BBQs, Weddings and Ron Paul!

We've been settling into life in our new place quite well. Loren has been spending more time cooking for us (fine by me! lol!) - not that there's anything wrong with my cooking, he just has great ideas and I let him go wild!

Loren cooking creamy chicken and rice in our kitchen. (5/1/12)

We finally had enough saved for a bbq at Big Lots! (I know, we're big spenders)

Loren cooking on the BBQ on the porch outside.

Since Loren's been out of the corps adjustment has been pretty good. I've tried to take him back to see his buddies as often as we can and invite his buddies over often. Last night Loren BBQed and his friends Terry and Campbell came over and spent the night. The boys were up til 4 playing poker and having a good-old time. I woke at noon, showered, then cleaned the kitchen. The boys were sound asleep. When they finally woke up around 1pm it was like watching the walking dead. ;)

After breakfast I kissed my man and headed off for some "me" time at the spa down the road. I got a mani-pedi. I've been working on growing out my nails and keeping them nice looking helps me not to bite them. One of the reasons I want pretty nails is that Loren and I officially picked a date for the wedding today. April 4th, 2013. :) YEAY!!!! My old boss, Michaela Moryskova offered to do our engagement photos so I'm thinking I'll ask her as it gets closer. We picked April 4th, 2013 so that we'll be able to save money and have a tax return by then. I'm hoping that we'll be able to fly up to Washington where his parents are and have the wedding at their place. Last week as we were paying off bills Loren called up the bridal shop and finished the final payments on my wedding dress. The dress is due to arrive on Tuesday. I'm so excited!!! :D

I've been having a lot of fun this week looking at wedding stuff. Loren is totally letting me too! HAHA! I'm trying not to bug him by always talking about the wedding thought. I don't want to be a Bridezilla. ;) I've come up with a few ideas either way that I'm excited about. Table toppers - 4" x 4" mini wedding cakes for the guests! WOOT! I found a cake pan that bakes 4 at a time on amazon for quite a cheap price (under $10) and I plan to test it out when it comes. Just get a few $1 cake mixes at Stater Brothers, frost them, and hopefully they turn out usable. Its gonna be epic.

On to other business, Loren is signed up for school at Mira Costa College in Oceanside, CA and plans to start in June. We're both very excited. Loren is following one of his secret life-long dreams to be a defense attorney. I'm very proud of him. It'll be a long road for us, but we'll push through! He's determined to do it.

On May 4th a few friends of ours, Loren, and I jumped into the car and headed to UCSD to watch presidential candidate Ron Paul speak. :) That man is awesome!

Seriously cool, Ron Paul!

We arrived just in time to see him take stage. There were quite a few people there. Maybe a good 1000 or so. I did my infamous duck and sneak to get all the way in the front. Above is one of the photos I took of him.

Anyway, it's time for bed. Must turn in and get some sleep before the dreaded Monday shows its ugly head. Good night!

Facebook Hystaria

One of the fastest fires spreading posts on Facebook recently was a comment I'd made regarding an evening spent at home yesterday. I was in the kitchen with Loren and he and I were in the midst of wanting to take a shot of rum. I decided that I just couldn't do the shot straight and wanted something to cover the taste. The only thing we had in the refrigerator was Smirnoff ICE. It's a citrus flavored alternative to beer... Though, when you drink it, it tastes like 7UP. Anyway, I whipped that out and made a mix of the two. Loren laughed and said "I feel sorry for your liver". At the time it was seriously funny! Normally you wouldn't mix the two alcohols, but it actually tasted good. Nothing wrong with it! There wasn't that much alcohol in my drink, so it seemed odd that Loren would say that. So since most of our friends knew Loren as a drinker, I posted what happened on my Facebook status...
My best friend Stephanie joked around a bit with me, but it was only a matter of time before the shit would hit the fan.

A random reader posted. "Are you a Mormon or not? You're being hypocritical."

