My has time flown!

I can't believe that its been over 2 years ago since my last post! I must confess, I have been on here regularly checking up on everyone else and I feel bad for not posting for my family and friends. Since it's been so long, it may be hard for me to remember and this post is pretty long but keep reading! So here is the BIG scoop on what's been going on with us.


In 2010 we went to Hawaii for a week and had a blast. We rented a convertable mustang and got sunburnt with the hood down. (Wear sunscreen when you drive a convertable in Hawaii!) I literally had to put my beach towel across my arms and rest on my nose because I was so burnt and when the sun touched my skin, it felt like I was on fire.

We went parasailing for the first time and it was amazing! It felt wonderful up in the air at 1,200 ft. You couldn't feel you were moving but it was so peaceful and quiet. My advice is to not eat at an All You Can Eat buffet before going on a boat. I had a big breakfast and the waves made my stomach turn and I ended up puking off the side of the boat. Lol. No pics to show on that. Sorry.

We visited a family that Austin new from his mission in San Diego, California. Of coarse when you come to Hawaii, you have to attend a Luau.










Visited Pearl Harbor, got Austin a pair of Crocs shoes and he LOVES them! He walks everywhere with them.







In 2011, we visited some friends in Florida for a week and we had a BLAST!!! We would love to move there once Austin gets done with school and can find a job down there. We did a lot in a weeks time. We went to Fort Jefferson which is 70 miles off the coast of Key West. We had to take a 2 hour fairy ride to get there. Went snorkeling and walked around the fort.







We went to a Gator Park and road a boat through the swamps and found gators just a few feet from the boat!




We also visited a Lion Country Safari, which is a park you can drive your vehicle through and see all animals up close. This Rhino came so close to our car, I was a little nervous. Those are beastly creatures!


We went and saw Flipper at the Miami Seaquarium. Spent a night in Key Largo and watched the sunset.




Also in 2011, I finally took the plunge and left Hairmasters and became a booth renter. It was the most stressful time but I am so happy that I did the move. I can now have my sundays off and make my own schedule. The same month I started my business, I found out I had gallstones and had to get my gallbladder removed ASAP! They found 4 gallstones and they looked like sharp pieces of corn. I felt immediate relief once those stones were out! I am so blessed how life progresses and how things just happen to work out.

Austin injured his shoulders at work in 2010 and went on L&I, pretty much the entire year of 2011. He tore his labrums in both shoulders and had one surgery in February 2011 and the other in September 2011. He's finally back to work since February this year and is a full time student. I am so proud of my husband for all that he does for our family. He works so hard and comes home to work on school and barely has enough time to chill with me before he goes to bed.


On August 16th 2011, we welcomed our 2 month old female Grey and White Siberian Husky puppy Fayela "Ella" to our family. We waited a whole year for her. She is the best dog in the world! She is a very mellow husky and just wants to give tons of love and kisses to anyone she sees, human or canine. She will be 10 months old this month. She is also in training to become a Therapy Dog. Therapy dogs can go visit the elderly in the nursing homes and visit patients in hospitals. I would love to take her to see the children in the hospital. Ella has the most happiest expression I have ever seen in a dog! You can see her wearing her training jacket that I got her.


On December 23rd, two days before Christmas of 2011, we added another member to our family, Baron "Bear" a 6 week old male Red and White Siberian Husky. (WARNING!!!! Do not get a puppy younger than 8 weeks old, they still that time with their mother and their litter mates. You will have less problems when you wait.) Bear is a hyper little boy who wants to please and cuddle with you. When he smiles, his grin looks like he's a demon. Lol. But he's just a happy little boy. Bear will be 5 months old this month. He is also in training to be a Therapy Dog like Ella.

I've learned that a MESSY home is a HAPPY home. As long as there are toys and bones around the house, they are happy. Huskies are known for their howls and talking. I have trained both of my puppies to speak on command but the best part is when they're playing or when its meal time. They will not keep quiet! LOL. Ella is very close to saying "I Love You". Bear just barks and growls but he'll get there. They are the smartest dogs I have ever known. They have the most amazing personalities and are precious to me. I don't know what I would do without them. They are always on the go which is keeps us on our toes. People think we're crazy having two medium sized dogs in a two bedroom condo but it works for us. They get us out of the house a lot more to make sure that they get exercised as well as us! I walk them about 3 miles a day everyday.

This is what happens when you have a puppy playdate, play time at the dog park, and a 3 mile walk all in one day. Good Sleepy Puppies! LOL.

