our trip: day one!

We made it to Seattle! It was a great time together, and I tried to take pictures whenever I could. However, there were a lot of times when it made more sense to just enjoy ourselves and not worry about documenting everything--still, I want to remember our fun trip, so here we are!

The night before we left, I stayed with my mom and brothers at a family friend's house in Phoenix. Marcus picked me up around 8 in the morning, and with that, we were off!

I was looking forward to the road trip because I enjoy watching the scenery, but unfortunately for the first day we didn't have much in the way of a view. If you've ever made the drive from Phoenix to California, it's a whole lot of nothing for several hours--and neither Marcus nor myself are huge fans of the desert landscape. We kept trying to spot areas where the spiny plants were gradually becoming more sparse. Also, he really enjoyed the environmentally-conscious windmills we passed every once in awhile.

When we got to our hotel, we were pleasantly surprised--our room was quite big, and it had a jacuzzi in it! (We didn't actually use it, but still. I've never seen that before!) We both fell asleep for a couple of hours, then woke up to go check out Downtown Disney and (of course) Disneyland!

I should have it on record that I wore the special fruit top my good friend Sasha gifted me with for my first night out on the town!

We're both big food people, and neither of us can resist a good sandwich (we both worked at Port of Subs and got sort of spoiled! We like to try other ones whenever we can to compare). We tried out the Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney, which was delicious! If you're ever in that area and you need a moderately inexpensive dinner, the subs are only $6.99. I had a pretty good turkey club, and Marcus decided to try their Italian combo. Both of us were impressed! We were trying to find the best deals--even though a lot of the food was more expensive than we'd usually like to pay, we figured if we were going to spend the money anyway we might at least make it worth it!

After that, we headed for Disneyland, which was nice since it was getting dark. There were still quite a few people (and of course, we didn't realize until getting there that we'd totally timed our trip to coincide with a holiday weekend) but it wasn't as overwhelming as it would've been in the daytime. We had a blast people-watching and getting on some of our favorite rides--the first stop was the Haunted Mansion, followed by Splash Mountain (which I'd never been on!). You overhear all kinds of funny things in line, plus you can see a lot of cute families. By the time we got there, most of the little kids still in the park were passed out in strollers or on their parents' laps. We were there a good couple of hours, but the entire day of driving coupled with a busy evening out sort of drained us earlier than usual. Still, it was a wonderful night and we had a lot of fun!

Next up: day two, our full day at Disneyland!

date night and b.a.i.t shoes

After a really draining week that was less than enjoyable, Marcus and I got to have a date night! Clearly, he was very excited to be wearing the Game of Thrones shirt I surprised him with a couple weeks ago. He also convinced me to wear my new dress and shoes even though we weren't going anywhere fancy--all right, he didn't exactly have to twist my arm about it. I was really psyched to try out my new B.A.I.T Ida's, since I'd heard tons about how great they were but was curious about all the hype. (He just likes them because of the clicking sound they make when I walk.)

It might not sound like anything too crazy, but one of our favorite things to do is go to Port of Subs, order our sandwiches, sit at our designated "high table" and talk for awhile. I obviously see him every day, but it doesn't always feel like there's time to just discuss arbitrary things that are on our minds on weeknights. Partly, I think work sort of tires everyone out to the point where they aren't always up for long conversations. I can relate, but I'm also grateful that we make the time at least once a week.

When we finished, we left to go walk around the outdoor mall for a bit while the weather was still nice. This time of year is perfect at night, but towards May and June, even the evenings get a little too hot and sticky for most people. (That mall always has so much more business in the wintertime!) Marcus's favorite place to check out is the puppy store, because they always have little bulldogs hanging around. Personally, I like seeing the darker Shih Tzus and the Scotties. Both of us also like to stop at Barnes and Noble when we go to that mall--I think almost everyone does, though. The atmosphere in there is so calming and enjoyable, especially when there aren't a lot of people in at once. I got to look at some fun cookbooks (but, sadly, I had to resist the urge to take any with me). We were going to go for gelato, but the shop that opened at the mall awhile ago is so popular, the line is usually out the door and down the street a little bit. We decided to go try some frozen yogurt instead, which turned out to be an excellent decision because this particular place had creamy pineapple and a hot fudge dispenser. Suffice it to say we'll be returning soon.

We ended the evening with some Coffee Rush, then headed home to continue watching one of our latest TV shows. (We like to pick shows to marathon while we wait for our favorites, like Game of Thrones and Orange is the New Black. Right now, we're doing one called Sword Art Online. I'm not sure what I think of it yet.) Not necessarily the craziest night on the town, but I enjoyed it immensely!

Right, and before I forget--the verdict on the Ida shoes seems to be a good one. We did a lot of walking around, and I only felt any real rubbing after a few hours. Since the shoes are sort of stiff, I imagine they'll take a bit of breaking in to be completely comfortable, but I don't get the impression that they'll be chafing forever or anything. They make me very happy to wear, and I definitely feel like they aren't too fussy for a night out. They're still on sale on the B.A.I.T site here--I'm not sure what sizes will be left, since I imagine they sell out of these pretty quickly! I debated on these for quite awhile, since I was worried they'd look sort of frumpy in person, but I was very wrong. In person, they're some of the cutest shoes I've ever seen. I'm officially sold. I may or may not have a couple other colors on their way. (Marcus says he is excited because they make me happy and I will be clicking a lot when I walk.)

Great shoes and better company--not a bad way to have started the weekend! :)

thoughts : "what is this?"

A lot of times, I have to actively check myself before I talk about anything relating to work. I have sixteen kids that I see all week--a lot of things they do are cute or (in my eyes) noteworthy. I try to make sure that whatever I want to say might be interesting to someone besides me, but that can be hard. Watching each child's individual progress gives you more insight about them than most others typically get, so naturally more occurrences that would otherwise seem mundane and pointless are world-changing to me. (I imagine being a parent is that feeling times about six thousand, so no wonder all anyone can ever talk about is their own kid. They're fascinating!)

One direct result of working with preschoolers is having a lot to think about. It's amazing to watch children literally discover the world around them and learn about things that you've taken for granted for years. The term "childlike wonder" is generally thrown around as being pretty cliche, but it's aptly named. Have you ever seen a kid react to the first time sprinklers come on? They all think it's raining and they can't comprehend why the sun is still out and there are no clouds. Everyone forgets about their Goldfish crackers and goes nuts trying to investigate this new development.

At the age I work with, the question I hear most is "what is this?" It sounds fairly simple--three short words, I guess--but this query suddenly has so much to it when you're talking to a child.

