Engaged!

Today started like any other Sunday, waking up late and lazy and having a delicious breakfast (smoothies and peanut butter toast). Then we quickly packed up and left for an afternoon hike in Auburn at Hidden Falls Regional Park. We walked about forty minutes along the trail until we got to a beautiful secluded spot with trees all around, with a very convenient picnic table, where we took out and enjoyed our pasta salad, chocolate covered almonds, and sweet tea. After lunch we continued down to the falls, which were beautiful and also very crowded, so we didn't stay long.

Hidden Falls at the Overlook

We walked back to the main trail and then decided to hike the Pond Turtle Road towards the Seven Pools Loop and Vista Trail, where luckily we discovered there was hardly anyone around! We walked to the end of Pond Turtle and found a little vista overlook next to the river. We played in the river and attempted to skip rocks, and then went up a little hill and found a beautiful shady spot with some trees and flowers and a great view.

We sat down and enjoyed the scenery for a while, and had fun taking some pictures with Nick's fancy camera and the teeny tiny tripod. We had a hard time finding the right soft light but eventually got it right! It was set on a delay and took five pictures at a time. It was a beautiful day and was about three o'clock in the afternoon.

Nick set up the camera one last time to get a picture of us sitting down. He set the camera up and then walked back over to me, but instead of sitting, he got down on one knee and asked, "Will you marry me?"

Of course, the answer was YES! It came out "Duh!" first, of which I am not very proud of, but looking back is pretty funny. I said "Yes!" immediately after, so hopefully that fixes it. Nick just laughed.

Happy! 

Immediately after/during this photo, we were interrupted by a shirtless hippie hiker, who awkwardly asked to get past us on the trail. Poor guy! Now, we were still at the bottom of the trail, a good half hour away from the car, and I was so excited I practically ran up the first hill! We hiked up the rest of the way (all uphill!) holding sweaty hands and admiring my ring. I felt like shouting out at everyone we passed, "We're engaged! We just got engaged! LOOK!" and shoving my hand in their face so they could see what a beautiful ring Nick had custom designed for me. It even has my great-grandmother's (suspected) wedding ring melted into the gold, which makes it even more special.

Sparkly! My precious. ^_~

Once we reached the car, I called my house to see who was home, being very sneaky and casual about everything. My mom was running errands with Nanny, so we decided to surprise Nick's family first! We pulled into their driveway and they all came out of the house to greet us. Their first thought was that somethin was wrong, because we came up with no notice. We walked over to the deck and Nick told them we had a surprise for them. I held up my hand.

Their reaction was great! Nick's mom clapped both hands to her face and gasped, and they were all so surprised! They were also happy, which made me happy too, because I really love Nick's family. We spent about fifteen minutes there talking about how he asked, and when the wedding might be, and admiring my ring, and then his dad had to leave to pick up his grandparents from the airport (they just got back from Hawaii!) and so we left and drove to my parents house.

My mom was still out but would be coming back in about a half hour, and my dad had a member of his band "Close to You" (Carpenter's tribute band, they sound great!) over to practice, so I twisted my ring around so it looked like just a band and we pretended everything was normal. For over two hours, until the friend left.

IT WAS TORTURE.

It was pretty funny afterwards, though! I was dying to tell everyone and was having the hardest time keeping my hand from flinging out and accidentally giving it away. I kept my hand curled over and at my hip a lot, and spent the whole time my mom was back avoiding her. Last night we went out to the symphony with my parents, and my mom noticed that I had taken off my normal small diamond ring from when I was sixteen and was wearing a different costume ring. I knew she would notice this, so I had to stay far away! Nick and I took the dogs for a walk around the circle, and I spent a lot of time running around checking on the cats, and bringing in dog food, and looking at the flowers, and not talking to mom.

Today there was a solar eclipse! We poked a hole in paper with a pin and used it to cast the light from the solar eclipse onto another piece of paper. It was very cool, but also hard, because my mom was always there and I was so afraid she would see my ring and we would have to tell them then! I wanted it to be a big surprise.

After dinner the band friend left (I felt bad, I spent the whole time wanting him to leave instead of making him feel welcome) and we were sitting outside on the deck eating cantaloupe and mango and strawberries when I brought up our hike. Mom asked us how that went, and I said, oh, fine, you know, we saw the waterfall and then walked out to this beautiful secluded area by the river and Nick gave me this. And I held up my hand.

