21 hours ago
Jon & Kate Plus 8
For those of you like me who've refused to believe all the stories and believed that they were able to brush this all off, are you as crushed as I am? It's like finding out about Santa all over again. You tell your classmates that the stuff they've been hearing about Santa not existing is crap and you believe and believe and believe...and then someone tells you the dirty truth and you just wanna shake it off. It's heart-breaking, no?
Perhaps what really breaks my heart is the statistic that Kate mentioned -- that couples with multiples have a higher divorce rate. I know I don't have kids of my own yet so I don't fully understand, but it makes me so sad to know that with these kinds of parents, the fact that they have more kids at once shakes their marriage rather than solidifies it. To be honest, it scares the crap out of me to know that this is a reality.
The romantic and optimist in me hopes that Jon and Kate find their way back to each other, but perhaps I'm being foolish and I'm hoping this for selfish reasons -- I always need a happy ending. Perhaps in the end, it's best they stay apart. I don't know. I don't know them personally and it's none of my business. Ugh, but wasn't it touching to see that Mady and Cara were stepping up to help Kate just when she needed it? And wasn't it heart-wrenching when Kate was talking about their last family picture? And just a few nights ago, I was watching their home video from that Christmas years ago...Oh garsh, I'm gonna start crying again.
I'm not sure what to do with myself. And my poor husband is sitting here trying to watch the NBA semi-finals while trying to figure out how to comfort his wife who is all emotional over TV. I hope I can sleep tonight.*
*Something about TV and a good night's sleep -- I couldn't sleep after the Private Practice season finale because poor Violet was stuck, paralyzed on her living room floor while her formerly-pregnant patient began performing a c-section to take her baby...
Porter
In
Do
I flew Porter back from Montreal. I really hope this airline expands because I feel like it was built just for people like me -- small people.
I've never been able to adjust my air or my lights from my seat...with my A.I.S. (ass in seat as per the Barones from Everybody Loves Raymond). I've never been able to put things in the overhead compartment either. We flew in, what my boss called, a "Trina-sized plane".
The ferry ride is like 2 seconds long and the terminal is the cutest thing ever (provided you haven't overpacked like I did).
Something for kids...and me. Hahaa! I found all 20 differences!
How I know I'm home.
Bottle Drive
Yesterday was the Bottle Drive for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I learned a lot about people yesterday. I'll leave it at that. It was a great experience. Click below to view some pics.
How frickin' awesome is this?
In
Etc.
I was in my hotel room the other day with the Today Show on and heard about this while doing my hair in the bathroom. I dropped what I was doing and ran out to see what this toy was all about. Having grown up in the 80's with older siblings, cousins and many a male influence with such hot older sisters (right? right? hahaa!), Star Wars has always been awesome in my book.
Finally, I can train to use these Jedi powers!!
Monday
In
Life
I'm off today. I'm supposed to spend today catching up on sleep but I'm up. I woke up early to drive my husband to the station and I haven't been back to sleep since. Maybe it's the white light from my computer. I am, however, comfortable in bed.
I had quite an eventful week. I was in Montreal all of last week on business for our annual convention. This time around, it was smooth and I was part of a great team. Cheers to us for being such awesome ballerinas ;)
My husband tagged along for part of the stay. He left on Thursday morning. We broke in our new car (what does breaking in a car really mean? I mean, do you really need to take it for a long drive when it's new?) and drove there and then he drove back home. It was nice to be able to be on a business trip and after 16-hour days, come "home" to your husband.
And today, I'm trying to deflate after a busy weekend as well. Perhaps I'll go back and draft the posts I said I'd publish (they're back-dated).
I had quite an eventful week. I was in Montreal all of last week on business for our annual convention. This time around, it was smooth and I was part of a great team. Cheers to us for being such awesome ballerinas ;)My husband tagged along for part of the stay. He left on Thursday morning. We broke in our new car (what does breaking in a car really mean? I mean, do you really need to take it for a long drive when it's new?) and drove there and then he drove back home. It was nice to be able to be on a business trip and after 16-hour days, come "home" to your husband.
India.Arie
In
Faith,
Love,
Positivity
- she's my fave
- because she's awesome
- it was effortless for her
- it was all very casual -- she just spoke to and sang WITH the audience
1. the acoustics were good, the mics weren't too great at first
2. the opening act was Laura Isibor, who is also AWESOME.
3. she plays at least 3 instruments: piano, guitar and flute (all of which I also play, it just so happens)
ABOVE ALL, the entire experience was spiritual, at least for me. She opened with a prayer and closed with a prayer, but for me, the entire concert felt like one long, soulful prayer. It was beautiful (she didn't sing Beautiful though). I cried like a baby.
