Friday's letters :)

Hey everyone! Today I am linking up for Friday's letters with Ashley! 

Dear Husband, You are my superman. Thank you for helping me get ready for training, for taking 2 days off this week to get paperwork finished and for helping me buy new furniture for our first HOUSE together! Dear Valor, you are a lot of work and I love it. Thank you for being the cutest puppy at the dog park!

{{She's getting closer and closer to swimming...}}

Dear Ziggy, you are lazy and I love it! Thank you for being my guard dog when strange people walk in front of our door.

{{Outdoor plates that I want to get at West Elm...Ziggy surfing..how perfect!}}

Dear military training, I am nervous/excited to see what you have in store for me in a week. I know there will be yelling and exhaustion but I am most excited for who I will become during this process- ready for the next adventure!

{{11 days!}}

Dear Husband, (he gets two) lets have an awesome weekend this weekend! I'm thinking....breakfast, day dates, afternoon date, movie date, more breakfast and church...hmmm sounds wonderful to me!

{{My man on our lunch date to Potbelly}}

Dear Readers, you are all amazing and inspirational. Thank you for support and humor and cute blogs! I hope you all challenge yourself in the next week to do something you wouldn't typically do- once you get outside your comfort zone its amazing to see how God uses you, molds you and prepares you for amazing accomplishments!


Have a blessed day! :) 

Re-cap

 

{{Peace out UT. I have my master's degree!}}

{{love my church.}}

This weekend was EXHAUSTING. Saturday my hubs and I spent a good chunk of our day at West Elm (ever been there? If not, you really should go- I love that store). As you know, I fell in LOVE with the Royal Blue bedding over here. So much so that we went straight to West Elm to buy it and of course, they don't carry that color in stores..c'mon! I really don't like buying things online because sometimes the colors are off...etc. So, we had to figure out plan B. My husband, the resourceful man that he is, disappeared, left me all alone and LOST in the middle of the bedding department (remember my lack of decorating skills? yea..I was intimidated to say the least..especially with only 3 bedding options on display psh!) To save the day, my hubby showed up 10 minutes later with an interior decorator (TA DA!). She was asking us things like..what colors do you like, what color is your new bed (which we haven't bought yet)- to which I answered "I don't know...." over and over and over again. Seriously lady, as long as it looks put together and "pretty" I will love it. So, hubby found a grey duvet cover he liked and I still wanted blue so we stuck with that. Long story short: I can't wait to see what the room ends up looking like when I (finally) arrive at our new house. Hubby has 1 whole month to move us in and make it look good while I am at training...I will definitely post up a virtual tour of our new house in 6 weeks!

Next...Valor graduated puppy training. She is a champ. We are proud parents.

{{She didn't like her graduation swag.}}

{{Graduate!}}

Today...was my last day of work. I love my job now, I have learned so much and I love going to work every day! Tomorrow they are throwing a bagel party for me in the morning for a final farewell before I leave for duty!

Tomorrow...the 2 week countdown begins. I will have 2 weeks left with life in Texas and will be leaving on a jet plane for training and then moving into our new home! I am so excited/nervous! These next two weeks are going to be full of naps, relaxation, running, shopping, and packing (not really excited about the packing part...)!

{{My countdown on my phone. I love this verse.}}

Some words of wisdom that were delivered at the perfect time (like always- thank you, Pastor Joel): RUN YOUR RACE! You have God's approval, you don't need anyone else's! 

If God calls me, He will take care of me! 

Pinterest inspiration.

Today we are starting to check things off our "to-do" list before I leave for training and hubby moves into our new house. Last night- we had 8-9 inches of rain in H-Town..I loved hearing it and am glad we were inside!

Pinterest is definitly saving me on this whole decorating a new house thing. I am not a girl all about fashion or decorating..sometimes I think it would be nice, but that just wasn't incorporated into my DNA. Instead, I am a sporty, tough, adventurous person..hey, why else would I be in my career?! One of the best perks: a uniform. Yes, i just said that. No worrying about looking "cute" for meetings..I will put my uniform on with PRIDE and do my job like a BOSS. :)  Side note: when I go to shop for an outfit- I have to find it online..walk into the store with it on my iPad or printed out..ask the personal shopper to find it for me, and then I get it! haha Like I said...not in my DNA.

Anyways..back to Pinterest. I have been looking at crafts for our house and decorating inspiration..and I am excited to say- I have found what I wanted. Take a look!

