Welcome to my home

Don't know what inspired me to do so, but I just thought I'd give everyone a glimpse into our humble abode today.

First stop is "the rotation". Well this is 2/3 of it anyway. D has a special rotation. 1 barq's, one mello yello, one coke. Messing up the rotation is a recipe for disaster because he will then have to drink 3 mello yellos for every 3 cokes you drink. Stick with drinking my soda. I don;t have a rotation. I just have grocery store OCD.


Yes, we keep the rotation stocked too


Here are some treatssssssssss to keep your tummy full. Yep, I made them myself. I am awesome


And while I am awesome, you must realize that:


Go ahead and have a barq's....he's sleeping. I won't tell. We can always "hide the evidence"


Meet Mr. Handsome. He loves garlic, but it's proving to be troublesome in the dating dept


We got this as a wedding gift. I think the card should read "Thank you for the plant. We killed it."


"Darth....I'm your mother now"


Call 911!!!!!


Need to use the facilities? Ok
I'll wait


Get used to it...this is how we roll


She looks so cute here. Don't let that fool you, she's pretty bitchy


This one is a spaz


But when it gets crazy you can go to ghetto Disneyland


Leaving so soon? Ok, thanks for visiting. Come again

THE END

So, how are things in North Carolina?

I've been getting this question alot. I mean hey I've be here 5 weeks, having moved from a very different "life" in Southern CA. So naturally, everyone wants to know how things are in the South. Are they REALLY different? Is it weird? Is it like the Twilight zone? Yes, it's different and this is why:

1. Wal Mart is not just Wal Mart. It's SUPER Wal Mart. Super Wal Mart has everything and it's huge and the Super WalMart on Wendover is nice, as is Super WalMart in ghetto Burlington.
2. Target is becoming Super Target!!!! Went to one in AL, and I can't wait to get one here.
3. Our City park has trees!!! Lots of them. Tall trees, and pretty paths, and a creek and it makes me want to go there every day.
4. Leaves change color in Sept/Oct. Really pretty reds and oranges and yellows that I only saw in pictures or when we cut them out of construction paper in Elementary school. It REALLY happens here!!!!
5. Sweet tea is muy refreshing-oso
6. I was sitting at an intersection today with Super Wal Mart to my left, Home Depot to my right, Super Kmart diagonal from me and Target opposite Walmart. What are the odds? Oh and Kohl's was there too, next to Target.
7. Not all people in NC talk with accents. In fact I have met more people without accents!!!!
8. Said North Carolinian's are super friendly.
9. I have learned how to drive a church van. yep, I roll down Wendover Ave(NC Hwy 70, comparable to Hwy 90-Imperial Hwy in CA) in the white van that says OLG Church. I'm so pimp.
10. My husband helps with laundry and dishes.....ok that would have happened in CA, but it's nice.
11. NC has commercials on TV with Jake Delhomme. That's a very happy thing to see on TV right there.
12. There are ALOT of high schools and middle schools in Greensboro and I don't know if I will ever get them straight.
13. NC has this grocery store called Harris Teeter and it is the best store in the world. It's no Trader Joe's but still. Their salad bar RULES and yea, it's just awesome.
14. I get to take my youth White water rafting, on Beach retreats, on ski trips, to work camps, and to this cool place called Spookywoods.
15. If I work 12 hours in one day, no one questions why I am oply working 4 hours the next day. No one quetions my hours PERIOD, anymore.
16. Gas is currently $2.19/gal. I filled my tank for $22.
17. Mimi's Cafe is being built here. Yessssssssssssssssssssssssss
18. Buffalo Wild Wings is here and it kicks butt!!!! (yea I really like Wingnuts too, but I can get non spicy wings at BWW)
19. Seafood is REALLY expensive here, but every once in a while we go to Village Grill and they have super yummy seafood.
20. I can go White Water rafting and white water kayaking in Charlotte. CHARLOTTE!!!
21. There is literally a million and one Universities out here: UNC Greensboro, UNC Chapel Hill, Wake Forest, Duke, NC State, NC Central, Elon, Winston-Salem State....Think about the possibilities? I Could have a PHD in no time!!! (The above named colleges are all within a 30 min to 1 hour drive from me)
22. Fantasia Barrino, Chris Dsughtry, Kelly Pickler, Clay Aiken, all American Idol contestants from NC
23. Ms USA is from Charlotte
24. Dim Sum........the best in Charlotte!!!!
25. Cute Fire Fighters are in Charlotte!!!!!
26. Red Robin is coming to NC, near my house.
27. In the Winter, if the roads are icy...we don't go to work...Imagine that? An Ice day. Never would you see that in CA.
28. Marriage......so good.
29. Mc Donald's sweet tea...diabetes in a cup...enough said.
30. Did I mention that my husband is the bestest in the world? Well, he is....