Well, it started an all over the board fight because my stand is just this - I smoke. I drink. I live with the man I love and we currently aren't married (if we can afford it, we plan for the end of the year). I also don't attend church very often because I choose not to (due to a lot of shit I got from Mormons in Utah being prejudice - I'm trying to deal with that now)... Having said all that I want to point out that at no time did I say that I no longer believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, his atonement, and Him being the only way I can return to my Heavenly Father. I will NEVER, EVER forget his part in the plan of eternal life or that I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father.
Just as someone may tell a lie or may take the last piece of someone's gum without asking - my smoking and drinking and premarital sex are also a commandment I am breaking. To the person who started the argument of my being a Mormon, to them because I was sinning that meant I was no longer able to confess my love for Jesus Christ or my belief in the gospel. To them I was being "hypocritical." I tried to get them to see that they were being nonsensical. A lot of other people tried as well. But, it didn't work. It reminds me of the scripture (according to them, I shouldn't be sharing scripture anymore, either)...

MATTHEW CHAPTER 7: 1 ^aJudge not, that ye be not ^bjudged.

 2 For with what ^ajudgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what ^bmeasure ye mete, it shall be ^cmeasured to you again.

 3 ^aAnd why beholdest thou the ^bmote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the ^cbeam that is in thine own eye?

 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

 5 Thou ^ahypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

 6 ¶^aGive not that which is ^bholy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your ^cpearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

 I may sin, but that will never change MY testimony unless I choose to stop having faith in the one thing that will cleanse me and the rest of the humane race. My sins should and do give me even more reason to believe the atonement still applies to me. PERIOD.

So now you all know. I'm not perfect. No one is. But yes, I am still a Mormon... No matter what other people who don't full understand the gospel believe.

Two Days and Counting!

T-Minus 2 days and counting! :) We've been busy!

Sunday was spent cleaning the apartment. Loren and I bought a brand new vacuum. It makes me giggle to think that it's purple... but hey, that's all they had. "Its whatever" At least it works! Our couches had been previously owned by a woman who had cats. She promised she's clean them before we picked them up, but she didn't catch all the cat hair. Our first few weeks in the apartment were spent sleeping on the couches. Loren is allergic to cats. Our first night, sound asleep when I hear pour Loren coughing to the point he's gagging. I jumped straight off the couch "Oh dear god, I've killed him!!" was my thought. He said he was fine. I made it my goal to get us a bed as soon as we had money. So Sunday Loren got the vacuum out and I vacuumed the couches as he vacuumed the rest of the living room. Not much traffic going on through out the place, but the vacuum kicked butt! :) No sneezes yet.

One of the perks of our apartment is a great balcony to just lounge around on and soak up the sun. While sitting on the porch I remember looking at my toes and thinking out loud "I need a pedicure."

"Ok." Loren replied.

"I'm gonna go get one." I told him.

"Ok."

"You're coming with me."

"Ok..." So we put on our flip-flops (everyone in California wears flip-flops) and drove down the road to the nail salon in the little strip mall. I was weary about going there, from the outside it's your classic, every day, run-of-the-mill nail shop... but when we got inside, I don't know where they were hiding the awesomeness, but woo! Loren tried to escape by going to the computer store near by, but it was closed so he came back. ;) I had them give us both manicures and pedicures. I needed it, heavens - I'm sure a man wearing combat boots all year long would need it too. I did however tell him if he picked a color I'd kick his butt. For myself, french tip gel manicure and red toes with little white flowers. Perfect! It was nice to relax and just do something for me (ok, yes that counts even though I got it for him too). All my co-workers lately had been telling me I needed to go out and do something for myself.

After our spa break and cleaning our search began for missing gear in Oceanside. One great thing about Oceanside when it comes to military stuff (C.I.F gear) is that the place is a gold mine. There's so many stores that cary it, we were able to find everything that was missing. For about 6 months now I've also been on the search for white shoes for my dad's Navy uniform. When I stopped into the shops in Oceanside I asked, but no one carried anything Navy - just Marine. All my Navy stuff would be found in San Diego... So now we're going to have to find some time to get down to San Diego for some shopping.