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{{Our living room. Well..sorda. We are going to get 2 of the couches, 1 chase, 1 chair, a large coffee table, we already have a bench so we will be getting decorations like that. I want a clean, cozy living room. Best part about the couches: when I am bored of the white or the dogs get it too dirty, we can buy covers and give it a whole new look!}}

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{{Master Bedroom. Love the Air Force blue.}}

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{{I'm an epidemiologist. Gotta make this.}}

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{{This will be my first crafting project. I want to put this in the living room. I absolutely love it!}}

So, what do you think?!?

Have a blessed day today! Enjoy the weekend! 

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{{Well said.}}

Overdue Report of the OC, CA Trip

WARNING: WAY TOO MANY PHOTOS IN THIS POST. 

A few weeks ago I took my friend Ro to Orange County, CA- my hometown. Before we left for CA, I explained to Ro that there were only a handful of things that we back in this great city. 1) Eat. 2) Go to the beach. 3) Run. 4) Disneyland. 5) Sleep.  So..we did just that ((except for Disneyland..been there, done that many season passes ago.))

Day 1: After landing, we met up with my Dad and went to Bear Flag Fish Co. in Newport Beach to have some good 'ol California fish tacos {{I will only eat these when I am back home- I am biased..what can I say!}} I love this restaurant. You walk in and its like a fish market- you pick out whatever fish you want in your tacos and they cut a slab off from a large piece in the butcher block and grill it right there for ya.

{{Ro's Ahi Poke Salad}}

{{We had tacos ranging from Halibut, Ahi, and Salmon}}

Then..it was off to Balboa Island to have one of my favorite treats- Chocolate Covered Banana with rainbow sprinkles. :)

{{Ro's first time!}}

{{Showing her where I would wake up every morning bright and early and row!}}

We met up with my good friend Danielle and headed to the Angels game!

With a 2 hour time change...we were ZONKED and ready for sleep!

Day 2: Instead of disneyland, we went to Temecula and went wine tasting! It was so fun and I love my friends!

{{First stop. Wilson Creek.}}

{{Their famous Almond Champagne.}}

{{Me & Ro}}

{{Off to Ponte.}}

{{In the barrel room!}}

{{South Coast Winery}}

{{D & L At Thorton Winery- being random. Check out the view!}}

{{Love.my.friends.}}

Day 3: Started off with breakfast at my FAVORITE breakfast spot of all time- The Beachcomber. I ordered my ultimate FAVORITE- coconut macadamia nut pancakes :) Ro had lemon blueberry ricotta pancakes. Then, I took Ro to my old hangout- Huntington Beach and then my dad met up with us and we went to the place that stuffed my belly 7 days a week every summer until I went to college- Pedros Tacos! Oh, how I missed you rolled tacos with guacamole and fried chicken tacos. Then, my dad and I showed her one of our favorite hang outs- the scoop deck at the Dana Point Harbor!  Too bad the weather was gloomy! The day ended with a BBQ at my in-laws with my parents, family and friends :) 

{{View from our table at breakfast.}}

{{After breakfast.}}

{{Pedros.}}

{{HB Pier.}}

{{Dana Point}}

Day 4: Breakfast with my father-in-law at the Portola Coffee Lab. Seriously, if you're in OC, go check this place out. As a science NERD, I loved it. They wear lab coats, use titration techniques, siphons, etc. The coffee is SO good! Then we headed to Kristina & my brother's baby shower which was very cute! The night ended with dinner by the bay at Villa Nova. 

{{We saw the google maps car on the freeway!}}

The trip to CA was great. Isn't it so true that God puts you where He needs you for a specific season in your life? I was thinking back and wondering why I dont really miss where I spent over 20 years of my life. The answer: I see the purpose God has given me ever since I moved and I know that His plans are greater than anything I could ever imagine. He allowed me to spend years in CA for many reasons and when those reasons came to realization, it was time for me to go somewhere else. Now that my time in TX is ending, I look back on these years and am overwhelmed with how great our God is! Keep holding onto Him, keep your eye on the prize and keep on keepin' on! God has you exactly where He needs you and He has given you all the tools you need to make His plan become known! Never give up, never give in, and never forget why you are here. You are amazing, God has given you so many talents and He wants you to use every ounce of that talent. 

Have a blessed night! I have TONS of photos to share about my parents (last) trip to Texas and will put those up sometime in the next week!

{{Plane boredom. Yes, those are pipe cleaner snails.}}

Today, I add an MPH to the end of my signature.

