Beware: Things May Appear Easier Then They Really Are

Dave and I established our wedding gift registries at Bed Bath & Beyond and Crate & Barrel this weekend. “Sounds fun!” is probably what you are thinking. Before hand I was thinking the same thing. I’ve been looking forward to this event almost as much as I looked forward to cake tasting. And I really love cake so that tells you something.

Now after a weekend full of browsing store aisles with a scan gun in one hand and a list in the other, I can tell you that wedding gift registry = lots of work + not fun. Why you ask?

Reason # 1 that Gift Registering Sucks - Shop for today or shop for the future??? I think that was the constant question in my head this weekend.

Now: we don’t do much entertaining. We just moved to a new part of the state where we don’t have many friends or family.
Future: Well I hope we make friends and are able to entertain. Which leads me to believe that I need this to serve punch/sangria at friendly BBQs, etc.

The Problem: OK. So I would need this in the future but where do I store it (and other "future" gifts) for now??? The kitchen pantries and one-car garage are already packed full in our 1,000 sq ft condo. And I just don’t feel like packing my guest bedroom with boxes that I wont need for 2-3 more years.

Now: Our dining table is set up as part of the living room / open kitchen space. The décor matches both the kitchen and living room well.

Future: Our plans are to buy a house in a year (or so). I hope to have a formal dining room or at the very least a dining room that occupies a more defined space from the living room. I would love to decorate the future formal dining room in a dramatic fashion much like this painting (in fact I would hang a very similiar painting in the future room).

The Problem: OK. So do I register for linens, plates, etc that match the current décor or the future décor? And even though our plans are to move in a year, what happens if our future home doesn’t have a formal dining room???

Reason # 2 that Gift Registering Sucks – Choices! Choices! Choices!!!

Which bedding do I choose???? So many to pick from!




Reason # 3 that Gift Registering Sucks – He Said. She Said.

I love these plates. Dave does not.


Dave loves these plates. I do not.


Errrr …

Blech (aka Vomit Trifecta)

My last 3 posts (including this one) have all had titles that reference vomit. I haven't thrown up since June 2005 (Jayme's graduation party, too many long beach iced teas) so I have no idea why the idea of up-chuck seems to be such a popular word in my brain these days. Hmmm ...

I'm sick this week. And stressed out. Really stressed out. Which really hasn't helped me get over this horrible cold. Things stressing me out:

* Weight Loss - I've been steadily losing 1 pound a week which is good. Just not good enough. I need to lose more if I want to be in tip top shape for my wedding ;-(

* Work - My desk is full of things that need to be done yesterday. I came in sick on Monday and Tuesday but stayed home Wednesday. Sick = not very productive. Desk full of things that need to be done = me stressed.

* Work - I had a tiff with a colleague (totally her fault) and now I'm angry at her and situation she has put me in. AND I have a problem contract that needs to be fixed but just seems to be making a bigger problem (kinda my fault). Vague, I know but I'd hate to get dooced.

* Wedding - My mom has disinvited herself from my wedding (woo! Really. I need to write about my non-mom someday soon. You'd woo too) but my mom's attitude is making my grandparents upset and they (once again) are looking to me to make everything better. I don't want to make things better.

* Wedding - A certain family member on Dave's side of the family invited a group of people to our wedding that we had no intention of inviting. Lots of drama has ensued.

Things that make me feel better:
* 3 day weekend - Thank you veteran's day.
* Wedding Gift Registry - I've been waiting my whole life to actually have a wedding gift registry. This weekend I'll be visiting Crate & Barrel as well as Bed Bath & Beyond to set up our registries.

Bulimic Blogging

I was such a good blogger last week, I felt creative and had ideas (and time) to write a blog post almost every day. I was obviously binging since this week I have nothing to write nor have I had time. And when I say no time. I mean no time. Not even 5 seconds to do a half post that I could maybe finish later. My week so far and other random thinking:

* I'm in Northern California Wine Country for a 3 day meeting. I was prepared for our meeting to be held at a resort located deep in the middle of acres of grapes. Luckily the resort is located in the middle of town near a grocery store and several cute restaurants. I ate at a gourmet cafe for dinner that featured mouth watering salads and savory paninis. YUM.

* My favorite new shows this season have been Ugly Betty and Studio 60. Unfortunately, it looks like plans are underway to cancel Studio 60. Nooooo! I seriously love this show. The writing is so mature and witty and the acting is believable. Stupid NBC.

* I've been seeing my personal trainer twice a week for the last 3 weeks. I can't believe that I'm saying this but I really enjoy my personal training sessions. The exercises are difficult but surprisingly fun. Best of all, since I don't have to think I can just sit back and do what I'm told to do without watching the clock or creating excuses to cut my workout short. So far I've only lost one pound per week but hopefully that increases as I get more into a workout routine and concentrate on improving my diet.

* Most of October was relatively quiet for me which was a good and bad thing. Good because I wasn't running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Bad because I had so little that needed to be done and it got to the point where I was bored. This week is back to my crazy, hectic routine. My State Office sent 3 bulletins in a row that need quite a bit of work to be completed, I had 12 employee performance reviews that needed to be finished in only one day (my fault), and I had a dentist appointment that took up a half day. Hopefully the rest of the month continues to be just as fun.

* Work took up my day time hours while the gym and wedding duties took up my evening hours. This week I stuffed and addressed all 80 of my STDs (save the dates). Now in the past I will admit that I never understood the big deal about stuffing and mailing invites. Brides-to-be would complain about the massive work required and I would scoff. How long can it take to put something inside an envelope and affix a mailing label on the outside??? Answer: long time. Very long time. I think it took me 5 dedicated evenings of printing out labels, buying stamps (which also involved finding out how much stamp they needed), writing a letter to be included with magnet, folding and stuffing all contents into each envelope, and finally affixing return label, mailing label, and stamp to each envelope before sealing and putting in the mail box. Whew! I'm afraid to find out home much time will be required to do the actual invites!

* Fluff continues to be the cutest kitten ever created. Seriously. That little kitten lights up my day with his mischievous antics, loving snuggles, and happy purrs. Here's a cute pic Dave took of Fluff while he was taking a mid-day nap. Dave siad that he stayed in that same position, sleeping soundly for over an hour.

Watch Me Spew

I feel crappy today. At first I thought it was mild allergies (congestion and general blahness) but now I'm thinking that I might have a cold/flu (achiness and bitchiness). Or maybe I'm not sick at all, maybe I'm just bitchy and crabby. Who knows!

It doesn't help that the air outside is filled with soot and smells like an ashtray. Much thanks to this fire the sky is a dark grey and resembles a coming acopolypse. The fire is actually 75 miles away but thanks to the lovely Santa Ana winds the smoke has been blown our way.

In other non-related news: Dave got home at midnight last night. Yay.

Notes to Self

Note #1 - Don't watch a sappy Lifetime movie such as "Why I wore Lipstick to my Mastectomy" while alone. It will only leave yourself a sappy, crying mess with no one to console. (I highly recommend the made for tv movie. Yes it was made by Lifetime but seriously entertaining and heart wrenching. It's repeating again on Saturday evening. Watch it!)

Note #2 - Don't buy Panera bagels as a treat for the office and expect to be strong enough to resist. Especially since french toast, dutch apple & raisin, and asiago cheese were among the bagel flavors.

