Day 27: Summer lovin

So this Summer got off to a bad start with me being sick, but the good news is that I'm all better now (as long as I take my medicine) Sean and I made a promise that we would work out during the Summer. He wants to do it because..well for his own reasons. I want to do it mainly because I want to get back into the shape I was back in high school during track. I've been working out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and so far I'm doing well. For now I'm enjoying it and I'm not getting bored...we'll see what happens as Summer goes on. 

Here is some stuff that I have done so far, Sean and I got to hangout last Thursday and went bike riding over in Glendale by Descanso Gardens, it was very hot but a good ride. As we were making our way down I started gaining more speed..A LOT of speed and well fell. I'm not gonna go into detail of how I fell because it's too much to write, but I ended up scraping my arm pretty bad. I can't remember the last time I got a cut that bad haha. Aside from that I got to go to the movies and see Brave and spend the night over Kate's house. Other than that not much, until next week. Next week Sean and I will be going to Indio for the week of 4th of July with Kate, Alex, Dan, Christen and her bf, and I think other people. I'm really excited to get away and actually feel like I'm on Summer vacation. As for right now I will keep running and reading my books before bed. There are so many I need to finish this Summer, I think that's my ultimate goal!

Until Next Time!

So here is my cut, honestly it looks a lot worse in person because you can see my whole arm

Day 26: Beginning of Summer

So far I have been on Summer vacation for a little over a week and it has not been going as well as I had hoped. This past week in particular has not been the greatest. I haven't exactly done much with friends and have just been at home for the most part. Thursday night was not the greatest since my sore throat came back. I have been having a sore throat off and on for almost 3 weeks now and I went to the health center at Cal Poly and they told me it was just a sore throat that went with my cold and just to get plenty of rest, drink fluids, you know the drill. So after awhile it started going away. Then a couple days later it came back, then would go away and come back. So finally Thursday it got even worse. It felt as bad as it did when I first got it so I made a doctors appointment. From what the doctors told me was that I have whats called Allergic Rhinitis which basically means I'm allergic to something and when I sleep I have a nasal drip that eventually causes irritation to my throat. So they gave me something to dry up the nasal drip and hopefully my throat starts feeling better. Because my sore throat came back I was not able to go hiking today (Saturday) with Sean or his friend Roddy :( I was also not able to enjoy my favorite food, Roast, yesterday because it was so frustrating to eat and swallow that I eventually gave up. I hope my throat starts to feel better soon, it gets pretty annoying when you can't do anything. Hopefully my Summer will start improving soon because right now it sucks.

Til Next Time!

Day 25: Relay For Life

Ok so I know that it is not day 25, more like day 100 lol I know I have not been updating my blog, but so many things have taken up my time. School is almost done and I have 3 weeks left and I cannot wait til my Summer begins!

So two weekends ago Cal Poly Pomona had Relay for Life from April 27- 28 from 1pm to 1pm. Relay for Life is a 24 hour event that raises awareness for cancer and helps raise money for cancer research.This was my first year participating and it went really well. I was on committee being a Co Team Captain and Registration Chair. I think at first it was really hectic since nobody really told me what to do for registration, but after awhile it all calmed down and I got through it. We started at 1pm and began with the survivors. We had a speaker who was only a Sophomore in high school and was a survivor of brain cancer. It was a great ceremony and lead the way to the beginning of the laps for the 24 hours. Honestly I was surprised at how many people walked laps throughout the day into the night, even in the wee hours of the night. What really touched me through out the whole event was the Luminaria ceremony. This is a time where we Remember, remembering those that lost the battle with cancer, Celebrate, celebrating those who fought and won the battle against cancer, and Fight Back, fighting back by raising more awareness and not losing hope on finding a cure for cancer. Everyone at the event held candles and Sean and I held lit candles, we asked people to come up and light their candle if they were a survivor or knew a survivor of cancer, but what really brought me to tears was how many people lit their candles remembering their loved ones that were lost to cancer, whether they were their grandparents, aunts or even uncles. So many people came up to us that at that point I couldn't hold it in. As they walked a lap in silence with the luminaria bags lighting the track I just cried silently. It was really touching.

Though there were some stressful points in the relay overall I think it went really well. I stayed up all 24 hours and I am so happy I did, when I couldn't figure out what to do I just walked around the track looking at the bags people designed for their loved ones. Participants set up 'camp' and most people were asleep on couches and in actual tents. I'm so glad I participated this year and will definitely do it again next year. 

Til Next Time!

We had a DJ for ALL 24 HOURS

When we first got going

The sun starting to rise, stayed up all night!

All the campsites and people walking the track

Day 24: Nothing New

So I know I haven't written on here in awhile I just have had nothing to talk about, literally. I try and think of things but realize there is nothing really exciting. Today is my last day of Spring Break and I am heading back to school after dinner. My Spring Break was NOT exciting. I got Jury Duty which basically meant I couldn't plan to do anything because I didn't know what the next day would entail. I served, I did my civic duty, got dismissed, yay! I wish I had more plans and could have done a lot more since there was good weather all week, but nope. I am dreading this quarter :( hopefully Summer gets here quick so I can have a looong break!

