the not-so-melodrama...

My family and I went to see the Christmas performance at the melodrama last night...oh my goodness, I laughed so hard I was almost crying. There were 3 shows: A Christmas Carol, Sleeping Beauty (a parody), and a Holiday Revue (I can't remember the full title of that one). A Christmas Carol was definitely more of a play; pretty serious, stuck with the story...all around, very good. Sleeping Beauty was definitely my fave (that's when I was almost crying). SO funny!! I was a little too tired to focus on the third one, plus one of the main dudes I had seen before and I could not for the life of me place who he was and where I had seen him...turns out, he was in another performance a few of my friends were in as well. It only took me 3 hours to figure that out, haha.
All around, a great show...I will definitely be coming back to the not-so-melodrama. :)

sweet sarah...

So, the day after Christmas (and kind of on Christmas) I get sick...grr. But, hey, at least I have some new stuff to entertain me (like Inception on Blue-ray...YAY!!).
I was also able to talk to my lovely friend Sarah today, which always makes me feel better (seriously, if you're ever having a bad day, this lovely lady will make you feel 100X better). I'm SUPER excited to go visit her in Jan!! I haven't seen her in over a year (well, I saw her for about 10min this last Aug, but that doesn't really count)!! She is an amazing friend whom I have had the privilege to know my whole life...that's right, we were bestest baby buddies. I love her so much, and I'm SO anxious to see her and her wonderful family again. :)
BTW, the grapes are kind of an inside joke...but isn't the picture COOL??

merry christmas...

May your day be full of wonderful moments that will last a lifetime; and after all of the hustle and bustle of the day, you can sleep "in heavenly peace." :)

artsy etsy!...

My friend Evelyn introduced me to Etsy: a site where crafty people can share and sell their crafts and items. I was hooked the first time I went on. It's SO cute! You can start your own business, or just buy items (it's kinda like an artsy ebay). I went on a limb and started my own business for my photography!...I'm kinda nervous, actually; even though I only posted one item. I think it's the first time I've really posted one of my pictures where other people (besides friends and family) can give me feedback. I'm nervous, but SUPER excited. I can't wait to see what happens! :) Here's my shop!

snowball of news {part 3}!...

I made Lisa's boy David a blanket for Christmas, and the fabric I found was just perfect. It was textured, REALLY REALLY soft (did I mention how soft it is??), and the perfect Christmas green and red (sadly, because my camera has horrible white balance, they look yellow. But I assure you, they're gorgeous colors); and making the blanket was SUPER easy!! Here's how you make one:

1. Lay out pieces of fabric with the bigger piece on the bottom.
2. Cut off extra fabric so that both pieces have equal dimensions.
3. Cut slits in both pieces (like layered paper), and tie them in ordinary knots. If you have thick fabric, make sure to cut the slits deep enough so that you're not struggling to tie the knots (you don't want your knots to bunch the fabric). Cut and tie all four sides.
4. Viola! You now have a knotted blanket!

I've made a few knotted blankets now, and they're definitely a favorite among my friends...and so easy! Now I just need to make some for myself. :)

snowball of news {part 2}!...

So, Cuesta's library had a "free books" bin, and I didn't discover it until about 2 weeks before school ended! The books that were there were mostly just physical fitness guides, but I did find a really cool book from 1956 (the salmon pink one)! I love the smell of old books. So cool.
There's a new coffee shop downtown called Kreuzberg (no idea if I spelled that right) where if you bring in old books, you get free coffee! I'm going tomorrow...can't wait!

snowball of news {part 1}!...

So, since I haven't updated in about a week, I have A LOT to talk about! But, since it's late, and I know how busy many of us are, I'm going to keep it short by making 3 small posts instead of one giant one. So, let's begin.
First: it was Padre's birthday on the 15th! Whoo! We walked through the Elfin Forest (where I got our family Christmas card shot [pic above]), then went to Ciopinot for dinner...SO yummy, oh my goodness. It was crazy delicious.
Even though it's winter (at least it feels like winter with all of the rain!), there were still gorgeous flowers in the forest. So pretty, I loved them.

motivation for finals...