Note #3 - After resistance to bagels proves futile, DON'T say f*ck it and eat 2 bagels. 1/2 a bagel would have been okay. 2 bagels is overkill (no matter how delicious they are).

Note #4 - Don't do any more unnecessary shopping. Especially after realizing that personal trainer will set you back $1000. And that only covers 16 sessions for the next 8 weeks. Yikes. Unnecessary shopping includes perfume, UGG shoes, and outrageously expensive Oscar De La Renta high heels ;-(

My Fiancee Sucks

ouch. ouch. ouch. ouch.

That's the sound I made each time I tried to take a step this weekend. I met up with my personal trainer for the 1st time on Friday and he did an hour workout with me. At the time it didn't feel like a very strenuous workout but on Saturday morning when I woke up I could barely lift my body out of bed. Instead I kinda threw my body over the edge of the bed and slithered on the floor towards the phone where upon I promptly called my friend M and told her that I would not be meeting her later that day to go indoor rock climbing.

Dave kept treating me like a big wuss which kinda peeved me since I was really hurting and wanted lots of sympathy and massages versus the "tough it out" speeches that Dave kept giving me. I wonder how tough he would feel with my foot up his a$$ ;-) I gave up on trying to convince Dave that I was in pain since I knew in my own head that there were only a few other instances where I had pushed my body and resulted in as much pain:

1) Spring 2002 - Britney and I took a aerobics class as extra credit in college. The final for the class consisted of going up and down every single aisle all the way around the football stadium (click on the link to see how big our stadium was). I think at about the half way point I threw myself upon the cold cement and prayed not to die/throw up. I ended up finishing but only after skipping a few aisles at the end. It was so bad that the night after the stadiums I decided to stay in. Me not partying in college = serious.

2) Fall 2003 - One day I had off from work thanks to an often not celebrated Federal Holiday (Columbus? Veterans?). My gym continued with it's normal work out schedule and so I decided to try out a mid-morning kickboxing class. The next day I couldn't even sit down on the toilet since my thighs hurt so much.

3) Fall 2004 - Shortly after I had moved in with Dumber & Dumberer, I decided to impress the Pretty Dumb One by participating on a morning run with him. At the time I was in very good shape but there were a few things I forgot to take into account such as the fact that he was 6'2 and had a much longer stride them my shorty 5'1 frame. 5 miles of running (no jogging and no breaks) later and I was in so much pain that my crotch even hurt. Yep. My crotch! That was the last time that I volunteered to run with him.

Luckily, I was able to take a break this weekend and recuperate. I feel much better today and am looking forward to my belly dancing class later tonight.

Things I'm not looking forward to:
* I'm going to be meeting with my personal trainer 2 times a week. Tomorrow is my next session. I really hope that it doesn't leave me in quite so much pain.
* For the next 4 nights I'll be coming home to an empty house. Dave is off gallivanting in Miami for a work meeting and staying in a $500 per night hotel room at a 5 star resort. He left last night on a red-eye against much of my protests. This morning he gave me a call to let me know that he had arrived safely. And to also let me know that his luxurious room had a view of the ocean. Grrrrr ...

House Cleaning Rule #7

From the time I could walk my Mom put a broom in my hand and told me that my weekly chore was to sweep all the hardwood surfaces in our house. Quickly this escalated into not only sweeping but moping, vacuuming, dusting, dish washing, and tidying our 3,000 square foot house. If my housecleaning skills weren't to her satisfaction then I had to repeat the task over and over until it did meet her high standards. This was on top of feeding all the livestock on our 10 acre farm. (10 acres = lots of cow, horse, and sheep mouths to feed, two times a day). You might think that it was fantastic of my mother to install such a hard work ethic in me starting at such a young age. I would agree with you if that had been my mother's intent. Unfortunately, my mom just didn't enjoy housecleaning so she made me the family's personal maid for the next 20ish years.

Needless to say the first time I moved out on my own, I immediately boycotted all activities that resembled cleaning. This didn't work out so well since I lived with a self professed neat freak. My next roommate was much more naturally messy and for 9 months I was able to live in filth. At one point I think that mold began growing on the bathroom ceiling and we were both to drunk to care. Good times!

Living the life of a filthy girl taught me 2 things:
1) I'm much happier being an orderly and clean person. My 9 months of filth were fun but just not me.
2) It's okay to live like a pig from time to time. It's better to enjoy life then kill yourself trying to make everything look perfect all the time.

These days I'm able to keep a very tidy house thanks to it's limited size (perk of a 1000 sq ft house), my compliant fiancee (he tries to help me clean), and thanks to our lack of children/multiple pets. And most of all thanks to a little invention called The Swiffer. I've always been a steaming hot water, mop, and ammonia floor cleaner. This can somewhat be a bit cumbersome. First you gotta get the water hot, then you gotta sweep, finally you dilute the ammonia and scrub the floors. With The Swiffer all that hassle is gone!! All you do is put on a clean pad, hold the button down for 3 seconds for the spray to release, and then mop the floor. Super easy. So easy in fact that I can usually con Dave into helping me Swiffer the floors (he likes to push the button down). The best part is that it releases enough spray to clean but not a super amount that leaves the floors wet for the next hour. Usually the floor is dry within 15 minutes. My floor washing time has been cut in half even though I still ammonia the floors when I deep clean.


PS - The mold on the bathroom ceiling ended up being cleaned by my roommate. One weekend I let her hook up with a boy I had previously been hooking up with. I knew she really liked him and so I let her break our rule #7 (don't mess with another friend's guy). She in turn thanked me by buying some really harsh cleaning chemical and spending the weekend scrubbing at the ceiling. Friends are awesome like that.

PPS - Our rule #7 was quite popular among my friends and I in college. The funny thing about it is that it started out as an actual list of girl rules. But then over time we forgot the rule numbers so everything became rule #7. Depending on the context rule #7 could mean "don't touch him I have dibs" or "c'mon make out with his friend so that we can hook up too and he wont feel bad about his friend having no one to talk with" or "be a good sport and drive to the grocery store to buy mac-n-cheese cuz I'm too poor/too drunk to do it on my own".

Screw You!

I’ve never commented on an article I’ve read in the newspaper before. Yet I felt compelled to write to you regarding your October 19, 2006 article titled "What's happened to our farmers markets?". I just wanted to thank you. Thank you for writing one of the most ignorant articles that I’ve ever read.

I have always assumed that a journalist always fact checks their work before being published. Maybe you don’t consider yourself a journalist but if you had then you would have been able to do a simple internet search and discovered that most of your opinions were not worthy of being read in print.