So I decided to teach myself how to knit back in december of 2009 and I'm in LOVE!!!!! Its so much fun and I feel proud of myself that I made something that we could easily buy right off the racks in the store. I'm trying to teach myself more difficult patterns as I go. Soon, I'll be knitting my eyes closed. lol Maybe not. But I have seen women who can have their full attention towards someone and still be knitting 100 miles an hour!
These are a few projects that I have completed.

I made a few scarves, which were a trial and error process. I realized afterwards that I have been knitting wrong! The way I knitted was a different kind of knitting but it wasn't the basic. Oops! lol.

I was taught how to do a basket weave pattern for this scarf. I'm going to try and make a hat to match this olive scarf!

This was my first hat that I made that wasn't on those knifty knitter looms. Which is the cheat cheat way of knitting. lol.

Then I decided to move up and make something bigger than a scarf or hat. I made a small baby's blanket with a hood in one corner! So cute! I'm not sure if I want to keep it for my first child whenever that will be or for a cute baby shower gift. We'll see.


This was a gift I made for my sister-in-law Marlayna for her 22nd birthday. Her favorite colors are pink and purple. I had so much fun making that flower on the hat! I love it! And she definitely loves it!

Then I made a little sweater for my mother's chihuahua! So cute! I was very impressed with myself! I learned that cable pattern all by myself!!!! Unfortunately,....the sweater was designed for a toy chihuahua. Kiki is too big for the sweater I made her. It only took me a day to make so I'm not worried! I can unravel it and start all over again!


I would just like to get rid of all the old yarn I have stored for the past 8-9 years! I want prettier yarn and I don't like waisting yarn so I'll be doing lots of kitting for awhile!

Time for a New Change...

Austin and I received our tax return today and feel really good. I was able to pay off my credit card and Austin was able to pay off one of his. We bought a mattress topper to help us sleep better at night, I hope it will! A necessary purchase that still needs to happen is a new oven. Our oven at the moment decided to go out right around christmas time and I'm kind of getting tired of cooking off of the stove.

One of our biggest purchases is a new sectional from Mor Furniture. We wanted to get something that can let Austin and I lay full out and can hold our family and friends together and not be squished. We looked around and found a great deal at Mor. For a six piece sectional, we love it! I love it because I know when I clean and get tired of how the furniture is laid out, I can easily manuver the pieces around to create one huge couch, or into two couches, or I can push them all together and make it as if it were a bed! I have so many options!


We camped out on the floor and watched a movie after we got rid of first couch.


Austin playing Modern Warfare Call of Duty.


Austin in his Happy Place!


All cleaned up ready for the new furniture.


The new couch all set up in it's first arrangement.




The second arrangement we changed it to. We love it!!!!



When Austin went to Mor to pay off the couch today, he found a dinning table set for a really good deal. I saw a picture text message of it and fell in love with it. Austin ended up purchasing the dinning set along with the couch! So in about 4 to 6 weeks, we'll have a new kitchen table and chairs as well!

Murder Mystery Dinner....Dun, Dun, DAAAA!

So Austin and I was invited to our first Murder Mystery dinner with the Halversons. And we had a blast! I did not know what I was getting into but I got carried away with our costumes! Especially with Austin's costume. Mine was kinda plain.





The theme was a Wild West type and Austin's character he played was "Chief Breaking Wind" and you can tell how much fun I had! The first thing that came to our heads was a whoppie cushion from Party City! I went to Joann's and bought some feathers, hot glue, poster paint, a poster, and some costume material. I had so much fun making his costume! I think I went over board but it looked awesome! I took the material and cut it to his size and cut holes to lace some of the material on the sides and top to make it look like indian style. Add some war paint and you got an indian running around! I shouldn't say this, but when Austin looked in the mirror when I made him try it on for the first time, he said, "I look like Pocahontas!" LOL!





I played a character named "Dee Adela Muerta" a woman who was thrice-widowed and each time a newly-wed. So I was to wear ALL black and wear a black veil because I'm morning over my late husbands. So I just wore black skirt, black blouse, black lacey gloves, black toulling draped over my eyes, and bright red lipstick. Not too much creative. But we had a blast!





Dinner was amazing! It felt like we were in the wild wild west! I recommend everyone to try at least one murder mystery game! Great to do at the dinner table! And its fun to get into!
Thanks Dave and Brianne for such a GREAT night!

Becoming an Old Lady....