So after all that shopping I had to take Loren back to the barracks. :( I kissed him goodbye and he walked back into the barracks for his last week as an active duty Marine. (he will always be a Marine)

When I got home I had made an arrangement for one of the military wives in an online group I'm in to come over with Scentsy stuff. Can I just tell you how addicted I am to Scentsy? Oddly enough, Loren loves it too! So before I dropped him back off I told him I'd call him with how much it'd cost and he could cut me off if needed. (put the money ball in his court!) I picked out our new warmers - one for the kitchen, one for the living room, and a plug-in for the bathroom. Along with all that we got 6 bars. I still had more bars I loved so it was hard choosing what ones I wanted first. So I called Loren and give him the price of the first package and the price with the package plus the rest of the bars I wanted. He chose the cheaper route. (thanks, babe!)

So we placed an order and then I headed off to bed.

Monday morning the girl who had come over recommended I become a Scentsy consultant. I felt like I really didn't think I'd be good at it since I didn't know many people. That was totally fine! She reassured me that it'd be a great way for me to meet people and have extra money. Both very good things for us. I told Loren about it. He said it sounded like a good idea. So when we have the funds I'll buy my first kit and start selling Scentsy as a part time job.

Tuesday I had a stroke of genius while looking online at decorating ideas for our apartment. Every time I wanted to buy something I'd think "Eh, it's not really what I want..." and not get it... Meaning more time with naked walls. Not so homey. Then I had an idea... I could make something myself! So I took a logo I'd designed (I'm really on this big logo kick) and blew it up to fit a 24" x 36" poster frame. I added our names and wala! Custom home decor! Loren hasn't seen it yet. I hung it in the living room. And oddly enough, the whole thing cost me LESS than what it would have cost me if I'd bought some meaningless artwork at the store. I've decided to turn our living room into this awesome movie theater type room. Once Loren gets his projector (probably after he gets settled in a new job) I plan to buy some red fabric to hang up on the wall where the screen will go. That way when we have guests over we can just open the curtains and look who's awesome with their own theater! That would be us! :) I'll post my DIY Curtains when I do it. Yeah, I know. I'm having too much fun being "bored" in our new place.

Rambles

The weekend is coming, Loren will be home soon. This will be the last weekend before he's officially out and we begin Operation: JOB HUNT. He's very excited for what's to come. Lately he's been working on checking out of the Marine Corps. Its a tedious process, but must be done.

On my end, work has been good. The company has paid to send me and 2 other coworkers to a seminar in San Diego next month. I'm pretty excited! Life is going smoothly right now.

It seems as though time is flying by quite quickly. I can't believe I've been in California almost half a year. So much has happened and so much more to come. Life is just beginning for us right now. :)

Did I tell you, WE GOT INTERNET?! Oh yeah, we did. And, as much as I'd like to say I love it and I've missed it, I actually don't know what to do now that we have internet at home. I spend all day at my desk not being able to do much more than read the news so when I actually come home... I'm not totally sure as to what to do with the "interwebs" (- George W. Bush)! I watched my shows I need to catch up on with Hulu (apparently not many) and now... um... *pop in a movie* I remember being able to go maybe an hour or so without wanting to use the internet. Now it's like I don't need it. HAHA! I know, I know, I say this now. Just wait until a month goes by and I'm addicted to Pinterest again. ;) The only thing I could see using the internet for right now is finding coupons online. But as we found out this past weekend, our brand new printer doesn't work. We'll need to return it. My wonderful man spent hours trying to get it to even register there was paper and to spit it out only to find out the dang thing wouldn't spit the ink out. Grrrr... I guess it's just one of those things, you know?