Let's begin with your comment regarding pricing: "When I went to Vista 20 years ago, I could bring home a week's worth of produce for about $20. Now, I can barely get by with $40."
Your comment insinuates that farmers are overpricing their products. Do you realize how much inflation has increased in those 20 years? Not to mention that farmers today need to address many issues that exist today that did not exist 20 years ago. Such as:
- increased land prices as a result of urban sprawl. According to California Chapter of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers an acre of land in 1994 would cost $5000. In 2001 (7 short years later) that number had skyrocketed to $20,000 per acre.
- higher energy bills. As we both know, SDG&E has increased their prices over the last 20 years. According to SDG&E reports in November 1986 energy prices for peak usage were 5.5. In November 2005? Prices climbed to 13.95. Almost 3x the amount!
- high cost of water. According to the San Diego County Farm Bureau the average farmer pays over $600 per acre foot of water (among the highest in the nation). Many San Diegans assume that since we live next to the ocean that we are water rich. Sadly, this is not true. Most of our water is imported from the Colorado River and Sacramento Delta. Farmers in the area have gone above and beyond to install water conservation devices on the land. The problem? Many urban house dwellers continue to over irrigate their lawns as well as plant with high water uptake species such as pampas grass and arundo. More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arundo_donax
- environmental regulations that didn't exist 20 years ago. Today's San Diego County farmer must interact with 9 (nine!) permitting and regulatory agencies before doing much of the work on their land. Could you imagine having to consult with 9 legal authorities each time you submitted a story?

And I'm sure you didn't stop to think that maybe those "$10 for two cups" blueberries were grown using labor intensive organic farming principals versus the conventionally farmed blueberries from 1986. For more information on organic farming principals and how they effect the price of produce, please visit the Certified California Organic Farmers (CCOF) website: http://www.ccof.org/

In addition I would like to comment on this statement: "Farmers markets will thrive when they are located and spaced properly." Was this statement based upon your feelings or did you bother to contact the California Federation of Certified Farmers' Markets? (http://www.cafarmersmarkets.com/)

Maybe you should write a second article highlighting the struggles of a local farmer. Many people such as yourself forget where your food comes from (it doesn't magically appear at the farmer's markets). I think an important question to ask them would be why do they continue to farm? Most do it for the love of the land. When's the last time you did something so completely unselfish?

I'd Rather Be Shopping

I'm unique in the fact that when I shop I rarely just go to a store and mosey about until I've found something that I like. Instead I go to specific stores and shop for a reason. Examples: I need a dress for so&so's wedding or I need a new nude cami to replace the one I stained. Don't get me wrong, I really like to shop but I've just never learned to shop for no reason (I totally blame my mother).

Yet, there are a few things that lately have me drooling at the mouth. All are things that I totally don't need but want (NOW).

While at the wedding this weekend, I walked by one of the bridesmaids. She smelled so good that I walked by her again. And then because she smelled that good, I asked her what perfume she was wearing. She told me that her scent was Issey Miyake but that she also recommended the Vera Wang perfume if I liked her scent. I did so 3 days later I made a trip to my local Macy's. Unfortunately I'm just not a grown-up perfume type of girl. My life so far has composed of Escada (summer) and XOXO (winter). Both are very non-musky tropical scents. For some reason musky scents overpower me when I wear them. While continuing to browse the perfume counter I came across the new Vera Wang Princess collection. All I can say is that it was so yummy that I wanted to eat the little white paper that the perfume was sprayed on. Seriously. I've promised myself that if I lose 3.5 more pounds then I can buy the perfume.


I've never been an UGG girl. And you would think that since I've lived in Cali my whole life that I would automatically be an UGG girl. Sadly no. Until The Kept Woman posted a super cute pic of some clog UGGS. Don't they look cute and snugly, perfect for the SoCal winter (high of 70, low of 65). 8.5 more pounds to lose and they are mine!

I also want/need shoes that will make my black wrap dress look more like something to wear to a wedding and less like something to wear to a funeral. I already own the dress ($25 at an outlet store!) and now I just need the shoes. I want something with a peep toe like this but comes in a color more like this. My plan is to add a plum colored lace camisole under the dress to tie the shoes in and make the dress a little less revealing.

Update: I love zappos.com. I found these super cute Oscar De La Renta's that are much like the look I had in my head even though they are not exactly the color I wanted. I really like the green pair since I could also match them with an olive green cardigan wrap sweater and black slacks. But I'm not to sure that an olive camisole would look good with my wrap dress (or be easy to find). Hmmmm ...

When Doing a Random, Use a Candom!

I once knew a boy in college who used to say the above phrase. The way he said it was really funny but then again we were in college and drunk most of the time. Everything was funny. And it helped the funny quotient that I was in love with the boy for most of my senior year of college. We had sex within the first 15 minutes of meeting each other which is not something I tell most people because they assume it was a cheap one night stand and that I was easy. In all honestly what happened wasn’t because I was easy (well I was a bit but it really wasn’t because of that). What happened between us was something that is hard to explain unless you experience it. From the moment we met it was like I had known him my whole life. We locked eyes and time stood still. We couldn’t keep our eyes off each other. It was more then lust it was like our souls could speak in some magical language that neither one of us knew how to understand. Do I think we were soul mates in terms of him being the love of my life? Definitely No. Do I think we were soul mates in terms of being something special that I will never understand? Yes.

We dated casually for the next 2 months. Our relationship was volatile and we were young and I don’t think we were capable of understanding our deep emotions. He would get scared and hurt me and I would hurt him in return. I ended up sleeping with his best friend and fraternity brother on and off for 5 months (I told you I wanted to hurt him). For a while we were a happy, non-sexual, threesome. No one in his fraternity and no one in my sorority knew what to think of us. Oddly enough neither did we and we didn’t try since we all knew in the end it was not to be.

Well that kinda got heavy and I really didn’t mean it to be. That phrase came to my mind since I’ve been busy lately and haven’t had much time to blog. Now here I am trying to sleep and I can’t because all these random blogging thoughts are running through my mind.

Who else can’t sleep? The cat. He’s always been such a good kitten who happily trots off to our bed at 10pm and sleeps peacefully until our alarms go off at 6am. Ever since we got back from our trip this weekend, he has decided that 10pm is the perfect time to begin racing back and forth across the apartment, climb the mini-blinds, and knock pictures off the window sills. He keeps this up until 1 or 2 am. Last night it got so bad that we were unable to sleep and forced to put him on restriction (aka locked in the bathroom). I’m really hoping that he gets over his little attitude problem and returns to being my good kitten.

The wedding we went to this weekend was truly beautiful. It was held in the barrel room of a winery in the Bay Area (the barrel room is where they make the wine). The room was decorated in deep reds and lit with candles. The whole event made me a bit sad. The wedding was so gorgeous that for a second it made me wish that I had chosen a winery as the site of our wedding (wee bit jealous). It also made me a bit bummed when I realized that the couple had been together as long as Dave and I. It could have been us getting married if only David hadn’t waited so long to propose (the other couple got engaged a year before us). It also made me sad because the evening went by so quickly. One minute they were saying I do and the next minute was the last dance. It made me realize that our big day will go by just as quickly. All this planning is for 5 short hours.

It also made me sad to be back in the Bay Area. I’ve lived near LA, in the San Joaquin Valley (think Grapes of Wrath), and near Monterey (think East of Eden). No place has ever felt as much as “home” to me as the East Bay. I miss the people, City of San Francisco, the Bay, BART, Dave’s family, my old office, Dave’s old job, the food, the community, and the friends I made. It pains me to think that I may never have that feeling of “home” again. Part of me wants to run back the first chance we get. The other part of me thinks that I just need to give San Diego more time and perhaps one day it will become my home.

I got my STD!

