Powered by Blogger.

About Me

My photo
Happy wife and lover of doggie named Walle.

SM Life

Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
So… this happened. My former boss contacted me about auditioning with a group that she put together for a new show called Dance Battle, produced by Samantha Hanks and set to premier tonight after Dancing with the Stars. The show is really the brain child of Julianne Hough and Maria Menounos. My team didn’t make it, but we were among the final groups being considered and got paid to work with professional choreographers for a few days. It was a tremendous experience.



After working with our choreographers Kristen and Tony for a couple of days, it was obvious that they were the real deal. You would never guess, but Kristen has 4-month old twins. Each choreographer joins the show with a long list of impressive work experience, including television shows and international tours, but what makes them great is their extreme talent and skill in their craft as dancers and teachers. Though my favorite dancer will forever be my sister-in-law, they were so fun to work with!



Following rehearsals, we were put on standby to fill in if another team ended up not being able to make the recording session, but HELLO who would miss that? So, we were invited to the recording.
For the recording, all the stars were out, Julianne Hough and her brother Derek Hough, Maria Menounos, Janice Dickenson, Samantha Hanks, hosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Jordin Sparks, and my mom. They all looked fabulous.

Working with the professionals and going into the dance studio was like a whole nother world, and if I am being honest, it was a lot of fun to be a part of it for a couple of days.



Anyway, be sure to watch the show. I’m sure it will be entertaining.

Here’s a link with more info.
Is it me you're looking for?

Tracing back, I’m not exactly sure what happened. I know that it started just like today. I was brainstorming a new blog post, only meanwhile, I was looking at my cluttered home.

I wanted to write something useful. Since my home was a mess, why not start there? After spending some time researching how to declutter my home, because research is much easier than doing the actual work, I found myself going from one thing to another. If you give a mouse a cookie, right?

 
My obsessive research took me from closet organization, to virtual closet apps, to style apps, to style guides, to capsule wardrobes; from home filing systems, to paper organizers, to actually taking a semester-long online class at my community college on personal financing, to stocks and interest rates, to purchasing items with cash, to tiny houses, to global poverty, and so forth, and so on…

All the while my eyes grew wider. And friends, this occurred over a period of months, until everything kind of wound down and I was left with an ever-growing interest in…

Minimalism.

(Tada?)

As I began taking a hard look at my life, I started really weighing my lifestyle and felt inspired to bare down and focus on what really matters.

A while back, overwhelmed by life and work, I started saying no to opportunities. I felt like I needed to say no and regain some space for myself, and quite frankly, adequate sleep. But now, I feel like I have learned to say “yes” again. And saying yes is so much more fun!

Yes to people. Yes to life. Yes to friendships. Yes to adventures. Yes to learning something new. Yes to not being perfect. Yes to forgiving. Yes to love. Yes. One-hundred times, yes.

Since these initial changes, I have been doing things that I just didn’t think that I had time for before. I have taken a couple of online classes, met up with friends on a regular basis, thrown a baby shower, freelanced for a school board campaign and even done some work in Hollywood.

In closing... I'm back. And glad to be. I hope to share some of the things that have been inspiring me.

It’s cliché, but really, life IS short, guys.

And I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun. Ecclesiastes 7:10
One of my favorite things about holidays, trips, events, etc. are the days leading up to them. Minus the stress and preparation, I love the anticipation of something special on the horizon. It's really a treat, especially when you might find yourself otherwise faced with a case of the Mondays.

This week I am counting down the days to the Weekend to Remember marriage conference - and I only have to count to 5!

"Marriage conference? Oh no! Are you guys doing okay?" In truth, we are in a great place.  I feel so blessed to be married to the man that I am married to. It's unfortunate that some of us only think of marriage conferences and counseling when we are in crisis. The hard truth is that just because my marriage is smooth sailing for now, doesn't mean that we won't hit rough waters up ahead. Whenever you can learn from someone else's experience or expertise, do it! I think that a marriage conference is the perfect way. 

It's funny because you marry the person that you love, and then when things are not perfect, because really, nothing is ever perfect, you end up criticizing them and pointing the finger. And then, something kind of odd happens. You get to a point where you realize... "hmm. Maybe it's not you, it's me..?"

The bottom line is this: I really want to be an excellent wife, and I realize that, well, I can improve in some areas. I am going to this conference with an open mind, hoping to gain some helpful tools that will expand my ability to love my husband more. And THAT, friends, is going to be a fun challenge because I already love him a whole bunch!