It occurred to me the other day and it hasn't really left me since--when a kid asks me, "Miss Katie, what is this?", the answer I give them will literally be the first impression they ever get about the subject in question. Maybe they won't necessarily remember it word for word, but the thought that I could impact how a child comes to view something for the rest of their life--even in the smallest possible way--is sort of mind-blowing. Because of that, you also have to be really careful how you word your answer. It usually generates more questions, and you want to make sure you give them fair responses without overstepping your bounds. One of my girls noticed my tragus piercing awhile ago and asked what it was. When I explained that it was just an earring, she immediately wanted to know why it was in that part of my ear and why I only had it on one side.  A lot of the questions kids come up with would never really occur to an adult on a regular day, so I don't always have immediate answers for them. Other questions they ask don't have apparent answers to me, but they're still expecting something, so I have to make one up--and that's the living worst, because I'm 99% sure they can tell when you have no idea what you're talking about. For being among the world's most innocent, young children have the best skeptical expressions.

The other thing I run into a lot is when I get asked something that's out of their depth. Kids are so curious by nature, it makes sense that they want to know about some of the more complicated things--of course, keeping those subjects clearly off limits just makes them want to know more. For that reason, I've always been sort of for the mentality that if a child is old enough to ask a question, they're old enough to get a straight answer (albeit an age-appropriate one). That, however, is thin ice in the educational field. Not every parent wants you to answer their kid truthfully when they ask about things like death or why walking around with your pants around your ankles isn't really acceptable in most social settings. Now, personally, I don't have an issue with a lot of those topics--I feel like the concept of sheltering kids to protect them from harsher realities is only a temporary fix and can be more harmful in the long run than just being straight with them. I, however, am not a parent, so I'm sure my views on that count for exactly negative two points. (And that's okay.) It does force me to get a little bit creative with the way I do my job, though. A lot of things we're supposed to tell them are "wrong" aren't really, it's just simpler for now to let them think they are.

I'll illustrate:

Child: So-and-so kissed me!
Me: (Oh, Jesus. My job is to tell these kids that's not okay to do, but I don't want them growing up thinking there's some stigma to being affectionate.) Oh, well...we don't do that at school.
Other Child: Well, why not? Is there something wrong with it? I just wanted to show Child she was my friend!
Me: (I mean, no, not if both parties are consenting and there aren't any misunderstandings going on...these kids are three years old, I can't explain the mechanics of consent to them yet. I'd be so fired. How do I get out of this one?) Well--no, not really, but we usually just save kissing for with our moms and dads. (Good one, Katie.)
Child: (skeptical) Then how come moms and dads kiss each other?
Me: (Whatever you do, don't feed them that bullhockey about only married people getting to kiss each other, Katie. Figure out something else, but for God's sake, don't perpetuate those oppressive social norms.) Well...uhm. You know what? We don't kiss each other at school because we can give each other our germs without meaning to, and that would make us very sad if one of you got sick. But moms and dads don't get sick very easily, do they?
Child: Hmm...no, I guess they don't.
Me: But kids do, because your bodies are still learning to fight off germs. So you see? Let's just stick to giving hugs at school if you want to be friends.

Now, that's an example of a conversation I actually have to have a lot. It's not really the strongest answer you can give a kid on that subject (and believe you me, the matter of personal space comes up daily), but that's just what I mean. It'd be so much easier if you could be open with them, but it's definitely not an option without infringing on the privacy and comfort of individual family values.

In that sense, I both enjoy and am made slightly nervous by the questions children come up with. On  one hand, I love hearing what observations they make in their attempts to discover the world around them. I especially enjoy being able to help clear up some of those mysteries for them. However, not every question has an easy answer, and they can sense it when you don't want to give them the whole story. I remember being a child and knowing that somebody was watering something down for me because I'd broached a "grown-up" topic. It used to drive me nuts wondering what about what I'd asked was so taboo that even an adult wouldn't answer me! I always try to look like nothing surprises me (those knee-jerk reactions really catch their attention) but sometimes, kids get the jump on you!

If nothing else, my job makes me very pensive. I muse a lot at home about some of the deeper things that stem from simple situations like a child asking "what is this?" or "why?"

Things like this make me think that child care is a field worth pursuing for me. Of course, I'm never sure, but no other job has ever made me think so much about things that would otherwise never occur to me.

Whoever said that kids would teach me more than I could ever teach them was absolutely right.

fleet collection review!

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to be one of two winners of an Instagram contest hosted by Fleet Collection! I won a $50 gift card, and I used it to buy the dress I'm going to talk about! Fleet Collection is a great brand that specializes in simple, elegant clothing. A lot of their dresses come in a huge range of colors, which is perfect for someone like me who can't get enough of pastels. Ordinarily, I would have immediately bought something mint (they had about four dresses that I was seriously debating on getting). However, this time around, I decided to go with something a little bit different. Their Etiquette dress had just come back into stock when I received my gift card, and I couldn't say no to the gorgeous lace collar. 

I love the detail on the lace--it has kind of a Victorian feel to it, which is one of my favorite things to find in a piece of clothing. It's not something you encounter very much, especially now that festival styles are coming in for the summertime.

My dress arrived pretty quickly. When I took it out of the package, I was pleasantly surprised by the weight of the fabric. It's heavy enough to give it a nice drape while still being pleasant in the Arizona heat, and the inside is lined with some adorable, silky red polka-dot fabric. It was true to size and very comfortable! I couldn't wait to wear it, so I put it on after work and went to the grocery store. It would definitely work for more formal occasions, however. ;)

I especially love that this dress is fit and flare, because the definition on the waist is very nice without being constricting and the skirt fluffs out just right. Another bonus--it wasn't too long for me! At 5'3, sometimes I hit that awkward territory between the cute longer vintage-y length that works for me with some skirts and actually just too long. Thankfully, I didn't have to worry about it!

It's basically an elegant dress that can be dressed up or down, which is something I personally feel like everyone should own at least one of. The collar isn't sewn down, so you can flip it up and tuck any color cardigan under it for an instant pop while still getting the full effect of the lace.

Of course, now I am tempted to go back for some of those other dresses I saw. They have silhouettes and fabrics to suit almost any taste, and as I said before, I can't resist anything that comes in mint or lavender.

I was personally very impressed with my experience. Thank you again, Fleet Collection, for the chance to own one of the cutest black dresses I've ever seen.

Shoes: Chelsea Crew 

Necklace: Thrifted

Headband: Forever 21

true love: musings on motherhood

I think about writing posts a lot, but whenever I start to, I think, "well, it's been so long anyway...why bother?" This morning, I decided that if I was ever going to get more consistent with anything, I'd better actually follow through with it.

That said, let's just hop in and talk about something important that comes up exceedingly often in my line of work. If you can't tell by now that this is something that's been bothering me for awhile, you'll figure it out here in about three seconds.

