Addicted.

I've totally entered into a bajillion wedding contests.

My local radio station is holding a Sweetest Kiss contest where people vote on a picture of you and your fiance kissing and the grand prize is having the band Train come and sing "Marry me" at your engagement party.

I totally entered. Here's the pic I uploaded.

It's pretty darn sweet, don'cha think?

But I didn't realize how much of a pain it was to vote. You pretty much have to give them all your personal info and register your soul away in order to vote on the website. Lame. I wouldn't ask my friends to do that...... (We're on page 9!)   :)

It would be kinda cool to have Train perform at my engagement party. I love that cheesy song "Drops of Jupiter." What a classic.

Anywys, I've entered into a few others and so far I have not won a damn thing except for a lifetime supply of spam email. I learned the hard way to set up a separate "junk" email account to use when I do enter into these things. I'm sure the odds of me winning anything substantial are like 1 in a few million but.... you just never know sometimes. Time to google some more sweepstakes.

*Fingers crossed*

Floral Novice

The one thing I'm starting to slowly realize is that I know nothing about flowers.

Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Any petaled plant is pretty much one of three things to me: a rose, a daisy, or a lily pad. In various colors obviously.

So yesterday at the Kennett Square Wedding Show (which was lovely), I was given a little mini-lesson on flowers. For my fellow novices, I present to you..... calla lilies, orchids, casablanca lillies, and hydrangeas.

Calla lilies

casablanca lilies

hydrangeas

orchids

With my new wealth of flowerly info, I think I'm ready to start thinking more about potential wedding decor. Unfortunately, the scope of my planning is limited by the fact that the venue will not be picked until at least the end of March so these are just very premature inklings of ideas.

I've seen a good batch of sample centerpieces and I find myself being drawn to the taller ones. Pricing seems to vary greatly on what actually goes into these centerpieces and the ones I've come across have been between $150 to $300 per piece. I'm seriously contemplating just buying in bulk and crafting my own centerpieces (Anyone interested in Martha Stewarting it up with me?). I figured I don't really need to be spending $10 per petal even if the flower is from some remote part of the Amazon and only blooms once every 1000 years.

Here are a few ideas:




Red scabiosa arrangements



French curvy willows and cherry blossoms, maybe?

Hydrangeal balls.

Cherry blossoms

More hydrangeas with.... some other twigs. Cherry blossoms I would guess.

Hydrangeas.

A mix bag of flowers.

I think I could wing it. If all else fails, I could just fill a clear vase with water, toss in a few rose petals and a floating candle and voila! Beauty in a vase. Anything with rose petals and a floating candle is pretty. Plan B. Done.

Neglectful Blogger Is Me.

What a busy couple of days! Sorry blogging world!

So I had my third weigh in this morning and.............. still no change.

I'm not disheartened though. This week I seriously brought the pain with that double workout session on Thursday and I worked out a total of 5.5 hours!!! Wa hooo! I'm still sore from the weightlifting but it feels great because it's a reminder of what I was able to accomplish. Even though I haven't lost any poundage recently, people have told me that I do look more toned and I can see it too. Especially in my thighs (Which better be the case cuz they're still in pain)! Yay! Goooooooooo Gina! :)

Next week's goals are to get up to 6 hours of exercise and maintain adequate hydration. Eating healthy is a give-in, not an option.

Speaking of eating, the worst thing I ate this week (Worst as in least nutritious) was probably dim sum (My first dimsum experience!) and I've come to determine that sesame balls are China's greatest invention. Ever. Pics for your tastebud delight:

Asian Tapas.

Thanks Lena!

Lena took me to this fantastic place in Chinatown, Philadelphia and you could tell this place was legit because there was a massive line! It was totally worth the wait because the whole point of dim sum places is that little mini-buffets come to your table and you just pick out what you want. Uh. Mayzing. I love buffets that come to you! :)

In other news, I babysat for the cutest 3 month old baby on Friday night and it has totally exacerbated my already fulminant case of baby fever. Meet the painfully adorable Chloe.

A. Dorbs.

Risk of dropping her for want of a good pic.

Almost babynapped her.

She was so good! I had her sleeping in like 15 minutes! Sigh. Seems like all my friend are having babiessss... except me. Wah. One step at a time, G-dubs.

