If you really knew me...

Okay, so I got an email inviting me to participate in this new blog craze going around which is called IF YOU REALLY KNEW ME. Which, really, just seems like a fancy Myspace bulletin survey or whatever, but here we go.



If you really knew me...

You would know that I like, never wash my hair. Once a week. Maybe. (I do shower every day, though.)

You would know I am a sucker for inspirational sports movies and cheesy "scary" movies (like Signs. Love that movie). Miracle is my favorite. I tear up every time.

You would know that I'm a sucker for my dogs' sad puppy eyes. I give in every time. They look so SAD!

You would know that I LOVE trashy reality television. The cheesier the better. Teen Mom? True Life? Bring. It. On.

You would know that I get competitive about weird things. Like getting Photoshop before the new girl at work. Or reaching a light before the car next to me. They don't even know they're competing, but I do, and I usually win.

You would know that my favorite foods are WATERMELON and French Fries. And Wingstop. And pizza. Yum.

You woud know that I LOVE puns. I am the pun queen. I think I'm so punny (get it? Funny and pun? Eh?). :o)

You would know I get nightmares really easily. A horror movie trailer can do it for me.

You would know that most of my friends are people from high school or before. I like to keep my good friends close. :o)

You would know that I don't actually like shopping all that much. I go in, I find out if I like something, I try it on, I buy. I don't like browsing too much. Boring!

You would know that I am the grammar queen. Nothing bothers me more than the wrong you're/your, its/it's, they're/their/there, me/I, or whom/who. Fiance says if I was a character on Seinfeld, I would be called the Grammar Nazi! :o)

You would know that I love the Summer Olympics. I already made Fiance and our roommate watch Olympic trials for the men's gymnastic team. They got sucked in, but they still blame me for it.

You would know that I'm getting MARRIED in less than a year! WOO!

Jess? Danielle? Kaitlyn? I "tag" you guys to do this next. It's kind of fun! 

Team USA!

(I wrote about my love for the Olympics in my last column for the LC Sun News here: KACHOW)

Instead of sunshines/dark clouds, I thought I would write a little bit about the most exciting event in my life right now... the Olympics! Although I do have two quick sunshines: one, my friend DANIELLE is in town from Chicago and I'm SO happy to see her! AND The Olympic Games are starting tonight! Two BIG sunshines! :o) :o)

On Tuesday, my boss, coworker and I took personal leave to go to the bowling alley to watch Team USA play France in group play of the Olympics, for women's soccer. Tonight, the opening ceremonies will be broadcasted across the world, officially kicking off one of my FAVORITE things in the world: The Summer Olympic Games.

I'm a rare breed of Olympic fan. The other day, I asked my coworkers if they remember where they were last Olympics. They looked bewildered and answered, "No...?" as though I was the weird one!

Okay, maybe I am the weird one.

But I just cannot help myself. I LOVE the Olympics. I love anything that lets me get patriotic. I love that, for a couple of weeks, everyone I know is cheering for the same team. I love that when team USA scored the third goal to pull us ahead, everyone erupted in cheers. I get tingles when the National Anthem is played.



Four years ago, I was a college sophomore. I was living in my sorority house. Right there, in the Pi Beta Phi house, surrounded by my friends, cheering on our athletes.

I remember thinking that the next time I saw the Olympics, I would be 24 (TWENTY FOUR YEARS OLD!), out of college for two years, and I would definitely know where my life would be going. I hoped that I would maybe have someone (though I anticipated a way different someone in my life than Fiance turned out to be!).

Little did I know, less than a year after the Olympics ended, I started dating Fiance, and the rest is history. The past three years have been filled with incredible love and happiness. Sure, there were times that we fought or I was sad about something, but overall, my life now is so, so much happier than my life before. I didn't even know I wasn't totally happy. And maybe I was, but now, I have the capacity for more happiness. Who knows how it works. But overall, my life is so complete now.