Til Next Time!

Day 23: Guest post! Adam Allred

Hi!!! I'm Amanda's little brother!!! I'm happy that shes home for spring break! I get to talk to her and we play games with each other. I don't want her to go back to school even though I know she has to. We stay in contact by texting each other. Even though I may not respond or reply back very often I know she wants me to text her and that's what makes me ACTUALLY respond/reply. I wish she was always home like she was when she was in High School. Then I would be able to talk to her and play games with her even more often! YAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY MANDAS HOME FOR SPRING BREAK!!!!!!!

Day 22:This weekend

I was home this weekend for Alex and Kate's Engagement party, which was good. I'm still a little nervous about being a bridesmaid and all. I've never done this before so I'm not exactly sure how these things go. Both her and Alex gave their bridal party some little trinkets as a way to thank them for being in the wedding. Alex gave his groomsmen and best man a round box that had chocolates in it and on top was a patch that said "World's Best Groomsman" and then best man. Kate gave all her bridesmaids and maid of honor books whose pages were cut out and stuffed with fake moss and stuff and it said thank you for being a bridesmaid. All in all it was a good night. Kate's parent's house is huge! I felt so out of place haha. When I left last night I drove past the house that was used in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Pretty cool!

Since I was home I went to church today also. I always look forward to church when I'm home. When I'm at school I miss being in God's House and seeing the way he has blessed the church so much. This morning I found out that one of the sinks in the woman's restroom downstairs was broken and was leaking, the floor was pretty puddly, so I decided to clean it up. I grabbed tons and tons of paper towels to dry up the floor and while I was trying to soak up the water as much as possible I was thinking about the church and how I have been a prat of it for so long and that I didn't want that to ever change. There are so many things going on in the church and I want to be a part of it all, but I can't. I'm at school half of the year and when I come back things have changed and I need to get used to it and blend again. That's one part I don't like about coming back, it's never the same. I think that can be both good and bad. Good because more people are finding the church and coming and bad because I don't know who they are and I can't get to know everyone and get used to things in a day. It seems that every time I come home and go to church I'm by myself. My brother has his friends from the youth group and I just feel that I'm kind of stuck in my age. Sure there are people that are AROUND my age, but thats saying oh they're 23, 24,22, but no one who is 20 that I can talk to about the things we might be going through. Kate and Alex are getting married and whenever I'm around when someone else is there they always discuss wedding things and some ideas they might have and I'm just standing there; I don't know what to say I honestly dont know anything about weddings, the bouqets, colors, ideas for bridal showers, bachelorette parties, all of that is over my head at this time in my life. Of course I can see my wedding and what it could look like, but that's all down the line. Sometimes I honestly feel..alone.

I wish I could go to my church more while I was at school, but it's just so hard. I have school work and then I have to make sure I wake up early enough to drive down here and then after drive back. When I think about it I just think it's a lot of work. I'm sure I could do it no problem every Sunday, but I don't and I don't have a good reason why I don't. There is one thing I'm sure about and that is as I get older and eventually graduate college and get married I want to keep going to my church, I don't want to leave. The more that I have thought about it the more I have come to realize that Park Ave is MY church. I can't see myself saying that about any other church, I can't imagine meeting new people who would be as great as the members at Park Ave. I want to be a part of all of the exciting changes going on and seeing all of the kids grow up loving God and growing in spirit. Last Summer I saw that a lot when I was helping out with the youth and I loved seeing the youngins learn about Christ and just loving it! It was awesome! I want to always see that. Pretty much my whole family is at Park Ave, I have known most of those people since I was born, they have seen me grow up and go to college. I want to stay there and see them every Sunday and know how they are rather than catching up with them for a few minutes asking "how are you?" "I'm good how are you?" "Oh I'm fine, how's school going?" "It's good" "Oh that's good!" It's the same conversation every time, I want to talk about something different and to know everything already. I can remember when i used to dread going to church, but as I have gotten older I have really grown and have come to love going to church and learning new things every Sunday even when it's a scripture I heard already, I always find something new that I didn't know before. I don't want to give that up. Sean and I agreed that if we get married we will continue to go to church and be involved, I can't see myself doing anything else, anywhere else other than PARK AVENUE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.

Til Next Time!

