Dear Blogosphere

Disneyland! And Valentine's!

2012-02-07T10:19:00.003-07:00

Hello, Dear Blogosphere!

The time has come for a Disneyland report. I had a long to-do list, and Sean and I got most of it accomplished! Here's what we did...

Space Mountain (Our longest wait - 50 minutes)

Mad Tea Party (Sean's first time! He spun like crazy)

Mouse Ear Hats! (Our souvenir of the trip)
Mr Toad's Wild Ride (Sean's first time!)
Village Haus for dinner (We were starving - we had pastrami burgers, and mine was on a gluten-free bun!)
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Jungle Cruise (Sean's first time, and he couldn't hear the puns! We'll return...)
Pirates of the Caribbean
Mint Julep and Beignets (One of my favorite Disney treats! I made Sean enjoy beignets for me)
Haunted Mansion
Splash Mountain
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (We got on the ride in about 5 minutes!)
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Autopia
Shopping at Small World (Got a few things for Daphne's first birthday)
Pineapple whip float! (Delicious)
Star Tours (AWESOME)

Sorry for the lack of photos! It got dark pretty early plus when you only have 8 hours in the Happiest Place on Earth, there's no time to stop for photos! Anyway, I am very impressed with what we did in the time allotted. Next time, we'll definitely have to ride Matterhorn and Small World (both closed this time) and eat turkey legs (the stands closed too early). I must also note that it was actually hot in Anaheim. Low 80's!

On our way home we stopped at Cafe Rio in Tustin. The most delicious food AND Disneyland in the same twenty-four hours?! With my amazing boyfriend! A girl doesn't get any happier.

...or does she? Yesterday evening, Sean played a series of tricks on me which ended with him handing me a little blue box. :-) We are just terrible at waiting for actual holidays to exchange gifts...

L-O-V-E. Pretty much stunning. I love how modern and simple it is, while still being completely romantic. Perfect.

Happy Valentine's Day to me! And to you! Valentine's isn't just for lovers, but for friends and family too. Here's a joke for you...

What did one pickle say to the other pickle?

"You mean a great dill to me!"

It's true! Happy Valentine's Day, friends!

Everybody Has a Laughing Place...

2012-01-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

...a laughing place, to go (oh oh)! And one of my laughing places is, of course, Disneyland! Sean and I are heading down to Anaheim this weekend and spending an evening in the Happiest Place on Earth. I am SO excited. I have it all planned. Here are the Must Rides and Must Eats...

Must Ride

(Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters)

Must Eat

Turkey leg!

Mint Julep!

Dinner at Cafe Orleans.

Pineapple Whip Floats!

Goodness, how lucky can a girl get? Disneyland, Yosemite, Hawaii all in 2012. I will have a full report of the trip next week!

Valentine Decorating and Summer Planning

2012-01-18T16:47:00.004-07:00

Hellooooo! It's only mid-January and I'm not only all over this Valentine's Day thing coming up, but also got much of my summer planned! My apartment is mostly decorated for Valentine's...

$4 Valentine door hanging.
Glittertastic.

Made these hearts using paint samples!

Sweet owls dishtowel from my mom.

Valentine corner. Be Mine bag full of treats and surprises for Sean.
Got the nifty plastic Xs and Os at Target.

I love decorating for Valentine's Day! I made a really cool gift for Sean that I will share with the blogosphere after February 14! In other news...

I got these beautiful crystal vases for a steal.
I am on the hunt for fancy fake hydrangeas!

Have I mentioned how much fun this trip was?

This weekend Sean and I planned two BIG adventures. We are going camping with his family in Yosemite this June! And then in July we are going to Hawaii! Two places I've never been, but have always wanted to go. I am so excited. My Sagittarius self is going nuts.

I can't wait until summer.

16. Take a trip along CA-1.

2012-01-10T13:03:00.001-07:00

On Friday, Sean asked me what I wanted to do this weekend. "Just hang out with you," I said. Well, he had far bigger and better plans. "How about we take a trip along highway 1?" "Yes!" It was spur of the moment and oh-so-fun. Here's a map of where we went...

From Davis to Monterey, to Morro Bay, to San Luis Obispo, to Morro Bay, to Sunnyvale, to Davis.
An estimated twelve hours of driving.

We got on highway 1 just south of Gilroy (the garlic town, you know)!
Hours of beautiful ocean to come.

We walked around Cannery Row in Monterey...

Just gorgeous.

Had lunch at Bubba Gump's -- Sean is a huge Forrest Gump fan and he totally dominated the trivia game!

We liked the quotes as you walked into and out of the restaurant.

In Monterey.

After winding our way back to the 1, we found this spectacular view.

We spent a lot of time taking in the views at Bixby Canyon Bridge -- Sean's favorite.
It is magical.

A civil engineer and his favorite bridge.

Having a blast in the sun.

We stopped to see the elephant seals -- on the beach for birthing and mating season!
I loved watching them. They're very funny, interesting creatures.

Dude elephant seal shouting something of importance to the group.

Mamas fighting about babies.
One mama bit the other one's baby. Not cool.

Feeding time! The babies and mamas had cool barks to recognize each other.
I loved hearing the babies bark at their moms to roll over a bit more.

<3 Seal love <3.

We made it to Morro Bay and relaxed for a few hours -- we were exhausted! Then Sean took me to San Luis Obispo for dinner. He found a place that was "very Natalie" called Big Sky Cafe. I had shrimp tacos (divine!) and Sean had a chicken and eggplant grilled cheese sandwich. For dessert we had a scrumptious apple crisp. SLO closed too early -- we were ready to hit the shops, so we walked around a bit before heading back to Morro Bay and crashing for the night.

We woke up the next morning and headed to the rock!

Morro Rock -- a HUGE rock in Morro Bay.
I loved watching the surfers ride the waves.

Rock!

We took CA-101 to Sunnyvale, to visit Sean's sister. It was beautiful as well, lots of agriculture. We stopped in Gilroy to check out the outlets (I scored a sweater for $3.75!) and found a delicious (dangerously delicious) hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant in Morgan Hill. It was fun to hang out with Sarah and G, and to see Maui and Hilo. We then headed back inland!

I am so glad I put this on my twenty-five before twenty-five list! Everyone should drive the 1. California truly is a magical place. I can't decide what my favorite part was... but I think it was the moment when we found ourselves singing at the top of our lungs about how nothing comes close to our golden coast.

:-)

Six down, nineteen to go!

1. Go backpacking.
2. Walk across the Golden Gate.
~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)
4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
5. Make gluten free pasta.
~~6. Paint.~~ (Painted Valentine art! 1/2/12)
7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.
8. Make my own goat cheese.
9. Take the train to Reno.
10. Solve a Rubix cube.
~~11. Attend Midnight Mass.~~
12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.
13. Host a dinner party.
14. Lose 25 pounds.
15. Get my A1C below 7.5.
~~16. Take a trip along CA-1.~~ (To San Luis Obispo! 1/7/12-1/8/12)
17. Make gluten free bagels.
18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.
~~19. Snowshoe.~~ (Whew! Exhausting and fun - 12/28/11)
~~20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.~~ (Spaghetti with veg and sausage! 12/19/11)
21. Camp in Yosemite.
22. Learn to and catch a fish.
23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.
24. Make stained glass.
25. Embroider pillow cases.

Gifts and Apartment Improvement!

2012-01-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello!

I've been back in California for 6 days now, just enough time to unpack, enjoy the wonderful gifts I got for Christmas, and go on a great adventure (post to come)! Sean put up a few shelves in my apartment and I got the place cleaned up yesterday for him to take photos with his sweet wide-angle lens...

My kitchen has many new additions! Aurora and Khrystine gave me a wonderful kitchen timer, Sara gave me a fun flask, my mom gave me some new kitchen tools including an avocado slicer and cutting boards, as well as some great new wintery dinnerware. My dad gave me an Amazon gift card with which I bought a colander scoop and a nifty 5-in-1 tool, as well as some fancy kitchen shears.

Emily made me adorable cafe curtains and Ali gave me a hilarious pig calendar. My mom also gave me some cute Valentine dishtowels and magnetic picture frames!

My living room is just perfect. Sean's parents gave me a wonderful cozy blanket for Christmas. It makes me slightly chilly apartment much more bearable! The only thing I have left to do, and my apartment will be DONE, is make wall hangings for above my couch.

Sean installed the shelves above my TV! Perfect for knick-knacks. Emily made me the neat paintings on the top shelf. Also, with my dad's gift card, I bought a sweet magnetic key holder. It's next to my door.

Thanks, Sean, for putting up my shelves! Also, my dad gave me those super cute bunnies on the top shelf.

My bedroom is nice and cozy with my flannel sheets and super soft blanket I got for my birthday! (And I am still loving the window treatments my mom put up!) Sarah and G got me the most adorable carafe imaginable. It's next to my lamp but a little hard to see...

My photos were updated after my birthday with frames from my mom. I love it.

Finally, my bathroom was difficult to love at first... but I'm getting there! Sean installed the glass shelf and I topped it with a really cool storage solution. And Caroline got me a nifty Mary Kay skincare set that included a cute brush set and pouch.

My little California home is wonderful and full of character. It's so nice to have my own space to get creative and even better to have Sean and family to help out! Thanks for all the wonderful gifts, friends!

...Now, please wait patiently for the next, sure to be fantastic, post...

6. Paint

2012-01-02T17:16:00.001-07:00

First...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I've been bundled up in Salt Lake City with a cold but I have been enjoying my 2012! It's been full of tasty food, trips for Christmas bargain shopping, and a wonderful birthday party for Daphne Kate -- she's six months already!

Today we played our classic game of Gingerbread House Bat, where we take out a little aggression on our gingerbread houses. And then we painted!

~~6. Paint!~~

I painted two masterpieces, both for Valentine's day! Both are dedicated to my valentine, Sean. Hehe.

Ali used Utah landscapes and Rothko's work as inspiration. I love her pieces...

Emily's is titled Bubblegum and I think it's very sweet! She spent oodles of time on this fun painting!

And I saved the best for last! Daphne joined forces with Taylor to create the cutest painting!

Happy new year, friends!

Five down, twenty to go!

1. Go backpacking.
2. Walk across the Golden Gate.
~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)
4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
5. Make gluten free pasta.
~~6. Paint.~~ (Painted Valentine art! 1/2/12)
7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.
8. Make my own goat cheese.
9. Take the train to Reno.
10. Solve a Rubix cube.
~~11. Attend Midnight Mass.~~
12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.
13. Host a dinner party.
14. Lose 25 pounds.
15. Get my A1C below 7.5.
16. Take a trip along CA-1.
17. Make gluten free bagels.
18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.
~~19. Snowshoe.~~ (Whew! Exhausting and fun - 12/28/11)
~~20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.~~ (Spaghetti with veg and sausage! 12/19/11)
21. Camp in Yosemite.
22. Learn to and catch a fish.
23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.
24. Make stained glass.
25. Embroider pillow cases.

19. Snowshoe.

2011-12-28T20:19:00.001-07:00

Today, my younger sister, Ali, took me snowshoeing. It was quite the adventure! Exhausting, but fun. She kept me going with a promise of a surprise treat at the end.

We found a trail in Big Cottonwood Canyon,
just southeast of Salt Lake City.

We snowshoed along Butler Fork Trail!

The drive through the canyon, as usual, was beautiful!

Ali is a fearless snowshoer!

I look freakin' awesome in my mismatched attire with gaiters!

My treat at the end for pushing on! California Cutie and a candy cane!

We are planning to go again before I leave. I learned many important things... (1) small steps work best, (2) the snow is my friend, (3) snowshoeing is for the tough, like Ali!

It was so much fun. It was nice to hang out in the snow and, afterwards, enjoy some warm drinks. Mmm!

Four down! Twenty-one to go!

1. Go backpacking.
2. Walk across the Golden Gate.
~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)
4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
5. Make gluten free pasta.
6. Paint.
7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.
8. Make my own goat cheese.
9. Take the train to Reno.
10. Solve a Rubix cube.
~~11. Attend Midnight Mass.~~
12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.
13. Host a dinner party.
14. Lose 25 pounds.
15. Get my A1C below 7.5.
16. Take a trip along CA-1.
17. Make gluten free bagels.
18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.
~~19. Snowshoe.~~ (Whew! Exhausting and fun - 12/28/11)
~~20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.~~ (Spaghetti with veg and sausage! 12/19/11)
21. Camp in Yosemite.
22. Learn to and catch a fish.
23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.
24. Make stained glass.
25. Embroider pillow cases.

11. Attend Midnight Mass

2011-12-25T02:33:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas! Yesterday was a wonderful Christmas Eve. I hit the snooze for over an hour and headed to my friend Vanessa's house for some delicious pumpkin cheesecake! It was so fun to see her, Ryan, and her little Ev. I then visited with my grandma. We talked about San Francisco and other things. After visiting my grandma, we headed to Emily and Taylor's place for an early dinner. I assembled ingredients for a pot roast the night before, and my mom got it cooking in the morning. It was DELICIOUS.

