Last day of the challenge!

It's Day 30 of the 30 Day Blog challenge which sadly means it's over. This was a great way for me to be introduced to the blogger world and I am so thankful to have met all the wonderful people I did!

Day 30: A Picture



This is from this past summer when we were on vacation in Sanibel Island. It's a horrible picture of both of us but I love how random it was and how it captured our happiness perfectly :)

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Day 29 of the 30 Day Blog Challenge: Three Wishes

I must say it's an absolutely beautiful day in Central Florida! I have so much to do this week but I am hoping this gorgeous weather is the start to a great week.

On to my three wishes...

one. I wish I could somehow get my bachelors in Event Management without actually dealing with all the work and stress to get there...I know that sounds incredibly lazy of me but I can't wait to be done with school.

two. I wish I had more time in the day. When I am not at school or doing homework, I am at one of my two jobs. I wish I had more time to relax/ have a social life. I sometimes miss my high school days for that very reason!

three. I wish to be blessed with a beautiful future. I can't wait to get married and start a family one day :)

Day 28 of the 30 Day Blog Challenge: Something that Stresses You Out

Unfortunately for me, I am one of those types of people that stresses about absolutely everything. I stress about my relationships with my family and friends, my boyfriend, school, work...etc. I truly hope that one day I will change and be a little more confident in myself but I am such a perfectionist! And I think that, that right there is the source of all my stress. I think that once I get a break from school in December, a lot of the stresses I feel will be relieved because I will have more time to myself to relax. Until then my stress level is pretty darn high!

It's kind of ironic that this is today's topic because this weekend has been so stressful for me. Last night, my job and my relationship with my boyfriend really tested me. It was a long night and I am praying things are much better today.

Haha...I love this

Have a wonderful rest of your weekend!

Day 27 of the 30 Day Blog Challenge: Pets

This is Babe. She is going to be 10 years old in December. She is a Pekingese and snorts constantly- hence the name Babe (like the pig from those movies).

She didn't like her Halloween costume very much...

And this is Bella. She is only two months old and the newest addition to our family. She is a wrinkly little Sharpee. She has fangs like a vampire so we went the Twilight route in choosing her name.

Her eyes look kind of creepy in this picture because she kept them closed.

And these are our fishies. We tried having a saltwater tank back in the day but it was too difficult to maintain so we switched to freshwater.

This challenge was a great way for me to meet bloggers, especially as I am a brand new blogger. Thanks to everyone for the warm welcome into the blogger world. It's greatly appreciated! I can't believe there are only three days left :(

P.S. Don't forget to put your clocks back tonight- we get an extra hour of sleep!

Day 26: Picture of Your Family

Well my family doesn't take a lot of pictures of everyone together but here is a recent one of all of us at Medieval Times this past Labor Day.

This is a very unflattering picture of myself so please excuse my appearance.

Rusty, Me, Brent, Kloe, Braden, Dad, Mom

I love them to death!

Day 25: 10 Top Songs

This may seem weird to a lot of people but I don't use my Ipod anymore...and haven't used it in years. I got so lazy about constantly updating my music so I just listen to music on the radio and watch MTV music videos and that sort of thing. So since I can't exactly participate, I am just going to list my top ten favorite songs as of right now (These are not in any specific order as I would not be able to make such a difficult decision).

1. Like a G6 by Far East Movement feat. The Cataracs, Dev

2. Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars

3. Please Don't Go by Mike Posner

4. Mine by Taylor Swift

5. Animal by Neon Trees

6. Teenage Dream by Katy Perry

7. Secrets by OneRepublic

8. King of Anything by Sara Bareilles

9. Need You by Travie McCoy

10. The Only Exception by Paramore

P.S. Tomorrow is Friday and my boyfriend finally comes home :) I am so excited!

Day 24: Something You Have Learned

The most recent lesson I have learned is to keep the past in the past. This is something that is so hard for me to do. I sometimes get mad at the people close to me...and it's not even for something they just did to me...it's for something done to me a long time ago. I know this sounds crazy but sometimes I will randomly think about something that hurt me in the past and let it bother me for the rest of my day...even though it could be something that happened ages ago. I just have a problem with dwelling on past events and even as I am typing this, I am mad! And this is so wrong of me. I just need to forgive and forget and it's something I have learned but am still working on.

Have a great Wednesday!

Day 23: Favorite Vacation

Trying to decide which vacation of mine is my favorite is an impossible task but one of my favorites was two summers ago to Colorado. My Aunt Lisa and Uncle Rick live out there along with my cousins, Jessica and Ryan so we went to visit them and it was so much fun! The red rocks and hills were gorgeous and the perfect weather made it that much better. I even went white water rafting...so scary but the thrill was amazing :)

I would definitely recommend a trip to Colorado to anyone!

