
- Actively participate and assist in the field collection of samples, including blood and tissue collection and necropsies

Even though I am not familiar with a lot of what I will be doing, I am thrilled they even considered me. I am going to do research on the procedures and words I didn't know and of the facilities, so I go in prepared.

Wish me good luck!

Silencing the fat girl in me

2009-09-18T09:09:00.000-07:00

My oldest sister always talks about the fat girl in her that is trying to come out. The fat girl is the one that tells you to go back to sleep when you are waking up early to work out, or the voice in you tempting you to stuff your face, etc.

I have a fat girl inside of me and for most of this past year she has been successful coming out. Around mother's day I signed up for for a 1/2 marathon to motivate me to slim down. It didn't do it's magic. End of July I joined this weight loss competition at work and it was just what I needed to silence the screaming fat beast that was inside of me.

Yesterday was the final weigh in of the 2-month weight loss competition. The past two weeks I must admit I was less motivated, but still made it to the gym and watching what i was eating. I recall talking to my sister on Friday before going in and complaining that I was tired but because of this competition I was going to the gym on a Friday night. Although I was complaining, I was happy that it was motivating me not to go home and be lazy.

Here are the weigh in results:
KT: GAINED 5 lbs (+2.8%)
MR: Lost 0.5 lbs (-0.4%)
DE: Lost 3 lbs (-1.7%)
AZ: GAINED 3 lbs (+1.5%)
JC: GAINED 5 lbs (+2.9%)
TS: Stayed the same
and me... Lost 2 lbs (-1.8%)

Wow... I BARELY won this past weigh-in. According to the spreadsheet I lost 10.2% of my body weight, but I think their calculations are wrong. When I did the math it was 9.63%, but either way I did win by a long shot because the next person had lost 4.2% of their body weight. I was shocked that so many people gained weight and one guy left the competition (with out paying any Chunky Monkey $$). Nonetheless, I won $240.00. Now I just need to go collect.

To keep me going, I signed up for the Boot Camp Challenge which is next Saturday and have my half marathon October 11th.

In search of my replacement

2009-09-17T09:58:00.000-07:00

We had 3 interviews for my position on Monday. At first it was just my boss, HR and one of the VP's I support doing the interviews. But soon I was added to the mix along with the 3rd VP I support. All three candidates were different from each other and NOTHING like we expected!

The first interviewee was super nervous! To the point that she wouldn't answer my questions, go off on tangents and kept clicking her fingers nails together. From her resume I would have thought she was going to be the strongest candidate because she has worked on temp positions in our company before, but in person she lacked the confidence you need in this position and we all felt that she was competent enough to do the job, but people would walk all over her.

The next interviewee was GHETTO! She was rough around the edges would lean back in her chair and kept saying "gurrrrlllll!" An she was doodling on her notepad. There were awkward silences and she used too many acronyms from her Army days. On top of her not being a good fit from how the interview was going she had no admin experience. My main boss loved her mainly because she was the daugther of another VP here at work, but everyone else had her as their bottom pick.

The final person was my #1 choice. She seemed confident and competent. She answered all my questions with good answers that had examples and she really wanted to make sure she could picture herself with us.

The group of interviewers got together and decided on girl #3, unfortunately we scared her away! She said that the job seemed more stressful then she thought she could handle. My bosses painted a realistic picture and started each interview with saying they have lost many of their admins within the first year because of the work load, stress or personalities. Back to the drawling board.

During the candidate review meeting I received a lot of compliments from my bosses. I guess I always thought I was just okay in their eyes, but now I hear feedback of what they think of me and what they are looking for. They said out of all their admins I have handled them best, I am professional, but laid back and not stressed out easily by them and their demands. I thought that was super nice for them to point out.

Even though school starts next Thursday and my last day is supposed to be this coming up Wednesday, I am staying on part-time until they find someone. I will be in Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the next 2-4 weeks. I don't mind it because having a job and insurance for one more month is a good thing!

Random tid bits from the pasts week...or so

2009-09-17T08:54:00.000-07:00

So much can go on from post to post. Where to start?

Well, congratulations are in order to Natalie cuz the girl just got engaged (in American culture). She is Armenian and she is in the "promised" stage of a 3-step process of getting married. In her culture girls get three rings. The promise one where both families agree on the relationship and it's more of a promise to each other, the next is the engagement ring at a formal engagement party which is being scheduled for November and the rings are blessed by the priest and her vow/marriage ring on wedding day. She designed the three rings to compliment each other and it came out really nice. Funny we had met up for dinner earlier in the week and she said "he better do it soon because I have no patience and I know he picked up the ring!"

Jay has been working mad OT to improve our home. In the next month we are having our shutters installed, our cracked garage window fixed, entryway and living room walls texturized and repainted and we ordered beautiful new couches, and bought some art work and draped too. The couches should be ready in about 6 weeks. It's sweet to see how excited he is about projects in the house. You can smell the testosterone. At times I know I am not in to it as he is, but he does remind me of my Dad and the house projects that he would think of and do.

Today marks the count down of my first day of school. Yup, it's ONE WEEK away. Yesterday I downloaded my class schedule and mapped out the closest parking lot, building locations, etc. Next Thursday is gonna be fun, but long. Class starts at 7:45 AM and last class ends at 6:50 PM. I plan to hang out after class most days in the library and get some work done. Now that we have an office with a desk, I will able to be more successful at getting work done at home too.

I went in for my thyroid check yesterday. This is my first 6 month check verses the 3 month ones from last year. My medication is to stay the same, the right side that wasn't taken out has grown but I am told it's normal because it is trying to compensate for the left side that was removed. If I have to have surgery again (later on of course) I am going to be pissed! The doctor did note from my last visit I lost 8 lbs and from a year ago 20lbs. It's amazing how easily I pack on weight. I expressed to Jay that granted some weight gain was from my surgery and me having hypothyroid symptoms, but I did snack here and there and that definitely contributed to it as well. Jay cracked me up as he looked at me and said "let's call a spade a spade, there were more snacking here then there." Haha!! True... I must confess. After leaving the doctor's office it really hit me... soon I will not have medical insurance. I could do COBRA for 18 months, but will have to pay the full premium or I can be a cash only customer. YIKES! That is no fun! My thyroid doctor is giving me a 6 month prescription and I could probably get my primary doctor to do 3-6 months one too, so that would get me through almost a year with out having to pay full cost for a doctor visit and save for the costly appointment. I guess time will tell.

And finally the long awaited 2 month end date. The weight loss competition is over. YAY! I did like the fact that it motivated me to workout and make better health choices, but there were days that I just wanted to sleep, go home or do something else. The hardest thing was having to get up early and make my lunch and breakfast and all the cooking and dirty dishes that need washing afterwards. This last weigh in wasn't my most impressive. In my defense I still loss some weight and was fighting a cold which I fed to help my body heal faster. This weigh in I lost 2 lbs (1.2%) and the grand total for the 2 months is 18lbs lost (9.6%). I'm happy with that. I wanted to do 10% and came pretty darn close.

Stars on my heaven's report card

2009-09-09T09:52:00.000-07:00

Saturday I headed over to my sister's house to go through one more filing cabinet that belonged to my Dad. Originally I had planned to do a morning boot camp with her and her friends and then head straight over to do it, but slept in because I was fighting a bug.

I got there before noon after finally peeling myself out of bed. I got caught up on everyone's life, saw my youngest niece's new bunny which she names Cuppy Cake and got $70 from my oldest niece as our "compromise" deal for her grade last semester. Our deal was if she got ALL B's or better I would pay for her driver's ed and behind the wheel class. She got all A's and B's except for one class, so we compromised and divided the cost of the course by the total classes she was taking and she had to pay me 1/6 of the price for her C. It was a good deal I thought because she really tried this past semester and I didn't want her work to go unnoticed.

I eventually made it to the garage where I needed to go through the last cabinets of my Dad's stuff. I was in a rush to get the papers before I quit my job and no longer have shredding bins easily available. The cabinet was behind some stuff and was the type able to hold legal size folders. I feared that it would be full, just like the garage once was with boxes. Surprisingly most file folders were empty and I only had one box to fill. It was a relief to be able to finally be done with shredding and going through so much paperwork.

