Hahaha. I got sucked into Facebook, and now I've forgotten to writer longer entries. =P Lots of stuff happened, since last I posted. There were/are a lot of changes going on--some good, some not so easy to deal with--but I am hopeful that it's all happening for a better-quality-of-life outcome. Let's see....The best parts of what's happened recently are: I celebrated another birthday, survived May Madness, enjoyed ComicCon '09, and savored the mild summer weather. All tons of fun and filled with happy memories with friends and family.

Yesterday, The Hubby and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary: fruits and flowers. He bought me a beautiful purple-colored bouquet and an apple-walnut pie. Mmmmm. In return, I baked him dark-chocolate raspberry chip cookies. It has the fruit flavor and *flour*. Hahaha. Yeah, I'm a dork. He didn't think it was funny, but I did. ^.^ We took today and Monday off, to give ourselves a mini vacation. Our plans involve movies, food (of course), and sleeping in. I can't believe it's been 4 years already. It's been great, rough, crazy, and funny. I am grateful that I have him in my life. I don't know what I would do without him and my family around me.

While I sit here in my living room trying to clear out old emails and crap I don't need, I realize that I haven't posted in forever. 0.o It's a good thing I've decided to discontinue my paid membership when it expires in June. I've been wasting money. Heh.

Well then, since I don't have any idea on how to use Twitter, or a data plan for my cell to utilize it, here's an update the old-fashioned way:

• The Hubby and I are still going strong. Though we still drive each other bonkers sometimes with the socialization aspect (or his lackthereof), it's nice to know that he's there when it really counts (not hiding from my family anymore).
• I like the work that I do, and the people with whom I work, but I'm beginning to dislike my job. I'm stressing out about not being "on-top" of all of my paperwork, which used to be my forte. The necessary "chaos" of the job is really getting to me, keeping me from doing this. It's not helpful either when my boss is hardly around to give me guidance on how to manage all of this. =? I would look for another job, but there are still some factors keeping me there right now. Besides, the stressors aren't painful enough for me to definitely leave yet.
• Because of the stressors at work, I've been craving a vacation. The Hubby and I are planning to pick up his grandmother in LA in a couple of months, and since I've never been, I'm really excited. We're also planning to go back to Vegas and the Comic-Con in July. I can't wait!
• I miss my family a lot. My sis is away at Tracker School, and my bro's out a lot. The Hubby and I had a nice impromptu lunch with my parents yesterday, but I have the feeling that they wished we came over more often. I think I'm definitely going to make more of an effort to do that.
• Tim and I are motivated to do another renovation in the house. We've purged quite a few things again, and are looking for some new furniture for the living room. I'm hoping we'll be more successful this year in doing a proper spring cleaning. Maybe we'll actually paint the bedroom this year. Lol.
• In efforts to better ourselves, I ditched my old gym, and we joined a local gym, right around the corner from our place. The goal is to go there at least 3x's a week, if not more. I think as long as I go straight from work to the gym, I'll be okay. This week will be our first time. I'm looking forward to it. I need to de-stress myself.
• I've been cooking and baking a lot. Muffins (tried a low-fat one, I might keep it), pizza, lasagna, soups, stews...You name it, I might've made it or tried tweaking it. I want to bake more muffins, but The Hubby's afraid it's all going to his butt. =0P
• I'm hanging out more with friends and coworkers, which makes me happy. I'm also trying to make more of an effort to socialize, too.

Wow. I had a lot more to say than I thought. I hope the weather forecast holds true for tonight/tomorrow. I really would love a snow day. I'm burnt.

It seems like I never have any time to post entries or in any forums anymore. I blame work and the fact that I'm too lazy tired to go online anymore. Well, I can't really blame it all on work. I guess I've just delved into other things.

May is always busy with birthdays and such, so I'm always MIA then. We celebrated birthday after birthday, in addition to my commencement exercises and a cousin's beach wedding. All very lovely, but my wallet's tired. =P

At the end of last month, I also went on my Europe vacation with The Hubby and my fam. It was great! We went to London, Paris, and Rome, going everywhere. While in Paris, I put my minimal french-speaking skills to use. I think my French teachers would've been somewhat proud. =D Hear are some teaser pictures:


Platform 9 3/4 | Eiffel Tower | Trevi Fountain

More on the trip and some more pics to come.

Workwise, a couple of good news tidbits. My licensing application was reviewed last month, and I was approved. Yay! I sent them my licensing fee last week. Hopefully, I get my license in the next month or so. I'm finally seeing a light at the end of a long tunnel. Moreover, I've been interviewing inter-agency for other positions. There's another position in which I'm interested, but not as much as this other one. The supervisor already offered me the position, without me having to interview! That part was awesome, but I'm still waiting to hear from the other. After some initial trepidations about driving everywhere for work, I'm really hoping I get this one position. It sounds like the kind of experience I need to really push me into the height of my potential.

It's really gorgeous outside: sunny with a nice, cool breeze. I think I may enjoy a bit of reading outside before picking up The Hubby for lunch.