 Kate and Alex practicing cutting a cake :)

This is what gave her bridal party :)

 

Day 21: Grades

It's days like these that I wonder why I go to college and try. I just took my first Anatomy practical and lecture exam and I failed both of them. I have always had trouble with tests in school. I would do great on homework and class assignments but when it came to tests I just couldn't do it. Yeah there were some that I did good on and obviously I passed because I made it to college. I just wonder how I did it sometimes. I mean I stink at math and can barely take tests to pass a class. I just wonder why am I doing this? I mean already I won't graduate in 5 years, half is because I changed my major, but the other half is because I have had to retake classes and that has put me behind. I am anticipating graduating in the Spring of 2014, but if I fail again I'm afraid I'll be even more behind and have to stay longer. Maybe it's a good thing I changed my mind about becoming a nurse, if I'm like this it would probably take me a lot longer than it should just to get my certification. Instead I will graduate with my health promotion degree and work at a health company helping them promote healthy living, or I will find another job I am interested in. 

I have always been very hard on myself, I get stressed out about the simplest things and I cry whenever I'm stressed. I don't know why, it's just always been like that. I remember when I was a Senior in High School one of my teachers signed my yearbook and said I should not be so hard on myself, that I was smart and I didn't need to stress myself out more than needed. I found it funny that someone recognized how hard I am on myself. The reason I'm hard on myself is not really for my benefit. Yes I want a good job and be happy in life, but honestly I do it for other people. I do it for my parents, my grandparents, family in general, my teachers, all the people I know at my church, and people who have known me since I was young. I want people to be proud of me, not to be disappointed in the decisions I make or how I turn out. Whenever someone is disappointed in me I get heartbroken, I love helping people and especially making them happy. That's the reason why I am so hard on myself. There is no use in me trying to stop it because I know for sure it won't stop, that's just who I am.

Til Next Time!

Day 20: Maturity

When does maturity happen? At times I really think about this wondering if maybe I'm more mature than I am supposed to be. I'm 20 years old and a junior in college, but I don't act like a normal college student. Usually you hear about us college kids going out and partying at frat parties or going clubbing and getting drunk, but that isn't me. For some reason I am a very calm traditional gal. I like to goof around and be funny, but I know when too much is too much. I am comfortable being boring, I love going out and doing stuff with my boyfriend, but I'm not a party person. Heck I get tired by 12, I love sleeping which sometimes make me feel like an old person haha.

I honestly can't wait to settle down. I do want to travel and explore new things, but that's not crazy college kid status. I like the maturity I have, but I also feel that I should be able to goof around with some people but not so much that it gets out of hand. I try to remain calm in most situations I'm not one for cursing and when people do it too much it bugs me. I don't really see the point. Maybe it's just me. I was just thinking about this today when coming back from Costco.

Well on another note today is Super Bowl Sunday and at 3 I will be going to Sean's roommate's girlfriend's house to eat hang out and watch the game!

Til Next Time!

Day 19: College

This week is the 5th week aka midterms, well mine are technically next week. This week however I do have a debate due on Friday which I'm a so nervous for! Next week I have my first Anatomy Exam, an anatomy lab quiz and my first exam for my stress management class. After all of this I will be hanging out with 3 of my favorite girls from church Lynne, Kendra, and my aunt Mary. I'm super excited!!! Til then I have much studying and stressfulness coming my way. Sometimes I wonder why I live for this lol and how on earth I will survive? My third year hasn't gotten any easier and I still have two more years left. :/

My brother Adam has been texting me a lot, I know he really misses me and I miss him, he's sent me some pictures of what he had to draw for his science class and they look really good. I miss picking on that kid and being his cool older sister!

I guess that's it for this time!

Til Next Time!

 Here's my studying :/

Day 18: Stuffing Myself

Today I'm kind of squeezing in a post because right now I really should get back to studying. 

If you know me you know that I go to Pink's Hot Dogs in LA about once a week, well last week a couple of my friends and I (Sean is included!) decided to go to Pinks for one week straight. We went from Sunday to Saturday night. Usually I get the same thing every time I go which is the Philly Cheese steak Hot Dog, but since I would be there for a week I decided to try and get something different every night. The first night I had the usual, Monday night I had the Gustavo Dog. The Gustavo Dog has the bun, hotdog, american and swiss cheese, guacamole, fajita mix, jalapenos(i didn't get them) topped with tortilla chips. I liked the dog except for the guacamole on top. I guess I'm not one who liked guac on a hot dog :/ On Tuesday night I got the Emeril Bam Dog, this dog had cheese, bacon, jalapenos(still didn't get them) topped with cole slaw. This dog was really good, all except for the overpowering cole slaw. On Wednesday I got the Emeril again but this time I asked for cole slaw on the side, this time it tasted even better. Thursday night I went with the usual again because it seemed that everything I tried had something I didn't like so I got something I knew I would love! Friday night I got...what did I eat on Friday night. Too many pinks and everything blurs together, oh well I don't remember Friday, but Saturday I planned to go out big. I ordered the 3 dog night. This dog is not in a bun, but in a tortilla with cheese, chili, bacon, onions, and 3 hot dogs. I was really excited for this because every one said it was good. Sadly I did not like it. The chili was too overpowering for me. I never got to any of the onions because all I could taste was the chili :/ I ate about half of this and gave the rest to Sean, then I got my Philly haha.

