2008

So the following was borrowed from Terri's blog. I don't usually do the end of the year 'let's see what I did right and where I failed miserably' types of things but I think this year is an especially good year to start.

a year in review

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before? Got engaged. =)

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don't really do New Years resolutions anymore. I do New Years goals. It's easier to set goals than to keep resolutions. But I will have to say that I didn't really reach my goal (which was the typical work out more blah blah blah). I will say that I have become more conscious about what I eat and have started working out more than I did before. And I'll probably keep the same goal for next year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Someone super close? Oh, my cousin did! Little baby Angelina. She's precious. A few of Ryan's cousin's also had babies this year.

4. Did anyone close to you die? Grandma. *Tears*

5. What countries did you visit? Let's check the 'None' box.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? A job. More motivation to get in shape.

7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? 4.27.08 Ryan proposed on this date and it was our 5 year dating anniversary.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Getting the house. I sometimes still can't believe that this is OUR house! It's still very surreal.

9. What was your biggest failure? Not getting in shape. Losing my job. I know it was part of massive layoffs but still, it doesn't keep me from thinking about what I could have done differently. (and let's not go into the fact that they called me a month later, after I had gotten over being laid off mind you, and said that it was an 'oversight' and that I should never have been let go. yea, i smell bullshit)

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Had a few colds. Started getting allergies too. That was an interesting experience. And one that I am def. not a fan of.

11. What was the best thing you bought? My wedding dress. It's probably the biggest purchase I will ever make. And it's beautiful. I didn't really buy many new clothes in the past year. At least none that I am like 'omg that was so awesome I got that'.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Ryan's. Always and forever. He has been sooo amazing throughout this whole unemployment process & with actually helping me plan the wedding. He deserves a reward and a prize sometimes for putting up with me. I know I can be a handfull. Especially when I'm in a pissy mood or when I'm acting like a child. (Shut up, it takes a lot to admit that you were actin' a fool)

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? My ex-employer. And a few others but they aren't worth my time to be named.

14. Where did most of your money go? The house for sure. Pretty much all the money went to the house. Then probably groceries/bills. And now wedding.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Do I really have to say it again? The wedding! Ryan proposing! Planning this wedding has so far been one of the most exciting experiences. Especially since Ryan is a groom that enjoys helping me and planning things too!

16. What song will always remind you of 2008? I have no idea.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Very much happier. I'm on a high right now have having 2 Gold Star Weeks in a row. And even with the loss of my job, I am so much happier now. Last year at this time I was waiting for final grades to be posted and stressed about school and getting a job and all that.
ii. thinner or fatter? I dunno. Maybe the same? I would love to say thinner but I just don't know. The scale and I are not friends right now.
iii. richer or poorer? hahahahhaha def. poorer. I mean, I have savings but no spending money. Yay student loans and mortgage payments!

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? spent more time with certain friends.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Put up with bullshit from certain people. Maybe had gone out to eat less so I could have saved more money.

20. How will you be spending Christmas? Christmas Eve will be in Waeldar with Ryan's family and then we will come back to Austin on Christmas day and spend it with my familia.

21. How will you be ringing in the New Year? No idea. Ryan & I are toying with the idea of having a New Years party but we really have no idea who would come. Wanna join us?

22. Did you fall in love in 2008? Yes, every single day. Especially now though this whole roller coaster time.

23. Who was your hero? Ryan.

24. What was your favorite TV program? Dancing with the stars, gossip girl, CSI: NY

25. What was something you needed to do and didn’t get around to? hmmm...I have no idea. There is always a ton of stuff I want/need to do and don't do it. I should start a list and put it on the fridge...

26. What was the best book you read? I really liked the Twilight series, The Other Boleyn Girl and I'm sure a ton of others that I can't remember.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery? Julieta Venegas, Alejando Fernandez

28. What did you want and get? And engagement ring. The most perfect ring EVER!

29. What did you want and not get? I'm with Terri on this one and have to say a new car. Not necessarily new but new to me. Ryan and I were starting to research cars etc until I got canned so that went down the toilet.

