It was such a nice weekend, I hate for it to end. Though it was cold and I have a slight cold myself, the weekend was sunny, filled with friends and food.

I had Friday off because I took my licensing test. It was hard. Most of the time I wasn't sure if I was answering them right. I started a bit early, and finished the 170-question exam within 3 hours. As a computerized exam, my score would flash on the screen within minutes of completion. However, the computer held it hostage, while it made me fill out a survey. Ack! *grumble, grumble* After taking a possible 4-hour exam, I'd like to have my score, thank you very much. I guess it makes sense to do it that way, or they'll never get any feedback from anyone. =P Ah, well. It was worth it: I passed my exam! Yayayay! The hardest part of getting my license was over. =D

After the exam, I called my family to tell them the news. I broke down in tears of relief and joy. I was so stressed out for the past couple of weeks, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I did it! The Hubby took me out to dinner to celebrate. Delicious steak and maple butter blondies a la mode. Yum!

Saturday was a continuation of the celebration - this time, with our families. We took them to Minado, a Japanese buffet restaurant. We stuffed ourselves silly, to the point that many of us felt like we needed someone to roll us out the door. The Hubby was so full, he couldn't eat for the rest of the day. >P We spent the evening vegging out, watching TFC (The Filipino Channel) or something we taped on the DVR.

Today was a mellow day. My cold didn't let up this morning, so I spent most of the day sleeping/lying down and blowing my nose. Stupid cold. At least the worst of it is happening now, rather than my exam day. That would've sucked. My cold is a little better this evening, so I was able to be productive. I did a load of laundry, straightened up the living room a bit, leisurely read, and baked some brownies.

The brownies came out pretty well. I have 4 different variations of 1 vegan brownie recipe. I made: (1) a batch with Ovaltine (more cakelike, almost has a light german chocolate cake-taste to them), (2) one with macadamia nuts and toasted coconut on top, (3) one with a melted chocolate center, and (4) one plain. I used my cupcake pans to make them the right serving sizes. I thought I'd bring some into work tomorrow as a "thank you" for their votes of confidence and for helping me out in my times of stress there. However, I did make enough for The Hubby and me to enjoy. ;P

I'm going to Europe! Woo! The Hubby and I booked our tour and airline tickets to visit London, Paris, and Rome. =D We're going with my family, so I'm super-excited! What a great way to spend the end of May Madness. =P

I'm not sure if I'll have lots of time to meet up with anyone, but if I can, I'll be in the London area between May 30 and June 1/2. I have no idea where we're staying yet, so that news will come at a later date. I'm so excited! Woo!

I did the stereotypical girl thing and went shopping with my sis today. Though my only intentions were to buy sweaters and a skillet pan, I bought a lot more. However, I found these great stuff for really cheap prices. I bought two lovely sweaters and a cami from NY&Co., brown suede ankle boots from DSW (very comfy, a rare find), my skillet, and a couple of things from VS. It was great. I got everything for under $100, thanks to additional store sale discounts and the lovely Christmas gift card The Hubby gave me.

After spending more money and time than we intended at the mall, we headed off to have dinner with her boyfriend at a Portuguese restaurant. The food was delicious. We had calamari with a spicy marinara sauce and codfish bites for starters, then charged into the seafood paella and a barbecue chicken and beef ribs combo. The seafood and the rice in the paella were cooked perfectly, and melted in your mouth. The chicken and ribs were moist and thoroughly cooked. We topped the meal off with a couple of cappuccinos and their "sawdust" dessert (a vanilla whipped cream-like pudding with crushed vanilla cookies). I slipped into a food coma shortly afterwards. =P

Luckily, the food coma did not affect my driving. I got home around 11:30, and I'm still up because The Hubby's still up. I just sent a text to my sis now to say I got home okay because I'm a spaz and forgot to do it when I get home. I did warn her. Doh.

I think the post-holiday shopping-for-me kick is almost over. Thank goodness. I don't know if my wallet can take anymore. o.o

After getting all worked up that my barbecue might not happen, the clouds broke and God blessed me with sunlight for a good part of the day.