I'll post more videos on Youtube and link them here eventually.
The Half
In
Running
I'd never run an official half marathon before. I was stoked for this one. The course was really simple and easy so it was just a matter of keeping it together. I did well and beat my previous personal record by over 10 minutes!! I also did some fundraising for this race. Thank you to all who pledged :)
The race actually began BEFORE the actual race. With the streets closed, it was crazy trying to get off the highway. My husband came with me and together with a long line of runners in cars, we sat on the highway exit ramp. People were getting out of cars on the ramp and running to the start line. I took this as an opportunity to not start with the huge group so I stayed in the car. By the time we got closer to the parking lot, it was almost start time, so I kissed my husband later! and ran for the start line.
The actual race was pretty crazy. I was doing well, then at the 8K mark, I had a UUUUUUGE (so huge, the H doesn't fit) cramp. It was enough that I had to literally stop...it didn't help to walk. So I stopped, forced myself not to cry, and yelled to myself (mentally) to GET. IT. TO.GETH.ER. I finished the race cramp-free after that. It was so weird for me to get a cramp -- I almost never get them.
The course traveled passed a lot of really big houses, and there wasn't any looping, so it was nice and scenic. The things I found challenging were that some parts were so narrow so you had to go single file and that the finish line was sorta hidden so you didn't have much of an idea where to start sprinting to the finish.
It was a great race though, and I'd definitely do it again.
The race actually began BEFORE the actual race. With the streets closed, it was crazy trying to get off the highway. My husband came with me and together with a long line of runners in cars, we sat on the highway exit ramp. People were getting out of cars on the ramp and running to the start line. I took this as an opportunity to not start with the huge group so I stayed in the car. By the time we got closer to the parking lot, it was almost start time, so I kissed my husband later! and ran for the start line.
The actual race was pretty crazy. I was doing well, then at the 8K mark, I had a UUUUUUGE (so huge, the H doesn't fit) cramp. It was enough that I had to literally stop...it didn't help to walk. So I stopped, forced myself not to cry, and yelled to myself (mentally) to GET. IT. TO.GETH.ER. I finished the race cramp-free after that. It was so weird for me to get a cramp -- I almost never get them.
The course traveled passed a lot of really big houses, and there wasn't any looping, so it was nice and scenic. The things I found challenging were that some parts were so narrow so you had to go single file and that the finish line was sorta hidden so you didn't have much of an idea where to start sprinting to the finish.
It was a great race though, and I'd definitely do it again.
The Late Twenties
I'm here. Late twenties. So far, I LOVE IT.
I do feel older and I do feel wiser. I know, I know, it's only another year, but I found myself very reflective on my life while celebrating my birthday.
With the Fam
It's no secret. I love picnics. I think it goes back to the days when I was little and it would be my parents, my party of siblings, me, a blanket and a bucket of KFC. Don't forget the colesolaw (yes, I meant to type it that way because that's how it was pronounced) and if we were lucky, an OOPIE!
I had a picnic with my family a few years back so I decided to do it again this year, but on a larger scale given that this time, my parents weren't on vacation, my sister was in town on business and, I now have in-laws!
It was fun and I found myself sorta just sitting back watching My Fortune grow...
I love my family. I've had conversations with my sisters about how much we love our family and I guess if you're in my family or your family is just as fortunate as ours, you completely understand. I like to think that eventually, all families have the potential to get to this point and better. When the kids are grown, the teen angst has subsided, the parent-child understanding has fully developed, the family is growing and the grandchildren are the spotlight, I think THAT's when things are at their best. Or at least, in our case, it is. I like to believe that we're bulletproof. It's almost like the scars we've got have made our skin so much thicker that we can survive anything. We're stronger when we're together, and I know for me, I feel strongest when I'm with my family.
We have a big family. Scratch that--a BIG family, and we don't stop there. I don't imagine that over the years, we'll grow apart or lose touch. We just don't do that. So, I imagine just how big our family is going to get over the years and I feel so happy. I'm a part of this and I belong here.
Running
I imagine that in my lifetime, I'll run a large number of races. I admit that I'm partial to the ones that have medals because I like the idea of having something cool to show for finishing. I know I said I'd go for at least one full and two halves this year, but if I'm fortunate enough to have things come up and push these races to the back burner, that's fine with me.
I started my birthday with a morning run with my best friend. We took it easy considering I had a big race the coming weekend. It was refreshing to take it easy, not bring my watch or iPod and just talk to him instead of what I'm used to -- running on my own, tracking myself, over long distances. I imagine me and us running until we're old, running with strollers, running with kids... I know I don't look like I was built to run, but I feel it. It's one of the things I do.