(But yes, I still struggle with homesickness.)

Settling in

The boxes are almost all unpacked, except for the upstairs room. That, I shall tackle soon enough. I really need to get a handle on how I want to decorate it. I'm thinking of turning it into my Disney room, which would require more shelves SOMEWHERE. Must talk to the husband about that. But I have made the dining room table look nice, put a slip cover on the sofa (the love seat is next, but I will need D's help moving it since is againt the wall and I need to put the back part of it behind there).

One thing is for certain, I should be cleaning more. Perhaps a schedule of sorts is in order? Small mundane things to do when I get home each evening or before I leave for work (if I am working late). So if you have any suggestions, let me know. Maybe I should look up Fly Lady again. She's pretty good at getting one into a groove/system. I used to have a strict schedule that I stuck to about 3 years ago, but that was mainly because sitting and watching TV was frowned upon, as was sleeping until 8am and going to bed past 8pm. But when I got my own place, I got out of that groove fast. The problem is, I should be more strict with myself about cleaning, though I must say I rocked when it came to laundry last week. (Still waiting for a certain someone to fold the shirts...I digress).

Tonight the nieces are staying over and we'll either got to the park and also make cookies (I have 100 cookie cutters to break in) or go mini golfing and such tomorrow. Uncle D is talking about getting "Breakfast items" for tomrrow. I'm pushing for potatoes O'Brien. mmmm, my favorite.

In 5 days we will welcome niece #6 into the world!!!! YAY I'm excited and I will go visit the family in AL in Nov. I can't wait.

So with that, I'm out guys!!!!!! I'll update with some Pele pics son, aswell as do some Honeymoon blogging too.

I had an issue with the 6th graders on friday. To put it nicely...they were rude and disrespectful. The parish Council Pres called the parents and chewed them out. which created a bit of drama in my office on Monday. Whatever. She wasn't just "being a parent who wasn't there" She was speaking on behalf of the church.

So now i restructure the whole program, and small groups will be formed because these kids proved they can't handle being all together. the group from teh school is mostly boys. It was raining and they were excited. It's ok though cause we still get to have fun. Lessons learned, apology letter written, forgiveness granted....let's move on.

A good friend of mine gave a suggestion to use with the kids, I am going to try to use it here. Yippee's and bummers. I tell my yippes and bummers and someone prays for my bummer and praises for my yippee:

Yippee: The apt is slowly coming together and looks cute. Especially the dining room table.

Bummer: I miss my kids from SLR and my Disneyland friends.

Wedding in Pics

Well to start things off, D arrived on the 7th and we obtained a marriage license. I won;t be posting the ever so cute pic of Derek with the license as you can read alot of info on it and it's just too much to put out there.

Everyone started arriving the next few days including T and K, and we met them at In N Out, as they had never been there. Twas a good day as M got her dress that day (she was married 2 weeks after us)




My Mom arrived (no, not the egg donor mom, my adopted mom. She is really S's mom and S has agreed to let me adopt her. She's the best mom in the world and I love her more than words can say.) She and my sister, L, ran all over with D and I place to place and they were such troopers when it came to eating Dim Sum.