I'm sitting in my house as I write this, the house I share with Fiance and our best friend Thomas, plus Thomas's adorable dog Remix and our adorable dog Shadow.

I have a great job that has brought me more experience than I could ever have hoped for. I feel so prepared for whatever I go to after this position, though I still have lots to learn at this job! I have a great family. I'm getting healthy and I feel so much better.

At 20, I had no idea what to expect when I experienced the 2012 Olympics, but I never could have anticipated being as happy as I am. But that is a wonderful surprise :o)

THREE YEARS!

Three Years.

I forgot to post on Monday, but that was Fiance and my THREE YEAR anniversary. I still can't believe we have been together for three years. It seems like more and less at the same time... like, the time has flown, but I can't remember being without him, or not having him to bounce ideas off of, or not having him kiss me good night.

We've gone through so much together. So many trips... like this one in Boston.

Or this one in Vegas!

Graduations...

Falling in love...

Getting a PUPPY together!

Concerts...

Movies...

Being silly together... :o)

And getting engaged!

Fiance, honey, I love you more than anything and I can't wait to be your wife. I know that you're the one person that was sent to me, because you make me happier than I've ever been. I constantly feel like maybe eventually I'll get used to you, get used to the feeling that you are too good to be true, get used to the butterflies, but after three years, no, I still love seeing your smile, I still love kissing you, I still calm down instantly when I get to talk to you. You make me so happy and I can't wait to try to make you as happy as you make me, for the rest of our lives.

Happy Three Year Anniversary!

Gym

No motivation. All I want to do is sit at home in my bed and watch Big Bang Theory while wearing my softest pajama pants and a tank top because it is hot in my house.

But I have to get up and go. I have to.



Right?

Saturday Timeline

8:55 am: Wake up to Fiance kissing me goodbye before heading off to a charity car wash he and some other people at his work organized for Toys for Tots. Some of the guys at work (including Fiance's uncle) are Marines, and are very invested in Toys for Tots and host events to raise money for it. Good cause. I go back to sleep.

9:10 am: Can't sleep long. Get up and watch Tia and Tamera and eat a bowl of granola cereal.

9:45 am: Get dressed in my workout gear and head to the car wash to donate.

10:00 am: Run to the store to buy some sodas for the guys working.

10:30 am: Head to the gym after the car wash for some weights and Zumba!

11:00-12:00: ZUMBA! Exhausted. Did around 1,000 high kicks.

12:15-1:15 pm: Home, shower, blow-dry my hair.

1:30 pm: Head to the local car place to get an oil change. Fiance picks me up so I don't have to wait in the waiting area, and we head to Wingstop for lunch.

1:45-2:30 pm: Wingstop. Delicious. I have five hot wings and share fries with Fiance. Perfect.

2:30-3:00 pm: Look around at Hastings. Buy the movie Signs.

3:15 pm: Get car, head home.

4:00-6:00 pm: Nap. Awesome.

6:30 pm: Eat watermelon.

7:00 pm: Head to the movie theater to wait in line for BATMAN!

7:45-10:45: Batman. Eating hot dogs with nacho cheese, movie popcorn, and Diet Coke. Best night ever.

11:00 pm: Fiance buys me an ice cream cone.

11:15-12:30: Look at potential honeymoon sites. Even though we were set on Hawaii, now we're kind of thinking Europe... Rome, specifically. Best part of wedding planning.

Now... bed. Great day.

All Sunshines!

It's Friday and even though I'm working, but it's still ALL sunshines today!

