24 Days and MAJOR NEWS... well, hopefully...

i think... we may... have... a place.

yes, it's true. we should be signing the papers and giving the deposit this weekend. and then.... the newest o'roarks will have a place to live.... *EEEEEEEK*

i had a mini freak out this at 5am this morning. i had to call chris.... don't yell at me, he was at work, wide awake!!

i just woke up and thought about all the things that need to get done in 3 weeks. why did i ever go to micheals??? i need to stop going on the theknot!!! too many ideas! but, i already started, so i can't stop now!!!

then, i thought about all the things will need to actually live. first, we're going to be paying rent. i'm going to cook for someone every day. as excited as i am about that, i think it's starting to freak me out a little bit. plus, we'll have to buy our own things... go grocery shopping for ourselves.. i feel the need for a job upgrade.. real fast!

not just that, but we need a bed, and a bed frame. i need a new dresser... we need a fridge, a couch.... an hd tv converter!!! oh my moses... we don't even have sheets!!!

i should stop, i'm starting to breathe heavily again...

seriously???? seriously.

*besos*

seriously?!?!?!??!

26 DAYS!!!!!

Holy Mother!!!!!

amy!!!! we need to get a craftin'!!!!! are you free saturday???? who's free on saturday!!!

*besos*

so i got a text this morning....

from miss e baldwin... it said "One month!:)"....

oh my holymen!!!! i'm getting married in one month!!!!

honestly, this is really insane to think about. cs and i went to check out these apartments in lakewood. they are not too far from where joel and ashley live. we were approved for a place in the same complex where they live, but would couldn't wrap our mind around paying $1425 a month. *yikes* is right! so, we let that go. we were kinda worried that we were letting our only option go... but we got over that pretty quick!

anywho, we saw two places in this funny little complex that has about 20 units. i thought the place was cute. the two apartments were on the 2nd floor, and one had 1 bedroom while the other had 2. i liked both. i like the 2 bedroom because the living room/dining room looked bigger. but, the 1 bedroom was nice too. the bedroom was bigger than the other place.... plus, you 'll never believe the storage space! seriously, the hall closet could qualify as a second bedroom! and, this one is no where near $1425.... we applied for it...

in all the house hunting, i'm really sad. the chance of bringing rubi with us gets slimmer and slimmer. i almost started to cry yesterday when learsi was after me about considering a place that had no room for her. i know what she means, but, it's not like you can just rent a place with a yard that lets you have a dog! it's soooo sad... i wish i could bring my little baby with me.. but, i know God has a plan...

my plan for her?? introduce her to this spastastic dog i know, sampson. then i'll let amy take her... dude, those two dogs would drive her crazy!! imagine: 120 lbs of psycho dogs! little rubi jumping like a loon, and sam joining her! too fun!!! yes, we must plan a play date!

anywho, so... i get married in a month!!! i'm sooooooooooo exciiiiiiited!!! slightly freaked out, but i think that's normal....

*besos*

fun update!

norma and i are moving!!!

we got an email yesterday that we're getting the office with a window! yay!!! there's actually room on that office!

yay!!

now, to pack...

*besos*

ps...

it's raining again...

*besos*

i just wanted...

to post a pretty picture!

you see, lizzy.... he does look at the camara!

*besos*

beauty is such a pain

PSA: there will be graphic language in the following post...

so,

i've been going to get facials every month for the last 7 months. it's great.. really, it is. i really look forward to going and getting my pores de-clogged. then she does the fabulous micodermabrasion. i have spent a not so small fortune on getting my face bridal ready...

however, there are times when it isn't so fun. like yesterday. my face has been misbehaving rather badly these last 2 weeks. and, i suffered greatly for it.

i knew it was going to be painful when i woke up last friday to feel some of those yucky under-the-skin pimples. you know.. the really painful ones? so yeah, i had more than one. i said to myself "self: at least you have an appointment to get a facial on wednesday" then i cried a little b/c i knew it would hurt.

flash forward to yesterday. when i got to the office, the facial lady called me into the room and i told her that my face was doing pretty bad lately. she agreed and prepared me for what lay ahead.

for those of you who haven't had a facial before.. they aren't all fun and games. if you have to go for an acne cleansing... be prepared to cry! first, she wiped my face with cleanser and left me under the humidifier for about 10 minutes. and that's when the fun ended.

with out too much gore: they get this sharp little tool and stab you pore to open it up. then, if it's a small one, they use this scraper thing to extract whatever is inside. but, if it's big, they stab it a few more times and squeeeeeze the life out of it. i thought i was going to die! i swear there was blood and nast everywhere!

it was horrible!

but, now, after surviving the worst facial of my life (yeah... it was that bad... *tear*), i think i'll be okay. i made two more appointments between now and the wedding. so, hopefully i will be bridal ready... or, i will be using a TON of make-up.

*besos*

i love winter time!!!

except when it's tre buhu cold!!!

sure, it's only, like, 50 degrees, and our friends out on the east coast are really suffering... but we usually have sun!!

although, i must say... i like the rain. don't like driving in it too much, but i still like it.

all i ask is that the clouds get all the rain out of their system by mid-january. really, once the 27th, 28th start rolling around, feel free to rain again. but, from the 20th to the 26th, i want sunshine!!

*besos*

holy cow...

40 Days!!!!

i'm getting married in 40 days!!!

we're filling out applications for apartments... pray we get something soon! chris is feeling the stress more than i am because, and i quote, "he's the guy".... i heart that he wants to take care of me. and, i heart that he like for me to take care of him... i like doing that.

but... seriously... 40 days!

*besos*

new fun on the wedding front...

too much work at work to really get in to it all but... here go my checks...

1) had the dress fitting *yay* i loooooooove my dress. it's fabulous. i wish i could wear it every day. but alas, i must treasure those moments when petra makes me stand on the platform and stare at myself in the mirror....

2) rsvp deadline in here!!!! those of you you have yet to send them... send them! or, you may receive a phone call from either myself or the handsome christopher. so far, we have plenty of people who have promised t be there.... now, if you say are coming... that makes me excited.... so you can't decide that day to not come!! *sigh*

3) we have our marriage license!!!! it gets harder not to run off and get married. but, then we think about all that we already have invested... no way would i run off now! although, these next 43 days might just kill me! i still have about a million things to do! luckily for me, amy gets bored when she's not at work... i love when she's on vacay!

4) we found a few possibilities for housing... the likelihood that little rubi won't come with us is very high *tears* *many tears* but i know that whatever God gives us will be perfect!

i think that's about it for now... actually, wait!!! i have something!!!! trivial and frivolous, but still..... i found my wedding nail polish!!! no, i'm not doing the french tip thing.... so happy!!!

