not me monday.

it's that time again...

here ya go!
all the things i did not do this week.

enjoy!

i did not love getting a skin patch on my back that kept me from sleeping normal for 4 days. ugh. heading back tomorrow to make sure my back is healing.
i did not love watching the American idol finale w/ lee winning!!
i did not love glee doing gaga. ah.mazing!!
i did not love going to jay leno w/ amber and her family.
katherine heigl and matt morrison from glee were so funny!!
i did not love getting up at 4am to head to SF friday to spend an amazing weekend w/ the girls!!
i did not love walking into amy's apartment w/ champagne & tiff saying 5 minutes in "this is SO much fun!!" hahahahaha. love her.
i did not love going out with the girls, dancing w/ the gang, grabbing coffee "just a few blocks away", eating the best sandwich ever, hanging out at the park with 1,000 people, delicious dinners, dance parties in the most amazing apartment in SF, bottomless mimosas with the best photographer AKA bartender in the world, impromptu trip to the giants game (and amy getting us the best tickets in the house!), dancing around the island in with everyone in the apartment,
and lots and lots of memories.

gosh. i had a great week!!
it's bed time.

girls weekend.

oh. my. weekend.
i am back in manhattan beach...
and am already missing the girls & San Fran.

a few highlights from my trip:

giants game.

me, amy, and tiff.


me and amy!!

me and melinda!!

seriously, i miss them already.
i am exhausted.
but worth. every. minute.

this is definitely going to be a yearly thing!!

hope your memorial day was as fun as mine!!!

results.

i can't show you all my back again because, well...

let's just say it's bad.

like really, really bad.

blistered. red. itchy. bandaged.

just bad.

however, i am feeling MUCH better!!

i am taking medicine for 10 more days.

the doc said it's the worst case he has ever seen.

he is making a case study out of me!

you know that means it was serious.

i am allergic to 6 different chemicals.

and 105 cross reaction chemicals.

hmmm.

basically i am allergic to everything.

good news is i have an 83 page "shopping list" dr. habbal printed out for me.

i can only use what is on the list.

this could get interesting. and fast.

i'm alive. that's all the matters.

and i will not be wearing a bathing suit for memorial day weekend.

ps. my mom thinks i should wear a bracelet.

you know, with all my allergies on it.

real cool mom.

happy memorial day weekend everyone!!!

results.

warning: this is gross.
no other way to put it.
DO NOT read on if you are afraid of gross things.
i repeat.
stop reading.
seriously.


i was right.
i am severely allergic to a lot of "things"
i will find out those "things" tomorrow morning.

the nurse was so kind today.
although she told me i was the worse case they have seen.
i felt happy knowing something is going on.

my bestie even came to be with me.
it's painful.
my back has blisters all over.
but the bandages are off.
i carefully showered with just water.
i feel better.
not great, but better.
last appointment (hopefully) tomorrow morning.


my blistered back:

i will hopefully have a long list of "things" i am allergic to by tomorrow.
so my life can move forward.
although i am in a lot of pain, i am happy.
one step closer....


thanks for the good thoughts this week!!

the finale.

who's it going gonna be?
i hope it's lee.
he's yummy.

the bachelorette meets shooter.

last night ali (the newest member of the franchise in hopes to find a boyfriend, fiance, or person whom she would appear on the cover of people with) graced our TVs.


let me start by saying i do think she is cute & sweet.
however,
her Britney spears post k-fed hair has got to go.
i have no idea what was going on with it.
let's hope this changes. for all of our sake.

let's recap, shall we?

meet shooter -
the guy who told the worst story ever. "I might, like, have prematurely ... in college freshman year ... accidentally ... and that's maybe how ... maybe,"
wow. really? he was hoping Ali would think it was funny rather than weird.
turns out it was not funny.
he did not receive a rose.

meet roberto - he got the first impression rose. Ali likes him. he's sweet. he will stay for a while. top 5 material for sure.

meet Kasey - um. not to be rude, but what's with his voice? he wants to "protect her heart" but rather i just see a stage five clinger. keep on eye on him. i see him staying around until the ambulance shows up.

meet Justin - AKA Rated R. Yes, he wore a shirt under a shirt that said so.
not a fan. besides he's an entertainment wrestler.
hmmm. enough said.

meet Jonathan AKA Reid #2 - he could be Reid's twin (from Jillian's season). he is also an unfunny weather man.

meet Jesse - i don't know much about him besides he's a general contractor. but he's cute.
he can stay for now. top 10 for sure.