Mom and Dad just froze, and Dad asked, "What kind of ring is that?" and I said, "An engagement ring!" and then they kind of exploded and were like "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US!" and they got up and gave us hugs and were so excited and happy and it was so much fun! And Troy was on his computer and only paid attention at the part where mom and dad freaked out so he was like, rewind and tell the story again! So we did. 

Currently my mom has sent me about five different emails with wedding venues that look good, and is so, so excited. She has been watching wedding shows for a while since she knew Nick and I were serious. Now she has a reason to plan and be excited! She and dad I think are both very happy for us, and a little bit melancholy for when we were little kids and not getting married. Troy is kind of shocked and keeps saying "I feel old!", but is also being so sweet and happy for us. 

I called all my family and friends and shared the news and they are all so happy for us! Everyone loves Nick already so it was so great to tell them that we were making it official! It was really a very fun evening, and we appreciate everyone's congratulations and good wishes! 

Nick and I are very happy and kind of overwhelmed right now. Tomorrow we are driving back up to Auburn to tell his grandma in person and to drive to my Nanny's and see her in person. I have some more calls to make and then will post it on facebook to let everyone know. 

I feel so very lucky and extremely happy right now! 

Catching Up . . .

Well. I certainly seem to excel at waiting months between posts and then writing a belated summary of events, don't I? We'll see if I can nix that habit, but for now I will continue in that glorious tradition:

Work is going great: I love the kids that I teach computers to and my coworkers are all made of awesome.

ONE WEEK OF SCHOOL LEFT OMG. Technically two, but I do not have finals so HA SUCKS TO BE YOU NICK. Mwahaha!

Speaking of Nick, things are going great! Coming up on 4 1/2 years next month! And wow, it seems like our 4 year anniversary just happened, where the heck is time going? I have a feeling I am going to be one of those perpetually bewildered old people, always wondering how I suddenly got to be old when just a few minutes ago I was typing this post!

We're started going to the Farmer's Markets around us, and WOW real tomatoes taste amazing! I've been snacking on raw broccoli and ate a pear for breakfast and the oranges are so delicious and the eggs are tasty and the apple juice is . . . well, actually not as good as I hoped, I will try a different vendor next time. Overall, however, we love it.

My Uncle Steve is doing good! His fight with the brain cancer glioblastoma is documented here. To summarize: his surgery went well, his chemo sucked but he did it, and his latest MRI was the best it could be! There have been a lot of ups and downs and scary moments, but right now is good.

Oh! Hey! I got an ipad 2 for Christmas and I LOVE IT SO MUCH.

We ran in the Davis Lucky 7k and finished in like 48 minutes, or something. I forgot. But we did finish! We keep talking about doing more and then we don't. But I have found three new races in Sac that look interesting, so I will keep you posted.

I have one semester left at Sac State, and then I graduate! I should be graduating in December of 2012!!! Yaaaay!

That means I have to decide where to get my credential, and possibly my masters. Eep!

As for me, I keep pretty busy between work and school, especially this semester. I had to do 70 hours of fieldwork at 4 different sites, and write a lot of papers! That plus upping my work from 2 to 3 days a week teaching plus 2 days after-care . . . was challenging at times, but generally I enjoyed it. My stomach has been behaving (remember those days of gastritis/IBS/acid reflux? Me neither. Yay!) My biggest stressor lately has been trying to keep our apartment clean. That, plus wishing we had more sunshine on our patio so I could grow some non-shady plants (I would kill to grow some basil!).

Hopefully I will remember to update this blog every now and then. ^_~

Ciao!

Clair

Clair is Nick's little sister. She recently told me that I have mentioned her only three or four times in my blogging history. I need to remedy this.

Therefore:

Clair. Clair. Clair. Clair. ClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClairClair
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CLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIR

*gasps for air*

CLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIRCLAIR . . .

. . .


WHEW.

TIRED FINGERS.

Have fun in Hawaii, Clair! I can't wait to hear alllllll about it! ^_^

Also:

CLAIR.

Also Also:

CLAIR IS MARVELOUS.

Back in the Swing

We are now five weeks into the fall semester of college, and six weeks into teaching computers at the elementary school.

I'm kind of tired.

But in a good way!

Work is fun. Today I taught 3rd graders the entire left hand homerow for typing, showed 4th graders how to make a pie chart with M&M's (that they got to EAT after, whee!) and 7/8th graders how to do the basics of html. The only problem is I don't have as much time as I would like to spend on my lesson plans as I would like, because . . .