Our latest purchase was an awesome coffee maker. Has it been used yet... Nope! But it's pretty and red and sits in the kitchen looking awesome. HAHA! I'm afraid I'll break it. So I'll let Loren figure it out. :)

California, I must say is lovely! We have the best weather! Granted, we do have an awful lot of earth quakes. I felt my first one a few weeks ago - but I didn't know it was an earth quake until my coworkers were talking about it the next day. It was like a little vibration. Gee, I hope I don't have to experience a big one now. Crap! *knock on wood* Back to the weather, April and May are the rainy seasons, so say Loren. It will rain a bit, no thunder or lightning, but just rain. Then when its done, the sun will come out and be 75 degrees again! Hard to imagine it being any other season than Summer. I can understand why some people would want to go to Utah and see the snow during winter. It'll be odd to have another Christmas without snow. My favorite holiday is Christmas. :)

PS: Randomness I found out today. The apartment has been creaking, sometimes it'll creep me out at night. Sounds like someone is in the next room. Well as I was sitting on the porch I realized it's the drop in temperature that causes the walls and furniture to settle. Interesting. And... The neighbor snores. And Im not talking like cute little snores, i mean BIG TIME SNORING... I'm listening to them... right... now... Someone please get them breathe right strips or something. :P

A song I've heard on the radio lately helps me get through the week...

“When I look at my life the way it was before,
I can honestly say - “I don’t miss it, anymore.”
I tried so hard to fit in, that I’d make myself ill.
I would cry, I hated life, and things weren’t going very well.
Along came a friend who reminded me of something I used to say
“what do their opinions matter, anyway?”
I could be me and that was OK. God still loved me,
cared for me, no matter what paths I take.
I didn't fit into the cookie-cutter mold.
Trying to force myself to do so was just getting old.
When people judge me and say they wont be my friend
I remember those who still love me, stick with me,
no matter what way life bends.
Not everyone likes to see those who are happy just being them.
But what is life with no curves up ahead?
This is my life, I choose who I’ll be.
I didn’t jump off the deep end, because I chose to think freely.
So choose today, ‘to thine own self be true.’
because the next time you express yourself,
it’d better be a thought from you.”
- Marie C. Zamora 2012.

Moved In!

We've made the move, have some furniture, and are settling into the new place now.
On moving day, one of Loren's friends helped us move with his truck. Our first week we were sleeping on the couches.

On the 28th it was my 27th birthday. :) I had a great day! My state income taxes came in from Utah so since Loren was stuck at Camp Pendleton I treated myself to shopping for home and kitchen supplies. ;)

Friday after work we went out to celebrate with a few friends. 55 Yard Line is our new hot spot.

Loren <3

Cory going in for the drunken bite. ;)

Loren and me pullin "duck lips"

Saturday was the big party! Loren and I rushed in the morning to buy a bed and have it delivered before 6pm. By the afternoon I had to quickly start the crockpot for the experimental 7Up Chicken and Rice which turned out pretty well, and a simple salad. I also made a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. :) No decorations cause I didn't have that much money, but when they all sang to me everyone held out a lighter! It was epic! We rushed to clean the apartment, I ran to the store to pick up drinks then ran to another to pick up a lamp for the super dark living room. Our apartment was built in a time period where having lamps was the main source of lighting a room. I'd bought 2 lamps for the bedroom on Wednesday, but without any side tables, that wouldn't be useful in the living room and what about the now dark bedroom? So another lamp was needed. Loren had previously pointed out a standing lamp he liked at Walmart so I rushed and picked it up.
After getting all the food ready and dropping off shopping I took our sick friend who stayed over Friday back to Camp Pendleton. Loren and I were running on 3 hours of sleep and I was rushing everywhere!

Loren and I expected about 8 or so people. In reality we had about 15 and then some trickling in and out throughout dinner. Around midnight the party ended and Loren and I hopped into bed for some well needed sleep.

With all that had happened Saturday, I felt really bad. I had snapped at my loving and sweet man. I became the "bitchy wife" that I knew I never wanted to be.

Sunday I felt down. Loren had a friend come over in the morning so I told them to go out and get the projector that Loren so desperately wants in our living room. It's going to be pretty bad ass! Just sayin. ;) When he left, I went out to Berlington Coat Factory, Big Lots!, Ross, Walmart, and Target. I wanted to find some more things for the house. When I got to Target I had a complete anxiety attack in the middle of the candle isle. I felt so stupid. The security guards watching the camera must have had a good laugh. I stood there next to the shelf, holding my glasses and shading my eyes sobbing and attempting not to make a sound other than a sniff or two. I had this overwhelming feeling that I'd been doing EVERYTHING and I was tired of it! Everything = worrying about bills, setting up the house, taking care of a drunk/sick friend, making sure a party happened, buying a bed, shopping for food on a low budget, working... etc
My breaking point was me in a candle isle looking for a center piece for our kitchen table. LOL! And stubborn me didn't want to tell Loren. Partly because I wanted him to not think me weak and partly because I didn't know how to tell him. A few moments later I received a text message from Loren telling me he'd got me a birthday present. I collected myself, made my way to the cash register and then came home.