All in all that week was full of a lot of calories, fat, and a good time with friends. I was surprised I didn't get tired of Pinks since I am still not one who likes hot dogs, well, except for Pink's Hot Dogs!

Til Next Time!

http://www.pinkshollywood.com/index.htm

If you would like to check out Pink's and see what they have here's their website, they have been here in LA since 1939, obviously they gotta be good right??!

Day 17: TMI

So nothing really new has happened since Vegas so I just thought I'd post a little poem/write up thing I did freshman year of college for my creative writing class. I am very proud of this and if you really know me you understand why, if not well this might be a little TMI. Enjoy!

‘CONSTIPATION’

What is it about this word that makes people uncomfortable?

It is something that every human goes through

They just don’t want to admit it.

I guess they just feel ashamed about poop

Or especially poop that won’t come out quickly.

I know, it hurts when you are trying to push it out but,

What other way is it going to come out?

If you are that embarrassed trying eating prunes

or even eating healthier so the poop comes out easier.

But until you do that just remember not to push too hard

And to enjoy your time on the toilet.

This is quality time with your thoughts

You can think about how much homework you have or

Even do your homework while on the toilet.

Hey, guys take the newspaper why can’t you multitask

And actually get some work done?

Though you won’t admit it

You love the feeling of relief

The moment when all your hard work of waiting has paid off

You hear the “plop” and know you are done

You take a breath and begin to wipe

I think you know how to do that.

This process is over.

‘CONSTIPATION’

It is a normal process that everyone goes through

Why be embarrassed?

Embrace the feeling

The feeling that your body is working

Go ahead, POOP it out!

Til Next Time!

Day 16: Viva Las Vegas!

So this weekend was a 3 day weekend. My friends and I (Sean, Bryan, and Bryan's friends Kailey and Angela) decided to go to to Las Vegas. I along with Angela have never been to Vegas. Most people think it isn't fun when you aren't 21 but that a whole lot of patooie! We left school Saturday morning. For lunch we ate at a Greek place called Mad Greek, It was pretty good! This Greek restaurant is located in Baker a little ways out of Nevada. After this we continued to head to Vegas. Just outside of Las Vegas was a casino/hotel called Buffalo Bills. Bryan said they had a coaster that was pretty good so we decided to ride it. This coaster was called Desperado. It was fun, fast, and very rough. I had a ponytail in my hair and thought I was going to lose it by the time the ride was over, luckily I didn't. After this Vegas wasn't too far away.

Once we got into Vegas we checked into our hotel. We stayed at the MGM Grand. Our room was the Grand Queen. It was so nice and the beds were super comfy. I've only bee out of the state once and that was back in 8th grade so I really haven't stayed in many hotels so I thought this one was awesome! We freshened up then headed down to the strip. We walked to the New York New York and walked down for a bit then crossed the street and went to the M&M World and Coca Cola factory. After this we grabbed some dinner and continued to walk down the strip. By the time we were ready to turn in we ended up at Caesars Palace in the Forum Shops.

 This was our view from our room at the MGM

 There's our hotel!!

New York New York

There was a lion habitat by the casino on the first floor, Awesomeness!

M&M World taken by Sean

Let me tell you the best part of the trip. I have the greatest boyfriend in the world. He is so great to me and surprises me with things and I appreciate him so much! So earlier that day when we were at Mad Greek I told Sean that at the Forum Shops I wanted to go to the Celine Dion store. Ever since I can remember I have listened to her music and ever since she was first in Vegas I wanted to see her in concert. Bryan mentioned that she was at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, which I knew. Sean asked if I wanted to go, I didn't want to spend so much money, well he bought tickets for the following night! My jaw dropped, it was AMAZING what he did. Anyways we walked through half of the Forum Shops and then turned in.

 Here I am in the Forum Shops, I though this would be a good picture :)

 Here is a view of SOME of the Forum Shops plus the sky that changes color throughout the day!

On Sunday we checked out of the hotel at about 12:30 and headed back to the car and packed our stuff. We then headed to Downtown Las Vegas. Here we went to another hotel which had a good hawaiian restaurant called Aloha. From here we decided to check out Fremont street, there were gift shops and a zipeline, a pretty cool place. Here's an interesting tidbit, Fremont street used to be "The Strip" until new hotels were built and now the strip is what it is. After we wanted to check out the Pawn Shop from the TV show on History Channel "Pawn Stars" Here's a little advice with this it's not exactly what you would think it would look like. It is a lot smaller than it appears on the show and you do not see the actual stars from the show. Still if it is something you are interested in do it, there most likely will be a line but it moves pretty fast. By this time it was maybe 2:30, 3 o'clock. We went back to the strip and tried to finish the forum shops at Caesars Palace. We spent the next 3 hours walking it up and down. It is BIG! At about 6 o'clock we all kind of just decided to stay an extra night because it would have been a bad idea to drive back home after the concert. This time it was the Imperial Palace. Totally don't recommend this place, the room smelled like smoke and I didn't really want to pull down the covers and sleep. But for being a last minute thing and only for an extra night for cheap wasn't bad. Since it was so close to the show we grabbed some food before heading to the show.