Yeah, school. It's kind of homework-y. The last two or three weeks each Sunday has been like 7 hours of homework. In a ROW. That is a lot of homework. Plus, ya'know, trying to actually spend time with my boyfriend (who is still wonderful) and my family (who are also busy) and Nick's family (Hi Clair!) and I am just BUSY.

(Notice I am up at nearly 1am on a school night just so I could have some goof off time. Normal hours rebellion, ahoy! Also, zzzzzz.)

Um. What else. Taekwondo is good! Mostly. And I did a cardio class! And got really sweaty. Um, I need to clean my fish tank. I need to clean my apartment. The list of things I need to do is kind of long, so let's just skip that and I'll say I'm totally going shopping tomorrow morning, because Kohl's gave me a $10 off coupon and I need work clothes! Yay, shopping!

I'm off for bed.

Ciao!

5k Race for the Cure

The Saturday morning before Mother's Day was a strange morning in our apartment, as we were both up at five to get ready for our first 5k! I imagine I looked like a zombie as I cooked ouregg sandwiches, especially since my good friend Cassie spent the night and we stayed up until 2:30 talking! (It was worth it. I hadn't seen Cassie in nearly a year, and we had a lot to catch up on.)

A little after six, our friends Andra and Drew knocked on the door, and our whole running party was assembled! We were a very tired lot, yet very excited. After months of training and sweating and nerves, the morning had finally arrived! We were clad in our (Champion) wear, had laced up our shoes (Asics for me, Pumas for Nick), stuck our time chips on our shoelaces, smoothed a band-aid over that stubborn blister on my foot, and packed snacks.

We were ready.

(Cassie and I before the race)

We packed ourselves into two cars and drove the five minutes to the race, had an easy time parking, and then walked five or more minutes to the huge crowds milling around on the blacktop, drawn by the loudspeakers. We were momentarily distracted by the huge lines of Port-a-potties, and had to test them out. (Tiny bladders do not fare well while running full.) We found the right place for the timed runners, squished ourselves between about 25,000 people (record turnout, most in 15 years for this race, yay!) and . . . waited.

We listened to 107.9 The End radio people who were there on a podium, heard some sniffly stories and some lady got a medal for something-or-other (I would have paid attention, but I was anxious to ruuuuuun) and then they told us it would be starting soon!

(Also, we were distracted by all of the awesome group signs that people were holding up. "Save the ta-ta's", "Bazoombas" and . . . um. I forgot. But they were funny.)

Aaand then we were off! They had the 7 minute milers up at the starting line and the rest of the pack kind of . . . ambled/jogged over the line, but once we passed it we were able to go to the side and kind of run around people. Andra and Drew were very fast and went ahead, and we saw them looping around the road at one point and waved and called out but they were concentrating too hard. (Andra actually placed in our age division, I am soooo proud of her!) Cassie and Nick and I were just trying to complete the race in under 33 minutes, which we totally aced. ^_~

The walkers in the race were on the other side of the road and waited about 20 minutes after we started running. It was so exhilarating being surrounded by other people, everyone who was supporting a cause and cheering each other on, that honestly the first two miles kind of flew by. There were water and aide stations at every mile and cheerleaders and radio stations set up playing music around nearly every corner. The race organizers had closed down some major roads for this race so we were running through Sacramento on the roads! It was so cool. I was doing my best to keep Cassie motivated and distract myself, and Nick was being his studly silent self.

As I said, the first two miles were pretty easy, which is keeping with my limited running experience. The first half mile is usually the most difficult for me, but once I warm up I can do a mile pretty easily. The excitement of the race meant I had gone more than two miles before I started to realize I was feeling it, and by the end of the race we were all going, "SERIOUSLY? ANOTHER TURN? Where is that stinking finish line?)

Cassie and Nick and I stuck together until the very end, when Nick sped up for the finish, and Cassie got a little tired at the end and just barely stopped to walk when I saw that dang-gum finish line and she immediately started running again, we both did, running faster than we had yet, and we totally flew across that finish line, which was lined with a cheering crowd and an announcer telling us we had beat 33 minutes! Nick was there waiting for us, and Andra and Drew were smushed up against the gate at the line cheering us on. There were tables of water as we walked out of the finish line area, and a whole huge area full of fresh fruits and drinks and snacks for the runners for free. I had a banana and some juice and a few crackers, and they were delicious.

We all panted in a circle for a little bit (okay, Andra and Drew had caught their breath by then) and bemoaned our sweatiness, before agreeing to go back to the car to grab our wallets so we could buy some awesome souvenirs at the expo.

Well, the expo was awesome and had lots of cool free stuff, including coffee and some awesome bags that I will use for shopping, but no actual things that we wanted to buy. Oh well.