This is pretty much me right now. I had my math final this morning (math's over! YAY!), and I have my ASL final tomorrow (I guess it's today now, haha). I was going to work on it tonight, but I had absolutely zero motivation to work on it. I just keep thinking about all of the Christmas parties that I have in the next week, and then my mind starts going on what presents I need to get when and where I need to get them and which ones go to which person and...and...ah! SO much to think about, I don't have the brain power to think about an ASL presentation. Oh well, just one more final. One more, 5 minute final. I can do it! That's what I keep telling myself anyway, 'till I start thinking about the gifts again, haha. :)

I have a CRAZY day tomorrow (I was originally going to work, but thankfully I'm not, or else that would've just been non-stop craziness!). My day will (hopefully) go as follows:

1. Going to a friend's house for breakfast (yay!!).
2. Going home to study for my ASL final.
3. Going to Cuesta to take my ASL final.
4. Going home to get ready for piano.
5. Going to piano.
6. Going home to get ready for my LLD Christmas Party at Novo (double yay!!)
7. Going to my work Christmas party.
8. Going home to sleep after an awesome, but insane, day.

Sounds fun, right? All good stuff, but you can definitely have too much of any good thing. I'll just have to take a lot of naps this week. :)

christmas decor and more...

So, instead of being a responsible college student and study for my finals next week, I decided to decorate my room instead...and let me tell ya, it was so worth it. I LOVE Christmas decorating; it's so fun! Doesn't Shawn look handsome with his garland scarf? I thought it added a nice touch. :) I also LOVE the charming tails figurines. Aren't they ADORABLE?? I'm definitely gonna be an old grandma with tons of charming tails on my mantel and in my china cabinet. :)
Our little poodle, Chewy, has a torn ligament in his right hind knee, so we have to try to keep him quiet for the next 2 weeks. So far, it hasn't been easy, haha. He loves jumping up onto furniture and into our laps, so we have been sitting with him on the floor and setting him onto the furniture when we're sitting on it. He's even on morphine, and yet he's still just as active as ever. What a strong little 14 year old poodle. :)

elves elves everywhere!...

I have been pretty much obsessed over this Office Max Elf Yourself thing you can do online. I've made probably about 10 videos of my friends and family in the past 2 days...I could study, but I don't really feel like it. :) Here's one of my fave vids I did with my family.

more florence...

Florence has an absolutely amazing voice. I love it. It's so smooth and warm, yet strong and, at times, cold. So good. I'm in love with this song right now. It just makes you feel like dancing (another great song)! Glee just did this song in their latest episode. Well done, Glee. Well done. I will be buying your version shortly. :)

totally awesome!...

I was reminiscing about my childhood cartoons, and Totally Spies came to mind...I LOVED that show! I would imagine that I was a spy at WOOHP and Jerry would call me for missions. Man, those were the days. Anyway, here's part of a great episode. I think I'm going to buy the movie later this week. :)

pompla does hyundai!...

Pomplamoose does it again! This time, for some Hyundai commercials (here's one of them)! I'm so proud of them, even though they have no idea who I am. :)

christmas lights!...

My padre and I just put up our Christmas lights today, which means it's already time to start thinking about Christmas!...Crazy!! I'm actually pretty proud of myself: I got A LOT of my shopping done already! I'm usually one of those people who waits until about a week before, then runs out to buy everybody's gift at the last second. Well, not this year! I'm making a list and checking it A BUNCH of times. I've already checked off who's naughty or nice. So...who's ready for Santa?

a little ambitious...

I think this chipmunk has bitten off a little more than he can chew.

thankful...

May you be reminded of and thankful for all of the wonderful things God has given you this Thanksgiving and always.

"Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God." ~ Colossians 3:16

j + d...

... = one good season of dancing. :)
Here's my fave dance they did.
I love Argentine tango, especially when Derek dances it...he's a stud.

pomplamoose...