30. What was your favorite film of this year? I'm a total loser. I don't even remember any of the movies I saw in 2008. Did I even see any new movies? omg

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 24 this year and a group of friends joined me for dinner at Buca di Beppo. Then we spend the night drinking and dancing away at Cuba Libre. It was so much fun.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? I'm not really sure. I know having a job would make my year extremely more satisfying but everything happens for a reason, right? 2008 has already been pretty sweet.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? Jeans and a cute top I guess. But I love jeans and tshirt times. I guess I should revamp that.

34. What kept you sane? Reading books that weren't for school! And playing with the Ratchito (and now with Dakota also).

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I have no idea.

36. What political issue stirred you the most? Oh goodness. Where do I start. All the insanity with gay marriage. I mean, seriously? You can't help who you fall in love with and last I heard, we are all human beings. And this bailout crap. all of it. From the financial markets to the auto industry. It all makes the future look very bleak.

37. Who did you miss? Ryan. And Grandma.

38. Who was the best new person you met? Esther. She is one of the most real ppl I know. I love her to death.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008: Don't sweat the small stuff. Real friends stick with you through everything.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: Everyone is going to think I'm such a nerd but the song I have been loving is a Taylor Swift song. "You be the prince and I'll be the princess. It's a love story, baby just say yes."

Awesomeness

[EDIT: CARLI POSTED SOME OF OUR PICTURES! GO LOOK!]

This weekend was pretty badass. Let's recap.

Friday
Meet my old boss and one of my bridesmaids for lunch. It was totally fun. Had food from The Spicy Pickle for lunch. I had the best Spinach salad. I also recommend the Roma Panini. =) Then I went to visit with Victoria and her 3 awesome little boys. They are just to cute for words!

Saturday
Oh what an amazing day. I woke up not in a good mood on Saturday and was being stubborn and didn't want to do anything. Well, Ryan convinced me that we should still go do the errands that we had planned on Saturday. The errands consisted of going to look at wedding bands at Samuels and stop at Old Navy to look for sweaters for our engagement pictures. So off we went to Samuels. Of course Greg was there. He was the one that helped Ryan pic out my engagement ring. He is so awesome. Remembered my ring, was just extremely helpful. Well, we ended up finding the wedding bands for both of us. A trip that was just going to be for looking turned into a trip where we found exactly what we wanted!! I LOVE my wedding band. It fits perfect and looks amazing with my ring. I keep wanting to be sneaky and look at it b/c I love it so much. Earlier in the week Ryan & I had gone to Helzberg in the mall and saw a pretty wedding band for me but it was one that I just liked, not loved. The salesgirl also put me off too. She was so pushy with her 'what if it isn't here anymore' and 'you should just go ahead and get it' comments. It's a lot of money! I'm not going to drop more money unless I love what I'm getting. Ok, off topic. Anyways, Ryan also found a wedding band at Samuels that he really liked (since boys will never admit that they 'love' jewelry..haha j/k). His is a titanium wedding band. It is pretty freaking awesome. So after that fun stop, we went to Old Navy. Ryan ended up buying a really nice sweater. Unfortunetly, they did not have my size in the hot pink sweater I wanted. So off we went. To keep the happy momentum going, we stopped at Mighty Fine Burger. O.M.G. I always love their burgers but this burger was by far the best. White (aka Mayo) Jr. Cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato & grilled onions. Holy crap. If you have not had Mighty Fine, then get your butt over there and get some! I will say it's a little more than I usually would like to spend on a burger but when it's that good, I do not care. =) Oh yea, and try the chocolate milkshake. mmmmmmmmmm
After stuffing our faces, we went back towards Pville & decided to stop at the Old Navy in La Frontera to see if maaaaaaaaybe (by some small chance) they had the hot pink sweater I wanted. And THEY DID! Score! After that, Ryan and I scurried home to take a nap (well, I napped, he played video games). Then we quit goofing around, got ready and headed to the southside of ATX for Diana's graduation party. OMG it was a great party. Good food, great friends, free booze, and lots of spanish music. Ryan and I were cumbia dancing all night. (Note: everyone coming to our wedding better learn to love the spanish music..dancing will be required)

Sunday
ENGAGEMENT PICTURES!!!!!!! We met Carli on campus about 8:30 to take our engagement pictures and it was so much fun. We took pictures for 2 hours!!! In front of the Union, the Tower, Littlefield Fountain, the Business School, Sanchez, the Blanton & the big ass star in front of the Bob Bullock Museum. And then Ryan and I had brunch at Einstein's after our session. =)