meet Craig - that man with the toupee. not really a toupee, but seriously? what's with your hair. he's gotta stay simply for entertainment value.

meet Chris H - top 3 for sure. he's polite, handsome, and well normal. at least for now.
if i had to pick a winner from the first night - it would be him. but not enough info yet. stay tuned.

until next week......

not me monday.

here ya go!
you know the drill.

all the things i did not do last week.
i did not love getting my USA jacket in the mail just in time before i depart to South Africa.
i did not love going to the IDOL taping. again. jeeez i feel a little spoiled going so many times!
lee's rendition of Hallelujah still gets me. and ps. we belong together.
i did not love Cafe Rio twice in one week. wow, new fav. spot.
i did not love sleepover/grey's night with shauna. UM. most intense Grey's episode. ever. ever. ever.
i did not love dinner with an old friend in downtown manhattan beach. delicious!
i did not love a busy work week but LOVED my full day off on Sunday. whooop! whooop!
i did not love coffee and catching up w/ my lil sis lupe. gosh she's growing up too fast! her "la quinceanera" is just around the corner! yikes!!
i did not love an impromptu hectors visit w/ bular. best sandwiches in town. yum.
i did not love getting my butt kicked by my trainer. still incredibly sore.
i did not love going to get my patch test this morning to find out what i am allergic to, and i definitely did not love the uncomfortable bandages i have to wear for 48 hours. oh boy. (so worth it though!)
i did not love galaxy game, katsuya, and just wright the movie. so cute.

i did not love the anticipation all week, knowing i am only a few days away from memorial day weekend with my favorites!!!!

post your not me mondays!
it's so much cheaper than therapy.

skin test.

after almost 25 years of not knowing what i am allergic to,
a few hospital visits,
an almost near death experience,
and a few unanswered questions.

today is the day.

dr. habbal (chief might i add) told me he would take care of me.

happy tears filled my eyes immediately.

after 6 visits to Kaiser in the last 2 weeks,
today i finally had my skin test placed on my back.
it's a 4 day process.

day 1. (see above)
day 2. wait
day 3. remove tape/bandages and see what i am allergic to
day 4. get results, and see what i need to avoid in the future.

fingers crossed this works.
nurse marie was so loving.
she reminded me of my mama so i felt right at home.

sadly, i can't shower until Wednesday,
i can't exercise,
(which is probably a good thing since my legs already feel like jello - thank you personal trainer)
and i can't remove the bandages.
so basically i am stuck walking funny.
all for a good reason though!!

i'll keep everyone posted.
think good thoughts... life changing news soon!!!!

fun photo friday.

this jacket arrived this morning on my front door step.
i am officially ready for the World Cup to start.
And am officially ready to head out to South Africa.
go USA!!

a new favorite spot.

this isn't exactly on my marathon training diet.
but so worth it.

sneaky pics.

last night we went to idol (and Shauna snuck in her phone via her bra)
she's pretty sneaky like that.
seriously, got a little chocked up when lee sang "hallelujah"
one of my all time favorite songs.
i swear he winked at me.
i saw the back of my head quite a few times when i watched it at home
(it looked good might i add, just sayin)
okay back to lee. i think i might be in love with him.
like those cute teeny bopper fans. minus the teeny bopper-ness.
and yes, we were with all those teens in the pit.
also, a ken paves look-a-like was there.
i was laughing the entire time because Shauna was yelling funny comments.
quite hysterical.
the end.
thanks for the tickets Shauna!!!
Cafe Rio tonight! boo ya.
happy hump day all.
(or just happy Wednesday, the word hump sounds funny)

idol.

a few weeks ago i snuck in my phone (thanks Shauna for the tip!)
and took a few pics inside the idol taping.
well, tonight i am gonna try to do the same!!

my friend Shauna (go to her site, and ORDER something!)
invited me to attend the taping (yes please?)
pretty pumped i get to go again in the same season!!

look for us tonight!
i might be with the teeny boppers in the pit? let's hope! ha!!

not me monday.

here ya go!
all the things i did not do this week.
for the newbies... it's all the things i did do.