I had discovered this adorable musical couple with Sarah a while back, and I had completely forgotten about them! Well, never again. I will definitely be getting their songs onto my iPod. :) Being a big Piaf fan, this one is my fave, so far.

AB at MBA! YAY!...

I just discovered that Alton Brown is going to be at MBA again next year for their annual Cooking for Solutions event!!...and now that I have a job, that means I can go again!! YAY!!!! I've decided that it will be my Christmas gift to me. :)
I think AB is my fave chef just because he has the most animated, fun, and creative personality that I've ever seen on TV (except for Bill Nye the Science Guy, but he didn't cook). Like this vid (part 2 here). I mean, who would ever think about making a spoof on Sweeny Todd into a meat pie episode on a TV cooking show! Genius. Pure Genius.

the babies...

Yep, they're pretty adorable. :)
If I'm having a bad day, this video always makes me smile (so do my babies).
Puppies do that...make me smile. They're just too darn adorable!

may i present, my new boots!...

I FINALLY got my boots in the mail...and they fit PERFECTLY!! I'm SO happy!! Bring on the rain!! :D Since i got out the tri-pod for some shots, I decided to make it a little photo shoot. Just for fun. :)
I can't wait for the REAL Fall weather to start! I love the cool air and the smell of cinnamon and fire and pumpkin and...and...everything!! :)

all i want to do...

I don't know about you, but when I'm sick, all I want to do is watch Whose Line vids...like this one.

how to train your dragon...

Alright, I admit. This movie is pretty darn good...REALLY good, actually. I'm not all that sure why I didn't want to see it for the longest time?...Wait, I know why. It was because everyone was shoving it in my face saying, "Lauren! You HAVE to see this movie!! It's AWESOME!!" Ya know, I was thinking about seeing it, then you started forcing it at me with everything you've got, so you turned me off of it. Is it just me, or do you feel put off when people try to make you watch popular movies or read popular book series?...I don't know, it's probably just me.
Anywho, if you haven't already, I highly recommend seeing this movie (I'm not forcing you, it's just a suggestion). I was pleasantly surprised. Oh, if you're able to, try watching it in Blueray...it's definitely the best. :)

catching up...

So, remember those great boots that I wanted oh so badly? Well, I ordered them (yay!) and they were shipped Monday (double yay!), so they should be here any day now! :D
My Dad and I went over to the UO store in SLO on Sunday to look at the heels. We went in, and there they were, in the same spot as last time, calling to me, "Buuuy meeee!..." We rushed over and tries to find my size. They didn't have a 7 in the all black, but they did have it in the white and black (same shoe, different color). So I tried those on; a little too big. I tried on the size 6; a little too small. I asked the sales girl if they came in a 6.5. She ended up calling another store (which took about 15min) to see if they had the size. They didn't. She then proceeded to call the online store, and asked them if they had the heels. Turns out, they don't make that shoe in a 6.5. They make them in 6, 7, 7.5, 8, 8.5, and so on...they SKIPPED 6.5!! Of course, my dream heels don't come in my size...sad day.
It's funny when you look back at it, 'cause you can totally see God looking at you, laughing. Which makes me laugh too (did you know that God's laugh is contagious? Seriously, try not laughing when you know He's laughing up there). Of course, I get an email after the fiasco that reads, "20% BOOTS AND SHOES"...keep laughing, God. Keep laughing...lol.

On another note, my week has been INSANE with homework. It's a little past 1/2 of the semester (crazy!), so all of the teachers are trying to catch up by giving us huge homework assignments right before huge tests...it's huge. I just finished 1/3 of my research paper last night...it's not that good, but it's not that bad either (I'm hoping for low B). I'm a little freaked out about the MLA citation stuff, since my teacher said she's going to take off a letter grade if we have a mistake this first paper (she said even a period in the wrong spot is a mistake...crap). Then I have an ASL presentation today (which I barely had time to study for), then a math test on Monday...oh the joys of cramming for multiple tests in the same week. I think I've been in my room on the computer doing homework most of the week. I'm ready for a break. Can't wait for next Monday to be over!This is my keyboard that I have been staring at over the last week...Hey, I had to take a pic of something!