This past week's been mostly good. I'm feeling okay about work again, probably because I don't feel like I'm stuck anymore. May Madness isn't too bad, thus far. I think I need a little non-work-related madness to keep me balanced. I know work's been consuming all of my time, and posts, for months now.

The Board finally called me to tell me they got my application and that everything's complete. Woohoo! I'm on "The List" for application review at the end of this month. Now all that's left are the fingerprinting, background check, and more waiting.

There's a position opening up in another dept at work, in which I'm somewhat interested. It sounds like a great opportunity to expand my repetoire to more than just group programming, but I'm hesitant about the driving and all-day fieldwork. However, I will still submit my resume to the program supervisor tomorrow. I'll keep my options open to going elsewhere, perhaps closer to home with less fieldwork responsibilities. We'll see.

We celebrated the BIL's birthday and Mother's Day without too much craziness. Moreover, our family's getting ready for our big Europe trip at the end of the month. I wish it were here already - I need a vacation.

Lately, it feels like there hasn't been much in my life worth posting. I know a few things have happened, but I can't seem to remember anything. =?

Work's okay. I'm pushing myself more and more to move out of my comfort zone. I'm taking more initiative to handle the kids who really push my buttons. Though I'm not always successful (in my mind), I haven't broken any of them. Heh. Always a good thing. State reviewers are coming next month to look at our program, so we're all pretty high strung about that.

I finally received my diploma in the mail. Officially a Masters graduate. =) I scheduled my license exam for next Friday as well, which makes me feel really worried. I keep telling myself it'll be fine and I'll pass, but I hate taking tests. Going to the gym would relieve some of my anxiety, if I wasn't still fatigued from a slight case of the flu earlier this week. *sigh* I just have to keep reviewing. I know what I'll be doing this weekend.

I think I'll be a bundle of raw nerves until I take it next Friday. I hope the time I'll spend studying this weekend will help alleviate some of this stress. I think it'll do me some good to run around with the kids today, too.

Though I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, I still have a few things to finish. My presentation tomorrow has my tummy in knots, but I know I'll be fine. I give my final presentation tomorrow morning, and then one more policy analysis paper is due next week. I'm so excited, I can taste it. There were even times I had to resist the urge to squeal with joy. =P

Just checking in to let you know that I'm doing okay. I'm just busy with tasks and anxious to finish everything by this weekend.

It's dreary outside, but I'm happy it's almost the weekend. Here's a few updates:

• I finalized my new schedule with my supervisor. I drop my extra morning hours next week, and I go 80% the following week through to Christmas week.
  
• The prof who seemingly picks on me told me yesterday that I'm "doing much better" now. Ya mean I wasn't before? 0.o  *scratches head*
• It's dreary outside. Today should be a stay-inside-and-sleep-'cause-it's-raining day.
  
• Oppositional people still get me really, really anxious. Luckily, I have great coworkers helping me learn to deal with them more appropriately.
• I can focus my efforts this weekend on cookies and truffles. Yay!
• I'm feeling really motivated, and I think I'm going to try to start some research this weekend for my paper due at the end of the month.
• I'm feeling much better. Thanks for the support.

Lots of stuff have been happening, and I'm glad I have today to just relax at home. There's some good, some wacky, and some lessons learned. So, here are some bullets of my musings:

• I spent some time with friends I haven't seen in months or even years. It was a nice and fun dinner, and I hope we do it again.
  
• I don't know how nurses/doctors do it: 12 hour work days are so exhausting! I've just about passed out by 9 o'clock every evening for the past week.
• It is very unlikely that human bites can result in a transfer of HIV, Hep B/C, or AIDS, (which I knew); however, they do warrant a Tetanus shot "just in case" because of minor skin breakage.
• Tetanus shots hurt, with an annoying "I fell asleep on my arm and now it has a dull ache" kind of feeling.
• I went on a shopping binge at Old Navy and Kohl's. I got a few henleys, polos, shrugs, and khakis, all for about 15-50% off. I ♥ sales. =)
  
• I'm in a baking mood. I can't wait until it's closer to The Hubby's birthday, just so I can bake him cookies.
• Carissa and I baked peanut butter chip double chocolate cookies last weekend, and I couldn't figure out why it tasted gross to me. Then I made the connection: unsalted butter does not compare to salted butter. She had unsalted, and we already sent her hubby out in the humid weather to get vanilla. Ah well. At least I know for me, *whispers* and I didn't take any myself. =P
• Kashi's having a Free Snack Event. I'm getting a free chocolate cookie from them. =P I also tried their dark chocolate chip and cherry granola bar. Yum!
• I don't think I want twins anymore.
• Pickle chips--not pickle-flavored potato chips--are delicious with a mayo dressing.
  
• I can't believe it's already halfway through September. I think I might actually make these 12-hour days work for me for the end of the sem.
• I found out "escucha" means "listen". And all this time I thought it was blackbirdshaq's play on words. *L*
• Pan's Labyrinth was a great movie.
• I talk a lot about food.