Okay so today is another day of wedding shows. I'm hoping to win the Big Kahuna at this one since it's at a smaller venue (Keep your fingers crossed for me). I'll have an update upon my return!

Appreciating Life.

Dude.

I am totally beat.

Tonight Katie, Anneliese and I went to our usual weekly workout session at the Y but at the last second, we did some serious DOUBLE TIME. We did our scheduled hour long class of Bodypump which was SORE. TASTIC. By the end of the workout, I was only lifting the single pound bar and even then my limbs were shaking from pathetic, puny exhaustion. While I was basking in the happiness of knowing that the workout was over, Katie suddenly asked if we wanted to do another class. Another class. Like as in, another hour of self-induced torture? Yes. That is exactly what she meant. With a smile plastered on my face I stated with my best eager-beaver expression, "SURE KATIE! WHAT A SPLENDID IDEA! I SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT MYSELF! LET'S MOSEY ON OVER NOW! I CAN'T WAIT TO BE IN AGONY AGAIN! PLEASE. ALLOW ME TO LEAD THE WAY." So that's exactly what we did. We attended the Bodystep class that started right after our class ended.

Bodystep was painful last week when it was all I did. Bodystep after an hour of strenuous weight-lifting? Indescribable. It makes me hurt just recalling the memory of it all. What was going through my mind during the actual experience?

Here's just a snippet:

"This must be what the Spanish Inquisition was like."

"The people who invented the Chinese Water Torture are jealous that they didn't think of this before."

"I think I'd rather pee out a bowling ball than have to go through this experience."

"I can't taste anything. Oh wait, I think that's pain I'm tasting. Wow, I can taste pain."

"Guantanamo Bay sounds great right about now."

"Are my legs still attached to my body? Oh god. I can't feel my legs. I think my legs fell off."



Anyways, you get the idea. I'm not going to lie, during Bodystep my only goal was to keep moving. Forget the actual moves that I was supposed to be doing. Right now, all I'm trying to accomplish is to look somewhat alive and less like a flopping corpse. As crazy as the experience was, I'm glad I did it. It was great to see that I can actually survive something like that and be able to confirm that I don't ever want to feel that level of pain again.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my body for not dying. Thank you Body. You're more swell than I thought. I'll never take you for granted ever again. Amen.

What a Lofty Idea.

Brian and I do not have the same tastes when it comes to an idea of a home.

We have talked about the prospect of buying a house once we are both settled and situated in both marriage and career. Brian tends to like homes that are.... on the mend. Meaning that they have the potential to be great investments. I, on the other hand, want a house that I am happy living in. I understand Brian's standpoint. He wants a house that is going to make us money. He is thinking about our future. I am thinking about the now. I don't want to live in a house that will be great someday. I want a house that I love now and will still love ten years from now. I guess Brian is just assuming that we won't want to stay in the same house for very long which I can see. I myself have never lived in one place for very long. But still. I can't help but find myself looking at houses that are more glamorous than investment-worthy.

I first suggested that we sacrifice location for a better home, meaning that we look outside of Vancouver into the suburbs. Brian was adamant that the best investments were within the city limits. Based on the budget we estimated, this meant that we could afford some fix-me-upper near a major highway. I was not pleased. I then proposed that we look at condos instead of single detached homes. Brian considered it but still didn't think that condos were as good an investment as a home-home. I personally liked the more modern tendencies of condos but wasn't particularly impressed by any. We had a bit of a dilemma: the condos I picked lacked any bit of personality while the houses Brian picked had too much personality.

One day I was looking at a New York City venue website and came across an article covering industrial yet chic housing in the city. I loved the combination of modern and older styles and wondered if Vancouver offered any loft style homes. I googled "Vancouver lofts" and lo and behold, I found an AMAZING website which showcased what I felt were the most unique and outstanding homes in the city. I mentioned the idea of looking at lofts to Brian and voila! We finally agreed on something! He loved the idea as well! We came across a fabulous real estate site and have already begun to compile a list of homes we'd like to view in the upcoming month. For anyone who has a more eclectic taste in housing check out Albrighton Lofts.

Here are a few pics for the curious:

A gem in downtown Vancouver

Lofty-lofty.

Kitchen's not too shabby either.