FREE lunch
My brother had the day off too so we all headed to Tucker's Marketplace so I could have a free lunch (and they could pay j/k). I'm not usually a fan of buffets, but I really don't mind this place. They always have good food, and it doesn't taste like buffet food and isn't buffet quality. It's good. I also wasn't forced to eat a free piece of cake (I'm not much of a cake person, I just make them) and suffer the embarrassment of sitting through a tone-def Happy Birthday To You, so I was a happy camper.
It was so nice to sit down and eat a meal with my favourite men who just happen to be my roomies too. I'm so blessed to have them. We don't get to all have a meal together often since we're all busy, we do our things, brother does his own things and when we do eat together, it's often in front of the TV, so this was nice.
Birthday Baking
After paying a visit to a new "mall" and picking up some ice cream (but of course!) we went home for a big and I decided to make my coworkers some cheese cupcakes. Some of them are my best customers, so I thought it'd be nice to share the treats and also save them of the usual grocery store white cake with sugar frosting we always have when it's someone's birthday. I also made some to keep at home and give to my girlfriends when we finally caught up with each other.
I didn't have time to sit down and make them pretty though, so I just made chocolate disks and put them on top. Not the prettiest, but still tasty, I hope!
Dinner with My Husband
After finding out that our favourite Thai restaurant seemed to have changed either their recipes or their chefs, we decided to go to the next best one -- it didn't disappoint. In fact, I'm craving it again now! As usual, it was good food, good company and good conversation. We talked about all sorts of things, things I like to talk about (i.e. Life)... So good, so good...
Overall, it was a great birthday. I would have liked to celebrate more with friends, but unfortunately, there just wasn't much time to partay. Pics can be found here.
I do feel older and I do feel wiser. I know, I know, it's only another year, but I found myself very reflective on my life while celebrating my birthday.
With the Fam
It's no secret. I love picnics. I think it goes back to the days when I was little and it would be my parents, my party of siblings, me, a blanket and a bucket of KFC. Don't forget the colesolaw (yes, I meant to type it that way because that's how it was pronounced) and if we were lucky, an OOPIE!
I had a picnic with my family a few years back so I decided to do it again this year, but on a larger scale given that this time, my parents weren't on vacation, my sister was in town on business and, I now have in-laws!
It was fun and I found myself sorta just sitting back watching My Fortune grow...
I love my family. I've had conversations with my sisters about how much we love our family and I guess if you're in my family or your family is just as fortunate as ours, you completely understand. I like to think that eventually, all families have the potential to get to this point and better. When the kids are grown, the teen angst has subsided, the parent-child understanding has fully developed, the family is growing and the grandchildren are the spotlight, I think THAT's when things are at their best. Or at least, in our case, it is. I like to believe that we're bulletproof. It's almost like the scars we've got have made our skin so much thicker that we can survive anything. We're stronger when we're together, and I know for me, I feel strongest when I'm with my family.
We have a big family. Scratch that--a BIG family, and we don't stop there. I don't imagine that over the years, we'll grow apart or lose touch. We just don't do that. So, I imagine just how big our family is going to get over the years and I feel so happy. I'm a part of this and I belong here.
Running
I imagine that in my lifetime, I'll run a large number of races. I admit that I'm partial to the ones that have medals because I like the idea of having something cool to show for finishing. I know I said I'd go for at least one full and two halves this year, but if I'm fortunate enough to have things come up and push these races to the back burner, that's fine with me.
I started my birthday with a morning run with my best friend. We took it easy considering I had a big race the coming weekend. It was refreshing to take it easy, not bring my watch or iPod and just talk to him instead of what I'm used to -- running on my own, tracking myself, over long distances. I imagine me and us running until we're old, running with strollers, running with kids... I know I don't look like I was built to run, but I feel it. It's one of the things I do.
FREE lunch
My brother had the day off too so we all headed to Tucker's Marketplace so I could have a free lunch (and they could pay j/k). I'm not usually a fan of buffets, but I really don't mind this place. They always have good food, and it doesn't taste like buffet food and isn't buffet quality. It's good. I also wasn't forced to eat a free piece of cake (I'm not much of a cake person, I just make them) and suffer the embarrassment of sitting through a tone-def Happy Birthday To You, so I was a happy camper.
It was so nice to sit down and eat a meal with my favourite men who just happen to be my roomies too. I'm so blessed to have them. We don't get to all have a meal together often since we're all busy, we do our things, brother does his own things and when we do eat together, it's often in front of the TV, so this was nice.
Birthday Baking
After paying a visit to a new "mall" and picking up some ice cream (but of course!) we went home for a big and I decided to make my coworkers some cheese cupcakes. Some of them are my best customers, so I thought it'd be nice to share the treats and also save them of the usual grocery store white cake with sugar frosting we always have when it's someone's birthday. I also made some to keep at home and give to my girlfriends when we finally caught up with each other.