*besos*

oh disneyland, oh disneyland... how pretty is you singing...

yesterday i had the fun job of being a chaperon as disneyland for my little cassandra's choir. they we part of the candlelight ceremony that disneyland has every year. i guees her choir was selected last year, and again this year... but this was cass' first year to go.

it was really cool.

first, after driving around east la and whittier foreeever, we finally made it on the road. after much drama with leaving after the bus, loosing the bus, and having the bust get lost, we finally made it our parking lot. then, there was drama with getting the kids snacks. *ha, i call them kids and they area all taller than me!*

finally, like 6 million hours after we got to the parking lot, we were able to head down to the backstage area. yes, i was backstage in mickey's house. as odd as it was, it still didn't loose any of the magic! i loooove disneyland!

so, we went with the choir to this huge warehouse full of singers.. .all ages. i think the choir total was about 500. it was pretty impressive. but the coolest thing was when the director came out, she lisfter her batton, sang the first couple of bars of The First Noel explaining what she wanted and directed them to begin. then, in this perfect unison, in this amazing harmony, 500 voices started singing. it was amaaazing!

anywho... so they were going to practice for the next 12 hours... okay, maybe 2, but still. with disneyland right on the other side of the wall.. are you kidding me! sandra (cass' mom/fellow chaperon) and decided to go out to the park. it was nice. we walked around quite a bit... got on two rides. walked to california adventures and had some dinner. can you believe we saw a cat, yes.. a real cat, walking around? huh, that's what i said!

anywho, we shopped a little too. then we got ready to get in line to watch cass and about 500 other singers put on one heck of a show..

the show was fabulous! i love it. i was sooo proud of cassandra for being up there singing. it was really cool to be there. even if i did get home at 1am, and my feet still hurt. i really enjoyed it...

but, as always, there is more the story.

the narrator (john stamos, anyone?) actually read from the bible during the ceremony. like, he would read verses, then they would sing. the way they do at most churches for the christmas program. and that made me think...

i was reminded of paul when he said that there were those who would preach the gospel out of anger or selfishness and hate, and there were those who would preach out of love. and that he would rejoice in both, because regardless of how, the gospel was being preached. and that's what disneyland reminded me of.

it made me think of out society and how so many are willing to just throw out these words, without really knowing what they're saying. did john stamos know he was sharing the story of the True Jesus to all the people? maybe, i don't know. but i do know that as much as i love disneyland, it really isn't very christian of a place. nor are too many other places.. you know?

however, i think cass said it best later that night when we were on our way home. sandra and i we're mentioning what i just wrote about.. and cass, being her super enlightened 16 year old self said, "but i kept waint for them to say that He's still alive. they just ended on that He was killed, they never said anything about Him coming back to life."

i hadn't even realized that. i was so busy making this big dissertation in my head about paul and false teachers and i hear cass' take on the whole thing...

ahh yes, they do listen some times!

*besos*

ms baldwin...

are you no longer thankful? i did so like reading what you were thankful for..... how about you count down from now until christmas about the gifts Christ has given you....

hey, i'll do it too! starting tomorrow we'll have the 21 days of christmas (hey, we will have already missed 3 days by then!)!!! oh, the fun!!

anyone else... join in! you know you have nothing better to to do than to think and talk about the wonderful things God has given you!

*besos*

grrrrr

i don't like quiznos.

but i'm lame because i know this, but keep go back to see if maybe it's different. it's not. it's yucky.

someone kick me.

*besos*

had a fabulously productive saturday!!!

yay the shopping!!

amy came over friday night (you should ask her about all the freeways she was on... her poor car!) and we made a plan of action for saturday. i dont remember what time we went to bed... but i'm sure it wasn't as late as other times we've gone to bed. *side note* we all slept over at amy's house once and we up 'til 3 doing elisabeth's hair.. then around 4 or 5, amy, elisabeth and i fell asleep on the rug on floor, and astrid and gracie slept on the couch. we then woke up at like 8am... it was great! or the time elisabeth tried to sleep on my head... oh the sleep over fun!

anywho, we went to bed around 1... you see, early! then we were up but about 9. amy was desperate to play with rubi. i think you can say rubi was excited too! we didn't have breakfast b/c there was no food. really, even my mom was like "there's no food!"

so off we went... *i drove all day* we went to micheals first and spend like 2 hours there. 30 minutes of that was spent in line. note to self: don't go to micheals at the peak time to redeem some random coupon. anywho, we found A TON of fun stuff. i won't disclose too much info, but we've reached the artsy craftsy part of wedding planning. chris calls it crazy. i call it therapeutic!

then, we went to home depo for more stuff... "what?" you ask? fret not, it'll be great! it was really funny! lets just say , this nice man came to our rescue!

then, went home to drop all the stuff off. then we went off to the south bay. and amy was okay with me driving on the freeway! it was like a roller coaster! oht eh fun! we went to look for this bra shop to find my wedding underthings.. but we didn't stike gold. kinda lame.. but it was okay. so... we headed off to the mall.

if you know any of us.. you know the dangers of the mall... any mall

we first went to get some food... we were starving. remember, no breakfast *i bought a kitkat bar and mini peanut butter cups at micheals. it was a sad state of affairs*. it was yummy, but amy ate it too fast... lame amy! then we went to joanns craft store. can you say drama! we were looking at some fabric. then we went to get card stock for yet another project. we found what we needed... then realized there was a sale... 5 sheets for $0.95 it was amazing... amy went card stock crazy. but, we found some awesome paper. i really wich i could make wedding programs out of hello kitty paper. maybe for amy's next wedding!

anywho, after foreeeever in that store. we got in line, only to realize we had to go to the bano. it was great...

okay, we finally paid for our stuff and went off in search of my underthings... long story short, after many attempts, we finally found something. it's interesting... chris' only request was that it would be easy for him to maneuver. i think this may fit the bill.

then, we did a little christmas/amy needs sweaters shopping. i found one gift. but hey, it's off my list now!

then, we came back home to my house... first got some el pollo loco.. yummy! *sad side note* i had told my dad that i was going to buy him a lasagna from smart and final for dinner. b/c we expected to be home earlier. so, my dad was sad that there was no lasagna. but hey, i made it up to him on sunday!

after eating, we painted. remember the artsy craftsy stage? into full force!

all in all, i think my list is getting smaller... oh the joy! plus, i got to spend time with amy. we don't do that too much any more. not like when i practically lived at her house... sad... but, who knows, if we dont' find a place, out with micah, in with the cso's!

*besos*

*

yesterady i asked chris what he was going to get me for christmas with all this holiday pay he got from working thanksgiving....

his answer: "a wedding"

does that mean no present???

*besos*

it's always an exciting time planning my wedding...

i got a phone call yesterday that some fabulous news.... that was kinda sucky (sorry fran..... i am excited!! really... but sad too...)

my cousins frances, scott, and elijah got the phone call they had been dreaming of. the phone call that told them that they had a court date!!!! yay!!!! it really is exciting.... even if it is 2 days before the wedding.

that's right. they will be in ethiopia when i get married. i almost started crying when she told me. i was excited for them, but really sad for me. but not in a selfish way, i don't think. even if they weren't going to have any part in the wedding, it's hard for me to imagine getting married and not have them there. even as i type this, i'm holding back my tears.

frances and scott are these amazing people that mean the world too me. they were the one's who made me really see God, and what He meant to me. they are the people that would tell me when they weren't happy of what i was doing... and when they were bursting at the seams with pride in me. i mean, they flew out to la all the way from ohio for my collage graduation! it was so huge for them that they had to be there.

and now, it really isn't about finding someone else to do the ceremony, or having my aunt play instead of my cousin... it's about the fact that some of my closest family won't be able to be there.

but, i really am way happy for them! i told them before, if the baby comes then, go get the baby. that is more important than my wedding. and, i can't wait to meet my new cousin, jonathan. then,maybe they can come in the summer time and i can get him a peter pan hat from disneyland.... to match his big brother's!

