Aquarium Fun with Babies!

Yesterday I went to the Long Beach Aquarium with my sister, her two friends and their three sons. It was quite an adventure being with three babies at a place like that. For a Friday afternoon, it was packed with groups from summer programs and many many families. The boys really did enjoy looking at all the fish and seemed very interested in the cute sea otters. I haven't been to an aquarium before and never realized how much I like looking at fish and other sea creatures. These neat and interesting fish certainly make my little Beta seem pretty boring...

These were the three coolest looking fish that I saw there:

Doesn't this one look like

a dalmatian? Those are my

favorite dogs.

LA Dodgers!

I went to my first Los Angeles Dodgers game last Friday night and I had a really good time. I would much rather see a live basketball game any day but I figured that I needed to check out the Dodgers. Ok, so I didn't actually see too much of the actual game. There was just too much else going on around me! The people sitting around us were completely obnoxious and having the strangest (drunken?) conversations. Plus, "the wave" was in full effect and I love a good audience participated wave. Then, of course my roommate Swati and I had to go to the bathroom, get a Dodger Dog and beers and that process took about three innings!! The lines for everything were ridiculously long but that's to be expected at a sporting event.

After the game, my friends and I walked over to the gift store and of course I had to buy my nephew, Lucas, something. After a few texts back and forth with his mom and dad, I decided on a cute little Dodger baseball cap. I've been here in San Diego with them for a few days this week so I was able to give him the hat. Isn't he such a cutie? Go Dodgers!

OUCH!

Mama Kat's writing assignment this week is: It was a bad burn. Tell about the worst sunburn you ever received. How did that happen!?!

Oh man, I really can't choose just one. Let's just say I always have a bottle of Aloe Vera close at hand. I have had plenty of really really bad sunburns. Most of them usually happen because I have fallen asleep in the sun or I'm doing something fun and don't even realize how much time I've been out or when was the last time I applied sunscreen.

The picture above was from my trip two years ago to Australia. Apparently, you really are closer to the sun over there and the sun completely destroyed my pale skin after walking around downtown Melbourne for only 2 hours! I certainly learned my lesson the hard way.

I know how important it is to protect your skin when you are in the sun and thankfully, I've fully recovered from all my bad sun burns. Now I always make sure to lather on the sunscreen even if I'm not sure if I'll be outside or not. No skin cancer for me!

So You Think You Can Dance

I love dancing! I really do. I'm definitely not the best dancer by far but I think I've got some rhythm and coordination and I'm always up for some impromptu dancing. I've been to two weddings recently and I honestly think the dancing at the reception is the best part of the whole thing. Most people are loosened up with a few drinks under their belts, the bride and groom have said their hello's and thank-you's to most guests and can finally unwind on the dance floor for a bit.

Tonight, I watched the newest episode of So You Think You Can Dance and I swear every time I watch an episode of this show, I'm reminded of how much I enjoy dancing and how much more I wish my friends and I went out and danced. Geez, I live in LA now... there are dancing clubs everywhere in this city and I haven't been to one yet! I need to fix that asap! LA friends, help a girl out!

But, back to the show, these people on it are so talented. They turn dance into this amazingly beautiful art form. It's so smooth and fluid when these guys do it. I'm not fishing for compliments or anything when I say this, but damn, can I be that gifted at just one thing? Ugh! It's just not fair! I'll take anything...whistling, tap dancing, holding my breath, hair styling, cooking, etc.. You get the picture.. Hmmm, maybe, I haven't found my great talent yet.... What's yours? Dancing, perhaps?

Mid-Year-Blog Crisis?

So, I haven't been feeling very well this week which means that I haven't been in the mood to blog. Well, honestly, I haven't felt like blogging much in the past two weeks. I don't know why exactly. Is this normal? I have had my blog for about 7 months now. Am I going through a mid- year-blog crisis? Hmm.. Or maybe I just feel like I don't have anything interesting enough to blog about lately? For those of you that have had your blogs for a long time, did you go through a similar period? How long will this last? : (

Live a Longer Life

I heard about this list from a friend and thought it was too interesting not to share on my blog. What do you think about it? Do you agree? There are certainly a few that I don't agree with.

