It's been a pretty gloomy day today. I woke up to some pretty heavy rain, but things died down after a while. Now, it's just cloudy. As much as I love rain, this is really good news because tonight is December Nights (which should still be called Christmas on the Prado, but I won't get into that). December Nights is a tradition for my family and I. It's basically a huge Christmas celebration, with tons of food and music. Plus, all of the museums are FREE!! I have a lot of great memories at December Nights, and I'm really looking forward to going again. The highlight of my night will definitely be eating some real palacsintas, and maybe even getting some glogg (hopefully I won't spill it all over myself this time, haha)! Alright, I'm off to help decorate our work tree! Have a nice weekend, everyone :)
The Christmas Countdown Continues...
A post.
Hmmm, nothing much to say today. It's been a long, slow day - I think because the holidays are right around the corner and things are winding down here. Anyway, Enchanted was great! I give it two, cheesy thumbs up! The kids really enjoyed it, and I thought the whole storyline and idea was great. If you have an excuse to go, or actually just want to see a cute Disney movie, I would highly recommend it! In holiday news, last night I got some Christmas shopping done, which has made me feel less stressed out. I also went to the mall on my lunch break and grabbed a few more things. Despite this, there are still a bunch of people on my list who are yet to have a gift purchased for them. I guess that's pretty good considering I have nine people down, but seriously, I can see why people get so crazed about about all the gift giving. I'm hoping to get everything done this weekend so I can start wrapping things. I have some good gift wrap ideas this year!
So, that's it. I told you I had nothing to say :) Tonight = Grey's and tomorrow = another rainy Friday. Hallelujah.
Movie Night
Tonight, I'm going to the movies. I've actually been watching a lot of movies lately, mainly because Todd is doing this trial movie program where he gets a bunch of movies for free (kind of like NetFlix, I think). 
Anyway, last night I was semi-forced to watched Death Proof, which was pretty good, but also kind of boring. Let's just say it wasn't really my kind of movie (sorry, Todd). I also recently watched Y Tu Mamá También, which was well, interesting - to say the least. I asked Todd to put Love Actually and RENT on the list, so I'm patiently awaiting their arrival, as they are currently sitting in the movie queue. But, back to tonight. Tonight, I'm seeing Enchanted! I know, I know, it's a PG movie and I'm a twentysomething... but, I have an excuse! Besides the fact that I want to see the movie, I'm taking Kaleigh and Brendan to check it out. Once again, the added bonuses of having little siblings. I think it's going to be good because 1. it's a Disney movie, 2. it's bound to be a love story, and 3. McDreamy is in it - clearly a huge plus. So, I'll let you all know how it is. I know you're all dying to know!
Trees!
Okay, two exciting things -
1. My Christmas tree has been officially set up at my apartment. In our theraflued-up states last night, Steph and I managed the difficult task of setting up our tree. Okay, it wasn't hard at all, but it is a pink, glowing masterpiece.
2. My job also has a Christmas tree. It was brought into the office today and it's sitting in the front, just waiting to be decorated. Besides the fact that it's awesome that we have a live tree in the office, we're also supporting one of our clients that just happens to work very closely with x-mas trees :)
Anyway, as I was scanning the news this morning, I came across an interesting article. Don't be surprised if you want to cry at the end... looks like Santa might need to use some magic powers to get around this Christmas.
Oh, and here's a pic from Deck the Palms!
Achoooo
It's Monday and I have a cold. I've been sitting here sneezing all day and wishing that I was at home in my bed instead of looking at my computer screen with semi-blurred vision. I guess being sick this time of the year is okay since it's "winter." Also, I haven't been sick in a year (last Christmas, I think), so I can't really complain. Anyway, on an exciting Christmas note, being that this past weekend was the first of December, it was the first of the holiday celebrations that my family and I attend. Sunday was the Deck the Palms event at Seaport Village, and boy was it festive. I would like to point out that this event, and most Christmas outtings, are probably amazing if you are under the age of 10. At the seaport, there were tons of areas set up for kids to create all kinds of things - holiday candles, chalk drawings and sand dollar ornaments. There was even a fruitcake toss and a holiday puppet show. And, as expected, Santa made an appearance... on a surf board! It really was a lot of fun! Holidays are always a little strange here in San Diego because it's usually sunny and warm. Deck the Palms was a nice way to begin the Christmas season the SoCal way. Coming up next are the PB Holiday Parade, Christmas in Old Poway Park and a visit to Candy Cane Lane. I can't wait!
Now, back to work and my box of tissues.
Rain, rain - STAY!
It's raaaaaaining men... okay, it's not. But I love that song. It is raining though. It's raining a lot. When I opened the front door this morning, I was surprised by not just drizzle, but a complete downpour - puddles and all. For most places, this is okay, normal even. For San Diego, it's like all hell breaks loose. 
