Teacher for Life

There are many times when I've really disliked my teaching career. The poor pay, the demanding parents, the spoiled children that no longer have respect for others, the long hours... I mean the list goes on! But then once in a while, they do something that makes you remember why you chose this job and you fall in love with it all over again.

Today was that kind of day.

I was out ill yesterday due to a mild bout of food poisoning on Tuesday. I was in charge for Field Day today so I knew I had to take yesterday off in order to muster through the day. While I was gone, a group of my behaviorally challenging ducklings got together to make a poster of Waffles to make me feel better!!

I mean, how friggen precious is that?! Do you see the curly hair that they outlined her with?? Let's just say they had a couple of freebies today. :P

Another girl in my class had a similar idea and did the same!

Isn't that just amazing?! They are 2nd graders. 2ND GRADERS PEOPLE! I'm in my 30's and I can't even draw a tree without it looking like it's hemorraging alien brains. 

They know how much I already love her and how much I'm waiting for her, so they thought a picture of her would make me feel better! *swoooon* Even though they drive me a little bonkers on a daily basis, I have to remember they they have such big hearts, and somehow still love their Nazi teacher. And yes... I love them too. :)

Breaking the Home In

This past Memorial Day weekend was super jam packed with memorable events. The first one was obviously seeing Waffles, and that's ALWAYS memorable. But the second is having my housewarming bbq! It's been a long (long!) journey to finally get to say I'm a homeowner, but the time is here, and I could't be happier!

In this burgeoning economy where housing prices are skyrocketing to unimaginable prices (especially here in the Silicon Valley!), I am pretty blessed with parents who can help out any way they can. We all know that teachers can't purchase a single family home on our income alone. I wouldn't even dream of it! But with my parents help, they have made one of my dreams come true. Don't know if you're reading this Mom and Dad, but thank you for all that you do!! :)

I am a strong believer in throwing a housewarming party, even if you've moved in to a new apartment. You can only imagine how bored my friends are of my housewarming parties. Haha! But I do believe it should be broken in with people near and dear to your heart. It's where we will share some lasting memories with! For instance, 2 apartments ago, it's where I lived on my own without ANY roommates for the very first time. It's also where my first keg stand IN A MAXI DRESS went down as well! You don't want to know how that ended... :P But most of all, it's where a lot of my early memories with the boy are. It's where I cooked the boy his very first meal as a couple. Tuna Puttanesca to be exact. I still don't know what a puttanesca is but he loved it and that's all that matters! I also have memories of him coming religiously every Wednesday for date night to watch The Amazing Race and laugh hysterically at all the hicks traveling the world for the first time, all over a jug of Amber. Our beer from our very first date. And yes, you heard that right. A jug. Wow, we used to drink a lot!!

The last place I was at didn't have *too* many happy memories, which is why my living situation there only lasted 9 months! The only thing I remember is the god awful traffic that I had to endure on a daily basis. I wanted to shoot myself every. single. morning. It was the most horrific way to start your morning. It was 40 minutes going there, and 30 minutes coming back. I wasted countless hours sitting in the car, stewing in my own fury with each passing idiotic driver. I'm getting amped up just thinking about it! >:(

I just had to get out of there, which sped up the looking process for a new house. After months of remodeling, living with my parents (ACK!), and unpacking for what I hope to be the last for a while, the rooms are almost all ready. I knew that if I waited to make it a perfect home, I'd never be able to get guests in here to break the place in. The perfectionist in me cringed, but after all that's said and done, I'm so glad I did.

I wish I had taken some photos of the tables all set up and pretty, but in the flurry of trying to get everything set up, it just completely slipped my mind! Yes, me. The picture taking whore. The must-record-everything-or-the-whole-world-is-gonna-fall-apart picture taking whore.  So you can *only* imagine how stressed I was playing hostess! I'm glad that I got some pictures in to remember the day.

But before I say anything else... I just have to say. This boy...