So this weekend was awesome. AND I have an interview tomorrow too. So wish me luck on that one. =)

Random thought

Don't ask me why but I was thinking about wedding flowers. Probably b/c I was checking out this link and I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE the bride's bouquet (thanks Jillers for posting that site on the message board). I am so in love with the pink and orange. But my colors are chocolate brown, pink & green, not orange. Which leads me to the question of the night. How can I possibly decide what I like when I can't find picture combinations of the types of flowers I want on anyones website or from Google??? As of now, my bouquet/flower theme will consist of stargazer lilies, hot pink roses, and pink and/or white gerbers. There is no question that the roses will now be a fixture in the wedding flowers, even if its just in my bouquet (history: my grandmother passed away this summer and I learned that she LOVED roses, thus there will be roses in honor of her). Ugh, I am not a fan of the flowers question right now. Especially since they cost so much! I mean really?? They die! I loooove flowers but I just can't believe some of the insane prices I keep hearing from other friends that are getting/have gotten married. Ok, to much thinking for almost midnight. Done.

Gold Star Week

So far, this week has been a gold star week. Got my dress on Sunday, had an actual interview on Tuesday (cross your fingers), it snowed Tuesday night, phone interview today, possibly going to visit Victoria (if I can get my butt in gear), Diana's grad party on Saturday and then ENGAGEMENT PICS on Sunday.

Ryan and I also made an executive decision for our wedding. We are going to nix the hiring of a DJ and go with DJ iPod. At this point of the financial situation, that's money we can use for other things. We have also decided that we are going to talk to our photog about changing my bridal pics session to become more of a 'yay we're married' session after the wedding. I would rather have pictures with Ryan than just with me in them. And it would save the money of having hair/makeup/bouquet/dress cleaning done before the wedding. And I'm all about saving the money right now.

Our wedding website is coming along soooo well! Ryan is so awesome at this website stuff. I barely remember any HTML from back in the high school days.

OMG this week is awesome.

Pictures Pictures Pictures

So I have finally gotten around to downloading pictures that were held hostage on my camera.

Pics from Waelder, TX (Big Dub!! What What!)

Ryan =)
Cynthia & I

Vic & I @ Marco's birthday party

A few pics from the holiday party.....

Awww...Ryan and I
Selina & Selena
The crew actin' a fool...

AND SNOW! Oh, and my furr babies. =)

The doggies investigating the ice that came off the towel covering the plants..

My little Ratchet

Miss Dakota looking very thoughtful...i.e. how can she get the piece of ice Ratchet has...

SNOW

Holy crap it's SNOWING in Pville. Dakota was confused. Ratchet was not having any part of it. Pampered dog. Back to snuggling in my blankets. More fun updates later.

eeeeeek!

So I'm sure everyone is tired of reading about wedding stuff but I don't really care. A HUGE amazing thing got checked off the list today and that was picking up my WEDDING DRESS!!!!!! OMG. It's even more amazing than I remembered. Backtracking, when I first got the dress, I had wondered if I had rushed into the purchase. But even when I was looking and trying on other dresses, my mind would still wander back to this particular one. Well, all doubts were driven away this afternoon when I tried on MY dress for the first time. It's even more gorgeous than I remember. And it's sitting pretty in one of our closets here at the house. I told Ryan that he better not even think about going in there or there will be hell to pay. =) I know he'll listen. Now it's time to find a seamstress to make a bustle. YAY. Having my dress now makes the wedding seem more real! And it makes me realize just how much wedding DIY crap that I have to do. Bleh.

Last night was Ryan's company holiday party. It was really fun. I took pictures using my brand spankin' new camera! Thank goodness for service warranties from Best Buy. The shutter lense thing on my old Canon was not opening anymore and rather than me having to wait for them to 'look into it', they just told me to go pick out a similar model. So this is my new toy. She's perty. She is a Blue PowerShot 8.0 MP Digital Elph. Oh Canon, how I love thee. =)


And since I have a new camera, that means I have a new camera cord! So pics from Thanksgiving and the holiday party will be posted shortly. (i.e. tonight or tomorrow)