I got to open my gift from Emily, Taylor, and Daphne! Adorable cafe curtains for my kitchen. I am so excited to put them up. I'll post a picture when I do! Afterwards, we drove around Salt Lake looking at Christmas lights, including my favorite street...

We spent some time hanging out with Wes and then Ali and I went to Midnight Mass, knocking #11 off my list!

We got there early for some caroling (very, very fun!) and a few minutes before Mass began, a man approached us telling us that we were so lucky to be sitting in the back, and that we got to deliver the wine and host to the priest! Pretty sure my face was a mix of nervousness and excitement, because he asked if we were Catholic. Nope! He then asked, if he could, what faith we belonged to. "Ummm... nothing really." His response? "That's great!" It was fantastic to be a part of the service.

The priest gave a wonderful talk about Christ, power, and weakness. A few points that have really stuck with me, and I hope will continue to stick with me, were that God chose to become human in, essentially, poverty, and to be born weak as an infant. Further, the priest talked about in our weaknesses is perfect power, and where love comes from. I thought a lot about my weaknesses and how empathy grows from them. It's a beautiful idea to not focus on squashing weakness but accepting, embracing, and appreciating it. Wonderful things to think about.

Three down, twenty-two to go!

1. Go backpacking.
2. Walk across the Golden Gate.
~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)
4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
5. Make gluten free pasta.
6. Paint.
7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.
8. Make my own goat cheese.
9. Take the train to Reno.
10. Solve a Rubix cube.
~~11. Attend Midnight Mass.~~
12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.
13. Host a dinner party.
14. Lose 25 pounds.
15. Get my A1C below 7.5.
16. Take a trip along CA-1.
17. Make gluten free bagels.
18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.
19. Snowshoe.
~~20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.~~ (Spaghetti with veg and sausage! 12/19/11)
21. Camp in Yosemite.
22. Learn to and catch a fish.
23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.
24. Make stained glass.
25. Embroider pillow cases.

Christmas Eve Eve!

2011-12-24T00:27:00.002-07:00

I had a wonderful Christmas Eve Eve today! Full of Christmassing and hanging out with the family. I spent the night at my sisters and had a delicious brunch with my dad and his wife! He brought me tasty gluten-free cookies and muffins. So much good food! Then I went back to my mom's for gingerbread housemaking...

My simple abode with a gingerbread robot!

My mom's house is so festive...

Her Christmas village.

Awesome ornaments!

Gorgeous ornaments.

Ali and I had a little eggnog, which we do about every year, remembering how not delicious eggnog is!

Mmm! More calories than ice cream.

We then relaxed, watching some classic Christmas cartoons, and Ali organized Christmas presents while I snuggled with Ben...

I am so excited that it is Christmas Eve! I am making a pot roast for dinner and hanging out with family all day. It is going to be fantastic. And I can't wait to open up presents and see if my family likes their gifts!

Merry Christmas Eve!

What a year!

2011-12-23T01:54:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking today about how much has happened this year and how different 2011 was from 2010, how different I feel this December versus last. It's been an amazing year. A quick recap of the big things!

January 2011...

I was still living in my old apartment (see here), 390 square feet of happiness but ugly carpet, furniture, and appliances that were dated in not-a-cute way. But I enjoyed it. My first place. PhD applications were in, I was nervously waiting to hear from the five schools I applied to. I was spending lots of time with my friend, Caitlin, who I had good, eye-opening discussions with. Winter quarter was starting and I took one of the most interesting courses of my graduate school career. Mid-January, I found out that I was accepted to the PhD program here at Davis. A huge weight was lifted, I could see my future. I also got into instant photography and got my nose pierced -- because I wasn't sure if I would be staying in California, and it seemed like a bit of California I could take with me. I was "in love" with Ned from Pushing Daisies and dreaming, laughing my way through the series. I also knew, but kept quiet, that my sister was pregnant!

February 2011...

In February, I got even more excited about having a niece or nephew! I remember spending the month looking about baby clothes and other items online. Like adorable infant Armani suits and Dior dresses. Aww! I was also recruited by Davis, which was one of the most fantastic weekends ever. So much wining and dining, feeling excited about continuing at UCD. I spent much of February getting stoked for my travels in March -- including trips to Auburn, Alabama, and Montreal.

March 2011...

I spent March travelling and making a huge, life-altering decision. First trip was to Auburn University, in Alabama. I got into a PhD program there and they recruited me that weekend. I stayed in a gorgeous, old Victorian bed and breakfast and had fascinating conversations with the owner about Alabama, politics, his ideas about development, etc. I met with faculty, two of whom really wanted to work with me and I (of course) was very interested as well. I met with students, explored the town, and thought about a life in Alabama. I drove from Atlanta to Auburn late at night, which was very rewarding, and I also got to visit the World of Coke, which was awesome. After my trip to Auburn, I spent two days in Salt Lake, then two days in Davis, then I was off to Montreal where I presented my research on ethnic differences in dating and body dissatisfaction, and the relationship between those two. I got to explore the city with Mayra. One of my favorite days was when we walked around Old Montreal and stumbled into a gorgeous cafe, where I asked if they had any gluten free treats. The whole cafe was gluten-free! I had a delicious hot chocolate and chocolate mousse. I talked with Mayra about Auburn vs Davis.

April 2011...

I made the decision to stay in Davis! It just felt right. After letting Auburn know, I knew it was the right decision. And I still know it was right, so, so right. My mom got me an early graduation gift of the oh-so-awesome iPad and I hit the ground running, taking a class on aging and adulthood, working on my thesis, and administering a big survey. I struck up conversation with a boy... and while I was having an amazing time at the Happiest Place on Earth, we texted -- I did so very, very slowly earning the title of worst texter ever. This boy and I went on a couple of dates, and I really, really started to like him...

May 2011...

Sean and I kept on dating and I started making plans for graduation and moving! A busy month, with the study, school work, and the wonderful beginnings of an amazing relationship...

June 2011...

I graduated! And my mom and younger sister stayed with me for a few days! We went to San Francisco, with Sean, where we went to the SFMOMA, Twin Peaks, and the Walt Disney Family Museum. And we explored Old Sac. So fun. Then I moved! An intense couple of days/weeks, packing and moving with a trusty Honda Element. Thank goodness for friends who helped me move the big stuff and Sean for helping me build furniture! I spent the first weekend of many with Sean and his siblings in the bay area, full of exploration and fun.

July 2011...

On July 1, my niece was born! Sean took me to see the San Francisco Symphony. It was an awesome date! I spent a lot of time studying for prelims. I fell, head over heels, in love with Sean. And at the end of the month, I went home for a great visit! I loved spending time with Daphne. The last couple days I was here, Sean visited! We had great adventures and I think he sort of ended up appreciated Utah, at least!

August 2011...

I got a car! I wrote up an abstract for a poster for SRA (which got accepted)! I studied for prelims a lot and made lots of trips to hang out with Sean's family in the bay area!

September 2011...

I made a trip out to the bay area to visit Caitlin and Evan in their new place! So cute. And I got a great tour of Google. Prelims were over, I almost chickened out!, and I was sure I wouldn't pass. It was hell. But everyday after the exam, I was greeted by Sean, once with peanut butter M&Ms! We had adventures to clear my head, like trips to Walmart in Woodland. He was my perfect distraction and support.

October 2011...

A month full of teaching, recovering from prelims... actually, I honestly don't really remember this month very well. Sean and I went wine tasting! And my mom and older sister, along with my niece, visited, doing lots of apartment improvement projects! It was wonderful to have them here!

November 2011...

The challenges of teaching continued but I had lots of fun activities to make life less tedious! I went to the best party of the year. It was wonderful to spend a weekend with Sean and his family and to play such a huge role in his sister's wedding. LOVE! I found out I passed prelims! Sean gave me the incredible presents as early birthday gifts! He also accompanied me home to Salt Lake for Thanksgiving.

December 2011...

We started out the month in San Francisco, with my dad and his wife. We had fun being tourists! It was a nice break before the end of the quarter. The quarter came to a close and I got to spend a lot of time with Sean before coming home for the holidays. We exchanged gifts early. Another wonderful holiday with lots of love and gifts!

It's been an amazing year. Full of family, California, and love. Everything has come together. I am the luckiest girl in the world. Last December, I was a little lost, I didn't know what paths were before me. But looking back, everything happened perfectly with perfect timing. Incredible.

I hope you are having wonderful holidays!

20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.

2011-12-19T19:49:00.002-07:00

Today I made, what I think was, a totally delicious dinner with my CrockPot. It gets the "amazing" stamp because of its tastiness and economic value. Behold! Spaghetti with vegetables and sausage!

Where the magic happens!

It's quite simple. Pour into the CrockPot a 16 oz can of spaghetti sauce. On top of the sauce, add 3-4 hot Italian sausages -- or more, if you wish. They can be frozen or not. Top that with a large onion, sliced thin/chopped fairly well. Add a good amount of frozen spinach and frozen julienned bell peppers. Spice it up with garlic salt and Italian seasoning. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

Then, right before serving, cook 8 ounces of spaghetti per package directions. I used corn pasta, my favorite. Mix in and enjoy!

P.S. I have discovered that you can put pretty much any soup or sauce and meat and it turns out delicious! I love my CrockPot...
P.P.S. When Sean ate this he gave it high compliments and told me that the way to his heart is through his stomach. AWWWWW!!! Success.

1. Go backpacking.
2. Walk across the Golden Gate.
~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)
4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
5. Make gluten free pasta.
6. Paint.
7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.
8. Make my own goat cheese.
9. Take the train to Reno.
10. Solve a Rubix cube.
11. Attend Midnight Mass.
12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.
13. Host a dinner party.
14. Lose 25 pounds.
15. Get my A1C below 7.5.
16. Take a trip along CA-1.
17. Make gluten free bagels.
18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.
19. Snowshoe.
~~20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.~~ (Spaghetti with veg and sausage! 12/19/11)
21. Camp in Yosemite.
22. Learn to and catch a fish.
23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.
24. Make stained glass.
25. Embroider pillow cases.

3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.

2011-12-17T19:34:00.000-07:00

I decided I wanted to cross an item off my 25 before 25 list before I left Davis for Salt Lake. I had the beer and the snacks for a beer tasting so I went ahead and did it solo.

~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~

Unfortunately, no one who knew anything about beer tasted with me and my beer drinking experience is extremely limited. When I was 18, I tried a sip of Budweiser, I want to say, when I was making beer-battered onion rings. I didn't particularly like it nor did I drink at the time, so I never tried beer again until a little after my 21st birthday, when I had a Redbridge, thought it was "eh" and gave it to my brother to finish (which often happens with my booze). Anyway, I thought having a tasting might turn me on to beer... keep reading to see if I am now a beer fan!

The contenders:

Redbridge: "Gluten-free sorghum beer made without wheat or barley" made by Anheuser-Busch (found in pretty much any grocery store these days).

Bard's: "The original sorghum malt beer"

and New Grist: "Beer made from sorghum and rice extract. A crisp and refreshing session beer."

The snacks included gluten-free pretzels and bagel chips (yum!!!) and two of my favorite cheeses, probably not wisely paired: brie and Dubliner.

A variety of colors. Two golden, one yellow...

All set up and ready to go!

Redbridge: Smelled very sweet, was bubbly, light, and not very delicious. My least favorite of the three.

Bard's: Smelled sweet, had complex flavors, bitter particularly at the end. It was more interesting than Redbridge but not very... delightful.

and New Grist: Had a very faint, sweet smell. Bitter up front, but does not linger. It was pretty refreshing and definitely my favorite.

The winner is...

That said, the most delicious thing on my table were certainly the pretzels, bagel chips, and cheese. I have three more bottles of beer and would like someone who knows something about beer to tell me which one they prefer and if any of them actually taste like beer... just because I'm curious.

And there we go! #3 knocked off the list!

1. Go backpacking.

2. Walk across the Golden Gate.

~~3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.~~ (I don't like beer! 12/17/11)

4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.

5. Make gluten free pasta.

6. Paint.

7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.

8. Make my own goat cheese.

9. Take the train to Reno.

10. Solve a Rubix cube.

11. Attend Midnight Mass.

12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.

13. Host a dinner party.

14. Lose 25 pounds.

15. Get my A1C below 7.5.

16. Take a trip along CA-1.

17. Make gluten free bagels.

18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.

19. Snowshoe.

20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.

21. Camp in Yosemite.

22. Learn to and catch a fish.

23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.

24. Make stained glass.

25. Embroider pillow cases.

Twenty Five Before Twenty Five!