The day couldn't have been possible without this amazing dude. He slaved for hours assembling the bbq grill, untangling the Xmas lights and stringing them around my patio, and if that wasn't enough, bbqing some damn yummy burgers and hotdogs! Thank you so much babe!! :D

Love you to pieces!!

My beautiful girls, minus 2. We missed you Jennie and Sammi!

And this girl, Erin, is just all kinds of awesome. She is literally fresh off the boat a week ago, and she braved her first American BBQ! Hope we didn't scare you off! :P

Never thought this day would come, but our 4some is now complete! :) 

How can you not love these reres?? 

The gang. It only took us 17 years to FINALLY be in serious relationships all at the same time! 

After a *minor* incident at a 6 mo. old birthday party a couple years back, I am now cut off from holding my friend's children after 4 beers. Can you believe they put a limit on my drinking just to hold their stinkin' kids?! Yeah... I do... And here, you see why! I think it's safe to say I've hit my limit. :P

There are a couple of others here that made it to the party but didn't get around to taking photos with. I also have a lot of other friends who I woulda loved to break in the house with, but due to the holiday weekend, many were out of town. :( BUT, I have all summer, and once Waffles is done with all her shots, I foresee many bbqs and puppy parties galore! With Waffles joining the boy and I in 2 weeks, I am looking forward to making so many great memories in this new home.

She's Almost Here!

This past Memorial weekend, the boy and I made our last trip to Reedley to visit the little Miss Waffles. We will be bringing her home on June 7th! She has grown and changed SO much in the last 2 weeks! Her hair has gotten a little fluffier and curlier, her big booty continues to grow faster than her head, and she's so much taller! I guess a tall dog would only be fitting with a tall human. :P

Currently 4 lbs 1 oz. Up one pound since 2 weeks ago!

But the biggest difference we noticed? She's so much more active, and a bit of a bully to her other brothers and sister. Especially to poor little Henry, who is not only the runt of the group, but isn't her "real" brother as well. Henry was the only surviving pup from the 2nd litter that was born 5 days early. :( It's interesting that they know who their real brothers and sisters are.

Check her out in action here!

At 1:55, Waffles just totally mauls Henry to get attention from Eva. What a little meanie and not to mention, a little bit of an attention whore. "No no no! I want in on the movie! Mooooove!"

I'll be honest here and say that I had my moments of doubt with Waffles. I've never had an alpha dog, nor an active one like her. I was worried that she'd be too much for me to handle and that I wouldn't be able to be her pack leader and train her properly. I mean, we couldn't get her to sit still for 5 seconds to take a proper picture! I know that puppies usually play hard for an hour tops before getting exhausted, but Waffles?? Nope. Of course not. It took her about an hour and half. This is her afterwards, just completely exhausted:

She's finally toast!

I wonder if human parents go through this same initial freak out mode before bringing their baby comes out into the world. Do they wonder if they'll be good parents, or if their kid will be unruly and completely run the household? Do they get scared if they'll permanently scar and damage their kid? Did you ever want to forever keep the baby in your belly because of the fear of what the future may hold? Well... that was me in a nutshell. A couple of days prior of seeing Waffles, I wanted to love her from afar without the worries of being a good puppy momma. But thankfully, the boy did an awesome job of calming me down. He didn't sugar coat it and say that she'll be the perfectly calm pup that I hoped she would be, but we would be able to train her with professional help. And using my teacher voice and glaring will be certainly be put to good use as well! :P

We went to visit her one last time to see how she really is in person and it was instant love all over again! How can you not with this beautiful face of hers??

Look at her happy face! She loves getting her belly rubbed!

Pure love. The boy and Waffles sharing an emo moment together.

Only after playing will she sit still long enough to take a picture with momma.

I felt really guilty having those doubts take over my love for her. I am now super eager (again!) to bring her home and start our life together. I'm sure it will be filled with lots of hugs and kisses!!

Love you Waffles!!

The boy and I can't wait to bring her home!! :D

Introducing Waffles!!

