Secret...

Don't tell anyone...but I've got a little secret...you see, last Saturday night while I was lying in bed half asleep, half awake, something happened...

The title for my cookbook just came to me out of no where...I have the title, I have the theme, I have a general idea of what recipes I want to put into it, and how I want to format it. Now I just have to format/write it all out.

I won't tell you the title now, because I don't want anyone to steal it...but know this, it's cute enough to make you giggle :)

I know there are a lot of things I say I'm going to do, but never do because I don't find the time (one of my biggest and lamest excuses, lol), but I have to write this! It's as if the food gods spoke to me...the whispered the title in my ear, and they knew I couldn't resist!

So now, it's up to me to make it happen, look out world, this cookbook's gonna knock your socks off!

Snap Shots

I never got around to posting pictures from Discovery Park, Kyle and I's anniversary, or the Rose Garden, so here are a few of my favorite snap shots

[Taken at Discovery Park, WA...please enjoy, but do not steal!]

[Taken atop of the world! We had dinner at Sky City, the revolving restaurant at the top of the Space Needle!]

[Taken at the Rose Garden, however, with just our point and shoot, not the DSLR...I'll go back one day and taken better pictures, hehe]

2+3=5

2more days off...3more days of work...leaving 5more days until I'm California Bound!

I'm a whirlwind of emotions right now...okay, it's really not that dramatic, but still. I'm done being patient, I just want to do things that I want to do, and not do things I don't want to do. Yes, this is my day to whine...*pouts*


I don't want to be in Seattle, I don't want to go to work, I don't want to clean my apartment, I don't want to be alone anymore...I don't want to do any of that right now.


All I want...is to lay out in the sun and soak it all up. I want to be with Kyle, I want to be with my friends, I want to be with my family. I want to go to Disneyland, I want to be carefree, can't I just disappear? Just for a little bit!


Then I'll come back here and deal with all that other stuff. It's summer time...which is suppose to be lazy summer days. Sigh, it's just not fair. All my other friends are in San Diego being lazy and tanning and laughing and loving. I'm just sitting here pouting. Wishing I too could be lazy and tan and laugh...5 days, I just have to get through 5 days!


As this peppermint chai tea as my witness, I vow to no longer whine. It's only 5 days, afterall, I've been up here all alone for the past 9 days! Only 119 hrs to go...that makes it sound super long, I think I'll stick with 5 days.


p.s. of course, just after I finally give in and buy a dress from Forever21 for Sahar's quince, I find another dress I like better on the Forever21 website...and the day after that, the dress I was IN LOVE WITH on Modcloth that sold out before I could buy it, was restocked this morning...so now I went from no dresses, to 3 dresses, plus a sewing machine, and fabric that should be arriving at some time today. Seriously, I'm BAD at decision making when I don't have Kyle to cross-examine/discuss things with >.<  sssiiiggghhhh...well, at least I have options...though I know for a fact that I'm returning the one I bought at the store because it doesn't cover my upper back at all! And, I'll probably return the dress I bought from Forever 21 online, because it's not as "dressy" nor as elegant as this little beauty I bought this morning:

{aren't the colors and the pearl detail divine?! pure, unconditional love for this darling little dress, I hope I can do it justice!}

One Week...

Instead of spending the past week actively doing things, I've just been too tired to do very much aside from going to work, and occasionally working out. All the fun artistic activities I thought I'd be spending my time doing haven't even been attempted.

It's not as if I'm depressed or something, I've actually been fine. Aside from life throwing me a huge curveball, and having it knock the wind out of me, I'm okay. I just have spent my free time reading, and watching movies or TV shows I always wanted to get into (Dead Like Me, and 30 Rock).

So if you've been wondering why I haven't been posting, it's not because every computer I have access to broke...it's not because I'm so lonely/sad that I won't crawl out of bed long enough to post something. I just haven't done much worth writing about. My most exciting adventure was to the mall, I can't resist a good semi-annual sale, and I definitely left the mall a little poorer, but with bags of cute clothes in my arms.

I am now at that halfway point, it's been exactly 7 days since Kyle left, and I only have 7 days left until I'm headed towards the lovely San Diego. I don't think I've ever been so excited to go home...aside from the possibility of not seeing one of my best friends, everyone else is in SD, for the first time in a really long time. It's so exciting, especially because I haven't seen a handful of those friends in about 6 (long) months!