• I'm back on track with eating healthy! GET SOME!
• My good friend DANIELLE comes back into town this week! I can't WAIT to see her and eat Mexican food and catch up with her. She lives in Chicago now, and I miss her!
• Fiance and I have a date night planned for tomorrow night. BATMAN and Wingstop. Fiance's FAVORITE things in the world!
• Shadow learned a new trick. And by trick, I mean he is the SMARTEST dog in the world and now knows what the word "careful!" means. When he jumps on the bed and I say, "careful!", he steps over all cautiously to avoid stepping on anything. If I don't say it, he just walks on over. TOO smart!
• I got a new water bottle for work. I never knew how old and scratched my old one was until I got a new one! lol
• I've really been taking advantage of the gym. I did an hour straight of cardio yesterday and found out that I can RUN for way longer than I thought I could. Next stop, 5k!
• I've been reading To the Lighthouse by Woolfe, and I LOVE it. I can't believe I haven't read this before.
• I've been too addicted to Trader Joe's shampoo and conditioner. It has tea tree oil and it makes my scalp all tingly and clean-feeling. And my hair is shinier than ever. Love it.

It's Friday, everyone! Smile! Enjoy the weekend!

Dark Knight Rises

Here is something you should know about me. Well, not about me, but about Fiance. And now, I guess, about us.

Fiance is a BATMAN FAN.

I don't think you understand. He's a BATFAN. He's also a GOOD MOVIE fan (like, Academy Award winners, etc.). So naturally, he LOVES the Nolan Batman trilogy. We started dating in 2009 and I remember him talking about the final Nolan Batman BACK THEN.

When we went to Vegas in July 2010, I remember him saying, "Two years until Dark Knight Rises!". Since then, we've been WAITING for the final film to be released. We watched trailers. We followed casting. We cheered when Bane was decided as the villain. We were worried (a little) when Anne Hathaway was cast as Catwoman. We counted down eagerly until July 2012, which felt DECADES away.

And now... it's here.

It's amazing how much time can pass in three years. Since 2009, when Fiance first started talking about Batman, we started dating, we moved in together, we got a puppy (who wasn't even ALIVE when Nolan started planning his movie), we went to Vegas THREE times, we fell in love, we got engaged, we moved five times, we started planning our wedding, and we gained and lost 60 lbs combined. CRAZY how time goes!

And somewhere in the past three years, I became a Batfan, too. The other day, someone mentioned something about Robin, and I literally popped into the conversation to ask if they meant Tim Drake, Jason Todd, or Dick Grayson. How did this happen? By dating a BATFAN. I started thinking about the philosophical push and pull of good vs. evil in Batman and Joker. I started realizing that Batman is just as crazy as the Joker is because he can't bring himself to kill someone. I also realized that WAY too many people (especially pretty women) know Bruce's secret.

Ah, Batman.

Also, I think you should look at this video which is HILARIOUS. Don't click out of the video until the VERY end when SuperMario gets into a "Batman Voice" contest with Batman. HILARIOUS!

Puppy Love

There is very little that can compare...



To the love between a man and his dog.

Back! Ready!

So this past weekend, Fiance and I went back to Phoenix for a little LOT of wedding planning. I know our wedding is still almost an entire YEAR out, but with a destination wedding, we had to make our plans remotely. To not have to go back for another 5-6 months (we hope), we wanted to get as MUCH done this weekend as possible.

We succeeded.

We left Friday morning. We grabbed a quick Subway breakfast sandwich and then we were on our way! Five hours later, we pulled into Oregano's (our new FAVORITE pizza place in Phoenix... delicious! Check it out if you're ever there) and ate ourselves into a coma. Then we headed out to Litchfield Park, where Fiance's mom lives now.

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching television and relaxing, until Fiance's mom came home and took us to Lolo's Chicken and Waffles for dinner.

It was SO good, of course!

We also headed to a little Irish bar for a Guinness (for Fiance), and a margarita (for us).

The next morning, we woke up and headed to the resort for our appointment with our favorite wedding planner, Amanda. In an hour and a half, we pretty much planned our whole wedding. It was a whirlwind, but amazing. She's done so many that she knew exactly what to ask and what would NOT look good.

After that, we ate lunch at the resort with our parents and talked about the wedding some more. I had crab cake sliders (they were GREAT) and Fiance had a burger, also great.