Loren was waiting for me on the porch when I came walking around the shaded pathway. :) He had a huge smile that warmed my heart. I handed off my spoils and we went inside. The laptop was propped open on the counter as he walked me through to show me what he got me. It was like watching a puppy! When he took me into the bedroom there it was. A beautiful, fancy, techie printer all for me! :) I'd wanted a printer so I could print off coupons and photography. I'd casually mentioned it to him while I attempted to fill out a shopping list with him that morning.
I gave him a hug and a kiss and I almost wanted to cry. Leaking from the eye joints doesn't exactly make sense to Loren so I try not to do it. I just wanted him to hold me.

Around 2 I started preparations for dinner. When it finished we decided to take a relaxing nap. I love that bed, can I seriously tell you how awesome it is? When Loren and I bought it the Interior Designer we bought it from threw his hand in Loren's face and showed his wedding band. "See this? This means everything I do I've got to think about the Woman who is on the other end. What she wants is what matters."... And with that, Loren agreed with whatever bed I wanted. LOL! Thankfully, I'm realistic and bought a bed that felt good and was within our price range.

After dinner I took him back to Camp Pendleton.

Loren has a few days and 2 weeks left in the Marine Corps. New huge assignment is to find him a job

Packing

Work

So I never really realized how much of a pink fan I am until I came into work this morning and was given the official "wolfpack" gang cup. I was given pink. When I filled my glass and then sat down at my desk, that's when I saw it... PINK! Believe me, that wasn't my intention. :P
I like pink!... But I didn't think I was obsessed with it!
Thankfully, in the apartment, I've not overwhelmed either of us with pink. I actually think blues, greens, and browns dominate. Very earthy, beachy colors.

Speaking of apartment, we're moving in tomorrow! :) YEAY!!!!!!!!! Oh my gosh, I'm so excited!!! Gonna freak out like 5 minutes til we get the key. ;) Thank you in advanced to everyone who helps us this weekend.

Back to work: Today one of my many bosses (LOL!) has been training me since the other bosses are out of town for the rest of the week. Yesterday I made my first trip to LA for the company to measure out signage. I like this! I was worried that the idea of me going to LA was going to be anxiety ridden like it used to be for my other job. Oddly enough, it wasn't. I got there, did my thing, and came back down to San Diego county. Quick, painless (well other than the $5.00 and 1/4 tank of gas), and easy. I stopped and had lunch with my sexy Marine - he's checking out of the Corps right now so I knew he wouldn't be doing guard duty. I love that man, have I said that yet? ;) I really do. He's amazing. :D *sigh*

Anyway, today my boss told me I failed at being a gatekeeper. WHA?! ME!? FAIL!!!?? F-A-I-L?! Me. Marie!? NO!!!!!!!! A customer did the old switcher-oo on what they were really calling for so a call got sent to the wrong person. So I got brought into the office and we talked about how I could do it better.
Instead of just asking for name, company, and who they're calling for I need to be prodding for more information. If they say accounts receivable I need to ask if its a contracted account. If it is, I send it to the person I had earlier. If it's not or they don't know, I can handle it (apparently) if they're just doing a bill. If it's any other questions on the account, I'm not really sure how to help.
Being a secr..-cough-..administrative assistant is new to me. I've been a teacher, office manager, retail sales, sales executive, and graphic designer, but never an admin assistant. I need training. I've kinda been off on my own little thing trying to do as best I can. Now I need more training. My boss acknowledged that I'd not had much training in that job description because as of late they've had me doing a heck of a lot more graphic design stuff. The only admin stuff I was doing was answering phones and getting and sending out mail. Occasionally I'd have a contract faxed or signed, but not often. So he promised to take on the roll of training me to be an ace admin. I'm happy someone is going to help me! I don't - NEVER have and NEVER will - like the word "fail". Makes me mad to think that I'd failed.
I've been reading blogs/articles all day about how to be a great admin/executive assistant that he sent me. There was one article that really hit me. It was about communication...