Before I left I chatted with my mom a bit. She laughed when I called my Dad a closet pack rat and even jotted it down because she had never heard that phrase before. She hugged me good bye and reassured me that my Dad was giving me tons of stars on my life's report card for all the boxes I properly shredded and didn't just throw away.

Know your audience

2009-09-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

Texting is a different language on it's own. It's filled with short hand, words and numbers mixed together to create words and all sorts of funny things.

When I texted everyone last week I was trying to use as little "text" talk as possible so all the people I was texting would get that I gave my intent to quit notice to my boss.

My niece who is 17 text back "what's a notice?"

My Mom text back (like 2 days later) "what's dropped signal?"

I guess I didn't know my audience 100%. haha.

A Scare

2009-09-08T15:28:00.001-07:00

Last night I had hit the hay earlier then usual because I wanted to wake up early and do a work out before work. I had drifted off to la-la land when all of a sudden I her my phone chime letting me know I got a text. It was 10:36 PM, so not super late but since I was already asleep I felt like it was late. It was my niece asking if I had heard from my mom. I instantly was awake and we exchanged texts on when was the last time she (anyone) saw her, if she normally comes home late, if she had any plans, etc. My mom normally comes home between 6-9 PM, had left that morning before my niece was awake but told my sister that she was off to work and no one heard from her the whole day. To make matters worst her cell phone was off and going straight to voicemail. I was really worried! I told my niece to hang tight until 11 PM and then we could call hospitals to see if she checked in. I laid in my bed and cried. I thought about the thought of losing my mom and being parentless. I thought about how I wanted to get my mom some new work shoes and should've. I thought about a lot of things.

Even though yesterday was a holiday, my mom worked. She loves her job and believes in going anywhere a client can meet her. She works with a lot of abused, raped/molested, neglected, homeless and/or unfortunate kids and gives them physiological help and shows them resources that the city/state has for them. Knowing that she could be with one of the kids and someone could have hurt her was a real thing to be worried about. My niece called two hospitals and I called 5 or so. All said the same thing, no one by my mother's name had checked in. By this time my niece was awake worried and my sister asleep. I told her if by mid-night my mom was not home that we would call the local police department and proceed with a missing person's report. Just shy of mid-night I called my mom's phone (probably for the millionth time that night) and it rang, rang and rang and finally I heard my mom's voice. My mom had been at the office almost the whole day and had planned to head home at around 7PM , but got lost in her work. She had her phone in front of her, but the battery must've died. It was a relief to hear her voice and ask she bashful laughed and promised to check in more often and let people know where she was going.

This is what parent must feel whenever their kids don't call or check-in.

3rd place but still happy!

2009-09-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week someone left brownies to all the competitors and KT sent out pictures he googled of kids eating chocolate. This is supposed to be me...Too funny!!

Yesterday was weigh in and it seems the main girl who does the spreadsheet is out on those days. Arrggg! So all the competitors were calling each other to see their weight loss number and do the math. It was a close race and think it's funny that *I* motivated a guy to eat lettuce and plain chicken for the last two weeks just so he can say he beat me. To think I lost 1lb less then him and was able to eat 6 sensible meals per day. If he only knew he didn't have to go to that extreme.

So this is how the team did.

KT: Lost 7 lbs (-3.8%)

MR: Lost 1.5 lbs (-1.0%)

DE: Gained 2 lbs (+1.1%)

AZ: Gained 3 lbs (+1.5%)

JC: Lost 7 lbs (-3.9%)

TS: Lost 3 lbs (-1.9%)

and Me: Lost 6 lbs (-3.4%)

Next weigh in is the final. A lot of the guys are already crunching numbers to see how much weight they need to lose to catch up to my percentage and trying to figure out how much weight I will lose. I am thinking of adding a few workouts in the morning before work, like swimming and doing push ups and sits up every night or every other. I'll let you know how it goes in two weeks.

KT just passed by and we were chatting about the competition and he said JC (the guy that was eating lettuce) also started smoking to help him curb his cravings. WTH? That's too bad that he is starting all these unhealthy habits for a competition that is trying to support the complete opposite.

Wish me good luck!

I gave my notice

2009-09-02T15:22:00.000-07:00

So I finally grew some and gave notice yesterday. It's a three week notice with the offer that I can come in part-time to train, so it's not that bad. I spoke with HR and asked for advise since my boss was out of the office on vacation. At first she told me to wait until Monday, but once I explained to her that it was a holiday and we had Board of Directors meetings next week she told me to email him telling him to call me. I did and waited. 15 minutes before it was time to leave he called. He said he needed to talk to me too, but wanted me to go first. I took Cindy's advice and took the approach of "I have exciting news..." and after I told him I heard "wow... (pause)... wow.... (phone breaking up)..... (silence).... " and then the phone disconnected. I waited for 5 minutes and then called him back and it went straight to voice mail, so I left him a voicemail and followed up with an email since he has a PDA.

After work I headed to Santa's house for a workout. She recently found out she is pregnant and wanted to get moving to have a healthy pregnancy. Man, the girl can power walk!! We went through the hills of Yorba Linda for about an hour and half. It was what I needed to get the nervous jitters out of me because had you seen me at work you would've thought I was a mess!! I had hot and cold flashes and my hands would get super cold. The walk helped me think about everything and it helped to have someone to talk to about it, too. Oh and the chicken dinner helped too :)

Today, I came in and saw an email saying my boss had called 2 minutes after I left and he would be calling me back in the morning. Talk about phone tag.

The bad thing about my position at work is I support 3 VP's, so I had to give my notice 3 times!
As they came in, I delivered the news to each and all were sad to see me leave but happy for me. One said it's better to see someone leave because of something like education verse they don't like you.

Later on I finally spoke to my main boss, told him I was working on updating my "how to" Admin binder, had HR working on a temp to permanent requisition for my replacement and already talked to the VP who has signature approval on his behalf to get him in the loop.

So it's official... I am leaving my job that I have come to like and starting a new adventure really soon.

Hospital on Friday

2009-09-02T09:27:00.000-07:00

Friday I planned to leave work 10-15 minutes early to make it home on time to meet a painter who was giving us a quote to paint the outside of our house. Good thing I left a little early because traffic was horrible. Half of my drive is on a toll road which is normally traffic free but last Friday it was backed up. Soon after I got an urgent text from Jay saying Jayla fell at day care and was being sent to the hospital. I know he was probably busy with getting coverage at work, letting people know he needed to leave and getting the details from the day care lady, but not knowing all the details was killing me. Luckily traffic lightened up as if knowing I had an emergency and I was in our side of town in no time. It got a little confusing on where I needed to go as Jayla was still at day care but in the ambulance and originally I was told that she was going to the local hospital, but I had recommended going to the local Kaiser since it was her medical group and didn't know where to go. I got a call from Jay saying he got through to the day care lady and Jayla was on the way to Kaiser. I love having a GPS as it guided me to my destination.

When I got there I was asked my relationship Jayla and knowing there are restriction on who can see patients, I naturally said her step-mom. It didn't feel weird but knew people would get a kick after the matter.

I was whisked about to see the lil tyke who had the ambulance person standing guard at the door. Can you believe she was there all alone? No one from day care had accompanied her on the ride there? I was pissed! (Later we found out the day care assistance leave at 5PM, so the main person couldn't leave because she had 4 other kids that needed to be picked up).

It seems all the nurses and doctor came to see me enter the room and watch Jayla's reaction. She burst into tears when she saw me and everyone reassured me that it was normal for patients to lose it when they see someone they know but they told me she was stellar all the way in and while waiting with no tears. My immediate thought was of course she would cry!! She's a kid who has cuts from her nose and forehead and blood everywhere. We talked about what type of ice cream she was going to have afterwards and that seemed to calm her down and excitement grew when she asked if she could have sprinkles too and I told her of course.

She explained to me that her and her friend were in those play cars pretending to shop. Jayla wanted to sit on top of the car and was unsuccessful. She fell face first on hot cement and broke beads from her hair, had to cuts that later needed stitches and was bruised and burned all over. Poor girl!!