A West Van spacious loft

So much sunlight!

Modern kitchen.

Smaller loft with winding staircase (I love winding staircases).

Upstairs bedroom.

Another winding staircase loft. Living room view.

Catwalk to a study area.

High ceilings!

Cozy.

I know we're still a long way from house-buying but it never hurts to look, right? :)

The Perks of Long-Distance Relationships.

The pros of being in a long distance relationship?

There are none.



This is a typical day in the life of an engaged couple living in two separate countries:

7:00 am - I get up to get ready for school. Brian is still sound asleep because it is 4:00 am his time.

7:45 am - I skype Brian and wake him up to say goodbye. He gives a groggy and dazed "Good morning. Have a good day at school. I'll talk to you soon. Love you." and I head to my classes.

8:00 am - 12:00 pm - I am in school doing school stuff. By noon my time, Brian has just begun his workday.

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm - Depending on the day, I will be studying, eating with friends, or going to work. By 3 my time, Brian is heading for his lunch break. If his day is not too busy, he will try giving me a ring. Depending on how busy my current day is, I will or will not pick up.

4:00 pm - 6:00 pm - I will either be ellipticalling or working. This is typically around the time of the day that I will be able to either give Brian a ring or he will try to call me as he is heading back into the office from his lunchbreak. I tell him briefly about my day, what the rest of my evening looks like, and around what time I think we will be able to skype. He tells me how his day is going, when he plans to be home and asks whether or not I can call him back from my house phone since this phone call is being made on his company cell and is costing them long-distance buckaroos.

6:00 pm - 9:00 pm - I look over schoolwork for the next day, go to a school-related field experience, or just take it easy. It really depends on the day. Tonight for example, I am going to an AA meeting with Katie and Anneliese at 8. Fun. Should be home by 9:30 pm which is when Brian gets home.

9:00 pm - 11:00 pm - Skype session with Brian. He gets home, cooks dinner, and eats it on cam while I recap my day. I hate that he eats at this time because I have already eaten dinner around 6ish or 7ish and then I have to watch Brian cook some pasta and eat it in front of me which arouses my previously content and satiated appetite. He tells me about his day and what tomorrow looks like and then we usually share interesting articles or youtube videos that we've come across. Sometimes, we "watch movies together" by streaming videos in sync.

11:00 pm - We are still on skype. I get ready for bed. It's only 8:00 pm for Brian so he'll begin his workout. As I get into bed, I apologize beforehand just in case I accidentally fall asleep on him and if I do, I wish him good night. Brian reassures me that he doesn't mind and that just in case I do fall asleep on him, he wishes me good night.

11:20 pm - I usually fall asleep on him.

2:30 am - Brian goes to bed.


The end. Yes. Really glamorous. But we make it work. Do I recommend long distance relationships? No way, Jose. Not unless you're willing to put a lot of tears and pain and lonely nights into it and tons of money into flights. Brian and I do pretty well with seeing each other frequently. Either he or I will fly out to see one another approximately every other month. But geez is it expensive. It also helps that both Brian and I keep pretty busy. I have an insane school schedule along with work and Brian just started a new job so he's kept busy with learning all the new tricks of his trade. It definitely makes time go by fast. And our time together that much sweeter.

We will see each other in 30 days. :)

A Glimpse of Brian

I've once again taken over the blog.

In order to incorporate at least a fragment of my lovely soulmate I'm going to dedicate this post to one of my favorite photos of us:

Sweaty-faced and in love. :)

This was taken during our trip to Maui, while hiking up the Pipiwai Trail. We took a break streamside and I quickly snapped this picture before we continued the hike to Waimoku Falls (Which I totally recommend to EVERYONE! It's unbearably beautiful and refreshing and good for your soul and breathtaking and makes you cherish all things related to nature and just.... go.). I love this photo because it shows how different we are yet at the same time how much we have in common. The obvious differences are skin color, eye color, hair color, etc. which I still love because I find the contrast quite striking and remarkable. As for the similarities, they are simply that we sweat in sync, the sun reflects off our skin in the same tones, and that we have matching smiles.

That's all I really need. Someone who will smile through the sweat with me. :)

Lots and Lots of Updates!

I've only missed one day of blogging and I already have tons of things to write about!