The Hubby and I awoke early to prep everything for the split-second decision we would make about going forward with or cancelling the event. We were tired and we easily got on each others' nerves. However, our moodiness subsided when headed out to scope the picnic area. We pushed our thoughts to *BBQ-happening MOJO*, while the sunlight danced between the clouds. We talked about what we would still need to get, and who said was coming. A few times during the drive, I'd say out loud that I hoped the weather would keep, especially with the forecast calling for 30% chances of thunderstorms/showers all day. Just the worrier in me. =T

We arrived to the site, happy to see that the area wasn't as mucky as we thought it might be after lots of rain, and decided to have the barbecue. Yay! We quickly headed over to ShopRite to get some last minute barbecue items, and went home to pack and get ready. We had to be at the site at 10:30am, so we needed to hustle. We took turns getting ready and standing watch at the picnic site before our guests arrived.

( I had so much fun at the barbecue that I'm exhausted now. )

I'm happy and grateful. The Hubby was just as happy as I was that we were able to have it. I know he recognized that I needed this decompression. I think he needed it too.

I feel really good today. Tired, but content.

Wow. It's definitely been a while since I've been able to properly keep up with everyone and post in my own journal. Things just got so busy with school ending and then starting full-time at my old/new job that I am just too tired to go on after work.

So, what's up with me? Let's see. I finished the semester (YAY!), and I have about a month and a half before my summer class starts. Including the summer class, I have 3 classes left to take before graduation. Woo! I have to take a licensing exam and all that, but I'll worry about that later.

Right now, I work full-time with the kiddies, from noon to 8pm. The work's hard, but I think I'm slowly getting the hang of dealing with some of the kids who make me nervous. Aside from seeing kids' progress, the second best part of working with the kids is Activity. I get paid to play tag with the kids and run around. I think I've gotten more of a workout in the past couple of days during Activity, than the last few weeks. *L*

Things are going well with my counselor. He's been working with me on how not to be so much of a worry-wart perfectionist. After multiple sessions of continous crying, the last one was less tearful. I was able to hold myself together more, which is kind of a big feat for me. There's still a lot of work to be done, so I'm not rushing it.

At home, things are going pretty well. I've gotten a little sloppy again because of my schedule shift, but it's not terrible. The Hubby and I are going to buy the groceries for the BBQ I'm having in a week, and I'm feeling so excited! My mommy's going to make the sauce for the meat-on-a-stick we'll be grilling, and is letting us use all of their picnic supplies. I love my mom. =)

Other than this, not much else going on. I hope once I settle into my new schedule, I'll feel more energized to do other things. Have a great weekend everyone!

My fuzzy headache from days ago is still here, and now my tummy aches. I don't know if it's the stress that's making me sick, or the something I ate a few days ago. In any case, I feel like I'm going a bit stir-crazy being cooped up in here, working on my papers. I didn't get to finish the first one last night because of my headache, so I'm finishing it up now. I hope to start the second one this afternoon.

My mommy called this morning, asking me if I was free. I told her that I had an appointment on campus.
( Our conversation )
As much as I wanted to just screw the papers and take my mom to the mall, I know that my guilt for going with her would be so great that it would probably make me procrastinate more (than I already am). I wonder what my mom thought about my saying I had a counseling appointment. I'm not sure why it took me this long to tell her I was goinb, but I shouldn't worry about she thinks now. I should just focus on my paper, and getting over this headache.

It doesn't help that it's kinda crappy outside. Makes me sleepy. =?

/Lamar from Revenge of the Nerds II

I woke up in a funky mood, which lasted until early in the afternoon. ( The rest of my Sunday was relaxing and pleasant. )

We finally got home about an hour ago. The Hubby's watching The Sopranos right now, and I'll be watching some CSI soon. I can't tell whether I'm feeling tired, or restless, but I know I'm rambling now, so I think this shall be the end of the entry. Good night!

Today was even more beautiful than yesterday! It was so warm outside that I was able to wear my orange and cream sundress to the shower. I've been dying to wear something light and "dainty" (as my mom put it), all week. =) The sun made me very happy, even though I had to spend much of it indoors for Carissa's shower.

The shower went well. Many people said they had a good time and commended us, bridesmaids, for our efforts in making the shower entertaining and beautiful. I was able to see Liza and some old HS classmates, too. Carissa said she loved everything. The most entertaining part of the shower to me was that Carissa's first 10 or so gifts were all bath towels! *L* It was to the point that the guests began to lose interest in playing Shower Bingo. =P It was busy, busy all the way to the end, but it was worth it. This was the worst of it. The shower was a success, and people seemed happy.