I don't get it why most people think only elderly ladies are the ones that are known to knit! I had a manager that knows how to knit and she's still quite young. I found out that a lot of my co-workers know how to knit or are learning. So I took it upon myself and went to Walmart and bought "I Taught Myself to KNIT". It was a tiny book that teaches the basics of how to knit and it came with a set of needles. I bought some yarn and spent all night trying to figure it all out.
It took me a couple of tries, probably about 30 times of unraveling the yarn and starting over. But that's how we learn is from our mistakes. But soon enough I got the hang of it. I finished my first scarf back in december just in time for a friend's birthday. I finished a second one for myself back in january and my third scarf last week.





I am now addicted to knitting and I have joined a group of women who meet up every tuesday night at Unraveled Yarn in federal way. Everyone just comes to knit and have fun seeing all the neat crafts that everyone is working on. Just tonight, I met a lady who is making a sweater for a 10 year old boy in a third world country; another lady is making socks for herself; others are making blankets and hats. Some come to crochet. It is so neat to be able to come where there is so much knowledge that is for the taking. Everyone is so great and welcoming and just want to see what you've been working on the past week.


I think I might attend a class or two and learn how to make other things than scarves. lol. I am now learning how to make a hat with needles. I only knew how to make a hat on the "Looms". In other words, the cheat way of knitting. lol.
Pictures of some of my work will come soon!

Thinking of the Future

Last week I was told that I had no choice but to transfer to a different Hairmasters salon up in Covington. I loved it at the Auburn Hairmasters! It was right down the hill from where I live and it was easy to go grocery shopping afterwards. The reason why they transfered me was that I wasn't open enough. With my co-workers. I was taught all my life to keep my personal life separate from work, so it won't cause drama. That's what I've been doing. I hate drama and I don't want to deal with it so I keep myself away from drama if it ever occurs in the salon. I'm trying to stay productive while I'm at work, do laundry, answer the phone, clean the shelves, and call clients when its not busy. I do admit that working close to home was wonderful because I was able to go home on my lunch breaks and have lunch (or dinner) with my husband.

I started working at the Covington salon last friday and its been a busy weekend. It sucks that I transferred because now I don't have seniority to request certain days off. I now have to work the ENTIRE weekend. I work friday through monday. But lucky enough, now I am able to come to work 1/2 hour later on sundays so I can attend at least an hour of church. I know the weekends are the busiest which is fine for now, but I prefer not to work on Sundays. And I don't have one whole day off with my husband. :( Most of my clientel is located in Auburn, and I don't think that they will follow me all the way to Covington. But some have already come to see me! :D I have sent out postcards that Hairmasters make for the stylists to send out to their clients to notify them about the change of salons. I am so happy that the postcards have reached my clients. I have also placed my cell number on the postcard just incase they can't get a hold of me at the salon. I hope some of them will still come to see me even though I have moved so far away.

I have been looking around and asking questions about leasing a chair. Which means that I would pay a rent fee, either weekly or monthly, to use the chair space and all the sales go straight to ME! I do have to pay for insurance if anything happens to or my clients in my chair. In some salons, I would have to help pay for the products that I use or I would have to pay and get the products myself. I would love to work only for me! I can choose my own hours I work. I can be my own boss! I would definitely love to do it in my own home later on when I start a family. I can't wait for the day that I will lease a chair! I don't know when but it's something I would like to do in the future.

Saying Good Bye...

It's been almost 2 weeks that we've been animal free. I guess I just had to go through the experience of having an animal to realize that I'm not quite ready to leave the young newly wed years. Since we first brought home Grayson, both Austin and I have realize how little patience we have. (Mostly Austin) lol. I grew up with animals and how they behave. I knew what to expect. But Austin had no idea. He grew up with having outdoor cats and feeding them once a day. Really easy. Well, Austin got a wakening when we brought Grayson home and a bigger wakening when we brought Charlie home. Austin knows now that he must learn patience if we're going to have a family someday. I know children are different but have Charlie and Grayson around prepared us for the coming years of parenthood, whenever that will come. Not now but it will happen.

These are a few pictures that accumilated over the past months that need to be shared. Grayson has found a new home with a family that has lost their cat either to old age or that has run off. And Charlie has gone to a wonderful home with a loving couple that are retired and have lots of fenced yard and plenty of time to spoil him.



Charlie and Grayson sharing the kennel together.





Charlie playing with Moriah's dogs Leo and Izzy!




Austin holding Grayson after giving him a bath. He did NOT like it!