*besos*

60 days and counting...

holy mother... 60 days? seriously?? *yikes*

so, this weekend we did a billion things for the wedding. i felt so bad because cs was so sick this weekend. but, he drove us up to santa maria and around santa maria for our appointments. it was great... here's a recap..

~saturday 11/22~
we left my house at about 6:45am... yes, you read corretly. we drove up the 101 for a few hours, stopped at seaward in ventura for breakfast at mcdonalds. chris had a sausage egg mcmuffin stacker. if you know him, you can totally see this. her was hungry, but couldn't do too much carby bread, so i suggested getting two egg mcmuffins and putting them together. he gave me this look that said "My beautiful Leilani, you are a genius!!!" i try.
but back to the important stuff... we got to santa maria about 10:00ish. way earlier that expected, but it was great. we got to hang out with the worlds greatest inlaws for a bit before going to mee with Roxann, our florist. she's great, and i totally love working with her. plus, our flowers will actually be LESS than that budget! yay!!
then, chris and went to get lunch.. hello santa maria burger!!! mmmmmmm, i want it now! for any you going to the wedding, santa maria burger is a must!!
okay, then dini and i went to meet with bruce to do my hair trial #2. it went really well. it took a bit, but he got my vision... i'm excited!
then.... THANKSGIVING!!! dini made the full on meal because cs and i weren't going to be up there for the actual day. amy will... let me tell you are they excited! *i think they like amy more than they like me.. .and if they likeme more than they like chris... well, i guess you know who the favorite child is!* okay, back to the food.. amazing! i think cs expects me to make such magical dinners when we get married... i'll have to take some lessons....

~sunday 11/23~
we woke up that morning to make ceviche for kevin. i made it for him the first time i went up to santa maria 3 years ago *dude that was a loooong time ago* before chris and i were dating. why was i up there? long story. but, as you guessed, i was not so secretly in love with him then... anywho, we were all chopping and stiring; it was great.
then cs and i had to go meet with out photog. nice guy... i like his dog daisy. anywho, it was fun. we got to get a timeline with them in order. *huge help* and it was nice to know that he and his wife were like "it's your day, anything that happens, planned or not, we'll just be taking pictures!". so nice... and we really like his work. so, it'll be great.
when we came home, we had left over turkey sandwiches.. yummy! then dini and i went to look fro mother of the groom dresses. there were some nice ones. i liked the gray and black ones... but cs and kevind are like "what's wrong with you!! it's a wedding". dini, wear what makes you feel pretty!
we came home and everyone fell asleep. it was great. were we're all sitting in the living room watching tv.. then one by one we fell.. chris didn't fall asleep then, but her did later!
and we got ready for the san juans to come over for dinner. we had ceviche and tostadas de frijoles. we talked wedding the whole time, since michelle and sheldon just got engaged. chris amd i tried to share some of our wisdom with them. if anything, i hope tehy got 2 things out of it.. .michelle, buy your dress soon!! and that there still needs to be money for after the wedding too. but, i think they'll be okay!

~monday 11/24~
two months to go!
that morning we went to the santa maria inn to meet with sarah, the sales manager. we got to check out the rooms, i'm sorry, suites, that we'll be staying in. oh my moses, it's fabulous! she's really nice. she and her husband will be coming to the wedding too. oh, and she's anthony and cheryl *the sanjuans form the nite before*'s daughter in law. yes, we like to keep things in the family.
after that we went to put a deposit on our cake. and bought soem jalapeno cheese bread...
then.... the rings!!! we got our rings!!! i wanted to keep mine on. i think chris is going to have to hide them really well, so we won't go to the courthouse.... but, it'll be okay... my dress is too fabulous to run to the courthouse!
then we went back home to ahev ceviche for lunch with kevin... went to visit dini at work... then headed home.

chris missed work again last night... pray that her gets better. he couldn't talk on sunday, i felt so bad.. my poor little man...

best part of the weekend... lookign through old pictures for the slide show... it was great! i love chris as a little boy. and, i think i probably wouldhave had a crush on him when he was in high school....

*besos*

totally had a bomb bridal shower this weekend!

i'm lame... i haven't blogged about it yet... but here you go!

it was fantastical. and there were a ton of people there. chris' mom and aunts came; so that was cool. my mom was really nervous to meet nina and aunt lu... but i think it went well. i was sad that chris' aunt irene didn't come... but that's okay.

so, the party started on friday when it took me 2 HOURS to get to santa ana to pick up ely. traffic on the 5 was horrible... but it was worth it! i picked her up, then we went to ziba to get my eyebrows did (tre nice), and took the 405 home. the 5 north was worse the 5 south... no way was i getting on that back home!

anywho, we got to my house and it was total chaos. amy and diana had come over to help learsi set things up (my parents were in texas for my grama's funeral... they flew back early saturday morning). adriana *my other mother* and abraham were there with broken amred sophi to bring table and chairs. i wanted to get inside the house, but i was not allowed. so, i was given keys to move cars from the driveway... yes, we're soo mexican we have a ton of cars sitting around! after moving cars around, i was finally let into the house.

pizza and my little rubi flying around the house... that's what i was met with. then i walked into the kitchen... i think they bought every imaginable thing to feed the world the next day....

because this could get very long if i keep describing play by play... i'll get quick...

i got a ton of gifts for the house... sooo many... now i have to write ll the thank you notes... i have a year, right? *kidding* lots of unmentionables. let me just say that we don't know miss elisabeth as well as we think we do!

it was so much fun. i'm so thankful for my mom and my sister for working so hard, even with my grama's passing so recent. and i'm super thankful for amy, diana, eli, elisabeth, jenny, adriana, sophi *and her cast*, and everyone else that helped.

i'm so happy that so many people came. it was great to feel the love from all of my friends and family. i wish the out of town bakers lived closer... but i know you were there in spirit!!

thank you all for everything! now... on to january!

*besos*

i love the smell of smoke...

there are 3 things in you can count on for sure in la... traffic, earthquakes, and fires in the call. everything else in la is a perk. really.

there are about a ton of things burning up in the greater los angeles area (this covers most of san bernadino and orange county.. why? because.). yesterday was really bad around home. diamond bar is about 15-20 minutes from my house, and it was burning up. so, there was tons of ash on the cars and smoke everywhere. it smelled great! really, it made me crave a hot dog and a hamburger or two.

but in all honesty, it really sucked. on friday, 200 homes were lost in montecito. then on saturday, about 500 mobile homes were lost in sylmar. there were other countless homes lost in corona and in places i don't even know the names of. it's really sad...

but, it's really just this huge reminder of how fleeting everything is. of how everything we have, want, work for... its all essentially nothing. it can be taken away in an instant, and sometimes there is really nothing we can do about it. except trust God. but really, that's all we can do anyway.

at GAP last night we were going over what we learned from 2nd Timothy... and everything came back to the charge Paul gave to Timothy... to never back down, to never be ashamed, to live a life the exudes Christ and His death on the cross, to be ready to fight for Christ, to be willing to loose it all for His sake.

how does this have anything to do with the fires in la... our treasure is not here! we are here to reach other for Christ! that is is our work. all we have, everything, is a gift that He has given us because of His grace.

so, pray for those who lost everything. but pray even harder for those who will loose more if we don't reach them! and pray for our hearts and our minds so that we will always focus on The Truth. pray for our courage and our willingness!!

why to i love the smell of smoke? because it means we're fanning the flames!!

