Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Top Six Tuesday - er, Wednesday...

Hey, y'all! Haven't blogged in a week...haven't really been in a good mood lately. BUT! It's raining!!! And rain always puts me in a good mood...so we can all thank the rain for a new update. I figured since I skipped my Top Six Tuesday yesterday, I'll post it today! I hope y'all have been doing well this week! Enjoy!


This week's topic is:
Top Six Reasons I Love Rainy Days
(Duh!!!)


1. I get to sit on my patio underneath the warmest blanket I own and listen to the sounds of the droplets hitting the ground.



2. I have an excuse to drink hot chocolate and Baileys from my favorite Cheshire Cat mug in the summer.


3. I have an excuse to make Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese for dinner =).


4. I get cuddles with my Matty.



5. I have an excuse to not run errands and just stay home and dance to my favorite songs all day. Barefoot.


6. There's always a beautiful, crisp, clean day after the rain stops.


Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Top Six Tuesday

Hey, y'all! It's Tuesday! You know what that means? Another edition of Top Six Tuesday!


This week's theme:
Top Six Desserts I Love


1. Sugar Cookie Cheesecake Bars
Sugar Cookies and Cheesecake. Two of my favorite sweets. Why WOULDN'T I love these!


2. Frozen Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Bananas
This = LOVE.


3. Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
Do we see a theme here yet...?


4. Chocolate Covered Strawberries


5. Reese's Cheesecake Brownies


6. Orange Sherbet





Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Top Six Tuesday

Hey, y'all!


I've decided that my blog needed a little something new. So, I'm going to do something I like to call "Top Six Tuesday." How does it work? So glad you asked!

Every Tuesday, I will pick a theme, and then pick six things that I like or that fit me and list them! Descriptions aren't necessary, but sometimes I think it gives y'all a little bit more insight on why that item or idea fits me! Ok, so here it goes! My first Top Six Tuesday.

This Tuesday's theme:
The Top Six Songs that Describe Me



1. Here For a Good Time by George Strait
Need I say more?


2. Wide Open by Jason Aldean
When I first heard this song, I was reminded of when I worked at Denny's, how I'd always be struggling to stay up on my own two feet because I wasn't making enough money, but I didn't care, because I didn't need anything but my faith in God, love, and happiness. I left Denny's because I had bigger plans for myself, and wanted to succeed in a better way. I couldn't have put this period of my life in better words, or lyrics for that matter. Better that it came from my favorite male country artist too =).


3. That's Important to Me by Joey+Rory
I absolutley love Joey+Rory. I first heard them about two years ago and fell in love with the song "Cheater, Cheater" (another good song for those who've been with a cheating partner) and decided to explore all of their music. I have to say, they're amazing. When I came across this song, I felt like they were singing the words inside my heart (ok, so minus the husband, being a wife, and being a good mother part....for now). That's why I love this song so much.


4. New Strings by Miranda Lambert
There really are no words to describe why I love this song. I wonder what language I could describe it in...Just listen to the lyrics and you'll pretty much hear my early adulthood life story.


5. Virginia Bluebell by Miranda Lambert
So minus the fact that most of my family is from Virginia (part of why I like this song), this song is what kept me going through the dark times in high school, and keeps me going now. Whenever I feel left out by "friends" and not good enough for anything, I listen to this song, and I smile. I know I'm better than that.


6. Bless the Broken Road by Rascal Flatts
Ok, so it's a little cliche, but I couldn't find a better song to describe the way I feel with Matt, and what his love means to me. It's time to leave the past where it belongs, and move forward with my life. I don't regret the road I've traveled, because it brought me here to you.


Monday, April 2, 2012

Resolutions

Better late than never!

Ok! So you know how at the end of December we all made these New Years resolutions that we promised ourselves we'd keep no matter how hard the work was? Yeah...I wasn't one of those people. Frankly, I never have been. I would always convince myself that I could always set these resolutions later on in the year and still have the same result by the end of the year. Reality is, that's not possible. At least for me. I have to establish some form of habit before I can fully commit to something. So I tried to be like everybody else this time and set it back in December. I think doing so may have actually worked!