Everyone, meet the newest edition of our family, Waffles!

How friggen cute is she?! We can't believe she's ours!!

The timing of the announcement couldn't have been more perfect. We had plans go visit the puppies this past weekend, so knowing which one we were going to get made the bonding experience so much more valuable. Giving her a name and calling her by it also gave us a more permanent feeling that she was ours! It was definitely a different feeling when I held her, cooed at her, and played with her this time around.

When we last visited Waffles, Eva mentioned that she was a bit more active than the rest of the litter, but because they were still so young, the activity level and personalities of the other pups are still unpredictable. Well, this time around, you could definitely tell a difference! Waffles was a little shy and timid for the first 5 minutes of meeting the boy and I, but afterwards, it was game over. She was running around in circles and even peed in excitement! She is definitely more fearless than the rest of her brothers and sisters too. While her brother and sister were hanging out with us, Waffles had no problem exploring and going up to Cooper, Eva's much bigger cavapoo, and bite his tail to play. She also had no qualms of going up to Carme, Eva's poodle, who doesn't like puppies at all. She sat there showing her teeth, but Waffles was "la la la! Let's play!" The boy thinks we're a match a made in heaven. :P

And the booty on this girl!! She was last to be born, but was somehow the biggest. Which is strange because even in human babies, the bigger one usually comes out first. I guess even in the womb, she played alpha and shoved the others out first. Haha!

Can you guess which one is Waffles??

Her butt is HUGE compared to her face; about two of her faces! It was hilarious seeing her sit and watching her a$$ expanding 2 fold. She couldn't sit still long enough for us to capture it on film, but you will see soon enough! The boy loves that his two girls have huge Michelin tire a$$es. :P

I'll stop gushing about our new baby girl and just post pics now.

Momma loves you!!!

I just want to eat her face!!

All her brothers and sister: L to R - Waffles, Henry, No Name,  Monty

Waffles squirming, "Let me outta here lady!! I want to go play!"

One of our favorite photos of the day.

Puppy in a bowl! What Eva uses to weigh the pups. Waffles is a whopping 3 lbs. 3 oz.

Our first family portrait!

We love you, Waffles!! We can't wait to bring you home so we can shower you with lotsa love and kisses!! :D

Life is SO Hard!!

A whirlwind trip to NY and 3 days of work later, a Sonoma trip with the boy's family happened. The boy's stepmom and I have been planning it for weeks, scouring the internet for the best wineries to go to, and I think we did it right!

On our way to our B&B, we visited Gundlach Bundschu Estate Vineyard and it set the tone of the whole trip perfectly. We planned to enjoy stunning views, wine and dine with an illegal amount of cheese, and of course enjoying the hilarious company. This place did not disappoint. We sat outside with our first bottle of wine overlooking a lake with the sun beaming down on us. Something about the water brings calmness to my soul and I couldn't have been happier!! 

One of my absolute favorites at this winery was the 2012 Gewurztraminer. Now, I'm not a wine snob or even a wine drinker at that, but this wine spoke to me like no other wines have before. Flavors just exploded in my mouth. The boy's dad was so sweet and bought me a bottle! It will be saved for a special occasion. :)

We checked into our B&B and got refreshed to go to dinner at The Girl and a Fig. Our tum tums were in absolute heaven!! It was only a preview to what the rest of the trip had in store for our every growing bellies. But hey! We're on vacation, and eating till you want to purge is what you do on vacation! Or that's what we kept telling ourselves to make us feel better... ;P

On our way back, I got to see where Joe's love of baby animals comes from: his dad. We were walking around the park to walk off the monstrosity of a meal we just gorged on and came across a pile of ducklings. Literally, a pile of ducklings that huddled together to rest from the day's playing. If you were ever curious to see what a pile of ducklings looks like, now you know:

We were about to leave, but he just had to go back to take some pictures. Funny thing, if he didn't stop to take pictures, then Joe would have done it, guaranteed. Too damn cute! 