I'm super proud of myself: I have a lot of my Christmas shopping done already!! An all time personal record! Places are having great sales right now, so I've just been stocking up! Now I just need to find a good place to hide them. :)

boots or heels? that is the question...

PRACTICALITY VS STYLE
Here's the scoop: I REALLY need rain boots, really badly...really, really badly. So, I remember going into UO one day and happening to stumble upon some rain boots that actually fit me! Like seriously legit FIT my skinny long legs!! Alas, at the time I didn't have the money. So, I just went to back recently only to discover that they don't have them in the store anymore...but they do have them online! So I said, "Great! Thank you!" and was on my merry way, until something caught my eye. Right as I was walking out of the store I saw the most adorable t-strap wingtip heals I'd ever seen. It was love at first sight. I walked over, picked them up, and felt the soft suede brush against my fingertips as if it were the first time my fingers had ever touched shoes this soft; this kind of quality. I literally got goose bumps (no joke, I love shoes this much). Then I saw the price tag: $48. Now, for any normal citizen of San Luis Obispo, CA $48 is child's play. But for me, the fashionista of bargains, $48 is a lot of dough. I could buy 50 burritos at Taco Bell for that! In other words, that's lunch for more than a month. I couldn't bring myself to spend that much, even for them, the dreamy t-straps. I set them down and started to walk out of the store. Then, it hit me: my cousins gave me a UO gift card for about $20 (I think)! I could get the shoes for almost 1/2 off! Then, another thought hit me: I could use the gift card for the rain boots online and get these later, then we're all good, right?...Right? My heart was torn. Should I spend the card towards practical boots that I have been needing for forever now, or should I use the card toward my love heels? I just can't decide. In the end, I'll probably be getting both, so it doesn't really matter what I use the card on...but WHEN will I get both of the pairs is the real question. Do I buy the boots now and hope for rain? Do I buy the heels and hope for no rain? We shall see...

By the way, this is what happens when I stay up till 1:30AM and have shoes on my brain. :)

a few of my favorite things...

I listened to the song My Favorite Things from The Sound of Music today, and started to think of a few of my favorite things...like:

• A bright yellow flower on a sunny (or cloudy!) day
• Some peppermint hot cocoa on a crisp winter morning
• Sitting in front of a warm fireplace listening to Christmas music (yes, my mind is already to December).
• A big hug
• Getting a good laugh after watching a great video of sound effects.
• Sitting on the beach, taking deep breath after deep breath of the salty sea spray.
• Finding an amazing pair of shoes that I can actually afford!
• Capturing the perfect picture.
  
• The smell of freshly baked bread, or cinnamon rolls, or any form of doughy food, really.
• Belting my little heart out while singing a hymn in church.
  
• Making a friend laugh after they've had a bad day.

So, when the dog bites, when the bees sting, when I'm feeling sad. I simply remember my favorite things, and then I don't feel so bad.

welcome to the legal club...

So, last Sunday my friend's threw me a superhero surprise party!...although, it wasn't really a "surprise" (I kinda predicted it early on [see my "shocked" expression in upper right pic]...I'm such a party pooper!) it was still an awesome party, complete with birthday doughnuts, cake on a stick, and an epic dance party. Super fun!! I love those girls SO much!! Thank you for the best "surprise" party ever!! Love you girls!! :)

cwb...

Last night was my...5th? 6th? Civil War Ball...I've been to so many, I've lost count now, haha. I'm happy to say that every time my pictures get just a little bit better (I think my camera has finally gotten the idea of capturing "moving targets"). I used my new iPod (that I got for my birthday!) to get a couple videos (I might post those later). I used Picnik to edit these pics. Did you know that you can whiten the subject's teeth via Picnik?...I thought that was pretty cool, myself.

Tomorrow, I'm going over to my friend Evelyn's to watch Batman Begins (my fave movie) as kind of a belated birthday hangout thing...sounds good to me! :)

18 on the 17th...