 Pawn Shop, and look at the line...not bad we waited for only a couple of minutes

Here's what I have been waiting for all day and even longer!!!!

Here's where I get to my favorite part. After we ate Sean and I split away from the group and headed to the Colosseum. We got our tickets from will call and then went inside to get our seats. We were in the second mezzanine area which was high up but still awesome to me. I was super excited, my heart was beating and I just couldn't wait til it got started. Once she came out and started singing I just broke down and cried. I was crying so much Sean asked what was wrong and I said nothing that I was just so happy and he replied I've never seen you so happy that you cried LOL The show was amazing, she did some tributes to people such as Michael Jackson and Etta James. Plus she sand her songs starting from the beginning with Where Does My Heart Beat Now? I was rocking out to all of them, I sang tapped my feet, clapped my hands UGH it was great. I didn't want the night to end. Ever since I can remember people/myfriends have always made fun of me for liking Celine Dion, personally I don't care what they think she sings better than any rapper or those singers that cuss in their lyrics. She is genuine and really cares about her audience and what she sings about.After the show I was the happiest person in the world, I also decided to buy a shirt then headed to the Celine Dion store and bout a key chain and a picture. They didn't have any real posters :( so I bought a big postcard haha. We headed to Chipotle and ate with our friends then headed back to Imperial Palace and later went to bed. 

On our last day in Vegas we woke up and checked out then headed back to the M&M world and then to Mandalay Bay to check out a stain glass window in the House of Blues that Kailey's mom had made. Then we left Vegas.

 Look at me I am so happy! WOOOOO!!!

 Our tickets! :))

The ride home was full of laughter and dancing in the car. This weekend was probably one of the best weekends ever. I achieved one of my ultimate dreams thanks to Sean. I love you so much sweetie!!

Til Next Time!

Day 15: Going on an Adventure!

Ok so I know that I haven't updated my blog in awhile, but there hasn't been much to write about until now...well after the weekend. This weekend is a 3 day weekend and I'm going to Vegas! Yeah I thought to post it here since I can't post it on facebook cuz my dad would kill me haha so after this weekend I will have great stuff to say and lots of pictures posted!

Til Next Time!

Day 14: Getting Back in the Swing of Things

Well my first week back at school is over. This week has been tough not just because I had to get back into a routine but because some things didn't go as I hoped. I haven't been able to purchase books or anything for my classes which is a BIG problem because I have an assignment due tonight and on Monday morning at 8am.

So far I have loved having my car here. I can go to Target by myself instead of bugging Sean and having him take me (I love you sweetie!) and also other places. Since I have my car I sometimes pick Sean up from class kind of as a thank you for the past three years for driving me everywhere!

Honestly this week hasn't been that exciting, nothing has really happened that is worth talking about! The week hasn't been the greatest, my body has been acting weird, I'm tired and have getting headaches often. Probably just because I need to get my routine going. I promise that future posts will be more exciting and informative...ok I can't really promise that cuz everyday is different and most of the time boring haha I shall try my best though!

Til Next Time!

Day 13: Beginning Again

Well here I am, my 3 weeks of Winter Break over. Off to school tomorrow BAH! There is something to be excited about though, 1: I get to see Sean again! and 2: I am finally taking my car to school!

This Winter Break has been fun, I did a lot more things than I have in the past. I was invited to parties which never happens and I finally got my midnight kiss on New Year's Eve! I spent time with the broski and played Clue with my family. I was able to hangout with Kate more and her kitties and even spend time with Sean and his family which I enjoyed immensely. Overall I think I can say that this Winter Break was very good. I am looking forward to going back to school and getting my freedom back, but not the school part. I am very nervous for this quarter, but the way I see it only 5 more months until Summer Vacation!!!

Well that's all for now until school begins.

Til Next Time!

Here is what Adam and I completed over Winter Break, it was so much fun!

Day 12: So Much to Talk About

Oh man where do I start? First of all Merry Christmas Eve! Second I wanna give a shout out to two good friends of mine Kate Homet and Alex Jackson on their engagement! Woo!

Now lets talk about what has been going on this Winter Break for me. This past week has been craaazzyy and now that I think about it I don't have pictures to prove it oh well guess you will just have to take my word for it. Lets go in order shall we?