For better and worse, working in childcare changes you. In no time at all, you become okay with a lot of things you never thought you would be. Kids are sort of exhibitionists in that they'll just waltz out of the bathroom, undercrackers at their ankles, and casually inform you that they went to the movies this weekend. You stop flinching when someone sneezes right in your face. When there's a giant bug in the room and everyone screams--you too, on the inside--you calmly whisk it outside or trap it with a tissue. You grow up in some really subtle (but significant) ways. You learn that you can absolutely fall in love with a child that isn't yours.

It can be a wonderful experience. I'm especially grateful that I came into this field because I've learned a lot about love and patience. You learn to multitask like you never could before when seventeen kids at a time are waving their shoes or juiceboxes at you with immediate urgency. The smallest gestures suddenly mean the world (like when that one really reserved little girl who hates being touched opts to come hold your hand). However, this time in my life has also affirmed something that (if I'm being honest) I've already known for awhile.

Here it comes, so don't read any more if you think this is going to change anything between us.

I don't think I was put on this earth to be a mother.

There. Pretty straightforward. Unfortunately, the simplicity of the situation seems to end right about there. While I don't openly project my thoughts on the matter, the question of "doesn't this make you want you want your own?!" is thrust at me on a daily basis. This is especially prone to happening right when one of my little ones approaches me for a hug or I get caught dancing to "Frozen" songs with them. The person in question's face lights up and I know it's coming.

"Doesn't this job just make it so hard to wait to have one?"

Honestly, out of politeness and a desire to let the subject go, I generally just give a vague response and have it end there. In an ideal setting, that would just happen every time. Unfortunately, some people are quite adept at sensing hesitation and will pursue the matter anyway.

Now, we're going to talk about some of the more memorable responses I've gotten from these bewildering people who (I'm convinced) are on personal crusades to make sure everyone gets a baby. This is absolutely not to say I would ever judge anyone else for having a child--I feel like you should take care of you, and if a baby makes you happy, then by all means, have one and love that child with all your heart. Some of my closest friends are mothers and wouldn't change a thing--and you know what, you go, girls. I'm only speaking from my own personal experiences and desires.

"Oh, it's different when it's your kids--you work with other peoples' kids all day. You'll change your mind!" 
I would actually argue that working with a large number of children on the daily has given me a pretty unique perspective. No two kids are the same, and I get to experience a veritable cornucopia of them all. Some are naturally sunny, and others are legitimately ornery despite their young age. Even with such a generous sample size, I have to disagree. I don't feel that this argument, on its own, warrants procreating.

"You're still pretty young. You don't know what you want yet. You'll change your mind!" 
I'm going to be honest, this argument freaks me the fuck out. As an assistant preschool teacher, I spend time with a lot of little girls. A sizable chunk of that time involves playing with them. I can't express how many times one of the girls has come up to me with a baby doll and gone on excitedly about being a mommy. Do you know how anyone within a five-mile radius responds to that? "Oh, how sweet! She already knows she wants to be a mommy! She's going to be so good at it someday!" We live in a society where a three-year-old girl who is still discovering herself and can't decide if her name is Elsa or Rapunzel today will be taken more seriously (and encouraged) for expressing inclination toward motherhood than someone in their early 20's rejecting the notion who's had time to experience life and think about it. You look at me and tell me something isn't wrong with that.

"I didn't think I wanted kids either, but now I have (x) and I couldn't imagine my life without them. I was exactly like you in every way, and I still ended up becoming a mom, so you will too! You'll change your mind!" 
Sincerely, congratulations. I'm never going to look down on you for following the path that was right for you. However, as soon as you shove your own experiences at me as justification for being invasive about my personal choices, I draw the line. No two people are the same, and what works for one is certainly not guaranteed to work for the other. While it certainly is true that some people are hesitant at first and come into motherhood happily after all, if I'm not starting out 100% for having a child, I'd rather not take the chance. That's my decision, and I would never insist anyone did the same! Please do me the same courtesy.

"But what about Marcus? What about his family? He's an only child, so if you don't have kids, you're taking away their only chance for grandchildren. That's selfish!" 
My god. The first time someone said this out loud to me, I legitimately didn't know how to respond. I think I said something to the effect of "What about Marcus? He knows!" I was very clear about my feelings on this early in our relationship, and he decided to stay along for the ride anyway. We've discussed it extensively (obviously, I'd prefer he moved on if this was a non-negotiable issue!) and he's fine with it. As for his parents, I recently came out to them about this, and his mom's answer especially has stuck with me for months. As we sat there in the parking lot of the grocery store, she said, "We love you for who you are! I raised my son to know that he might someday be with a woman who wanted nontraditional things out of life. It makes absolutely no sense for me to project any potential desire for grandchildren onto you and your body. If I ever felt like I "needed" grandchildren, I'd just go be a nanny or buy a dog or something. I would never want you to do anything you didn't want to do, especially because a child is a lifelong commitment and you have to be sure about it. Now, let's hug and go buy some Bailey's." I don't like feeling like I need to justify any of that to anyone to begin with, but the immediate people concerned are all aware of the situation and seem to be fine with it. Beyond that, I fail to see how it affects people who decide to bring this up anyway.

"But you'd be such a good mom! Why would you put that potential to waste? That's selfish!"
I don't doubt that I'd be a good mom, actually. I love my kids, and I try to use a lot of the methods I remember enjoying from my mom to teach and play with them. However, I also have a lot of qualities that aren't immediately suited to parenting. I'm easily overwhelmed and I get impatient quickly. While I try not to show it (because honestly, they're children!), I spend a fair amount of time irate because when I become tired or frustrated, I tend to favor quiet, and kids are very loud by nature. They are also incredibly demanding and are largely inwardly focused at this age. Is this wrong? Well, no, they're three. They're learning about the world around them--it still hasn't occurred to most of them that others around them have feelings and needs just like theirs. My job is to teach them that! It's exhausting. I love it, but I also get to be done at the end of the day--which is good, because at this present juncture, I wouldn't be able to handle any more. I feel like if you opt to have a child, you sort of owe it to them to be willing to put them first. I'm not. But I know that. That's part of my conscious decision to not bring a child into the world--it wouldn't be fair to do it if it wasn't going to be my first priority. As an aside, I feel like I have the potential to become a lot of fulfilling things. It gets to a point where you have to choose. Nobody's complaining about how I might end up wasting the potential to become a successful baker or florist, so...