Days 21 and 22 Plus My Halloween

Day 21: A Picture of Yourself

See my post on Halloween :)

Day 22: Favorite City

Dublin, California is a city in Northern California, about 45 minutes away from San Francisco and I moved there from Southern California. Dublin is absolutely beautiful with rolling green hills and quaint little houses and good schools. I have such fond memories of this city and their Irish culture. Every St. Patrick's Day they had a parade and I was always somehow involved whether it be with my elementary school or brownie girl scouts. I loved it there and was so sad when the family picked up and moved here to Florida but I still keep in touch with some of my friends from Dublin :)

My Halloween Night

I had a very relaxing night of watching television and passing out Halloween candy. My brother and sister looked so cute in their costumes. Kloe was a Spanish Senorita and Braden was Woody from Toy Story.


Sorry this was posted late...it was a rough day. Have a great night!

Day 20: Nicknames & Start of My Weekend

My main nickname is "K". My boyfriend and his family call me K and it's weird if they randomly call me Kalina which happens once in a while.

My nickname in high school was "Kali". My friend Jessica called me Kali Girl because I am indeed from California.

My little brother and sister call me "Nina" because Kalina is too difficult for them to pronounce. It's cute when my little brother tries to say my whole name...he totally butchers it like most people do.

My grandparents call me "Kalanita" which is made up Spanish for "Little Kalina". They speak English to me but they sometimes add some Spanglish to their vocabulary.

The start of a wonderful weekend...

Okay so last night my boyfriend and I transferred the plants in our greenhouse to seperate pots. We organized them with cute little labels. The plants are getting so big so fast! I can't wait to get some fruits and veggies :)

Today I am baking some cupcakes and one other thing (I haven't decided on) to bring to my friend's Halloween party tonight. I can't wait! It's going to be so much fun and I will post pics tomorrow of my boyfriend and I in our costumes.

Yesterday I did some shopping online because there was a great sale. Charlotte Russe has a sale on all their outerwear for 30-50% off and their shoes (including boots) are buy one get one for just $15! The sale is still going on today so check it out :)

That's it for now. Have a great Halloween weekend!

Day 19: Something You Miss

Oh I have so much to do today! I just came back from bringing pizzas to my boyfriend's work and then I have laundry to fold, have to get potting soil from Home Depot, and then work on some homework all before I have to work as a hostess tonight. It's going to be a long Friday...

And today's challenge is very deppressing for me. The first thing that comes to mind is my dog. This past April, my dog Tika passed away and I miss her so much. I can honestly say, I remember the day we got her. I was three years old, almost four, and we drove to Southern California to go get a puppy (we were living near San Francisco so it was a LONG drive). I was so excited. When we got to the Toy Poodle breeder's house, the puppies were running around in the front yard. I instantly knew I wanted the smallest little girl- all black with a white patch on her neck. We named her Tika because "Tika" means "Costa Rican Girl" in Spanish. She was so tiny you could fit her in the palm of your hand! After that, Tika was my baby and she went with me everywhere. She even came on the plane with us for the move from California to Florida. She was such a sweet little blessing in my life and after fifteen years of having her, it was so hard to lose her. I know she is in Heaven running around like she did when she was a puppy and that thought alone is what comforts me.

We thought the sunglasses matched her collar perfectly :)

She was such a little lap dog and sooo sweet. Miss you and love you Tika!

Day 18: Something You Regret

There aren't a lot of profound events in my life that I regret but I do regret being so hard on myself in high school. In high school, I was so pressured and focused on keeping my gpa up that I didn't have much room to enjoy myself. I would miss out on fun events at school to stay home and do homework and study. Granted, all my effort and hard work got me accepted to UCF as a freshman, but I wish I could look back and say that high school included some of the best times of my life. I have now learned how to balance a social and student life plus two jobs on top of that but I think it took me too long to learn that lesson.

But I am a student at UCF because of all that hard work and I certainly appreciate the path God has put me on.

Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:13-14

On a lighter note...

Day 17: Something You Are Looking Forward To

I am looking forward to tonight! After I take my computer test, my boyfriend and I are carving our pumpkin. I really want to carve some sort of creepy owl into it. Something like this:

Tonight we are also going fruit shopping. Sounds weird, I know. We are actually going to buy fruit to dissect and get the pit/seeds. We have started the beginnings of a garden and we have a lot of vegetables but want some fruit to join the party! This is our little greenhouse:

Each little round houses a different vegetable and we made a little diagram so that we know what is what. We are looking forward to see them sprout!

I am definitely looking forward to this weekend! All day saturday I am baking goodies to bring to my friend's Halloween party. Then on Sunday I have the entire day off from work so I am going to church and then taking the little bro and sis trick-or-treating that night. It's going to be so much fun :)

Something I am not looking forward to is my boyfriend leaving on Monday. He is going to be gone for four days on a business trip for his job. I am so happy for him but I am going to miss him like crazy. Something I am looking forward to though is all the time I will have to work on my research paper for my hospitality class. My plan is to use all the extra time I will have to finish that paper and get that weight off my shoulders!

I am looking forward to Thanksgiving. Turkey and mashed potatoes are yummy!

CHRISTMAS! and winter break! Like I have said before, I need a vacation and am very much looking forward to the break from school.