After wandering around the expo for forty-five minutes or so, we walked back to the cars, and hugged Andra and Drew good-bye as they drove back to Davis. Cassie, Nick, and I piled into the car and drove back to our apartment, where I proceeded to insist upon sweaty post-run pictures. You are welcome.

Unofficial Team SexyLegs


Our new Race for the Cure t-shirts!


Nick and I. This guy is probably the only reason I was able to run this 5k, because without him doing the training with me I would have given up and eaten too much chocolate more times than I did. Thanks, honey.


So that's it. Our first 5k.

Let it be known that after this run we were all a gibbering mess, high off our run, and all babbling how much we wanted to do another run right away because they are so awesome and we are going to be so sexy this summer after running so much!

We . . . are all apparently crazy people, because we all still want to do another 5k. And then maybe a 10k. And wouldn't it be awesome if someday we could do a half-marathon? We passed one just the other day. And how many people can do a full marathon? Wouldn't that be an accomplishment? (So crazy. And yet . . . )

This race was inspired by a random thought, pushed to fruition via lots of motivation talk and spending-lots-on-cute-running-clothes incentives and threats from my awesome boyfriend, and has actually changed the way I think about running. It is actually sometimes . . . kind of . . . fun.

Feliz dia de las madres

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! This year I learned that while our mother's day is on Sunday, the Mexican dia de las madres was actually on Tuesday. I had no idea!

For this year's Mother's Day, Nick and I drove up to my parent's and had brunch at the town's elementary school, where mother's eat for free and the rest of us were only a dollar! It is put on by a community club and has pancakes, eggs, sausages, orange juice, and coffee, and the drinks and things were fetched by little boy scouts. It was fun!

After brunch we hung out with my parents at their house. Troy was still in . . . Ireland, I think?( He bounced around from Italy to Ireland to England to Germany in just a few days, it got confusing. But he comes home tonight! In like . . . 20 minutes his flight comes in!!!) That was nice, I don't spend as much time with my parents as I'd like to anymore.

Then we went to my Nanny's apartment and stayed for a while to talk and wish her a Happy Mother's Day. She recently got new hearing aides and it is noticeably easier to talk with her!

And then we were off to Nick's aunt's house where all his family was gathering for a Mother's Day dinner feast, full of yumminess and delicious 6 month old baby cousin giggles.

We left early because we both had homework due the next day.

It was a great Mother's Day. (Though I must admit, planning holidays now for two families can be haaaard. But worth it.) ^_^

Training

So. My first 5k is on May 7th. That gives me (and Nick, who will henceforth be part of "me", mostly because I am a self-centered blogger [redundant!]) just over a month to get into shape.

(And by "shape" I actually mean "ability to jog 3.1 miles without collapsing into a sweaty disgusting heap at the end.")

Prior to even knowing about the Race for the Cure, Nick and I had randomly decided to get into shape and started jogging on the treadmill and working out at our tiny apartment gym a few nights a week. We both can run about a mile and a half without dying. Much.

Enter Katie finding out about this race and registering, all within 24 hours, and suddenly we're both like, "Uh-oh. We actually have to DOUBLE our endurance. Crap!"

Friday we biked 16 miles, and actually felt pretty good after, aside from a sore bottom or two from sitting on uncomfortable bike seats!

Saturday we jogged 1.5 miles outside on the American River Bike Trail, and walked back home.

Sunday we biked 12 leisurely miles with Nick's family (lovely afternoon!)

Monday I biked 6 miles and stair climbed 1 mile, plus weight training. (Stupid treadmill-hogger guy was being a treadmill hog, so we didn't get any treadmill time. Grr.)

And tomorrow morning I juuuust might wake up early enough to go for a jog in the gym before I have to leave for work. Knowing me, however, I will set my alarm, wake up slowly, kill the alarm, and decide that working out is overrated and I could totally run 5k right now, blahblahzzzzzzzzzzzzcakes.

We will see.

Updates in Real Life

I am on Spring Break! Huzzah! I am quite relieved, because for the week prior I was kind of losing my mind. I had four midterms for my five classes, and they flattened me a little bit. I don't know how I did on them all yet, so cross your fingers for me! I will say that taking Child Development as a major means my midterms are quite a bit easier, and less stressful, than when I was doing nursing pre-reqs. Microbiology was not my friend.

(Though I still have not re-started biting my nails since I took that class. Nothing like a healthy dose of paranoia about microorganisms and a year-long tummy-ache to let your nails grow like they are supposed to!)