*besos*

this one is the best....

this is our favorite picture... well.. it's my favorite anyway. there are other super cute ones... but i really like this one because i think you can really see how we feel.... ahhh, he makes me happy!

*besos*

just thought i'd try this out...

i think it worked!!!

*besos*

HUGE CHECK OFF THE LIST!!!

ahh... now i just have to sit back and wait for the rsvp's... oh, the invites went out. yay!!!

now.. we need place to live! i'm still not too freaked out. but, if by when obama officially becomes president i don't have a place to rest my pretty little head... be prepared to meet super freak out leilani!

*besos*

prayer please!!

i haven't looked at a single place on craigslist all week. yeah. i know...

we need place! i know God will provide. in fact, He already has a place for us! i'm sure of this... so, we'll just remain faithful, knowing that God will always take care of us!

*besos*

lame... and then not so much..

little glitch... but it'll be fine. actually, after talking to chris about it, and him being oh so cool about it.. it was fine... i felt better!

oh!!! learsi's boyfriend, viko, is going to email me the *edited* pictures that he took last weekend. i never even mentioned it... it was lots of fun. it think learsi and viko should become a photog team. it'll be great! learsi has this great eye for certain shots. and viko likes to be way artsy about how to take the pictures. plus, they're both perfectionists.

i promise that i'll try to figure out how to post pictures for my next one!

*besos*

my pretty invitations

we finally are getting to the point where we can actually send them all out! we're sooo behind. well, just a day or two. but still... yay!!

we have this assembly line going for putting the stuff together then stuffing all of the into an envelope, then shoving all of that into the bigger envelope... oh the drama. but, i think they look so nice! remember, nothing dramatic.. but still pretty!

chris and i have been at it off and on since this past saturday. but, i think we're finally ready to start addressing them!

hopefully they will all be out by satuday morning!!

*besos*

yay!!!

i finally figured out how to use my calculator to my advantage!!

the world of statistics is now mine!!!

haaaa-haaaa-haaaaa!!

*besos*

new policies.. new president...

not a real reflection about everything that happened last night.. more of a reflection about who Jesus is...

because of Christ, i really don't have to worry about what an election holds. i am a firm believer of the truth that God is in control of everything, and does all things for His pleasure and His glory. regardless of who won, i know the real battle is still being waged. not only that, but the real battle has already been won by God!! no need to loose sleep!

whether you agree with Obama being president, pray for him. he has a huge job to do, and the way he does it will affect all of us. be grateful that you live in a nation that, with all it's flaws, has a system that allows us to get off our butts to tell the world how we feel. be grateful that you praise a God who will carry you through every hardship, and that is in control of all things.

*besos*

it's election day.. and i'm tired..

of people opposing Prop 8, that is...

i'm just really annoyed with the arguments and the tv ads... it has nothing to do with civil rights people!!

we all know how i feel about homosexual relationships in general; it's sinful. and that's that. but, being someone who studied the science of politics and studied civil rights laws.. i am particularly annoyed by Prop 8.

it's just... it's not a civil rights issue. for them to say that it's just like when blacks and whites couldn't marry.. it so isn't!! as far as i know (and i know a lot of random information), homosexuality is neither a race nor a gender. it is not something you are born with, it is a choice you make. there is no other way to look at it. now, if there was some sort of legal citing saying that homosexuality was a race or a gender, i would say that , yes, they are being discriminated against and it is a civil rights issue. would i join their camp, no.

but, that being said... you can't really discriminate someone on their lifestyle choice. now, i like pink.. i love pink. the store across the street only sells green items. will i go shopping there? probably not. will i sue them because they don't sell pink? no. it's my choice. the day i chose to like pink, i limited my options on other things.

aside from the sin that is homosexuality... choosing to be homosexual and choosing to live that lifestyle is much like my dilemma of shopping at that darn green store. you know the law says you can't get married. but, that's what you chose! you all make decisions that affect things we want. i'm getting married knowing that i'm in no position to buy a house. i can wait 'til a house is within my reach... but i want to get married now. who am i to complain that there is no way for me to buy a house! it's ridiculous!

i just don't get it... it isn't a civil rights issue! it's a choice! you choose to be gay or lesbian, deal with the fact that you can't be legally married.

there... i've said my piece. and, if you have any questions... i have a few books about the constitution of this country. marriage isn't a right.. it's a privilege... homosexuality isn't a gender or race... it's a lifestyle.

that's it. i couls say more... but i won't...

*besos*

ah, halloween.

i wore my cow ears to work today as my "costume". come on, it's a children's hospital, for beef's sake. of course we're supposed to dress up!

anywho, i had a patient today and he loved my costume. he is very much one of amy's students, so i wasn't to shocked or concerned by his comment to my cow-ness. his mom was so embarrassed though...

but... he saw me, giggled a bit and with a big smile said, "some one is going to take you to the barn and milk you".

yeah... too funny.

*besos*

it's almost time...

we passed the 3 month mark last week with no real bang other than me getting sick. but, yes, we are down to less than 3 months. *yikes* *yay* i can't decide! tee hee... more yay than yikes!

anywho, i'm full swing into my bubble project. i need to finish another couple of packs of those.. so cute! learsi saw them and was like, "wow, nani... look at you!" and, we got our wedding favors *too cute*, and senor chris is working on those. yes, we're very hands on! next task that needs to start is the centerpieces. we have to glue stuff to things.. plus find the tall candles. they have them at micheals, but i'm still hoping i can find them cheaper elsewhere. eh, i'm sure it'll be okay. and, i need to ask my dad about making a card box. "why?", you ask? because i think it'll be cool.

but the big thing... invitation preparations. we have them, now we have to organize ourselves and start the tedious job of addressing them. i just wish we had all the addresses. but we're almost there! i'm actually quite impressed by all that we have done so far. oh, i need to call more people about hotel room blocks. yes, those of you who chose to stay out in santa maria will have a nice array of places to stay at!

oh.. the biggest thing of all: we need a place to live! keep praying!

*besos*

YAAAAAAY!!!!! WOOOO-HOOOOOO!!!

oh my beefy beef!!!

my cousin frances and her husband scott got the phone call they've been waiting for, for so long.... there's a baby waiting for them in ethiopia!!!

thank you for all your prayers until now! but, please pray that God will allow the process of getting him to ohio to be with his family to be a quick one!

fran, scott, and elijah... i'm soooo happy for you!! i already love my new cousin!!!

*besos*

i'm sick... like really

so... i have food poisoning... oh the joy.

the thing is, i don't know where it came from. i have von's sushi for lunch yesterday (it really isn't that bad...), but i didn't get sick until right before i started eating dinner at ms amy's.... so no, it wasn't her cooking!

but, i felt a little off before dinner, and didn't think too much of it. if you know me, you know my stomach always feels a little off. bueno, i ate dinner and what not, and felt super full. but i figured it was because i ate a lot.

flash forward a half hour... it was not good. then all last night, was not good either. the super stomach pains (the one's that make you dread child birth... yeah, those.) have finally subsided a bit. that just means they aren't as constant as they were before. but, yep, still there.

therefore, chris and i have taken over ms amy's house. i took over her bed, and just got our of it about 15 minutes ago. and chris, the good guy that he is, wanted to take care of me... he's sleeping on the couch. but that's fine. i just need his presence and i feel better!

okay, pray that i get well again... and that i can figure out what is trying to kill me from the inside!

i think i'm going back to bed... feelin' kinda light headed now...