The next day, we started off the day by heading to Vella Cheese. This place sells an amazing array of award winning cheeses. Joe, the lover of all cheese, wanted to eat the whole store! Even me, who isn't much of a cheese fan, was wide eyed with all the different possibilities of making my tummy happy. This blog has only been up and running for a couple of posts now, but do you see a common thread here?? :P We sampled some cheese and went with a block of habenero, garlic, and sharp cheddar. We definitely recommend you stop by here to stock up before heading off to wineries!! It complimented our wines perfectly.

Our first winery of the day was at Kunde Family Estate Winery. The bar was set pretty high at the Gundlach Budschu Winery, so the expectations were pretty high. Well... I must say, that this winery did not disappoint at all. This expansive (and by expansive, I mean acres upon ACRES of grapes!) vineyard had so much history. It's been passed down from generation to generation since 1906! We also learned that when each winery applies for a business permit, they're assigned a number. They are #206, so you can imagine how early on they started this winery.

The next time I visit there, because there will DEFinitely be a next time, I would love to do the mountain top tasting. It costs $40 a person, but I think it'll be money well worth it. I mean if I grinned ear to ear at ground level, can you imagine how ecstatic I would be at mountain top?! I wouldn't know what to do with myself! Nor would Joe and his family... they'd probably throw me off the mountain to shut me up. :P

Weather, I genuinely appreciate you trying your best for not letting it pour while we enjoyed some outside patio time! After about 2, you no longer wanted to cooperate, but that's ok, because the next winery we visited was crap. The wine was crap. The backyard patio view was crap. Ok, that's a lie. It was was maybe a little crap, but only because I couldn't go outside to enjoy it. It would have been the only redeeming factor of the whole winery. We were stuck inside with really bad wine. It was bland with barely any taste. I swear, my white whine was watered down apple juice. We have some pictures to remind us the cheap juice we tasted in adult sippy cups. 

Judging from the property, you'd never guess it was such a crappy winery!

Then off to St. Francis! This winery redeemed our faith in our choices a bit. They didn't have too big of white wine selection, so I can't really comment on it too much, but everyone else seemed to enjoy the red wine a lot more than Ledson's wines. You can't really tell from the pics, but it was coming down pretty hard at this point, but that didn't deter us from taking a quick pic of the 3 of us! The boy's gotten so good about taking pictures without scouling at me or giving me the death look!

St. Francis was the last winery of the day! Even though it was pouring rain, we still had a great time just hanging out and they probably got a kick out of me desperately trying hard to understand wine. Towards the end, I was just gulping them down in hopes of getting drunk. Gotta get something out of it, right?? :P

The sun decided to cooperate the next day, so we hit up Benziger before heading home. I cannot reiterate how retarded my taste palette is, but the boy's dad was pretty impressed with his wine flight. So much so that he became a club member! I foresee many trips here to take advantage of his membership! :P 

It took a bit of convincing for the boy to do this gay pose. :P

On our way home, we stopped by at Sausalito because we didn't do enough of what we did the last 3 days: eat, drink, and laugh. We had a 7 o'clock dinner reservation, but we thought with our ever expanded bellies, we can definitely eat now AND eat a full Korean BBQ meal 4 hours later. Didn't think we can do it?? Wrong. You've obviously underestimated our eating prowess. We tried to walk off our food by getting in and out of the car to marvel at the views of the Marin Headlands!

San Francisco was shining in all it's glory that day. With the pouring rain the day before, the weather gods took pity on us and gave us some sunshine. And boy did he! It was the clearest that I've ever seen it. Zero fog hovering around the bridge, and you can see clear across the ways to the beautiful city of SF!

I really, truly do love hanging out with both sets of the boy's parents. I get to see where certain personality traits come from such as his humor, his mannerisms, his quirks, etc. I love hearing new embarrassing stories of him as a child growing up, and just getting to know them as people. It's hard bonding with people that you don't see on a regular basis, so hanging out for a couple days straight kind of makes up for the lost time. Until our next adventures!!