Last Month of the Year...Lots of Changes

Its been a while, I know. I'm still doing Insanity & am yet to insane. Actually I did a week ago, I had my breaking point with the workout to where I started crying & didn't want to do it anymore. Anyways, I've been living in Fresno with some really good friends as room mates since August & now it seems like my time has ended here. It was bound to happen eventually. I had been offered to rent a room in Clovis for $450+ but I would not be in my ward boundaries & a bit far from my dear old Madera. I guess I'm just so use to being close to my family being right off freeway 41, that it was such a convenience of the freeway.

Anyways, I turned that one room down. My oldest sister Amalia has offered to let me stay with her, but I told her that that would be a last resort if things go sour when I move back home with my mom. Which I'm still debating whether I want to live with my mom or dad. I really just want to live in Fresno within my ward boundaries with room mates. *sigh* I guess things are really starting to 'sink in' the more I write about this. Its really difficult to move back in with parents after being 'independent,' I'm going to try & convince some friends to rent an apartment with me. Right now I am asking people if they know anyone LDS who is willing to rent a room to me within my ward boundaries.

Pray for me as I am praying for myself to find a good place.

Insanity

I mean the workout not that I'm going insane or anything. Well maybe just a bit because I am doing the "Insanity" Workouts. I actually started it about a month ago but last week I took a break....bad idea because when I started it up again yesterday I stopped a couple of times which I wasn't doing by week 3. I was doing so so good, then I got lazy. NO bueno. But me knowing me so well, I decided that I will actually finish this program. I hate starting things & not finishing them. Plus, this is my health & body that I hope to be more healthy, strong, powerful, lean, and beautiful. Today was day #3, it kicked my butt but I only stopped a couple of times to catch my breath or because I knew that I couldn't do certain moves. But I am proud of myself because I can finally do at least 10 push-up that are not 'girl' push-ups on my knees. yay! :D I want to get rid of my flappy underarms & gut. I do love myself, I love my legs, thighs & glutes because they are the strongest part of my body.

I actually don't mind being a 'bigger' girl but I know that I would rather prefer being a 'curvy' beautiful woman instead. If the worst part about me was that I am fat to people then they have issues. I am more than my weight. I know this. I know that they number on the scale or my pant size shouldn't matter, I know that my Heavenly Father wants me to be happy & content with myself. For the most part I am, but I know that I can do better with my body & health.

Stats
Height: 5' 6.5"
Weight: 192
Shirt Size: L
Pant Size: 14 (usually ranges 12-16 depending on brand)

From the last couple of weeks that I had been doing the exercising I haven't seen extreme weight loss but more toning & firming of my legs & glutes. Less cellulite. yay! I know that muscle weights more than fat but fat takes forever to burn off, at least on me. I have a great little support system of David & Megan who tell me to keep going even when I want to give up & not exercise. But after going a week of not exercising I have seen the positive things that exercising has done for me, I knew that I had to get to exercising. I use to have low back issues that would hinder me from giving great massages, but now I feel that I have more stamina & less low back issues. I know that a great massage would help a lot more, especially an elbow to my glutes but I have seen less pain & more flexibility in my pelvis & back. Amazingly exercising has given me more energy, who would've thunk it? haha. I have noticed that I do need to eat more since I am burning more calories, but I need to eat more good foods & not junk aka not salty fatty foods especially when I'm at work because I get sluggish & lethargic. More salads, hearty, good calorie packed foods.

Anyways, I will update again on my weight loss journey soon. 

From BLAH to BLING BLING

I think I might start having more crafty Sundays with my sister Amalia because its been really fun going over her house on Sunday afternoons after church (that is of course if its okay with her). 

Today we revamped my old BLAH shoes to BLING BLING with just Mod Podge & glitter. Thank you to the ever addicting Pinterest for the inspiration. 

BEFORE: I bought these shoes at Target about a year ago (clearance of course!) I hardly wear them because the color is a burgendy/purple color with faux crocodile pattern. I didn't know what to wear them with.

We had to scuff them up a bit that way the mod podge & glitter would stick on to it.

AFTER: super black glittery shoes. ah! i love them! remember to put a top coat of sealant.

BEFORE: my lovely converse shoes that i bought at Target on clearance. they weren't a very popular pattern so i was lucky enough to snag a pair :D

AFTER: Magenta glitter. LOVE IT!!! A pair of these would seriously cost $30 bucks at Target. I'm in love with these & they only cost come mod podge & glitter :)

Post-Mission Visit to Phoenix

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit my mission with one of my dearest mission companions, Jenni Matthews. I had visited Phoenix last June to surprise my mission president before he was released but the few of us that did go ended up hanging out with each other in Phoenix & I did not have the opportunity to visit all the people that I wanted to. It was great to hang out with my mission friends in Phoenix without the rules & restrictions of time & I loved the hot weather. I miss the heat, especially when it it freezing cold here in Salt Lake. I just want warmth. So this last weekend when I went, I was hoping that the weather would be just as warm...90+ It was not. haha. It was just as cold as SLC. It was okay, I do plan on visiting again around aug-oct.