"But your kids would be so cute! Especially if you had a daughter--she could wear bows just like you! How can you not want that?!" 
What?! This is how I can sort of tell that someone's running out of things to say. Do you know what else is cute? My puppy is fucking adorable. She has an underbite for days and her little butt sways when she walks. She clearly thinks she's royalty. She's also a living thing with needs and she requires constant maintenance. She's eaten things she shouldn't have before and gotten violently sick. She's gotten trapped under things, tried to make a break for it when someone's taking the garbage out, and she has this special ability to step right on your face even in total darkness. Daisy is a complete handful. When we made the decision to adopt her, her cuteness had almost nothing to do with it. We had to decide after months of research if we were truly financially and emotionally ready to handle a new member of the family. When we finally were, we took her home--and the learning curve was exhausting. We love that little Shih Tzu, but it would have been a terrible decision and completely unfair to her to adopt her just because she was "SO cute!" and not have a plan beyond that. My point is, she's a dog. She isn't going to grow up to talk (to my knowledge, anyway) and go out into the world and eventually become a functional adult. It isn't my responsibility to teach her about life, love and sexuality. I'm just sort of there to provide for her needs and fawn over her a little bit. A child would be an even bigger decision, cute or not. (Side note: if I had a son, he could just as easily wear bows as a girl could, okay?)

It sort of says something, I think, that this started off as one thought and became a novel. There's a ton more to say on this subject, but this is the condensed version that I read and reread a thousand times. It is appalling to me that, for times considered to be so modern, a woman would be met with so much opposition for rejecting the notion of motherhood. Still, here we are--it gets tiring! I can only feign politeness so long when people try to make my personal life their business. I'm going to be 22 soon--22! I'm not even technically in my mid-twenties yet and I still get comments from people at work about how I'm not getting any younger, so what's the holdup? It's so conflicting, because you go through this really awkward phase between about twelve and eighteen where you're a total disgrace if you get pregnant (but you're not allowed to opt of it, because you're being punished for your sexuality by being forced into motherhood)--and then you hit your 20's and bam! Everyone wants to know where you're hiding all these babies you were supposed to have started having by now. Get married (or not) when you want. Have children (or not!) when you want. I don't care how old you were when you had your kids if you're a loving parent who tries their best. By that same token, it should matter exactly zero percent to you where I am in my life and whether my plan involves children.

Spoiler alert, it really doesn't.

If it makes you feel better (which, honestly, it shouldn't, because this concerns you not at all) to think that I could technically change my mind, okay. I may or may not fight you on it depending on how important you are to me. I've had people very close to me express disappointment when I've shared my thoughts with them. It's upsetting, but it isn't going to make me feel any differently to be guilt-tripped and argued with. Do I wish people would just realize that their lives are in no way impacted by what I do with my body? Sure, that's why I wrote this. It's not something I'm ashamed of, so it shouldn't be something anyone wants to make me feel guilty about. It still stings a little bit when someone tries, but it is what it is. I'm confident enough in how I feel in my heart to be able to stand up to the criticism I encounter on an almost daily basis.

It's a battle I certainly wish nobody had to fight, but that's not going to change if we all just stay quiet about it.

On that note, I'm going to end my tirade here. My point has mostly been made, and my thoughts have mostly been translated.

If you made it this far, thanks for understanding. I'll still watch your kids for you--and, for what it's worth, I do a pretty kick-ass Elsa braid.

{ traveling cupcake : house-hunting }

House hunting is probably one of the most underrated pastimes ever.

Earlier today, we visited the downtown area in hopes of touring some of the vintage shops. Unfortunately, everything was closed on Mondays. We got some lunch anyway (the place we went had some delicious sandwiches!) and just went home for a little bit. Later, my aunt decided we should drive around some of the neighborhoods in Milford to check out houses for sale, and I ended up having a blast with her and my mom. We saw four or five houses that my mom expressed serious interest in--they'll probably be asking for showings later this week after I've gone back to Arizona. Mom's promised to send me a lot of pictures, since we couldn't actually see inside any of the houses. (We peeked in some windows, but that didn't really give us a lot to go off of.) There were also a lot of schools in the area, so in a month or two I'll probably be sending some resumes their way! 

I love the idea of a five-minute commute. I got sort of spoiled at my current job. Anything more than a mile away is too far! 

The plan is to go home tomorrow (sadly), though that might have to be delayed if the weather is still looking stormy or if the flights all fill up. (Good part about flying standby: it's cheaper. Bad part: you might get stuck someplace.) My aunt thinks the flights aren't looking good for me, so I might actually end up here for an extra day. I don't mind, I just get really anxious about not coming back when I say I will--though I did warn my work in advance that this situation could happen. They seemed all right with it as long as I let them know what was going on. 

We'll see.

Anyway, we're all getting excited to live here as this seems to become more of a reality. Sometimes moving can sort of seem like it's so far off in the distance, it's not even really worth worrying about yet. It might even feel like it won't end up happening--house hunting made it feel like we were really coming along from just having this be something we talk about casually.

I can't wait to see what house my mom picks! 

{ the vitamin store }

Does anyone else identify with being on a never-ending quest to try out new products? My situation is slightly different--I'm just always on the hunt for the ingredients. 

Product-hopping has never been hugely successful for me. As it happens, I have very fussy hair and skin. (I could see how that'd be sort of a good thing; in theory I'd never buy anything I knew I couldn't use. In reality, however, my cabinet is full of things that have been used exactly twice. I feel weird about returning used conditioner, so I just sort of let it be down there for a thousand years or I regift it to my mom.) 

Over time, my focus shifted to trying to make my own skin and hair products. That's been much more successful. If you can believe it, it's cheaper, too--which means I get to try out way more ideas before running out of money. (Seriously, I've seen conditioner for $40 before. Will it turn my hair into spun gold? If so, perhaps I should actually stop writing this and go purchase a bottle.) I was actually thinking about writing a post about the "recipes" I've tried so far later this week, mostly on the off chance that anyone with similar issues happens to be reading this! A lot of the ones I use right now seem to be quite gentle while still effective, which can be entirely helpful for someone who struggles with being easily irritated.

On the day I took these pictures, I happened to end up at the vitamin store with my mom. Apparently, that's her new favorite place to hang out because she's gravitating toward homeopathic remedies for some of her health issues. I got to come along while she scoped out some Calm tea (proceed on that stuff with caution, by the way) and it turned out to be a gold mine of things to try out! I picked up some organic shampoo and conditioner along with a small bottle of emu oil. I was a little skeptical at first, but I've been experimenting with quite a few oils over the last few months and was curious about this one.

It was probably one of the best decisions I've ever made. I'm excited to see what else I can do with it!

It also didn't hurt that this vitamin store was located in the cutest plaza ever. It's part of a bunch of little local shops, and they're all set up in this pastel yellow Victorian-looking house. The whole area used to be full of places like that, but they've all shut down in recent years. Across the street, there used to be a similar, smaller house that sold fantastic ice cream. Mom and I were hoping to find some, but it had evidently been out of business for some time. We walked around to see what else there was; unfortunately, all we found was an olive oil shop and an expensive-looking photography studio. My mom was nice enough to take some pictures of my new dress for me, though!

Dress: Seashell We Dance? (swap, sold on Modcloth for awhile!)

