IT'S BEEN SO LONG!

Oh friends! I took a break, sorry for not being here to say hello. Loads was going on (still is too!) but I missed you!

So quick rundown:

-we went to a Vegan beer fest that was SO much fun and full of tasty food & beer, pretty good music, portions of the proceeds went to ARME, and we had amazing company!
-lady is still in jail for identity theft-glad for that!
-Friendsgiving was AMAZING!!! Lizz and Sherm came to visit, we had a blast!
-my birthday tradition at Disneyland was AMAZING!!! Joe and I bought annual passes and had the most exquisite time. It was magical!
-Joe and my birthday party had an 80s Character Meet & Greet theme which turned out to be fantastic! Joe went as Marty McFly & I went as Jem (as in Jem & the Holograms). It was a blast!!
-Colonel Mustard is doing well and is taking on well to his more in-depth training. We love the little noodle!
-Joe and I have reinstated our Saturday Date Nights and we are falling in love all over again. Such magic :D
-I am going to be taking some new headshots and we're going to get some family shots done-maybe with a Clue theme...
-Joe and I are going to Disneyland again on Sunday!!! Silly I know but Joe and I have found our new fave place-ha!!
-We found an amazing drive-in movie theatre near town thanks to Kari & her hubs, we had a blast seeing a double feature for $8!
-Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows was a date night and we had super fun time, I liked the movie overall and was really surprised where they ended it. I just felt less for the characters, the books when Mad Eye dies I sobbed-movie I had nothin'...
-I have gotten to see so many of my dearest friends this past few months and it has been so refreshing for my soul-they are all the people who just fill me up and remind me how grateful I am for the wonderful people in my life. So much love for them!!!
-We are flying back to MI for the holidays with Colonel Mustard and I am slightly nervous and excited. I'm nervous that he wont do well with the flight but I'm excited for him to see snow and meet all of Joe and my families! Any flight advice for us, he'll be flying under the seats so I'm grateful for that but again, nervous.

And that has been pretty much been the haps, chaps! Hope you are all well, I will try to more on top of my blog-just been busy with all the craziness of life lately. but I'm glad to be back! :D

xoxox



P.S. PICTURES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Drizzly with a Change of Soy Nuggets & Hashbrowns...

So basically blogger hates me and every time I try to upload photos it sucks and wont let me-BOO! So I think I need to switch this over to wordpress or something. Blogger-get it together!

Completely unrelated items: I went to an amazingly 80s-tastic party Friday. I forgot how much fun costume-y parties are. It has been awhile. It just felt nice to be out with friends, looking silly, being silly, and having fun! Just fills up your soul.

I get to see my bestie Ben in San Diego this next week. I love him. He literally is the re-charge button to my spirit. Just makes me feel so happy. We always make each other laugh and have an amazing time. It's just a little something to look forward to. I also get to see my long-time friend Kathy next week too hopefully in my little San Diego adventure. I love her. And coming off how fun her wedding week was it will just be delightful to continue the festivities. Hooray!

My car's engine died again. This time not the battery but something to do with the coolant/water pump mechanisms and I had to get towed from the Valley to WeHo. Thank goodness AAA gives me 100 free miles of towing. My poor little SPF (Sean Patrick Focus)! I love my little car and it breaks my heart when he is sick. :( He is my first and only car and I am very attached to him!! I hope that it is easily (and cheaply) fixable.

Wednesday my dear friend Heather and I are going to a Halloween Costume Party/Quinceañera and I am SO stoked. It's for Heather's friend who turned 35 and went to a traditional Quinceañera and fell in love with the whole celebration and is paying homage. Heather is going to be Catwoman and I am going to be Poison Ivy. We're working out the details on what we want to wear but I was thinking of maybe doing a deconstructed Ivy with green tights, a man's green button up, green shoes, messy hair with Ivy all through it, a prop cigarette and whiskey. I think it would be funny. Like she's been at it too long and doesn't care anymore. But it would also be fun to wear the traditional unitard and tights, green boots and gloves too. We'll see...