I am looking forward to the future! I can't wait to graduate, move into my own house, pursue my career further...etc...

Thinking about all of the positive things I have to look forward to has made my day :) Hope it does for you guys too!

Day 16: Dream House

I know every one of you has seen The Notebook and the house that Noah fixes up...that's my dream house. Add a screened pool in the backyard and some beautiful flowers in the front and that's my gorgeous future home.

The inside of my dream house will be very bright and welcoming and will be immaculate. I love IKEA so I can't wait to fill my house with their furniture and decor.

Have a happy Tuesday :)

Busy Weekend So Time to Catch Up

Oh my goodness! I had such a busy weekend and have an even busier week ahead of me...I take that back...I am pretty much busy 'till finals are over and that's not until early December. But, I am appreciative that life is keeping me occupied :) This weekend I worked Friday night as a hostess, Saturday night as a bridal assistant, and Sunday morning and afternoon as a hostess. It was a lot! And when I wasn't working, I was doing homework and working on my boyfriend and I's Halloween costumes- which I finally finished! Go me. Next weekend will be crazy too because I have lots of work and things to do for Halloween. I need a vacation!


Here are the days of the 30 Day Blog Challenge I missed...


Day 13: Goals

I tried to keep them in some sort of chronological order.

Get my research paper done for my Event Industry class

Get all of my Christmas shopping done by the end of November

(haha...not likely)

Get all A's and B's this semester

Start going to the Rosen College of Hospitality next semester

(branch of UCF)

Get my Bachelor's degree in Event Management and graduate with a good gpa

Get a good job with a wedding planning company

(hopefully I can stay with Blush for a while)

Move out of my parents' house

Get married

(big smile while typing that)

Buy a house

Open up my own wedding planning company

Have a beautiful family

Okay so this just ended up being the control-freak plan I have for my life...I even have ages I want to be for when all of these get accomplished...CRAZY! Believe me, I know. I know that God has a plan for me and I should just go with the flow.


Day 14: A Picture You Love...Pictures You Love


Obviously some of the pictures I have shown before I love as well but I wanted to show some other pictures you haven't seen yet.

My second family minus Joann (Rusty's mom). Love them to death and have known them since I was 12. Me with Rusty's stepdad and brothers on Father's Day.

My cousin Ryan. He is in the army and is currently in Afghanistan. I miss him so much and worry about him constantly. 

Me and Rusty on my birthday this past year.

Oh how I love this picture. This is my brother Braden who snuck into the pantry and stole a powdered doughnut and then was BUSTED. The fact that his shirt is rolled up and his belly is showing just makes it that much better :)

Day 15: Favorite Bible Verse


4 Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful;
5 it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
6 it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right.
7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never ends;

Corinthians 13:4-8

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

Proverbs 3:5

UGH...I have school today. And lots of homework to do tonight. I hope I have a good day and I hope you guys do too!

Day 12 of the 30 Day Blog Challenge: What You Believe

Everything happens for a reason (look familiar?)

God has a plan for everyone and everything

God's plan for me is to bring joy to others through being a wedding planner :)

I have been blessed already with the love of my life

My parents and family are there to constantly support me and I know they will continue to do so



It's a busy Friday and weekend for me but have a great weekend!

Day 11 of the 30 Day Blog Challenge: Favorite T.V. Shows

Oh boy...LOVE this. Television completes me. Here is my T.V. schedule from Monday through Sunday.

Monday

House

American Pickers (History Channel)

Pawn Stars (also on the History Channel)

Tuesday

Cupcake Wars- Recently cancelled? :(

Teen Mom (Just watched Finale Special but they are filming a third season! Yay!)

Wednesday

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

L.A. Ink

South Park (Mostly just watch it because boyfriend makes me)

Thursday

Project Runway

Friday

Don't have a show for this night...but I watch endless amounts of Food Network during the day before I have to work that night. My favorite show is Cooking For Real. I just love Sunny's recipes!

Saturday

This is movie night- no T.V. for me :)

Sunday

The Simpsons

The Cleveland Show

Family Guy

I learned a lesson worth sharing...

       

        In my humanities class we recently discussed the statement, "Everything happens for a reason". My humanities teacher, along with other students, were arguing the statement and questioning the reasons God has for letting unfortunate events happen. This definitely got me thinking and it made me realize that obstacles are put in our way to shape our souls. Without these tests of faith, our path of life would be boring and completely pointless. Saying this, God also puts different people in our lives to teach us lessons about life (sometimes even in the most random, coincidental places).

        My path was recently tested by a hurtful person hiding behind a mask of righteousness and I think it was God's way of warning me against those types of people. I am certainly not a person to judge but I think that there are so many people out there that claim to be something they are not- another words they are hypocrites. They can say how close they are to God one minute, and the next minute they are harassing someone with name calling. It's very sad and pathetic but it happens and I have definitely learned to be aware that those people are out there. I very much appreciate the lesson God has taught me and know that the only way to get through to the confused soul is to be the bigger, more mature person.

Have a great Thursday everyone...only one more day 'till Friday!