I stopped by my parents' house for another few hours after the shower, chatting with my parents about my cousins and our visit to Canada at the end of May, and talking to my sister about recent happenings and friendships.

I'm now at home, geting ready to eat more pizza with The Hubby. I feel so tired, but not really sleepy. It's been a long day, and I'm ready to unwind now.

The rest of my weekend wasn't very exciting. Instead of catching up with phone calls, I spent the rest of my Saturday taking naps and cooking/baking, while The Hubby finished up his laundry and started packing.

I made a pork stew from a recipe I found via AllRecipes.com. It was supposed to be for dinner, but the potatoes weren't ready as quickly as the recipe stated, so we had our backup dinner: rice and dinuguan. So, while the stew bubbled in the crock pot, I baked a yellow cake and tried to perfect my recipe for honey-roasted pecans. The yellow cake came out beautifully, and The Hubby was very happy (he was craving cake since Friday). The pecans didn't fare as well. About half of them came out burnt beyond saving, but the other half survived and travelled with The Hubby. Downtime was spent watching many back episodes of Scrubs, finally catching up to Season 5.

Sunday morning we woke up early so The Hubby could finish packing. We went to Church, and then I made one of our favorite brunch meals: lox and bagels. The Hubby and I left for JC about an hour later, and he left for the airport with my FIL and MIL shortly afterwards. I miss him. *sniffle* To put off going home to an empty condo for 2 weeks, I spent a few hours at my parents'. I brought over some of the stew that finally cooked, and a portion of the cake I baked. It was nice spending time with them, talking and laughing about PI, family, and food. I stopped back at my in-laws house (up the block) to visit for about an hour, before I dropped off Marco and headed for home.

Hm. Looking back on it now, I made a lot of food this weekend. Maybe I was making sure he'd miss me and my cooking? ;-P

Tonight, I go back to my ritual of classes and internship. I think I'm supposed to meet with a classmate tonight for coffee before class, but I'm not sure. I'll have to give her a call later this afternoon.

Dinner with The Hubby's old classmates was nice. I had a big dish of pasta, which of course, I took home in a doggie bag when I couldn't finish. It was a little strange, just because these are people with whom The Hubby even felt weird about sharing good news (i.e. our marriage, him owning the condo). It's interesting to me how some people hold on to relationships, that others might see as not working past their initial usefulness. In this case, their relationship's based on working on class projects together, but it didn't really go beyond that. Strange. Heh.

Sunday started out really early at 7am. The Hubby and I went to mass, then attempted to donate blood in the school cafeteria. The Hubby was able to, but my iron count was too low. =? So, while I waited for The Hubby, I was flirted up by the blood drive snack man and munched on homemade baked goods from the Church's bake sale. The man was sweet, but it made me feel very shy about how often he would compliment me, especially since I was there for quite a while. It wasn't creepy, just weird; so, to offset my discomfort, I watched a bunch of people register for a Yu-Gi-Oh! tournament on the other side of the caf.

I was intrigued as to the number of people there, and how official it looked. The ages ranged from middle school to late high school. Once The Hubby finished donating, we took a look at some of the wares presented. On the way home, we discussed our interest in learning how to play, and then The Hubby surprised me with a starter deck for the game! Though there aren't enough cards for both of us, he figured we could share it, and figure out how to play, and slowly build it up. It was sweet that he was waiting for a special occasion to give it to me, and even sweeter that it became a random surprise. =) We're such geeks. =P

Shortly after getting home, I got ready and spent the afternoon with lizabug and Carissa, having lunch at Red Robin's and dessert at Cafe Eclectic. We talked for hours on end, and I even forgot how frustrated I'd been with some of my relationships. It was just nice to get out and do something. Some of the wedding stuff came up during conversation, which I'll probably post about later. Needless to say, quite a bit was cleared up. We talked for so long that it got really dark and snowy by the time I headed for home, though not before spending a little qt with my parents. My mommy gave me a gorgeous top, which I wouldn't normally buy myself. She's so cute, and has really good taste. Before heading for home, my papa helped me clean the snow off of my car with a broom, and stayed outside until he was sure I was driving carefully. I love my parents. =D

Driving 40mph on the Turnpike, I got home around 9:30. The Hubby and I ate a late dinner, and watched a few shows before heading off to bed.

So, that's the rest of my weekend. It was full and nice. How was yours?