So school is officially half-way through. It has gone by quickly, but I'm a bit anxious about the next half, because I have a LOT of projects that will be worked on and turned in by the end. (Papers. So many research papers. Holy cow. Apparently in Universities they actually expect you to WORK! Who knew?)

I'm sitting on our freebie couch, listening and watching Nick play Minecraft (square legomen! Aaagh!) (He says there is actually programming in it. Plus, he can blow things up with TNT, so WIN) and we just got back from dinner at Mikuni's sushi with his parents. It was absolutely delicious!

I'm still working on losing weight, and will post more on that later, but don't want to jinx myself. So shhhhhh!

It's raining here, and snowing where our parents live. Dad is back from Italy, he came home last Sunday, and mom comes home tomorrow! I very much look forward to seeing them both together and hearing all about Italy, (and getting my SOUVENIRS, yippee!) and Nick and I plan to go up Tuesday night to see them. Troy is traveling to Munich right now, as I type, on an overnight train. He is also on spring break, and I expect him to have lots and lots of fun! (Safe fun, Troy.)

Mmm, what else?

Working at the private school is going really well. I like teaching, and just found some free tutorials to help me out with Dreamweaver and programming at my university that I hope to take. Pretty awesome! I like the freebies that Universities give you. (Since you're paying a ton of money anyways.)

Nick has some pretty exciting news about the direction that he wants to take his career, but I won't post that until at least Tuesday night, because I am keeping it a secret from my parents. (Hint: it involves engineering.) (Teeheeheee!)

I really, really want a Starbucks. Something hot--like a peppermint white mocha, a caramel macchiato, a latte. Something warm! (My toes are cold. I think from therein springs my hot drink craving. If Nick were closer I would put my toes on his stomach to warm them up.)

And we ordered curtains! Red pretty curtains from JCPenney's, ordered like two weeks ago, supposed to come in 4-7 days, and reportedly shipped just a few days ago. FAIL, Penney's. Whenever they arrive, though, I am looking forward to seeing how they look! I also really would like to get some plants for our little patio and for inside, so I will kidnap mom and go shopping with her soon. ^_^

Biggest news of all: I TOTALLY BOUGHT THREE PAIRS OF SHOES FOR THIRTY DOLLARS, YAY!

Whiiiine

I am staying at my parents house to take care of the dogs, cats, and my poor old fish tank which is covered in algae.

I am staying by myself.

I am staying here without my boyfriend.

I am staying with my boys, Io and Oz, who will cover all of my clothes with black kitty fur.

I am staying here AT NIGHT WHICH IS SCARY. Good thing I have four animals who will warn me of danger by probably hiding under my bed.

(Okay, not true. The dogs would bark a lot too.)

I miss Nick.

Lucky

I don't think there is much of a way to summarize how awesome my boyfriend is, because he deserves more than a quick post about his awesomeness. Regardless, here it is. (Warning: the follow may contain mushy-heart-love talk.)

We tease each other a lot about being lucky--saying, "Oh, I don't know, maybe if you're lucky you'll get ..." (a back rub, a movie, dinner) and I always say, "Oh, I'm lucky. I got you!" If I actually stop to think about it, though--man, I am lucky.

I have a boyfriend who loves to cook, who is neat and (bugs me about not being so) clean, who even when I say not to buy me expensive caramel apples goes on the website weeks before Valentine's Day to order some, because he says he has learned not to listen to me at certain times. When the specialty caramel apples were sold out, he made me homemade caramel apples. They were delicious.

He watches chick flicks when I want to and I hardly ever watch Godzilla or zombie movies anymore for him. He puts up with my woe-is-me attitude whenever I am sick or my tummy feels funny (which is not nearly as often, huzzah!) and tolerates my grumpiness without being grumpy back. (A miracle in and of itself, honestly. I can be pretty damn grumpy.) He makes jokes about my messy tendencies instead of throwing my clothes in my face or refusing to rinse my bowls. He does the dishes because for some reason washing dishes makes me really grumpy--though I clean the bathroom without any pause. (I'm not entirely awful.)

On Valentine's Day he is especially sweet, asking if I'm sure I don't want flowers, or candy, or a book from Borders. He makes me homemade pumpkin ravioli with a butter, balsamic vinegar, and sage sauce the night before Valentine's Day because today we were both so busy with school we didn't have time together. He made me caramel apples--insisting I buy three different kinds of apple to find my favorite, and making caramel for the first time--doing a wonderfully fabulous and delicious job of it, too.