It's going to be so nice to just do all of my favorite things with all of my favorite people! On my must-do list so far I have down Brazilian Bowls, Hookah, The Beach, Balboa Park, & The Del Mar Fair. I also already have plans to see Eclipse with Sahar, Claire, and Olivia on Wednesday night...and I'm having dinner/drinks with Megan Friday night. I don't have official plans with Sarah yet, but trust me, I will be spending A LOT of time with my lovely soul sister! The quince is on Saturday...and Sunday, I'm definitely feeling a giant get-together/BBQ and of course, watching the fireworks.

One week, it's all I have to get through, and I can do it! Being patient is SO annoying, but really, I have no other choice. Unless someone discovered how to fast-forward through time? No? Well, you should all keep trying.

Have a nice day, everyone!

See you soon, San Diego!

La-Dee-Dah

So, I haven't updated in a while...I've definitely tried on quite a few occasions and just haven't found the time. But it is now quite late at night, and I haven't spoken a single verbal word to ANYONE at all today...so now seems like a good time to say something, to someone...ssooo...

Some updates...Kyle and I went to Discovery Park on Sunday and went on an amazing hike. It started with a beautiful, open, green meadow, through a beautiful green forest, and went all the way down to the beach.

Monday was our 2 year anniversary...and despite that I was at work all day, it was pretty remarkable/amazing. The day started with us making eachother breakfast in bed (yeah, we're really that cute). I made Ban-illa Cinnamon Waffles (banana, vanilla, cinnamon) and Kyle made his infamous Banana, Chocolate, Peanut Butter Shake. Funnily enough, they're both so extensive that we finished around the same time. We ended up watching Arrested Development, and then he drove me to work. He picked me up and we ate a snack, while watching more Arrested Development :) I bought him some chocolates (yum!) and made him the poster I already posted...and he took me out to a very expensive dinner at Sky City (you know, the rotating restaurant atop the Space Needle). I ended up with a huge blister on the bottom of my right foot, Kyle's pants weren't finished drying, so they were a little damp...but we had an amazing time. The food was FANTASTIC, like melt in your mouth/melt your heart fantastic. And the view was constantly changing, we got there right as the sun was setting, and the night sky was just beautiful. After dinner we went up to the Observation Deck and enjoyed the view even more.

I thought our date was over, but even after being together for 2 years, he can still manage to surprise me :) Tuesday after he picked me up for work, he took me to the Rose Garden right by Woodland Park. It was super cute, and quite romantic. I love that he knows me so well he knows exactly where to take me, haha. It started raining, but it's alright, we still had fun. We ended up going to Zak's for dinner, and then went home and watched more Arrested Development, hehe.

Tuesday night consisted of very little sleep as we ended up staying up so late...by the time I fell asleep it was around 3am. Kyle didn't sleep because his flight to SD was at 6:30am, which meant we had to leave around 5:15-5:20am. It was suppose to be my day off, but my boss is really sick and called me in...so after getting home from dropping Kyle off, I was both grateful that thanks to coffee I didn't die while driving, and regretful because I couldn't immediately fall back asleep. I ended up falling asleep sometime around 9, slept until 10, and then went to work.

Since then I haven't really been up to much...finally finished season 3 of Arrested Development. Watched "Confessions of a Shopaholic" and "The Proposal". I did some grocery shopping...I thoroughly worked out this morning, which is good, because I need to be in better shape by Sahar's quince (yes, I know it's in 2 weeks). Also, yes, I know I'm not in horrible shape, but I'd really feel better if I slimmed down a bit, as well as toned up a bit. I'm still dreaming of Roller Derby, and am SO glad that Jenny agreed to skate with me when she & Diego move up here :D

Also, I bought a sewing machine and some fabric because I'm attempting to make my dress for Sahar's quince. I know what I want, and it's just easier doing it myself then trying to rely on stores to just magically make it appear. I have two weeks alone, so yes, that does mean I'm (once again) going to practice crocheting, work on some graphic collages, do some painting, learn some new recipes, practice my sculpting...and most importantly, sew like I've never sewn before! I think for fun (and practice) I'm going to make myself an apron, I received a really cute one for my birthday one year from some really good friends...had another friend borrow it, and never saw it again :(

But anyway, I don't have much else to say for now, so thank you blogger-world, for listening to me when I don't have anyone to talk to :)

p.s. I'll be posting pictures from the exciting events! look for them in the next post or so!

{we go together like ketchup and mustard}

Happy Anniversary, baby! Best two years of my life :)

Some Important People

Last week, it was both my Dad's birthday, and then my sister's the day after his. So, Happy Birthday, you crazy kids!