There are basically four different social styles in which we communicate. Each style gives and receives information differently. If you can identify your boss’ style (as well as your own), we can begin improving the communication process between you.

1. Analytical

2. Driver

3. Amiable

4. Expressive

Drivers are business-like and want the facts. They want you to get straight to the point. are very decisive and can be impatient and demanding. Drivers want power, control and authority. Their primary focus is on results. To effectively communicate with a driver, be clear, specific, brief and to the point in a business-like manner. Have all of your supporting material, be well organized and present your information logically and efficiently. When presenting facts and figures, give the probability of success and offer options. Avoid rambling conversations and non-essential information. In other words, don’t waste their time or try to build a personal relationship (save that for the Amiable). Don’t bring a disorganized presentation or leave issues open ended. Remember, get to the point, be efficient and thorough, and give them options.

Analyticals need data, data and more data. The more information you provide them, the better.. They are very detail oriented, good at problem solving and organizing and tend to be very thorough and will take their time coming to decisions. Their primary focus is on details. To effectively communicate with an analytical, indicate that you have done your homework and extensive research when possible. Be straightforward, direct and stick to your plan. Detail the positives and negatives to any suggestions that you make and make it known that you are available to see the project through and understanding their desire to be thorough. Avoid being disorganized, messy, too casual, informal or loud. Never rush an analytical! Always follow through and never appear vague. Just the analytical all the facts and details and allow them time to think it over and make a decision.

Expressives see the big picture and are not interested in details and are risk-takers. They are loud, personable, enthusiastic, love color and tend to be flamboyant and emotional. They seek recognition and visibility. They are primarily right brainers whose primary focus is on creativity. To effectively communicate with an expressive, show interaction that supports their dreams and intentions and your intent to formalize the details of their treatment. Draw out their creativity, opinions and ideas. Avoid being curt, cold or autocratic and never leave decisions hanging in the air with an expressive. Also, don’t be impersonal, judgmental, task-oriented and never talk down to them or appear dogmatic. Expressive are people oriented and will not respond to condescending behavior..

Amiables are warm, friendly, dependable, dedicated and cooperative. They are good listeners, team oriented and very sensitive. They want low risk with guarantees and avoid making decisions. Their primary focus is on satisfaction and proven results for the others. To effectively communicate with an amiable, show your concern for them as a person from the outset and find areas of common ground. Be candid, open, patient and show an interest in their personal goals. Maintain a nonthreatening manner and a casual, informal demeanor Amiables are not risk takers! Assure them that risks will be minimized and provide them with benefits, personal assurances and clear, specific solutions with maximum guarantees.

After reviewing each style, do your best to figure out which one describes your boss and which one describes you. Then, communicate to your boss in his or her style. That is the key. You must identify the other person’s style and deliver information to them in their own style to maximize the communication experience for both of you. Give it a try. It really does work, even in your personal life.

I discovered that I had been communicating to my husband all wrong. I would call him at work and ask him what I thought was a simple question: “Paul would you like to go to Florida or the Bahamas for vacation?” Paul is an analytical and I am an expressive so he would get flustered and rush me off the phone saying “I don’t know, I can’t think right now, talk to me later.” Can you identify what I did wrong? As an analytical, I did not give him enough information; there weren’t enough details for him to make a decision. So now, let me show you the right way that actually worked quite well.

“Paul, would you like to go to Florida or the Bahamas next July? American Airlines has a sale for $199 round trip and we can stay at the XYZ resort. We can put it all on Mastercard and pay it off in three months.”

BINGO!! That’s the way to give information to an analytical.

I like it! As I read over this, I've realized that this little section would solve a million issues on communication I'm currently having with my boss who's having me do design things. I am a very analytical communicator. Now I want to research more about communication!