Anyways, It was great to visit the people that I taught & baptized and to actually see that I've actually impacted a persons life during my missionary work. I especially loved seeing peoples reactions when we would go over & surprise them with our visit. haha. It made my heart very happy. The first people we visited was a little boy & his family that I taught with hna matthews & crowley. We had driven to their old house, luckily matty had the grandmas phone number & we found their new house, which luckily was only 2 miles down the road.The boy that we baptized was 10 y/o at the time & now he was 12...almost a teenager. gah! He was acting like one too :P, his younger sister was baptized last year & unfortunately we weren't able to attend it because the grandmother called matty's parents house & didn't say who her name was. :(

Max 5 y/o & Adan

Max 7 y/o & Adan

We then passed by another recent convert that both me & matthews had taught, the famous Adan Marquina. haha. He's famous to the hermana's because he was so friendly & flirty with us. He was also famous to the district, zone & president for that very reason. haha. He's a great guy & has a little boy who was only 4 at the time that we taught him, he's 7 now! gah! He will hopefully get baptized next year when he turns 8 & we will all hope to be there for him. But he wasn't home, we did end up visiting him later that night. That was a good visit. Max was my little 'boyfriend' on the mission, he had a crush on me. so cute.

Angela on her baptism with Husband & son.

We also had the luckiest chance to visit one of our deceased converts husbands. That was a great visit with him because last time he wasn't there & when matthews came with her parents last year, he wasn't home either. His wife, Angela is who me & matthews taught & found while tracting. It was quite miraculous how we found her. As you know in Phoenix its blazing hot & we still have to do tracting to reach out goals of teaching & baptizing. Me & Hna Matthews had prayed over how to achieve this feat since it was hot as hell outside & would feel like dying after 1 hour.

HOT HOT HOT! 2010

Our answer was that we found visit the Less Active in the ward & then knock doors in that area for 1 hour that way our tracting hours would be more manageable & we would at least get a chance to go inside a persons house to chill off. I think Angela's street was the 2nd or 3rd L.A. that we tried to visit, she didn't open her door completely to us, we could barely see her through the storm door. She hardly had any voice & could barely walk. Hna Matthews was amazing throughout our visits with her, she just had instant compassion & love for Angela. She was basically "golden" & ready to receive the gospel in her life. Within 12 weeks or so she was baptized. Unfortunately her health was declining & her husband informed us that she died on March 9, 2010-that's the day I went home from my mission. I didn't hear about this until a couple of months after I was home. Angela unfortunately doesn't have a grave because she wanted to be cremated-that was a bit weird for me to know that her mortal body was burned & now put in a golden box. Her husband was so sweet to us, he loved her very much. He would on rare occasion hear our lessons but he never fully accepted our message. I think one day he will accept the gospel. Hna matthews did get permission from her husband to start doing Angela's temple work since it has been over a year since her death. The next task is get her birth, death, baptismal & marriage dates to do so.

Familia Diaz

Afterwards we popped into an awesome family from the Estrella ward who would have invite over their house for dinner whenever ours bailed on us. La familia diaz-i just love them!! They're such a fun family, hno & hna diaz are great to each other. He actually put fake manicured toes on hna diaz for a party they were going to that evening. haha.

Hna Jensen, Linda, David, Aubrey, Jackson (newborn) Jenni

We also visited the Juchau/Gibbons family from the Garden Lakes ward, we were so lucky to find them all at home. They are one of my favorite families because they're just normal & they saw us as normal girls & not just as strict robot missionaries. It especially helped us that David accepted us & we were able to visit & be friends with him.

Linda, David, Aubrey, Jackson 2 1/2, Jenni

He isn't a member, but his wife & his wife's family are active members. David is an amazing cook & we would go over to have cooking lessons to fellowship him & for us to get bomb food. I served in the Garden Lakes ward for 9 months-I never baptized. I taught & taught & taught but no baptisms. Its okay, I have been blessed with David & his family as my friends & will be ecstatic the day that he accepts the gospel.