Last Sunday I attended a Christmas concert at my friend Roddy's (Roderick) church, Grace Community Church. I have not been it that big of a church, there must have been over a grand of people. Let me tell you I feel very awkward in those kinds of places and I don't understand how people can attend a church like that where they don't know everyone, but I guess it works for some. I'm grateful for my small church I like it and if though it has grown since I was a kid I still know all the people and that's what I like! The concert was good in my opinion my favorite part was when Mary Did You Know? was sung, the gentleman that sang it was crazy good! The program was almost 2 hours long but bearable for all that singing. Afterward we Sean, his family and I, went out to dinner with their friends to Poquito Mas, a bueno restaurant where I drank the biggest coke of my life, should have taken a picture of it. Then headed to Sean's house where I made an ornament with his momma its was easy and fun!

Monday was Roddy's Christmas party from 2pm to 11:30pm or so they said. Sean, his brother, and I arrived pretty much exactly at 2 and hung out and helped with last minute things before people started arriving. There were maybe close to 30 close friends there and plenty of things to eat. There were pigs in a blanket, chips and dip, these almonds covered in sesame seeds (they are addicting!) and bread bowl with cheese, potato balls and much more, then the main course was filled with chicken (which Sean's mom made), stew, rolls, pasta salad, and a different kind of salad. A little while after we ate Roddy's dad told all of us guests 2 Christmas stories which was then followed by carols being sung. After carols were sung we all gathered for a picture before some people headed home and then the rest who stayed a while longer watched a Muppet's Christmas Carol. After which I headed home with Sean.

Tuesday I headed home for a couple hours before going to Liz and Ismaels house to hangout for awhile. We went to Christmas Tree Lane and then Griffith Park to see if they had Christmas lights but they have been canceled for the past 2 years. After that I headed to Kate's house to help her bake some ginger bread cookies and hang out and talk. I got there about 9:30ish. 

Wednesday I left Kate's house abot mid day and hung out with Sean again before 7pm when Kate and I were going to get manicures. Kate picked me up from Sean's house at 7 and we went to the nail place but got there after they closed so we just headed back to her house to bake and paint our own nails. This night we made cake pops. If you would like to know how to make them they are available on her blog at http://wileye.blogspot.com/ after the cake was baked and her nails were painted Sean picked me up and we went out to dinner, a date :) to the Veggie Grill on Sunset Blvd. It is a vegan restaurant but tasted very good and is quite healthy. After we both headed back to Kate's to help her finish the cake pops. We finished a little before midnight and as Sean and I were walking to my car little did we know that someone was waiting for us to leave! Yes this is when Mr. Alex Jackson proposed to Kate. In a couple of days when things start slowing down you might be able to read about it on either ones blog, Kate's is above here is Alex's http://alexhasofficehours.blogspot.com/

Thursday was my first day sleeping at my own house and just relaxing. This day was very happy because of the news of the night before. Other than that not much happened.

Yesterday, Friday to be exact was Alex Jackson's ordination. It was awesome to see him recognized for something that God has called him to do. Refreshments were followed and family and friends mingled. Sean was able to come to the ordination also and after we went out for another date this time to the movies to see Mission Impossible, so many dates I love it! which was quite good I might add and got a 95 or so rating on rotten tomatoes. Overall Last night was a good night!

Today is Christmas Eve, and tonight at church there is a dinner at 5:30 and then a candle light service at 7 which I am singing for. Tomorrow is Christmas and church. It's going to be a busy weekend, but also a great one full of fun and great family times. I will be back on Monday to talk about how my Christmas was this year.

Til Next Time!

Have a Very Merry Christmas!!

Day 11: Fun Day!

Yesterday at church was fun, filled with good music and a great sermon by Fred. After church I went out with Kate, Alex, Mr and Mrs Martin (Caleb and Louisa), Fred, Kendra, Joe, and Kate's friend Nicole to Casa Garcia for lunch. Awesome nachos fyi! Then Kate and I had to return the vacuum we rented on Saturday to clean the Homework House. Oh I didn't mention that. So Kate wanted to surprise Alex with redecorating and giving the Homework House a makeover so we spent ALL day at church on Saturday doing just that. We painted, put curtains up, organized, and cleaned the carpets and couches. Later Alex came and saw what we did and was completely amazed. I don't have any of the pics because they are on Kate's camera, but I think it's better that she share them on her blog since it was HER surprise and I was just a helper :)

Moving on, after returning the vacuum we all went to Target to get a gift for the Gift exchange/white elephant we were having at the Christmas party at the Coker's in the evening. Kate and I decided to semi match...meaning that I wore a red shirt white scarf and she wore a white shirt red scarf. Love you Kate!

That evening the gift exchange went crazy, we all drew numbers and picked presents. I picked the BIG box there and inside was a penguin hat scarf? needless to say it was cute and I loved it, a little while later when someone else went they stole it from me :( so I picked another gift, it was one that Alex had bought at Target the Cheeseburger piggy bank. I was ok with that it because it would have gone to Adam or something, but luckily when it was my grandma's turn she took it from me so that gave me the chance to take my penguin scarf hat! From then on it was frozen since it was stolen 2 times! Booyah! That thing is so warm it's ridiculous. The evening was full of people talking, laughter, and just pure enjoyment which I will cherish.