All in all, it was a pretty busy week. This weekend made up for more than enough for all the wackiness in the beginning of the week, and I'm pretty content right now.

Just busy. I definitely miss finding out what's going on with everyone, and posting my thoughts. Lots of stuff have been going on, both good and "gah?", and I really haven't had the time to sit down at my comp to just talk about them. However, with the end of my summer class looming near (this Wednesday), I foresee a proper update within the next week or so.

In the meantime, I'll end with this quote:
"There's nothing like a deadline to prompt action." -Anonymous

My first day off when it's supposed to be. Wheeeeeeee!

So far:
- Slept in
- Went to appointment
- Went shopping
- Ate 1 too many pizza slices (though they were both yummy!)
- Did some crafting.

Yet to come:
- More crafting
- Finally set up a spreadsheet of pictures we want ordered from our wedding photographer (it only took us about 2 years to do it)
- Drop off food for in-laws' BBQ this Saturday
- Out with Liza
- Come home to cuddle with The Hubby
- Pass out from exhaustion.

These days haven't been too bad for me. I still have my ups and downs, but I'm handling things better now. I've yet to put up pics of my travels/gifts. Not sure when that will happen. Maybe in December, when I'm all cooped up. *L*

Have a great S.H.I.T. day! Wear plenty of sunblock! =)

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!

The weather's been really cold, so much so that I'm still wearing my winter coats. Very weird. =?

Anyway, I wanted to say "thank you" to those who commented in my last post. I read them, and have yet to respond. The vote of confidence really helps me feel less self-conscious. My Anniebananie, I still have to call you. It'll happen...eventually. =P

Today was a quiet day. I went through the second round of evaluation at my internship. Unlike my first round last sem, I was able to hold myself together more successfully with the criticism. Still a work in progress, but I felt pretty good about how I performed. My super thought so, too. I really feel a sense of peace beginning to form around my life. It feels great. =)

I went to the mall after my internship to find a matching cami for the top my mom gave me, and to find a pressie for my mommy's birthday on Monday. SUCCESS! I found both. =D My mom's pressie is a pink pearl and crystal bracelet with a silver engraved heart from Things Remembered. I think she'll like it. It's shiny. What else does she need? *L* TimThe Hubby saw it. He thinks she'll like it, too. Right now, he's looking over finances and cracking his fingers on his head. Such a weirdo. =P It's funny to look at, though.

Okie dokie. I think it's time I get ready for bed. The Hubby and I have to get up early to take the car in for 90,000 mile checkup. Night, all!

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.

Not that I'm complaining. I like having sunlight when I get out of work. It's less depressing. =) It's just weird to have that kind of sunlight before Spring officially begins next week. =P

Anyway, I'm here. I've just been very busy with different things. I'm still trying to catch up on my f-lists, too. Though I'm not really commenting, I am reading everyone's posts. Anything pressing that I must know now??

I've had a pretty good weekend. I didn't do much in terms of going out or anything, but I got a lot of housekeeping done--both mentally and physically. I've been doing a lot of housecleaning: laundry, dishes, garbage, etc, which has improved my mood somewhat. The space is changing, and thus my mood has, too. I've been feeling so much more motivated since last week, and this has made me happy. Resuming the A.M. yoga helps a lot, too. =P

Also, when I'm not posting about my life here, I'm writing my thoughts and feelings in my journal at home. I think the extra care to write before bed has quelled my sleepless nights. =) Things are looking up, and I want to make sure they stay that way. So, to aid in that, I finally set up an appointment with the counselor at school, instead of playing email tag with him.

For the first time in weeks, I'm feeling really happy and content with my life. =D

For the past week and a half, I've been trying like mad to do a series of "ups": catch up, clean up, make/fix up, and call up. I'm almost done!

♥ Much to my pleasant surprise, I've caught up with my f-list. Woo!

♥ Yesterday, I talked to my friend, who was sent on an Army tour to Iraq. He's doing fine, and I'm jealous he's going to Japan for 2 weeks. =P

♥ I talked to another friend with whom I haven't spoken in over a year.

♥ 5 loads of laundry, washed and folded!

♥ The Hubby and I bought some holiday gifts for some people, and I have a couple to make this week.

♥ The condo is almost back to "normal", with all the souvenir stuff put away.

♥ I did a lot of MoH stuff for my best friend's wedding.

♥ Update about PI, with pics, will be coming by the end of the week.

♥ I have a possible new client at my internship! *keeps fingers crossed*

How was your weekend?

I've spent the past 2 weeks reconnecting with real life, something I really needed. I've spent less time on the comp (thanks for the vote of confidence annie__hall), and was able to get in a lot of bonding time with my friends and family.

I've been working on my rendition of the Boston Semi-meet and the 4th of July weekend, but it's not quite ready. Hopefully I'll get it done by tomorrow, with some of my own pics added into it.

I also plan to give a more proper update of what I've been up to since I went into hiding, but I'm feeling a bit woozy now and my tummy aches. I think I'm going to lie down now.
I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend.

Night, everyone.

*falls asleep snoring*