Colonel Mustard is sleeping curled up on the couch between the pillows and it is so cute it is distracting me. I have to go cuddle him as soon as humanly possible. Sweet little pup! Overwhelmed by the cuteness.

Hope all is well with you. I'm off to sleep and snuggle this pup. I'm still getting over my cold so sleep is needed. Take care all!! :D

Mixed Weather Reviews but Mostly Sunny

Hello Friends!

So I was absent for a bit. For the identity theft incident, a trip back to Michigan and my home town, and now because I'm sick! So busy!

SO here is a quick run-down on the progress of everything...

1) Identity theft: the culprit is in LA County jail (thank goodness) and is being held on high High HIGH bail so I and everyone else are safe. I just have to keep monitoring my credit, etc. and stay on top of everything since the laws are set up so the victim must do the work to save their own credit/future. And since my credit/future are important to me I am staying on it!

2) Trip to Michigan-it started off not so great. The car died and I had to call everyone I could think of for a ride to make my flight. But the charity walk I did for Walk Now for Autism Speaks was amazing and our team raised over $2500!!!

3) My home town was for the most part great. My lovely friend got married-she was gorgeous, the ceremony and reception were amazing, it was pretty perfect! We threw a pretty kick-ass bachelorette party for her too! My family was great-it was nice t spend some quality time together and really talk. There was a minor drama with my sister's crazy ex but that was avoided for the most part, he was just being his immature self and my sister smartly removed herself from the situation.

4) I woke up my last morning in Michigan with a slight sore throat (I thought due to the lack of sleep I got all week from wedding extravaganza and cocktailing like I don't usually do) and then by the end of the first of two plane rides I was in full blown cold mode. Then I got a fever. What can I say? October seems to be my sick month, last year's Halloween was spent in bed sick-at least this year it came early so hopefully I can still dress up and have fun with Joe and our puppy!

So that is my brief run down. Enjoy some photos from my Michigan adventure!


So blogger wont let me upload photos...I shall do it tomorrow, hopefully it'll be better by then. :)

Stormy with a Chance of BAD...

Sorry for the lack of blogging. Originally it was due to work and planning my dear friend's bachelorette party this next week. Those are pretty good and positive reasons. Now it's just bad. I am a victim of identity theft.

All I can say is I feel disgusted. This was not some random faceless person. This was someone I trusted. Someone I thought was a friend. Someone who was helping me with my health issues. I feel utterly violated. This person was arrested, thank goodness. But I have called every federal, state, local agency that has anything to do with me, this person, my information, my life, my money. It's been horrible.

I'm not saying I'll never trust anyone ever again. This person is obviously a sociopath. Who would do this and keep up a relationship, only a crazy person. I'm just feeling so much more guarded and like I need to go crazy recluse for awhile.

So my friends. BE CAREFUL!! Also I will be in Michigan for my Walk Now for Autism Speaks on Sunday-donate if you can. And then my dear friend's wedding extravaganza. Hope this next week goes better than this one has. And hope all your weeks are amazing.

My highlight is helping rescue a hound-dog with my dear friends Kari and her Hubs. They are transporting him towards his new home. I am just glad we could play a small part by being his halfway house for the night. I'll post pics when I can.

Thanks for your understanding in all my time away. Hope nothing but good things for y'all. :)

Blustery with a Chance of Back Pain...

Friends I am sorry for the lack of blogging. It has been 12+ hour days for myself and the Colonel. We are working hard. It was our first week full time at my newer job and then we had to head of to the old job I'm leaving to continue training my replacement. Let's just say I don't know how they're going to do without me, but hopefully it will go well.