Tile Next Time!

Here is my penguin hat thing isn't it adorable?

K so I lied, this is the only picture I have of Saturday, Alex's face. Aw look at Kate she's happy he's happy!

Day 10: It's beginning to look like Christmas!

This post might be mostly pictures because well, they pretty much sum up this post. I am finally home for the holidays which means I can now decorate with my family. The only part I don't like is that we usually have to move the furniture so we can fit the tree. Well we finally finished. Her are the pictures to prove it!

Til Next Time!

 Here is Adam putting the Angel on top of the tree, what a cutie pie!!

 Some more decorations, the rabbit in the middle is named Flossy and has been around for a LONG time!

 Gotta have the Nativity Scene and Santa Claus!

 Adam did the Nativity Scene all by himself as you can see below!

Oh Christmas Tree Oh Christmas Tree!!

Day 9: Trying Something New

For today's blog I am trying something new. A movie review, yes that is right I will be giving my input on a movie I saw this morning. I do apologize if this is not very good, I don't do this but Kate thought it would be a good idea.... (why Kate?)

Here it goes, the movie I saw this morning was called "A Christmas Wish" it is a Hallmark Movie Channel Movie. I know what people might think, but I enjoy those cheesy, romantic holiday movies although this was not one of them. This movie is about a step mother who's husband has deserted her with her two daughters and stepson, with no money, homeless, and all alone. She moves to a rural town and with the little money she has gets a motel to stay. She finds a job working night shifts in the small town diner which used to be famous for it's homemade root beers. The whole town pitches in and tries to get her a car and see if someone in town will rent out a house to her. (heart warming)A kind teenager watches the children for $8 a week and one night tells the kids a Christmas story. Now this is where it got very interesting. Going into this movie you would have never suspected it having a Christian edge to it, but it does in a way and this is one of the many reasons why I loved it. After the babysitter's story the older daughter draws a tree on the wall of their room and encourages her step-brother to believe and God. Particularly in one part the boy's biological father comes back and takes the boy away saddened the mother walks along the town thinking about the boy and how everything has been and eventually comes up to a gazebo decorated for Christmas which she falls down on her knees crying to God asking to keep her step-son because she cares about him and loves him. As she is walking back to her motel room she finds her step son, this really got the tears a rollin'. 

All in all this movie was grand. Totally would recommend it. Don't hate Hallmark Channel, give it a chance you might come across a good holiday movie like this one. I hope you enjoyed my movie review, I hope you could understand it haha

Til Next Time!

This was the best picture I could get, doesn't it look interesting?

Day 8: Home Again!

First of all I wanna thank SEAN for the Merry Christmas banner....He's so computer savvy! THANK YOU SWEETIE!! Today was my first whole day home from school and so far it has not been grand. Last night was a BIG no bueno in my book. Had a scorching headache and started crying because it wouldn't go away, long story short it went away and I didn't get to sleep til after 3am. Today I have been fine, didn't do much throughout the day and this evening I went to Family Night at my church. This was my first time since they had started it when I left for school at the end of the summer. It was good to be back , but it also felt weird. Kate had asked me to help her with the kids, so I did. I didn't know what lesson they were on, but overall I had fun! It's funny these kids are at least like 3 years younger( the ages range up to high school) but sometimes I feel like I'm not an adult helping out I mean sometimes I don't feel like I look the part. Do I look 20? most people say I don't and I mean its a good thing but also a bad thing. I don't know, maybe I'm just rambling on about nothing.

Sometimes I wish I had more freedom in my life. I realize that I have a lot of freedom except when it comes to being at home under my dads roof. When I'm at school I can go to and from anywhere I like whenever I would like. Here its another story, I have my own car and yet I can't go as I please. I know as in my previous post that parents will always be parents, but I can't go out past nine? I wish I had my own place sometimes so I can be my own person and still come home and go to church. I wish I had the ability to make my own decisions at home like I do at school. Well it's off to bed for me, hopefully I will write pretty much everyday since I have nothing to do now haha :p

Til Next Time!

Here I am drinking Hot Tea in my freeeezzing room! YUM!

Day 7ish: Catch Up

So right now I'm in the library waiting for a study session that was supposed to start at 10:30 but no one is here, so to pass the time I decided to catch up on writing my blog. This week has gone by so fast and so far I haven't gotten much studying done as I would have liked. I have two finals on monday and I'm stressed out. My head is killing me, I'm tired, hungry, and worried about my French final! My headache started last night while I was studying. I thought my sleeping it would be ok in the morning....nope still the same. UGH!

I have one last class today before finals and I really don't want to go. I don't want to study I just want to go to sleep. I want to go home and not worry about any of this. I want to be happy and joyful in the Christmas spirit but right now I can't be. I honestly don't know what else to write so I suppose i'll just end here.