He buys me wonderful gifts that totally surprise me--my bamboo hearts, my specialty caramel apples, taking me up to the cabin in the snow, and my jewelery.

I made him a card. It was done in my computer class, it has two little bees with hearts and swirls around them and it says Bee Mine.

And he is.

I'm lucky like that.

Addicted to the Internet

I need to limit my internet time, methinks.

I spend way too much time on here and not enough with Nick.

He's sighing right now because he's grumpy at me for going online.

Crap.

My Boyfriend's Foot Is On My Shoulder Like a Silent Stinky Angel

He really is a sad thing when he isn't feeling well, which is why I'm allowing it. I would like to note, however, that he is only about two days behind me in the same cold, and he's getting much more sympathy than I received. Poor thing. 

Oh, there's so much that's happened, and so much that has stayed the same. Let's see. Nick and I both are now 22, which is exciting but kind of a letdown after turning 21 and being allowed to drink. What are we allowed to do at 22 that we couldn't do before? Say we're a year older, I suppose. 

Presents! Presents happened, they were lovely. We had birthdays and then Christmas, and now I can't think of anything else that we either need or want. (Lies. There's always more want.) Our kitchen is not wonderfully full of all kinds of gadgets. Which is good for us, but bad for my waistline. 

We spent hours opening these presents. It was fabulous!

Santa wrote my cousin Adam a letter, complete with sparkly snowflakes and a Rudolph. Santa likes sparkles. Katie likes sparkles. ^_-

It was a good Christmas. We returned via the sardinemobile and were happy to be home . . . and then promptly fell sick with a cold, which returns me to my poor sick boyfriend and his feet. 

We both felt kind of icky and so stayed home for New Years Eve. 

(TANGENT: Have you seen that How I Met Your Mother episode where the group of friends goes out to a club and they explain the differences between singles and couples? About how singles move around and get drinks and talk, but couples are so exhausted by the very act of leaving the house that they find a seat and stay there? That's now Nick and I are. We are a couple of old fogies living in 22-year-old bodies.)

(TANGENTY TANGENT: Barney's quote from HIMYM "When I'm sick I just stop being sick and be awesome instead. True story.") (I love that guy.) 

ANYWAYS, SO, Nick and I stayed in and made spinach mushroom cheese ravioli's with our new kitchen aid and the new ravioli maker and they were DELICIOUS and then I made peach bellini's (frozen peaches, champagne, peach liquor, YUM) and then we watched Star Wars IV and smooched at midnight. 

Time for the requisite New Year's Resolution List! 

1) I will complete 500 miles this year! And do 30 minutes of exercise a day!

2) My mom and I will lose 2lbs a month (minimum) until we reach our goal weights! We will then maintain them. Yay!

3) Clean, clean, clean. Do not let apartment get explody again. 

4) Spend more time with boyfriend and less time on computer. 

5) Be happy and healthy and not let my stomach take over like it did for awhile there. 

PS: My boyfriend's resolution this year was to kiss me more. I think I'm gonna like 2011. ^_^

Happy New Year!!!

Whoops

I haven't updated in so long that my computer forgot to remember my password for me, so I had to wrack my brains so I could post some gibberish. You're welcome. 

Gibberish Point the First: I am having a hellish few days and it's all my fault. If you remember, last year I took microbiology and chemistry (and some more stuff) and got so stressed that I got IBS and it took me a year to feel better. I got Incompletes in my classes which meant I could take a year to finish my classes--and to finish them I need to take three finals. Which I procrastinated on for nearly a year. I have eleven days to take them and finish my education class and still work during which I am taking over teaching computers. I was busy for twelve hours straight today. 

Gibberish Point the Second: dude, THANKSGIVING HAPPENED! I spent it with Nick and his family at their cabin in the snow! It was awesome! We ate a lot and played games and drank mai tais and discovered we don't like Bloody Mary's and totally didn't shop on Black Friday. 

Gibberish Point the Third: I am super serious about this working out and losing weight thing. So super serious that I totally worked out for 45 minutes and then made cookies. BOO-YEAH! 

Gibberish Point the Fourth: We finished watching all the available seasons of Psych and really want the next season to come out on netflix so we can stare mindlessly at the TV some more!

Gibberish Point the Fifth: My Nanny is moving here from Florida! She gets here soon. We're very happy she is going to be living near us!

Okay. I'm gonna go zone out in front of X-Files (my boyfriend is a geek) for the rest of the night so I can study my butt off tomorrow for my lab exam and portfolio tomorrow. Ugh. 