Resolution #1: To get back into the same shape I used to be in high school.

This hurts me to say considering I graduated only two years ago...But things and people change and we all go through our fair share of trying times.

As of January 1, 2012, my weight was 187 pounds, with a BMI of 33%. NOT where I want to be.

So, since this past January, Matt and I have been continuing to eat healthier meals (though we have our weak moments where we splurge and eat fast food). We've also been walking to our mail box at the complex rather than taking the car. And just recently I've started doing Zumba and trying yoga. Let me tell you...yoga is a lot tougher than you think! But I'm really enjoying the new me that's coming through! And at the end of the year, I can't wait to see the results of the amazing journey I'm experiencing right now.

As of April 2, 2012, my weight is 180 pounds, and have almost lost an entire pant size and a half!

Resolution #2: To take better care of my hair, skin, and teeth.

Ok so I've adopted this new morning and nightly routine that helps me keep myself on track. I don't think Matt has noticed yet, but I'm sure it won't take long for him to notice =). I feel really great about it!

Mornings:
  • (Try to) Eat a balanced breakfast, complete with multi-vitamin consumption
  • Shower every morning and deep condition my hair once a week.
  • Floss, Brush, and Rinse with mouthwash every morning.
  • Apply moisturizer and toner.
  • Apply moisturizing lotion
  • Apply makeup (if any at all)
  • Brush and style hair
  • Get dressed for the day.
Nights:
  • Change into night clothes.
  • Take off makeup.
  • Wash face (occasionally twice to get the last of the missed makeup)
  • Floss, Brush, and Rinse with mouthwash.
  • Brush hair
  • Relax.......=)
....And maybe the occassional book or in-bed meditation.

I would love to keep everyone up-to-date with my progress! Thank you for sharing this wonderful new journey with me!

Life is Beautiful <3

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Friendships Through Life

It truly is funny the way things work themselves out...or don't.


I've had a recent mishap in a friendship over what I've just come to know as being absolutely rediculous. All I could do when I found out about it was laugh and say, "Well that's your loss then!" out loud in my apartment bedroom. I had to share this with you.

Let me start with a little backstory. When I was a sophomore, I met this girl who was a junior at the time. Her name is Chelsea. We got along great, as we've had the same attitude toward people and their drama ever since then. She lived in the same apartment complex as my mom and I, which just happened to be right across the street from our high school. We'd always wait in the courtyard for one another and walk to school, where we would hang out together in the quad before school and at lunch. After she graduated high school, she moved to Arizona. We kept in contact for a little bit longer, then somehow lost touch. When I moved to Arizona a year and a half later, we got into contact again and started hanging out ALL the time. We became best friends.

A little over a month ago, just after Matt had gone away on his little Army retreat (though we could hardly call it so), I was still working my graveyard shift job as a cook at Denny's. I had come home early in the morning, as I always did after each shift. But that day I knew Chelsea and I had plans that were early enough that I wouldn't be awake. So I stayed up. I kept myself company with the TV, laundry, and a nice long cold shower (Amazing!) until we finally went on our way. I don't remember where we went that day, but I remember that we had fun. We had come back to the apartments (she lives in the same apartment complex as Matt and I do), even though I was feeling tired, I accepted her invitation to come back and hang out for a little bit at her house. So we walked up there and plopped down on the couch. By this point, I had been up for 36 hours and was absolutely exhausted. She had asked if I was hungry and I replied with a "Well, kinda..." She might have taken that as a yes, but I know that she was hungry too, so regardless it didn't even matter. I had ended up falling asleep on the couch shortly after she had started making this one-step meal. She woke me up after she had finished, handed me a bowl of it, and I started to eat. I could only manage to take a few bites of it before I was full. As I said before, I wasn't really all that hungry. She then replied, "It's ok, I can just put it in a tupperware and save it for later." Ok, cool. Not a problem. I stayed there a little bit longer, struggling and fighting with myself to stay awake. I succeeded for about 10 minutes, then my subconcious took over and I started nodding off. After a few minutes of that, I looked over to her and said exactly this: "I'm really, really sorry but I should probably go home and go to sleep. I keep nodding off and I don't want to intrude on your dad's bed." Her dad sleeps on the couch, as there's no extra room for him. She told me that she understood, got up walked me to the door, and locked it behind me. I went home and went to sleep thinking absolutely nothing about the situation that had just occurred.