Til Next Time!

Day 6: The Long Road Ahead

Today marks the first day of studying throughout my very long week for finals(Mine are all on Monday, bummer!) By this time next week I will be done and enjoying my Winter Break from school. While I'm writing this blog I'm listening to Christmas music on Pandora, this really gets me into the spirit of the holidays. Around this time of the year I feel that everything is perfect and that nothing can go wrong, I think that's the way the music makes me feel. I love it!

While I was walking to class today I was thinking about how I've changed over the years and how different things matter to me now when they didn't before. I was thinking that now I look forward to this year even more now than last year. It's not the presents that I look forward to, it's the small things that I cherish. Like picking on my brother and getting on my moms nerves, having dinner at home and especially waking up Sunday mornings to my dad's wonderful papas(potatoes), sausage and egg burritos, decorating the house, and even putting the lights on our house. When I used to walk home from school during these times and I knew that as soon as I walked in the door my mom would be decorating for Christmas, I would start to smell Christmas. The smell is basically rain combined with the smell of a Christmas tree. I love it and when I go home from school to this day I can still smell it. It warms my heart.

Year after year I look forward to this year more and more. I'm excited to go home and see all of my friends and family and spend 3 lovely weeks with them. I don't think this feeling will ever go away. Even as I grow older and eventually get married and have a family of my own I'm pretty sure I will be one of those parents that goes decorating crazy for Christmas, hopefully my kids feel the same way, if not then oh well more Christmas cheer for me! I decided that this year I would send out Christmas cards. My family has done them before, but not for awhile and so I decided that it would be a good way to show people that you are thinking of them at this time of year. This is great especially if they are currently going through things. I can't wait to mail them and receive the usual ones in the mail. Good times are yet to come!

Til Next Time!

This is my color changing penguin I bought at Target, it now resides on my desk giving my room some Christmas GLOW!

Day 5: Gratefulness (thankful)

So this is going to be my Thanksgiving post since its tomorrow and I might be in too much of a food coma to write anything :p

I love this time of year, not just for the food or the presents, but because I love being with my family and the people I love. I love the traditions my family and I have, the ones that I can remember growing up to. These traditions include for Thanksgiving, going to my grandma Nina's house for lunch with my dad's half of the family then over my house for dinner. I love helping my dad cook, that's right my dad is the cook in our family, the turkey and preparing everything especially making our homemade apple cider, it goes great with everything!

Like Thanksgiving, we have our Christmas traditions. They are gonna be a bit different this year since Christmas is on a Sunday. Usually what we do is Christmas Eve is our service at our local church, then we come home and bake cookies for what used to be Santa, but now I make them for anyone who wants them. Then Christmas morning we all wake up early and open presents. Since I'm older now and don't get much sleep at school I tend to be the last one to wake up. After presents we go to my grandma Esther's for Christmas breakfast and presents. Later that day we head to my aunt and uncles for Christmas dinner. Out of all of these things I have grown to love just being around my family and having a good time laughing and making memories. I remember when I was a kid all I would think about were the presents, but can you blame me? I was a kid, nothing was better than getting toys. 

I hope to make my own traditions when I have a family of my own and look forward to their company. It's at this time that I say I am very thankful for my family and friends and all of my loved ones. They make me who I am and I always look forward to seeing all of them. I'm a lucky person. I have a wonderful family, great friends, an AWESOME boyfriend!(Sean :D) and so many people that love and care about me. I wouldn't trade my life for anything in the world. Go and hug someone special to you and tell them how thankful you are to have them in your life!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Til Next Time!

This is my wonderful family that I cannot live without! This is from the summer of 08

Day 4: The Future

Yesterday my AWESOME boyfriend and I went to my church back home and surprised everyone...well except for one person Kendra. I had to tell someone so I told her, but the best part was that I succeeded! I loved seeing everyone so happy, my grandma, my aunt, and my mom. My mom especially, she looked like she was going to cry. The thing was that I had talked to her 2 days before on the phone saying that I would be home the night before Thanksgiving. This brought joy to my heart.

Like the title says this blog is about the future. I think about the future A LOT, probably more than most people. I worry how it will turn out, whether it will be good or bad, how I will be in the future and how my life will be. When my boyfriend found out ow much I think about the future, he seemed to get frustrated. He said I worry too much about the things that haven't even happened yet. I know it's true, but I can't seem to get away from that, it's just who I am. I worry so much that I stress out and it doesn't seem like its something I can control.....willingly.

I guess this is something I should really work on though there are some things I love thinking about! Being a girl and all I tend to think about my wedding and even the proposal, I even have my dress picked out already! An off the shoulder dress, backside corset with pickups. I think about having a family and doing all of the motherly/parental things you know? That's not so bad right?

Til Next Time!

ONLY 2 MORE DAYS TIL I GO HOME FOR THANKSGIVING!!!!

Here is the dress I've pictured for the longest time :D