Belt: It's actually just a long strip of lace.
Shoes: Chelsea Crew

I'm excited to try coming up with more posts--some days, it seems like it's difficult to think of anything to talk about that would be remotely interesting to anyone. Still, I'm eager to share the results of the emu oil and hair products with everyone, along with some of my favorite recipes. What products have you found that worked best for you? I love hearing from people who aren't hindered by sensitivity--some of the available options out there look like they can do great things for your hair and skin!

resolutions

Hello!

I hate to admit this, but I sort of lost interest in doing this sometime in November. I've enjoyed reading some of my favorite blogs' recaps of their eventful 2013's (and their compilations of lovely outfits to go with them!) and sadly, I haven't got a lot of that to my own to contribute. Still, I thought it'd be nice to come back on the night of the new year and talk about how I'd like that to change!

All right, let's see.

• Acquire a sewing machine and become proficient with it. Following this, make thousands of adorable skirts and dresses from inexpensive printed fabrics and impress all the three-year-old students with them. 
• Put that gorgeous camera my grandmother gave me to more use. I love the convenience of my iPhone, but I feel like I could stand to do a little better.
• Continue pilates! That's a really fun new discovery I made late in the year that I hope I keep up with forever. 
• Use those sweet new bread and tartlet pans I bought in Seattle. They're beautiful.
• Put all the kitchen applicances I was gifted with to even more use--come up with even more healthy, fun recipes to feed my very hungry family with! First on the list are breakfast foods (read: waffles with fruit and pancakes), breads and curries. 
• Set some money aside to take a real trip someplace overseas.
• Write.
• Follow through.

That last one is a big deal for me lately. Sometime this year--I suppose around the time my grandma got sick--I realized that I tend to do a lot of complaining and wishful thinking. To clarify, I was exactly the type of person to want to do something and then lament that I hadn't later on. ("Well, I could have entered that contest/written that story/participated in that event, but x/y/z got in the way...) 

Excuses.

Somewhere along the line, I made the decision to follow through. Anything I said I was going to do had to be done on principle. Surprisingly, a lot of things happened that probably wouldn't have otherwise. I did enter a pretty big contest (never mind that I didn't win! I still did it!), I wrote and read my grandma's eulogy, and I completely overhauled a lot of unhealthy tendencies, food-related and otherwise, going on in my household. It's sort of exciting to think about how many things can happen just because you've already decided they're going to.

I can't state definitively that I will become exactly who I want to be just by making these changes in my life. I can mostly just decide that this is all going to happen anyway and see what happens. Hopefully, the result will be good. 

The same can be said for the upcoming bread recipes. 

I'm thinking cinnamon raisin to start with, but I did see a pretty intriguing pumpkin recipe out there as well...

If I do as I say and follow through, I'll have a ton to show you soon. 

To anyone who has read this far, happy 2014. 

on the move

yellow skirt - Forever 21 (old)

royal blue shirt - Loft

red cardigan - Target (old)

argyle tights - Ross

boots - Steve Madden Troopa Boots

I started off channeling my inner Snow White, and somehow ended up thinking about life and the concept of "home". 

It is challenging to be content with where you are when you don't want to be there. My family moved to Arizona almost a decade ago, and in truth I've never much liked it here. It was a striking change from the city of Caracas, where we had been living for almost three years. There was a significant amount of political unrest occurring at the time, and the military found it necessary to send some of the personnel stationed at the embassy back to the States for awhile. Through some process I know very little about, we ended up in Tucson for a few months while things calmed down. When our tour in South America was over, we moved briefly to California and then straight back to Arizona. In my time here, I've lived all over the state, going as far north as Flagstaff. (That was my favorite, but it was built around the college and the general consensus is that it's quite boring if you're not actually going to school there.) 

I am very much of the belief that you are a product of your environment. Growing up in the service has shaped my perspective to be ready to move on after a few years of being in one place. Imagine being on standby for nearly ten years after a lifetime of that! Going up to Flagstaff for college helped briefly, but in my heart I know I need to be doing more than that. Many of the people I've met here seem to enjoy the desert and are content to stay here, and I've struggled for the latter half of my life to make peace with it. Anyone who knows me is familiar with my incessant griping about why I do not wish to be here. It's a difficult balance to keep--I certainly don't want to offend anyone's home by going on about why I don't particularly care for it, but I also can't bring myself to feel enthused about it the way they are.

Now there are rumors surfacing within my home of a near-future move across the country. If moving back overseas is my first choice, relocating East is a close second. I cannot describe how excited I am at the prospect of being someplace like that. The circumstances are less than ideal, but my family seems to be ready to say their farewell to Arizona. While there are still some months yet before this will take place, I find myself eagerly looking forward and trying to actively find ways to be appreciative of this place while I'm still here at the same time. 

Most days, I feel like a very demanding rosebush--you can plant me in the desert if you're really determined to, but no matter what you do I'm probably never going to grow as happily or naturally as a cactus would. I respect that this is home to some people, but for me, it never will be. Truthfully, I can't say whether I'll ever establish roots anyplace; I'm happiest on the move. 

I can't wait to be on my way.

on autumn and teaching

This morning, Marcus came along with me to my school's Fall Festival. My kids were going to be performing, and I'd told my teacher I would help them get on stage and stay in line. Also--let's be real, who doesn't want to watch a bunch of three-year-olds wave colorful scarves around and sing This Little Light of Mine? 

First of all, my kids looked adorable. They were all wearing jeans and white shirts, but most of the boys had been put into button-downs and had their hair all combed. So handsome! One of my little girls was even complete with a giant white bow and stylish little boots like her mom's. 

By the way, that's my other favorite part of going to events. It's priceless seeing kids with their parents and watching them interact. I get a kick out of seeing who looks like who and what their individual dynamics are. I told Marcus today that I felt way better about my job after going to the Fall Festival because, hey, guess what? A lot of these kids don't even want to listen to their own parents 100% of the time! That means I have no reason to feel incompetent if I can't always get them to focus or stop screaming or cooperate with the activities we're doing--of course, I'm always trying, but it was something of a relief to realize that I wasn't just awful at my job. The other thing I felt better about was being frustrated--I love my kids. I do. They've only been with me for just shy of a month, and I treat them like they're my own a lot of the time. Sometimes, though, when I'm trying to manage all sixteen of them and they all want to run around and climb on top of everything and break their toys, I find myself getting a little impatient--and I always feel too hard on them when I put them in time-out or scold them. Watching them with their parents made me realize that that's a normal part of raising kids--and there's not really anything wrong with feeling frustrated or upset as long as you don't take it out on them or do anything too extreme. (I always feel bad and let them leave the chair after two minutes anyway--they're three, nobody's committing credit card fraud or arson here!) 

