5 more days!

Can you believe it? Only 5 more days until Christmas. Geez louise, on top of the fact that I only have my mother & two presents for Paul down I'm stuck in wonderful Quartzsite, Az. Blech. The fact that there's a cold named Quartzsite Crud should be description enough! But let me recap on our lovely trip out to Sacramento :) Before Pauls mother moved from Barstow to Sacramento we would spend Christmas Eve, eve at her house. Now that's she's made the move out to live closer to Jen (sil), Jeff (bil) & the girls. So, off to Sacramento we go! We flew out. I hate, hate flying. It freaks me out. So bad that I get really clammy & have to talk to myself to avoid screaming & running up & down the aisle. :/ It's really quite pitiful.

Jen, Myself
Camille & Alexis

Pauly & Jeff

It was nice to see everybody. It's really weird to have family so far away! I'm huge on spending time w/family. I hate to miss any type of event. Which, happens often since my work schedule is so wacky. So here we were spending time w/loved ones but I had a constant thought stuck in the back of my mind.

Would I be ok living out here?

Paul threw his hat into the ring when a position for Parts Mgr was opened in Davis, Ca. The mgr there now put in his two weeks. He's older & wants to start his retirement. The fab part of his decision is he wants Paul to replace him. When Paul called (he was at the Davis store) & told me Al's decision I instantly cried. Ok, so yeah I'm a huge cry baby but I couldn't help it! I was so proud of Paul. He works so hard. He deserves this. So why am I freaking out? Bottom line : I'd miss my family terribly. The upside is we won't be too far away. Paul already knows this move would be hard on me & even though we don't know a definite answer he's been really supportive. Which is why, I would move in a heart beat.

So back to our visit! We landed pretty late Thursday night so the girls were already in bed. On Friday, Jen & I headed out to the wineries. Mmm the wineries. It's not every day I get buzzed before lunch! After visiting a few (or a handful) of wineries we headed out to lunch. Jen & Jeff are members at a local winery & can visit every Friday for free lunch. Not only was it free, but it was delicious! I had a fab cranberry, white grape salad w/lots of yummy fresh bread. Jen had the same salad w/meat pasta on the side. I have wonderful pics but of course they're at home. Where I'm not :( Later that night we had "our" Christmas. Judi & her boyfriend (:p) came over to open presents w/the rest of us. I finally got my bluetooth! Now this may not be exciting to you but I've been traveling alot & holding a phone up for 4 hrs straight is NOT fun.




On Saturday we were a bunch of bums. After watching I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry we headed out to Leatherby's. It's was so delicious. I had Bart's Black & Tan (substitute vanilla ice cream w/vanilla frozen yogurt). If you're ever in the area check it out! Each glass is overflowing w/chocolate or caramel syrup & the whip cream is so fluffy! Yum!
Afterwards, we headed back home & played a Cleopatra. Now I usually hesitate to play w/Jeff. Both Jeff & Paul are highly competitive & dealing w/inpatient people makes me cranky. But I obliged & it was actually quite fun & there was very little bickering. Which made me a happy camper. :) Even though I never won :/ Afterwards, we watched Jackass the movie. Seriously, watch it. It was so hilarious to see what crazy stunt they attempted (& succeeded) to do. My favorite was Mouse Trap.


On our last day :( Sunday we went out w/Judi & Steve (:p) blah, blah, Elephant Bar, blah, blah, met Judi's neighbor who was actually quite charming, blah, blah then they drove us to the airport & we headed home!


We arrived home on Sunday (!) & I drove out to Quartzsite on Monday morning :( So I've been stuck here since! I hate it. I hate that I'm so far away from home & the highlight of my day consists of watching TMZ. It's horrible & I hate it.


At least I did hate it.


Today we had our Christmas luncheon. Now, normally I dread luncheons. I usually end up eating bread & chips. However our chef remembered that I was a veggie head & made side dishes especially for me.

I feel so loved & stuffed! I guess, I don't hate Quartzsite. Maybe dislike is a better choice of word. However, please do not for one second think I'm not ready & looking forward to getting the heck out of here! :)

Did you know?

What the word FAMILY means?