Then at two, we met with our DJ and signed him on the spot. We clicked immediately. It also DEFINITELY helped that EVERYONE we had spoken to had raaaaaved about this DJ and how he can keep the party going. He loved all of our musical choices and had some great advice about our first dance. We both feel great about him DJing our wedding!

And then at four, my mom and I went wedding gown shopping!!!!

Of course, no spoilers yet, but suffice it to say that I found the dress. THE dress. My perfect dress, after going through other pretty, but not necessarily PERFECT dresses. I'm so, so happy with our choice. As soon as it was laced on, I teared up and thought to myself, "I'm going to marry Fiance in this dress." My mom teared up. I just... KNEW.

Aaaaand then we went back to Lolo's!

Yum!

We slept late, then headed back to the resort for CAKE TASTING!

It was amazing. The resort set it up so beautifully, and we had 10 great cakes to taste. We narrowed it down to a few favorites and really, we can't go wrong.



We headed home right after... running straight into these clouds.

Fun, huh?

BUT we made it home safely. We had SUCH a productive weekend and we are ALMOST DONE with our wedding planning... a year early. What can I say? I'm a planner :o)

Blending Lives

I consider myself an independent woman. Other than my cell phone and my car insurance (thanks, mom and dad!), I pay for everything else in my life. Clothes, health insurance, eye exams, dentist, gas, oil changes, 401k, utilities, rent, etc. I'm proud of what I've accomplished so far. I have a healthy savings and a stable checking account.

But in less than a year, I'll be married with a new last name and I'll have a whole new world.

Fiance and I have separate bank accounts now (something we both really wanted to keep separate until marriage), but once we're married, we will definitely have a joint account. One of the main reasons for this is that eventually, we'll have kids and I really want to stay home with them for a few years when they are babies. At that point, having separate accounts would not work so well. Plus, I figure if you can't trust sharing your money with your husband, you probably shouldn't be marrying them, hmmm?

But the process scares me. I figure I'll move to his bank, but he's in an account with his mom (which works great because he does a lot of bill paying/running errands for her now before he gets into full time work), which I definitely don't want as a married couple. So we'll both have to get brand new accounts to share. But when? Before the wedding, before the honeymoon? After everything? Once I change my name?

Anyone have any ideas?

Back into it

Apparently, getting engaged is a free pass to eat whatever you want (in moderation) and only work out sporadically. No? It's not? Because that's what I've been doing! I can't help myself.

I haven't gained weight in the past month (well, about a pound or so, depending on the day, sometimes less), but I sure haven't lost anything. At this point, I wanted to be at least 6-8 lbs down from my engagement weight instead of just 4.

Blah!

The good news about all of this is that I can get it out of my system before the long stretch before the wedding. Also that the wedding is still 11 months away. Plenty of time to get my rear in gear and get back to my routine.

BUT I'm joining a gym TONIGHT with my friend Vanessa. We do Zumba together on Mondays (she goes Wednesdays, too, but that's my dinner night with my mama), and they also have Zumba on Tuesdays and Thursdays around the time right after I get out of work, which would be perfect. On days that Fiance drives at work, he'll get home later in the day (around 6:30 or so), which would allow me to work out on the way home from work. Because when we're both home, I don't have nearly as much motivation to work out as when he's at work and I'm just sitting on the couch for two straight hours!

I just need a little boost to get me back into gear. I'm only about 15-20 lbs away from my goal and I've already lost a good amount from my original. I would be happy to get married at my current weight, because I feel good, I feel healthy, etc., but for my wedding day, the day 've always dreamed of, I just want to feel... amazing.

Wish me luck. I'm zumba-ing tonight and that is final!

Sunshines and Dark Clouds!

FRIDAY!