Anyway, my kids did great. A lot of them sort of lost focus halfway through the song, and one of my boys yelled, "I SEE A PLANE!" mid-performance. Still, it was really clear how proud all of their parents and teachers were. They were able to stay in their line, and nobody ran off! (Going off how the rehearsal went the other day, that's a huge accomplishment!) 

After they all dispersed with their families, Marcus and I walked around to look at the booths. Some of the vendors were really impressive--we had these huge horses walking around the fairground and everything. Most of the games and prizes were geared towards the kids, but we still had fun watching. We also bought a a shaved ice to share--we tried half blue raspberry, half tiger's blood. My favorite part of that was ordering, because Marcus said, "Can we do part of it with tiger's blood--and can the other half just be Hawaiian?" I nudged him and whispered, "It's not a flavor, it's just called Hawaiian shaved ice." He thought about it for a second and said, "oh, they're all Hawaiian! I guess just blue raspberry then!" 

We got to be the first customers at the booth, which seemed to make the people working there happy because they mentioned that nobody had come by yet and they were getting pretty bored. We promised that we'd walk around with our shaved ice and make a huge deal out of it so more people would come by, and they both laughed--but it ended up actually happening! We were enjoying our treat and a family walked by and said, "oh, wow! Look at that, let's go get one!" 

I also got to wear my new pie dress that I've been fawning over all year. One more in my size finally came in on Modcloth, and you better believe I snatched that up the minute I saw it. I'm wearing it now. I actually don't want to take it off anytime in the near future. A lot of people I work with commented on how festive it looked. I love working at a school--everyone appreciates fun prints! 

Dress: My Kind of Pie Dress - Modcloth

Cardigan: Charter School Cardigan - Modcloth

Shoes: Old Navy

Bow: Made by me! 

Purse: Fossil 

Next time we're going to try something a little more traditional, like caramel apples!

Also, for some reason, this picture really thrilled him.

So, needless to say, this is becoming more of a viable career option for me. My teacher's been talking to me about some international opportunities I might look into, and I guess we'll see what happens! Who knew that I'd end up falling into teaching? When I met her husband today, he said, "my wife loves you. She's always talking about how capable you are--she says for this kind of job you need to have the heart for it, and everyone thinks you really do." 

I wouldn't have believed you if you'd told me a year ago that that was one of the nicest things I'd ever hear. I don't think I stopped smiling after that!

I'm going to try to get better about posting, because all of a sudden there's a ton to say! Be warned, I think a lot of it is going to end up revolving around teaching and my preschoolers--oh, and probably dresses? I'm just going out on a limb here.

:) 

the beginning of october

1. My brother turned fifteen. He's diabetic, so I tried making up a cake that was acceptably sweet that my mother would also let him eat. I came up with a sugar-free box mix for Devil's Food Cake, sugar-free chocolate pudding to add to it, strawberry frozen yogurt in between the layers and fat-free whipped topping mixed with cocoa powder for the frosting. The entire thing was placed in the freezer and became a diabetic-friendly ice cream cake. Tommy has since requested about five more.

2. We had one of our first date nights in awhile. Marcus is becoming a sushi person. I'm really proud of how far he's come in terms of culinary adventurousness. Would you believe I could never get him to eat anything besides plain pizza or chicken nuggets?

3. Surprise--another sweet experiment for Tommy's benefit. My mom won't ever let him order anything from Starbucks because of the sugar, but he loves the strawberries and cream blended drinks. After spending awhile sulking about it, he gave up on asking for them anymore. I was playing with smoothie ideas and decided to try replicating the drink with strawberry frozen yogurt, almond milk and some canned whipped cream. He's deemed it acceptable and asks for these special drinks most nights now.

4. I ordered this beautiful dress from eBay--I really am coming to love Bernie Dexter's designs. This dress is a particular favorite of mine because it combines Tudor roses with a vintage silhouette. Unfortunately, when my package finally arrived it contained the wrong dress. It's currently on its way back, so I'll update you when my other one gets here!

5. My hair is getting long enough to play with a little bit more. I dyed it brown after something like five years of keeping it auburn. I like it better so far, and now I'm just anxiously awaiting more growth so I can experiment with my curls instead of settling for keeping it up all the time.

6. I started a new job (more on that later), and while I was hunting for important work-related documents in my garage I found this little jar I made for my mom in first grade. We have it on the fireplace now--I used to be really annoyed that she never ate the chocolates I put inside. When I found this and showed it to her and my aunt, my aunt exclaimed, "of course! No mom wants to compromise a present like that by eating the candy inside!"

7. I may have also finally gotten my hands on the long-awaited skeleton dress. It glows in the dark and I am in love with the collar. I need to get better at getting real outfit pictures instead of just the ones I use my phone for in the mirror. The full effect is usually a lot more fun! It came just in time for October to start, but I'm thinking I'll be breaking this out even when Halloween is over.

8. In my moments of free time, I occupy myself by rearranging things and keeping the house clean. Our pantry used to look like a tornado had hit it. We buy from the bulk bin at Sprouts for snacks, and somehow the food always stays inside those plastic bags. Nobody could find anything! I finally got impatient and made a trip to Target for several mason jars. The snacks ended up in the jars, and now we can see how much food we actually have. Thank God. (We have pea soup now, too.)

9. We've had family popping in and out for almost a month. I really enjoy watching my mom and aunt together. She's supposed to be coming back next week, so I'm excited to see her again even if the circumstances aren't ideal.

Finally, I'm sure everyone (meaning all two of you) are curious about how my grandmother is doing. She has her on and off days, but she's coming home soon. We don't really know what will happen from there, but anyone who's met my grandma knows she isn't about to go down without fighting.

We love her tons, and, as evidenced in this particular favorite photo of mine, we're all cut from the same cloth as she is. 

In the meantime, I hope things get better. Some family members have really come through, and others have revealed themselves to be largely unsupportive. Strange how these times show you everyone's true colors, isn't it? The family drama has been so insane I could probably write a soap opera about it and retire from the income. 

Well, for now I think we'll just focus on the positives. Within a week or two, my grandmother should be home! We'll just go from there. 

baking and coping

It's been a very long couple of days.

Last night, I was in the middle of cooking dinner while my mom was on the phone. We were having gyros, and I was just browning the rest of the meat in the pan. My mom was on the phone with my grandmother, who we'd dropped off at the hospital a bit earlier for what everyone assumed to be kidney stones. I wasn't really paying attention until I heard my mom's tone change. She waved me over and started writing in the notebook she was using for schoolwork. I suddenly got the strangest feeling and really didn't want to see what she was trying to tell me. I think in a really odd way I probably knew, so I finally just looked down.

"She has pancreatic cancer."

Since then, everything has felt sort of like a dream. Both of my brothers reacted very strongly when we told them. I was the one who called Jack up at college, since my mom had her hands full telling everyone else. I just listened while he started crying and answered his questions in the best way I could at the time. I'm wondering why I didn't really feel anything aside from a very brief sense of dread. I think I decided not to accept it, then I just went back to cooking dinner. 