For the past few weeks, I've been talking excitedly to my friends about our STDs. I called my future mother-in-law (FMIL) yesterday to let her know that we had received the STD proof via email. My FMIL didn't say anything and that's when I realized that she doesn't know what an STD is. Well she knows what an STD is but it's not the same thing as what I'm talking about. So I gently explained to her that STD was bridal lingo for Save The Dates.


It'll take 3 weeks for the STDs to get printed and turned into magnets. After that I'll start the process of mailing them out to our entire guest list (all 150 of them). Holy cow. Only 8 more months until we get married. Where has the time gone???

I've been having these weird reoccurring dreams lately. In them I'm about to get married to an ex-boyfriend (different ex's in each dream) and I'm VERY unhappy. I can remember vaguely that once upon a time I used to be very in-love with someone else but that relationship has ended and will never be part of my life again. As a result of the failed relationship, I have gone back to an ex-bf and now we're getting married. During the entire dream I feel helpless to stop the upcoming marriage since I was the one that went back to the ex.

Weird, huh?

Have I told anyone lately how lucky I am to have Dave in my life? The boy is just so perfect in so many ways. He gets me better then anyone else has ever gotten me. He loves me more then I deserve to be loved. He's sweet, and kind, and smart, and hot. Very hot. I love him so incredibly much. I still feel like pinching myself. I can't believe that he's dating me, let alone MARRYING me!

The Honeymooners

Dave and I have been working with a travel agent to book our honeymoon. We both agreed that Mexico fit our image of the perfect vacation (sandy beaches, all inclusive resorts, big airplanes that could take us there, and no militia to pillage us as we step out of the airport). In actuality Dave really wanted to go to Costa Rica (and I might have made a tiny promise to try and lure him to propose to me that we would go to Costa Rica for our honeymoon) but unfortunately I am quite convinced that going to Costa Rica will involve militia so that choice is out. Dave easily gave into me since we all know how his last vacation request turned out.

At first, we were open to any beachy areas in Mexico but then I quickly fell in love with the Riviera Maya. Since I'm so open minded I continue to email our travel agent requesting other areas of Mexico but then I quickly add "but the Riviera Maya is so lovely, I really like it. ALOT". I think that our travel agent can see that we're keeping our options open (as long as the final result is Riviera Maya). Have I mentioned that I really like the Riviera Maya ALOT? The area has a great history and several Mayan Ruins that seem like they'll be enjoyable to explore. (Read the history link. Very informative)

As one of the resort suggestions, our travel agent told us about the Aventura Spa Palace. *sigh* I really want to go here. Everything about it seems so perfect. They even have a special Honeymooners dinner where all the newly married couples get together, have a special 5 course meal, and then play the Newlywed Game! Dave and I would so kick booty.

I'm in Love!!!

Update: I knew it was too good to be true.Most houses in this area that are that size (1700 sq ft) go for $500k-ish. This house was listed for $344k! (I know! Buy Now) So since the house was only located 3.5 miles from work (I know! Buy!) I decided to make a quick trip to check out the casa. The house looked WAY better then the pictures make it look and the pictures make it look very appealing (I know! Buy). The problem? The house is actually a foreclosure and will be sold at auction in just 10 days. Dave and I have the down payment together but there is no way we could afford to buy the house AND carry our apartment rent for 6 months (that's how long we have left on our lease). The other problem is that we'll be out of town at a wedding on the day of the auction. I'm so bummed. The house was awesome and was located in an awesome part of town ;-( C'est la vie (or however the French say "this sucks but oh well")

I love this house. It's just so cute and SO reasonable priced!!!! We were planning on waiting 10 months til we buy but I'm not sure I can just let this house slip through my fingers. 3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 partial, community pool, corner lot, and a fantastic view!!! I WANT!

I'm not totally in love with the front of the house but I think it's cute (just not my style). I prefer more of a french provincial or mediterranean look.

Living room fireplace and partial view of backyard. Other half of living room has vaulted ceilings.
The deck with the fantastic view!

The park that adjoins the property.

The community pool which is maintained by the home owner's association. Located very close to the house.

Fitness Friday

Fall has finally come to SoCal. The high is now 70 versus the summer high of 75. AND the evening clouds have a grey tinge to them that almost makes you think that they might produce rain if we wait 6 more months. As you can imagine this drastic weather change has us all rushing for the sweaters and hot chocolate. (Can you hear my sarcasm????)

In other news, while I was in Portland I took a NIA class that was fantastic! Like most I had never heard of NIA (a blend of martial arts and dance) but was intrigued by the mix. Within the 1st 15 minutes of the class I became a NIA lover. For 60 minutes the instructor mixed various forms of tai chi, belly dancing, free form dance, and hip hop to some great music. Check out the NIA website to find out if they have any classes near you.

I've been trying to get in shape for some time and attending the NIA class gave me motivation to try out different forms of cardio. On Monday I had my 1st belly dancing class and I loved it!!! Seriously, I can't wait to go back next Monday and gyrate my hips and chest some more. I probably should clarify that while you may think my belly dancing class resembled something along these lines:

In actuality we more closely resembled this: (it's only a beginner course! Give us a break!)

To further motivate myself to get fit and lose weight, I signed up for a personal trainer at the gym. The sessions are a bit pricey ($550 for 10) but I'm hoping that it turns out to be a rewarding experience with a positive outcome. I gotta do something so that I get to looking like this again:

Pictures!

Fluff enjoys wearing sweaters ;-)
The pink sunset from our living room window.

Me & Dave at a Winery
Dave & His College Roommates

Our limo. Awesome!

The inside of the limo.

Sick Day

Last night I made the most amazing and simple dinner. While we were wine tasting we came upon a winery that had a baked sourdough bread roll filled with brie cheese. We bought an unbaked one and took it home with us. Last night I baked it and served it with a grilled chicken and mixed green salad with carmelized onions, dried cranberries, roasted pear, and croutons. The whole salad was tossed in a gargonzola vinaigrette. Yum and semi-healthy. The only thing not making it completely healthy was that the bread was so good and Dave and I ended up eating almost half. Well worth the calories and carbs.

Dave left this morning at 6am to catch his flight to St Louis, MO. I miss that boy already ;-( I really wish that he didn't have to travel so much for work. Luckily, I leave again this week to fly to a meeting in Sacramento. It's not so hard to say goodbye to Dave when I have to leave to a meeting too.

Today I stayed home from work sick (cough, cough). I plan on doing some good deep cleaning, watch a bit of TLC Baby Story, go grocery shopping, and maybe play a bit of Dance Dance Revolution** before going to my belly dancing class later tonight. I have a weak core and I'm really hoping that the belly dancing turns out to be a fun cardio class as well as help strengthen my back and tummy muscles.

** Damn that pic is depressing. I forgot how skinny I used to be when Dave and I began dating!

Worth a 1000 Words

Last week I was here (Portland, Oregon). It quickly became one of my favorite cities EVER. It was like the perfect mix of Bay Area type people, California culture (laid back), and cheap living (condos in the city are $200k! Cheap!).

Today I was here (Temecula Wine Country). A group of us went wine tasting to celebrate a friends 30th bday. Good wine + good friends = good times.