Quick Update

I taught computer class all by my self today, and by December will be teaching it completely! I'll go into that later. Suffice to say, it was fun, and awesome, and I wanna do it again. 

I substitute kindergarten tomorrow. Which means I have to get up early. Ugh. 

Went out with my coworker friends today, laughed a lot. Fun!

Our apartment is messy. 

I love my boyfriend. 

This weekend will be busy. 

I really, truly, seriously for-reals this time must study for my incompletes. 

Mwah!

Halloween

Happy Birthday to the best Mommy in the world! 

Today was kind of busy; we drove to my parents house, drove our last foster kitten down to be adopted (like he is every weekend), went to the grocery store for mom's birthday dinner, drove to Nick's parents house and visited, drove to town again to pick up the kitten, saw a lady looking at him, chatted a minute, she decided she wanted to adopt him, stayed late to adopt my last sweet baby out, drove home, was sad a little bit about adopting him out with mom and dad and Troy, made dinner for mom (white wine sauce linguine with seared scallops, cheese roasted veggies, homemade french bread, and carrot cake), then drove past Nick's parents house to go to Troy's friend's free haunted house, screamed a lot, drove home, and sat down, whereupon I just realized I forgot to steal toilet paper from mom's house like I meant to. 

That was the longest run-on sentence ever! Go me! 

Nick was "Captain One-Eyed Willy" and I was his pirate wench. I'll post photos later. 

On the other hand, this will help me hibernate all winter long. Just call me Katie-Bear.

You know how people say that kids gain a "freshman fifteen" and that newlyweds gain weight, and la dee da? Is that true for couples moving in together as well? Because I seem to be putting on some weight. And I DON'T WANT TO BE A STATISTIC! 

I'm fairly certain this is Nick's fault. If he would stop making these damn delicious noodle bowls and bringing me out frozen cookie dough truffles with a semi-sweet chocolate drizzle, I wouldn't be weighing this much. 

I'm also fairly certain that this means the reemergence of the Bikini Body Challenge, except it is going to be less bikini-body challenge and more along the lines of "Katie would like to fit into her jeans" type challenge. 

. . . this is depressing. I think I need some tea. With a cup of sugar. 

Amazing Boyfriend Makes Amazing Meals!

Vermicelli rice noodles, home-made marinated chicken, sliced carrots, sliced green onions (I love slicing with our new Calphalon knives!) nestled on top of baby spinach, drizzled with a rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, and salt mixture.



It was delicious. I love having an amazing cook for a boyfriend!

Boy, Interrupted

Title: Boy, Interrupted. Based on a true story.

Date: Today
Time: Approximately 4:30pm
Location: Driving from Bed Bath & Beyond, en route to Target
Driver: Katie, wearing sunglasses, a frown, and shoes that started out comfy but are now painful
Passenger: Nick, general direction-giver, human GPS, and patient boyfriend

Background: Nick has a cold. A bad, bad cold. Being the lovely thoughtful person that I am, I dragged him out to buy a knife block set and spend hours wandering stores. This is us driving out of the parking lot by the mall.

* * *
Katie, peering around to make sure all stupid squishable pedestrians have vacated the vicinity, finally turns attention to sick boyfriend who has been quieter and quieter.

"How are you feeling?" I ask, glancing over.

"Crappy," sick boyfriend starts, turning towards me. "I'm pretty sure I have a fever, my throat hurts, I keep sneezing, and my nose is a faucet."

"You poor thing!" I nod sympathetically, patting his knee.

He continues, "I'm pretty sure my leg fell off back in the cutlery section of Bed Bath & Beyond, I'm seeing quadruple, and --"

"CRAP! NICK, DO I TURN RIGHT? Shit! I'm turning right. Was that right? Should I have gone straight?"

Nick gives me a calm, patient stare. The way you would look at someone who has traumatically lost their sanity and you feel pity and compassion for them, and no matter what they do you will never lose your temper because that would be like shouting at a dumb dog.

"Katie, open your eyes." He waits while I comply. "Turn left here. Now go straight. Move into the left lane. Good. Go straight again. Now left, straight, then turn right here and now you should know where we are."

I wipe the sweat off my forehead dramatically. "Phew! Good thing I have you!"

You can practically hear his eyes rolling.

I glance hopefully towards sick boyfriend. "So, sweetie, what were you saying about how you were feeling?"

"Nope. Forget it. I'm not gonna talk to you anymore. You don't listen anyways."