Okay so outcome of Weigh In #2?

<Drum roll>

Absolutely no change. I haven't lost a dadgummed pound. But it's okay. It's better than gaining, right? I will simply take that as more motivation. I need to up my game! I'm ready to bring it!!!

Weekly Fails:
- Lena's cake pops. All three of them. Totally worth it.
- My binge fest the other day on five pounds of rice.
- Over-sampling at the Bridal Expo today (Details to follow)

Honestly, besides that, I can't think of any major failures.... Maybe not exercising everyday? I probably am being way too lenient on myself. I really need to throw in some more daily activity. That'll be my goal for this week. I only exercised three days this past week so I'm going to aim for five. Done.

Alright now let's get to the fun part.

So Lena and I attended the Delaware Upstate Bridal show (My first bridal expo) and it was SO MUCH FUN! I LOVED IT! I'm going to be a total Expo crasher now (Lena and I are already planning on attending another one in Dover in March). It was everything I asked for!

The expo included the following:
- Free food: I'm talking cakes, chocolate covered strawberries, cheesesteaks, crabcakes, scallops, cupcakes, sushi, gelato, candy, pasta, beer. Uh. Mayzing.
- Free stuff/service: magazines, lotions, hair conditioners, pens, photobooth printouts, manicures (on one finger), massages, make-overs, hairstylings.
- Bridal Fashion Show: I wasn't really blown away by any of the dresses but it was entertaining and some of the audience members were getting pretty touchy-feely with the male runway models. Let's just say that single dollar bill transactions did occur. Yes. This show was for mature audiences only.
- At-the-door-prizes: BOTH Lena and I won something! Lena won a free photo montage (where the photographer compiles a slideshow of the bride and groom's pictures from childhood to present time) and I won a free 20x24 photo! Woo hoo! I wouldn't have minded winning the free Apple Vacation Package but I was satisfied with just getting my name called. :)

Pictures from the show:

The Bridal Fashion Show

This one has pockets!

Bridesmaid dress.

Lots of chiffon.

One of my faves.

Photobooth fun. I'm definitely having one of these at my wedding.

Just some of the things from the expo.

My single-fingered manicure.

Pretty cool. It was like wallpaper for your nails. Nailpaper.

After the show, Lena and I headed for my Wedding Dress Try-on session 3 at David's Bridal to scope out the Vera Wang collection.

Love. Love. Love.

For any bride out there looking for a high-fashion, high quality dress for a tight budget, the White Collection is the way to go. It's totally legit Vera Wang. I tried on three dresses total: the first was Oleg Cassini and the last two were Vera. The Cassini was okay but honestly, I was just there for the Veras. And they were Uh. Mayzing.

The first one was totally me. I died. I absolutely died. And then I tried the second Vera. I redied. They were totally different dresses and I loved both for different reasons. I told the staff (Who were fantabulous by the way, thank you Tricia and Gay Bob!) that I'd have to return with my mother who will be a major deciding factor. I love dress try-ons.

For your viewing pleasure, I am including a couple of pictures of my dressing room shananigans.



This dress was SO BIG I could sit on it! I was sitting on a dress cloud. :)  



So much material! Believe it or not, there is a bridal consultant hiding underneath all that tulle. :)

What a great weekend! Can't wait for the next Bridal expo!

CRISIS!

Major carb relapse! Just binged hardcore on rice and spicy tofu stew! FOUR WHOLE BOWLS OF IT!

Time for elliptical punishment. :(




*****EDIT*****

Okay so I ellipticalled my ass off and I feel a tad bit better. I shouldn't be too hard on myself especially since I've been doing so well but it just sucks when you've had a healthy turkey sandwich for lunch and then you ruin it with a gallon of rice at dinner. I'll just have to add that fail to the weekly fail list.

In wedding news:

I will be attending the Delaware Upstate Bridal Show on Sunday with Lena and then heading for dress try-on session 3 afterwards. These sessions really keep me motivated! Along with Katie as my weekly gym motivator, I'll be Kleinfeld-ready in no time! :)

Kleinfeld Update: I still haven't heard any word regarding my application to be on "Say Yes to The Dress." And I used every card under the sun: ethnic diversity, conservative vs free-spirited, religious conflicts, long distance relationship, charity promotion, etc.  Geez, what's it gonna take to get me my close-up? 