2011-12-12T19:04:00.001-07:00

It took me a while to compile this list but, voila!, here it is! It does include a number of items from my twenty four before twenty four list...

So excited to knock these off!

25 before 25

1. Go backpacking.

2. Walk across the Golden Gate.

3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.

4. Take a midnight walk on the beach.

5. Make gluten free pasta.

6. Paint.

7. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers and subjects.

8. Make my own goat cheese.

9. Take the train to Reno.

10. Solve a Rubix cube.

11. Attend Midnight Mass.

12. Pick a pineapple in Hawaii.

13. Host a dinner party.

14. Lose 25 pounds.

15. Get my A1C below 7.5.

16. Take a trip along CA-1.

17. Make gluten free bagels.

18. Go on a Segway tour of San Francisco.

19. Snowshoe.

20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.

21. Camp in Yosemite.

22. Learn to and catch a fish.

23. Take a wok around Chinatown in Vancouver.

24. Make stained glass.

25. Embroider pillow cases.

San Francisco and Merry (Early) Christmas!

2011-12-08T14:04:00.001-07:00

I spent the weekend with Sean, my dad, and his wife in San Francisco. It was a beautiful weekend. Warm and clear, sunny skies! It was actually warmer in SF than Davis. Crazy. Anyway, Sean and I enjoyed being tourists in San Francisco. Here are some photos!

Lombard Street.

By my favorite bridge.

The view from Twin Peaks on a clear night.
Isn't it an incredible photograph? Sean has some serious skills.

In Chinatown.

My dad and I near Chinatown.

Me, my dad, and Caroline at the Golden Gate.

Another Golden Gate photo!

We ate delicious food. Like this AMAZING seafood Cobb salad.
Crab... shrimp... salmon... what more could a girl ask for?

It was a fantastic weekend. And when we got back we started our holiday festivities. I made some pretty tasty gluten-free white chocolate pretzels...

And I'm loving my slow cooker (artichoke pasta shown below)!

As we did with our birthdays, we just couldn't wait to give each other Christmas gifts. Sean rocks at shopping...

My new coat!

My new bangle!

My new water bottle!
Really cool -- has a filter built right in.

I got Sean an immersion blender which we tested out last night. We made delicious, fresh pesto mayonnaise! It's going to be fun to taste all the sauces Sean makes!

Holly Jolly Apartment, Thanksgiving, and Birthday!

2011-11-30T09:45:00.001-07:00

Hello! It's been a great week, full of food and celebration...

Happy birthday to me!

Emily made me this awesome garland!

Birthday/Thanksgiving Bingo!

My birthday cake of Dixie Salad -- the best pomegranates in the world with apples and fresh whipped cream.

It was such a fun, happy day! Feasting and presents. Doesn't get any better than that. Sean and I spent the rest of the break with my family, Emily, Taylor, and Daphne, mostly. It was HARD to leave.

I came home and decorated my apartment...

Winter-y wreath!

Garland (thanks, Em!) and shimmering star lights.

A little cheer for my bedroom!
My mom got me knew flannel sheets and a super cozy blanket for my bed.
Heaven.

Sean's and my stockings!

My tiny tree! Click to make it big...

All lit up!

It's the most wonderful time of the year! I have Pandora playing my favorite Christmas mix (based on the Christmas Waltz by the Carpenters) and have already started Christmas shopping. So happy it's almost December!

Autumn, Food, and Protest

2011-11-21T14:19:00.001-07:00

Hello from Davis, California!

I am currently in my office hours, missing out on a huge protest outside. It's crazy what has been going on. On Friday, I walked by pepper sprayed students being helped by firefighters with their burns. It's nothing like what happened at Berkeley, but it is still out of control. Here are a couple of great articles if you need to get caught up on the situation...

From NPR
Militarization of Campus Police (written by a UCD faculty member)
And one that puts all of this in perspective

These events have created lots of opportunities for conversations. Thinking about what we can do as a community and what I can do as a teaching assistant. I know the economic pressure is affecting my students. It's been thought-provoking.

And, on a completely different note, autumn is in full blast here...

I love seeing the trees turn their wild colors, especially when they are coupled with palm trees. Perfection.

I've been eating a lot of delicious food lately too. I can't help but share...

NOM. I am hungry for lunch. Additionally, this weekend, Sean, his brother, Scott, and I went to Chico to have a Jiffy burger. A peanut butter burger. Twas quite delicious.

The quarter is coming to an end. I have oodles of papers to grade and a presentation to put together about my thesis. Eep! It will get done. Mostly I am just pumped to go home on Wednesday for Thanksgiving and my birthday! Get to hang out with the family, enjoy the cool Rocky air, and Sean is traveling too! I couldn't be happier. Ah, life is GOOD.

It will be interesting to see what happens this week at UCD. Times have to change.

Eleven Wishes

2011-11-13T10:59:00.001-07:00

My sisters posted eleven wishes for 11/11/11 at 11:11. I am doing it a little late but... here are my eleven!

I wish that...

1. Daphne grows up healthy and strong, ready to take on and change the world.
2. Sarah and her love have a wonderful marriage and happiness forever.
3. Ali keeps on rocking at the U, has oodles more fun dates, and ends up where she wishes to be (with Pulitzer and/or Nobel in hand!)
4. Emily and Taylor enjoy their new jobs, get lots of rest and relaxation as parents, and move to Salt Lake!
5. Scott does well on his math teaching exam.
6. My mom's law office continues to be successful and Ben will continue to charm her clients.
7. Wes enjoys his job this winter and finds one that he loves!
8. My dad and Caroline are happy in their new home and have safe travels for the holidays.
9. My students do well on their projects! I hope I've taught them well and that they have at least a little love for research methods (or at least the ability to critique what they read in newspapers and magazines).
10. Sean keeps on kicking butt at his job and in school and that he will continue to enjoy spending time with me. I love all our adventures, I want more and more of them!
11. Everyone is happy and healthy, are able to find time to enjoy autumn before winter sets in, and have great holidays with loved ones!

Happy 11/(13)/11!

A Very Good Week

2011-11-13T09:48:00.001-07:00

Greetings from Nat Flat #2!

Hoo!

This week has been pretty much amazing. Last Tuesday, I received an email containing this...

THANK GOODNESS. I really didn't think I passed. And I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to go through it again. But all is well! HOORAH! I am so glad I didn't chicken out! (Read all about the exam here.)

On Friday, we had a grad group rock climbing activity. It was very fun (and my arms are very sore)! I almost got to the top...

Kickin' it with the grad group!

Then last night, Sean surprised me with birthday presents! So far, we have had a terrible time actually waiting for the special occasion, but I was too excited to say no to the opportunity of opening them early! He got me the perfect gifts...

TOMS! Olive TOMS! Aren't they darling?

A new necklace. It's just perfect -- I love it so much.
I'll be wearing it every day!

So excited about my new gifts!

Sean takes a great portrait!

Happy be-earlied birthday to me!

A Birthday and a Beautiful Wedding

2011-11-11T09:16:00.001-07:00

Hello! I apologize for the lack of blogging recently. Things have been so crazy busy (in a good way!) that I haven't had time to sit down and write.

Last week was Sean's birthday and Sarah's, Sean's sister's, wedding! Both were a blast. I gave Sean his birthday present a little early. He's become quite the photographer and I knew he needed a tripod. I think he likes it! We celebrated his birthday in Santa Cruz, complete with cheesecake (his favorite).

Happy birthday, love!

Sarah's wedding was on Saturday and I was so lucky to play a big role in the wedding -- as officiant! It was incredible to witness "two people, madly in love" commit to spending the rest of their lives together, regardless of what comes their way. Basically, it was purely romantic.

I love the venue. It's part of UC Santa Cruz's campus, on the coast, called the Seymour Center.

(All photos by Sean, except the one of us!)

Gorgeous floral arrangements.

Fancy manzanita trees.

The cookie bar.

The beautiful cake!

Even the officiant received a beautiful corsage.

Very fun photo wall.

The trees had a beautiful flower/vegetable arrangement too!
I loved the use of artichokes.

Me with the blushing (haha) bride and Scott, Sean's brother.

My favorite.

Both mornings we were there, Sean and I went down to the beach to watch the surfers at sunrise.
So calming.

It was such a wonderful weekend. A happy birthday and wedding!

Visitors and AIPs!

2011-10-19T18:12:00.002-06:00

Hello!

I had a simply fantastic day yesterday! My mom, sister, and little niece came to visit me in Davis. We ate tasty food, chatted, and did lots of AIPs... apartment improvement projects! They also brought me sweet surprises...

Here they are!

Emily made me these Scrabble pillows after I saw some on Etsy!

Look how cute the back of the pillows are too!

My mom brought me this fantastic spooky garland!
And yes, those curtains are new!

My new front room curtains!

My doctoral sofa and new curtains!

The other side!

Wall mounted dish rack! Saves precious counter space!

Loaded up!

One of the new curtains in my bedroom.
(Just adorable)

The other curtain and my new collage frame!
I'm going to send photos to get printed tonight.

Cozy and perfect!

It was so nice to have them visit and it's extra nice to have a proper apartment for visitors -- I'm mostly talking about space here! I love having a bigger apartment! It's getting more adorable as the days go on. I love my new curtains, pillows, and frame, and my very functional dish rack. :-) How awesome is it to have two seamstresses, carpenters, and interior designers come to your home AND bring a sweet, happy little Daphne, too!

P.S. Daphne loved California. Last night, I asked her what she liked most! She gave me a big tale full of smiles, oohs, and ahhs! :-)

2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma

2011-10-17T03:43:00.001-06:00

The second item on my 24 before 24 (the golden birthday) list was wining in Napa or Sonoma! I had been to Napa a couple of times, but never to actually experience what Wine Country is all about. This weekend Sean took me to Castello di Amorosa, a winery in a castle. A castle! (P.S. All photos are by Sean!)

On a drawbridge!

A beautiful view of Napa behind me!

We took a tour of Castello di Amorosa which included some fun stats (it cost $40 million to build the place, not including actual vinting gear!), seeing a consecrated Catholic chapel, a very cool hand painted grand hall, where and how they ferment white and red wines, a very curious and certainly disturbing torture dungeon, and cellars full of barrels of wine! We had a barrel tasting, a very young (2 year old) Cabernet Sauvignon, which was delightful.

I quite like young vino!

As you can see above, my boyfriend is super cute.

Barrels and barrels!

We tasted a number of wines, brainstormed adjectives (we are quite the wine connoisseurs, you know), and rated them. We tried their chardonnay, described it as "wedding-ish, fruity, and winey" and gave it a score of 70/100. We tried two reds, a merlot (one of my favorites, which was described as "dad, would go well with steak, and tannins!, average score between the two of us: 50) and the Cabernet as a four year old ("oaky, rubbing alcohol, hydrochloric acid" - one of us liked it, the other didn't...). They paired the Cabernet with dark chocolate with sea salt, and accordingly it got two scores. 50 without chocolate, 60 with.

Our favorites were the sweet wines. We tried three: One called Simpatica, which got a combined score of 84! A muscat called Il Raggio del Sole, which got a combined score of 84.5. And, finally, one called La Fantasia, which was sweet, yet complex. It received the highest marks by far. A combined 95. It is the official wine of Sean and Natalie. :-D

From their website:

Tasting Notes:
An Italian style sweet and sparkling wine with is lower in alcohol, with bright aromas of cherry, exotic flowers and wild berries. Lovely black raspberry, plum and strawberry flavors in the mouth and just a hint of sweetness leads to a creamy, round finish.

Totally delicious, very sweet. Just like our love...
...I'm sorry, but I had to say it!

This outing was simply one of the most enjoyable I have had in a long time, which says something because every outing with Sean is a blast. It was so fun to go discover something new, a random castle in the middle of Napa, and a tasty, new wine.

~~1. Leave the country.~~ (Canada!)
~~2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma.~~ (At Castello di Amorosa, near Calistoga, with Sean!)
3. Go backpacking.
4. Walk across the Golden Gate.
5. Finish my master's degree.*
6. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.
~~7. Buy my first diamond.~~ (Nose stud!)
~~8. Crochet a baby blanket.~~ (Or... type a baby quilt!)
~~9. Ride a roller coaster.~~ (Disneyland!)
10. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
11. Make gluten-free pasta.
12. Paint.
~~13. Take a tap class in San Francisco.~~ (Changed to Davis as I found a class offered here!)
~~14. Write my own sexual autobiography.~~
15. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers as subjects.
~~16. Get over fear of touching raw chicken.~~ (Rubbed raw chicken down with butter and stuffed it with garlic!)
~~17. Play the California lottery.~~ (Lost!)
~~18. Hold a newborn baby.~~ (Held little Daphne Kate!)
19. Create a signature cocktail.
20. Make my own goat cheese.
~~21. See the San Francisco Ballet.~~ (Saw the San Francisco Symphony with Sean!)
22. Take the train to Reno.
~~23. Have my photo taken at 1 Infinite Loop.~~ (Snapped by Sarah!)
~~24. Be a tourist in Salt Lake City.~~ (Showed Sean around my beloved, and sometimes bizarre, hometown!)

#14. Write my own sexual autobiography, etc.

2011-10-14T04:49:00.000-06:00

It's 3:30 AM and I can't sleep. So I decided to finish up writing my sexual autobiography. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Obviously, I won't be sharing it with you, Dear Blogosphere, or anyone else for that matter, but I will say that I talked about how my family, boyfriends, growing up Mormon, education, media, and my development influenced the sexual person I am and the values I hold today.

Some of you might be wondering why. In the past, I have TA'ed for a human sexuality course. The final paper is a sexual autobiography. Since I've read 500 or so of them, I decided to try writing my own. If you feel so inclined to explore what/who influenced you, here is the prompt:

"The autobiography is an analysis of the development of your “sexual self”. It should attempt to answer the question, “How did I become the sexual person I am today?” by considering your own development as it relates to the developmental issues discussed in class and by considering what has influenced your beliefs, attitudes, values and behavior in the area of sexuality and intimate relationships (e.g. parents, religion, culture, media, peers, experiences). It is not the case that one needs to have had intercourse or be sexually active in order to be able to write this paper. It is also not necessary to disclose any personal information beyond what is comfortable for you in order to write a thoughtful paper."

It's certainly an exercise in critically thinking about past events and influences. :-)

In other news: I am so looking forward to Monday, when my mom, Emily, and Daphne arrive! :-D I need to get my apartment spruced up and ready to entertain/host this weekend. YAY!

Also, iOS 5 is SO COOL. I was not underwhelmed in the least. I love the new notifications, the Cards app, and being creeped out by the Stalker app. Oops! It's called Find Friends. It's like Google latitude.... Anyway, ALSO, Sean got Foursquare so we are in a big old competition now (he is rather competitive, but I will rise to the challenge)! I got the Overshare badge today. Haha. (Wow, am I really blogging about an overshare Foursquare badge? Overshare much?!)

And, finally, I haven't be blogging as much because (1) I am busy and (2) I am addicted to Pinterest. See?

OK, that's all.

-N

~~1. Leave the country.~~ (Canada!)
2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma.
3. Go backpacking.
4. Walk across the Golden Gate.
5. Finish my master's degree.
6. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.
~~7. Buy my first diamond.~~ (Nose stud!)
~~8. Crochet a baby blanket.~~ (Or... type a baby quilt!)
~~9. Ride a roller coaster.~~ (Disneyland!)
10. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
11. Make gluten-free pasta.
12. Paint.
~~13. Take a tap class in San Francisco.~~ (Changed to Davis as I found a class offered here!)
~~14. Write my own sexual autobiography.~~
15. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers as subjects.
~~16. Get over fear of touching raw chicken.~~ (Rubbed raw chicken down with butter and stuffed it with garlic!)
~~17. Play the California lottery.~~ (Lost!)
~~18. Hold a newborn baby.~~ (Held little Daphne Kate!)
19. Create a signature cocktail.
20. Make my own goat cheese.
~~21. See the San Francisco Ballet.~~ (Saw the San Francisco Symphony with Sean!)
22. Take the train to Reno.
~~23. Have my photo taken at 1 Infinite Loop.~~ (Snapped by Sarah!)
~~24. Be a tourist in Salt Lake City.~~ (Showed Sean around my beloved, and sometimes bizarre, hometown!)

For love is the desire of the whole...

2011-10-11T23:54:00.000-06:00

So, I am officiating at a wedding next month and I've been brainstorming ideas of what to say. My mind keeps returning to Aristophanes's speech in Plato's Symposium.

....The sexes were originally three, men, women, and the union of the two; and they were made round--having four hands, four feet, two faces on a round neck, and the rest to correspond. Terrible was their strength and swiftness; and they were essaying to scale heaven and attack the gods. Doubt reigned in the celestial councils; the gods were divided between the desire of quelling the pride of man and the fear of losing the sacrifices. At last Zeus hit upon an expedient. Let us cut them in two, he said; then they will only have half their strength, and we shall have twice as many sacrifices. He spake, and split them as you might split an egg with an hair; and when this was done, he told Apollo to give their faces a twist and re-arrange their persons, taking out the wrinkles and tying the skin in a knot about the navel. The two halves went about looking for one another, and were ready to die of hunger in one another's arms. Then Zeus invented an adjustment of the sexes, which enabled them to marry and go their way to the business of life. Now the characters of men differ accordingly as they are derived from the original man or the original woman, or the original man-woman. Those who come from the man-woman are lascivious and adulterous; those who come from the woman form female attachments; those who are a section of the male follow the male and embrace him, and in him all their desires centre. The pair are inseparable and live together in pure and manly affection; yet they cannot tell what they want from each other. But if Hephaestus were to come to them with his instruments and propose that they should be melted into one and remain one here and hereafter, they would acknowledge that this was the very expression of their want. For love is the desire of the whole, and the pursuit of the whole is called love....

It's quite beautiful, isn't it?

Thoughts, thoughts, thoughts.

A little more summer

2011-10-06T22:08:00.004-06:00

I had a tasty dinner tonight of late summer vegetables... or, well, fruit, I suppose.

Heirloom tomato and avocado!

Turned them into a simple pasta salad, dressed in olive oil and red wine vinegar.

MMM.

:-)

Hello, Autumn!

2011-10-04T21:02:00.001-06:00

Autumn seems to have arrived! Sweaters, boots, umbrellas, changing leaves, all things pumpkin and spooky. I love October.

After having a great weekend (Sean took me on a wonderful date, including a viewing of Moneyball, which I highly recommend -- lots of stats! Oh, and baseball!) and Monday, with teaching and ballet class, I had a pretty swell day again! I decorated my apartment a little for fall and enjoyed a very autumn-y dinner.

This little fellow will meet you at the door!

Festive tealights! Pumpkin scented. Mmm.

My sweet candy corn tray! With some tasty treats.

Roasted vegetables for dinner... they tasted a million times better than they look!
I had them with chicken cooked in a little butter. So juicy.
I love fall food!

A couple other exciting things to note! My cousin Alan and his wife, Misty, had a handsome baby boy on Sept. 30. WELCOME, FRANKLIN OLIVER! Yay for more Morrises! And, very exciting, my mom, Emily, and little Daphne are going to come to California the week after next. I am so excited to hang out with them, chat with Daphne, and eat some tasty food. Oh! And for them to see the Nat Flat #2. :-D

It's an exciting month. Yep, I do love October!

Life in Davis

2011-09-29T19:18:00.002-06:00

I have lived in Davis for over two years now. Today was the first day I saw a bike accident!!

Now this wasn't just any bike accident. A bicyclist didn't run into another bicyclist. Or into a car. But into a person. Walking. And the bike pretty much ran over the gal.

He didn't slow down at all. Ran right into her like a ton of bricks. It was pretty crazy.

I ran to the victim, asked if she was ok. Her arm was pretty scratched up, bruised and bloody. Another woman ran to the scene as well. The gal was shaken, but totally tough. She laughed it off. I offered to walk her to the union building to get some bandages. We started walking. After a few blocks, she said she was fine, and went her merry way. What sort of blew my mind was that the bicyclist didn't say a word. Maybe he was in shock too? But he didn't say he was sorry. He didn't offer to help. And once we started walking away, I looked back, he was gone like the wind.

It certainly took my mind off of the pretty crumby day (mostly due to a poor attitude, which was largely due to my lack of quality sleep last night, which was completely due to the Red Sox) I'd been having. Well, at least I didn't get run over by a bicycle today.

I tried to find an image on Google Image to illustrate what a bike + pedestrian accident looks like, but apparently no one has ever photographed this.

I'd air my grievances on my blog, but before I'd even start, I'd have to preface them by saying these are developed country, middle class problems. That's what I have. And I know tomorrow I'll wake up on the right side of the bed.

In other news, yesterday morning I heard a couple of undergrads talking about grad students. One of them said, "They're really into the fact that they are grad students. Like, that's all they talk about." I laughed to myself because it reminded me of the grad school post on Stuff White People Like. One of the students did jump in and say, "Well, it is like their career, and school, and social life..." Which is sadly true.

Have I mentioned how excited I am to see the PhD Comics movie in November?

One lovely day!

2011-09-27T21:38:00.001-06:00

I had a very nice day today, with little adventures and such. Here is photographic evidence! My mom also requested more photos of my apartment. :-)

A little lab love this morning.

Stumbled upon these sandals on sale at the bookstore! 25% off!
Best price I've seen for Rainbows anywhere.

Came home to my Red Sox hat! :-D It's official! I am a fan.

Had my first pumpkin spice latte of the season!
It was 88* outside, I sipped the steamy deliciousness in my car with the AC on.
It's a little cup of fall regardless of weather!

Made this for dinner! Lemon-dijon tofu and potatoes.
I added carrots, onion, and whole garlic cloves to the mix.
I also used Trader Joe's delicious whole seed dijon mustard.
So tasty and so easy!

Enjoyed dinner with a wine glass of Diet Dr. Pepper.
Like my new coasters? They were a steal at CB outlet!

Some updates to my apartment...

I rearranged my photos on my bookshelf.
The photo clips and candlesticks are new!

The photo clips. Another steal at CB outlet!

My new candlesticks from CB2.

A while ago, I hung my photo panels!
I'm trying to figure out what to add between them...

And, finally, some wall panels I made with Marimekko fabric.
I think they are bomb.com!
(These wall hangings from CB would probably be around $100 each!)

Another one!

I have plans to make three more larger wall panels for my living room, once I get around to it... :-D

And that concludes this blog post.

Back to School

2011-09-26T13:23:00.002-06:00

So, fall quarter started up last Thursday, but today feels like my first real day back. As usual, the first office hours of the quarter are SO busy, I was able to find sometime to go back and read my posts from September 2010 and September 2009. In '09, I wrote about how I was pretty sure my world would be forever different. In '10, I posted the above PhD comic.

This year feels different.

I did leave. I went to Salt Lake for a few weeks to meet my niece and spend time with family and friends. I spent weekends with Sean and his family. I visited Caitlin and Evan at their little yellow house. The summer was full of adventures and relaxation. It was basically 2 or so months of procrastination and, thus, guilty pleasure. Regardless, it was awesome.

And now things have returned to normal. Anyway, I have some goals and sure-to-be highlights for this quarter that ought to be blogged about!

1. I will finish and file my thesis by my birthday. If I only complete one more item on my 24 before 24 list, it will be my thesis!!

2. Sean's sister is getting married and I get to play a very special part in it! This entails some writing and dress shopping. Both of which I'm very excited to do/continue doing.

3. I will be cooking more! In fact, I have a whole menu planned out for the weekend including what I consider my ethnic food (Mormon funeral potatoes!) and pesto salmon with risotto. Mmm!

4. I'm on the executive committee in the grad program, which means exciting meetings, and the graduate student association rep, which means reportedly less exciting meetings. I'm very happy to have this leadership position!

5. At some point, I will hear back about SRA! Cross your fingers that I'll be going to Vancouver next year! :-D

6. And, finally, I am returning to ballet! Tonight I have my first class. I anticipate being very sore tomorrow.

Here we go, Fall 2011!

And the summer ends...

2011-09-20T00:13:00.004-06:00

HELLO!

One jar of Nutella, several bags of peanut butter and chocolate candy (e.g., Ghiradelli Milk + PB, PB M&Ms), Lays chips and Stax, peanut butter, popsicles.

Four MAJOR horrifying zits.

Nine hours over three days.

Three papers. Twenty pages. Only a list of readings.

Six ear plugs. Four bobby pins.

A handful of freak-outs and wanting-to-chicken-outs.

A recipe for the preliminary exam.

This is post-prelims Natalie blogging from hot, hot Davis, California. I can see stuff in the future. Things like thesis, Halloween, teaching, November birthdays (my mom, Sean, me, then Wes!), Sarah's wedding, Thanksgiving, Christmas. 2012.

So... what was it like, you ask? Well, this is how studying went:

I had several hundred notecards, which I studied then made into three outlines. One for Development in Infancy through Early Childhood, one for Development in Middle Childhood and Adolescence, and one for Development in Aging and Adulthood. The full outlines were about 60 pages, all inclusive. I then created shortened outlines, around 45 pages. I had to shrink one of them down to size, and they were then about 35 pages. I took thousands of pages of information and made them into bite-sized pieces. Even then, it was almost too much to chew.

But... it happened. All of that stuff got into my brain. It was miraculous. I survived. I hope.

:-D

I am so, so thankful for everyone that supported me through it! Clinton, one of my fellow prelimers, posted this quote a few weeks before the exam...