That's just what I've been doing ever since. Cooking might actually be all I'm good for in a time of crisis. 

I feel very tired. I don't know why. I haven't really done anything to be tired from. 

Today, we were given a little bit more information. It looks like stage four, but the doctor thinks there could be success with treatment. My grandmother sounds really good, and I'm going to be seeing her tomorrow night. Actually, it was sort of funny, because I've been practicing baking new things lately, and before she left for the hospital she hadn't gotten to eat anything. When I told her about what I was making, she complained that she'd be missing out but to save some for her. Unfortunately, because she ended up staying longer than we thought she would, she didn't get to try any of the food. Last night, I tried making donuts for the first time with considerable success. My mom saved one and brought it to my grandma at the hospital where she works this morning. Later, I got a message from my grandma with a picture of her happily eating the donut. Apparently, she wasn't supposed to eat it and some of the tests they were supposed to do got delayed as a result, but she was completely pleased with herself about it and said she didn't regret it at all. 

That's basically my grandmother in a nutshell. 

I love her very much and I'm not ready to lose her just yet, so we're all going to fight this together. 

And we'll fuel her efforts with plenty of these. I guess she actually really enjoys donuts. I had no idea, because I've never seen her eat one. 

These turned out really nice the second time around. The secret is cake flour, which I was surprised about. I had always heard that you could use all-purpose for anything and that "specialized" flour was a way of making more money off the same product. Actually, I would never go back to all-purpose for donuts. I'm actually thinking of trying some of my other recipes, like those scones, with cake flour to see if it makes a difference. This batch was so springy and fluffy, I couldn't wait to tell someone about it.

Now, grandma can have some of the good cake-flour donuts, since they should be all finished with her tests by the time we go visit. I think she'll enjoy them much more than the ones from yesterday, which were made of white and whole wheat flour. They tasted fine, but the consistency was way too dense for them to feel like real donuts. Cake flour is where it's at, you guys.

I think this is my way of coping. It's not conventional, but at least it's sort of cheering everyone up since there's always food around. We'll see what happens next. I'm hoping very badly for some good news in the next few days.

I want my grandmother around to eat donuts and scones with me for awhile longer. That's not too much to ask, I don't think.

pictures and movies

The more lovely pictures I see from becoming familiar with Blogger, the more I realize I completely stopped taking any of myself! I was actually kind of surprised--aside from every couple of days when I use my webcam to snap some quick hair growth progress pictures, or maybe using my iPhone to take shots of clothes I'm trying on and need to send to friends for opinions, I don't really take that many pictures of myself anymore. It's certainly been months since I took the time to take any "cute" pictures! (I use that term really loosely.)

It was a slow day today, though, so I thought it'd be fun to take a couple of new pictures this afternoon. I've shared my favorites with you, though I have to admit I'm even a little bit self conscious about these! Is anyone else ever kind of surprised by what they look like on camera, even if you've seen it before? I'm always a little bit unsure of what to think. This was fun, though! My mom and I had a really successful shopping trip a few days ago and she bought me this adorable shirt from The Limited as a little present. We scored a 50% off coupon together, so it was a great deal! Now I can't wait to go back! I have a huge chambray thing right now--I don't know what that's about! Something about the soft blue just seems so classic and comfortable to me.

In other news, Marcus and I had a date night! Of course, I forgot to take any pictures (I think I'll have to start getting better about that if I want to have a regular blog) but it's okay! I had fun being in the moment. Besides, it's pretty hard to take pictures in the movies. We love going to the theater together, but not a lot's come out lately that really piqued our interests. Yesterday was kind of a down day for me, so we got the idea to find the worst-looking movie out there and have fun watching it anyway. After watching the trailers, Marcus picked Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (I sincerely apologize to anyone who loved this movie, but the entire theater must have had the same idea because everyone was giggling a little bit!) I think it's sometimes hard to take some of the dialogue they come up with in these teen paranormal romance movies seriously. We had a blast watching it, though, and we went for some coffee afterwards. We hadn't done any of that in awhile! Now that Marcus is working and I'm looking for a new job, hopefully there will be a little bit more opportunity to go out and about together.

We like spending time at home with my family too, though, so that's nice!

Oh--and one last thing! I made my first sale on Etsy! I'm so excited!! I'm going to make my first made-to-order bow this weekend and ship it first thing after Labor Day! I hope that maybe getting a few good reviews here and there will maybe boost my store's ratings, and who knows? Maybe someday I can make lots of bows for lots of people!

How do you feel about taking the time to get some new pictures of yourself? For me, it feels almost like a fun treat! What are your favorite ways to keep your pictures interesting and fresh, even if you have limited space to work with? And, of course, has anyone seen any good (or awful) movies?

:)

wishlist wednesday!

Hello, everyone! It's been a little bit--I'm trying to decide how best to spend my time. So far, most of it's still devoted to being master of the house: chores, shopping for groceries, cooking, you know. I love it, but it's also left me kind of tired! I haven't gone out shopping a whole lot lately, which I used to really enjoy. Yesterday, though, my mom and I spent a day out--I thought it'd be fun to talk about, and share some fun wishlist items at the same time! 

We started off by going to the post office, where I mailed a dress out for swap. I was really bummed to let it go.

Wouldn't you be? I actually got it from another swap awhile back, all the way from Canada! I waited on it for weeks because I was so excited about it, but it was totally wrong for my body. :( I'm not quite tall enough to pull it off! Hopefully the new owner gets more use out of it. As for me, I can't wait for my new prize! Pictures to come...it has bows on it. 

Anyway, then we went off to the mall together! That's one of our favorite things to do when we have time. Trying on clothes is my favorite, and if it's a good day, I can get my mom to try some things on too. Looking back now, I wish I'd taken more pictures of the things I put on. Some were pretty bad (to be fair, I was hoping the lobster dress I found was going to look nicer) and others were so good, I was sad to leave them behind! 

At a store called The Limited, I tried on these beauties: 

Is it pretty obvious I have a chambray thing going on?! Sadly, I had to leave most of those behind, though my mom did score a 50% off everything coupon and was nice enough to get me the light blue shirt! :) I'd been looking for one like it forever, and with that sweet deal it was even cheaper than some of the lesser-quality ones I'd seen at stores like Forever 21. I learned that I enjoy stores like The Limited because I'm not huge on embellishment--they specialize in classic, simple pieces (like colored pants and basic sweaters!), which I tend to gravitate towards. I totally get that for some people, the more bedazzled the better, but I'm just not as into it. For me, there's nothing worse than spying a cute dress from across the room, only to get closer and realize that someone added studs or zippers or cutouts where there didn't really need to be any. (If you're ever at the mall and hear someone lamenting that perfectly good pair of mint pants that was ruined by a thick zipper up the sides, it's probably me.) 