So it had been a most busy week leaving me quite exhausted. But leaving Colonel ready for mischief. And OH BOY did he get into some! Monday there was fighting with my office mate's dog Einstein. Tuesday he ran away while I was out of the office into 4 lanes of busy traffic, luckily for him (and me!) my office mate stopped all 4 lanes and saved him. When I got back from my hour long errand and asked how he did she started crying and told me the whole thing. Poor her and (even though he was being a stinker) poor Colonel Mustard!! That was a rough day. The rest of the week it there were plenty of little fights with Einstein, Colonel just doesn't realize how much bigger he is to 7lb. Einstein, and loads of trying to eat things out of the office recycling bin.

I think I just need to keep working with him on socialization. And not playing rough. Oh and not running away into 4 lanes of traffic. Joe and I just keep working with him. He's a smart pup, he just needs more training. And now he's hit the 8 month old mark and is rabies free! Yay! And his poop is clear of all bacteria and his cough is all gone. He seems to be doing pretty great now that he has found his forever home. And he hit is ideal weight group. He is at 24.7lbs. What a big lil guy huh?!

Tomorrow we are going to Strut Your Mutt with our friends from My Life With Dogs. Kari is bringing Baily and we are bringing the Colonel. Hopefully he does well around all those other pups! I'll keep you posted! Also check out Kari's blog about the Pedigree amazing donation plan. Here's the deal:

For each blog that posts about the PEDIGREE® Adoption Drive through September 19th, PEDIGREE® will donate a bag of their new Healthy Longevity Food for Dogs to shelters nationwide. It’s simple: Write a post, help a dog.

Thursday, September 16 through Sunday, September 19, the Pedigree BlogPaws bloggers will host a Blog Hop, to help raise awareness for the “Write a post, help a dog” effort.

Once you post, let Life With Dogs know so your can be part of the final tally!

So jump on board people! Colonel Mustard is having a playdate with Baily right now, they're so cute. And having so much fun! Yay!




Did y'all just watch the Michigan State game against Notre Dame-my Spartans just whooped some but with the gutsiest play of overtime history ever!! That'll be in highlight reels all week! Go green! Go white!!

Now I'm off to rest my ailing back (working all the long hours are taking its toll on me hardcore) and snuggle with my honeys while we watch The Journey starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner (one of my all time fave movies ever). What a great night! :D

Have a great night, I'm off. TTFN as Tigger would say. :D

Windy with a Chance of Whimsy...

Friends it has been such a relaxing day today that I am waxing nostalgic with a pinch of whimsy. The day started with sleeping in, Colonel Mustard playing with Baily, a mani/pedi with Kari (Baily's mama), then left-overs for lunch, Vh1 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, cuddling with my pup...I dunno it just feels kinda old school to me. Hanging with friends, my dog, in my jeans and black beater, it's just been great.

This week was kind of crazy with training my replacement at my one job that I am leaving, starting to transition to my other job full-time, it's just been a busy week. So it's been amazing to just chill this weekend. I've watched a tone of films/movies and just hung with Colonel, Joe, and Kari. Watched MSU and OSU play football, remembered in my own way those fallen in NYC and those I know and love who were/are affected by it, and have caught up (barely) on sleep. Did get into a tift with Joe about cleaning up the apartment but when it comes to cleaning who hasn't had a little argument about cleaning up the house? But now the apartment is in prime condition-can't complain about that! :D



Movies I watched this weekend were:
1) Stolen Summer: Bonnie Hunt, Aidan Quinn, Kevin Pollack in a story about a Chicago Irish Catholic family's 5 child of 8 befriending the son of a rabbi who has leukemia(adorable, funny, and heart warming-loved it).
2) Standing Still: Mena Suvari, Amy Adams, Colin Hanks, James Van Der Beek in a movie about college friends grown up (lack-luster and lacking-found it boring and cliche).
3) The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day: Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Connelly, Norman Reedus: follow-up Troy Duffy flick to the cult classic favorite (loved seeing the boys back and the backstory behind "Da's" character but it was so disappointing compared to the first...so sad about that *Sigh*.
4) St. Martin's Lane: film starring Vivien Leigh, Charles Laughton, and Rex Harrison about street performers in London and one rises to be a star (loved it-Charles and Vivien were amazing and a young Rex Harrison was adorable!).
5) Old Dogs: Robin Williams, Kelly Preston, John Travolta in a Disney "feel-good flick" with tons of cameos from other recognizable actors (just bad-even the "feel-good" parts make you want to yawn or puke-don't recommend it).
6) Bright Road: starring Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte about a teacher who helps a problem child become a good student (not well written and unfortunately doesn't showcase these stars at their best).
7) Howard's End: Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter, Jemma Redgrave star in this film about mistakes, love, forgiveness, and family (LOVE this film, such a superb cast based on the book it is very well done and acted).