Check it out: Life a Longer Life: 15 Signs

Movies & West Hollywood

I love going to the movies. It was always one of my family's favorite things to do during the summers. My mom and I would usually see like every movie out and then my dad would join us for the one or two that he wanted to see in the theater. We didn't even need to get candy or popcorn. We just enjoyed seeing a possibly good movie on the big screen. I have certainly continued the movie-watching tradition with my sister and of course with many friends.

So, today I saw Inception at the Grove with an old friend from college. I know this is definitely not a movie blog at all so I won't begin to discuss this movie at all but I will say that I really have fun at movies like this that actually make me think and even question my own reality a little bit. It was a bit complicated at times but for the most part, I felt like I was totally able to follow along.

After the movie, I took a little drive into West Hollywood. I was actually looking for a Whole Foods grocery store but then ended up taking the long route to get there. Let me just say that West Hollywood is such a cute area and I really would like to spend more time there.

Here are a few interesting facts I just learned about the area:

-In 1985, West Hollywood was the first city to create a same gender domestic partnership registration for its residents, as well as to offer same gender domestic partner benefits for all city employees. Woo hoo!

-City legislation bans the sale of handguns, prohibits smoking in public places, and restricts the city from doing business directly or indirectly (via vendors) with any country known to violate human rights.

-West Hollywood is one of 19 cities in California that has banned the use of gas-powered leaf-blowers.

-This area is the home of about 1,000 dogs per square mile. The city designed a law that pets are to be called "companions" and their owners "guardians" and was the first city in the country to outlaw the de-clawing of cats.

-Because of the large population of homosexuals and the large numbers of same-sex-oriented businesses, West Hollywood became prominently known as a "gay village". The section of Santa Monica Boulevard from La Cienega Blvd. to Robertson Blvd., known as "boys' town," is among the most popular gay neighborhoods in the world, with numerous well-known spots such as the nightclubs Micky's and Rage, and newer bars/restaurants such as Eleven and East|West Lounge.

-West Hollywood, with a homosexual population of about 41% of its total population, has been disproportionately affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic which has ravaged its male homosexual population since the early 1980s. This is very sad and is exactly why I am running my Half Marathon in September.

Running Post #6

I ran 10 miles today!!!!!!!

I have no words to describe how good it felt to complete that. It took my training group 2 hours and 34 minutes to complete it and we burned about 1600 calories doing it! That's a lot!!

I am so sore and achy today but that is to be expected. Surprisingly, I was at the lead of my group for pretty much the entire time and I felt like I could have gone a little faster than most people. I've been really pushing myself to go faster on my own training runs so I am sure that is why I felt like I could have run faster today.

Running 10 miles was a personal goal that I made for myself back when I first started seriously training back in April. Now that I've done it, I guess I am in shock. I think we are all capable of so much more than we think we can. I never in a million years thought I could run 5 miles let alone 10 miles, but here I am with a 10 mile run under my belt! I can honestly say that I'm not too worried about that Half Marathon anymore.. I mean, that's only 3 more miles than I did today! Only 3 more miles! Piece of cake? I don't know about that but I do know that I can handle it.

If you haven't donated already, then please check out my APLA website and consider donating. Even the smallest amount helps me reach the mandatory fundraising goal. Thank you so much friends!!!

Five Question Friday

Here are this Friday's questions:

1. Do you collect anything?
The older I get, the less collections I truly keep. Let's see... I have a notebook full of interesting hair styles that I would like to attempt some day to my own hair, magazine cut outs for future collages, interesting songs and I used to collect quotes but I lost that file on my computer (don't ask!)

2. Name 3 celebrities that you find good looking.
Bradley Cooper, Henry Cavill (From Tudors) and John Mayer (Oh and I have to add just a few more, Zach Efron, James Franco, Robert Pattinson and Ewan McGregor) Yum!

3. Do you have any scars? If so, what's the story behind it (them?)? I have just a couple... I have one on my right leg from one of my first shaving experiences ever. I just didn't know how hard to press the razor and ended up scraping up quite a chunk of skin. I am still very nervous whenever I shave that area. Since I was born overseas, I have a small pox shot scar on my right arm. Whenever anyone sees it, they instantly know what it is from and that's kind of cool. I have a little scar on my right hand but I have no idea how I got it. That's it.

4. What is a food that you like to eat, but others might think it's gross or weird? I would just like to preface this by saying that I absolutely never ever eat these things anymore but I am fond of them. #1, Spam. I don't know what it is about this strange meat concoction but I used to really enjoy it fried and then mixed in with mac and cheese! Yum! Also, and again I haven't had this in years, #2 Mayonnaise on spaghetti. I'm not too sure where I picked up this odd combination but its delicious and yes, I know, totally horrible for you and that's why I don't eat spaghetti like this anymore.

5. Have you ever seen a tornado in real life?
I haven't but I thought that my new blogging friend, Rachel's story was neat so I'll share that here instead: "Yes! When I coached water polo last year. We were sitting on the pool deck having a team talk and it was the sunny and cloudless. Out of nowhere a tiny tornado sped across the pool, lifting the water, pool chairs and water polo balls and scattering them all over the pool deck! It was nuts."

Airports. . .

I meant to post this a long time ago too...

(I wrote this on a long layover several weeks ago)

While I can be quite the social butterfly a lot of the time, I'm still not comfortable going to bars and restaurants alone but here at the airport, it's a whole different story. It's not awkward at all for a person to be alone drinking at a bar waiting for their flight to leave. There's something almost mysterious about us all. Where are we going and where are we coming from? How long is the layover? Who were we meeting? Well, I'm on my way back to LA and I have an awful 4 hours here in the Salt Lake City Airport. At least this bar that I'm at now is fun and the people around me are pretty chatty.

Whenever I'm in airports, I always think I'm going to run into someone I know. I mean, come on, I have 700 something Facebook friends plus a few others that haven't surrendered to it yet. You would think I'd run into one of those people here, right? Who have you run into at the airport? Someone you haven't seen in forever? Perhaps your long lost love? How romantic would that be?

I've never been the biggest fan of airports. I've been in so many all over the world and while, when I was younger, they were kind of fun and exciting places, later in my life, airports became so sad and final. First, it was saying goodbye to my sister after every wonderful Christmas and Summer vacation. Then it was to say goodbye to my parents when they would trek back overseas for another school year and now I say goodbye to all the friends I visit. Of course, I know airports can be happy places too because you get to see a lot of people because of them. I don't know, based on my total experience, I'm just not a fan of airports. However, I will say that this beer I'm currently drinking and the funny gentlemen around me make this layover today pretty amusing.

"Chibi" and "Ellie"

I meant to post this forever ago...

On my trip to Wyoming and Utah, I was either with an adorable 6 week old beagle/bulldog mix named "Ellie" or a 3 year old cat named "Chibi". I can honestly say that I really miss it. I don't care if you are or aren't an animal person, I think you'll get where I'm coming from. Pets are the perfect example of pure unconditional love. They don't care that you may not be the best looking person person, or if you don't have all the money in the world, or that you were rude to someone earlier. They love you no matter what. All you have to do is feed them and give them shelter. Of course an occasional petting session is awesome too.

I think pets can be so comforting and lovable when you want them to be. I definitely miss all the attention these two little guys gave me while I was with them. Not long after getting home, I did go ahead and buy a fish but it's just not the same at all. Can't wait till I have my own house one day with a great big yard so I have a dog!

Looking Back on AZ

So this past weekend, as I was driving back into the Phoenix city limits, I couldn't help but feel pretty happy that my life was no longer there. Phoenix is a very large fast growing city made up of freeways, lots of cactus, sandy dunes and many cookie cutter housing developments. Of course it has a lot more to offer. The sunsets for one thing are amazing and I do miss them a lot. Yet the desert landscape is just not for me anymore. Perhaps after I'm married, I'll move back to AZ to raise a family but I highly doubt that I'll ever want to leave California. Tucson, Arizona will always have a special place in my heart since that is where my family and I would spend our summer vacations and that is where I went to college.

My biggest qualm with Phoenix right now is that the ridiculously hot days of summer vastly outnumber the pleasant ones. I was only back in Phoenix for about 48 hours but I was hit very hard with the excruciating heat. At one point it was 117 degrees!!! That's just not right! I think they should just close down the city in the summer and everyone is forced to leave for cooler states!

All that being sad, I certainly can say that I totally enjoyed my time living there and my visits back are always enjoyable. My residency in Phoenix was short and sweet and I made some incredible friends whom I am grateful for. They all need to come visit me in much cooler Cali soon! Anyway, this past trip was my first time being there that I really didn't feel like I was home. I guess that means that I am finally feeling comfortable in LA. Finally!

I'm Back.. Sort Of...

I know that I haven't blogged in a few days but I've been traveling and just haven't had the time to sit and think. I don't really have the time right now either but I wanted you all to know that I'm still here and always thinking of things to write about. I have several ideas right now but I'm headed to a concert soon so I can't blog now. Here are just a few of my favorite pictures from this past week and weekend to keep you entertained.

It happened on Facebook....

This week's Mama Kat's writing assignment that I chose was... "It happened on Facebook...write about a funny or awkward conversation you saw unfold on Facebook."

Oh Facebook.. I think most of us have a love-hate relationship with this popular networking website. A few of us are even shall we say 'obsessed' with it? We try not going on it as much and just stay away but it never really works out. Some of my friends have even gone on 'Facebook Fasts' for a few months. The silly thing is that they return with even more gusto for the site. Needless to say, Facebook Diets don't work. It's smarter just to go on it in moderation. Wow, Facebook is starting to sound like chocolate or something else bad for you here so I'll move on to my Facebook story.

I've seen several funny and interesting things unfold on people's walls on Facebook; Couples saying they are in relationships and then a week later decide that they aren't, people de-friending each other accidentally and on purpose, tagging each other in awful pictures (I've been guilty of this a time or two), announcements of pregnancy's and engagements and many others. Well one story that stands out in my head happened this past April. Two of my friends that were casually dating decided to play a little Facebook prank on all of their friends. At the time I should have realized that it just so happened to be April Fools Day!

Anyway, on that day, they both changed their status to "engaged". Absolutely everyone commented on that new change of relationship status! "Congrats", "Best Wishes", "OMG, I can't believe this!" and even a few "WTF, you've only been dating a few months!" Their engagement news spread like wildfire. I remember even talking to a few friends on the phone about the big news. No one could fathom this was true but it was 'Facebook official' so we had to trust it. Right?!

Well, no! We were all duped! At the very end of the day, the couple confessed that it was just an April Fools joke after all!! How could we all have believed that this relatively new couple were already planning on getting married so soon?! I don't know how but Facebook worked it's charms on us all once again.

What have you witnessed on Facebook?

Gratitude

I've read time and time again that it's very rewarding and helpful to keep a gratitude journal. It can help strengthen your emotional well-being and even reduce stress. It forces us to focus on all the positive things in our lives. I did try keeping one for a few months a few years ago but then I got busy and you know how that happens.

So what exactly are you supposed to write in a gratitude journal? Well, record who you love, what you love and what you love to do.

Here's a list of all the things that I am grateful for today:

• My healthy family
• The time I get to spend with my adorable nephew, Lucas
• My incredible friends (A lot of live so far away from me but we still keep in touch)
• An exciting new relationship : )
• My amazing music collection
• My two fabulous roommates
• My new love of running
• My resilient feet (through all the running and uncomfortable high heels, they heal quickly and are always ready for more)
• My new life in LA (Yes, this may be very general but I am grateful to be living in such a fun and crazy city)
• My car-I'm able to drive to San Diego all the time and an occasional trip back to Arizona
• Sunny days at the beach and/or the pool
• Long hot showers
• A glass of wine or a cold beer at the end of a long day
• 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep
• Books- I love reading so much and just wish I had more time for it
• All the fun trips I get to take to Vegas, AZ, D.C, San Diego, Santa Barbara. .
  
  

So, are you interested in starting a gratitude journal? Well, they tend to be most effective when you write about three items at the end of each day. This is regular enough and simple enough to be do-able, and writing at the end of the day tends to bring the best benefits. You may want to read over your journal entries in the future. This can be a great pick-me-up when you're feeling stressed or depressed. Experiment with the types of things you write about. If you find yourself always mentioning the obvious things every day, challenge yourself to notice the subtle things in life. Ok, your turn, what are you grateful for in your life?

Wise Words?

Today my sister purchased a book, entitled "The Bounce Back Book" by Karen Salmansohn and it's filled with inspiring phrases like this one; "What goes down often bounces back even higher".

I would really love to believe this phrase is true. However, I can't help but wonder, have I bounced back even higher since my parents died? Am I a stronger, more sympathetic and a more adjusted person today? What have I really learned from their passing? How could I possibly have bounced higher? I don't understand...

I get the idea of all this though.. Supposedly, when we are dealt a seriously bad hand, we should somehow be able to rise from it and become even stronger and happier than we ever were to begin with. In spite of the tragedy, we are able to find something amazing in our lives. I don't know about you.. but before the devastating event in my life, I think I was a pretty strong person and was certainly happy with my life. I mean, I got to live overseas for most of my life and then had an awesome college experience. I had no complaints whatsoever! Sure, perhaps I am closer to a few people now then I might have been otherwise but come on, I didn't need my parents to die for that to happen! I am sure that over time I would have become more independent and less naive about the world. In fact, if I'm totally honest with my blogging friends and myself, I'll tell you that I'm not a better person now than I ever was before they died. I feel like there is a huge chunk of my heart missing. That can't be healthy, right? I am definitely more pessimistic about the world. Sadly, I don't look forward to my future as much as I used to when they were still living. The idea of them being grandparents to my kids sent me into a giddy fit!

In Karen's book, she says " that studies have shown that after distressing times, many good people actually reported rebounding to a higher-than-usual good mood. He attributes this bounce-back-higher effect to people appreciating the good in their life after suffering the bad." Well, I can't argue with that logic. When something awful happens to you, you have no choice but to eventually let it force you to really appreciate all the amazing things in your life. I know that I never take for granted any of those precious moments with my family and friends. And I'm always telling people that I love and miss them.

What about you? Do you really appreciate the people that are most important in your life?

You Know You Hang Out With Kids A Lot When

My sister has a frequent post, entitled, "You Know You're A Mom When s-Daze" so I thought it would be funny if I had a similar one on my blog..

So introducing, "You Know You Hang Out With Kids A Lot When..."

• You find yourself singing children's songs when you are nowhere near a child.. For example, coming out of the shower this morning, I was singing the Elmo song.. "La la la la, Elmo's world.."
• At times you are able to think of life very simply-You are either hungry, tired, sad, angry or just fun and playful.
• You want to know exactly how all these crazy loud and at times obnoxious toys are helping these children. Are they meant to entertain, educate or both?
• You love reading even more now..especially if it's with a one year old sitting on your lap and helping you turn the pages.
• Just about all the pictures on your camera and phone are of the children in your life. 90% of mine are of my adorable nephew!
• You think it would be awesome if we all had a daily designated nap time from 10 to 12.
• It would be sweet if everyone blew kisses and waved constantly when anyone left a room.
• You can't remember ever stressing about how to put on a diaper.
• One of the first things friends always ask you when you are catching up is how is your nephew doing.
• You swear every time you see them again, they've gotten bigger. Even if you just saw them a week earlier!
• You may not have any children of your own yet but you still feel the need to walk into every toy store and kids clothing stores in hopes of picking something up for your young friends.
• Your facebook statuses tend to be more about these children then your own life.
• You don't care that they are the only ones that actually laugh at your goofy faces and noises.
• Whenever you are feeling sad, seeing your favorite little person is sure to cheer u up!

Getting to Know You Sunday 2

So today I got nothing or rather I'm feeling kind of lazy and haven't had the time to just sit with my blog and create a new post so it's time for another rousing edition of "Getting to Know You Sundays"! Thanks so much to Rachel at "You Just Can't Google Everything!" for the idea.

Here are this week's questions:

1. What is YOUR definition of sexy?

Sexy...hmm.. I think a person is sexy when they are super comfortable in their own skin. I've always thought a kick-ass sense of humor is sexy too and a great pair of arms doesn't hurt either. : )

2. Would you rather clean up puke or change a poopy diaper?

Well, I haven't cleaned up puke recently but I do know that the act itself is just awful. I had food poisoning last week and I seriously wanted to die from all the puking-sorry for the TMI. So I would have to say that I'll change a poopy diaper. I'll probably be changing a few this week as I'm in San Diego visiting with my 1 year old nephew.

3. Are you an introvert or an extrovert?

I'm definitely an extrovert. I love meeting new people and socializing in group settings. I can be quite the social butterfly when I want to be.

4. If you had to give up one of your 5 senses for a year..which one would you give up?

Hands down, smell.

5. Cake or Pie?

I haven't had a piece of pie in a long time so I'm going to say pie right now. I love me some pecan pie! Yummy!!

6. If you could play any character on TV (old or current) who would you play?

Carrie from "Sex and the City" would be a blast!

7. My favorite website is.....?

Not so sure I would call them my favorites but the ones I go to most often are Facebook, Perez Hilton, several blogs and the LA Times music blog.

8. The highlight of my day was....?

Spending the afternoon with my new bf : )

What's in your purse?

So I know this is a totally random subject for a post but I thought it might be interesting to see what was the most bizarre thing someone had in their purse.

Here's what's in my purse right now: Kleenex, Invisalign case, pouch with small toothbrush, toothpaste, mints, mirror, comb and face wash in it, notepad, pen, lotion, another pouch with several gift certificates in it, wallet, keys, sunglasses case w/sunglasses, eye drops, two chap sticks, nail file, a box of band-aids, my iPod, cell phone, purse hook and finally a small pig that oinks and lights up. I would have to say that little piggy is probably the most unique item in my purse.

Ok, your turn, what's in yours?

His Stamp Collection

This week I chose the following writing prompt from Mama Kat's workshop, "Write about a collector you know..."

My dad was a huge collector. He collected pretty much everything: coins, foreign money, unique beer bottles, state quarters, jazz CDS, interesting containers and many more. However, his all time favorite was his stamp collection.

He had hundreds and hundreds of them and sadly now my sister and I own them all. We still have yet to decide what to do with them all. My dad took such pleasure in searching for stamps, removing the sticky paper from them (this was a long detailed process involving tubs of water and using tweezers, he would delicately remove the sticky film from the stamps), organizing them into albums labeled by their country of origin, and of course trading and purchasing them. Since we lived overseas most of my life, my dad had stamps from all over the world. It's seriously quite the international collection.

