Shameless plug.

If anyone's interested in a great Rebecca Minkoff bag, please take a look!

I've listed it on eBay for $345 ($5 shipping, which is a steal!)
If you are truly, truly interested, I will consider other offers.  Please leave a comment, and if I like your price, I will lower my listing provided that no one has bid on my item yet!  I cannot guarantee that no one else will bid higher than you, but at least you have a chance to get it at a price you like.

RM Morning After Mini - Wine w/ strap

Working it out.

I'd say that for the past year or so I've been in an exercise slump.  I started gaining my weight back after losing 10 lbs., and my typical exercise routine was NOT working anymore.

Part of the relapse was definitely due to poor eating habits and being busy with school, but that was no excuse!

Somehow I discovered the Tone It Up girls, and they have been my exercise and nutrition saviors!!  Their videos are short and motivating, and their exercises really work.  I've definitely lost fat, and I've replaced it with lean muscle.  I'm not back at my old weight, but I can tell I'm thinner.  Too bad muscle weighs so much!

The one thing that I never would have learned without them is the amazingness that is ALMOND MILK!  So much better than regular milk!  But I do hate the unsweetened version... bleh.  Vanilla and original are delicious, and great in protein shakes or with cereal.  Yay for new things.

This is my favorite video (I usually do this after running 1.75 miles + some plyometrics):

Girls' day out.

 Just stopping to smell the roses.

Lovely day at the Huntington Library with a couple girlfriends from the graduate program I'm in.  There were so many gorgeous, vibrant roses at the Rose Garden, but we could not find the "Just for Joey" rose that a woman told us was a must-see.  I think she was pulling our legs...

This little duck was leading her nine (yes, nine!) ducklings to another area of the lily pad pond.  She was VERY protective, as she should be.

As a big Lost fan, I couldn't help but think of the infamous bamboo forest as I walked through here.  I'm such a nerd.

The Desert Garden was not as boring and arid as I thought it would be.  In fact, it was one of my favorite gardens, aside from the gorgeous Japanese garden!

I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day to start off the summer.  But, I am looking forward to even more trips to enjoy my last days of freedom before a crazy Masters program! 

Some of my future plans:

• Bike riding around Venice beach
• Napa and SF
• Vegas (as usual)
• Palm Springs @ The Viceroy
• Lots of new foodie restaurants

This changes my mind...

So I previously stated that proposals should be private, and shouldn't be on display for the world to see, but this is way too cute.

Despite that, it still seems more private than having all your friends and family watching, able to listen to what sweet things your boyfriend is saying, and holding their breath for the "Yes." The music and dancers gave them a small bubble to themselves :)

Proposals

So maybe it’s just me, but when I get proposed to I want it to be meaningful, private, intimate, and special for both myself and the man who proposes to me. I’m not saying that it can’t be meaningful or special for a couple if ALL of their friends and family are there taking pictures as the event happens, but I just feel like it should be a special moment that you get to share with the man you love and ONLY the man you love. Yes, you will tell your girlfriends and family about it later, but I don’t know, I just think it’s more special when it’s just you and your man. I’ve noticed a lot of Christian couples do this group proposal business… Can anyone explain this to me?

I think what explains my aversion to this is that I am a private person. YES, I blog, but I blog about mundane bullshit in my life (exercising, losing weight, going to school, shopping). I rarely blog about aspects of my relationship with my boyfriend or personal issues going on in my life. Personal problems are rare, but they do happen every once in a while. I am also the type of person who will KILL my boyfriend if he proposes to me through the big screen at a live sporting event. Some people love that kind of stuff, but I do not. It’s kind of like when a couple first makes it official. Do you invite everyone you know over for that event? No, because it’s kind of special, and who knows WHAT is going to happen, haha. There might be a big, “No!” as an answer!

Despite that, I would want some kind of photo or video to remember the moment, but that’s what tripods and long arms are for :)