Today- I graduate with my Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology. HECK YES! I will post pics up after my parents leave this weekend. I am so thankful for God giving me the ability to attend graduate school, the experiences I have encountered, the people I have learned from and the relationships I have built. I cannot wait for the next chapter in my life (that begins in T-23 days). The University of Texas- it's been real, but it is time to say hasta la vista!

I am 110% certain that this graduation ceremony is going to be full of my loud, awesome family & friend Ro (my honorary guest! haha ) cheering louder than anyone out there.

Have a blessed Saturday. Enjoy God's beautiful creations. Be nice to everyone you meet. Make someones day- give 'em a smile :)

{{No but really..^thats ^ what I get to do in my career :) }}

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{{Graduation day cup of "Texas Joe Coffee Co. Texas Pecan flavor. Yummy.}}

{{In my Longhorns mug.}}

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Wonderful Wednesday

 Today was a wonderful Wednesday. Slept in (all the way until 0630!), went to work, oh you know..ran a few miles in the 95 degree Texas heat humidity, made my monthly stop at Godiva for my free piece of chocolate, taste tested at Whole Foods (which included watching my plastic spoon completely shrivel up and die in my soup due to the intense HEAT), and now I am waiting for dinner to be finished & patrolling the dogs to make sure Valor doesn't swoop in on Ziggy's meal. I don't even want to think about the adventures I am going to miss out on sans my friend, Ro! At least our new house isn't that far away!

{{Took this right after I finished my run- yikes}}

{{Hazelnut praline: taste like nutella in a ball. Loved it.}}

{{Smooth coconut: tastes like an inside-out macaroon. Sounds better than it tastes.}}

Ever stop and look back at your days and think "wow I am blessed!"Blessed to be surrounded by wonderful friends, amazing family, an awesome spouse, yummy food, hilarious moments, etc. You, my friend, are indeed blessed beyond imagine. Soak up the time you have with every person in your life- you never know when you will no longer have the chance to cherish said moments.

Well...time to get dinner finished (High protein bow pasta, meat sauce[from scratch- booya], whole foods garlic chiabata bread [with a side of olive oil & balsamic] and a spinach salad), clean our entire place because my parents are flying into town tomorrow, and then end the night by watching "We Bought A Zoo".

I am pretty excited about tonight, if you can't tell.

We will be taking my parents to many AWESOME restaurants during the next 6 days and I can't wait to share our adventures! Our Friday afternoon even includes a China Town trip- woohoo!

Have a blessed evening everyone!

Sometimes & Always

Sometimes: I say NO SWEETS for a day.

Always: I cave...ALWAYS!

{{Today's fail...TCBY White Chocolate Mousse with sprinkles..with 2 of my wonderful friends. We are so exciting and get the same.exact.thing.}}

Sometimes: I show up at the gym not wanting to do anything and feeling SO tired.

Always: I surprise myself. Like today- hit another Tabata Personal Record of 436!

Sometimes: Speaking of the gym...sometimes I feel like I want to roll over and sleep in the middle of the gym floor.

Always: I put a smile on and am excited about my accomplishments! Side note: someone TOTALLY made my morning today. I had just finished my training and was exhausted beyond belief. I was walking back to the other side of the gym and this older man (who is also a regular at the gym) says "Do you ever do a workout that is just way too hard where it makes it impossible to smile?!?!" I reply..."The smile always makes it feel better!" It was so awesome to see that he noticed it.

Sometimes: I realize how much I am going to miss my GA job on the clinical trial.

Always: I am moving onto bigger and better things and God puts me places for a specific reason and He is ready to show me His greatness in another state!

Sometimes: I dread going to the dog park because I know its going to be a muddy mess.

Always: It is so much fun to see our dogs running around chasing birds, chasing dogs, slapping water, jumping in the lake, and burrowing toys.

{{Ziggy being the "police dog" at the dog park and inspecting every dog before they walked past him.}}

{{Valor. Being a typical puppy. swimming. biting water. burying other dogs toys (exhibit A on the right)}}

Sometimes: People talk about how they get so bored with life or days or work or school or anything. 

Always: We were blessed with these days. We did not earn any of these moments. Life truly is short and we need to live it full of love and respect. Even if you feel that you are doing the same thing over and over and over again and are so bored with it- find something about it..just one tiny piece..that makes it more interesting and focus on that. People get so carried away with being bored or complaining that they forget how extremely blessed they are. We get to go to work. We get to have a schedule. We get to be alive. and we get to show the world that we are someone worth fighting for. I encourage you to stop being bored with anything and constantly see excitement in everything. God is always blessing you and He is always looking down on you and ready to help you!