My weekend's packed, so I've had little time to catch up on my f-list in the last couple of days. What I've been up to lately involves a lot of food and cleaning. I've also been very happy and motivated, so I ended up doing stuff not on the comp. I'm proud to say that I cleaned 3 different rooms in the condo, from top to bottom, and cooked a huge meal with my sister, to serve The Hubby, sister's boy, my bro, sis, and me. We had lots of leftovers ^.^

The sibs and my sister's boy came over last night, and we had a huge Japanese and Mexican themed meal. My bro's girl couldn't make it, so we made sure she had a sampler dish. What my sis cooked on the menu: Mexican-seasoned steak, and lime-infused shark steak. She also brought some homeade truffles she made, with the most popular one being the chipotle-coconut truffle. Yum. I prepared kani sushi (I also tried to do a crispy kani, but it wasn't too crispy), tempura broccoli, sauteed mushrooms, and Grilled Salmon Kyoto. At the end, everyone was pleasantly full. While fighting Teh Itis, we watched Las Vegas and 1 Vs. 100. My sis helped me clean up, and then headed home.

Today was work, which wasn't too exciting. Instead of our scheduled trip to the Y's Open Gym, we brought our kids to a Chinese buffet place for the activity. I'm still feeling full. =P I'm hoping I'll be hungry in an hour because The Hubby and I are meeting up with a few of his grad school classmates for dinner. We're heading to Carabba's, which is an Italian food place. I'm in the mood for Italian. =)

Tomorrow will be QT with lizabug and Carissa. I haven't gotten in touch with Carissa, so I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow. I'm also planning to donate blood after Church. Yeah. Busy, food-filled weekend.

I planned to put up some pics, but I haven't painted the bedroom samples yet. I also haven't figured out which PI pics to post, so that's still pending.

I hope you all are having a nice weekend.
 

I had a quiet weekend.

I went to work yesterday. There were 5 of us on staff, and 7 kids. o.0 We used to have an average of 12-18 when I started Saturdays. =? We took the kids to see Night at the Museum. While I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, it's not one I would buy when it comes out on dvd. The day went without drama. The kids were really good. In fact, they were so good, we bought them treats at the movies. =)

When I came home, The Hubby and I ordered Baja Fresh and caught up on Monk, ER, and Law & Order. I passed out around 9pm, practically sleeping all the way through.

Today, The Hubby and I went to Church, bought breakfast at Panera, then went to JC to visit our families. The Hubby did a lot of tech support for both of our families, and they fed us in return.

While at my parents', The Hubby had to ask my father something, and to get his attention, he called him "Dad". Marco and I looked at each other with wide-eyes and started to giggle. I think it was the first time he called my dad that since we got married over a year ago. 0.0 When I went over to my dad, he even chuckled, though asked me to stifle my giggles so as not to embarrass The Hubby. He's so cute. =P

Both my mommy and Marco loved the gifties The Hubby and I gave to them! Yay!

For Marco, I made swedish meatballs almost completely from scratch, and I gave him the beanie hat that I posted about a while ago. He was extremely happy. =) My mom asked him about how he was going to put the hat on his head, since he currently has a 6-inch-tall faux hawk going on. He said the hat will help when he shaves his head (soon). It'll keep his head warm. =D So, after his marveling over his gifts, I told Mommy about hers.

I hugged my mommy and told her that her gift from The Hubby and me would be that I would take her out to wherever she wanted to go. I said that I would pick her up, drive her to anywhere she wanted to go, like take her out shopping,  and take her to lunch. Before I said it, I wasn't sure if she would go for that idea because I had no tangible gift to present, such as a card explaining her gift. However, as I started to explain the gift, her eyes grew as big as saucers and a silly grin spread across her face. She looked like a little kid in a candy store. Immediately she said, "Oh, not this month." I told her it can be whenever--she just has to let me know ahead of time. She looked so happy, and I'm sure it was as much of a gift for my dad as for my mom (it's one less shopping trip on which he has to take her). =)

W00t! So happy they liked their gifts! Two down, about half a dozen more to go.

W00t! It's Friday! So many good things happening today!

With the exception of waking up late, I have a feeling that today will be the start of a really good weekend.