Details
- Visit the conference website (here) for more info on A Weekend to Remember. 
- A Weekend to Remember occurs in places all throughout the U.S. & all throughout the year.
- Use the promo code "WEEKEND" at check out for 40% off conference registration.
I'm still walking on clouds from Valentine's Day this past weekend. For us, it was sandwiched between birthday parties and due to the fact that my husband works in the hospitality/food service industry, Valentine's Day was a working day for him, but we spent the evening at the beach with some carry-out from one of our favorite restaurants, The Olive Pit. And, it was wonnnnderful...

 One of the great pleasures of the day was getting 45 Reason's Matt is Awesome published to Buzzfeed, and then posting it to Facebook for everyone to see. My husband loves Buzzfeed lists and is well-known for calling everything "Awesome!" so after some brainstorming, I decided it'd be the perfect surprise gift. He didn't realize the post was up until the end of the night, which was perfect timing. And believe me, the look on his face was priceless. 

SURPRISE!!!
Once he discovered the post, he was laughing so hard that tears were coming down his face--He's a great sport. He did stop to ask where I had dug up some of the photos. Little does he know, I have a secret collection of embarrassing photos of him. You know, in case of an emergency. After scrolling the list, we had even more fun seeing comments made by friends and family throughout the day. 

It was a fun project because it gave me time to reflect on our time together and thank God for giving me such a faithful, fun-loving spouse. It could have have easily become 117 Reason's Matt is Awesome, but I decided to save the fact that he has a birthmark in the shape of California... and the fact that he loves to lick envelopes... for Part 2. Hah! Be sure to check out the post!

Details 
Restaurant: The Olive Pit 
My gifts from Matt: A devotional book, a notebook with a photo slide, and a romantic evening out, all of which I loved <3

During this time of reflection and resolution, let us not lose contentment in who God is, or in the very day that lies before us. 

By personality, I am always looking to tomorrow, but today I find pleasure in the gentle reminder that all things have been written. And in this, I am exactly where God desires me to be.

After a laughter-filled, relaxing evening at home nestled up with my husband, I drove to work this morning and saw this beautiful skyline. Resting above the concrete jungle of the 5 freeway was a Hallmark Easter card.

This is the never-changing, magnificent, natural beauty of life. This is the stuff seen by both kings and slaves, by both righteous and unrighteous. It is never wearisome. Created prefect. It is without strain or strife. 
This is the often overlooked backdrop of life. 

This is today.

To sweeten the pot, I had virtually no traffic all the way to work.
With my favorite program on the radio, I drove in a calm, sweet realization: 

There is so much joy in just being.

The warm hug of heated seats.
The revitalizing coolness of the air upon getting out of my car.
The sweet taste of homemade chocolate scones, shared among colleagues.
The soft hum of my computer.
The welcoming smile of a friend.

I thank God that I am alive. In a world filled with angst and discord, the spirit within me finds harmony. It sways in gentle movement. It makes known the softer notes. It adds texture to melody and power in moments. 

God is good.
Yesterday { Today } Tomorrow
Sometimes last minute vacations are the best thing.
Helmet hair!
With Veteran's Day on a Tuesday, my husband and I decided to take advantage of the extra time off by taking a trip up the coast to Pismo Beach.  Ever since we missed the opportunity to ATV in Hawaii on our honeymoon, we'd been dying to try it out.

I was extra excited because this marked our first vacation with our little dog Walle (Wally).
Poor thing never gets out.
On our way up, we stopped at Solvang. Walking the streets of Solvang was like walking the streets of a tv set for a Lifetime Christmas movie. There were twinkling lights and beautiful store fronts. We couldn't stay long, but vowed to return.

By the time we made it to Pismo it was dark, so we really couldn't see much. We went for a short walk before calling it a night. We woke up happy to discover that we had a view of the beach and pier from our hotel room.

We took our time getting up, grabbed a light breakfast from the hotel lobby, and walked down to the beach where some locals were setting up to play competitive volleyball. We watched for a little while as we mapped out our plan for the day. We dropped Walle off at a pet store for grooming so that we could have the afternoon alone. After 24-7 Walle, we ran out of there clicking our heels.