I feel like there was one more but I don't remember which shows you what I thought about it, haha! So as you can see been lotsa chillaxing around the ol' casa del Alejandra y Jose. Hope you had a relaxing weekend too-you all deserve it!!

Now I just have to beg again that if you have some spare change please donate it to the amazing cause Walk Now for Autism Speaks that I am participating in. 100% of your donation goes to finding a cure for autism. Follow this link and please donate what you can: DONATE HERE! Remember to: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Mead My heartfelt thanks to those who donate and support! xoxox

Here is the Colonel helping me write this entry:



We're off to continue watching 100 Artists that makes me remember being young and my love of music and then to watch an old school movie that makes me feel like a kid again. Maybe eat some spaghetti with juice and look for fairies and mermaids ;)

Cloudy with a Chance of Under Socialization!

Colonel is still having problems with other pups and I am starting to be the over-panicky pup-parent I knew I might be. I am just worried about this. I think that perhaps training classes with other dogs might be a good thing to get him on track. Maybe that will help him (and me) learn the behaviors we need to set him up for success. I am doing my best to curb the humping, hair on end, over aggressive play, defensive meetings but I might be a little overwhelmed...so anyone know of amazing classes in the LA that I can get my boy and myself enrolled in? Let me know!

Thanks y'all! Much love to you! Don't forget to donate what you can to my Walk for Autism Speaks. It's an amazing cause that all proceeds go to finding a cure for what 1 in every 110 babies is diagnosed with. Please give if you can. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! :D

Partly Sunny with a Chance of

Well friends I hope your Labor Day has been amazing, ours was filled with Joe reading Harry Potter (he promised me he'd read it if I read the Robert Jordan series he loves), me watching tons of movies off the DVR, and the Colonel doing lots of the following:



We also bought him a special little something for his collar:




Then it was back to work for me today while the boys continued with their weekend routine. All in all it wasn't too shabby. Hope yours were all just lovely!

Now I am just re-vamping my webpage for my Walk for Autism coming up October 3rd. I am so excited to be doing something so amazing, especially since it means so much to my family-our team is after my cousin Jake (my Pop's cousin's son's son to get technical). We're called Jake's Friends and I am at 39% toward my goal of $500 (that's $195)! I'm pretty excited but could use more help so if any of you folks would like to help in this amazing cause I am going to put my personal web page's link at the bottom. Every little bit helps so if you can skip your regular latte or soda or whatever I would appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. If you can't maybe you can find a walk near you to participate/volunteer in! :D

Also I'm starting to help plan my friend's bachelorette party coming up in October. I am so excited for her, she is just beaming and she deserves the best for her wedding. So hopefully this will go off without a hitch. I'm trying to work out some fun surprises and my bf Ben is her Man of Honor so I think between the two of us it will be the best bachelorette party ever. :) Let me know if you all have any ideas, we're going to the apple cider mill and orchard for the day and then we're trying to think of some creative things that are fun for her!

Good luck heading back to work tomorrow y'all and hope the week is great for you!

Here's my link to donate to Walk for Autism Speaks, every bit helps and thank you in advance!

Sunny with a Chance of More Photos!!

More Colonel Mustard!

















Trip to San Francisco: