One more day 'til FLORIDA!!!!

Back in November...



We're almost on our way...

I can't wait! I so NEED this! I am about halfway done with my homework (which is due tomorrow) so I'll have it mailed out before I go =)

I made my packing list...and have a pile ready to go through tonight to finish up. I am trying to cram everything into 2 carry-ons! I don't want to lose any luggage (hopefully no one else will lose any this trip!)

This week has been...busy...but I've been taking it easy because I know I'm going to be away this weekend. I've been to the gym Sunday, Monday and Tuesday...so I'm feeling good. I lost a couple more pounds so I am feeling good =) I need to get off a couple more...the wedding is coming up and I NEED to fit into my bridesmaid dress.

BTW...did I show it to you?



Here are the shoes...



Nice, huh?

I've got the shoes and they look HOT!

Anyway...back to work...FLORIDA is a mere 32 hours away!

YEAH BABY!!!!!!

I'll have to give you the Birka update when I get back (or later if I get a chance)...

My Persona name...

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Venerable Lady Li the Mad of Yockenthwait Walden Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

From Laura & Heather's blogs

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Her Noble Excellency Gina the Euphonious of Colquhoun St Cahoon Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

TGIF!

I swear this has been the longest week EVER! I've been crazed at work (I've got 4 people out) so I've been working late and responding to incidents in the field (which is great when it's nice out and SUCKS when it's freezing outside!)

Anyway...school's kicking my butt b/c there is so much reading and so much homework...I'm exhausted. Then try to throw into that the fact that I'm trying to eat better and exercise 5-6 times a week...see my boyfriend...work on scrolls...I'm at my wit's end!

I had 2 freak outs this week...Tuesday when I fucked up a scroll (and had to start from scratch)...and yesterday I was freaking out b/c I'm not done with the scrolls that are due this weekend!

EEK!

Anyway...I'm better now. My week 2 homework was submitted...my week 1 homework was handed in last week but it was wrong and my teacher gave me more time to redo it...I have not had the TIME to try and figure it out. I gave him when I tried to do (which is still wrong) but I have no idea what to do with that!!! AND...I gilded everything last night (calligraphy was done Tuesday and Wednesday)...that's the other thing...I haven't had 7 hours sleep in at least 2 weeks...I'm fluxuating between 4-6 hours (WHICH is not enough for me)...so I have all intentions of trying to get at least 8 consecutive hours at some point this weekend. Then I'm planning on hanging with Manu on Sunday.

So...afer all my excitement I think it'll all be ok and I was over-reacting...but I've been crazed!

Today I'm leaving you a pic of me and my brother (taken in the church when my cousin was getting married in the Philippines) and it made me smile.

Have a great weekend!

Weekend recap...

Good morning =)

I had a lovely weekend...hectic, crazy busy, but extremely fun =)

Friday - I went to Vanessa's house (Veronica's sister) to meet with her and Caroline to make up the favors for the bridal shower on Saturday. We put everything together and chatted up a storm. They're really cool girls and we're trying to find some time to hang out soon.

Saturday - Got up and picked up Kim from the subway and headed to the resturant. There was hardly anyone there on time! I got there at 11am...we had the resturant from 12-4pm...Veronica got here (Vanessa drove her) at 12:30pm! And the only people there were me, Kim, Caroline, Veronica's mom, dad, nephew and like 2 friends! It was a mess...of course everyone piled in AFTER she had gotten there! Despite the fact, she had an AWESOME time...she cried...she loved everything. I'm so happy it's over! I had fun planning it, but it was hectic and nerve racking!

The pictures from the shower are here.

Some of my favs are...



V Lee coming in...she's crying!



The happy family...Veronica blowing out the candles on her cake with son AJ, soon-to be husband Jordan, and stepdaughter Victoria.

We played a bunch of games and did a bit of scrapbooking...everyone was asked to bring a picture or 2 of Veronica and make a scrapbooking page. We also asked people to write down a bit of advice to them.

Here's my scrapbooking page:

It went really well. Everyone had fun, she was surprised...it was the best!

Saturday evening I met up with Manu...we went out to dinner (Marbar Hill...yummy Indian food =)), then we came back and watched part of the cricket game...we were watching it live from India on the computer (India vs. the West Indies)...when I left the score was 251-0 India...and I left at like 12:30am...Manu stayed up to watched it the whole thing (of course).

Sunday - I got up...cleaned a little...worked out at home...then went to my friend Shira's for lunch. Whoa...she put out a spread.

first course - salad
second course - corn chowder
third course - spinach lasagna with sides of acorn squash, roasted peppers, zucchini, and tomato salad.
fouth course - chocolate cookies with side of mixed fruit and berries (watermelon, pineapple, cantalope, honeydew, strawberries, blueberries, grapes and clementines)

I ate like a pig! And enjoyed every minute of it =) It was also nice to just hang out and do nothing...it was a bunch of work people that I haven't seen in a while. It was nice to catch up with everyone.

Anyway...hope everyone had a happy MONDAY =)

Hot off the press...continued...

I just got some pics from Kim! She lost her cord for her digital camera...so she gave me her memory card to download the pics...and here they are =)

This is my fav one...

Hot off the press...

...well you know what I mean =)

My friend Barna *finally* emailed me the pics from her party I went to...and that I brought Manu to. So here you go....



Gina's being getting her drink on...



Now Kim joins us...



The girls...me, Kim and Barna =)

I've got some good new and some bad news...

What shall I start with? Probably the bad news...get it out of the way.

Well here goes...

NO RT Convention in Texas for Jana...which means I probably won't go either because I was planning on sharing a room with them! So I'm really bummed about this because we were really looking forward to that since we had such a good time last year!

*sorry Marcia!*

BUT...that means that going to Brazil this year might be a possibility! Or maybe Australia? I have friends that are living in these places right now...and if I go now to stay with them...I don't have to worry about my housing...

Anyway...I can't think about vacations anymore right now because I'm swamped at work! My partner is out sick...indefinitely...so I have 2X the work I had...plus school is back in session...and my Statistics class has homework due every week! plus I have some case studies to read for the Law class...

AND...all the other things I've got to get on.

BUT, I have to say that I'm proud of myself...I've been working out nearly every day...I'm watching what I'm eating...drinking lots of water...I'm feeling good...now if only I wasn't committed to doing so many other things...I could have the sleep portion of my routine on track which would only help me...ah...can't have everything!



I came across this photo on someone's website...it's a picture of my dad...and Mendee when they made my maunche scroll. Isn't it gorgeous!!! It was just a ramdom picture that I came across today that made me happy =)

Weekend Recap...

The weather this weekend has been very undesirable...especially for a 6+ car drive (roundtrip) to Philly this weekend =P

The weekend was very busy...starting with rest and relaxation on Friday...exercise and eating right on Saturday...and seeing Manu =) (saw him yesterday too)! Sunday was the trek down to Philly...which was kinda a pain, but I'm glad I went. Tish was very happy with her surprise Bridal Shower...I would say there was about 12 or so people there. It was at Kim (one of Tish's bridesmaids) house in Philly. The food was good, she liked all her presents...AND...we made her a memory book. My friend Allie (used to be my roommate once upon a time, long before she got married) is an avid scrapbooker...she had all these card setups (starter card, scraps of paper, different punch stamps, stickers, etc.) and we had pictures of Tish and each of us made a scrap book page for her. It was really nice...I enjoyed it! I wish I had thought of it...I would have taken a picture of the page I did to post...doh!

Anyway...it was a lovely day. You can find some pictures here.

AND I got to see Allie, whom I haven't seen in forever! So I was able to give her her bithday and Christmas presents from last year AND this year! And she did the same for me...LOL...it was nice...I also gave Tish her Christmas gifts from last year and this year! (Gosh...you'd think I never saw anyone!)

Finally...I spent a good part of Saturday binding 2 more of those flower books...and was able to give one to Tish and Kim...so I only have 3 more books that I have to make...as well as a few extras for people I told I would give one to...ah...it never ends!



Here's a picture of Jackie and Allie! We did have a nice visit yesterday! Allie...why do you have to live so far away??

Plans for today...

relax, try to work on some stuff on my list...go to the gym!

How about you?

20 days 'til Florida!

I'm so psyched! Today is Friday (TGIF!) and in 20 days I'll be heading down south for some much needed R&R =)

I'm in a good mood this morning, despite being swamped at work today. I woke up and did 15 min of yoga...not much, but the stretches and poses felt really good! I'm planning on hitting the gym today after work, b/c I missed yesterday (got stuck at work late) so at least I can feel good about that. Also, I cooked 2 types of soup yesterday (so I'll have food over the weekend) and I'm quite happy with them (they are healthy, low cal AND they taste good!) I kinda doctored the recipes by adding additional spices (and NOT SALT) to make up for it and I'm quite happy with the results.

Also, I'm slacking in some areas (have not touched scrolls or book binding) because I almost cut off my finger on WEDNESDAY! I was cooking dinner when I almost cut through my thumb (and you never realize how much you need to use your thumb until everything you do with it hurts!) So...my plan was wo work on stuff this week, but I was bleeding all over the place Wed...it still hurt yesterday (the cut was shallow, but about 1/2" long and it was gushing...and took about a 1/2 hour to stop bleeding)...and today is the first day it's kinda feeling ok. When I hit it on stuff it hurts, but otherwise typing is actually ok today.

BUT I have this running list and I'm trying to cross one thing off the list a day. yesterday, I ordered pictures (prints) that I've been meaning to do for months now...so that's exciting...other than that...I actually went to bed kinda early (for me) and it was nice to get a semi-good night's rest...I actually got distracted and was cleaning out my linen closet until 11pm...but my intentions were good =))

Anyway, I hope you'll have a great day =)



In the back row: Joey (who's coming to NY to visit me this spring!), my brother, me, Gordon. In the front: Gwen and Emily.

Today I am leaving you with a group picture of some of my cousins. In this picture, we all sat on Gordon's bed and it BROKE! You can see this from my face! It was funny, but I felt bad for my cuz.

Starting now...

I know I'm a little late to make a resolution for the New Year...well I made this to myself, but I think I'm ready to tell everyone else what it is.

I want to do better...for myself. What I am referring to is my life. I want to be out of debt...I want to lose weight (for my health (high blood pressure) and because I'd like to wear a bikini one day)...I want to eat better (this will help with the losing weight) and I want to exercise more (and enjoy it).

Ok...so I have a long way to go, but I am slowly working on it. I'm actively trying to eat well...drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. I exercise 2X a week, but I know I've got to ramp that up!

So...today I was talking with a friend of mine and she showed me this website. It's cool because everything that I mentioned above can be kept track here....what food I eat (counts calories, salt intake, etc.), how much exercise you do, recipies and some really cool articles =)

Wish me luck!

And then there was Abigail...

Hi all,
I've named her...Abigail...or Abby for short.

And...

I just thought I'd share with you...Abby's blog =)

Enjoy!

12th Night...

What a day! I had a great time, but I'm glad it's over =) I was kinda stressed about getting stuff done for the event...most of it I got done (because I stayed up until 2am the night before) and some I still have to do.

It was great seeing everyone! I got some AWESOME GIFTS from my friends and sisters =)

*drum roll*

Introducing the newest member of my family...

my sock monkey!



I never had a sock monkey growing up...so my friends thought I was deprived as a child, so Heather decided to make me a sock monkey (Laura and Aly helped)!

Now I have to name her!



here's a close-up...

Gotta love your friends *lol*

New Blogger Friend...

I just wanted to introduce a new blogger friend...Analia!

Her blog is under my family and friends links.

Check her out =)

TGIF!

I have to say, I'm really HAPPY it's Friday!

It's been a long week and I am just ready for the weekend. I've got a fun filled weekend ahead...starting with dinner tonight with some co-workers...12th Night and hopefully much needed time with Manu =)

He got back late last night...his flight got delayed 30 hours due to fog in New Delhi...then he got stranded in London! Anyway...he's back home...prob jet-lagged and had to go to work today =(

Well...back to work...the day is going by quickly...just like I like it =)

Have a great weekend!!

Today, I'm leaving you with a pic of my friend Kia's newest family member!



His name is Rocket!

Reflections

I try to take yoga twice a week (and exercise approximately 3 times a week)...and on Tuesdays I take yoga with Florence. She likes to give us a focus to reflect upon and meditate on. Topics change from week to week...and previously they had been relevant, but abstract to me. I recieved this prayer from a friend...and I will be using it to reflect upon and meditate for my yoga practice this week...and perhaps for everyday.

Please share if with others, if you'd like.

St. Theresa's Prayer:

May today there be peace within. May you trust God
that you are exactly
where you are meant to be. May you not forget the
infinite possibilities
that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that
you have received, and
pass on the love that has been given to you.. May
you be content knowing you
are a child of God.... Let this presence settle into
your bones, and allow
your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and
love. It is there for each
and every one of us.


Have a great day =)

I need some serenity in my life...

...so in times like this one...I think of peaceful places I've been...like this...



ah...*deep breathe*

Anyhoo...back to reality.

Happy Wednesday! Thank goodness for hump day =)

I'm pooped...didn't sleep well last night. So I'm a little grumpy today and everyone took note. Plus I'm putting out little fires at work...it's 10am and I'm shot!

COFFEE BREAK!

I didn't finish those last few invitations last night *doh!* so I've got to finish those tonight as I'm handing them off on Thursday night or Friday night. Plus I've got a few more things to finish up before 12th Night this weekend...

Also, looking forward to seeing my man this weekend...he's suppose to be back from India tomorrow (night?)...I've missed him...

ok...enough of my ramblings...back to work.

Have a great day =)

Done...

I don't want to look at another invitation for a LONG time! I finished up late Saturday/early Sunday morning...then was off to my partying...I have a handful left (waiting on addresses) but otherwise I'm done.

Now to finish up scrolls...and other little projects. Ah...too much to go into detail at the moment since I'm swamped at work.

Happy New Year!



My Hello Kitty Buddha (for my cell phone) that broke the other day =( I just got some crazy glue so hopefully I can fix it tonight =)