Monday, May 18, 2009

Change of Plans

I'm finally done with finals which means that I am officially a 3L. Whoop Whoop! 1 more year to go and I am officially out of this beast.

But.....I have exciting news. We are "eloping" and buying a house instead of having a wedding. My mom suggested we just take the money instead, couple that with the 8K tax credit for first time buyers and ta da!- buy a house. And just like that we rolled with it. HGTV has become my new favorite channel- I get why my mom watches it all the time. We've been looking at houses so far I have only found "lukewarm" like. I wont settle, and if we don't find the house we want this year then we just keep looking until we do. The good thing though is that wedding planning didn't take away all my creativity. I have came up with a million things I want to do to my house. Install hardwood floors, paint a faux-wood garage door, have a reddish brown front door, make slip covers for my huge couch, make mirrored art deco style dressers...It seems like a lot but luckily I am marrying a man who actually knows how to do stuff, and sew. Amazing! Him and his dad re-did their kitchen themselves and re-tiled the entire pool area- not just the pool. This blog may turn into that adventure.

I found a place that I want to get married at and the MR. has agreed that it would be perfect. Even my mom agrees. So where? San Fransisco City Hall! It is absolutely gorgeous and I already bought a dress- the "Julianne" from J.Crew. Plus, California allows you to get a confidential wedding license which means no one can look at it unless they have a court order. In this day of identity theft something like that is worth getting. We still plan on taking engagement pictures though so I will upload them in Novemeber or so, because that is when we are doing them. Our wedding will turn into a wedding + mini honeymoon. And then we will have a reception/graduation party/ housewarming party when my family is in town for my law school graduation--- the one that is only a year away! Whoo hooo!

As for the date, we aren't sure. There are really only 2 times of the year where it can be done- Winter or Spring Break. I'm leaning more towards Spring though just because of how pretty it is in the San Fran area.

But first we have to have the house. :)

Monday, May 4, 2009

If only I had 8 treadmills

The song "Here it Goes Again" by OK go has been a favorite of mine for a while but what really made me think of it today was because I was thinking of "first dance" songs for me and the Mr. I can dance because luckily the black side of me contributed enough to give me rhythm. The Mr. on the other hand is stereotypically white- he even claps off beat, and I really just hate dancing with him. Yes, I said hate. I love love to dance, but it becomes a chore to do it with him. I've tried working with him before but nothing ever improves so I have come to the conclusion that for our first dance we either:
a) don't do a dance which is a high high probability;
b) use someone else to dance with which is a not going to happen even though I've gotten offers because the first dance is supposed to be with me and the Mr. I may not agree with half of the wedding hoopla in the industry but that is one I subscribe to. Other dances, yes or maybe, but not the first dance; or
c) pick a song and dance that has a non-traditional way of dancing. And with that choice comes this song, this video, and this dance. I would jump at doing it in a heartbeat and I already know at least 6 people I could count on to do it with me even though all I need are 2. Plus, the Mr. agrees that it would be pretty awesome. Too bad Rock the Reception isn't on anymore because that would have been awesome to do. I wonder how I would get 8 treadmills on my own anyway, and what reception site would actually let me do it? Hmmmmm......



What type of dancing are you doing for your first?

Sunday, May 3, 2009

You're so sweet!

The Mr.: "you're starting to sound more like a lawyer everyday" (in an insulting tone)

Me: "Aww, hunny! That's the sweetest thing you've ever said to me"

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Sign, Sealed, Delivered.... I'm Yours



Long Distance relationships are hard, or so I hear. For the first 4 1/2 years of our relationship, me and the Mr. were long distance lovers. When we met he lived an hour away and we would sometimes meet in the middle and spend the day together or take turns spending the week or weekend with each other. After a year, he moved another hour further away for school and we saw each other maybe once a month. The next year, he moved back but I moved 5 hours away from him for law school and during that first year we saw each other only 3 or 4 times.

So how did we make it work? Compromise, communication and understanding.

Compromise- Everything we did during our long distance relationship was a compromise, because it needed to be. We took turns traveling to see the other, splitting up the holidays we spent with which family, and compromised on anything else that either of us felt was important.

Communication- Communication is key to any healthy and successful relationship and we always made sure that we took time out to have enough of it. We got on the same family plan for our phone (the ultimate commitment) so that we could call each other at any time and we took full advantage of it, or at least I did. I knew I could call him at any time, day or night, and just talk so it was like he was there even though we were physically apart. We talked to each other every night for maybe 3-4 hours. There was always something to talk about- news, politics, tourists, scientific theories,us,our favorite show Heroes- and it helped me get to know more about him as a person and his views on the world.

I also took to writing him letters while he was in school. Everyday I would take time out to write a letter at at the end of the week. I would decorate an envelope and mail it out. He still has all those letters and refuses to throw them out. As I read over them I realize how diverse the topics of those letters were- ranging from the ridiculous to the profound.

Understanding- We both understood that there was nothing at the time that we could do to be physically closer to one another and we also understood that we were willing to work to make this relationship succeed. Once we understood that it seems like everything else followed perfectly from that. To be honest, this relationship hasn't been real "work" because I love him so much and there is nothing hard about that.

Long distance is normal for us so when it came time for us to move in together last year I wasn't sure it would work. I've seen relationships take a turn for the worse when a couple moves in together mainly because they just don't work as roommates. Surprisingly, we are great roommates, bunk buddies, whatever you want to call it. We mesh well. He does all the cooking, I do....um, laundry? Plus, we are great parents and realize that that little boy is the most imporant person in the house.

As I get ready to graduate I'm forced with the realization that I may end up moving away from him if I get a job elsewhere. Of course, I don't want that but with the economy the way that it is and the area of law I want to practice it is a very real and plausible possibility. We have talked it over and if need be we are willing to be a long-distance married couple until the time comes for one of us to move to the other. It isn't ideal of course but in the words of Tim Gunn, we will "make it work".

To go along with my long-distance post, I thought "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's would fit as my Song of the Week.



Have you ever been at a distance from your love? How did you make it work?

Friday, May 1, 2009

Lip Venom

As I write this my lips are tingling. Do you want to know why? Of course you do.
I have been on a quest for thicker, fuller, zexy lips ever since I've realized how inadequate mine are. Thankfully, I don't have super thin lips so I have something to build on but they aren't anything special.

I've learned how to put on liner and gloss in such a way to make your pout appear fuller but I want them to be bigger without needles or surgery. I decided to try DuWop's lip venom to see if maybe, just maybe, there was something behind all the hype. I found that there wasn't much there.


Here is what DuWop says about their product: "Lip Venom is formulated with a blend of essential oils, including cinnamon, wintergreen and ginger which cause the blood to rush to the surface of the lips, flushing and swelling them slightly. It also contains jojoba and avocado oil to hydrate and leave an intense shine".

I put it on and well, nothing happened. It's supposed to give you a bee-sting look and maybe it did, I dunno. It made my lips appear bigger but it had no actual plumping effect. To be honest, I could have stuck with my lip liner and gloss combo and gotten the same effect, especially considering the $15 price tag.

Will I keep it? Yes because I like the stinging sensation and also because the Mr. likes it. He doesn't know why but I think it makes him think of sex. I say that because almost anything can make a man think of sex.

What lip plumpers have you tried?