On Sunday me & matthews had the chance to attend both the Moon Valley & Monte Vista. I finished my mission in both these wards & was happy to come back & attend church. It coincidentally happened to be fast & testimony meeting. haha. I only laugh because it was great timing for us to be there & bare our testimonies to wards we served in. We received lots & LOTS of great hugs from the ward member, it was great to hug my old bishop that I served under there. He was such a great & awesome bishop. He gave me great council & blessings during my last transfer with 2 greenies. A lot of members said that they missed having sister missionaries in their ward, i guess after i left they only had the sisters for one more transfer before elders came in & they haven't left yet. It felt great that they remembered us, we kinda are unforgettable, there was always either 2 or 3 of us in the ward & the members were amazing. They would give US referrals & be actively participating in the lessons. Just an amazing ward.

Hno Ponce right next to me. Monte Vista had 7 missionaries. wow!

We also stayed for the Monte Vista ward. I absolutely love this ward. This was actually one the first wards I served in at the beginning of my mission, it was so small that it wasn't even a ward or a branch but a 'group.' My mission came full circle when I ended my mission in this ward because I basically started in it & have seen it bloom. I forgot how much I love & missed church in spanish. My heart swelled with happiness when I saw Hno Ponce, he was my ward mission leader & was truly amazing. I about cried when I saw him. I gave him a great big hug. He also gave me a letter that he wrote me but never had the chance to send it out. I haven't read it yet, I feel it is too precious & i need to read it at an appropriate time.

Oh how I see the blessings of serving my mission now after I have served it. I thought that the blessings would come automatically after I served but it has been slow. Which I think has been great because I'm not use to things being given to me easy. We also had the chance to quickly drive by the location of the Phoenix temple. I can't wait to come back for the dedication of it.

A Fortnight To Go

I have only have about 2 more weeks left here in Salt Lake before I move home to Madera once again. I'm getting anxious & nervous for what the future holds for me. I've had to humble myself & finally allow my dad to come up & drive home with me. I decided this after my sister & I went up to her future in laws house for Easter up in Roy, UT which is 1 hr north of here. I drove home by myself Sunday night, for just one hour & would freak out when cars would get too close to me. I'm a 'new' driver, I've only been driving for 4 years, i was 'older' when i received my license, i was 23 y/o right before I left for my mission. I learned how to drive on my mission....learned how to conquer the freeway (that was a huge accomplishment for me) Plus it doesn't help that I get nervous when I'm on roads that I've never been on before, because I don't know the area or the flow of traffic. So imagine me trying to drive home for 14 hours like that, yeah I will probably relax after a couple of hours but knowing that there are stupid drivers out there & i have a really old car, i don't have the confidence to go on it alone. Call me a wimp or smart for making this decision but at least my dad will love the time we have together driving home.

Anyways, the apartment is finally getting boxed up, my room is pretty much done. I'm sorta freaking out because i'm not sure if all my things will fit in my car. I think it will do all the way up to the roof of my car, good thing i have 'blind spot' mirror on my exterior mirrors. I have thought about renting a hitch from uhaul but they go from $100+, which is a little steep for me. The only other rooms that need to be boxed up are the kitchen which will be done next week, also my sisters room & the bathroom. We're going to be busy next week moving everything into Christina & Jason's townhouse & me going to work for the last time until I get my massage license in CA. whew. I'm not too worried about cleaning the apartment because luckily we have hardwood floors & they just need to be swept & mopped. I already cleaned the oven a month ago, the refrigerator gets cleaned out (at least monthly) i haven't done it yet this month. I will let Christina clean the bathroom ;)

okey dokey. that is all for today. so excited to go to Phoenix this weekend. yay for sun!

Feeling A Bit Overwhelmed

Alright, so right now in my life I have LOTS of things to do still, which considering that I'm a patient person for the most part is really testing that patience. I think I get a little 'antsy' when I want to be over & done with certain things in my life & just want the next part to be here now. I can think of a lot examples in my life that I have felt like this. I just gotta stick it out for a bit longer :\

In no particular order:

#1 Packing up the WHOLE apartment & also getting rid of stuff
I started doing this last week & my sister asked me why I was doing it so early, well i don't want my/our last week in our apartment to be mayhem. I've been s-l-o-w-l-y been going through the stuff in the living room. Most of the things in the living room are Christina's things. Plus, we need to get more boxes to put her stuff in, I thought I got enough today but NOPE! I was wrong & I'll probably need 10 more or so. I just want to clean & get out of here!

This in my attempt at trying to be organized amid the mayhem of all the stuff that we have.

I hope the "TRASH" & "DONATE" boxes get filled & the "KEEP" not so much. I'm going to go through my room tomorrow again & really be strict on myself what I truly want to keep because its a want or a need. Also I'll ask myself "HAVE I USED IT IN THE LAST 6 MONTHS? WILL I USE IT IN THE NEXT 6 MONTHS? WILL IT HELP OR HINDER MY LIFE BY KEEPING THE ITEM?" yes, I have put a lot of thought at this moving process because I don't want to have a lot of stuff that I won't be using. Plus, I have seen the show "HOARDING: BURIED ALIVE," I don't want stuff to rule my life.