*besos*

please pray...

i have a friend named amy, and she needs your prayer right now. well, we all need prayer all the time... but her dog is really sick. sam and copper are her babies... and copper is really sick. i have to be honest, i'm tearing up just blogging about it.

i know a lot of people are like, "they're just pets." but, if you have one, you know the bond that is created with your animals. i think of copper and imagine my little rubi. i amy is the strongest person i know, and she having a hard time right now....

please keep her in your prayers. and pray that copper will be okay.

*besos*

apartment hunting...

did you know... it's hard to find a nice place for a good price in a decent area of los angeles? yeah, it is. especially when you take into consideration that the people living in the house will have to travel to hollywood and long beach. those aren't exactly down the street from each other!

pray that we'll find a place to live. a place where chris will be comfortable leaving me alone, a place where i'll be comfortable sleeping, that won't make our commutes longer, and that will be affordable. hey, God wants us to be specific in our prayers!

*besos*

kinda freaking out here...

i just purchased the honeymoon package!!!! 7 days (well, 5 full days and 2 half days) and 6 nights in cozumel, quintana roo, mexico!! and, we booked packages to go to the ruins!! to of those full days will be spent trecking around the mayan ruins... and the other three days will be spent relaxing at the beach. i plan on getting dark! how exciting!!

but, i'm freaking out... about the honeymoon. but, about the money we spent on it. it was actually a good deal.. but getting married is pricey! if we didn't have our families helping us out... i don't know how we'd make it. really!!!

but, at least the big things are coming of the list! yay!!!

*besos*

sad

so... my car.. the one i'm still driving *not the super fabulous fantastical car that chris is still making perfect for me* lost a part of itself today... the heater/ac.

okay, it didn't really work to begin with. it always had to be on full blast, which is okay it it's really cold or really hot... but it's kinda loud. for the last couple of weeks i've been using the defroster for my windshield. granted, i had to open the windows too to make the process a little more quick... but it was something!

this morning, i went to turn on the defroster for my windshield... and nothing. and said to myself, "self, maybe you didn't turn the nob to full blast." so, i turned the nob to full blast. nothing. so i fiddled with it a little bit, and still. nothing.

it's kinda sad. my poor little car. i love my little car!

anywho, i'm in the process of finding it a new home. i think it may have one in east la with one of my former high school students (former... he just started collage!). he knows all about the falling apart-ness that is my little car. but i guess, there is time in every males life where he has to tinker with a car and be able to say 'I made this work!'... so, i think we'll let him do that!

but, i hope it isn't really hot on my way home!

*besos*

cute bubbles!

so,

i'm planning on having everyone in audience at the wedding blow bubbles during the recessional after the ceremony. and then maybe again when we leave the reception. but, i've been looking for little bubble wants that i can make look cute...

found them!

i found them at micheals. they are these little wands that *amazingly* produce a ton of bubble in one blow. i found some cute little white ribbon to tie around the tops of them, where you hold the wand. but, the best part is the cute little charms i'm adding to the bow. it's this little charm that says "to love and to cherish" on it. and i'm tying it right at the bow. they're so cute! plus, they aren't super dramatic.. and they aren't super expensive!

anywho, thought i'd share!

*leilani*

i have a new caaaar!!!

tee-hee... i like it.

if i could post pictures of things.. you'd totally see a picture of my car right now. but alas, i'm lame. actually, i should probably get a picture of it first...

anywho, it's a mini mini van. really. the kids at church are like, "leilani, it's like a young mom car." and astrid says, "you're like a soccer mom.... without the kids!" ps.. pray for astrid. we now need to get her a new car too!

but it's cool. it totally goes with chris' married man car. no, not girl car. responsible married man car. thank you. and, we're a family of little silver bullets.

but, God really is great. i needed a new car. but He gave me even more than that. He made sure chris would be concerned about my well being and safety, so He gave us a good car. but He also spoils me... i now have a wagon-y car; something i've always wanted. it has a radio (!!), a cd player, a heater (super !!!), and an ac (super duper !!!). it's amazing when you see how God gives you not only what you need, but He likes to bless you with even more.

i'm so happy!!! i'm super grateful for my car. i'm sad to let go of my little car. and this other one seems really grown up... but i'm excited!

*besos*

counseling...

huh, i really don't know what to say...

we went yesterday evening to counseling. it was pretty interesting. chris isn't too fond of the guy. i think he's fine. i just feel like sometimes he takes chris' answers about things as our answer. i guess it's okay, since he will be the head of the marriage.... but, eh.

and... i complain a lot. i know this already, and i've been trying. but, i'm sure i haven't been doing a very good job. also, i have to help chris not be so stubborn. good luck, says i! but, i guess i should be praying about that!

i think it'll be good. next week i think the lesson is about in-laws. this should be fun.... oh, he asked us if we were committing sexual sin. and again, we said no.

oh, ps... we found me a new car!!! actually, chris did. he's really good at caring for me. it's totally cute, and i really like it! we'll see how it works. it's a 2000 ford focus wagon. i've always wanted a wagon....

*besos*

oh the traffic... oh the drivers...

i left my house early this morning so i could get to work early enough to leave early for pre-martial counseling (go pastor stef!).... and... traffic.

not the freeway kind. worse. the surface street kind. it sucked because 3 intersections didn't have working lights. so it was like stop signs at major intersections.

normally i'm good with traffic. i really don't mind it too much. but, when i have a mission... i get a little upset. however, i was really okay with it this morning. i mean, what can you do? it's not like i can fix the lights myself and make the cars go faster.

but, the worst part was the drivers. these desperate people with complete disregard for traffic rules, lane lines, and other people. the were actually honking for other to get out of their way... when they were the one's ho could have used driving school!

anywho, that's my rant for this morning...

*leilani*

one more check!

so, after much deliberation..... we have ordered the invitations!! aside from a website glitch (it was a huge and costly pain... but it's ll fixed now!), i think it ran pretty smoothly. they aren't the most dramatic invitations, but we think they're really pretty.

now, all i have to do is wait for them to get here so i can address them....

*besos*

$900 for a cool chair, anyone?

you know... you'd think registering for wedding gifts wouldn't be such a big task. i mean... you get to go into a store and scan everything you could ever want for you... oh wait... and your other person.

then comes the drama.

you see, you have to register for things that BOTH of you want... and not just the super hello kitty bathroom stuff; all 700 pieces of it. and, you don't think it should be too bad. well, unless you listen to amy's story about when she and mike went to register. really, i'm surprised they still wanted to live in the same house! but, i'm glad they did!

so, i was worried that chris and i would clash one stuff. you know, because i'm all pink and girly. not to mention the fact that we have the task of registering for things to put in a house that we don't have yet. so, it's like i'm decorating walls that don't exists. what do i mean "it's like"... i am decorating walls that don't exist!! so we walk around the store with color schemes more than a whole look. but hey, at least we already have a bed frame!

anywho, back to the drama. you'd think we'd have trouble blending styles. but really, the pink girly stuff was too girly, even for me! so we really had to curb chris' love of the colors black and gray/grey. which wasn't too bad. he gets a black bathroom.... with cool purple towels!

i guess it's a good thing that we both like really simple things. i love plain white dishes... guess who does too! and, i don't mind that all the appliances aren't the same brand... just so long at they're the same color. plus, get this... i didn't beg for all the pink cooking things! just the mixing bowls and a frying pan. hey, i have the measuring cups and the can opener at home already! besides, i think even i would go crazy in a super pink house. however, i think i may go back and register for the pink standing mixer. i don't bake, but how sweet would that be!

funny story about registering... i discovered that chris likes to wonder off and add random things to the list. yes, could swear that he'd be right next to me, or behind me, when i would hear the scanner go off in some other ailse... far away. i'd turn around and see him looking at me, (the way rubi does when she's hiding something) with this huge grin on his face.... i guess he really needed a spider-man dish set.

but, all in all, it was great fun. we spent 12 hours at target, bed, bath & beyond, and macy's. and, i think we have too huge of a list... but i guess that's okay. oh, we found a really cool chair we wanted at macy's. but then we thought that $900 for a chair, on sale, might be a bit much...