Jay arrive within the hour and then the hospital staff proceeded with mending Jayla. They were going to try to numb and stitch her without knocking her out, but once she lost it with just the shots to numb the area, the doctor decided to give her Katamine (sp?) It was weird to see her on it because she would twitch and not blink. They did the stitching right in front of us, too. It was neat to see, but when I stood up I could see Jayla's face, eyes wide open but her totally out of it, the cloth covering her view from the procedure and the stitching being done and that view made me light headed and I had to sit down. It took her about two hours to come to and then we were on our way home. The next two days were filled with soft foods, spoiling, TLC and Jayla watching all the movies and Noggin she wanted.

(Jayla a day later)

She went back home early with her mom on Sunday and yesterday got most of her stitches out. They couldn't get one of them out, so she has to go back. Talk about traumatic!

My ammo and theirs

2009-08-27T10:37:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what came over me yesterday. Maybe I wanted to encourage the "alliance" team. Maybe it was guilt from all the weight sabotaging I have contributed to. Who know? But I signed up all competitors for a free 24 Hour Fitness 7 day pass. I printed them out and had the receptionist call each of them and notify them that a envelop was dropped off for them. I didn't know how they would take it. They might think "wow...thanks!!! This is just what I needed!" or "hey? what are you trying to imply?? That I need to go to the gym?" or "hmmm... someone doesn't think I'm competition because they are helping me lose weight!"

Little did I know they had also receive an email. One girl thought someone had stolen her credit card information until she got the envelop. Oops! Didn't expect that reaction.

Naturally, I was cautious when I came in today. I seriously thought I was going have food of some sort waiting for me. Instead, I had a sheet of paper that said "see guys, you should STOP the diet NOW just in case something like this happens." Then there was this story about a guy that was arrested and was able to hide a gun and two clips in his fat layers. Really? This is their ammo? I don't think I would ever be going to jail or need to hide a gun and two clips from the cops, so I am good. I will keep working out and watching what I eat. Speaking of working out, I went to the gym during lunch yesterday and burned 500 calories and then last night did a boot camp at the park. Today will be a run 30-40 mins during lunch. :)

September 24th is the big day

2009-08-27T09:21:00.000-07:00

September 24th marks a very important, exciting, scary day for me. It's the first day of school at Cal Poly Pomona.

I know it's important because it will be the start of a new chapter. It will bring me closer to my goal and better our future.

It's exciting because this is what I've talked about for what seems like FOREVER! I've been waiting for this moment ever since the day I talked with my counselor back in 2000 and learned that one of my future school was going to be Cal Poly Pomona. Right after I called my Dad to tell him that I would be going to his almamator. I took a break from school here and there, but received my AA last year and now it's time for that VERY big step.

One of the major things I am worried about is money of course! I will be leaving a cush job to at this moment nothing. I am going to start sending out my resume and once Jayla leaves on Tuesday, I will start actively looking for a part-time job on the weekends. Maybe at a vet clinic or as a waitress or even find a job on campus. I know I will be taking a pay cut of at least $15/hour. SCARY!!! But that's reality. I took out a loan to off-set the loss of income and pay for tuition fees for the next 3 quarters and my half of the mortgage for approximately 9 months, so I am kinda okay. I have some money saved, but nothing like a few years ago when I would freak out if I had anything less then $10K in my savings account. Also, once I quit and my income is reduced I might qualify for financial aid.

My pride might suffer a little bit too. I'm used to being able to pay for things. I don't think I have ever been the "broke" one and I've been on the other side where someone tells me they can't get me a gift for my b-dayChristmas or can't go out because they can't afford it. I have always been totally fine with it, but it's easier being on that side verses the broke side. I feel like I want to stock up on possible gifts for my family for their b-day or Christmas, but know that it not the smart thing to do with my money right now. I have stocked up on lotions, tampons, etc tho.

I keep doubting if this is the "right" and/or "smart" move/decision. Maybe I'm doubting myself because it would be the easy route to say "hey, forget school and stay comfortable." Plus, the unknown isn't "safe." I worry about paying my bills, being able to afford books, gas, food, car maintenance, etc. It's not like when I was straight out of high school and could count on living at my Dad's rent free or know that I could ask him for school money. I'm grown up and have bills and a mortgage. Plus, we are in a recession!!! Finding jobs are not easy to come by like they used to. Ya know?

I am SO worried that I actually had a dream that I needed mortgage money and became an escort and sold myself. WTH??? I was pissed when I woke up because I only sold myself for $500.00. I would like to think I would at least ask for an amount in the thousands. Haha.

In addition, I haven't gave my notice. During my time here at work my boss would let me leave 30 minutes early to make it to class some semesters and just asked that I give him enough notice when it was time for me to leave. Right now I am at less then a month and still haven't told him.

It does seem like whenever I am doubting myself people randomly ask me about school, how's it going, what I want to do and then cheer me on. At work I can't remember ever talking to some of these people about school, but all of a sudden they ask. Maybe it's a sign.

Then I recall a very important talk I had with my old boss who said you could always find a high paying job, but you can't always go back and get your education.

Also, my sisters have rallied up in support, too! My little sister asked me if I needed anything for school. I said $ for books or a gift card to the bookstore. The very next day I got a card of encouragement from my oldest sister and a gift card to Barnes and Noble. Koinkidink? I think not.

So that is where I am right now. Frighten to death almost so to the point that I can't move forward. I guess no one ever said life was going to be easy. I hope I look back at this moment some day and say it was one of the best moves I ever made.

Got burned

2009-08-26T10:21:00.000-07:00

LITERALLY!!!
My gas cap was resting on my tire as I filled up the gas tank. It was windy and the gas cap was blown under my car. I reached under to get it and the muffler burned the heck out of me. OUCH!!!

My alliance is turning on me...

2009-08-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

I was emailing my co-worker whom I am in alliance with and was saying how shocked I was that I passed out on the living room chair last night. I mentioned to her that i thought I was anemic and she wrote back

"Oh, sounds like you need some extra iron. You have been terribly overdoing it with all the exercise so wouldn't doubt that you'd be anemic. Maybe you should take it down a notch."

WTH??? First of all, me feeling tired and anemic could be that I have been spotting and having my period off and on for almost TWO weeks. Second of all, hello exercise helps with anemia. I know she said she was extremely competitive and last challenges chapped her hide as she worked out and didn't lose any weight. Also, this week I actually have listened to my body and rested up. I didn't work out Thurs-Saturday, Sunday I did have a killer workout with a trail run for an hr and boot camp with my sister, Monday I did some laps in the pool and yesterday I rested again, so I don't think I am "terribly over doing it" but I do think her competitive side is now showing.

Something cool and something not so...

2009-08-26T08:42:00.001-07:00

There are cool events that happen in my life and it seems like there is this long delay before I blog about them. Just like the 4th of July pictures and mini family reunion that I still need to post about.

And here is one of them. 3 weekends ago Jay's niece and her boyfriend drove up from San Diego to join us for the "Uncovered: A Pageant of Hip Hop Masters" show at the Sweeney Art Gallery in Riverside. The local paper had said it was a spin off of the Pageant of the Masters, but instead of famous art paintings this show would have hip hop legends' album cover. You walked in to the art gallery and were able to explore different rooms with people in the poses of different albums and then we would gather in one room/space, music from the album would come on and the dancing would begin. First was Run DMC "Tougher than Leather" which made we want to run out and get shell toed Adidas, followed by A Tribe Called Quest "The Low End Theory" and "Midnight Marauders (which was my favorite!) and then my second favorite Wu-Tang Clan "enter The Wu 36 Chambers." The most entertaining was the 2Pac "all Eyez On Me" and Notorious B.I.G. "Life After Death" duo and the duo between Jay-Z "American Gangster" and Nas "Hip Hop Is Dead." The night ended with LL Cool J "Bigger And Deffer," MC Ltye "Lye as a Rock" (which I have never heard before that night) and Salt N Pepe "A Salt With A Deadly Pepa." The dance moves of everyone was awesome and the costumes were right on point. It was an awesome show. We got a sheet with bio's of all the dancers and some of these people were still in high school. I think it's awesome that high schoolers we grooving in a college production. The night ended with us doing the longest detour to find gas, which was pretty funny because every gas station location on the GPS was no longer there. Finally we found a spot and made it home, where we talked a little outside, saw the biggest possums EVER, so big we thought it was a little dog and then called it a night.

And now to the not so cool event -- A wedding on a boat!!! Whomever thought of this ideas was just plan dumb! We had bumped into the bride last weekend while we were celebrating my mom's birthday and she was scoping out the area and she said that parking was included. When we got to the parking lot, they staff attendant mentioned that ONLY 10 parking spots were paid for and you have to have a slip.

Then, we were told that the boat was leaving at exactly at 5:30sharp by the bride herself, so we rushed there only to stand and wait for an hour before being allowed to board.

Once on the ship it was SO crowded, my butt barely fit on this plastic itty, bitty chair and there wasn't enough room for everyone to sit, so people had to stand...
And then we waited... and waited...

Finally the ceremony started and guess who decided to take this opportunity to show off? none other then the Captain who sang the theme song to the Love Boat. Can we say corny?

Then came time to exchange rings and see the look on the brides face? Well, she forgot the ring back at the dock!! We had to make our way back so she could get the ring and then re-start the ceremony.

THEN... we were told that the first hour was open bar, which it wasn't and they "fixed it" by starting the open bar AFTER the first hour. LAME! People have already bought a lot of drinks. Because of the delays, dancing was for 30 minutes and then the show was over.

Luckily, we were paired with Jay's co-worker who her and her boyfriend were hilarious!

Sorry for the poor quality pictures, but I only had my 1.3MP camera phone.

Just plain wrong

2009-08-25T13:16:00.000-07:00

I passed by a co-worker's desk and had to run back to my desk and grab my cell phone to take a picture. This guy isn't on the weight loss competition, so I couldn't tell if it was his real breakfast of a maple donut and slice of bacon or a prank.

Either way, it's DISGUSTING!!

The Empire

2009-08-21T12:57:00.001-07:00

We got the final weigh in email from one of the competitors that is no longer with the company. Here is this week's weigh lost for the team:

KT: GAINED 3 lbs
SI: GAINED 1lb
MR: Lost 1lb
DE: Lost 1.5lbs
AZ: Lost 3 lbs
JC: Stayed the same
TS: Stayed the same
and I lost 3.5lbs!!!

Since the winner is decided by percentage and not total lbs lost, I had to do some math (since the "official" spreadsheet hasn't been sent out yet) and I came in first place on this two week's round. Nice! I am proud of myself but see that this group isn't very motivated to lose weight. Almost everyone I talked to said they barely workout and eat like crap. *sigh* I feel bad for one girl though. Her and I are in an alliance to cheer each other on, give each other tips and NOT sabotage the other. Well, she has been working out and was one of the people that didn't lose any weight. I gave her the diet I was on and maybe she will do it.

A wake up call and something hard for me to see was at the beginning of the competition I was the 2nd heaviest. Granted, there are height difference but STILL!! The the first weigh in I was 4th heaviest and now I am 5th heaviest out of 7 people. I am stoaked about that! I don't think I will be number one as that girl is 144lbs and I would look like a stick at that weight, but I am happy being #5.

KT wrote an email saying:

" The Empire won this round...

Seriously! Do you ladies have a side bet to see how much I can GAIN? I'm Up 3 lbs. But I did spend 4 days in the land of Beer and Cheese (Wisconsin)."

and these pictures were attached...

(Hmmm... what's up with the flipping me off pix?)

I guess I'm the Empire.

Pill for dinner, anyone?

2009-08-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

Karma... I see it's coming back to me in a bad way. Ya know how I "sabotaged" the other competitors with a goodie bag of snack last weigh in? Well, it seems there is another person(s) on the challenge that has delivered items like fresh baked homemade pie and coffee cake to the competitor's desk and automatically EVERYONE thinks it's me. Luckily once I had a verifiable alibi because I was at the gym during lunch. Ha! Naturally I responded to the emails with that information.

But the thing that is killing me is I am PMSing TWO WEEKS early!!! I am spotting, retaining water and fatigued. Not to mention a little moody. Friday I had weighed myself and I had lost 3.5lbs. I was SO happy. Then I slowly gained it ALL back plus some as my body began retaining water. WTH? I guess that's the universe's way of saying I should play nice, nice!

Last night I took a recommendation from a co-worker who said it's not considered cheating if I take a diuretic, since I have lost the weight and just retaining water. I started it last night and lost 1/4 of a lb. How frustrating!!!

To add insult to injury, I went online googling health stuff and took this BMI survey and this is what he had to say:

"According to the BMI scale, you are in the danger zone of being considered 'overweight' and you should probably consider taking an effective weight loss pill in conjunction with a healthy diet" They promise that doing so will make me feel (not be) healthier and be more attractive. And then the ads start coming up for this miracle pill. Good thing I am not gullible!

8/20 Update: Weighed in this morning and guess who lost 3.5 lbs in the last two weeks? Yup, me!!! I'm so happy. Unfortunately, since I am PMSing I couldn't contain my surprise and cried. I'm was so embarrassed about that, but not embarrassed that I lost 3.5 lbs and am closer to my goal!!! Only a month more to go.

Prize

2009-08-12T11:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the weight loss competitors got together for lunch and to discuss the prize for the winner. We decided that at the end of each weigh in (there are 3 more to go) everyone who did not place first has to put $10 into the pot. The winner of the overall competition get the money which will equal $120. Not bad, but I was rooting for everyone just giving the winner $50 at the end which would have equalled $300!!! (I had already planned on spending the money on school books). Nonetheless, I was more motivated to keep working hard. The previous night I had skipped dinner because I had come home and fallen asleep. Yup, I came home and passed out and didn't wake up until 1:39AM where I ate a piece of chicken and went back to bed. I guess my body needed some rest. So last night I did a boot camp workout and because some family decided to hang out RIGHT NEXT TO ME and watch me work out, I certainly pushed a little hard. Not to show off, but just human nature to kick it in high gear.

I've been on "meal plans" compliments of Oxygen magazine. They are planned out by a nutritionist and it's supposed to jump start my metabolism. I just started week 2 and am doing well on it. I only semi-cheated once with a mint protein bar.

Here are the meal plans:

WEEK 1:
Meal 1: 3/4 cup of oatmeal and either a banana or orange
Meal 2: 1 apple
Meal 3: 1/2 cup of rice, 4 oz skinless chicken breast or fish, grilled and 1 cup of summer squash, chopped.
Meal 4: 2 cups of celery and 1 tbsp of almond butter
Meal 5: 6 oz fish, grilled, 1 cup of zucchini, 1 cup of asparagus, 3 cups of salad (yup, that's plain with NO dressing...YUCK!)
Meal 6: 1 cup of mixed berries
(Plus one snack from the list below if needed)

WEEK 2:
Meal 1: 3/4 cup of oatmeal and either a banana or orange
Meal 2: 2 cups of raw celery or 8-10 cherry tomatoes
Meal 3: 1/2 baked potato, 4 oz skinless chicken breast or fish, grilled and 2 cups of steamed spinach
Meal 4: 2 cups of celery and 1 tbsp of almond butter
Meal 5: 6 oz of fish, grilled, 1 cup of zucchini, 1 cup of asparagus, 3 cups of salad (Again no dressing)
(Plus two snacks from the list below if needed)

WEEK 3:
Meal 1: 1 egg, 3 egg whites and 2 cups of mixed bell peppers
Meal 2: 2 cups of celery and 1 tbsp of peanut butter
Meal 3: 4 oz of skinless chicken breast or fish, grilled, 1 cup of summer squash, 1 cup of asparagus, 3 cups of salad and FINALLY 1 tbsp of low-calorie salad dressing.
Meal 4: 2 cups of celery and 1 tbsp of almond butter
Meal 5: 2 oz of tuna, 1 cup of mixed bell pepper
Meal 6: 6 oz chicken breast or fish, grilled, 1 cup of zucchini, 1 cup of steamed tomatoes, and 3 cups of mixed salad
(Plus one snack from the list as needed)

SNACKS and SUBSTITUTES:
In case I need to substitute a meal or need an additional snack between meals, I am allowed only these things:
12 raw almonds, 1 tbsp pf almond butter, 1 medium sized fruit, 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce with 1/3 cup of shredded wheat biscuit or whey protein shake with fresh fruit.