Baby Bop Legs, Saddlebags, and the Chub Flub Club

Someone once told me that I had Baby Bop legs. Yes, Baby Bop. The character from Barney and friends. Here's a little reminder:

Baby Bop. And her legs.

I don't entirely disagree. She captures my short stumps quite well, saddlebags and all. But if I am entirely honest with myself, personally, I think I'm more of a Barney's legs type of gal. See for yourself:

Barney- paving the way for stumpy legs everywhere.

So yes. I have no problem admitting to the world that I don't have the best set of gams and I've come to accept that a long time ago. However, I am not a raging fan of my saddle bags. For those who are blessed with great stems and are clueless as to what "saddle bags" refer to, here's a couple illustrations:

A mild case of saddle baggage.

A more extreme case of saddle baggage.

So yes. I am trying to decrease my saddle baggage ratio. Another joy of being a thick curvy gal is the chub flub curse. That's right -- the chub flub. And I have this one bad. It's the fatty inner part of your thighs that chafe and rub against each other causing the most painful friction ever! I get this when I'm running in shorts or wearing a skirt that's too tight. Thus, running in shorts is not a possibility for me. The hoe skirt I still rock. In agony. Sigh. Yes, life with chub flub is so hard. But I'm strong. I can beat this. I'm a chub flub blastin' machine!

Tonight I chub flub blasted by accompanying Katie to Bodystep and almost passing out. I was huffin' and puffin' my ass off. Around 45 minutes, I was starting to feel a bit woozy and I could see the stars appearing in my peripheral vision. Embarrassing!

Must. Not. Pass. Out! Especially with the 89 year old grandma happily steppin' away in front of me!

Well luckily, I didn't and I managed to finish the rest of the session with my eyes closed half the time. But honestly, it was great because I can already tell that I'm going to be sore in the morning! Katie suggested that we do the weight lifting class next week -- Totally lookin' forward to getting my pump on!

Weigh in #2 on Sunday. Eeek!

Kleinfelds or bust!

A Day of Rest? Sort of.

So it's 8:00pm and I am still at work. Boo. All my coworkers have gone for the night and it's just me and the list of translation claims in front of me.... An opportunity for a mini blog!

Classes today were rough and I have another full day tomorrow. Sigh.

Tonight was supposed to be Kickboxing with Katie night but we have rescheduled for something a little different. I was enjoying the kickboxing seshes but my body wasn't any where near as sore as the first time around. I was really hoping to kick my own ass at least once a week -- I wanna bring the pain! I mentioned this to Katie and told her that I was interested in trying all different types of exercises to really challenge my body so tomorrow we're going to partake in Bodystep. Here's a little description:

"It is the ultimate way to give your body a high energy cardioblast and tone the hips and thighs. With over 2,000 steps per session, you will see results in record time. Get in step with bodystep ™"

Sounds/looks pretty intense. Can't wait! :)



****EDIT****

So Lena (Being the evil baker extraordinaire that she is) comes by my desk with THREE CHOCOLATE COVERED RED VELVET CAKE POPS. EEEEEK!!!!! Without even a second thought, I scarf down two immediately. It was beyond delish. So moist and chocolatey and.... simply divine. I look at the third one and tell Lena how much Brian would enjoy one of these. We talk about the practicalities of shipping the last cake pop to him and we determine that it is doable. Here is Brian's saved cake pop:



Evil! Stay away!




Must. Resist.



To keep a long story short, it didn't work out.

Just another shortcoming to add to my weekly list of wedding diet fails. Totally worth it.

Jumpin' the Gun

This could be me.

Preggers and happy with lollipop bonus.

Yesterday I had to carry around 25 pounds of weight (average full term pregnancy weight) and do various tasks (such as tie my shoes, pick up things off the floor, walk up and down flights of stairs) in order to "empathize" with a pregnant woman. It was fun and I got my cardio in but after just 5 minutes,my shoulders were starting to kill. I did appreciate all the attention I got though: people holding doors open, people admiring you (or were they staring?), everyone backing up against the walls in the hallway so you can get through. I could totally get used to this --It's like VIP service 24-7!

Brian, darling, I think I'm ready for the next step. :)