I've never seen someone take such pride in their collection as my dad did with his stamp collection. When I close my eyes, I can see him sitting at his card table in front of the TV "playing with his stamps" as we liked to call it. The table is covered with a few of those albums and using tweezers, he is putting a few stamps in their proper homes in these albums. He looks up occasionally to check out what's on the TV and take a sip of his Diet Dr. Pepper. But, besides that, he is focused on the job at hand. He would spend hours sitting like this. This was certainly one way my dad relaxed in the summers.

His collection was on our mind so much that whenever any of us saw a stamp, we had to give it to him, even if that meant tearing it off a perfectly good postcard. He had me doing that for him even after I graduated high school and lived on my own at college. I couldn't help myself, I had piles all over my apartment of stamps to give to him later. Then, anytime a friend of mine would go to a new country that my dad had never been to, they would have to stop by the post office to get a few stamps for him. We were all constantly helping feed his stamp collection. I'm not complaining though. It was a way for me to be apart of it and that was fun for me.

I still think about ripping the stamp off mail I receive but catch myself before I actually do it. Stamps will always hold a special place in my heart and I hope that someone in my future family will pick up the hobby in honor of my dad. : )

RIP Old Phone

So, at some point during my time in Vegas this past weekend, my phone decided to stop working properly. Specifically, the touch screen isn't working. It's just a screen without the "touching" functionality. And there is absolutely no reason that I can think of why this happened to it.. Ok, so maybe I left it out in the hot sun for most of Saturday but I've done that before and nothing happened.. Or maybe some chlorine accidentally got on it... or maybe it smashed up against my compact in my clutch purse on Friday and Saturday nights... Who knows? All I know is that it's annoying that I can't pinpoint the exact culprit. I need something to blame!

Why oh why do these things happen to me? I feel like there is always something wrong with the technology in my life.. everything can never work fine... Sometimes, it's my computer, or my phone, my iPod, my car or even a dumb light switch in my room. Sure, I'm probably exaggerating but it certainly feels like there is always something. Does anyone else feel this way?

Well, thankfully, I have insurance on my phone so I was able to get a replacement phone mailed to me today. Yay! But, because I'm a dumb-ass, I failed to get the Backup Assistant for my phone (until now for the new replacement one) so I'm about to lose all my pictures and saved text messages!!! WAAAHHH! -That's me crying! Ugh! Fortunately, my sister has all the pictures that she has ever sent me of her son on her phone so I can always get those from her sometime but there are several others that only I took of her son and I and of course other pictures of my friends an I. And don't get me started on all the text messages!! I save any that I get that are cute or special to me.. I even have one from way back in April! Ok, this is depressing me so I need to end this post now. I guess this is what they call a life lesson; ALWAYS BACK UP BLOGGING FRIENDS!!!!

Recap of Vegas Weekend

Las Vegas was once again a blast this past weekend! Despite not feeling 100% well (stupid food poisoning!) I still managed to enjoy my time there and make the most of that crazy city. Seeing the show "LOVE" was definitely the highlight of the trip. If you haven't seen it, I highly encourage you to hop on a plane for Vegas and go see it asap! It's a beautiful show that will not only lift your spirits but also make you fall in love with Beatles music all over again.

I also really enjoyed spending most of Saturday at our hotel pool. My friends and I all had a blast playing around in the pool and relaxing in the sun.

Below are a few of my favorite pics from this trip:

California Songs

Since moving here, I've become so much more aware of any and all music that is about California and have been making my own list.. Check it out below. Can you think of any others?

For a seriously complete list (a few songs I've never even heard of) check out here.