So, for the past like...three weeks or so, Chelsea has been acting really strange toward me. I'd text her, and she wouldn't text back. She deleted me as a friend on Facebook (Oooo because that's so important, right?), and has been giving me the silent treatment, really. So, yeah it kinda tore at me. I mean come on; you're friends with someone, you go on vacation, you come home and that person just all of a sudden stops talking to you? Yeah....no. I couldn't figure out why she was acting the way she was. I kept texting her and asking her, and was gaining zero ground. So, as a last attempt, I asked her via Facebook message yesterday. This is what I sent her: "Ok seriously...what is it that I did wrong...?" For a long time I recieved no response, so I sort of let it go and went to bed.

This morning, I noticed I had some notifications via my fancy iPhone. One of those notifications was a message in response from Chelsea. This is, and I quote, her exact response to me:
"Honestly I just don't feel like dealing with you shit right now. After the last time we hung out I was pissed. I dropped everything I was doing to hang out with you. You came over, sat on yhe couch, I gave you great hospitality, and cooked a meal I didn't even want to cook. You feel asleep and then said you weren't hungry anymore and went home after only a hour if hanging out. In my book that is a shitty friend move. And I am done with shitty people."


RIIIIGHT!?

Ok so after reading this, I start cracking up. This is why she's been mad at me!? This happened over a month ago! Of course I'm not mad or upset about this anymore. Obviously this is just a sad miscommunication happening that will probably never be resolved. At this point, I don't care. It's too funny to care about. I replied to her, apologizing for this once again and I've still recieved no response from her. Oh well. Life goes on, right? I deserve to be happy and have good friends that respect me and my lifestyle. If this petty excuse is her reason to be mad at me, then I say let her be mad. I'm closing this chapter and starting a new one.

I hope y'all found this as funny as I did. I had to share.
Be true to yourself and never let anyone take that away.

Life is beautiful <3


Friday, March 23, 2012

That Awkward Moment When...

Ok, so I started a new job about a week ago, and so far it's going great! I'm getting MUCH better hours than I was while working for my previous company. Not to mention the pay is better as well. My trainer is very good at explaining things to me so I can understand them (I have my slow moments...) and I have another person who helps me out along the way if I need extra help. The catch? I'm the only woman in a kitchen full of men. See, but this isn't what bothers me. The majority of my friends are guys anyway. What bothers me is the fact that nobody laughs at my attempts at jokes, when I start to talk about something I get cut off or they let me finish and don't listen to what I have to say at all, or they just ignore me all together. And when you're the new person, attempting to make an order that you have no idea how to make, and nobody will listen to you....yeah. That gets to be a little intimidating. I'm sure we've all been there at some point.


Even worse is the fact that these guys have all been there since the restaurant opened a year ago. I mean that's great for their experience, and I wish I would have known about the company when they opened too...but when you have a group of guys that are all doing the same job and are all around the same age, a bonding is inevitable. I've also noticed that men have a harder time accepting change and letting someone into the "friendship circle." Which makes me feel a liiiiitle bit like the third wheel.




So...you know that awkward moment when you're the third wheel?

Yeah...that's me.