"Pain and suffering devastate even the most resilient of organisms. We cannot avoid it... it was a lie, perhaps the lie of inexperience, that we ever thought we could avoid it. You see, experience and knowledge will show us that life is a long, dark, indifferent road full of anxiety and despair. But experience and knowledge also show us that we can light up this dark road... we are not helpless to its control... but it is up to us. The light is not there... and as we light it up for ourselves we also light it up for everyone else. You'll be surprised how many lights have been put up along the way."

I was surprised, and grateful, for all the lights put up along the way. Stephanie gave me her notes and outlines from the previous years, which helped fill in some gaps and give me ideas for how to study. She also kept me from chickening-out. All of my fellow prelimers helped me get organized, especially Erik who set up a system for sharing articles on dropbox. Teri, Andrew, and Adrienne encouraged me to take the exam this year, and not delay it another. So many people, fellow grad students (like Katie, April, and others) were so supportive and sweet. Nicole even went so far as to buy me a children's book about a sweet little bunny who charms the socks of a cat, for pre-sleep reading. April and Lisa went well out of their way to bake me gluten-free treats on the days of the exam. And Caitlin and Evan invited me over for a wonderful study retreat in Palo Alto.

The day before the exam, my mom sent me a few photos of some tiny pigs (one of those silly, inside jokes!) cheering me on from Salt Lake.

Nothing can help my confidence more than a couple of sweet swine cheering me on. :-D Except, perhaps, the pre-prelim phone calls from my sisters and Taylor.

And, of course, my amazing, sweet boyfriend, who greeted me after the first day at the door with peanut butter M&Ms, a smile, and a big hug. Back rubs and pep talks, tasty food, and open ears. Clean dishes. A bed all made to relax on. What can I say? I love him. Dare I say... he made it almost... fun?! We certainly had hilarious adventures in the afternoons when he did a kick butt job of entertaining and distracting me from the exam.

...We most definitely got our hands on some Dr Pepper Ten (IT'S NOT FOR WOMEN!)

This is my most masculine, intimidating look.

The best news is... it's over! YAY!

And thus the summer ends.

Today was orientation for new MS and PhD students. It was fun to see everyone again, enjoy tasty food, and chat about prelims and get to know the new students a little better. It's so exciting to have a new cohort but it's also bizarre that this is my third year at Davis... feeling kind of old!

Anywho, the quarter begins on Thursday, and I begin teaching(!) on Friday. I'm excited to get to know my students, especially to work with the few that are as passionate about research as me. I'm also excited to finish up my thesis, I will have turned it in before my birthday, so as to mark that special item off my list!

And now to enjoy two guiltless days off. :-)

Cool Beans

2011-09-07T22:38:00.003-06:00

Let us be honest. As far as people go, I am quite lucky and I honestly have everything a girl could want. But it's still fun to do a little harmless online shopping just for kicks. Cute things... and things that are somewhat practical... that I'd buy if money grew on trees.

Wall mountable dish rack!

I think this would be fantastic for my bathroom.

Now that function's out of the way...

I love these modern candlesticks.

These coasters are bomb.com. Especially the blue ones.

These Birkenstocks are adorable.

Love this Kate Spade purse!

I am quite smitten with the new Venezia collection! I love the gondola inspired stripes!

Wouldn't this rain jacket be just perfect for Davis' winter? A little brightness on a rainy, gray day.

/end procrastination.

Google Visit and More!

2011-09-07T13:26:00.000-06:00

...Hello, Dear Blogosphere.

I am alive and well. Busy as a bee with prelim studying, paper grading, and my two trips in the past week to the bay area to hang out with Caitlin and Evan and Sean's family! There have been oodles of adventures, like to Google Headquarters and grading papers during a karaoke competition, and delicious foodstuffs eaten, particularly those at Google HQ and Sean's mom's barbecue. Delicious. Mostly, I've just been enjoying spending time with some of my favorite people!

Anyway, here are some photos from my visit with Caitlin and Evan!

Google!

1900 Charleston.

Google bike system!

All checked in!

Google Voice telephone box!

Pinot Noir soda and Doodles!

Fun friends and tasty eats!

Mmm!

Delicious sushi and gluten free soy sauce!

Nerdiest bathroom ever.

Caitlin in her classroom's dance studio!

Truth!

Seeing Google was really awesome. So much so that I'm thinking about tailoring my dissertation to get a job as a quantitative researcher at Google. Tasty, free food... the best preschool imaginable... slides! (Not shown.)

Anyway, it's been a fun and busy couple of weeks. Now it's time to give 500% of my focus to prelim preparation and then, it's time to go back to school!

*Sigh* is summer really almost over?

2011-08-23T21:48:00.000-06:00

Jumping on the bandwagon with some of you out in the blogosphere to spill out the goods...

Missing phone... as it was taking the photo!

My lovely purse is full of many wonderful things. My sweet Staedtler pens, 200C prelim exam notecards, pens and highlighter, Post-Its, iPad (usually in its sleeve), diabetes supplies and ibuprofen kept in a pencil case, wallet, valet key, something sweet, Chapstick, gum, and keys.

Not shown are the random receipts and miscellaneous papers than end up in my bag. This photo makes it look rather clean and organized. Not so.

...and this concludes this procrastination session.

8. Tie a Baby Quilt

2011-08-20T13:07:00.001-06:00

Tying Daphne's quilt in March.

I was reminded that I have been involved in blanket making for Daphne! So, voila, #8 checked off!

~~1. Leave the country.~~ (Canada!)
2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma.
3. Go backpacking.
4. Walk across the Golden Gate.
5. Finish my master's degree.
6. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.
~~7. Buy my first diamond.~~ (Nose stud!)
~~8. Crochet a baby blanket.~~ (Or... type a baby quilt!)
~~9. Ride a roller coaster.~~ (Disneyland!)
10. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
11. Make gluten-free pasta.
12. Paint.
~~13. Take a tap class in San Francisco.~~ (Changed to Davis as I found a class offered here!)
14. Write my own sexual autobiography.
15. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers as subjects.
~~16. Get over fear of touching raw chicken.~~ (Rubbed raw chicken down with butter and stuffed it with garlic!)
~~17. Play the California lottery.~~ (Lost!)
~~18. Hold a newborn baby.~~ (Held little Daphne Kate!)
19. Create a signature cocktail.
20. Make my own goat cheese.
~~21. See the San Francisco Ballet.~~ (Saw the San Francisco Symphony with Sean!)
22. Take the train to Reno.
~~23. Have my photo taken at 1 Infinite Loop.~~ (Snapped by Sarah!)
~~24. Be a tourist in Salt Lake City.~~ (Showed Sean around my beloved, and sometimes bizarre, hometown!)

Eleven down. Thirteen to go!

Conference Proposal!

2011-08-19T12:22:00.000-06:00

I finished my poster proposal last night... or, well, this morning! Here is the super sexy title (thanks, Scott, for helping me chop it down!):

Yep! It turned out to be a lot of fun. I always forget how much fun I have writing and researching. Once I get past the tiny amount of anxiety, I love it. Anyway, here are some cool pie charts and one neat-o regression table.

Not surprisingly, people tend to date within their ethnic group (or multiethnic group). But still, there are differences in those rates. Also interesting, about 25% of the teens who were dating in my sample were in cross-ethnic relationships.

And my delightful regression table. Quick and dirty how-to-read regression table for my readers! The numbers in the table are slopes. So, for instance, for every one unit increase in peer interracial climate (good!), is associated on average with a 0.41 decrease in reported partner hostility. Isn't that spiffy? If you want to know what's going on with those interactions (exactly same-ethnicity times peer interracial climate -- simple, eh?), I can share. It's surprising!

One last thing, even though being in a cross-ethnic relationship was associated with a decrease in partner warmth, it wasn't associated with a decrease in happiness (not shown) or satisfaction. So while behavior within the relationship is different, teens in cross-ethnic relationships are just as happy and satisfied. Interesting, right?

In the end, better peer interracial climate is associated with less hostility in romantic relationship during late adolescence, regardless of the ethnic make-up of the couple. COOL.

So that's my proposal. This one was much easier to write than the one for SRCD. Practice makes better, I suppose. Well, now it's just me and prelims. If you have fingers to cross, please do so!

24 Before 24 Update!

2011-08-17T13:09:00.000-06:00

It seems the blogosphere (or at least my mom, haha) wants to know where I am in completely my golden birthday to do list! Voila.

~~1. Leave the country.~~ (Canada!)
2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma.
3. Go backpacking.
4. Walk across the Golden Gate.
5. Finish my master's degree.
6. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.
~~7. Buy my first diamond.~~ (Nose stud!)
8. Crochet a baby blanket.
~~9. Ride a roller coaster.~~ (Disneyland!)
10. Take a midnight walk on the beach.
11. Make gluten-free pasta.
12. Paint.
~~13. Take a tap class in San Francisco.~~ (Changed to Davis as I found a class offered here!)
14. Write my own sexual autobiography.
15. Do an entire roll of instant film using strangers as subjects.
~~16. Get over fear of touching raw chicken.~~ (Rubbed raw chicken down with butter and stuffed it with garlic!)
~~17. Play the California lottery.~~ (Lost!)
~~18. Hold a newborn baby.~~ (Held little Daphne Kate!)
19. Create a signature cocktail.
20. Make my own goat cheese.
~~21. See the San Francisco Ballet.~~ (Saw the San Francisco Symphony with Sean!)
22. Take the train to Reno.
~~23. Have my photo taken at 1 Infinite Loop.~~ (Snapped by Sarah!)
~~24. Be a tourist in Salt Lake City.~~ (Showed Sean around my beloved, and sometimes bizarre, hometown!)

Ten down. Fourteen to go!
Three months and one week left!

Easy.

Little Honda

2011-08-15T10:17:00.004-06:00

I GOT A CAR THIS WEEKEND!

Now that's out there, some mood music for this occasion...

(Just pretend it's about a car, and not a motorbike. ;-))

I woke up Friday morning prepared to face my fear of car dealers, dealerships, and all their tricks. I was determined. I was going to cow town (Vacaville). So, I rented my last ZipCar.

A 2010 Honda Civic...

I test drove the little Honda and put on my tough, serious facade, and, with the huge help of my dad, bought it!

My keys!

Of course, I had the rental car and no way to drive the car home, but they offered to follow me back to Davis. So my ZipCar Civic was followed by my Civic, and followed by another Civic. It was pretty sweet.

I drove it, oh-so-carefully home...

In its snug parking space.

Later, I took it out for its first trip! I drove out to Woodland, stopping by a cornfield to take some scenic photos.

Isn't it awesome?!?!?!?! I am pleased as punch. Here's the interior...

It's exactly what I wanted. I love the feel of the car, it gets decent gas mileage, and I'm a fan of the killer air conditioning and, let's face it, sound system. But my favorite thing is being able to go exactly where I need to go, whenever I need to, and without worrying about dropping it off anywhere at a particular time. Having a car makes life SO much easier. I've enjoyed my couple of years being a pedestrian and public transit enthusiast but I really like the whole American independent adulthood thing. Ah, cars.

If you're ever in NorCal, let me know! I might just take you for a spin! :-)

A California Kid in a Utah World

2011-08-08T23:37:00.004-06:00

So Sean here blogging from sunny Northern California. Natalie asked me to guest blog on here about my recent visit to Salt Lake City. First off though, here's another to cross off the list.

~~#24 Be a tourist in Salt Lake City~~ :)

The view of Salt Lake City from the University of Utah campus

So I know this is a long awaited post considering people have been bugging me about posting this for the past week. So sorry about that! I just ended up getting a little bit busier than I'd like.

Anyways, I flew into Salt Lake City two Wednesdays ago and was greeted by the beautiful Natalie with a big hug and smile that stretched from cheek to cheek. It looked a little something like this...

On Thursday morning, I walked out into the front yard of Natalie's Mom's house and was greeted this view.

Mount Olympus

Later on in the day, Natalie took me to one of her favorite places in Utah...Cafe Rio! At first, I thought it was all right, but boy did it grow on me. I liked it so much, that we went back once more before I headed back home.

Sweet Pork Barbacoa Burrito Enchilada Style!

After munching on some Cafe Rio, we headed out to Bountiful to hang out with Daphne, Emily, and Taylor. They're so cool and welcomed me right in. We ended up staying there a lot longer than we expected, but it was totally worth it.

We then headed down to Temple Square to check out the Mormon Temple and temple grounds. I was a little bit hesitant at first, but it was pretty cool. All I can say is that it felt like I couldn't be any further away from home. Definitely worth checking out.

What's up Moroni?!

Thursday was action packed so I was looking forward to heading back to Natalie's Mom's house to get some sleep. The deck in their backyard is so sweet. It's so nice to just hang out there and watch the sunset with a cool breeze. It looked a little something like this.

Mill Creek sunset

On Friday, we headed up to Snowbird and Park City so I could let out the inner-snowboarder in me. They were nothing like what I imagined and they were so close. I'm used to driving an hour and a half up to North Lake Tahoe to Northstar so a half hour drive was nothing!

Later that night, I felt like driving around and snapping a few shots so we headed to the Capitol. I really like how it's positioned on a hill that overlooks downtown Salt Lake City. It's so picturesque. I took so many shots, but here's one just for the Utahns.

State of Utah

On Saturday, we visited Ali over at Silver Bean Coffee. She is by far the smartest, most educated barista to ever brew a pot of coffee. She was greeting customers left and right and wowing them with her barista skills.

I guess she likes to smile while making coffee.

We ended Saturday hanging out with Natalie's family in the backyard and watched Ben as he grazed around the lawn. Here's a picture of my favorite tunnel digger...I'm talking about Ben, not Natalie :)

A girl and her bunny

I had a lot of fun in Salt Lake City and can't wait to go back and visit. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing Salt Lake during the winter to hit the slopes and of course to see everyone again!

So here we are back in California and enjoying the California sun. Hope all is well with everyone, and I bet you guys can't wait until the next Sean guest blog appearance! ;) Later!

Until next time Utah!

Dress Shopping!

2011-08-08T17:43:00.000-06:00

I've spent the past hour taking a little break from studying to do some online dress shopping! I'm so excited to find something to wear to Sarah's wedding in November! So I will share what I have found thus far...

The one in the bottom right would be a dark brown not taupe...

AH! I love shopping. I also want to route you, dear blog reader, to Red Oak Lines, where you can see some photos of what I was up to yesterday. I love hanging out with Sean and his family!

Back in Davis

2011-08-02T12:29:00.003-06:00

Well, I'm settled back in Davis after my two amazing weeks in Salt Lake! The recap will come later, but for now what's happened between take off and present moment...

Lake Tahoe!

The flight home was very nice. My plane ended up being very delayed so Sean, who had about a 2 hour later flight, and I actually arrived in Sacramento at the same time! I was happy to be heading back to California and sad to be leaving Utah at the same time. That's the trouble with living somewhere you love away from family! I do miss the mountains already though. Oh, my Rockies.

But it's nice to come home to a sweet message...

Magnets rearranged (did you do that, Caitlin?!) and a little note are perfect homecoming surprises! As well was this...

This is the first time I've ever received a package from Lithuania! My blue Marimekko Unikko iPad sleeve arrived!

And the first thing to be unpacked were photos of my little Daphne Kate! Old pictures out, the best pictures ever in!

My niece is the sweetest! (And strongest, you should feel her grip!)

Since I've been back (a whole... 36 hours?), I've gotten serious about buying one of these puppies...

I want you, 2011 Honda Civic LX sedan.

Car buying isn't as fun as one would think. But somehow, someway I will be victorious!

Besides that... just a few small things. You know, the preliminary exam in about a month and a half... SRA proposal in two weeks... Greek study up and running. Yikes! Back to work!

A Handful of Photographs

2011-07-24T12:08:00.004-06:00

Hello from Bountiful, Utah! The past couple of days have been oodles of fun!

On Thursday, Aurora took Khrystine and me to the Journey/Foreigner concert where we had a blast...

Then on Friday, Ali and I got haircuts (twas much needed for me!)... chop chop, snip snip!

Then headed to Bountiful to hang with Daphne some more...

My personal favorite...

They must be related!

Simply put, I can't get enough of baby burrito!

Who knew a burrito could be so sweet?

Happy Pioneer Day, y'all!

Good Times in SLC!

2011-07-21T12:48:00.002-06:00

It's been a busy couple of days here in Salt Lake! But the good kind of busy... let me illustrate!

I've been getting around in one of two Foresters!

Hanging out with this little sweetie!

Eating delicious food!

Drinking delicious drinks made by Ali!

Snapping photos in my mom's backyard!

Having my mind blown at all the gluten-free products at our grocery store!
I'll be making carrot cake soon!

Celebrating at The Gateway and loving the Pac12 flags!

And doing lots of computer updates and fixes.
My mom is now a Mac user!! Woot woot!

The fun continues today! Tonight I'm going to the Journey concert with a few friends. Anyway you want it, that's the way you need it! :-D

Home and Love and Daphne

2011-07-18T00:57:00.002-06:00

Hello from the Beehive State! I've had a fantastic weekend and I'm so happy to be home. Here are the updates!

On Thursday, I noticed this posting on Sean's wall from his sister...

On Friday, Sean and I went to Old Sac, walked along the river, and took some fun shots of the Tower Bridge. Here's one I snapped using Instagram...

We got together on Saturday as well and had a nice day relaxing, browsing, and playing Monopoly (he kicked my butt)... and I found out what he wanted to be special. Lets just say he kind of likes me and I sort of like him. ;-)

Today, I made my way to the city by the salty lake, and my iPad knew just what to play me:

Flying in was beautiful as usual. For example...

We went straight from the airport to meet Daphne! She is sweet as can be. The most beautiful girl in the world. She makes the most darling sounds, especially when she's sleeping, and she has these little sweet hiccups. She is absolutely wonderful to cuddle with. I could cuddle all day! Now for the photos...

Her little hands and feet are just the most darling things! I love her to pieces.

Finally, this photo involves an inside joke within my family but it's pretty cute so I'll share it...

I'll do my best to keep you posted, blogosphere! I'm having a blast nestled in my Rockies!

-Nat

The Pool Sofa!

2011-07-13T19:22:00.003-06:00

It's official! I have an apartment full of furniture! My new sofa arrived yesterday, courtesy of my mum. I love it. It's a nice light blue, super comfy, perfect for studying and kicking back. It's the doctoral couch!

One more photo!

Thanks, mom!!!

Come visit, friends! Now you have a cozy place to relax!

Sunflowers

2011-07-10T19:17:00.001-06:00

Today, I went on a small adventure to the middle of (the real) FarmVille to see a field of sunflowers.

I thought about Maude's (in Harold and Maude, possibly my favorite movie) thoughts on sunflowers and daisies.

It was nice to be alone in my thoughts. I'm exhausted. It's 6 PM on a Sunday and I'm already in pajamas. Cereal for dinner. This week will be a giant game of catch up, with a sofa delivery on Tuesday and hopefully a writing retreat to a little yellow house in Palo Alto. The more photos and videos I see of Daphne, the more excited I get to meet our sweet pea!

Now... for cereal and a nap. Happy Sunday!

Late Night Etsy Splurge and Instagram!

2011-07-08T02:34:00.001-06:00

Hello!

I just finished a little shopping trip on Etsy. Here's the loot!

Padded iPad case in my favorite Blue Unikko!

Ponytail scarf for lazy, summer, ponytail days.

Red Unikko headband!

In other news, I've been playing around with Instagram lately. Here are a few of my favorite shots so far...

Let the music wash your soul.

He's got a Nikon camera. He loves to take a photograph.

Train delayed due to congestion.

Trouble in River City.

Happy Friday, y'all!

One Infinite Loop (#23) and the SF Symphony (#21)

2011-07-05T16:16:00.001-06:00

Knocking things off the list!

Last week, Sean, his siblings, and I went to dinner in Cupertino about as close to the Apple Campus as one could be. Sarah snapped this photo as proof that I made it to my mecca (yeah, ok, I am a bit of a fangirl).

I plan to return soon as they have a company store! I am going to get decked out in Apple wear. Just wait.

Then this weekend, Sean took me to the SF symphony where they played a few string serenades. It was a very lovely evening and concert. As we walked to Davies Hall, I thought about how wonderful it is to be in California, where I've always wanted to be, and have it be everything I could wish for.

Photo to come. For now, this will have to suffice.

Good times in the Golden State!

Home

2011-07-05T15:43:00.001-06:00

I'm counting down the days to...

the beautiful, majestic rockies

late nights spent on the deck with ben

snoozing in my bedroom

and on the living room floor

breakfasts with mom and ali

ali's coffee

bagley cartoons in print

and the sl trib letters to the editor

catching up with friends

misty's baby shower

cool summer nights

cafe rio's steak tostada

conversation in the cozy zone

sunday afternoons at my grandma's

but mostly meeting daphne.

The Past Few Days

2011-07-02T16:55:00.000-06:00

A quick blog update before I head to the city with Sean for a lovely night at the San Francisco Symphony. I'm so excited to share one of my favorite things with him! The symphony is one of the things I most miss about Salt Lake.

Anyway, the past few days have involved lots of fun and tiny amounts of work. The first items of business pale in comparison to the last. But I will share anyway...

My summer shoe splurge! Proud owner of Top-Siders.

Mattress delivery and bed assembling yesterday! Big thanks to Sean for helping me out and extra big thanks to my mom for buying me what I'm calling my doctoral bed! Here's to sweet prelim exam dreams on a pillow top mattress sent straight from heaven.

And...

Daphne

Daphne was born yesterday morning! Isn't she the absolute most beautiful thing you've ever seen? What a bundle of happiness and love. I am so happy for Emily and Taylor, and so happy for me! I spent a lot of time thinking about how amazing life is, especially new life, and how fortunate I am to get to experience (even though long distance) the welcoming of a new person to the world. And not just any new person! She's one of us! Family. Anyway, welcome Daphne! I cannot wait to watch you grow. I love you!

Beaches and Science, Frittatas and Sofas

2011-06-27T23:02:00.002-06:00

There's a random list for ya! I am enjoying the beginning of what will be a late night, complete with my sweet nerdtastic Star Wars pajamas. The past few days I've really enjoyed the new Matt Nathanson album (guilty, guilty pleasure). For example...

I spent the weekend in the bay area with Sean and his siblings. It was a much needed vacation (moving is much more time consuming and stressful than I remembered!) and was SO much fun. I don't have many photos at present, but I will share the best of the handful I took! I have a couple of fun instant photographs that will get scanned some time soon. Regardless...

On Friday, we drove down to his sister's place in Sunnyvale, had dinner and I got my photo at 1 Infinite Loop!!! Knocking items off the 24 before 24 list!

On Saturday, Sean and I went to Santa Cruz for lunch, shopping, and sight-seeing. We ended up at the Seymour Discovery Center at UC Santa Cruz, where I got friendly with some sharks and various sea creatures, and explored Sean's birthday party/sister's wedding spot. It is beautiful. I don't think I could ever tire of seeing the ocean. And some choice photographs!

At the Discovery Center.
That's right, fools. Science is important AND exciting!

Simply breathtaking.

Sean is the next scientist!

We spent the evening with his family, enjoying veggies and meats via grill and a hilarious game of Scattergories. On Sunday, we all went to the Pride Parade in SF. I had a very good time and picked myself up a little sunburn! Then we went to dinner and... well, [laughter].

And voila! back in Davis. Today I got a number of ducks in order. Including meeting and acquainting my sublessee with #3. She said a wonderful thing as we walked inside. "Oh, it's not as cute as it was in the pictures! I loved all of the color." I also picked out a sofa, courtesy of my sweet mom! Yes, that's right... I'm not getting a LoveSac which disappoints the adolescent Natalie very much but the adult Natalie will admit that it's probably a more appropriate piece of furniture for my living room. Plus... it's pretty darn spiff:

I also did a little bit of cooking for dinner -- christening my fantastic oven. I made my first frittata tonight! It was delicious. I had several different recipes but in the end got creative. First...

In very faint letters above the three holes, is the instruction guide to operating my oven. "Light Here." Yep. You actually light the oven. Fortunately, nothing blew up. Eyebrows are safe. And the frittata?

Goat Cheese Frittata

Not bad for my first one! Delicious goat cheese, red bell peppers, sweet onions, and broccoli! Why I have never done this before, I do not know. It's brilliant! It's like a puffy omelet sent straight from heaven. I will be making more of these soon.

And... back to work. *Sigh*

Snooze Quarters

2011-06-24T15:34:00.000-06:00

AND finally, the last room in my apartment: the bedroom. I have a bedroom! That's pretty exciting. Eventually, it will have a queen bed but for now it's just me and my twin bed being very close to the floor!

Oodles of storage!

My lovely wonderful walk-in closet!

Photos with my bed and lovesac will be posted ASAP.

Happy weekend, y'all!

Sayonara, Number Three, etc.

2011-06-23T13:57:00.001-06:00

A little break from working to show you my lovely living room! First...

Au revoir, #3!

I cleaned my old apartment yesterday and said goodbye. As I walked to my new place, dragging luggage behind me, I thought about how much had happened while I lived there. A few of my favorite memories!