The diet is not bad at all. Just a lot of cooking, which is not my forte Exercise have been going well. I want to add more ab work outs and Tae Bo videos here and there. I hope to lose 3-4 lbs by next weigh in.

Possible stalker

2009-08-07T13:19:00.000-07:00

I got a random email today from some guy I don't know at work but he obviously has been watching me. He sits downstairs and I am up stairs. I don't talk to anyone downstairs besides the admins or the occasional executive, so who the heck is this guy.

Brian writes:
"Hi Vanessa,
I met you this morning by the front door and couple of times in the park and library while ago…I noticed that you worked for Sales dept and I need to talk to you regarding the sales function in Bldg A. This is for one of my friend who like to join the [work's name] sales team. I was wonder if you have time to talk about this during lunch break, if so please let me know. Sorry that I did not introduce myself properly before. Thanks again"

*me thinking I don't recalling meeting someone downstairs this morning and how creepy!*

My reply:
"Brian,

You could always forward your friend's resume to me and I could give it to the proper person. I do not think I would be the appropriate person to speak to regarding open Sales position, but I could always have the hiring manager/VP give you a call or set up a meeting."

Brian:
"Vanessa,
Thanks again for the info…sounds good.."

Me:
"You're welcome."

Brian:
"How about lunch together??"

Me:
"I can ask the hiring manager if a lunch meeting is possible. Please forward the resume and the position your friend is interested in and I will get back to you."

Haven't got an email back from the guy, so hopefully it gets it that I am not interested at all!

Psychological warfare

2009-08-05T14:45:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the first weigh in for our 2-month weight loss competition, so in celebration of such an important day a little fairy dropped off a care package to each of my competitors this morning that had:

2 Pringle canisters
2 mini Twix
2 mini Snicker bars
1 packet of Hostess mini blueberry muffins

With a lovely note that said:

“Something SALTY
Something SWEET
And look a breakfast TREAT
ENJOY!”

The whole package had a grand total of 760 calories and 41 grams of fat. It’s not my fault if they can’t resist. *devilish grin*

One girl automatically though it was me and dropped the bag back off at my desk. I told her I had received one too (i know I lied but I had to!) and so began “alliance” emails.

MaryAnne:: (writing to two other competitors with the title “alliance”)
“Hello,

So after a disturbing morning where a breakfast goody bag was left on my desk I realized that this competition just got serious. I have confirmation from a source that Vanessa is pure evil. John has agreed to an alliance, Kirk the choice is yours.

May the force be with you, (hahaha… I am kinda serious about this alliance thing)”

Kirk sent this out:

Exercise we must!

Strong we will have to be, hmmmm?

MaryAnne: Forwards everyone the email with “FYI”

Me: “You know the first one to point the finger is normally the one to be the actual culprit. *Side ways glance to MaryAnne* Was it you that put one on my desk?????”

MaryAnne: “I say nothing. Til tomorrow.”

Then some more packages were delivered with the help of other co-workers to the other competitors…

Kirk: Seriously, attempting to FATTEN us up the day before the weigh in? }:-)

Of course, you know, this means war!”

(There is the bag that was left on his desk)

(Bugs looking at the bag with a disapporving look!)

So it’s my period week (I know TMI!) and was terrified to get on the scale, but when I did I saw that I have lost 5lbs. YAY! I’m off to a great start. I am super anxious to see what others have accomplished these last two weeks.

Passion Fruit Tea

2009-07-31T10:35:00.000-07:00

Last night Natalie made the long trip from her house to our new place. She called when she hit some bad traffic and I was happy that my bro-in-law taught me a short cut that I could direct her through. Still I think it took about an hour and 15minutes to arrive. She is our 2nd non-family guest and got the tour of our new house. She even brought us a bottle of Merlot to celebrate our new purchase. I think it’s cool to hear different people’s point of what they would do in this room or that space. Afterwards we were off to Starbucks to catch up and have some good ol’ girl talk. It was late in the night so I didn’t want a lot of caffeine and tried Starbuck’s Passion Fruit Ice Tea. Hmmm… I think I now have another drink to add to my favorites. It was full of flavor. We got carried away with our conversion that we didn’t realize they were closed until someone had to cut our conversation short with the bad news. Luckily, there were some benches and tables right outside and the chatting continued. We talked about family, our goals, relationships, cultures, religion and how we wanted to enhance our lives. She mentioned that she wanted to have more bonding moments with friends like having everyone over to make cupcakes or enjoy a bond fire in her back yard which is set up for entertaining. Now I have an itch to bake cupcakes!! Too bad I won’t be doing any of that while on this weight lost competition. But lemon cupcakes do sound good.

Define “Lite”

2009-07-30T09:15:00.000-07:00

Many moons ago I used to go to my sister’s boot camp workouts and be able to make it through the whole thing. Sure I would be sore, but it was a great work out. Since I am back on the working out band wagon and doing the weight loss competition at work, I asked her to email me a similar boot camp workout to do at my local park and this was the “lite” workout recommendation she sent me:

Warm up:
Jog 5-7 minutes
10 Arm windmills/toe touches for each side, 10 squats, and 10 push ups (3 times)

Work out:
30 jumping jack
15 push ups (3 times)

30 front kicks
30 squats (3 times)

15 cross squats
15 push up
60 high knees (3 times)

Lunges back and forth on a flat area (she didn’t give me a number, but I did 7 each way)
20 tricep dips (3 times)

Run for 5 mins
Stop and do 15 push ups (4 times)

And Tah dah... give yourself a high 5 cuz your done!

Last night I did the workout and completed it in 58 minutes. During the last 20 minutes of my work out Jay appeared at the park to cheer me on. The one time I wanted to walk and started to I hear a yell coming from my love saying "keep running!" I did.

Today I am definitely feeling the pains of a good work out.

I'm all in

2009-07-24T13:22:00.000-07:00

An hour before I left work yesterday my co-worker came over to and told me to make my way into the break room for an official weight in. Yes, my work had a scale in the break room and the funny thing is it's right next to the soda and vending machines. I had expressed interest in joining a weight lost competition and I guess I was officially in it.

It's for two months and based off the highest percentage of weight lost. I don't know the prize yet as we are exchanging emails still. The last competition lasted 3 months and the winner's tactic was to stop eating at 2PM and only consume 1000 calories since he can't work out because of a bad back injury. He lost 14 lbs total and the "Chunky Monkey" (person with the lowest % lost) as they call it lost only 4lbs.

I sized up my competition. I was honored and felt the pressure as one girl said she thought I would win. I decided to hit the gym after work and was planning a 1-3 mile run to kick off the competition. As I walked in I noticed there was a class in 20 minutes and coaxed myself in going. I kept telling myself "how hard could it be?" It's definitely not my sister's class where I would probably toss my cookies from the hit impact and me being out of shape. Plus, the teacher was over weight, so the class would be a good start to my weight lose goals. Well, it never dawned on me that while the teacher is over weight, she could take breaks and talk, but have us continue with the reps. My body was scream holy hell as it shook from the million repetitions. Nonetheless, I made it through the class and still managed to run a mile afterwards.

Today at lunch I ran 2.5 miles and got a "boot camp" workout from my sister that I plan to do at least once a week.

Wish me good luck!

Little bit of this and a little bit of that

2009-07-23T10:48:00.000-07:00

Where has July gone? It started off with a bang and I've been super busy the entire month that it shocked me when I wrote today's date down. July has been filled with family and friends, b-day celebrations, our 2nd official over night guest, house improvements, and great times with my love.

I'll post later about this past week where BOTH my out-of-state sister were in town and our mini family reunion at the beach.

This past weekend Jay and I headed down San Diego to check out the BodyWorlds 2 & the Brain exhibit at the San Diego Natural History Museum. I've been to BodyWorlds before, I think #3 it was. Some of the exhibits were the same like the embryos and vessel configuration, but this one had animals too. It was super neat to see the human body sliced up. I checked out body parts where I knew family members or I had surgery. Jay was surprised that he didn't toss his cookies. Since we were in San Diego we eat at one of Jay's favorite pizza places Filippi's Pizza Grotto. It was a old school pizza place, where the front was a Italian store and the back was for dinning in. The place was pack and for a good reason too. Because the food is DELICIOUS!!! I had a pineapple and bell pepper and Jay had a Parmesan chicken sandwich. My mouth is watering still!