1. "California Dreamin" - The Mamas and The Papas
2. "California Gurls" - Katy Perry & Snoop Dogg
3. "California Love" - 2pac
4. "Danny California" - Red Hot Chili Peppers
5. "Californication" - Red Hot Chili Peppers
6. "Hotel California" - Eagles
7. "New York to California" - Mat Kearny
8. "Beautiful in Los Angeles" - Garrison Star
9. "Beverly Hills" - Weezer
10. "San Francisco" (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair) - Scott McKenzie
11. "California" - Kenny Chesney
12. "California" - Phantom Planet
13. "California Girls" - Beach Boys
14. "Going Back to Cali" - LL Cool J
15. "Long December" - Counting Crows
16. "We Got More Bounce in California" - Jump5
17. "Garden Grove" - Sublime
18. "Hollywood" - Jay-Z & Beyonce
19. "Hollywood" - Madonna
20. "Hollywood Swingin" - Kool & the Gang
21. "L.A is My Lady" - Frank Sinatra
22. "La Cienega Just Smied" - Ryan Adams
23. "Orange County Girl" - Gwen Stefani
24. "Walking in LA" - Missing Persons

VIVA LAS VEGAS!!

Today I am off to Las Vegas for the weekend with a group of new and old friends. I am so excited because I seriously LOVE Vegas! It's such a crazy city with so much to offer, with all the cool clubs, the fancy hotels, the interesting people watching, the shopping, the yummy buffets, the outrageous shows, endless hours at pools and of course all the crazy gambling people everywhere.

Here are a few of my favorite recent pictures of Vegas trips:

-Despite being super excited to be in Vegas today, I somehow got food poisoning last night so this trip might be the biggest mistake ever! ; ( I am trying to power through it though.. Stay tuned Sunday for all the details!

Put on a Happy Face!

This week I chose the following writing prompt from Mama Kat's workshop, What are 10 Things That Are Sure to Put a Smile on My Face When I'm Not Happy:

1. Brightly colored toenails- My mom always told me that whenever I'm feeling sad, I should paint each toenail a different color. I don't that anymore because I think it looks kinda silly but I do always have to have my toenails painted.

2. Waking up before my alarm clock- Then, seeing that I have a whole more hour left to sleep! No explanation necessary here, right?

3. Mail- I don't mean e-mail, I mean serious real handwritten letters in envelopes and everything! People just don't it enough nowadays... Friends, take a hint here! I think I'm still old fashioned in this sense.. I still send greeting cards, postcards and an occasional letter in the mail pretty often.

4. Dreams- When I dream about my mom and dad, I can't help but cheer up. I miss them very much and if I get to see them again, even if it's just a dream, I treasure those moments.

5. A Build a Bear Monkey- Yes, I know, I'm a big dork but these darn monkeys have a special significance in my family. Right T? : ) Below is a picture of Clementine (my mom's), Diego (my sister's) and Leo (mine).

6. Pictures- As you've probably been able to tell from this blog, I adore pictures. I have them up all over my room and I've put a bunch up around the house for my roommates to enjoy as well. I'm always taking pictures when I'm out with friends or family and I figure, why take them if you aren't going to admire them later? I also feel like I'm constantly missing people in my life so having pictures of them around makes them feel a little closer to me.

7. Mac & Cheese & Grilled Cheese Sandwiches- Again, I know I'm a big dork/big kid but these two are serious comfort food for me. No matter what is wrong, I always feel better after eating either of these. I don't have them very often at all though so they are really meant for those really dark days.

8. Butterflies- I'm not sure why exactly but I love butterflies. In fact, I love them so much, I got a butterfly tattoo on my right ankle on my 18th birthday. Yes, I know, it's a tad cliché but I love it so whatever! So, butterflies are a symbol of change, joy, and color. When they fly, it appears as dancing, and apparently, a reminder not to take things too seriously. They have a sense of lightness. The butterfly is also a powerful symbol for transformation.

9. Fireworks- Of course I rarely see them but whenever I do, I instantly feel as bright as the fireworks themselves. How could anyone not feel that way after watching an amazing firework show? Hopefully, I'll be somewhere cool to watch the fireworks this July 4th!

10. Musicians- I can't help but feel incredibly happy every time I see a musician do their thing up on a stage. Whether they are playing the guitar, the piano or just singing, it's such an amazing scene to witness.