So, for my 18th birthday, I requested only one thing: go down to LA and see a taping of The Price Is Right...and that's what we did!! I had an awesome time!! Sadly, I didn't get called up, but it was still a wonderful experience that I will cherish forever. :) I was very surprised at how tiny the stage was! It looks HUGE on TV, but the place only seats about 400 people (smaller than my church), and the stage was definitely smaller than the PAC...seriously, it was tiny. Sadly, NO electronics were allowed, so I couldn't get any pics. But I did get some of my birthday dinner at Benihana!! :D It was my first time going there, and I LOVED it!! Such a cool idea: your chef cooking your food right in front of you. So cool. We got to the restaurant early, so to kill time, we went into Bloomingdales...let me just say, I saw A LOT of the same stuff at Ross; but Ross doesn't have cute sales associates in suits. ;)

An amazing birthday that I will never forget. Now...what shall I do for my 21st??

my last day...

Today was the last day of my childhood...sounds really sad when I put it like that, haha. I get really excited when I think about all of the adventures I'm going to have as an adult, but then when I start to think about all of the awesome adventures I had as a kid, I start to feel all sad and teary-eyed...*sniffle*.
My childhood was, I have to say, amazing. I have so many wonderful memories that I will never forget; like learning how to ride my bike down the crazy hills in Los Osos, or riding my bike through the forests of Connecticut in the summertime, or riding my bike to the "Walmart Neighborhood Market" in Arizona (huh, I guess a lot of my memories involve riding my bike, haha). I have so many more that I will cherish forever.
Yes, my childhood was awesome, but a lot of the really good memories I've made were just from these past few years; like learning how to drive, getting my passport and going to Mexico to build houses, going with my friends to Lake Tahoe my senior year; all of these awesome memories I never could have done if I hadn't have grown up a little. There are definitely things I'm looking forward to, like getting my degree, traveling, getting married, having kids (don't worry Dad, I don't plan on those last two for a while).

Let's face it, we can't be like Peter Pan and live in Neverland our whole lives. At some point we have to leave the pirating and the lost boys behind to start a new adventure of adulthood. :)

yum...

Sometimes, you just need some chocolate cake and a big glass of milk. :)

job shadow at mba!...

This is Kit. She's the youngest otter to ever be on exhibit at MBA...you can read more about her here! Also, this isn't my pic (sadly), but that's OK. Isn't she just too cute??

So, on Saturday, I got to experience what it was like to be an otter aquarist (cool name, huh) at MBA...one of, if not them coolest thing I've ever done. It was such a hands-on experience, without being too over-the-top (like swimming with dolphins, which doesn't expose the dirty hard work that goes into taking care of the animal); it was awesome. It was also a good learning experience as to what my career path would look like if I decided to pursue that career (I'm still not entirely sure, and after this, I'm definitely not all that sure). One good thing that I learned is that I wanted to be an otter aquarist, I would also be certified to help with penguins and the aviary (sweet!). One bad thing I learned is that they make less than a teacher's salary (boo), but it's definitely worth it for your dream job. It just means I'll have to have 2 jobs for the first couple years (your pay goes up once you have more experience). I also learned that I should DEFINITELY look into internships when I'm in a university; a lot of internships offer school credit instead of pay (which means, a second job). Again, that's totally fine, cause you can get an internship anywhere, even...Hawaii!!! I'll definitely be looking into those first. Now all I need to do is become CPR and SCUBA certified. :)

It was such a wonderful experience, and I can't wait to see what God has in store for me in the future of the marine biology field. I might be at the aquarium, I might not. It's all up to Him, and I'm totally cool with that.

san fran sunday...

Since the wedding was on a Saturday evening, my Dad and I stayed that night, and then the next day we played "let's be tourists" in San Francisco! We had originally wanted to check out the Academy of Sciences and the Steinhart Aquarium, but alas, there was a huge event going on in Golden Gate Park, and we decided to fore-go the huge crowds in favor of a more relaxed day...then we got lost in the city for about 45min, haha. Once we made our way to Pier 39, we went to the Aquarium By The Bay. Cute little place, definitely worth the $14 (we got an AAA discount). Afterwords, we went to Ghiradelli Square and had some DELICIOUS ice cream!! I had chocolate with warm, REAL peanut butter on top...SO good!! After that, we headed down to Los Altos and met up with my Grandma (I call her Grandmeme). It was a full, but awesome day. What did I learn?...I. LOVE. GHIRADELLI. ICE. CREAM.!!