My relationship with my Dad has gotten a lot better since I moved out, and it's a lot easier for me to set aside any resentment/hurt feelings with all this distance. Whenever we talk on the phone or see each other, it's usually/mostly always pleasant :) Hugs and saying "I love you" have become a frequent part of our relationship, which in my book is a lot better than ignoring each other aside from a few smiles here and there. Yes, I guess I'm just another girl with "daddy issues", but really, I'm working on being forgiving and understanding, and it's not easy. But we're in a good place, and it makes me happy/relieved. His health and the future is still as rocky and uncertain as ever, and I'm glad our relationship actually exists and isn't tainted by resentment/anger/pain. Well, it might be a little bit, but it has gotten a lot better! His kidney is reaching the end of its days, and he'll probably begin dialysis within the next year...it's scary thinking of how difficult those times are going to be on my family. Hopefully he sets his stubbornness aside and gets on the donor waiting list...my Mom can't save him at the last minute this time.

I love my Dad, I really do. Despite everything, I still love him.

My little sister was born the day after my Dad's birthday, and last Thursday she turned 15! It's both crazy and exciting to think of how old she is and how much she's grown. I remember when I was 15, it was 6 years ago, which is crazy to think about, because it feels like it was just yesterday! 6 years from now I'll be 27, and she'll be 21! How strange!! haha. I still think of her as my baby sister...and I think I always will. She's been in a relationship with Ryan for almost an entire year now...which surpassed my expectations (no offense) just because I remember what high school was like. Aside from Kyle, I had never been in a relationship for that long! I'm so proud and happy for her, she's been through a lot, and she's grown into a wonderful young lady whom I gladly call one of my best friends :) Her Quinceanera is in 19 days! I'm so excited, it's such an exciting and important day in her life.

I love you Sahar! You're my favorite baby-girl! :)

Speaking of love. being proud, and best friends, my dearest best friend in the whole world, Sarah Marie Dozier, is now a college graduate! It's funny to say, but I look up to Ms. Dozier, I always have. I am so proud of all she's done, and how she's overcome so much to be where she is. Her determination and motivation are something I strive to attempt, lol. She's beautiful, amazing, and well on her way to an amazing life. I can't imagine her moving so far away from me, but even if we're bad at keeping in touch, she'll always have a piece of my heart with her. Love you, forever and ever, Soul Sister! :D

The Countdown to 2 Years continues

2 years ago tonight will mark another beautiful memory.

Kyle called and said he wanted to see me, I remember telling him I'd meet him outside my house. My parents were away because my Dad's birthday is June 10th, and my Mom took him to Vegas for the weekend.

I come outside, and the butterflies are just as excited as I am. Four days ago I realized I was in love with this beautiful boy. He asks me what I want to do, and I reply that I didn't know. So he says to me "if you could do anything in the world right now, anything at all, without regret and consequences, what would it be?"

I know immediately what he's hinting at, but I'm not convinced, so I make up a bunch of random things for us to do. First, lying on my roof and counting the stars, but we settle for lying on the hood of his car. "Now what?" he asks. "I want to see the moon, I can't see it at all!" I reply. So we start walking, and looking for it. We're halfway up the Del Cerro hill when he says, "I don't think it's visible tonight, so now what?" I decide that I want to sit on the big Del Cerro Hill rocks. We hike up that awful hill, and end up in the wrong overlook (the first one, not the second one) and there are no big rocks. Confused because I had never been to the wrong overlook, we plop down on some smaller rocks. The view is beautiful, we can see all of Lake Murray.

We end up talking all night again, but this time, we talk about the real reason we've spent the whole night together, again. The sun is rising, and it's the most beautiful view. Kyle takes my hand and tells me that he's fallen for me. We kiss, sort of, hah, he leaned in for a kiss while I hesitated and backed out of. It wasn't that simple, we couldn't just kiss and be together at this time. We settle for him giving me his jacket and wrapping his arm around me while we watch the morning begin. We eventually walk back down the hill and back to my house. I love looking back, but I think I've already mentioned that. :)

Nostalgia

2 years and 3 days ago marks the anniversary of the first time I realized I was in love with Kyle.

Falling in love occurred out of the blue, we were just friends, who enjoyed spending time together. But 2 years and 3 days ago, we breached the friendship wall and fell in love. You might not believe me, but I guarantee you I remember the instant where I realized I was in love with him.