We took the opportunity to stop by his niece and boyfriend's home too where I was greets by their 3 kitties (Spree, Motzy and Belly and I think they might have one more) and their lil dog, Chico. It was such a nice evening and the weather was perfect.

The next day I was of to Cal Poly Pomona for my mandatory orientation. It was an ALL day event, but at the end I was able to take my ID photo and sign up for Fall Quarter. Most of the classes I wanted were not available so I am taking a biology class with lab, and two GE classes putting me at full time status with 13 units. The only Humanities GE class that fit into my schedule was Dance in Contemporary Culture. Should be interesting. I spent the last day analyzing all my classes needed for my major, prereqs and this is what I came up with.

- It will take me approximately 9 quarters (3 years) of full time status to graduate with a BS in Biology
- In those 3 years I will be taking 13 biology courses (like zoology, botany, genetics, and microbiology) and that is not including the 28 units of electives in my major that I need to take as well, 3 General Ed classes, 4 chemistry classes (yeah a small number cuz I hate chem!), 3 physics classes and 2-3 math classes, including Calculus for Life Science.

What did I get myself into? Not only do I have to take the classes but basically get mainly A's if I want to get into vet school. Normal vet school applicants have at least a 3.75 GPA... I think I am at a 3.03 :(

Cindy’s 1/3 of Century Birthday Celebration!

2009-07-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Cindy!!!

It seemed like I was never going to get to Cindy’s birthday party even though the morning of the was extremely productive and I was ahead of schedule. I made breakfast for Jayla and I of pancakes, fruit and turkey bacon, cleaned both bathrooms, and got both of us ready. I made the trip down to my home town to pick up my niece who was going to watch Jayla for Jay and I and that’s when the delays began. I hadn’t accounted for the traffic and sat in it for some time. As I was sitting in bumper to bumper traffic some dip stick hits be from behind. I saw the whole thing as he was looking down and looked up at the last minute to see me in his way. The guy was RETARDED and wasn’t a gentleman at all. After pulling over to the side of the freeway I stuck my hand out waving for him to come to my car. A minute passed and he was still in his car. I climbed to the passenger seat and walked on the side of the freeway, told the guy this was not a safe area and I needed him to come to my car because I had a toddler in my car and did he come out? Nope! Instead he said that there was no damage almost insinuating that we shouldn't exchange info. I told him that he DID have damage to his car and I could find issues with my axle or bumper could fall off after I drove off, so we were definitely going to exchange info. He sent his girlfriend out to take pictures and he said frantically that he didn’t have a pen or paper. The guy was an idiot as I was clearly holding both in my hands. He rummaged through his glove box and mentioned something about his registration. I had to remind him that he needed to give me his insurance card and ID info, not registration! I got his info and he sent his girlfriend to get mine. What a jerk! He never got out of his car once and made the ladies do all the work. I left and was off to pick up my niece who had text me if we were getting lunch. Ugh… more of a delay. She wanted to get her eye brows done too before we headed to my house. Only a teen would need her eye brows treaded to watch a toddler! I dropped her off to get that done while rushing through a drive thru to get the two some grub since it was past lunch time. We finally made it back to my house (60 miles later), gave my niece the low down on local parks, Jayla’s routine, emergency contacts, etc, etc and FINALLY was on my way to Cindy’s b-day bash.

I drove up to the most awesome man-made beach looking lake and got prime parking. By this time it was an hour before the planned trip back to her house and there was a group going out kayaking for one last hooray. This was what I have wanted to do the whole day and made it just in time. It was so beautiful and a great arm and core workout. Four of us went out to the end of the lake and back in less then an hour and Mr. W told us it was a total of 2 miles round trip. Coming back you could see the mountains in the distance and the sky was a beautiful blue. What a great day to have a party.
Next it was off to the BBQ and open bar with Cindy as our personal bartender. The bar was filled with liquor and a drink menu with tons of options. I couldn’t help but order the “Panther” as my first drink. As I was waiting for my drink to be made, I tried one of the Jell-o shots. Both were so tasty! Next I tried the “Tootsie Roll” and could feel my cheeks turning pink, so had some ice tea and water the rest of the night.

The food was yummy. I must have had 3-4 veggie kabobs and picked on Jay’s plate too. Both of us snacked on grilled chicken with grilled onion slices. It was the first time I had seen someone grill sliced onions and thought what a great idea. There was a dip there with pine nuts on tops at one of the tables that was so good.

(Here's an action shot of Cindy bartending and Mr. W grilling away!)

Everyone was super friendly and I had a fantastic time!

Dust from under the rug

2009-06-30T15:11:00.000-07:00

Okay… so I wasn’t always perfect. My current memories of high school are filled with the sports, livestock and leadership teams I was on and traveling with the agriculture dept, going to classes in the evening to get ahead, learning to drive and being in honor classes. But there was a window in my high school career that I must have brushed under the rug and now it has reappeared. I was going through my Dad’s stuff and there in plain sight were my mid-quarter grades. ALL F’s and a note stating “student has outstanding fines call…” What happen to the honor student that I recalled? I had 19 absences in zero period alone. The memories came back of a time that I was very unhappy. My grandmother had just passed away from lung cancer, I was super depressed, would basically coming home from school, sitting on the couch to vegg, sleep and eat. I had just battled walking pneumonia from around Thanksgiving time to around New Years and was behind in all my classes. I tried to keep up but remember my honors English teacher saying I had missed too much already, the class had taken 4 spelling test (he was trying to teach us 1000 words before the year was through) and two books were read. I had to be taken out of all my honors classes. Talk about an ego killer! I was having problems with my boyfriend and basically thought I would stick it out with him, get married, have a couple of kids and get divorce. My plans were just to settle verses getting the good life I deserved. I gained tons of weight and didn’t have a care in the world. What’s worst is I didn’t know how to ask for any. I remember making appointments with my family doctor so I could talk to him. On one visit my Mom had called him and just happen to leave him a message while I was there. She wanted to know why I was making so many visits to him and his assistant brought the message in since I was there. He hugged me and told me he wasn’t going to call my mom back. I stopped going to him for talks and confronted my mom. I needed an outlet and I couldn’t find one that was comfortable for me. My parents were worried and didn’t know what to do with me. What do you do with a kid that is not motivated and doesn’t have a care in the world? I wonder why my Dad kept only this one report card. My first reaction was to shred it ASAP so there was not a record of it. I felt so ashamed. But then I decided to keep it for a little while. I guess as a reminder of a touch period in my life that I didn't give up and made it somehow. Life it's isn't perfect and when life kicks you down, you just have to get up, shake the dirt off and move forward.

ME time x2

2009-06-30T13:44:00.000-07:00

It's a little strange being at work and barely any one is here. It's shutdown week and only those that absolutely need to be here are here. Yup, I am one of those people. My boss asked me to come in the first two days and yesterday said I needed to attend a half day meeting at our other location. That means no causal clothing day for me.

Today I asked him if I needed to bring anything to the meeting and he changed his mind and said I didn't have to go after all. *silent YAY!!! in my head*

Of course I answered "are you sure?" instead. He said this other person was going to be there, so I didn't need to go. *sigh of relief *

I headed off to a late lunch for more ME time!!

I started my little escape to heaven with a delicious Starbucks Chia Latte with soy and vanilla (no extra shot of espresso this time), bought some new nail polish and headed off to get a much needed manicure and pedicure. It was slow at the day spa, so they spent extra time with me. My two big toes still have bruises under the nail from my first days of moving and being on my feet 12-16 hours. The lady was very gentle with that area. I love it how these places have the chairs that give you a massage. I was feeling tingly all over.

(I grabbed my gym sandals to wear back to work. My heels are closed toe and would've messed up the new paint job)

I love spoiling me! :) And I can feel my body loving it too!