BTW, I posted the pics from the wedding here. Also, I TOTALLY forgot to mention that they had received a LLD pewter heart as a wedding gift. I put it in the collage and completely forgot to mention it!! You can buy one of your own here. It makes the perfect wedding/Christmas gift!! If you order one, I will most likely be the one polishing it (they're my fave, and I always try to snatch them up when they come around). :)

the nanninga wedding!...

The Nanninga wedding was lovely. It had a vintage theme (which I loved!!), complete with functional typewriters (my Dad had to teach me how to use it, haha)! It was so fun, and I'm so happy for Scott and Jenny. I love weddings!! :)

To save space on the blog, I'm going to post the rest of the pics here or here (haven't decided which one, haha...maybe both).

Today, my Dad and I are going to be tourists in San Francisco (always fun)! We're going to check out the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, then meet my Grandma for late lunch/dinner. Should be another fun day!

dandy day...

I finally got a pic of a dandelion!! I've been trying for a couple weeks now to get a pic of one of the dandelions in our yard, but every time I'd see one, the dog would run right through it (annoying)! So I FINALLY found one that hadn't been trampled, and the pic turned out really well (I'm pretty proud)!! They're so soft and delicate, I love how the picture just naturally softens my mood. :)

So, I'm not much of a fan of packing (although, I hate unpacking even more), so when I should be packing (like right now), I'm on Facebook, or my blog, or any other site that doesn't have anything to do with the subject of packing. Good news: I found a really cute shirt at Forever 21 today that I'm going to wear to the rehearsal dinner tomorrow (yay)! Sadly, I didn't find any of the items I was searching for...Oh well, at least I got the shirt!

OK, so I'm going to get back to my packing (joy). I will be taking my computer along with me, so I should have a few pics of the wedding up by Sunday evening, at the latest...that's the plan, anyway. :)

busy busy weekends...

So, I have a pretty busy weekend ahead (actually, every weekend in October is SUPER busy). On Friday, my Dad and I are heading straight from school up to Santa Rosa for a friend's wedding. The wedding isn't until Saturday afternoon/evening, but we're going to the rehearsal dinner on Friday, then the wedding on Saturday, then heading home Sunday. Our school is having "flex days" (no class) Thursday and Friday (yay!), but that means I have a test and multiple assignments crammed into those three days (boo!). So, my plan is to write my essay on Saturday before the wedding...chances of that actually happening are pretty much slim to none (I have such faith in myself). Oh well, we'll just have to wait and see.

My other weekends in October include: job shadow at MBA, going to...wait for it...THE PRICE IS RIGHT for my birthday (more on that later), and possibly going with some friends down south for halloween (might not be able to go due to work...we'll see). Some super fun weekends ahead!!

shadowing at mba!...

So, I had told you in the previous posts that I would possibly be able to meet up with someone from the husbandry team at MBA...well, I just got an email today CONFIRMING it!! So, on October 9th, 8:00AM, I will meet up with Nikki, the Otter Aquarist (awesome title) whom I will "shadow" for the day, and experience what it's like to be an Otter Aquarist!!...Doesn't that sounds like THE coolest day EVER?!...Well, to me it does.

I'm still debating whether or not to leave my house at 5:30AM and drive up there in one day, or if I should go up the night before (I'm leaning towards the latter). Oh Well, doesn't matter. I'm just super stoked that I even get to HAVE this experience in the first place!! I keep wanting to squeal...*squeal!!* there we go. :)

up & over it...

So, you need to watch this video...too cool.

photo challenge!...

Simplicity is having her weekly photo challenge! This week's theme: water! Click here to see all the entries!!