Father And Mother I Love You

Now I don't know if this is true but I thought it was pretty interesting. I'm so glad to be done w/school (at least this semester) to spend some quality time w/my wonderful family. Mainly Paul. I've been so busy w/finals & traveling for work that we haven't had too much time together. This past Sunday I took a break from final projects & wrote out all our Christmas cards. Paul met w/our photographer earlier this week (finally!) & picked up our pro pics. They came out fantastic! I'll be sure to share some pics soon but until then here's a quick peek at our Christmas cards & a glimpse of a final project for my fashion illustration class. Enjoy!

I love the way they came out!

Sooo a little insight into one of my final projects. For my fashion illustration class we had a choice of lingerie, gown or swimsuit line. I obviously chose to create a swimsuit line. We had to create the line & include an inspiration board along w/fabric swatches. I had a fab time w/this project! I was especially excited when I found my last fabric swatch. I swear you wouldn't think it would be so hard to find white velvet but it was! I ended going out to Joanns in Montclair! But I had to pass by on my way to school so it wasn't terribly bad. Besides they give their fabric samples out for free! I usually pay 30 cents a piece!

My teacher enjoyed my line so much she asked me to create a croquis board! It's basically a colored version w/sketched models. I can't wait to get started & receive the extra credit (of course).

Since I lacked in the blogging dept.

Let me catch you up, picture style!

& on that yummy note I'm off to lunch.

Is that snow?!

Nah, this is California. In California we celebrate 90+ degree weather during the holidays. Unless you live in the mountains then you get snowed in. Not sure what's the better option. My fab friend Robyn asked people to post their favorite holiday memory. Wonderful idea. I didn't realize I had a favorite memory until the question was asked. Immediately I thought of last year. But first here's an insight on my twisted family. It's a Montiel tradition to make My grandma (yes MY grandma) cry at every birthday, mothers day, Christmas basically any event that has to do with presents or cards the person to make my grandma cry (to the point where she can't talk) is crowned the "winner". Please note, I did label us as a twisted family. However, we don't go out of our way.

My grandma deserves it all.

Nobody really goes "out of their way" to outdo one another but it's always nice to see who/what touches my grandma to the extent of crying. Which most of the time is a card. Oh how my grandma loves cards. :) My grandma has a hard childhood which consisted of foster & orphan homes so she truly does appreciate any little gesture. I won a few years back with an awesome pair of concert tickets to Tony Bennett. Score Grandma! Now with that in mind we really don't attempt this with one another. That all changed last year...

As always my brothers Phillip Richard (Jeremy :( was away in Iraq) & my mom came over to spend Christmas Eve with Paul & I. We always open our presents on Christmas Eve. Everybody sits around in a circle & we take turns opening our gifts. I really hate it when everybody opens their gifts all at once. You miss the reaction! I'm all about the reaction. So as always Paul played Santa & handed Richard one of his gifts.

Myself, Richard & Phillip

Now Richard is beyond amazing. He truly is & I'm not just saying that because he's my brother. Well, not solely. He has so many amazing qualities. He's not selfish. In fact it goes beyond not selfish. He's very practical. If he doesn't "need" it he doesn't want it. Silly boy. It's like pulling teeth when asking him what he wants or if he wants anything at a store. He just shyly smiles & declines. So that of course makes me crazy. To add Richard has other amazing qualities. He plays the trombone (which by the way he taught himself to do) how, you ask. Well when he joined band the instructer asked what instrument he wanted to play & Richard chose the trombone. Why, the trombone? Because it was the only instrument he knew the name to. :/ Now he plays trombone solos. He also enjoys everything & anything that has to do with Science & Math. Once we were on our way to the Aquarium & he calculated how fast I needed to go in order for us to get there in a hour (98 mph). Crazy boy. To top off his obsessions is good ol' Zelda. Zelda has been in our family since the old school Nintendo system. Richard use to watch us play & when it came time for his turn he use to play with the controller upside down. I'm tellin' ya. The kid has talent. Ok I'm losing focus. So he has endless love for Zelda & all it's magical glory.

So every time a new Zelda game is released Paul & I faithfully visit the nearest game store & purchase it for Richard. So back to my favorite Christmas memory. Last year we were taking turns opening gifts & it was Richards turn. We wrapped the game inside a box so he had no clue that the game was inside. As soon as he realized it was the "new" Zelda he looked up with tears in his eyes & wrapped his arms around me & said, "oh wow THANK YOU!" It made everybody else tear up & comment on how touched he was at our gift! It was such an amazing moment.