On the 10th, D's brother and family arrived and I thought the girls would be exhausted but they were so excited to be in CA that they were wide awake. Ready to go to Disneyland


Friday was the rehearsal which included a 10 course Authentic Chinese meal. Good stuff. Most hysterical moment was when the "other table" (the one we were not sitting at) discovered that the plate of chicken contained ...well a chicken head


I have no idea what T is doing....must be guarding us from unwanted guests????


The next morning had us up early to get our hair done (me, S, mom, and L) and let me just say that Katrina did a BEAUTIFUL JOB on our hair. Well worth the $$$ I paid to have it done. I was so happy. After having our hair done it was off to the church and C did my make up and D and his family got ready









Then with all the bridesmaids in the room, and with my make-up set....I got into my beautiful dress



Before I knew it, it was time to go over to the church for the ceremony. Because E would not let me hear him play his song for my entrance, I was so afraid I would cry. But I didn't. My brother and nephew were great escorts and when I met D at the altar, I noticed a tear in his eye


One minor hiccup with the mom's lighting the candles and we were good to go. It cracks me up how chatty D was, but I suppose that was nerves. My youth did an excellent job songing. I could not have been more proud. Fr. Jerry's homily was from the heart and I felt so honored to have him do our wedding.



and Yes, i cried during my vows


Sometimes being short is good, but on your wedding day...it can be a bit of a pain, which makes the guests laugh


I cried again as my youth began to sing "Hail Mary, Gentle Woman." It's a beautiful song and since my sister and her family could not be there, I chose the song because it is my nieces fave song to sing for prayers before bed. I felt such warmth and love as we stood below the statue of Our Blessed Mother, as if she was assuring me that things would be right this time



And what an honor it was to have D's dad be able to give the nuptial blessing (this is one of my favorite pics)


Finally...Mr. and Mrs.



A few pics in the church with Family
(that's my beautiful mom on my left, and my awesome Lyly and Lo yeh)


D's family (the photographer got my family pic)


1/2 of the nieces (the others could not be there )


Our amazing wedding party (yep that is my dear friend J, as maid of honor....I owe her so much for sticking by me the last few years)


My gorgeous sister....no we are not related at all, but you could not tell by looking at this picture


SHOES!!!!!(yes, I really wore tennis shoes with mickey on them)


We headed to the park with our FABULOUS photographer, Paul for some pictures




Smooshy kissy face


Then...off to the tea ceremony, which I do not have pics to post yet. Will get on that. I recieved a beautiful cross necklace from my mother in law, and we honored our elders (they presented us with our Ang Pow), and then the single family members honored us and we presented them with their Ang Pow. It was a very awesome ceremony/tradition that we hope to pass on to our children.

Then it was off to the reception. I surprised D by having the wedding party purchase light sabers and they crossed them, and we walked under them after being introduced. D LOVED it...and I loved surprising him. Along with his Manchester United grooms cake.

But despite a few glitches, the evening was fun


Our cake was divine (the tiny piece we got of it)



And after many teary goodbye's...we went home to open gifts (we had to be at Disneyland early the next day)



Pele even lended a paw to our efforts



After an emotional breakdown from the bride (who did VERY WELL being strong for her crying youth and friends) it was time to sleep and dream of Disneyland and an impending honeymoon/move......

More to come

Pictures anyone? Part 1

I have some to post, however, I want to direct you to the website of a FABULOUS photographer:

www.paulmanke.com

Enjoy!!! His pictures from the wedding are amazing. There is one of my friend T and I that truly captures and sums up the emotion of the day between my friends and I.

I have much to post about. Will split it up between now and later on as I do not have to be at work until 1pm tomorrow!!!! wOOt.

Who cares?!?!?!

I've prayed about it, thought about it, wresteled with the idea and have come to the following conclusion:

It's my life, and my blog. If I want to put it out there. So be it. If someone wants to do a name search and keep reading about my life...so be it. I've done nothing wrong and I don't need to live in fear of talking about my life and thinking "Oh crap what with so and so think?" I DON'T CARE!!!!!!! I've moved on and I thnk it is sad that some people cannot let go of the past. But I guess we run with different crowds.

So the blog is staying and Wedding and honeymoon pics will be up shortly!!!!!

The end.....scratch that....Just the beginning.