We were driven around in this:

I want to go here for our honeymoon (Aventura Spa Palace, Mexican Riviera)

Friday Fun

1. What time did you get up this morning? Supposed to be 6 but it was really 7am. Oops!
2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds!!
3. What was the last film you saw at the movies? Talladega Nights (getting Dave to go to the movies is like pulling teeth!)
4. What is your favorite TV show? Since Friends & Sex and the City went off the air, I haven’t really fallen in love with any new shows. My current rotation: CSI, Big Love, & How I Met Your Mother. Ugly Betty and Studio 60 seem like they’ll be interesting.
5. What did you have for breakfast? Hot green tea, Smart Start cereal with skim milk and fruit (this month I’ve been on a grapes and strawberries kick).
6. What is your middle name? I hate it: Lee
7. What is your favorite cuisine? Japanese. Mmmmm ;-9 Sushi!
8. When was your last vacation? Cabo in March 2006.
9. What is your favorite chip flavor? I don’t like salty foods but if I had to pick then cheddar & sour cream.
10. What is your favorite CD at the moment? I’m still on a Death Cab for Cutie kick.
11. What type of car do you drive? Ford Focus. Nothing fancy but we’re trying to save money for the wedding and to buy a house. I really want a Lexus IS250!!!
12. What do you cherish most? My health.
13. What characteristics do you despise? People who are high strung! Calm down and enjoy life!!!
14. Favorite item of clothing? Juicy Couture yoga pants since I’ve been feeling fat lately.
15. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? I’m really excited about our possible honeymoon location: Mexican Riviera. Also, lately I’ve REALLY had an itch to go to France someday. I want to see the countryside as well as the city and museums.
16. When is lunchtime? 11:30
17. Where would you like to retire? Never thought about that. Ummmm … Hopefully someplace surrounded by friends and loved ones.
18. What is your dream job? To work for my same federal agency but be part of the leadership staff at the state or national HQ level.
19. What was your most memorable birthday? My 22nd bday. I was feeling majorly bummed because I felt old! (haha!) My best friends planned a nice dinner for me at my favorite restaurant. I was worried no one would come but instead lots of people came to the dinner. We all then went out, got drunk (no idea where) and then we drove from fraternity house to fraternity house showing the boys my “gift” (a giant 6 foot inflatable penis)
21. Favorite sport to watch? College football.
22. What fabric detergent do you use? Tide with Downy
23. Coke or Pepsi? Diet Cherry Vanilla Diet Coke
24. Are you a morning person or a night owl? Neither!
25. What is your shoe size? 8
26. Do you have any pets? Cutest kitten ever: Fluff
27. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? I’m going wine tasting this weekend. Me + Vino = Happy
28. What did you want to be when you grew up? A lawyer. I’m bummed that I didn’t have the self confidence to follow through on that dream.
29. When is your birthday? I was born in April.
30. Goal you’d like to accomplish in the next year? Lose weight and become fit AND healthy for my wedding!

Eat, Drink & Be Merry

MIA
I’ve been gone at an all employees’ meeting this past week. 450 of my fellow employees got together in Sacramento to meet, schmooze, and receive “training”. The only training most of the employees received was how much alcohol they could consume before acting like a fool. Trust me when I say that good times were had by all. Now I’m home and a bit sad. There are so many awesome people who work for my agency and it bums me out that we only get to hang out together every few years. Good news is now my body can detox and recover from all the rich food and booze that I consumed over the past few days.

Traveling Jane
While I was gone, Dave was also gone for a meeting in St Louis, MO. On Monday I leave again for a management training course in Portland, OR. On Tuesday Dave leaves for a meeting in Missouri. We both return very late on Thursday. Poor Fluff is going to think that he is owned by the pet sitter since he sees her more often then he sees us.

Fluff
My baby kitty has gained 3 pounds in the past 2 months! Fat cat weighs 8 pounds now and he’s only 7 months old. I can’t imagine my life without that cat. Almost every night he falls asleep on my chest. He attacks our feet while we sleep (which I find adorable and Dave finds deplorable). He practically gets in the shower with us in the mornings. Attacks the newspaper while we attempt to read it (once again me adorable, Dave deplorable). I could go on and on. Fluff is the cutest kitten ever. I’ll try and post pictures of him in his new sweater as soon as I download my camera.

9 months
Where has the time gone? It feels like each month goes by in a blur. Only 9 more months left until Dave and I get married. This month’s duties:
apply for my passport (Dave already has his)
select a honeymoon location (Dave’s task)
contact potential judges to officiate the ceremony
lose weight

Date Night
Dave fell asleep on the couch at 5pm (he was super tired from his meeting in Missouri) so I decided to plan my very own date night. Yes, I took myself out on a date. After having a great workout at the gym, I picked up a blackberry green tea frappe from Starbucks and sushi. I came home, got in Dave’s comfy pajamas, and ate my sushi while watching sappy Lifetime movies. Current movie: “crazylove” young woman has nervous breakdown and falls in love with schizophrenic while in mental hospital. Trials and tribulations follow.

Issues
Every couple has their highs and lows but Dave and I have been pretty lucky to not have many lows in our past. I think our roughest times were the 1st months and that was just because we (and by we I mean me) were trying to figure out where our commitment level stood. I think every couple goes through that period when they try to figure out where they’re headed. Fun? Marriage? Long term?
Lately, Dave and I have experienced our first “real” low that was caused by issues. And by issues I don’t mean big deal breaker issues like he believes in polygamy and I don’t. Nor do I mean small issues like I hate the way he makes the bed in the mornings. The issues we had to face were more of the medium variety. Issues (and by issues I mean baggage/personality quirks/topics of disagreement) that matter enough to make a person upset but not enough to send a person to bed crying every night. As we all know everyone has their issues and I think that getting married is kinda scary because all of a sudden you’re hit with the realization that you’re going to have to live with these issues FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. For the past month Dave and I have tried discussing, ignoring, and solving our issues. Finally (after a long night of arguing) I think that we’ve reached a point where our issues have found a happy compromise. For the past week I’ve felt like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders and our relationship has returned to the loving, easy, rewarding state that it usually occupies.

Suduko
I’ve fallen in love with this game. I could play game after game after game. In fact I think I’ll go play a game now ;-)

Where the Beautiful People Live

Pics I took a few weeks ago of the beach near my house. This really is paradise.

My Day

6:00a - Decide to sleep in since I spent the holiday weekend sick from the flu. Fevers, nausea, and achiness are mostly gone but I'm still feeling a bit more tired then normal.

7:30a - Wake up. Pet cat for as long as possible before needing to get up and get dressed.

7:45a - Weigh myself and find that I have lost 2 pounds in week 1 of my diet. Woo!

8:30a - Grab a Luna Bar and run out of the house because I am late.

8:45a - Meet with psychiatrist to talk about possibility of meds to help prevent my anxiety attacks. Doc gives me some great insightful advice and prescribes me ativan to use only if needed. I was reluctant to take anything that would require me to be on it all the time.

10:00a - Drive to work. Begin reading emails and sorting through inbox.

11:00a - Attempt to get work done but am interrupted every 5 minutes by someone who needs something.

Noon - Eat lunch while reading my Bridal Bargains book.

1:00p - Receive call from local magazine. They want to do an interview with me and highlight me and my agency in their next issue. Photo shoot scheduled for Friday. Make quick note to get eyebrows waxed and hair highlighted before Friday.