ATVs were a blast! After getting our gear and signing our lives over, we drove down to the beach where we were met by a guy in a truck who shuttled us down to the dunes. He was a zany guy from Oklahoma who moved to Pismo to follow his daughter to college at U.C. Santa Barbara. He said that all his friends were jealous of his California-70-degree-weather-year-round lifestyle.

When we pulled up to the dunes, the guy zipped through how to ride the ATVs, which left us a little nervous. That is, until we hit the dunes.

The dunes covered 8 miles and there were 25  posts to help us navigate. I don't know how 8 miles sounds to you, but out in the sand it seemed to go on forever. We drove for a long time, nearing what we thought was the end, but it was only post 7! The dunes reached heights of 20-30 feet. Right away, I got a pretty gnarly cut on my driving thumb, but that didn't stop us. We had the best time riding, standing up on our bikes, going down dunes, evading beach cops, and doing donuts around each other. We felt pretty hardcore. We only stopped to do some gangsta-bro poses.

"Malibuuu!"
When we got back to our room, we curled up in bed to watch videos from our ride and laughed our heads off. As video-me screeched down dunes and video-Matt did donuts, we realized that video-us did not look as cool as we felt. And if I'm being completely honest, that cut on my thumb... it happened because I pinched myself trying to close my selfie stick.

After Walle got his hair cut, he was such a little angel. My husband said that he was probably happy to be clean, but I thought that he was probably just happy that he could finally see.

We spent a couple of days relaxing in Pismo and stopped off at a monarch butterfly farm on our way home. At first, I didn't see any butterflies, but then my husband pointed out that what I thought were leaves on a tree, were actually thousands of butterflies. It was incredible.

We came back feeling well-rested and oh-so-in-love. I can't imagine a better partner for any adventure. With so much to share, maybe next time I'll try vlogging.
After the yard sale on Saturday, my husband and I went to see this:

It was kind of random and last minute, but we had fun! Matt's dad had bought tickets for himself but he was unable to use them, so he offered the tickets to us. It was an interesting crowd and venue, and an overall interesting experience, but Matt and I had a great time just being there together. My husband was amazed by the fact that I knew almost all of the songs. They opened with "Even the Nights are Better," and closed with "All out of Love." Except for one "awkward," (as my nephew Ethan would put it) moment when the lead vocalist Russell Hitchcock got a little fresh with the guitarist, it was all fun.

Nevertheless, Russel Hitchcock was my favorite part of the show. He's gotta be 5'2", but he is seriously the king of spirit fingers. Not sure why, but he kept throwing his hands in the air and moving around his fingers. Checking the air supply...? I had so much fun watching and snickering. You've got to admit though, being able to make money performing over a span of 40 years is pretty incredible.
Last Saturday morning my sister-in-law Stacey, and her husband, hosted a yard sale. She invited us to join and sell some of our items, too.  My husband had to work, so I went on my own. Surprisingly, we didn't have as may things to sell as I thought we did, but I was very happy to get rid of a few things, including some stools that were constantly getting in the way.

As far as yard sales go, I think ours was top-notch, even in 90 degree weather. No credit to me, it's just that my sister-in-law is very organized and had a lot of awesome gently used items. I think that one of the best parts of the yard sale, for me, was hanging out with Stacey. We had a great time chatting in between customers and laughing at random things. Tied with hanging out with Stacey, was chasing her cute boys around. My favorite moment was when the older nephew, Ethan, laid on the ground pinned by his two-year old brother Noah. Noah was hugging him and it was so hot that they had resorted to running around inside in their undies. Ethan, who is always all smiles and so much fun to be around, paused, laid pinned and motionless on the ground, and with a straight-face said aloud to himself, "This is awkward." I could not stop laughing!



Another funny moment was when my brother-in-law pulled up with his truck bed full of items for the yard sale. He was coming from his mom's house, so I thought he'd have grown up items like furniture and clothes.. but it was all baby toys. He even ended up making a second trip to bring more! (To be fair, it is a short truck bed.)

Satisfied customer
At the end of the day I was $13 richer, and Stacey.... $715! At a dollar a clothing item, I thought that this was pretty amazing! I have to confess, I did end up bringing home more than I sold. I got an old coffee table, some wall art, frames, and baby clothes for a friend. I had to resist a few other items for fear that our home would start to look too much like a copy of Stacey's, circa 2012 (which would actually be alright). I tried to pay, but Stacey insisted on the family discount which she said meant free, and who can argue with that?