*besos*

to new office... or not to new office...

so... if you've never been to my office... might not understand it's itty-bittyness. ask elisabeth... it was hard for the two uf us tiny people to be in this place. it's like a long rectangle. about 12 feet by 5ish.. small. and, i share it with norma. i love norma! so it's okay to be in theses cramped quarters with her. she and i are the ones who do tons of the research for the division. and our jobs include requesting lots of charts and looking through them for patient information. so, at any given time there are TONS or charts in our office. plus our desks, shelves and filing cabinet. and... we just have tons of stuff. it's not messy, it's just cluttered, and really it's because of our lack of space...

anywho, an empty office down the hall came on the market. and we want it!

it's about 3 times the size of this one.. if not 4. they want to give it to norma's sister. that's fine... she does tons of work. but.... there's only one of her. even she's like, "hello.... norma and leilani need the office!" besides, she works with the nurses, and our office is right next door to them. that other office is closer to the "research area" (as though there is one...).

so, we placed a bid on the place... and our manager is going to pass that along to the division director. so, we all know what happens when ideas get to the division director....

but, what if we do get it... then we have to move... all. of. our. stuff.

so my new thought process... how many times do we ask for things without every really thinking it through? i mean, really. we ask for everything under the sun. thinking we need it... but do we really? it's all really a fuzzy cracker, you know?

it makes me glad to know that God has my best interest at heart. because, i ask for a lot of things i know i probably don't need, or things i can't handle. but He knows. and He takes care of me.

so, if we get this new office. i will happily pack my stuff and move hem down the hall. then i will thank God for giving me a bigger working space! but, if we don't... i'll say "thank you for not giving me that office.... it obviously wasn't worthy of me anyway!"

*besos*

a mi nobre yo feliz respondere

so,

this past saturday was the 29th aniversary celebration at the church that i grew up in... just a little bit of history: my dad was the pastor there for 25+ years. then, 3 years ago we moved to montebello so he could pastor a church in east la. so, we went for the big shidig that they had. yeah, mexicans like to celebrate church anniversaries... but that cool!

anywho, learsi, viko, and i were sitting towards the back. there were tons of people there that i've known my whole life. and, it was really nice to see them all. i used to see them all the time, but i haven't seen a lot of them in over a year. learsi likes to bring that up as often as she can... but i try not to let it bother me..

but, that was not the reason for this post...

we sang this one song that i had sung a million times. in spanish, obviously.. and maybe a few times in english too. but it's When the Roll is Called Up Yonder (i think that's the name... correct me if i'm wrong). and they have each verse where it talks about working hard for Christ and living in fellowship with our Christian brothers and sisters. and the chorus says (i'm writing in english about the verse in spanish... or else i'd just write the chorus in english!) that when the final roll is called, i will joyfully respond to my name.

and it hit me... when the final battle is fought, and when Jesus comes to take us home, the final roll call will be made. and your either in the club, or not... and it you are in the club, when they call your name to let you in.. how excited will you be?? i was like, "yeah!!! i can't wait!!! call my name already!"

cuando ya se pase lista,
cuando ya se pase lista,
cuando ya se pase lista,
a mi nombre yo feliz respondere!!

i can't wait!

*besos*

THE DRESS, Part 3

oh... it's magical.

i asked ms amy to come with me, since my mom would be able to, and learsi was going to be at work... but I"M IN LOVE WITH MY DRESS!!!

amy kept telling me to stop touching it. is was hard though...

oh, and all of my ladies now have their dresses... i saw amy and ely in theirs, and i think they look fabulous. they seem to like them. or, at least they say they do... but i believe them!!

it's all kinda sorta falling itno place!

~leilani~

THE DRESS, Part 2

i got a phone call yesterday afternoon....

MY DRESS CAME IN EARLY!!!!!

it's at the bridal shop... so i get to try it on on friday!!!

*besos*

THE DRESS

ahhh, the thing little girls dream about... well, i guess not all, but you know what i mean. The Wedding Dress.

my dress is fabulously magical. yes. i said used an adjective as a noun. but really, it is. i know every bride (i'm a bride!) says that about their dress... but mine really is. i went dress shopping only one day with my mom, learsi, amy and dini (chris' mom, remember?), and we found it at the second store we went to.

it wasn't one fo those everyone-starts-to-cry-s-you-know-it's-the-one sort of moments. honestly, when i say the dress i kinda thought, "are you kidding me?" but, considering that the dresses i thought would be best weren't, and the style i though i'd never be able to pull off in a million years kinda worked... tre nicely, i figured i'd give it a try. learsi kept pulling out these scarlett o'hara dresses... so i was scared every time they walked into the dressing room.

my mom actually picked out this one dress... and amy brought it inside saying, "your mom found this one. look, it has all the details you liked about the other dresses. just try it on. you never know." she might not remember that, but that's what she said! so, i put it on, having already decided in my head on another one. i went out to stand in front of the mirror....

**i couldn't stop smiling**

not only was i smiling, but learsi and amy's eyes just got all big and semi watery. and every person in the room had that silly grin on their face. similar to the one chris had after he game my ring. and i didn't want to take it off. it was magical. if you see the pictures, it was the dress i was wearing in all the pictures where i was smiling... the only pictures of me smiling in dresses.

but, since i had 7 billion other dresses to try on. i took it off *sadly* and tried on others. then i sales lady... super nice stacey, asked me if i wanted to put THE DRESS back on. duh!!! let me keep it on, please! so i did... it was magical (like the shower in enchanted!).

no one would let me order it that day. so i left, and had a dream about it that night. plus visions of what the whole wedding would look like. fabulous! i didn't order it for another 2 weeks. july 10th, to be exact...

anywho.. there is a point to this aside from my retelling fo the fabulous magicalness that is my dress....

i called yesterday to check the status.... *tear*....

it won't ship, from austrailia (!!), until mid november. putting it in torrance in early december, at the earliest. yes, i know. i'm not upset, or sad, or any of those... i'm just kinda at a loss. i mean, i know it'll be here on time. i know the alterations will get done in time. but still. it's like all of my wedding plans will be done, the guests will have rsvp'd and bought their tickets and such, and i might still not have my dress...

oh well, i guess as long as everything it needs is done by January 17th, the week before the wedding ...