I didn't have time to sit down and make them pretty though, so I just made chocolate disks and put them on top. Not the prettiest, but still tasty, I hope!
Dinner with My Husband
After finding out that our favourite Thai restaurant seemed to have changed either their recipes or their chefs, we decided to go to the next best one -- it didn't disappoint. In fact, I'm craving it again now! As usual, it was good food, good company and good conversation. We talked about all sorts of things, things I like to talk about (i.e. Life)... So good, so good...
Overall, it was a great birthday. I would have liked to celebrate more with friends, but unfortunately, there just wasn't much time to partay. Pics can be found here.
Away We Go
In
Love
I love Maya Rudolph. I love John Krasinski. I love Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski.
27
That's me! 27!
I had a great birthday. I'll elaborate more later. I don't have much time to blog in depth, but I need to post about one of the birthday presents I got from my husband...
Yep, I'm going to India...ARIE, BABY!!!! Tomorrow's the day!
(There's more of a story to this, but as I said, I'll elaborate later).
I had a great birthday. I'll elaborate more later. I don't have much time to blog in depth, but I need to post about one of the birthday presents I got from my husband...
I wanna go to a place where I am nothing and everything
That exists between here and nowhere
I wanna go to a place where time has no consequences oh yeah
The sky opens to my prayers
I wanna go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful...
That exists between here and nowhere
I wanna go to a place where time has no consequences oh yeah
The sky opens to my prayers
I wanna go to beautiful, beautiful, beautiful...
Yep, I'm going to India...ARIE, BABY!!!! Tomorrow's the day!
(There's more of a story to this, but as I said, I'll elaborate later).
Do you smell that?
My favourite smells of the season so far:
- New car :) (I'll elaborate later)
- Freshly cut grass
- Rain (not to be confused with wormy rain smell)
- BBQ
- My nephew, Mikey
- Post-run air
- My clothes after being outside all day (some would say it's "sun stink" but whatever)
The Importance of Pancakes
One of the surefire signs I know my husband loves me deeply is rooted in The Pancake.
I love pancakes--homemade ones though. I've never had a good pancake outside my home and that's pretty sad for anyone who's never lived with me before. Growing up, my dad made all-star pancakes. Like, they were seriously delicious. One of the real tell-tale signs it was gonna be a good morning was the smell of pancakes and bacon. Heck, breakfast always smelled good to me. Even on one fateful morning where my new nightgown was too tight around my wrists and my hands swelled, I remember the smell of breakfast and not my sister waking me up gawking at my hands (I wish I could have seen it all happening outside of my body! LOL Lei!).
My Dad made pancakes from scratch. He never wrote down the recipe anywhere; it was all in his head. When I woke up one morning during summer vacation (waking up in the morning in the summer was RARE) I called him at work and asked him for the recipe. He said it was common sense. Then my dad started making pancakes...from a box. OMG. The world was coming to an end. I haven't had my dad's pancakes from scratch in forever. These days, he insists the box version is the same thing. LIES.
And then my husband started making pancakes for me. The race to the end of the world has ended and all is right again. When he first made pancakes for me, I felt like a kid again, and even now when he sneaks out of bed to make them for me, it brings me right back to age 4. They're just as good as my Dad's, very similar in taste but perfect in their own way as well. And he makes them a cute size, which is just what I like. :)
MMMMMM pancakes.
Here, in Furniture City...
In
Etc.
The best episode of the Cosby show is on right now. This is so exciting!
26
In
Do
I'm off. I have a long list of things to do today. I feel motivated again, and it's refreshing. I haven't felt this motivated since before my wedding. I think it's because I'm telling myself that when I slide into my late-twenties tomorrow, I have to start living the organized and structured life I told myself I'd live when I'm in my late-twenties. So here I go.
Today's list of things to do:
Today's list of things to do:
Sort through wedding stuff("stuff" is the best way to describe my years of collecting and collecting and collecting)and store the keepersOrganize the office, including contents of the filing cabinetsDiscard old manualsUpdate budget- Finish Thank Yous and prep them for sending
Tidy up bedroomClean the bathroomLaundry- Put up the clock
Store party stuffOrganize the pantryPut away winter coats, jackets, accessoriesBring spring jackets downstairsPut away winter clothes, heavy sweaters and bring out SHORTS!Bring clothes for donationRun errands, and namely buy dish sponges, a case of Powerade and exfoliating gloves!Pick up husband from stationPrepare dinner- Bake cookies?
- Bake cheesecupcakes?
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