i did not love making homemade pizza's, drinking wine in my pjs, and watching Grey's (oh my finale this week! i can't wait)
i did not love dinner in Downtown Disney w/ my bro. always so great to see him!!
i did not love going to see "the back up plan" starring j. lo. i think everyone should see a movie by themselves. so liberating. i LOVE doing this.
i did not love katsuya & galaxy game with whit. the world cup send off was great!!
(I also did not love little beckham cheering behind us, USA! USA! USA! before his dad told him to stop. ha! classic.)
i did not love lazy sunday in bed and catching up on my emails. followed by snacks and letters to juliet w/ b. great movie!! i want to move to italy. asap.
i did not love finding out i am going to American Idol (again) this week w/ shauna! ya! for final 3.
i did not love downloading all my "South Africa" music to get me pumped for my trip!
i did not love hiring a trainer to get my butt in gear for this marathon. yikes.
let the soreness begin.
i did not love spending some time w/ my bestie. catching up and eating chips and gauc. heaven.
i did not love picking out some fun excursions while in south africa. museums, wildlife, and more fun! here we come.
i did not love a spontaneous trip to the LBC for lunch with some of my favs. delicious banana macadamia pancakes. yum!
i did not love hulu-ing modern family. funniest show. ever.
i did not love getting to go to jimmy kimmel! the green room was amazing and my boss did a great job!!
i did not love being in the sun all day for work and still having awesome tan lines 5 days later. cool.


post your not me mondays.
it's so much cheaper than therapy.

fun photo friday.

{college graduation 2007}


wishing all my friends who are graduating from
law school, grad school, or any school....
a very happy graduation.

my kind of happy hour.

{photo from google images}


if you love Starbucks as much as me,

then you probably already know this.

if not, guess who's having a "happy hour" at the buck.

yep. Starbucks is having ALL frappuccinos 50% off until May 16th.

grab a friend, and treat them!!
2 for the price of one.

man i love a good (delicious) deal!!

enjoy!!

Jimmy Kimmel.

Last night one of my bosses was the guest on Jimmy K.
Jimmy is hilarious!!
I think Jimmy has moved up my official funny list.

Any who, some pics from the backstage green room
and a few of the audience.

ps. backstage is like a big party.
comfy couches, flat screens, bartender, and lots of tables.

who knew?

pps. the green room was EVEN nicer. who REALLY knew?

{backstage}


{audience}

{my sun burn from the day shoot}

i am exhausted.
and burnt.
a lot.

Dear Emails,


Thank you so much for getting out of my inbox. I think 150 emails a day is far too many. I appreciate you leaving my inbox and jumping into my sorted/finished folders.

Best,

ps. how fun is this website. She writes a thank you letter for everything. my mom taught me well also. above is my thank you for today. my emails are getting out of control.


pps. Heading to Jimmy Kimmel tonight! My boss is the guest!!

making a difference.

this guy is making a difference.
every. single. day.
truly inspiring.

not me monday.

here ya go! it's that day of the week, again.
geeez oh man! time is REALLY flying...
all the things i did not do last week.

i did not love surprising my momma at her garden club meeting (yes folks this is a real thing, and it's quite amazing....) dinner/drinks/garden talk with good friends.
so happy i was there to join in!
i did not love working from starbucks while all the high school kids bombarded my work space. apparently this is BV's (my old high school's) cool hang out spot.
who knew!?
i also did not love drinking 3 cups of coffee while working! yikes!!
i did not love grey's night at the dobin's. wine/cheese/and good company!
oh wait, i definitely did not love tiffany
surprise visit to see my mom and me!!!! best surprise ever.
i did not love mani/pedi's/lunch with my favs. it was delicious!!
i did not love movie night w/ momma. who would have thought "did you hear about the Morgans" would have been good!!?? loved it.
i did not love a little cocktail & mikuni's with my dearest mom.
i did not love facials & girl time.
i did not love hosting such a fun party with all our friends (50 friends made it!! for mother's day!!
i did not love spending some much needed time home with all my favorite people.
what a fun week last week was!!!


post your not me mondays!
it's so much cheaper than therapy.

mother's day.

i am back in so cal.
and WOWSA, what a trip!
and i must say, what a wonderful mother's day we had!!!
sadly, i didn't take any pictures except for the tables we set up,
but luckily my friend kel got a few! (thanks!)

50 people (or so) ended up coming over, and WOW did we eat!!

i miss my mom dearly already.
gosh, i am SO blessed to have her as my momma.

i was SO happy to spoil her all weekend long with:

pedicures.
mikuni.
lunch.
cocktails.
movies.
facials.
gifts and gifts.

she deserves ALL of it.

happy mother's day to ALL the momma's out there :)

{the tables set up in our back yard}


{me, ana, and abbey prepping food!}

{kelly and me}

back to work tomorrow but thankful i got to spend SO much time with my dearest mom.