My mom ended up picking up a nice pair of black pants for work, but we both secretly wanted to take it all! 

Later, at Express, I tried on a red dress that looked pretty cute: sadly, the back was cut extra low and it was so stretchy you could see everything through it. Ever tried one of those on? I'll keep looking, though, I love red dresses. If this one was still in stock on Modcloth, I'd get it! 

After the mall, we went to Target really quickly to pick up new kitchen supplies. At the mall, we looked at some of the more upscale shops for fun (who doesn't love to do that?!) but the prices made us want to cry! Some really nice-looking kitchen things were ON SALE for $800! Until one of us wins the lottery, we figured we'd better head someplace that gave us more realistic options. We'd been talking about replacing our ancient cookware forever--it was all scratched up and breaking, and since I cook every day, I needed better things to work with. We debated on several different sets before we settled on a nice-looking one that was pretty affordable!

That one.

I don't know what it says about me that I'm this excited to have a brand new set of cookware, but I'm over the moon. I can't wait to use it. We also got a new egg pan, since my family's all about the eggs. Maybe now I can start sharing some more recipes! 

I'm really excited about my new shirt and my cookware! I love finding one thing (or ten!) that you've been searching for forever, and then bam! There's the perfect one! I have a huge list of retro-classic items I'm hoping to slowly acquire by fall, but I think I'll share that one next Wednesday...I'm still having that issue where I know what I'm looking for, but I haven't seen any pictures of it on store sites or magazines yet!

Am I the only one who gets that feeling? Like there's the perfect item I would just draw up for myself if I could? Does anyone else have those things they've been looking all over for but can't quite find? A couple more of mine include some classic a-line skirts, sturdy oxfords, cute button-downs in soft colors (long and short sleeve, preferably with lace!) and simple cardigans! What's on your wishlist that you haven't been able to track down yet?

- Katie

{ etsy experiment! }

Hello, everyone!

After thinking about it for awhile, I decided it might be fun to try opening my own Etsy shop! I've been working on my own special hair accessories, mostly bows and headbands. My little bows have earned me quite a few compliments--a lot of people have stopped me to ask where I get them and how I make them! As such, just for fun, I think I'd like to see if opening up a shop for them pans out. As I expand my interests, I'm very excited to share my new ventures with all of you!

Of course, my little shop is still under construction. I'm experimenting with prices and styles to see what works best. After less than an hour, I can't really say for sure whether I've chosen successful options, but time will tell. I've been browsing Etsy for similar listings to pick fair prices and learn how to list items in an appealing way; if my shop becomes more successful, I'm sure I'll just have to start coming up with even more creative things to do with it!

If you'd like to check it out, Darling Mine is now up and running! Let me know what you think--pictures, prices, etc.! If by any chance you see something you like, please tell me! I'm not sure how successful a business model I'll have by being eager to make people deals all the time, but I'm hoping I'll become successful enough to offer lots of coupons and bundle deals. (So far, it seems like 3 for $10 is a pretty standard group price?)

Thanks for stopping by! Hopefully I'll have more updates as time passes!

{ vacation: san diego }

It's been a little bit!

That's mostly because this past week, my family, Marcus and I were all getting ready to go on a great trip we'd been planning for awhile! Mom's been wanting to go back to San Diego forever--last time we went was probably about seven or eight years ago. While that in and of itself was a fun experience, it had been a long time and my poor mom was pretty tired out from her job. She'd been saving up vacation time all year!

The four days we were there went by too quickly, unfortunately.

While we were there, we:

• Enjoyed some good food, including breakfast time at the hotel's Waffle Spot and their dinner joint, Amigo Spot. (They're big on spots there, I guess). My youngest brother, Tommy, had especially missed these restaurants. I suspect it was a nostalgia thing. 
• Visited the Gaslamp District and shopped around some shops I'd dreamed of seeing, mainly including the Bettie Page store. Pictures to follow.
• Of course, went to the beach! We visited Mission Beach for the day at the beginning of our trip, and we technically went to La Jolla, even though it was just the parking lot. I guess Saturday evenings in the summertime aren't the best choice when visiting a beach, because we had to turn around and go home! :( 
• Spent a day at Balboa Park--this day was sort of mixed, because the original plan had been to go to either Sea World or the San Diego Zoo. Neither of those things happened, mostly due to lack of planning, so the day ended up being sort of up in the air. We went to go explore Balboa Park, and we also went to this science museum that was supposed to be the coolest thing but was actually kind of not. (I think it was really geared toward kids around six or seven years old). Unfortunately, it cost so much to get in that we couldn't have gone to the zoo or Sea World anyway! Oh, well--Jack ended up getting to visit a natural history museum that made his day, and mom and I went walking around the area.
• Following that, we ran into two separate groups at the Pavilion having weddings, along with a family reunion and a quinceanera. We enjoyed looking at everyone's outfits and discussing what we did and didn't like about wedding themes. 
• Played some games in our hotel room and enjoyed the swimming pool and Jacuzzi.
• Went walking with my mom every morning--we'd stop at the coffee machine in the lobby and take a walk around the Hotel Circle! It was some great bonding time! 
• Spent a lot of time watching early morning Disney Channel (I think we all really like Sophia the First now?) and Hell's Kitchen. There was a marathon one night, what else were we going to do?!
• And I got a job! There are more details to follow, but while on vacation, I got a phone call with a job offer! I'll save that for later so that I don't get too carried away in one single post.

And now, here are a couple of pictures! I probably have more around here somewhere, and I forgot to take pictures of some things I wish I had--like walks or certain foods--but these are my favorite parts of the trip!

This thing was in front of the Amigo Spot, but it always froze when we tried to take a picture!

My mom was super psyched.

They enjoyed burying Marcus in his huge hole, but he didn't have too great a time getting out of it!

This beach was REALLY crowded!

Here was the progress of this aforementioned hole! I bought him a shovel at one of the stands near the beach and he was a huge fan!

My brother was nice enough to get me a little stuffed mammoth from his special museum! He felt bad because I hadn't gotten to pick anything that day--very sweet of him! (Also, he bought me that latte. Ladies, he's a very generous boy!)

All week, I wanted some waffles, but felt they were too unhealthy...the solution? Mini waffles with some of Marcus's strawberry topping! They were so cakey! 

This volcano cake was beyond delicious. It was really tiny, and the four of us demolished it while Mom enjoyed some vanilla ice cream.

Here are just a couple of outfits I tried on at the Bettie Page store! I've wanted that green skirt in the middle forever--someday, I'll get it!

This was fun to try to get out of...

We had a really great time! Like I said, I might have more pictures later, for anyone who's interested! (I doubt too many people look on this blog regularly, but I still love to post about things like this!)

Now, I just wish we could all go back!