Ahhhhh, the Montiel tradition lives on.

I can't wait to see what this year brings ;)

Christmas, Christmas time is heeeereeeee

I'm so over Thanksgiving. Ever since I became a veggie head it hasn't been the same. The only food that keeps me happy are the croissants. Truly sad. Besides they're already playing Christmas tunes on the radio so I'm obviously not alone on this one. Then to top it off my sub-conscious told me it was Christmas time through my homework.

My teacher had to point out the design was suppose to focus on plaid. What can I say? I LOVE shoes. Plus it really completes the outfit if I do say so myself. ;)

Update your blog already...

Yes I'm lazy.

What's really sad is that I know I'm really lazy. Not just in the blogging aspect but in my everyday life. I will literally do everything at the last minute. Clean, call people, run errands you name it I'll avoid doing it. :) Take for example : my laundry. Ahhh, how I loathe washing clothes. Just the thought of having to do laundry makes me wanna sit in front of the t.v. & veg out. Last night a miracle occurred & not only did I make dinner (spaghetti) but I also did two full loads of laundry. While sorting out clothes I realized the last time I washed was before our cruise in August. Oops.

Yaaaaaaay!

Paul is finally home *insert cheesy smile* I stopped by Tar-Jay before heading to the airport to surprise him with Transformers....little did I know he had a few surprises for me :)

First off he bought me a new book. YAY! It's Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons. The novel opens with, "When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy." I love how he knows me so well. I'm super excited to read it tomorrow at work. Then the Crème de la Crème, he brought home our personalized Disneyland brick replica. Double YAY! This was our wedding gift from Pauls brother, his wife & two nieces. My now brother, sister-in-law & nieces :) Apparently his brother had it for quite some time but never mailed it out :/ Oh well, que sera, sera. The point is we have it now. Here's a few snapshots of it, in all it's glory. I can't wait to see the real deal installed at Disneyland next month.

Our mini bricks new home is on our coat rack. The porcelain statue was given to us by my awesome brother Richard a few years back for Christmas . He said it was us. :) Yay! I love you Richard MUAH!

Archive

So I fried my work computer. If you've ever fried a computer you know how scary it can be. All of a sudden smoke started to come out of every vent & the smell was ghastly. After the initial shock & realization of what was going on I realized I lost not only work documents but alot of personal pictures that were saved. :( Since I'd rather lose the pics than ask the I.S. dept to rummage through the hard drive I began to search through old emails in hopes that I had something saved........I did :) I found the first pics of Sadie that I really wanted to include in her birthday post. So enjoy the Pet Harbor pic post & a glimpse of her rad Mohawk from her rebel days.

The Countdown Begins

Paul comes home tomorrow night. Wooo Hooo! I know. I'm a sissy la but hey that's me. I'd love to join a self defense class & learn the tricks of the trade on how to keep predators away. Not that I'm the most desirable person in the world but I do have a constant fear of being raped and/or killed. Horrific I know but it's true. So until I actually do something about my fear I'll continue to double check the locks & surround myself w/awesome friends & family :)

Diana came over on Tuesday to keep me company. It was nice to sit around & talk about boys, music, huge cups, our kids (ha!) & completely udder nonsense. The plan was to cook dinner & hang out.........well at least we hung out ;) We originally wanted to make Miso Soup. Some things.......you should really leave to the professionals. We bought the premade packets from St. Bros. Boil water & add contents. Easy right?

Well first off the water wouldn't boil. Why? Because we didn't have the stove on. hee hee Then apparently we added too much water & it tasted like water w/tofu & large leaves floating around :( As Paul would say, "it's ok baby! it's going to taste good. Mmm I can't wait to eat it!" Oh well. Thankfully we had a back up plan & made Mozzarella raviolis w/veggie rolls. Mmm soooo yummy. After admitting our defeat & giving Diana a cup that wasn't meant for a giant (don't spill!) we just enjoyed each others company. Oh & the poopies loved having Diana there :) The challenge of somebody not willingly petting their cute little head gets them every time. hee hee. So here's to good food, good company & knowing that you have awesome bffs makes Paul-less nights more bearable. MUAH! love ya Diana.......but not in a weird lesbo way. Don't touch my ass. :/