Cute moment of the day, moments after I set up the boxes Guido jumps right into the "KEEP" box. I sent the photo my mom & she says "OH HOW CUTE! He knows he doesn't want to be thrown away or donated" haha. Cats are smart, they just know how to play their owners like fools. haha. 








#2 Planning my sister Christina's wedding
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! (enuf said!)

#3 Planning my move home (28 more days & 9 more work days!)
Ready for a change, even if its going back home. But at least I can figure out if being home is where I need to be or if its going somewhere else. I am going to drive myself home, 12 hours baby! My dad was originally going to drive home with me but I decided that I'm old enough to drive by myself. Plus its not like I've haven't driven home before. Christina & I have done it 4 times already! My plan is to leave in the morning, most likely April 25th around 10-11am & drive 6 hours to Las Vegas where I will be staying with my sisters sister-in-law for the night. Then the next morning again around 10-11am drive home. I knew immediately that I didn't want to drive at night because I don't trust night drivers & I don't have the best eyesight at night. Also I didn't want to try & drive 12 hrs straight, even though I have driven 11+ hours last Christmas when my sister was too tired to drive.

#4 Making sure all my things will fit in my car (<-totally freaking about this!)
Hence why I want to drive myself home because I'm not sure if all my stuff will fit in my car. Well I do know that my things will fit, but I'm not sure if the other things that my sister wants me take home will fit. Plus having an extra person in my car will add extra weight & I will lose space. Sorry dad. I know that I shouldn't freak out too much because Christina & Jason will be driving down for their wedding & can take some things home with them that won't fit in my car but I want to be able to take all my things which is basically my clothes, books, movies, & my massage things.


#5 Finding a job when I get home & also applying for my CA massage license
I know that I will probably 'get a break' from not having a job for a while which will be good for me but will also drive me crazy because I'm use to being busy. My plan is to get a temp job at a temp agency while I wait for my CA massage license to arrive. I'm not sure if I want to go back to Massage Envy, it all depends on the hours & pay that I receive. I do want to work somewhere its preferably Mon-Fri because for the past 5 months I've worked Fridays - Mondays which means I HAVE NO WEEKENDS!!  So when people get excited because its Friday.....not so true for me because its going back to work for me. Which don't get me wrong, I do love what I do. But when you have sucky schedule & hours its not as exciting.

#6 Moving my sister into her new apartment
This one will happen soon which is great because then we can start moving things from this apartment to her new one. Which means this apartment gets cleared out & we can start cleaning out the apartment!! I'm ready for some deep cleaning!! I have my gloves & knee pads ready to scrub this place clean even though we are moving out. Christina & Jason are hoping to get accepted townhouse that they applied for last week in the Cottonwood area. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Also hoping that when I move home things will work out for me: personally, spiritually, romantically. But I know that only I can make great things happen in my life if I chose to make it happen.

Sewing Project: Makeup Brush Carrier

I received this idea from a video I saw on youtube from the threadbanger channel.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RX2bp63lxio I knew as soon as I saw this video that I could totally make a makeup brush carrier, i didn't have the right measurement but I had extra material from an old project that I did, which were old skirts that were too big for me but the material were sturdy or pretty.

Its funny because I get the most creative at night but in the morning I realize what I have done wrong & spend the whole day trying to fix my mistake. haha. Today was no different, luckily I didn't sew too much last night & I have a handy-dandy good seam ripper. I love it because I recently bought a set of makeup brushes & my little pouch couldn't close anymore. I think this is great because the brushes are visible & organized...which i love!

Here is my final project.

 this is the 'front side' the black & white flower material are from an old skirt I had that didn't fit anymore but I didn't want to donate it because I loved the pattern & knew I could do something else with it. The black material is also from an old skirt that was too big for me.

 All my brushes in their little pockets, it was a bit tricky to have two rows, but I just followed the top rows pockets when I sewed the bottom pockets.

The big brushes on the top row I used 1 inch & a half, the big kabuki was 2 inches. All the others were about 1 inch, make sure to measure your brushes just in case & round up that way its a bit bigger for your brush to fit.

 This is my brush carrier rolled up, the lace is actually from my grandma Hilaria's collection of things that I have.

At the end I also added little hooks that way I can hook it to my makeup bag & make it a bit easier when I'm applying my makeup. Our bathroom doesn't have huge counter space, so this really helps me.

Yay for recycling & re-purposing!