Some "ME" time

2009-06-30T10:33:00.000-07:00

I’ve been feeling weird lately. I think I went from the stresses of school and finding a house, to the stresses of moving, settling in, fixing a fixer upper, and having a toddler in the house. I wasn’t working out, was eating horribly, and not getting enough recoup time and my body was telling me it needed it. My chest was feeling tight, I was getting dizzy through out the day, was feeling sick to my stomach, and I checked my blood pressure and it was high. Oh my poor body! I knew it was stress related or I had to be pregnant. I took a pregnancy test this morning and it was negative, so I am not preggers, so it’s anxiety/stress.
I gave my body some well deserved TLC yesterday. I started the pampering with a great lunch. You can never go wrong with sushi. I tried a spot near my work and got the Crunch Tataki Roll. It had spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, Ahi tuna Tataki and crab inside and crunch, eel sauce and onions on the outside. It was actually really tasty. After work I treated myself to a massage. I have only fallen asleep once on the table before, but last night I must have woken up like 3 times during the session.

We ended the night with watching the movie Taken, a great action pack movie!!! I give it two thumbs up and it even had me on the edge of my seat. Afterwards Jay and I had some good ol'1:1 time. It was an awesome feeling to end the night in a relax, peacful, happy state and fall asleep like a baby.

Executor Duties

2009-06-29T16:40:00.000-07:00

Last night I stopped by my sister’s house (formerly my Dad’s) to pick up more boxes that needed to be shredded. My Dad used to rave about how he was a walking vacuum and hated clutter. Well, as I am learning he was more like someone who stuck things in a box, put it in the garage verse a walking vacuum. I remember shredding things for him when I did office work for him and he was on top of shredding junk mail, but the man had boxes and boxes of work and personal documents dating back to the 70’s.

It’s neat to bump into my Dad’s Nicaraguan grades, immigration paperwork, Grandma’s immigration paperwork, his high school graduation B&W photos and mine and my sister’s first work application with our Dad’s company. It was eerie to read through divorce paperwork, my Grandma’s funeral arrangements and how the airlines lost my Grandmother’s body while in transit from the US to Nicaragua for final burial. Don’t worry they eventually found her body and casket in FL. How do you lose something as precious and important as that? And it was cool to run across paperwork and certified letters when his company sued the Navy over some construction work. I see where I get my fight from! What was not cool is seeing the old rat poop that our old garage invader left behind back in my high school days. I still remember finding the dead rodent in some electrical wires. I know… Ew!

Today I went through 12 boxes and 2 are still in my car. Since his death I probably have gone through an additional 30+.

So the life lesson in this? Just because you have a 2 car garage or space in your house, doesn’t mean you have to fill it and save everything. Being a pack rat may serve as an emotional bandage for you, but after you are gone there are people that have to clean it all up for you. Maybe it’s time for me to take my own advice and get rid of some stuff…

It’s a small world

2009-06-26T09:59:00.001-07:00

In the town we just moved out of is were I did most of my growing up. All my elementary schools, Jr. High, high school and one of the junior colleges I attended are there. Everywhere I go I bump into my family, old friends and acquaintances. I didn’t think that would happen 26 miles away where we now live, but it’s a small world.

I hit the gym last night for day 2 of my half marathon training and I heard my name being called. It was from a familiar looking guy on the elliptical but I couldn’t put a face with a name. I apologized to the guy and I told him he looked familiar but I didn’t 100% recall him. Of course he took the opportunity to tell me we dated before. My mind scrambled through the old memory box and no recollection. Great. He said he was joking and I used to work with his wife and we met at the Christmas party. We talked a little a then went back to our workouts. They live up the street from the gym.

Then I hit the treadmill and I couldn’t help but wonder how the lady next to me could read a novel while on the treadmill. I saw her glance up at me a few times and I was in mid stride when I heard “Vanessa?” over my iPod. I look over to see my old boss! I was really good friends with her daughter and would go to family functions all the time. Once all three of us stop working together and moved further and further apart, we just lost touch. She too lives not too far from this gym.

What makes the whole thing even stranger is the guy’s wife that I bumped into earlier worked with me and the same boss I bumped into. Now we all live within 3 miles of each other.

The Fiasco with our Deposit

2009-06-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

I had always rented from an apartment complex/management company, where there was a rental agreement until my previous place. It was a house behind a house and my sister had rented there before, so I knew the landlord. It was a tiny 750 sq foot place, but cheap and did the job for the time being.

When move out day came, Jay turned in the keys to the landlord’s wife because the landlord was not available. Jay stopped by a few days later to talk to the landlord about our deposit and he was asleep. Then Jay called him at a later date and the landlord thought we had only given him a $300 deposit when in fact we gave him $500, said we were not getting all of it back and because Jay was having a hard time understanding the landlord’s broken English they hung up with the landlord saying he was going to call me. Almost a week went by and no word from the landlord so I had to call him. I told him I had a copy of the first check written to him for rent and our $500 deposit included and he was fine with the $500.00 amount. However, he wanted me to see the work he had done to the place and talk about the deposit. I agreed and drove the 26 miles (one way) to go have this chit chat with the man. Now if you know me, I am (for the most part) by the book type of gal when it comes to these types of things. I did my research and made sure I was well aware of my rights. Luckily Google helped me find the CA Department of Consumer Affairs: California Tenant Book. It’s a guide to rights and responsibility for both the tenant and landlord. From my reading I learned the landlord was already in violation. *sigh*

Let me back up a little bit, we had left the place clean (thanks to my Mom and niece for cleaning it), we had replaced the closet wood rail with a metal heavy duty one, left the liners on the new cabinets to protect them, and added a door mirror to the bedroom. I have been there since November 2007, always paid super early on rent, never said anything when they (illegally) connected my cable line to their house line or ask for some payment for using the cable services I paid for, was nice and courtesy with the whole family, gave my 30 day written notice and contact information. So… you could only imagine the look on my face when 1.) The landlord wanted me to pay for ALL the painting supplies and labor and refused to give me receipts and invoices for the work. What is wrong with this man? 2.) Down right refused to accept the CA Handbook that I had printed for him in Spanish so we could review and he could be informed for not only this situation but all other ones. He said his friend already told him the laws and he didn’t care about them.

He offered me half my deposit with no back up and naturally I refused to take it. I was beyond pissed and thought I was being more then fair with him for asking back-up for the amount he was not paying back. He was already passed the 21 days allot to give me this information and deposit anyways, so I was technically entitled to all my deposit. He tried to intimidate me, wouldn’t shake my hand and was down right unprofessional. Even after I told him that 1/3 of my deposit was $166 and maybe we could work with that number to deduct for paint, he said I owed him more. If you know me, you know what my next step was - See ya because this discussion is over!!!! I told him we would have to resolve this in court. The next day I sent me a certified letter recapping our Friday call and Monday's visit.

The next day I received two calls from his wife. She said that she wanted to settle this woman to women and I wasn’t a “nice” person for saying I was going to take them to court. Then she said we left the floor dirty and she needed to spend an extra 5 hours to clean the floor with a special chemical. Is she crazy? It’s a 750 sq ft place, how on God’s green earth can you spend 5 whole flippin' hours cleaning a floor? What is she using to clean this floor, a tooth brush? She asked me to make a deal with her and just give her a number on what I would like to pay her and her husband for their work. I told her I could not put a value on it, I needed receipts for the paint and invoice from them for their work done or to-be done. We had agreed that I would come clean the floors and get my full deposit back. She thought it was fair and had to run it by hubby. I got a call back and no deal. He just wanted to write a check. Then she mentioned the toilet was moving a little. I told her that was not our responsibility to fix. Are they seriously thinking that we need to do all the maintenance work too? I ended the call on the same note as I had with her husband - we will just resolve this in court.

So how did it all end? Yesterday, I got a call from the wife saying they were going to give us our full refund and wanted to avoid the court system and having negative feeling about everything.

Now let’s hope the check doesn’t bounce. Haha!

Last nite…

2009-06-24T11:50:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I was reminded that it was my Dad’s 3rd year anniversary of when he met our maker. Before realizing this I was already tense. I had been working through my lunch the last two days, work was overly hectic because we are technically “shut down” next week and people are in a made dash to get things done, plus Jay and I are having issues with our previous landlord about the security deposit (I'll post about that later). It wasn’t like the world was crashing down on me, but I did feel like my chest was tight and I couldn’t get a lung full of oxygen to save my life.