* * *

The End

Sunday Morning Breakfast: Adorable Edition

Breakfast this morning made me laugh. So I thought I'd share. Doesn't everyone like to see two good-looking young men sitting at an elegant bistro cafe glass table, eating homemade chocolate chip waffles and laughing together?

Sigh. So cute.


Nick and Ryan, acting adorable together. I had finished eating and was about to sit in the living room when I glanced back. And saw them.


What else could I do? I needed evidence. It was too cute for words!

Er . . .


Yep. Simply adorable. Also a delicious breakfast.


PS That painting is by my dad. He has a blog for his paintings: Gary Symington.

Apartment Living

For ten days now I've been living with Nick in the city. What can I say? I love it!

I do miss my family, but I've seen them a few times already, and since it's only a 45-50 minute drive I suspect I will see them quite a bit. Just yesterday Troy and I met up with Dad near his work and we all had lunch! (Sushi, mmm! Also, a historical moment, since Troy ate a sushi roll piece and declared it okay!) So while I miss them, and do miss my boys Io and Oz, (and my last foster baby Billy, whom my wonderful mom is taking care of!) I'm so excited to be on our own. I do feel sad for Clair, Nick's nine year old sister. She wrote him the sweetest note (with glitter!) about how much she missed him, and it made my heart break a little bit. I don't know what to do about it yet.

So! Adventures in apartment living!

First, our brand-spankin' new microwave broke after two days of use. Apparently the "Minute Plus" button is just there to taunt you, and if you actually press it everything just stops working. It's not the big a deal (yet) because it has a complete warranty and there are service centers all near us. (The benefit of city-living! Everything is so close!) But now it is taking up space in our pantry until I get around to calling them.

Second, we are right on the levy for the American River. Which means that 35 miles of bike trails and walking paths are right outside our door. It's fabulous. We went for a bike ride last night after dinner (of pasta! dinner of college champions!) and the weather was cool and lovely, it was so fun! Especially with Nick making fun of me for wobbling around on my mom's bike. ^_-

Third, we have fleas. Yes. I will that sink in. Much like a flea sinking into warm skin, searching for blood, hopping around, making you itch, and EW! The first flea I noticed the day after we moved in, when I was sitting on the rug futzing with some wires or something for Nick. There was a black speck and I picked it up and then promptly fell over and died of horror. I was pretty certain it was a flea but opted to go with DENIAL, because Denial Land is where happiness lives. A few days later I found three more and Denial Land became Panic Land, resulting in a visit with the manager who gave me a flea bomb and a promise to get Pest Control back out to spray. The flea bomb worked for a day or two but I found TWO fleas on me last night, ZOMGSHOWERRIGHTNOW. Pest control should be coming very soon. Very, very soon.

Fourth, we have no internet. Comcast is the only option for internet so we called them last Monday and made an appointment for a guy to come out on Friday. (Five days of no internet! Yuck!) Friday rolls around and we wait patiently during the two hour window when Mr. Comcast was supposed to show. Then I get a missed call on my cell (bad reception inside) and a voicemail saying Mr. Comcast was outside but no-one let him in and since we didn't answer the phone, we'll have to reschedule. Nick runs out to the gate but he's gone, and I call Comcast and talk to a girl who assures me that Mr. Comcast left way too fast and they'll get him back within the hour. Satisfied I go inside. It makes sense! We got ahold of Mr. Comcast right after he left. He can't have gotten far. Well. The hour passes and nada. I call again and talk to a very nice girl who checks with her supervisor and assures me that Mr. Comcast is on his way, should be there very soon. Still happy. Ten minutes later and I get a call from comcast dispatch. There's no way he's coming out, don't know what those girls were telling you, we have to reschedule. For a week from now.

We were pissed. Dispatch knew it. If Comcast weren't the only damn option we would've dropped them like a hot potato, but we were stuck. I grudgingly made the appointment and brushed off the apologies. Grrr.

Yesterday I talked to the Comcast rep for our complex and she managed to get us the appointment a whole 24 hours sooner. We get internet tomorrow between 2 and 4. If there is a mix-up again, I cannot promise that this blog will be child appropriate.

Fifth, Nick is getting me addicted to video games! Wario Ware (weirdest game ever), and MarioKart (I do still drive off the road) and some others. He just brought Metroid, the Other M, and I was fascinated by the movie-like story portions of it. It made me cry!

Sixth, blahdeblahblah. I'm happy. I like it there despite the fleas. I love living with Nick. I even like pasta five nights out of the week. Now what I would REALLY like is a whole day to enjoy having our apartment without having things to do! Ah, well. Maybe Saturday.