I snuck out of my house in the middle of the night because we were going to video chat surprise Claire (yes, this was a completely innocent all-night adventure). Kyle picked me up from my house, and we drove over to Henry, where we planned to chat with Claire, in our search for some free wifi, we didn't end up actually "broadcasting" from Henry, but mooching off of some random person's internet. After chatting with Claire, I really had to go to the bathroom, so we went over to the Simms residence, where Sondra let us in. We hung out in her room for a little bit, and then when she wanted to go to sleep, we went back into his car. Without realizing how long it had been, it was already like 2 AM. But instead of just leaving, we ended up spending the rest of the night parked in the Simms driveway, just talking. About life, about music, art, books, movies, politics, religion, everything and anything.

It was at that moment, that I realized that not only was Kyle becoming one of my best friends, I was absolutely in love with him. I had to resist the urge to just reach over and hold his hand, or snuggle up next to him in his seat. I just have this picture perfect moment in my mind where I look over at him, and realize just how attracted I am to him, physically and emotionally. I remember being scared because I had never felt that way about anyone before, never, ever.

We ended up talking until like 5 AM, and then he took me home because he had work at 6 AM. I spent the rest of the day nervous, anxious, and so incredibly happy. Around 2 PM I got a phone call from him, telling me he was waiting for me outside, and he had Thai Iced Tea with him (one of our shared favorite drinks). We ended up going over to our old elementary school, where we walked around and swung on the swings. Talking, laughing, joking about "little boy dinosaurs" and other things :)

Afterwards, we went to Sala Thai together for the first of many, many times. Looking back at some of my favorite memories of us is probably one of my favorite thing to do. What I love even more is the continual addition of favorite memories. As we approach the 2 year mark, I just can't help but fill up with lovey dovey warm fuzzies.

{Excuse the ridiculous amount of love related posts on this blog, blame it on the bluesy-romantic songs that are constantly playing at my work, lol}

Junebug

To kick the summer off, we had a group of friends (Diego, Jenny, Sean & Scott) visiting from San Diego...they arrived Wednesday afternoon, and overall, it was a blast. I had work on Friday and Saturday, so I couldn't be tourists with them the entire time, but really, it was a really great trip :)

As you may or may not know blogger world, Diego and Jenny are moving up here later this Summer, and it's so exciting! Jenny got her acceptance letter to Seattle University only a few hours before they embarked on their trip, so that must be a good sign, right? She even managed to attend an orientation for transfer students and sign up for her classes! So, in addition to the fun, we were also being productive :D

We took them to Zak's shortly after they arrived, and it was good, as usual! We went to the SAM Olympic Sculpture Park (the pictures in the previous post were taken there) and had fun taking lots of pictures. Thursday Jenny, Kyle and I made breakfast: Strawberry Pancakes, Eggs, and Fries! Then we went to Pike's Place for a little bit before D & J had to get school/job applications going. I picked up a beautiful bouquet for only $5 :)

We even started looking at some apartments, and I'll be perfectly honest, I'm really looking forward to living with them. It just feels like we'd all be good roomies, ya know? And Jenny and I are going to have so much fun walking to Farmer's Markets with our puppy picking out fresh flowers and produce. Yes, I said it, puppy!!! We are both riding they "PUPPY!" train, so we're definitely going to get one! Living together is going to be great, I just have a good feeling about it!

While I was at work, Diego went around applying to a bunch of different places. We also went to Pizza Pi and sampled a bunch of their pizzas, the "caesar" salad, and the spinach artichoke dip (YUM!) We watched movies, hung out, and it was great having people to hang out with, lol.

Kyle left this morning, and so D & J dropped me off at work while they did some more site-seeing and apartment looking. We were SUPER busy at work today, it was kind of crazy. I was exhausted by like 4pm, lol, but they came and got me at 7pm when I got off work, and we went to "Ok Noodles" down in the University District. OMG, pure love! We'll definitely be going back there :) We even stopped at this "entertainment" store, lol, well they sold music in various formats, movies, video games, etc. etc.

I ended up getting 4 vinyl records (Mamas & Papas, Janis Joplin, Joan Jett, and Pink Floyd) for a steal! I'm now determined to get Kyle to finish fixing our record player :)

We headed back to the apartment where they finished packing, and Jenny had cleaned the apartment (what a saint!) which was really just amazingly nice :) I crashed on the couch after giving up trying to open my bottle of Merlot without a corkscrew, and am now ready to pass out. I am SO glad we don't open the store until 12pm on Sundays, I'm ready to sleep in a little :)

Goodnight world!

Trains are Romantic

{It's as if they were posing for me, haha}