Driving from Anaheim on I-5 with my younger sister and mom in July 2009. We stayed the night. My mom filled the refrigerator with Diet Coke. My younger sister and I walked around the UCD campus. We got a little lost but found our way back.
Moving into the apartment officially in September 2009. My mom and I did it in about two days. My favorite was building the IKEA furniture when we were completely exhausted... I believe we put the desk together slightly backwards and we totally failed at making some boxes. It was a sad, sad moment when she left.
Watching the Jersey Shore, Community, and 30 Rock with Stephanie while we were slightly... quite drunk. We had a lot of intellectual discussions before class too... haha.
Sharing the 390 sq ft with visitors including my Ali last April and Emily and Taylor last June! And, of course, Ali and my mum just two weeks ago!
Christening my green shag carpet with Caitlin, blue bombsicles, and Paul Simon on the record player.
And, finally, a little less than two months ago when I shared my love of Pushing Daisies with a gentleman caller and became rather smitten. Just a bit.

And now for my living room!

The front window with my snazzy butterfly chair!

Home office.
A giant gap where seating will go!

My fancy home theater system with TV + DVD combo circa 1999.
As well as my wall heater, coat closet and door to my bedroom...
Which is emitting green light due to some beautiful trees outside my windows!

I've picked out a seating arrangement that is affordable and makes me super happy. I wanted one real bad in high school and now the adolescent Natalie's dreams are coming true!

"It is $600, brown, suede, seats 3 people, is 3 feet tall and 6 feet in... diameter."
"It's a circle?!"
"Well, sort of... it's a LoveSac!"
"Oh my god, that's so cool...
...in the 90s."
"Hey! Mean!"

It's going to look hella cool with my butterfly chair. And it's going to be hella sweet for studying for prelims.

And just a few more things worth blogging about...

See the hot air balloons?! Lovely things to be seen at my train station...

Quite possibly one of my favorite outings yet with Sean.

This may be the last blog post for a while! I am going to Pride in San Francisco this weekend with Sean and some of his family! Which is sure to be all sorts of awesome. I'm very excited. So expect a post all about this weekend!

#16

2011-06-21T14:14:00.001-06:00

Hello from #16! I am all moved in to my new apartment -- my happy, spacious apartment! Two rooms are ready for blogging... behold!

My bathroom with Emily's graduation gifts installed!
It has fabulous pink and blue tile --
which goes swimmingly with flamingoes and lime green!

Half of my kitchen!

The other half! I know what you want...

Close up of my Wedgewood stove!

It's been almost three days of packing, hauling, lifting, tossing, unpacking, repeat! For the most part, I've been moving by myself. I did get help on Sunday from my friends Rashelle and Andrew with the big/heavy stuff (bookcases, desk, mattress). Then last night, Sean and I went to Ikea and bought almost an apartment's worth of furniture and assembled my $80 dining table + chairs...

Cheap coffee table!

The table!

The bed I picked out is...

Which we'll assemble once my mattress and boxsprings arrive! Besides the $7 end tables and $20 coffee table (what did we do before the Swedes invaded the furniture business?!), I'll be making these this afternoon:

And... my break is over! Keep cool... it's only going to be 99* today!

-Nat

God Loves Mormons and He Wants Some More

2011-06-18T01:29:00.002-06:00

I've been a tiny bit blue today, largely due, I think, to the chaos in my tiny apartment and lack of anything Natalie-esque on the walls (and the big ugly spider I encountered in my bathroom). Fortunately tonight I am the lucky recipient of text messages from my dear Caitlin. For example: "I'm going to write a resume with my realistic accomplishments in life, like knowledge of every Ludacris guess verse ever and proficiency in awesomeness." Mine include: memorization of all Billy Joel songs, producing great work under pressure, enthusiasm, seriously fantastic procrastination skills, and ability to pick up on other peoples' funks.

Regardless, I want to share the opening to the 2011 Tony Awards with you... in case I already haven't made you watch it in person:

It's been fascinating to watch the disagreements about the intentions of Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the evilness/goodness of the musical, etc, unfold on my friends' Facebook walls. I've largely kept out of them, except to mention how fantastic this song is:

Anyway, back to packing. I'll leave you with this gem of a song written at BYU:

Graduation+

2011-06-15T20:31:00.003-06:00

Hello my long lost blog! Feels like it's been forever. I'm sorry for all you readers that depend upon me for your entertainment! ;-) Last week was finals week AND graduation. On Thursday, my mom and younger sister came to Davis to celebrate with me the challenges and feats of the past two years. I almost can't believe it's been two years... but then, again, I can. It's nice to think back and realize how much I've changed and grown. Anyway, Thursday was commencement. I got to sit next to my favorites Caitlin, Cheryl, and my advisor. Afterwards, my mom, sister, and I met up with Sean for sushi. Twas delicious and, of course, oodles of fun.

Celebration!

Booking it to the ARC.

The Masters of Science.

Check our sweet sleeves out!

With my mum!

With my little Ali!

Check out my nifty hood!

With Rashelle, Doctor of Philosophy!

On Friday, we had a graduate group celebration. My advisor said very sweet things about me, I received an engraved cowbell, and we enjoyed lunch and photographing with faculty, grad students, and family.

Love my Aggies!

My mom and I!

Caitlin and me. She's the reason I've survived thus far!

Teri and me -- one of my most favorite people ever. Another person who is responsible for my grad school survival.

My advisor, Adrienne, and me!!

My favorite cow school!

On Saturday, my mom, sister, Sean, and I went to San Francisco. The Stein's collection was on display at the SFMOMA, which was fantastic!, and we also went up to Twin Peaks and to the Walt Disney Family Museum. Check out the fab photos:

Giant, modern spiders don't freak us out at all.

Ali and me at SFMOMA.

The views from Twin Peaks!

Walt, Mickey, and me!

On Sunday, we went to Old Sacramento -- checked out a few of the museums and statues, shops, and restaurants.

Ali and me stage coaching it up!

Watching the Tower Bridge lift!

Pony Express Pride!

Ali and me getting our Rosie on.

Randomly running into my cousin's kids (who reside in Utah)!

My family left on Monday, and I spent the afternoon with Caitlin, running errands and cleaning out closets (we're moving soon!), and spent the evening with Sean watching TV. I ran around campus all day on Tuesday and we had our last lab meeting at a bar in Sacramento. I might be developing a taste of whiskey... good whiskey. Then I spent today in Sacramento. I also went out to the Folsom outlets and got myself a little graduation present. So, the graduation loot:

A few months ago, my mom got me an early graduation present! My sweet iPad. I love it! Thanks, mom!

My Ali and mom gave me Nichola the Narcoleptic puppet!
She's got quite the attitude and finesse. Thanks, Ali and Mom! She's my PhD pal!

Emily and Taylor (and Daphne) gave me some great pink and green towels and the above shower curtain for my ultra retro bathroom in my new apartment! I can't wait to hang it up! Thanks, Em and Taylor!

I got myself this comforter (Marimekko Samovaari!) for a steal for my new, fancy, grown-up queen bed that'll be in my new apartment! :-D

And, finally, a new purse to match my wallet! The lining matches my iPad cover!

And you've reached the end of a possibly record long blog post. All is well in California! Now... it's time to start packing up!

Happiness is...

2011-06-06T10:35:00.000-06:00

A plate of gluten-free pasta at a party.
An email to a professor with a final paper attached.
The exhaustion and relief after a two hour presentation.
A cap, gown, and hood sitting on your table.
Spending time with someone who makes you laugh harder than you ever had before and makes the world a sunny, carefree place.

A funky tree.

Last night was the always fantastic First Saturday hosted by Katie and Nik. As usual, they prepared delicious food (gluten-free pasta especially for me!) and we had a great time playing what has come to be one of my favorite games, What's Yours Like? I also brought along a guest, one of particular charm and cuteness, for quite selfish reasons... I didn't want to not see him on Saturday night. Well, that and I was pretty sure that he would fit right in with some of the human development associated dudes. It was a very wonderful evening.

Earlier this week, I did my final presentation for my development in adulthood and aging course. I ended up doing my grant proposal on diabetes and various psychological factors (particularly attitudes towards aging and body dissatisfaction). I finished up my paper a few days later... it was quite possibly the best feeling in grad school I've had yet. So nice to have some of the quarter's work behind me! Things are wrapping up and I'm able to think about all the fun I'm going to have this weekend and this summer (sans studying for the preliminary exam)! It's basically a smile festival around here. :-)

Hella Good 10 AM Sandwich

2011-05-31T11:48:00.000-06:00

Once you've stopped snickering at the title of this post, feast your eyes...

It's never too early for a sandwich, especially one with pesto, thinly sliced Vidalia onion and tomato, oven roasted turkey breast, and baby arugula -- my favorite elitist vegetable -- between two slices of my favorite whole grain, gluten-free bread. I do so love myself a good sandwich.

I'm getting excited for summer's heirloom tomatoes. What are your favorite summer treats?

Gradmutation, Mooving, and Substitutions

2011-05-29T23:19:00.001-06:00

I am sure that all you blog stalkers were missing the graduation posts. Well, it's your lucky couple of weeks! Those of us on the quarter system are just starting to get prepared to don the most ridiculous outfit people seem to take seriously (any opportunity to wear academic regalia is an opportunity to snag!) and get our pomp on.

Check it:

What it is.

I'm getting a little bit excited, I won't lie. The quarter will be over, I'll be hanging out with my mom and younger sister for a few days, and I'm really excited to meet everyone's families and for people to meet two of the most important people in my life! It's going to be a celebration.

Commencement is on June 9, after I proctor an exam that morning and grade it that afternoon (unless I can bribe another grad student to do it instead... any takers? Seriously...). But the real fun is going to be on the following day when we have a graduate group party. My adviser will say nice things about me, I'll get a little engraved cowbell, and I'll feel pretty great about myself.

It's a strange graduation because, well, I won't be getting my degree. So I'm going to be a Mistress of Science* with that asterisk denoting my expected conferral date of September 2011. I don't really get a break from grad school, so it's not really the end or beginning of anything. I will be back on campus the following week working as a grad student researcher and studying for the preliminary exam. That's the thing about grad school. It never ends.

Never-the-less, I get to wear a hood and funky sleeves! ...Think how excited I'm going to be when I get to wear some stripes!

NEXT: Mooving. I realized today when my upstairs neighbor was quite possibly running on a treadmill in tap shoes that I will be out of my little apartment of love, the Nat Flat #1, in less than a month! That's all I have to say. YAY.

Finally, a few substitutions to my 24 before 24 list! #8. I'm doubting that I'll learn how to crochet and crochet well enough to make a blanket by Thanksgiving. So, I'm cross-stitching a birth record. I have a mean satin stitch! #21. Instead of seeing the San Francisco Ballet, I'm going to hear the San Francisco Symphony. Smiling. That's what I'm doing right now.

Rainy Days, Papers, and a Little Diamond

2011-05-28T21:08:00.003-06:00

I'm listening to Billy Joel while I blog. Billy is the chicken noodle soup of music to me. I grew up listening to him, watching his concerts on TV. There's a Billy song for every moment, every situation. For instance, Billy Joel on a drowsy rainy day sings "Summer, Highland Falls" and "Falling of the Rain." When I'm feeling like a love song, I've got "You're My Home" and "If I Only Had the Words (to Tell You)." When I'm feeling a little feisty, it's all about "Stiletto" and near the end of the quarter, with paper deadlines a few moments away, I'll put my turntable on 78 and play "Running On Ice" -- I particularly like the line about being a statistic.

Anyway, I had a nice day out and about. I went to tea list. where my friend Sarah just got a job. I hung out there grading papers for about five hours and enjoyed two cups of chai, their iced tea of the day, gluten free cookies and some tasty fruit (who knew honeydew could have so much flavor?!). These papers are killing me, so I have to get them over with. A fun fact according to the author of the last paper I read? Puberty starts at birth.

I don't have much else to say on that topic. OK, one more thing. Not one paper is formatted correctly. Not one. It's effing APA! It's not rocket science, people. TOP 10 PUBLIC UNIVERSITY according to the U.S. News and World Report. Really.

On a more positive note, over a week ago, I received a new schnozzola stud via mail. It has a teeny tiny diamond and I think it looks very cute and sophisticated. See below:

So that knocks #7 off my Golden Birthday to do list!

Now, to get back to grading. It hurts, Dear Blogosphere, it hurts. Enjoy one last photographic evidence of May showers and flowers!

Little Music, Little Update

2011-05-25T13:00:00.000-06:00

I've been listening to my driving mix quite a bit lately. It's about two hundred songs guaranteed to keep the mood positive, mouths singing, and eyes wide open.

E.g.:

Ben Folds' Lovesick Diagnostician (one reason why the fake Way to Normal is way better than the real one)
Hall & Oates' Rich Girl (high and dry, out of the rain, it's so easy to hurt others when you can't feel pain!)
Lily Allen's Friday Night (if I was a feisty drunk, this would be my song)
Rick Astley's... Never Gonna Give You Up (it's just so good!)
Conor Oberst's Sausalito (this is a great Northern California summer song -- not the greatest quality, unfortunately)

It makes driving to and from River City that much more fun.