I haven't been listening to the traffic reports, but I can almost promise that there have been hundreds of accidents and millions of people stuck in gridlock. Welcome to SoCal. I've been safe inside my office today, but I kind of wish I could have been outside, or at least in my bed. I think the rain is supposed to continue through tomorrow, which is great. If you're wondering, I'll be watching movies and eating soup all weekend. Let the rain fall down! (haha, why not end it with a song, too?)
A recipe
Todd and I made chili last night, and as I was eating leftovers for lunch, a bunch of my co-workers started asking me about the recipe. It's kind of funny that they were impressed, because it's basically the easiest recipe ever. Here's what we did for everyone who encouraged me to post this:
Ingredients-
1 chili seasoning packet
1 can of corn
1 can of black beans
1 can of kidney beans
A package of ground turkey (or chicken or beef)
1 can of sliced or crushed tomatoes
Hmmm, I think that's it. Then, you basically just cook it all together. Brown the meat and then add everything else in (minus the corn water). And, don't forget the cornbread. I'm sure it would be better to make it from scratch, but the Marie Callendar's brand is scrumptious, too.
Mmm, it's delicious. I want some now.
And you thought I wouldn't be back...
That's right - I'm back to post some more! It's currently pitch black outside, which makes it very strange to be at work, especially since all of the city lights make me feel like it's much later then 5 p.m. I'm still not sure how I feel about the time change. I think I want it to go away. Anyway, this post should be interesting because I really have nothing to update or say (interesting in the "hmmm, where is this gonna go?" kind of way). I think my most exciting moment of the day has been eating a Lindt truffle. They are delicious and really do melt in your mouth. Plus, I feel like Lindts are part of Christmas, so I'm feeling more and more in the holiday spirit as each day passes.
Actually here are some things that are making me feel more Christmasy:
1. My office is decorated. You should have seen my surprise and delight this morning when I saw the lights and Merry Christmas sign at the front desk.
2. I went X-mas shopping on my lunch break. It was kind of stressful, but mainly because there were so many good deals! I will be returning to Horton tomorrow.
3. I have a pink Christmas tree. Don't laugh, it's cute. And even if Todd, Eli and Rylan say it's ugly, Steph and I will proudly display our tree - silver snowflake ornaments and all. 
And, last but not least.
4. It's about 10 below zero in my office, which has forced most of us girls to resort to wearing pea coats all day. I don't care if the sun is shining outside... it might start snowing in here at any moment. Did I mention that people have brought in space heaters?
I think I might need to invest in some gloves or something. The next thing you know, I'll be wearing a full on snow suit to work. Oh well, 26 days 'till Christmas. And only two more days 'till the weekend!!
Post Number Two
I'm back for post number two of the day! My blog has seen better days, and yet again, somehow weeks have passed. I think I've been feeling uncreative lately, or maybe its just the fact that I'm so darn busy. Anyway, I'm excited to post. I sure hope there's still someone out there reading this thing :)
So, I'm back at work after a fabulously relaxing and fun four-day weekend. Thanksgiving was great this year, especially since we successfully brought so many people together. Not only was it my mom and co (which is a grand total of 6!), but the O'Kanes were there, as were Todd, his sister Lin and roomies Eli and Derrick. The age ranges were rediculous, but it was a lot of fun for everyone to meet and spend some time together eating mass amounts of food and desserts. The boys even played some football, which Brendan loved. We also played Apples to Apples! Can't remember who won, but that game is always a lot of fun. The rest of the weekend was chock full of good times. Since I used to work in SeaWorld's PR department, I have some pretty sweet connections with a bunch of awesome people who just happen to be in charge of giving out tickets! I obviously love SeaWorld, but I knew that Lin really liked marine life and that Eli had never been, so I got 4 tickets for Friday. We didn't tell Lin, which was fun because she looked really confused as we were pulling into the SeaWorld parking lot! 
The day was really great - we watched a bunch of shows, fed some dolphins and had a close encounter with some scary looking sharks. Somehow, I avoided the funnel cakes, and I've been regretting it ever since. I love those tasty treats! And, you might have guessed, we ended the night with Beachcombers (it wouldn't be a Friday without it). 
(can you tell that we're singing the Umbrella song?)
It's become somewhat of a tradition to get together at Beachies when everyone is home for Turkey Day, so all of us, and my much-missed high school friends, met up for a classic home for the holidays reunion. The rest of the weekend was pretty low key, and although I sang the "I'm bored" song a million times, it was great to catch up on sleep and have no real plans.
And now, the BIG news:
While most of us were sitting around doing nothing last weekend, Brookey (my 4-year college roommate) was off getting engaged! She's the first of my close friends - heck friends at all - to be on the road to marriage, so it's been crazy to think that on June 28 she'll be a wife! Congrats again, Brooke!
I think that's all of the exciting news I have. I'm looking forward to the weekend already (is it too soon for that?) and even more excited for more holidays to come my way. Back to work for me... but only an hour left 'till Taco Tuesday. Ay, ay, ay!
Real fast
I know I've been MIA again, and believe me, I have tons to update, but I wanted to share this will everyone. I think it's pretty cool! Test your vocabulary and do something good for the world.
More to come soon... I promise.