1:30p - Jump in car and head to downtown San Diego.

2:00p - Arrive at bridal salon and try on "the dress" again before making my final decision. Am a bit wishy-washy. There's nothing wrong with the dress per se but it's such a big decision and I can't help but wondering if this is really "the dress". Take pics of me in dress, ponder decision some more, and then decide to bite the bullet and put deposit down.

3:00p - Drive to work meeting that is only 4 miles down the road from bridal shop.

4:00p - After meeting finishes, drive to look at veil and tiara that are being sold for $75. Get confused while exiting freeway. Do I want MiraMar Rd? MiraMar Way? Or Mira Mesa Blvd? Couldn't they have given the roads more creative names???? Finally get to house and fall in love with tiara and veil. Both are exactly what I wanted and would normally retail for $400!

5:30p - Drive home after finishing a few things up at the office.

6:00p - Grab a cheese sandwich before heading out the door again. A cheese sandwich is not normally something I would eat but I was frantically looking for food to quiet my rumbling tummy when I saw a loaf of bread and a block of cheese. Easy and no cooking required. Desperate times, desperate measures.

6:30p - Meet potential new employee at Starbucks to do an interview. Witty conversation and interrogating questions follow.

8:00p - Drive home. Fight with cat to try and hang up veil. Cat thinks it's personal mission is to climb up veil and attack beading.

8:30p - Collapse on couch.

10:30p - Go to bed.

Semi-Naked Shopping

I spent most of yesterday semi-naked in front of complete strangers. I guess that's bound to happen as I was in constant levels of undress while trying on 40 bridal gowns. The bad news is that I forgot to wear cute undies. The good news is that I got so used to everyone seeing me in my bra and panties that I stopped being embarrased and started being comfortable. And the better news is that we found 8 (yes! eight!) dresses that I liked. Below are most of the 8 dresses and the various reasons why I don't *think* that I'll pick them. I say *think* becasue honestly they're all great dresses and my reasons for not picking them are pretty weak since I loved them all.

This dress made me look REALLY thin (and that's quite a feat!). The side gatherings and the halter were really unique and stylish. Only bad things were that the dress was semi-expensive and I'm kinda worried that the side gathering thing (while very flattering) may look dated in a few years.

This is a figure flattering, classic gown with a beaded tulle overlay and detailed trim. I really liked it but I'm not so sure whether it made me go "wow".

Another figure flattering, classic gown (can you tell that I like the classic look). I think this is the perfect dress for my outdoor Yosemite ceremony. The only thing this dress was missing was beading. It had plenty of lace but not much sparkle.

Isn't this dress the cutest??? I love the corset top, side pleat and little bow around the waist. Only bad thing was that this dress was only available in a size 6 so I wasn't able to really try it on.

The corset top on this dress made my waist look amazing (and my boobs too!). Only bad thing was the dress was missing detail beading on the bottom but other then that it was a fantastic dress.

Stupid blogger. See the post below for the dress we did pick. Blogger wont let me post anymore pics to this post.

Round of Applause

So I think this might be it! The dress!!

The corset top and sweetheart neckline were very flattering. It's got a great classic look and includes lots of beading and lace! Perfection.


And the piece de resistance (or however the french say f'ing fantastic part): the 8 foot long catillion train that is removable! I can't wait to try this dress on again!!!

LA Weight Scam

I've been trying to lose weight these past few weeks but it just hasn't been happening for me. I eat my SlimFasts for lunch and dinner but then I end up gorging myself at dinner. Or I get so busy at work and then by the end of the day I'm way too tired to work out at the gym. Or I go to a work meeting and eye the pastries and other goodies until I just can't control myself and I end up eating one (or two). I know, excuses, excuses.

So this afternoon I got fed up with all my empty promises. I enthusiastically made an appointment to meet a counselor at LA Weight Loss. A friend of mine has been trying LA for the past few months and has already lost 20 pounds. Sounds great? Actually, not so much. The counselors at LA Weight Loss are really salespeople with a need to get you to buy their product. I sat down and the counselor (aka sales lady) told me all about how everything I was doing was wrong before. She also told me about how my fiancée may act supportive of my weight but in actuality all men are visual and he's secretly upset and turned off by my 40 pound weight gain!

In the end she wanted my to sign up for 20 weeks of weight loss, a 6 week transition period, and a year maintenance. Total cost was $997! Eeek! Plus I would have had to buy their "weight loss supplements" which she politely refused to tell me the actual cost of. Against her protests I told her I needed to think about it. There was no way that I was going to pay $997 up front (all at once is the only option) without talking to my fiancée since we have a joint account. As soon as I got back to the office I did a bit of internet research and found a few really informative websites like this, and this, and this. I'm really glad that I didn't fold under their high pressure sales tactics and pay the $997. Not only are the contracts virtually non refundable but the supplements can also easily add $1000 on to your weight loss plan. And as part of the contract they make you sign a section stating that you WILL buy the supplements! Sheesh. Scammy!

I think I'm going to try ediets again. I did it for 6 weeks last year and lost 8 pounds. The nutrition plan was very easy to follow as well as flexible. My only problem came to the dinners. The plan I was on was low sodium and the dinners were a bit bland. Hopefully I can try another plan (like the low carb plan) and then the dinners will be more palatable. We'll see ...

Weekend Update

Note: I hate recaps. They bore the hell out of me. I'm not feeling very creative so go ahead and skip this little post if you want.

Friday
Dave was feeling sick (he had a cold) and I was feeling a little funky too so I decided to take the day off from work. While Dave spent 9 hours on the couch asleep, I decided to make a small trip to the local outlets and do some much needed shopping. Four hours and $500 later I came home with many cute outfits. Thank you Banana Republic and NY&Co. I'll post some pics later when I get the chance to take pictures of all my cute new outfits.

Saturday
I spent the morning trying to find cute shoes to go with my new chocolate colored corduroy capris. I came home, went to the gym (need to get in semi-shape for wedding dress shopping on Tuesday). After I got home, Dave and I took showers (separately unfortunately) and got ready to go to the DMB concert in Chula Vista (south SD). Maybe I'm just not a "true Dave fan" anymore but I really didn't enjoy myself at the concert. In fact Dave and I left before the encore. *gasp* I know! For me I think that DMB concerts were all about the people that I met while tailgating and watching the concert. The people who knew DMB better then I did and got me all excited to hear certain songs or hear rare outtros and intros. Even though Dave is great at the concerts and sings along to songs he knows, its just not the same. *sigh* I don't even think that I'll attend a concert next year. It's just not worth it ;-(

Sunday
Dave was still feeling sick and I was feeling funky too so we spent most of the day being lazy.

ABCDE

After I experienced the whole ATV accident debacle (6 months ago) I came home and was naturally afraid of driving at high speeds on the freeway or driving down dirt roads. What did I expect? I flipped my ATV, landed in a ravine, and thought my back was broken. Mild anxiety was sure to be my friend for the next couple of months.