Besides hanging in Sacramento, the end of the quarter is getting close which means things are about to get crazy. I have papers to grade, papers to write, and a presentation to make. I've really been enjoying my applied longitudinal data analysis "class" or basically just hanging out with some of my favorite fellow grad students and the best professor at Davis talking about one of my favorite topics... stats. It's cementing what I sort of learned last quarter in that multilevel modeling class.

In my class on development in adulthood and aging, we've begun our presentations and practicing for the big preliminary exam. I'm starting to get a little nervous but excited at the same time. I am looking forward to rereading some of the articles I read last year... we'll see how I feel about it this summer though!

I'm starting to make plans to visit Salt Lake, so mark your calendars Utahns! It's looking like I'll be there the last two weeks of July. I'd love to grab lunch, etc, with you... that is, if you can separate Daphne and me. :-)

And, back to work! Keep it clean!

Songs I've Been Enjoying, etc.

2011-05-19T02:27:00.000-06:00

A year ago or so, I would do a five things Friday. Here's one of those... except it's Thursday! But who's checking?

I was listening to Ray Charles quite a bit for a week because of the Kentucky Derby (I love his One Mint Julep). This is one of my favorites:

I've been on an awfully awesome 80's kick. All the world's a candy store. He's been trick-or-treatin':

And I've posted a link to this song before, but it's one of those that you really cannot listen to too much:

This tickles my Mormon funny bone:

And eh, there's nothing else I can say:

P.S. My friend, Andrew, drew a portrait of me on the TA office white board. It's been up for well over a week... makes me feel pretty cool...

Good Morning Cloudy Skies

2011-05-14T14:17:00.000-06:00

First, I apologize for the lack of blogging. I am alive and well, busy and happy.

Second, a very happy belated birthday blog mention for my sister! There's nothing like sisterly love. I am so grateful for a wise, sweet older sister who is my friend for life! And not by choice. ;-) Thanks, Em, for all the love and support and advice!

Third, I've enjoyed a lazy Saturday morning (don't worry, it's going to be a productive afternoon and evening!) after a particularly lovely Friday evening. I'm enjoying the cooler weather as a storm comes our way. It's prime photography overcast. Had I planned it, I would have taken my instant camera out and about. But that would require thought and there's not a whole lot of that going on today. Anyway, some delightful photos for your enjoyment.

I love the hot pink!

Cherry season! My favorite. Can't wait for Rainier cherries!

Just lovely.

I love the deep purple stems.

Just a little random.

Happy weekend!

Kick... and Push... and Coast

2011-05-08T01:05:00.000-06:00

My thesis's song.

I have a ten page paper to write tomorrow. It's a... situation. When I went grocery shopping today, I got some tasty treats to keep me going. The Swedes and Crystal Light energy which is one of the best inventions ever. Now in Grape!

This is my last attempt at procrastination.

To the Google Scholar!

Fleurs and Summer Plans (Summer Not!)

2011-05-05T00:18:00.001-06:00

Went on a stroll today. Saw many things...

I hung out with a cat (don't tell Ben!) and we watched some ducks waddle by.

Saw a beautiful trumpet vine!

And some lovely white roses (?).

Calla lilies are happy.

Gorgeous roses!

Yesterday I received news that I have a readership for the summer! Unfortunately, it was summer session one which goes into July and we all know what's happening in July (!!!) so I declined. Well, today I got better news that I have instead a readership for summer session two! And it's not just any old readership. It's with Nicole W. Dog and cat lovers beware! The rabbit girls are in the lecture hall!

So looks like this summer is going to be another marvelous one + prelim studying. I put a plus sign there because I'm an optimist!

MOVING PRELIMS DAPHNE READING RESEARCH

CONTINUED EXPLORATION OF THE GOLDEN STATE

See! Fantastic.

Cherries, etc, and Thoughts

2011-05-03T00:53:00.000-06:00

I love fuchsia.

I swear the leaves on these trees just appeared!
...Sometime between the end of last quarter and getting back from Montreal.

The most dangerous mixed drink known to development.
Served in a punch bowl with a tiny ladle.

There are cherries! Already! On this tree!

Seeing cherries made me think of last year. During the summer, I'd go to the Wednesday farmer's market and buy a bag of golden rainier cherries, munch and listen to the band, and take in a little sun. I've grown up a lot since then. And I feel like I've changed much in the past few months.

The growth has been in quiet but substantial ways. With accepting the offer to stay here at Davis, there's been a lot of clarity in making goals. A sense of stability as I know what I want. Well, at least for now. I'm not afraid to put down roots and really focus on being in California. At least four more years. Ahhhh...

Well, anyway, some nights it's nice to reflect upon where I've been and where I'm going. It's really only up from where I've been. Here's to the rapidly approaching summer!

It's May! It's May! The Lusty Month of May!

2011-05-01T21:32:00.001-06:00

My California poppies are particularly happy right now. They keep on smiling as I mourn the end of another fantastic weekend.

:-)

Three Hundred and Forty

2011-04-27T11:21:00.000-06:00

340

That is the number. The number of journal articles and handbook chapters I have to read and reread this summer for the preliminary exam. It's just a little bit daunting. I believe I have eight 3" binders full of these articles. It's totally doable but just, well, you know.

This is why I'm glad I'm getting new spectacles with a proper prescription! These, in brown, will be on my face sometime next week:

I think they're quite fun and sophisticated.

The highlight thus far today (pretty good to have a highlight by 10:20!) was Facetime with my sister and brother-in-law! Daphne is getting BIG! Also, I think the call was Apple commercial worthy. Just sayin'.

Now I'm going to go be productive while I eat my yoghourt and fresh blueberries drizzled with honey. The eat in challenge is proving to be delicious...

Stuffed Bell Peppers - The Eat In Challenge

2011-04-24T23:31:00.000-06:00

Dear Blogosphere,

I have a problem. I eat at restaurants too frequently. And I forget how much I like cooking. I also have lots of tasty things in my pantry which want to be dinner. Hence, I'm challenging myself to a week of eating in. Tonight on the menu:

Stuffed bell peppers with vodka sauce

(a modified version of the best thing ever)

* 2 red, orange, or yellow bell peppers

* 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

* 4 ounces precooked frozen ground chicken

* 1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach

* 1/2 sweet onion, finely chopped

* 1 jar vodka sauce (I used Trader Joe's Organic)

* 1 ounce mozzarella

* Salt and pepper to taste

Start at the beginning and when you come to the end... stop.

Preheat oven to 400*F. Start by cooking salted onions over medium high heat in a large frying pan sprayed with PAM. Cook until almost translucent. Add chicken. Cook until heated through. Add about 1 1/2 cups of vodka sauce. Make it bubble. Add frozen spinach and cooked brown rice. Mix it up.

Cut the tops off the peppers, seed and take out those bitter ribs. Place the peppers in some sort of bakeware that can withstand the high heat of a 400*F oven. Fill the peppers with rice mixture. You'll have left over rice. Eat that while these cook. :-) Top the rice with the mozzarella.

Pour the rest of the vodka sauce into the bottom of the casserole, or what-have-you. Put the tops on the bell peppers and toss those suckers in your oven! Keep 'em cookin' until the peppers have softened.

Oh baby. Am I right? Am I right?

I believe I am.

The Happiest Place on Earth

2011-04-24T18:41:00.004-06:00

Thanks for noticing us.

There's a lot of ways to write about one of the best weekends of your life. I considered several of these for this epic blog post of fantastic while I lay on my shag rug for several hours last night wondering if I was going to be able to walk today. When my family does Disneyland, we do Disneyland. To the point of shin splints. Awesome!

I think I'll start with the highlights then post the random pictures I took (my mom took the normal kind, like the one above). So, voila, the highlights!

Hanging out with my younger sister and mom for a weekend. No stress, (almost) no work to do. It was fun to chat and run around riding rides and eating delicious foodstuffs with them. As we walked out of the park yesterday afternoon, my younger sister and I found ourselves doing the typical child thing of finding random things to do to avoid leaving. Like a $0.25 vibrating machine to cure foot pain. "Wait! One more time!" My mom remarked, as we walked down Main Street U.S.A., "This is the happiest place on Earth." Agreed. And, I'll add, it's only that way because of my fantastic family.
Gluten-free friendliness! I have to say, there are lots of delicious snacks at Disneyland and fortunately they take good care of us Celiac diseased persons. I ate pizza, a chicken sandwich, enchiladas, a turkey leg, and ratatouille *with* a tasty savory sort of cornbread. All gluten-free. Whenever you request anything gluten-free, they bring out the chef who prepares your meal her/himself. It is so easy and carefree. Like a vacation should be.
WORLD OF COLOR! Seriously the best show I've seen at a Disney park. They have really outdone themselves. It's a fountain show. A HUGE fountain show. With fire. And a movie. And a cheesy soundtrack. Ali and I got prime standing spots. Our eyebrows were singed and we were soaked by the end of it. It was amazing. This description isn't doing it justice. Let's just say, this is what my face looked like during most of it: :-O
Silly moments! (1) Ali read a few select parts of the Heart of Darkness to us on Jungle Cruise. (2) I got a Mint Julep and Ali got beignets in New Orleans Quarter. We were hungry so we fought over the cherries in my Mint Julep ("You got beignets! I'm keeping my cherries." "Can I have a mint leaf?" "Sure."). My mom took the lemon and dropped it in the beignet bag full of powdered sugar. And ate it. We challenged her to do it again. Apparently she'll only do that once a vacation. (3) And just ridiculous things we said and we heard others say.
Getting back to the hotel on Friday afternoon... getting on Facebook and seeing that two of my favorite people, Caitlin and Evan, had changed their relationship status! ENGAGED! And let's just say that Evan has excellent taste in rocks. ;-) You're the man, Evan! So smart to get up the guts to ask one of the most wonderful people I know to tie the knot. You guys make my heart smile! <3

And the photos!

Enjoying a Mad Tea Party.

Reading Heart of Darkness.
We're not nerds. Heavens no!

Most snoozy ride in the park.
Hollywood Tower of Terror.

At the end of World of Color.

~~Gay Pride~~ World of Color caramel and white chocolate apple.
The ears are chocolate covered marshmallows.
Just in case the caramel apple from heaven wasn't enough!

Honey pots galore!

I like Rabbit.
I bet that surprises you.

On my favorite kids' ride: Alice in Wonderland.

My mom bought me a Mickey Mouse apron and had my name embroidered on it.
I think it's mighty cute!

The rest of my souvenirs!
My sister and I split a variety box of Wonderland teas.
And I got that darling tea pot and tea cup set for my new (come June 20) kitchen.

Fun trip! I can't wait to go again in a few years with Emily, Taylor, and Princess Daphne!

Dear Blogosphere

Disneyland! And Valentine's!

Everybody Has a Laughing Place...

Valentine Decorating and Summer Planning

16. Take a trip along CA-1.

Gifts and Apartment Improvement!

6. Paint

19. Snowshoe.

11. Attend Midnight Mass

Christmas Eve Eve!

What a year!

20. Make my own amazing CrockPot recipe.

3. Have a gluten-free beer tasting.

Twenty Five Before Twenty Five!

San Francisco and Merry (Early) Christmas!

Holly Jolly Apartment, Thanksgiving, and Birthday!

Autumn, Food, and Protest

Eleven Wishes

A Very Good Week

A Birthday and a Beautiful Wedding

Visitors and AIPs!

2. Go wining in Napa/Sonoma

#14. Write my own sexual autobiography, etc.

For love is the desire of the whole...

A little more summer

Hello, Autumn!

Life in Davis

One lovely day!

Back to School

And the summer ends...

Cool Beans

Google Visit and More!

Contents

8. Tie a Baby Quilt

Conference Proposal!

24 Before 24 Update!

Little Honda

A California Kid in a Utah World

Dress Shopping!

Back in Davis

A Handful of Photographs

Good Times in SLC!

Home and Love and Daphne

The Pool Sofa!

Sunflowers

Late Night Etsy Splurge and Instagram!

One Infinite Loop (#23) and the SF Symphony (#21)

Home

The Past Few Days

Beaches and Science, Frittatas and Sofas

Snooze Quarters

Sayonara, Number Three, etc.

#16

God Loves Mormons and He Wants Some More

Graduation+

Happiness is...

Hella Good 10 AM Sandwich

Gradmutation, Mooving, and Substitutions

Rainy Days, Papers, and a Little Diamond

Little Music, Little Update

Songs I've Been Enjoying, etc.

Good Morning Cloudy Skies

Kick... and Push... and Coast

Fleurs and Summer Plans (Summer Not!)

Cherries, etc, and Thoughts

It's May! It's May! The Lusty Month of May!

Three Hundred and Forty

Stuffed Bell Peppers - The Eat In Challenge

The Happiest Place on Earth