*besos*

yuck

i just rescheduled my appointment for my yearly physical. it was for the simple reason that i have school on that day. i didn't know i'd have school when i made the appointment in march...

but the thing that sucks... no, not that i'll have to get my blood drawn. and for those of you that remember the fiasco last time, this fact may be a surprise. the thing that sucks.... i foresee a pap in my future.... lame.

i know that i shouldn't have to get one because i'm still not sexually active (check that out pastor stef!) and the last one was normal. but i know my doctor. and she'll totally recommend it... especially since i got one last time... *drats*

and, now that i think about it... i really don't want to get my blood drawn. i guess as long as i don't get the same girl i got last time. i hope esmeralda still works there!!!

*besos*

uggh...

i had an episode last night about work...

i have tons to do and not enough time to do it.

pray that i hang in there... just 10 more months. then i get to start an new, dramatical adventure.

please pray for my sanity and stamina here at CHLA. i feel like i'm being spread too thin... and i can't really do too much about it...

*besos*

hmmmm....

so, cs and i went to calvary chapel shouth bay yesterday to meet with one the pastors for pre-marital counseling... it was interesting.

we met with pastor stef/seth.. i didn't quite catch his name. actually, i think i did catch pastor stef. but seth sounds more normal. eh, i'll ask chris. i wouldn't want to say his name wrong. i know how much It bothers me when people don't say my name right... well, it doesn't really bother me. it just makes me feel like they don't care enough about me to try to remember my name... but enough about that!

he was nice, and i think it'll go pretty well. we are going every other week and working through this workbook called, "preparing for marriage God's Way". so, it's pretty cool. i'm looking forward to learning tools for the future. funny sidenote: he was kinda beating around the bush about asking us if we were sexually active. but he finally just asked, so we were like "no". but, he could have just asked from the beginning. he said he'd be asking us that at every meeting. so, i guess that's cool. maybe i'll say yes one day to freak him out...

then we went to this FABULOUS restaurant. it's a peruvian sushi place in lomita. they have peruvian food and sushi. it's tre tre buhu (how'd you like that one kevin!) yummy. and it's really interesting because there are these obviously japanese people there... and they speak spanish like viko (my sister's peruvian boyfriend). you can't think about it too much...

so, in my way home i was thinking about what chris thinks about a lot... i'm getting married. it's a little daunting when you really think about how your getting married. but, i guess that's a good thing. i mean, i think ms amy would worry about me if i was not slightly freaked out at the idea of living in the same house with chris... forever. this guy who is looking forward to pulling the pillow out from under my head in the middle of the night, like his hero used to. and cooking meals every day.... low carb meals. and, i might even get to raise his children... IT REALLY IS A HUGE THING!!!

but i'm way excited!!! hey... I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!

*besos*

HEY!!!!

today is... The 4 Month Mark!!

only 4 months left!

*besos*

i got my 1st test back...

while i was #17 in a class of 50... i still need to study... a lot.

i still intend on getting an A...

i need to study some more.

*besos*

back to life as i currently know it...

we had a super productive weekend. so, you can understand why i really had no desire to get out of bed this morning. you know how you always need a vacation after your vacation? kinda like that, except this wasn't a vacation... it was a wedding planning trip!

dini (my fantabulous FMIL) was like, "when are you guys going to be able to come up just for fun?" think the response was the same as the one i gave learsi when she asked me when i calender was free... FEBRUARY. yeah, i wish you could see me calender. it stresses me out....

anywho, back to our productive weekend.

Saturday:
chris and i (along with dini) went to meet with 2 florists. the first lady was too nice. she was super excited about flowers and my desire to stay away from roses whenever possible. and, she loved my color ideas, she was like, "so may girls stick to white in that tight bunch.... thank you Martha Stewart... i'm so glad you have color!" she was really cool. the second place we went to wasn't nearly as exciting. while the man was nice, i didn't feel the excitement. what chris noticed about this place: the table we were sitting at was super dusty. and, not only was it dusty, there were dead flies on the table... and they were dusty too.
Sunday:
we usually go to church on sunday, but we weren't able to make it. we met with the photographers. we got their information from teh catering manager at the Santa Maria Inn. they were really nice, and they do a very good job. we talked to them about what we needed, and how to best time things. then.... we did out engagement shoot! it was funny, because, if you know chris and i, you know how much we loooove getting out pictures taken. well, me more than chris, but still not too much. they had us in funny poses. if i can figure out how to put pictures up, i will when we get them.
that day we went to the fun trains at Bittercreek Western. we rode on kevin's train, chatted a bit with his BFF rob, and met some of his train friends. they were all like "oh leilani, we've heard so much about you." it was pretty cool. after that, we went to pismo beach for about an hour. i like pismo. it's really nice... then we came and had super yummy dinner!
Monday:
we left the house nice and early to taste some cakes. mmmmm, they were yummy for the most part. let me just say, our cake will not be strawberry. the place was really cute... like a mom and pop bakery. oh, we put in out cake order... so off the list it goes! while we were walking to the car after the tasting, we talked about how it was nice to be working with these small stores. it feels like our wedding purchases are going back to helping the small businesses in santa maria. not to mention, the people were meeting with are the ones actully doing the work. so, it makes things more personal...
after that... wedding bands! we're getting those through the guy to made my engagement ring. he's funny. we met with him last time were were up there, and talked about certain things. so, this past weekend, we just finalized some stuff. and, we should get our rings when we go up there in november. ps... i love our rings.

then we drove home...

i didn't mention my dramatic story... i got new lotion from bath and body works... and i'm soooo allergic to it. my arms, chest, and belly were red and itchy all weekend. it's finally starting to go away. it makes me sad because it smells so good!

anywho, i should get back to this job thing...

*besos*

i heart santa maria

we came up to santa maria this weekend to do some wedding planning... it's been pretty good.

we were able to meet with 2 florists today. and i was totally able to see my vision take on a more visual life! it was nice to talk to people who knew how to get my ideas out of my head into something real... they're going to send me some quotes... pray it might work out!

and, we went to a cute little restaurant where kevin (chris' dad) wants to have the rehearsal dinner. it's really nice, and the food is super good. so, i think we'll probably stick to that place. although, i keep telling him that i don't mind having it at santa maria burger... they make the most AMAZING burgers. really, they make my mouth sing!

so, tomorrow it's off to the photographers! we're going to do all the the important paperwork stuff... then an engagement shoot! we'll see how fun that actually is. but, i'm sure it'll be okay. i mean, i'm way cute, and chris is super hot....

*besos*

i forgot!

i keep forgetting the most important thing!!

so, we have this huge list that i refer to as The List. it's all the things we have to do, categorized by when we need it. you can thank my mom for that organization. but, i was crossing things off the list yesterday and figuring out when things were going to be done.

here i am thinking, "man, we're way on top of this!" anywho, i put the list away and go to the clinic (yes, i plan my wedding while at work. if you must know, i even plan while driving.... hey, there's generally lots of traffic!). i came back up to my office a few hours later, and while i was trying to think about what i needed to do for the next hour, it dawned on me... i forgot to write Get Marriage Licence on the list. so, i had to pull it out, and write it down. then, i had to take my zip drive out to pull up the document to update it. (check out my wedding planner skills).

i told norma *co-worker/office mate* and she just gave me The Look. yeah, i'm a nerd. planning a wedding without figuring in a time for the biggest thing! and, i meant to tell this story on my last blog, but i forgot it again!!

it's just that flowers are so pretty to look at!!