I've never been a dare devil maniac but I am a person who in the past enjoyed snowboarding, water sports, outdoor activities in general, and trying new things. For the last 6 months my anxiety has escalated and I've become a little bit of a nut case. Anything over 65mph on the freeway gives me sweaty palms. The thought of going out in the field paralyzes me with fearful thoughts (which sucks because I am a field employee). I went to Disneyland for a bachlorette party and refused most of the rides. I turned down an offer to ride in a helicopter (a helicopter!). I've made Dave crazy when he has driven because I constantly point at cars that might hit us and nag him to slow down even when he's doing 60 in the slow lane. I freaked out while driving over a bridge while going to Coronado Island for a meeting. And last month in Florida a group of employees were allowed to canoe down a river while on a tour. My response? Thank the heavens that I was not on that tour because I would have been forced to ride the canoes and I would have freaked! Like seriously freaked out from fear.

The clincher was when Dave and I were in Las Vegas. The entire 5 hour drive from SoCal to LV I spent hyperventilating and sweating in the passenger seat. That actually has become the norm for the past 6 months so that wasn't the deal breaker. The deal breaker came when we went to watch a Circus du Soleil show and we sat in the balcony. A few minutes after the show began we were sitting there watching this acrobat do her thing 100 feet in the air without any safety harness (if you've ever watched a Circus du Soleil show then you know that doing something acrobatic 100 feet in the air is kinda the whole point of the shows). While watching the acrobat all these fears started racing through my head. What happened if she fell??? What happened if the balcony collapsed? What happened if we died at the show???? Before I knew it I was sweating and barely able to breath. I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could and go sit on the floor in the bathroom where I was safe and didn't have to watch the acrobat anymore.

I knew I needed help. This anxiety thing wasn't getting any better. It was getting worse. Much worse! Like I said before, I'm not a dare devil but living with constant anxiety just isn't my idea of a nice life.

A week ago I made a trip to my health insurance's therapist. She gave me a few exercises to try and help me through my moments of anxiety and referred me to an anxiety group that the hospital sponsors. She also gave me a referral to see a psychiatrist so that I can be prescribed anti-anxiety meds. I'm not so sure how I feel about the meds part. I understand why others may need mood stabilizers but I never have and I've never imagined that I would need them (but then again I never imagined that I would be affected by anxiety attacks. Never).

Yesterday, six of us from my office went out to a Indian tribe who needed technical assistance on their property located deep in the mountains. While we were 4x4'ing 7 miles up a steep sandy dirt road we encountered a monsoon (summer rains in Cali are rare!). The dirt roads instantly became slippery, the pounding rain made it hard to see, and there was thunder and lightning all over. We were all scared especially since we had to drive 7 miles DOWN the dirt road to get back to the main road. But you know what? I was a little bit scared but I wasn't paralyzed with fear or freaking out or even sweating. I just kept doing my anxiety exercises and I was ok. Maybe I will get better.

Passing Ships

I left on Sunday for a business trip to Sacramento. I came home Monday from the airport to be greeted by my fiancee who was leaving for a business meeting of his own in LA. He came home yesterday and I was kinda looking forward to some hot action last night. You know, because of all the not seeing each other and missing each other. So imagine my glee last night when Dave called out to me while he was in the shower. I ran to his call and barely held myself back from stripping along the way. I get to the shower door and ask what he needs (all the while in my head I'm thinking 'I know what he needs! Mwahahahaha!'). His need? To not forget to pay the car insurance.

Gee honey. Thanks.

ABC's

Stolen from Renae

A is for age: 26
B is for booze of choice: I don't really have just one. Red Syrah Wine when I want to wind down. Corona Light when I want to socialize. Long Beach Ice Tea when I want to get crazy. Caiparhinas when I want to act frou-frou. Diet Cherry Vanilla Coke with Bacardi Coconut Rum Light when I want to be on a diet.
C is for career: Big Boss
D is for your dog's name: No dog for now. Maybe someday when we have a yard.
E is for essential items you use/love everyday: Face moisturizer, Sirius radio, & my cell phone.
F is for favorite song(s) at the moment: "Earthquakes & Sharks" by Brandston & anything by Death Cab for Cutie
G is for favorite games: I'm not a big game player. Maybe tetris?
H is for hometown: SoCal
I is for instruments you play: None
J is for jam or jelly you like:Strawberry all the way.
K is for kids: No thanks.
L is for last kiss: When Dave got home at midnight last night, he gave me the most intense welcome home kiss. *sigh*
M is for most admired trait: I'm organized. Like really, really organized. Always have been.
N is for name of your crush: My fiancée of course! Dave
O is for overnight hospital stays: When I was 11 I had my appendix removed old style (back when they cut you all the way open and left you with a huge scar)
P is for phobias: Snakes & Car Crashes (especially dying in a crash)
Q is for quotes you like: Seen on the side of a Nike shoebox: "You run like a girl. Good for you"
R is for biggest regret: I had this relationship back during my senior year of college that was toxic yet thrilling. I f'ed up several times and did things I shouldn't have done and he f'ed up several times and did things to hurt me in return. The relationship would never have worked out but I often look back and wonder what would have happened had I not f'ed up.
S is for sweets of your choice: Chocolate in any form (but without nuts!)
T is for time you wake up: I'm supposed to wake up at 6am but that doesn't always happen.
U is for underwear: Haha! It used to be cute little Victoria Secret undies in all styles. But now I lean toward the comfy cotton things that are faded and worn.
V is for vegetables you love: I'm a veggie whore. Give it all to me! Spinach, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, salad! Mmmm ;-9
W is for worst habit: I can be a bitch sometimes. Don't get on my bad side!
X is for x-rays you've had: Too many to list.
Y is for yummy food you make: I love cooking. My best is probably crock pot spicy chicken. Everyone always loves it and it's super easy to make.
Z is for zodiac sign: Taurus

Ok. Now it's Tammy's turn!

Picture Post

The town I live in:

The boy I love:

The furry belly that makes me melt:

10 Months

Dave is in Missouri for a business trip until late Thursday evening. He's only been gone since Monday and I already miss that boy something fierce ;-( Distance really does make the heart grow fonder. Don't get me wrong, I'm really glad that he got such an awesome job for such a fantastic corporation AND he works from home. But (and we all knew there was a but) I really hate that he's going to be traveling just as much as I travel. For most of the next few months I'm gone one week and he's gone the next week or we're both gone at the same time and Fluff is left home alone.

Anyways, on to happier news: In exactly 10 months, Dave and I will be getting married amidst the beauty of Yosemite. Only 10 more months! EEEeee!!! I'm starting to get excited and in the 'we're getting married' mode which is great because maybe it will motivate me to lose some weight! I've been horrible lately. Really horrible. I've always been NOT naturally thin and had to work hard to maintain my weight. But for the past 6 months I just haven't cared whether I gained weight. Donut? Yes please. Coke or diet coke? Mmmmm ... coke! Go to the gym tonight? Nahhhh! Go to the gym anytime this week? Maybe next week! Beer? Give me 5. I love empty calories!

I really need to get back in the habit of watching what and how much I eat plus exercising daily. I keep thinking that I can do this by myself but I've been trying to lose weight for the past 2 years and have been unable to (in fact I've gained 40 pounds). I think it's time I try LA Weight Loss, Weight Watchers, or some other structured weight loss program even though it makes me feel like a failure. I've lost 40+ pounds twice before in my life (I told you I'm not naturally thin) and I just can't understand why I'm lacking the will power this time around to lose the weight for a 3rd time. I'm getting married in 10 months and will be wearing a big white dress! Wouldn't you think that I'd be able to think of that and stay away from the brownies in the office kitchen. Sadly no. LA Weight Loss here I come ...