But I started to unwind when after work I made it to the beach to visit my Dad. I went to a Laguna Beach spot called Shaw’s cove. It was a beach near the location of where we scattered Dad’s ashes and a beach that we had gone scuba diving many times. I must have stayed there for an hour and half or maybe even two just looking out at the ocean, it's waves and the people enjoying each other.

Funny moment that broke the ice for the night: My phone rang and I thought it was my landlord’s wife calling me again to discuss our deposit and was relieved that it wasn’t. It was Jayla’s mom wanting to see if Jayla was near by to talk to her. Both Jay and I have horrible reception at our new house, no landline and since my cell phone has a little better reception she called me. I told her I was at the beach and Jayla wasn’t with me and instantly I thought “oh crap, I don’t want her to think that I am out her having a good time and excluding Jayla” (not that she would), so I spill the beans that I am there because it’s my Dad's 3rd year anniversary and totally don’t mention why I told her. She felt bad and I changed the subject and only after I hung up did I realized I should’ve maybe explained myself a little more clearly. I guess you can add that to my blooper moment.

Afterward I made it to our local 24 Hour Fitness Express. It was my first time to an Express gym and it was TINY! Normally there are locker rooms but this one just had a single changing room. Nonetheless, I started my official running training for my ½ marathon in October. Check it out! My oldest sis is doing it with me and maybe... just maybe... Cindy will be joining as well. *cough* No pressure Cindy :)

It crepted up on me...

2009-06-23T14:02:00.001-07:00

Father's Day was great. Jay got a head start on the celebration as Jayla greeted him Saturday with a big hug and these words "we took pictures today!," "we wrapped them... they are in the room" I had taken Jayla to take some Father's Day photos earlier that day and was grateful that I didn't take her the week before as planned, because the beans would've been spilled long before.

The next morning I made caramelized french toast, freshly squeezed OJ, egg whites and turkey bacon to continue the celebration. Shortly after I dropped Jay of to get an hour and half massage. We ate Thai for lunch and made a trip to the beach so I could drop some flowers off to my Dad. Then had a great dinner at Red Robin. It was a really nice day.

I must have written today's date down a million time and it just didn't occur to me. When I got an email (granted it was in Spanish) from my uncle yesterday saying he was doing a mass in my Dad's name today, it still didn't sink in. My oldest sister sent an email to all of us expressing some words about our Dad. Then I was chatting online with my littlest sister and she was asking if I was going to go to the beach. How could I possibly forget that it's been 3 years anniversary of him passing away??? Wow... my eyes watered and I felt the wind get sucked out of me. Of course, it would hit me while I am at work. Luckily, no one passed because I am sure I was stiff and looked emotional. I had plans to go work out after work and made an additional plan to stop by the beach. Father's Day, the day he passed away and his birthday are all within 4 weeks of each other, so I could see how it could slip my mind. Maybe that would explain my emotional state this past week.

Early B-day celebration

2009-06-19T09:24:00.000-07:00

Last nite I meant up with Natalie and her friends for day 2 of her b-day celebration. The girl went to Disneyland yesterday, bon fire today, dinner next week and then Vegas. Talk about a party!

I got there right after sun set and some many people I didn't know where excited to see me. Only because I had the s'more supplies. Haha! For the most part everyone was social, funny and having a good time. Except for this girl that was drunk, laying on the blanket with her guy making out, holding hands with another guy, getting massages. Awkward! We the life guards came to tell us the beach was now closed she literally had a guy on top of her. Natalie has only met the girl once before briefly.

Anywho, it didn't rain on our parade. We joked around the fire pit, had a shot or Patron (or two), snacked on junk food and enjoyed each other's company. It was a nice night! Happy early birthday Natalie!!!

$3K

2009-06-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

It's been about a week since I came home to this. It's a huge ditch that the plumbers needed to dig up to replace our front plumbing pipes. The culprit was a leak that attracted near by tree roots to come an invade the continues feed of water. The end result was cracked pipes and a big healthy tree. They did all that for only $1500K. Not bad.

Our front lawn was not kept up by the previous owners and the clay mixed dirt was hard as a rock, so the plumbers had to rent this bad boy and didn't charge us.

After the plumbers finished up the job, we had someone come out for another quote.

See this Juniper tree?

And see this Mulberry tree? (The culprit of most of the roots in our pipes.)

And this Mulberry outside Jayla's room that she swears something is on it?

And this other Mulberry on the side of our house?

Well, the "x" on them means they went bye-bye. I felt bad and flash backs of Ferngully: The Last Rain forest movie came back to me and I felt a little guilty for having them cut down. But hey? Mulberry's roots can grown under your foundation and crack it. No bueno. The roots in the front were farther then 10 feet away the tree and some were headed towards our foundation and had already attacked pipes. I still feel a little bad, tho.

Afterwards, they came to grin the roots. And of course I had to take pix from my kitchen window.

To grin 6 tree stumps, remove and grin some side bushes, cut down 4 trees, clean-up and remove the trash was only $1500. Not bad.

Our house is coming along. Now we need a landscaper to come out.

Seeing double

2009-06-18T16:00:00.000-07:00

Monday night I met up Natalie at the Brea Mall to hang-out and shop for a Father’s Day gift. Originally we were going to eat at Nordstrom café, but it was closed. We seem to always end up at CPK and so to go along with tradition we dined there again. I had totally forgotten we went there after both our surgeries last year until she reminded me. Natalie had knee surgery and was dying to get out of the house and I was just given the OK from the doctor to drive again and here we are almost a year later. Crazy how fast time flies.

I met Natalie in front of Nordstrom where she was talking with a guy. It was her cousin who was selling some all natural creams and lotions in a middle cart. He was a riot as he went through his script while we exfoliated our skin and saw the dirty water afterwards of our dead skin and toxins. Our hands left so smooth afterwards and he even gave us complimentary scrubs to take home. What a nice guy!!

So we hit the mall for gifts ideas and then headed to CPK. But before we went in Natalie treated us to some smoothies. I had a java, peanut butter, banana smoothie and the girl taking our order kept asking me “are you sure you want it like that?” … “it sounds weird” … “if you don’t like it, I’ll make you another one.” She wanted me to try it at the station to make sure I like it and she looked some what grossed out when I tasted it, but hey it I liked it.

For dinner we both tried something different then the regular. I tried the Kung Pao Spaghetti with classic Kung Pao sauce with garlic, green onions, peanuts, chicken and red chilies and Natalie the Four Cheese Ravioli. YUM!

So tonight starts an early celebration of her b-day. She is having a bon fire and I'm bring the s'more stuff.

p/s. Not sure what's happening BUT... do you notice the time I am blogging? Yup, it's in the day and I am doing it from work AND see other blogs AND see photos on Cindy's blog. IT must have taken the restriction off.

Kid magnet

2009-06-17T09:30:00.000-07:00

Before the move I took Jayla to the local park to have some exercise. She met a little girl named Halie and soon they started playing all sorts of imaginary games. Halie wasn’t the most well behaved kid and kept stealing other kids soccer balls. I don’t know why, but some how I became the playground mediator, as Halie would run over to me and ask ME (not her dad or other kids) to play catch with her or hold the ball. Then Sebastian would come crying to ME (not his mom or Halie’s dad) asking for his ball. This happened like three times!!! When Halie had a “boo-boo” she didn’t run to her dad, she ran to me to show me it. Then, she later hugged me. It’s a little awkward when a kid you don’t know just randomly hugs you. I didn’t know what to do, so said thank you and stood up and told her to go play with Jayla.

Yup, so now at the new house Jayla and I went for a walk (more like a climb up the hill) to the park about 6 blocks away. Shortly after we got there Mom Amy and her son Michael and daughter Alison showed up. Jayla is a friendly gal and soon the kids were playing together. The kids totally ignored Mom Amy and kept coming ME. They would run around me literally, show me all the pine needles they collected, the girls came to me looking for safety from the monster (Michael) and Michael kept wanting to tell me his colors and the type of monster he was. I don’t mind that interaction at all. I was sitting on the edge of the park and next thing I knew Jayla and the two kids I just met were hugging me for what seemed like a VERY long time and wouldn’t let go. Mom Amy just looked at me and I thought quickly and told the kids to have a race on who could get to the slide the fastest.

There must be some kid sign on me that we adults can’t see that reads huggable kid mediator or something.