*besos*

treking through the list...

so, we're still narrowing down the guest list (believe... it's hard. who knew we knew so many people?). and, we still haven't ordered our invites... but darn it, we have thank you notes!

chris showed me these tre buhu cute ones at tarjeh (target) saturday... and now we're tracking them down at various stores in the area. i won't disclose what they look like, but i love them. so far, we're gone to 6 tarjeh locations, finding a good number... today eric (chris' cousin with the hair) will go to the one by where he works... then we should have enough.

oh, and i got 300 stamps... yes, we're making our way down the list...

*besos*

if i could write out a scream of annoyance, i would...

is that even how one spells annoyance??

anywho, so.. the main nurse in charge of tons of research studies at work is leaving. nice lady... i'm just upset with her right now. well, not so much her... more like the Endocrine Division as a whole...

you see, since i'm research staff, i get to do all sorts of research. never mind that i run my own study, plus work part time on another. i now have to be the back-up person for 2 other studies, PLUS take over a new one that will be all mine.

i will be working on FOUR research projects... no wait, FIVE (i forgot one) research projects... 3 of which are on a national level. as cool as that sounds (i mean, really, who does this?), it's a ton of work. and, since i'm grant funded, i can't work overtime. so, i'll have to fit about 80+ hours of work into a 40 hour week. oh the joys... at least i'll get to meet new people....

pray for my sanity.

*besos*

farewell my friend...

"i have good news and bad news."

that's what my dad said to me after he went to take my car to get it smogged... i told him to give them both to me at the same time, not really thinking he could.

"your going to drive a new car"

how is that an answer to both questions?, says i. the good news, i'm going to drive a new car. the bad news, i'm going to drive a new car... interesting..

you see, my car did not pass the smog test. in fact, it really didn't pass the smog test. it's a wonder i'm still alive! but now, i have to say farewell to my cute little car. so sad... i've only been driving for a little over a year, but i've become attached.

this car took me to work the first time i had to drive alone. it took me to billy and laurel's house when they needed me to watch the kids for a few days... it was my first outing on the freeway alone. i drove back in the rain; it was tre buhu scary. and just 2 months ago i drove it all the way to redlands to see jennifer.... and it takes me to carson when i need to see my other self, and my girls.. and when i need to runway, in my car i go!

but, i know God is in control of all things. so, if i have to take the bus again, He will take care of me. and, He'll make sure i get the car that's exactly way i need and can take on. go God!

so, back to the old post about chris wanting to get me a new car.

"i guess, it's always nice to make new friends"
-giselle, enchanted

*besos*

and now i can really cross it off the list!

i totally got my passport already... wow, US Government, 2 weeks! that's impressive. can i just way that i look way cute in my picture...

oh, the little pamphlet said that world is now mine.. cool.

but at least i can cross that off my wedding to do list!

*besos*

where am i when all of this happens??

i was watching 90210 last night (yes, i watch it... and, i try to catch ANTM whenever i can), and THEY TOTALLY FILMED IT AT DEL AMO!

that's fine... actually, it's not. they're trying to play the place off as Hollywood & Highland, but they were totally at the new outdoor place in Del Amo. that's isn't the real problem... they real problem is that people from Beverly Hills wouldn't go to either place! Hollywood & Highland is for all the tourists, kids from that area, and from the valley... it's not that cool a of a place. i mean, i used to interview homeless people there. and, people from Beverly Hills wouldn't go to Del Amo either... too many emo teens. they'd go to the Grove, or Farmer's Market on Fairfax... anywho, that's not the reason for this post...

when amy and i went to watch Mamma Mia!, we were wondering about the casting for the movie. there's a scene with a bunch of random women of all shapes and sizes... where was i when the open casting call was made?? and, when they needed extras at Del Amo, again, where was i?? i swear, i've been to that mall more times than i've ever been to South Coast... and we'd go there a few times a week!

i guess that's what happens in LA... 'tis fine... as long as i don't miss my curtain call on Broadway!

*besos*

i can't breathe.... achoo!

there aren't really any seasons in southern california... well, warm and warmer.. and random cold. but when warmer makes its shift to warm (summer to fall) the breeze picks up a little.. very nice...

unless you are one of those thousands of americans that suffers from fall allergies. no... it isn't fall yet. but, for as long as i can remember i've suffered from allergies for the whole beginning of the school year. ask me best friend; in high school i used to live with tissues always at the ready.

well, i woke up this morning and knew something wsy up... and it really sucked. my eyes wouldn't stop tearing and itching and burning.. then i get to my office, and i sneezed like 15 times in 2 seconds... it sucks. and all the girls in the clinic are like, "are you sick?" i'm tired of saying, "no, i have allergies."

the one thing that really scares me though, is ear infections. when my allergies get really bad my ears get plugged up, then they get infected... lame...

allergies suck.

*besos*

GRRRRRR....

i just found out that the clinic, thus the whole department, will be closed the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. yay, you say?? nay, says i!!

so yeah, the place is closed, and they're making me stay home. i'd love to stay home.. but the pay comes out of my PTO... that's 6 days that come out of my PTO!!! that's what i'm not okay with!!!

i'm counting my hours so that i'll have enough to take off 2 weeks for the wedding and all of that... but i'm being forced to use 48 of my precious hours because they decide the place is going to be closed!!! i was going to have 125 hours for the time of the wedding... but now, it looks like i'll barely make it...lame!!

but i'll stop ranting because i know i have it better than many others... but it's still upsetting that i'm being forced to take these days off, and it's like i'm being penalized for it too...

*besos*

yay statistics...

i'm a student again!

so, if i want to go to the Master of Social Work program at Azusa Pacific University next fall, i need to take a stats class in the very near/current future. *current future?? what is that??* anywho, i live right by East Los Angeles College.... yay statistics... in more ways than one.

i tried to enroll last month, but all of the classes were full... all 15 sections! i didn't realize stats was such a popular class. and this coming from someone with a degree in Political Science who works in the research field... whatever. i made a plan: i was going to go to every single evening class and try to get it. regardless of the time... i needed in!

*for the girls: i'm listening to ABBA*

so went to ELAC after work yesterday, and it occurred to me, "i've never driven myself to school, thus, i've never had to look for parking ." let me just say, looking for parking really sucks. i had to park like 2 blocks from the school, up a random hill. i don't mind the walk... but i'm not a huge fan of having to jaywalk across a super busy *note: they drive fast* street. plus, there's a ton of construction at ELAC. anywho, i made it to the campus alive. i'm just kinda worried about parking far when it gets darker in the next few months.

okay, now i have to look for the class. i find the class. then, i have to sit around and pray that the teacher lets me in. the teacher is nice and funny. he kinda remind me of my Blueprint LSAT instructors, except less vulgar. all he talks about is how America is a great country *true*, and how (the) Bush(s) ruined the country *i remain silent*, and how everyone calls him a terrorist *he's Persian*. it's kinda funny some times... but other times in can be inappropriate.

anywho, being the master of statistics that he is, he had to devise a mathematical plan on how to pick 15 people out of 35 to let into his class. he made some sort of Excel Sheet calculation... and i ended up as #2 on the list of adds... yay!!! i'm way happy because i was able to get into the first class i sat in on!

go tuesday/thursday math 227 from 5:35pm-7:20. the last night class included a hot guy that would walk me to his car and then take me home... i'm pretty sure that will not happen this time. but it's okay... i like my hot man.

oh, and i don't have to buy the book!

*besos*