Life is beautiful <3

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Erica Price


Age|19
Occupation|Chef, Student, Full-time Lover

This is my story...
It's simple, really. I'm your average country girl trapped in the city. Well...was. Born and raised in California (minus a few years in Oklahoma), spent her whole life up to now dreaming of what she wanted to do with her life, where she wanted to live, and most importantly, searching for that one man that she would spend the rest of her life with. At the age of 18, and after getting out of a bad relationship and needing a fresh start, she moved to Arizona. Yeah, that's me.


Elementary School
In elementary school I discovered my love for music. I joined my first choir in 4th grade with my brother. I was your average straight-A student that loved to play with Legos and cars with her older brother. I don't remember much about school life except for the fact that we moved....A LOT. I never had a lot of friends, which makes sense as to the kind of person I am today.

Can you find me?


Jr. High School
Oh this period of my life. I like to refer to these two years as "The Dark Ages." For good reason though! I learned a lot about myself during this time. I learned that the goth look was NOT for me. Being socially awkward by this point in my life as I was, I did not enjoy the teasing that came along with the look. So by the end of my time in Jr. High School, I ended up pretty normal. My choir "career" took off in Jr. High! I became better at one of my passions, and also picked up another along the way: guitar. I felt like this was the one place I could escape the teasing and name calling. This was also where I met my best friend, Emberleigh Birdsall. We've been besties ever since. I love her.


High School
You know, I think people lie when they say that the high school years are the best years of your life. I mean, yeah I had a good time and all, but I definitely don't think that they were the best years of my life. Especially with everything that I went through during high school. But hey, that's why they call it growing up, right? I started my freshman year at Savanna High School in Anaheim, California in 2006. I was 14. Go Rebels! I was so excited to finally be in high school! I soon would discover that I had a love-hate relationship with it. In December of 2006, during NJROTC Color Guard practice, I was taken into state custody by the Anaheim Police Department due to the fact that my "step-sister" had spread a lie that my now step-dad had asked to have sex with her...or something along those lines. I spent a long time at a children's home called Orangewood with my brother and "step-sister." I got released two days before Christmas and was finally able to go home with my mom! I suffered through this hell for the next 3 years. It got easier once I returned to normality. Until Emberleigh broke the news to me that she was moving to North Carolina. I was so sad! We had been practically inseperable through the past 3 years! We made a promise to each other that we would visit each other. She came to visit me during my sophomore year of high school. It was so much fun!



As sophomore year went on, I made new friends through NJROTC, choir, and just out in the quad during lunch.






I miss all the drill meets for NJROTC! Hell, I miss that class in general. I learned so much and had the best experiences!

The only female on Armed Basic and Armed Exhibition. HOORAH!

Color Guard Commander, American Flag =)

Junior Year, I did it all! I did NJROTC and Water Polo. Figured I'd give sports a try for once. Of course, there was still choir, too. I got a job working at a restaurant called Portillo's. Pretty awesome first job if you ask me. I had awesome friends...I loved life!







Senior year was the best of all the high school years. As it should be! I wasn't in Water Polo anymore, though. Work, AP classes, and Drill teams took up too much time. But I did get accepted into district Honor Choir for the 6th year in a row! What an amazing experience that was. Here it is in picture form!









Yeah. It was good!

College Life and Life After High School
Like I said before, I moved to Arizona when I was 18. I moved in with my aunt in a town called San Tan Valley. I lived there for 9 months before I found and moved into my first apartment. I found where I wanted to live! I also found what I wanted to do with my life. I loved to cook. Why not do it and get paid for it? So I went to Culinary School!




Pretty cool, huh?
Yeah, I think so too =).

And, I also met that special man. The one I want to spend the rest of my life with. His name is Matthew Palumbo. <3




We're just your average American boy and girl <3


...who just happen to be a little B.A. =D


And maybe a little silly.


But at the end of the day, we're so much in love with each other.


And can't wait to spend forever together.

I'm one lucky girl, that's for sure.



That's been my life up to now! Thanks for coming and sharing it with me!
Life is beautiful <3