Dark Clouds:

• I have to work tomorrow in El Paso covering an event. Which means my Saturday evening will be spent trying to FIND the darn place, then writing notes and snapping photos for a couple of hours. But hey, Fiance gets to come, and I think we'll try to grab some dinner over there, too.
• I need new windshield wipers but I always forget about it because we get like, ZERO rain until July. Then I remember. Oh, I remember.
• Poor Fiance locked himself out of the house yesterday. Luckily, I was already on my way home from work to save him. But he got locked out without a phone, a wallet, or his keys due to our finicky doorknob. He walked three miles to his grandpa's house and broke in to use their phone. Poor guy!
• I need a haircut. Badly.

SUNSHINES:

• It's FRIDAY and I'm ready for the weekend!
• We made some bomb spaghetti yesterday and I couldn't wait for lunch today! Yay!
• Fiance and I bought new throw pillows and rugs yesterday. It's the easiest way to make a house a home, I think. Well, those and a dog!
• I had coffee with my great friend Blairre this week and I'm so excited for her... she's about seven months pregnant with her second, and she and her husband are thrilled. The ultrasound says girl, but Blairre has been having her doubts. Her instinct was right the first time around!
• We saw the Amazing Spider Man and I LOVED it. Andrew Garfield is too, too cute. I have a big crush on him (it's okay, Fiance has a crush on Emma Stone!).
• It's been rainy and SO nice.

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Great Week

Sorry to pop back in on a Thursday, but it has been a really CRAZY busy week. My cousin and aunt came in this weekend and we spent the whole weekend drinking and eating and shopping with them!

Then we had the 4th of July. We grilled steaks, ate watermelon, and played with six boxes of sparklers while we watched the city fireworks from afar. I LOVE the fourth of July! One of my favorite holidays!

BUT now I'm back to work and trying to focus on my new projects at work. Wish me luck!

Bridesmaids!

So now that we are in the swing of wedding things, I thought I would take a second to introduce my favorite girls... my bridesmaids! I should also note that I have some other REALLY great girls in my life (particularly Adriana and Kaitlyn, who are crazy busy in their mama/PhD persuing lives, respectively), but these bridesmaids are the ones that will be forced to participate in bridesmaidy things for the next year. Good luck, girls!

FIRST and most important is my Maid of Honor, my sister Jessica.

My sister has always been one of my best friends. We go through ups and downs (like all sisters do) but overall, she's one of the people that knows me best in the world. She's super fun and I'm excited to plan this wedding with her. We already had a super fun wedding magazine/champagne party and I can't wait for more!


Next is my cousin Stephanie, who is here in town to visit.



Even though she and I only saw each other twice a year growing up (Christmas and our family reunion), we've ALWAYS kept in great touch through AOL IM (I know, right?), email, texting, Facebook, Myspace, whatever! I love love love her and I'm so happy she gets to stand next to me on my special day.


Then, there's my best friend Valerie.



Valerie and I have been best friends since high school (freshman year honors physical science, what what!) and friends since 7th grade. She's been there for me through ALL of my big events (broken hearts, love, first kisses, etc.) and she was actually the first person I told about Fiance when he asked me to be his girlfriend. I love her!


Also, my great friend Blairre!


Blairre and I have been friends since high school. We bonded over a certain football player and then solidified our friendship through ENDLESS Starbucks trips, shopping trips, a Nelly concert, sleepovers, and then through HER wedding when I was a bridesmaid. We're the type of friends that can be apart for months and then when we see each other, we always spend HOURS catching right back up without a break, like nothing has changed!


Last but definitely not least is my friend Danielle.



Danielle and I have literally been friends for as long as I can remember. She used to live down the street from me and we went to kindergarten, elementary, middle, high school, and college together and we even lived together in the dorms. We have very different crowds but she's always been one of my close friends that I can turn to when I need to talk or need a break. She's super fun and SUPER down to earth.


THERE YOU HAVE IT! My bridesmaids! I can't wait to have them all with me on my wedding day. I love these girls!