I get to spend some time with Cris today, and she even called me to ask me if I wanted buttermilk pancakes! My sister's the best! She'll probably be the reason why I'll gain back all the weight I had in college. *L* Afterwards, I'm going bridesmaid dress shopping with a friend for my best friend's wedding. She was so kind to offer to come with me, even though the other girls are going on Saturday (when I have work). She's such a sweetheart. =) Then, later on tonight, The Hubby comes home! Woo! I made him turkey swedish meatballs and saved some honey roasted pecans for dessert. =P

On Saturday, there's work, but then I get to relax at home with The Hubby. Relaxing is something we haven't really been able to do since before our trip to PI. Then Sunday and Monday will be spent having QT with lizabug, my best friend, and her friend.

There are a few more things I have to take care of before I leave for JC and meet Cris. I hope I can finish in the next half-hour, so Cris won't have to wait so long to eat the pancakes. =P

Can you tell I'm hungry? Hee!

I do so love the holidays. I'm happy that my paper's finally done; and now, I must focus on all the stuff I need to do before I leave for PI tomorrow night.

On today's agenda:

• laundry
• packing
• baking
• packing
• more laundry
• shopping for last minute gifts
• packing
• cleaning
• Oh, did I mention packing? *L*
  

The Hubby's at work today and tomorrow, so all the packing's left to me. 16 days worth of clothing for 2 people, crammed into one suitcase. "Aren't you allowed 2 suitcases per person?" you ask. The answer is "yes", however, because it's a PI trip, it's mandatory that at least half of the luggage one brings are devoted to gifts for the fam. I think I've got my outfits all planned out, so I can start packing them straight away. I think once this is done, I'll be more relaxed.

I also have to wrap/make some last minute gifts for family/friends staying behind. I hope I'll be able to get them done in time to mail them out tomorrow. Not sure about holiday cards/ecards. =? That'll be last on my list of things to do.

Oops. Look at the time. I need to get myself to the stores for those PI gifts.

Thanksgiving dinner went well. The in-laws came over to my parents', minus The Hubby's lola (grandma). With the huge spread, you'd think we had more people in attendance than the 9 of us. *L* Everyone seemed to have had a good time. While the "kids" sat in the living room, stuffing our faces, watching CSI, taking photos, and fighting off teh_Itis, the adults chatted it up in the dining room.

There was so much left over, it took Cris and me almost 2 hours to wrap stuff up--this was all after my in-laws took a good chunk home. While The Hubby and Marco slept, I took care of the dishes, and Cris and my dad took care of the rest of the cleanup. Cris had so much leftovers wrapped up, my mom joked that she looked like she just placed an order at the local Filipino restaurant. =P

We finally got home around 2am and passed out.

Since we refuse to go out on Black Friday, we spent the entire day trying to make a dent in the leftovers, catching up on our shows, making fun of each other, and playing computer games. Teh_Itis is gone. =)

Oh, and since I didn't post yesterday, here's my list of 7 Things I'm Grateful For:

1. My family
2. My friends
3. My health/life
4. Good people
5. The ability to make choices
6. Silly moments
7. A little despair, to help me recognize when the really great things happen and to keep my eyes opened to helping others

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for all those on my f-list. In one way or another, each of you have affected my life, helping me to become a better person. =) /warm fuzzies

I'm super-excited to prep things for Thanksgiving. We've finally figured out that Cris and I will do the cooking, and the shindig will be held at my in-laws house. I've already prepped the spinach veggie dip, and I'm going to make a few more things:

• baked mac'n'cheese
• rosemary garlic mashed potatoes and yams
• sauteed corn
• steamed veggies (maybe cheese sauce on the side?)
• vegan, diabetic-friendly brownies (for a friend's bday on Sunday)

I'm so hungry right now. I hope The Hubby finishes whatever he's doing so we can eat. I made corn bread stuffing (with the help of Stove Top) to go with the veggie chili I made last week. I need some comfort food. It's cold here!

Heh. This song's been stuck in my head for a couple of days. =P

The Hubby awoke me with the news that we won $500 from the mega millions lottery ticket he bought. 0.0 Woo! I was shocked and happy. It'll help with all the upcoming expenses of the holidays and PI.

My MIL told The Hubby that she's working on Thanksgiving, so they want us to their place when she gets home. This will take off some of the heat I've been getting from my family about having Thanksgiving at our place, despite my stance that it's not ready for such an occasion. Not sure how my family will take it. =? 

I got an email from Best Buy, offering online discounts for digital cameras and accessories for up to 20%. Because of this, The Hubby said we can order our new camera by the end of the week! Yay!