Many Moons Ago ...

August 2004
We won last night. Twice. Yep. Wooooo. OK I'm too tired to 'woo'. AndI'm too sore to 'woo'.After work, I drove to the sports park for my 1st softball game. The team was super nice and young (and a few of the boys were super cute) but I don't know. Maybe it's cuz I'm hormonal this time of the monthor something like that but I just didn't gel with the team. They were nice and everything but I couldn't help feeling shy and a bit outsiderish. So the other team didn't show up and we won by default. Immediately after the game, I ran home and made myself a turkey burgerbefore heading to the gym for my 7pm 30 min abs class. Then I had a yoga class that began at 7:30. Cool. I like yoga. It helps me stay flexible and get better balance. SO after my yoga class I went home and checked my email real quick before I had planned to jump in the shower. One of the email messages was from a guy I met who also plays on a softball team and who needed an extra girl to play that night in15 minutes (9pm). So I quickly ran down there and played yet another game of softball. We own. And I loved the team!!! So I think that I'm gonna stay with that team (but now I have to break it to my other team which sucks). But I really fit well with this team and we played well together and they seem like awesome people. YAY.
And it doesn't help that the team manager (Dave) is a super cutie and super nice. He's a Sigma Chi alumni from Long Beach State, blond & tall. Yum. We're supposed to meet this weekend and do some practicing as well as go get some beers. YAY. And I'm gonna make him cookies ;-) Anyone got a good peanut butter cookie recipe? I gotta show the boy that I'm not only a super cool chick who can bat with the best of them but I'm also a domestic goddess. Gosh I forget how much I rock sometimes ;-p After the game I came home and Scott wanted to spend some time together so we watched SBF Stunning SF. SBF is a local stunt bike riding crew that lives (literally) right down the street. Most of the stunts they perform are down right on the main street that we live offof. It's pretty cool to watch their videos and recognize all the local landmarks. Not to mention that they do some pretty sic stunts.

August 2005
I'm in Wichita, Kansas this week for a work conference. I'm scheduled to give an hour 15 minute presentation tomorrow to the entire group (about 100 people). Holy cow is all I can say about that.I leave here on Friday, fly into Oakland, then take BART directly to San Francisco where I'll be meeting Dave at a hotel. We plan on celebrating our anniversary with a nice dinner on Friday then DMB on Saturday. Dave was joking around and made it clear that I wont be getting a ring as my anniversary present. ;-( Of course his comment hurt my feelings but it lead to a nice discussion on us and marriage. Surprisingly, the discussion was mostly lead by me OPENLY, honestly and effortlessly telling Dave how I felt on the whole subject (such a huge step for me since I suck at the whole communication thing). Dave and I agreed that we want to get married because the time is right for us and NOT because all of our friends are doing it. We both want to talk about marriage and wedding plans extensively before becoming engaged which we'll be a bit difficult for Dave since he is able to show how he feels easily but forgets that he needs to say how he feels too. We both agreed that we're at a good time in our lives to get married (financial stability, established careers, educated, mature, etc). And we both agreed that we want to keep each other and that we both hope marriage is in our future together. Ahhhh! I love that boy!

A Love Story

Last Christmas I got Dave a Sirius player and subscription because I had no idea what else to get him. The boy already has everything he could ever want or need. So after 3 hours of walking up and down the Best Buy aisles I threw my hands up in despair, grabbed the closest box, and walked out. The closest box happened to be a Sirius Radio Sportster which he opened on xmas eve to mild delight. (I told you he had everything he wanted or needed and satellite radio did not happen to be one of his wants or needs). To be honest I had no interest in satellite radio either but I figured what they hey. It was something under the tree.

A few weeks later, Dave and I were road tripping to SoCal (this was back when we lived in the Bay Area) and we decided to give Sirius a try. Within 1 hour I was hooked. Who knew this satellite radio would be this fantastic! And clear! And chock full of music choices! And each station was packed with quality music! And no commercials!

I immediately did what any caring girlfriend would do. I removed the Sirius from his car and had it installed in my car. I also bought this super cute boom box so that I could listen to it at work. For the next 4 months, Sirius and I were inseparable. We were together at work, in the car, and even at home thanks to streaming audio over the internet. Imagine my dismay when we moved down to San Diego and I discovered that I no longer received satellite reception in my sub-basement office. Then my sticky suction cup holder fell off in the car. Sirius and I decided to break up.

OK. So this is turning into a long story and it really shouldn't be. Flash forward to today when I forgot to bring my
CDs so I decided to try the ye olde Sirius. It works! And I'm in love again.

Sirius + Cori = 4ever

We're Parents ... To a Cat

Doesn't he look cute while he sleeps??

The rule in our house is that if Fluff jumps up on the kitchen counter then he is immediately given a stern 'no' and then spritzed with a water bottle. Repeated use of this method has worked really well for us. Often all he have to do is say the stern 'no' and Fluff immediately stops doing whatever it is he was doing. Fluff rarely gets up on the counter anymore unless it is because he detects something was left on the counter that he is be able to bat with his little paws. Such as a derelict pen or bottle cap or wineglass. Needless to say the wineglass batting didn't go over well with all parties involved.

To recap: Fluff on Kitchen Counter = Stern 'No' + Spritz from Spray Bottle

Last night as I'm trying to fall asleep I feel Dave get out of bed. I open my eyes to see what he is up to (we can see the kitchen from our bedroom). Fluff is on the kitchen counter and Dave is bending over so he is eye to eye with the cat. In the calmest voice Dave is having a chat with Fluff. "Hey buddy, you know your mom and I don't like it when you're on the counter. Your paws are dirty and then you walk on the counter and it is unsanitary. So let's stay off the counter. Okay bud? ok." With that Dave gently lifts Fluff off the counter and places him on the floor.

What a push over.

I Suck at Recaps

I woke up at 1:30am last night (this morning?) to the sound of coyotes howling under our bedroom window. Directly under our window. Like less then 100 feet from my body. The 1st thing I frantically did was look for my kitten. Maybe they were howling because my kitten had gotten outside and they were now feasting upon his body! Ok. So they probably weren't but I had to make sure. Luckily I didn't need to search very hard for my kitten since he was curled up in a ball in the crook of my armpit.

The 2nd thing I did was get mad. Vile coyotes were howling under my bedroom window in the middle of the night and keeping me awake. But then I realized that I live next door to a nature preserve and I should expect coyotes and other wild creatures. (Especially since $1.5 million needs to be raised to keep the preserve from being developed but thats a whole different story).

In other news, we're back from Vegas. It was very nice but I suck at reviews and recaps so I'll spare you. During the day we slept, read, and layed by the 5 pools and lazy river of MGM Grand. During the night we ate gourmet meals, gambled, and drank. One night we watched a Cirque du Soleil show that involved alot of nekidness. I think I saw a penis.

Viva Las Vegas

Dave & I are off to the City of Sin.

During the day you can find me here:

At night we'll be here:

Be back Saturday!