Let's talk about yoga.

Recently I've been feeling like a troll. No not in my looks. You know, poor posture, super short, crackly bones, lack of flexibility. I've decided to fix those problems, or at least attempt to. OK so I can't fix the short factor but I can at least try to have better posture and be able to touch my toes. So I started going yoga. I've done yoga in the past but it never really stuck. I'm not sure if it will stick this time but I did get a deal at a fancy studio (30 days for $40 unlimited classes) so I feel obligated to give it a month. Here's my experience so far:

• Day 1: I took the free class at Lululemon. It was incredibly crowded. I was no more than 15 inches away on each side from almost hitting someone, no matter what pose. This made for an extremely interesting downward dog position for all parties. I'll let your mind go where it will on this one. Needless to say, the class was great but the experience wasn't exactly relaxing. Post day 1 I was extremely sore. I thought I was in shape, but it turns out I'm not.
• On day 2 I would try for a real yoga studio. I used this thing called "the internet" (I heard Al Gore invented it) to search for a well known highly rated yoga studio. I found one in downtown San Jose. I found this second class to be much less crowded and also incredibly tough. I left feeling energized and exhausted all at the same time. I suppose you might call the feeling "zen."
• Day 3 (today): The instructor informed us that we would be working our "hips" in class. I wasn't exactly sure what this meant. Would we be dancing? Lord knows my dance moves need improvement so I was intrigued. We did not dance though. No my poor hips endured 1.5 hours of stretching. I call this torture. Holy hell. I can't say I enjoyed it, but wow I think I'm starting to understand why yoga is a workout.

All in all, I'm going to use up my 30 days and see where that takes me. Maybe it's a new hobby or maybe I'll just be incredibly flexible after this month and then go back to hardly being able to touch my toes.

Hey blog...I'm sorry

Dear blog,

I'm sorry for neglecting you. I know it's been a while. Since yesterday was Ash Wednesday, I've decided that I'm going to give up neglecting you for the next 40 days. Let's see if I can be a good Catholic.

My first topic at hand is very fitting...shoes. I recently received a pair of shoes that I ordered from Shoemint. Shoemint is Rachel Bilson's line of shoes. She teamed with Steve Madden to create a subscription shoe service. For those of you who don't know, I love Rachel Bilson. I have what is commonly referred to as a "girl crush" on her. Her style is fabulous. She's beautiful. Not to mention her hair. But I digress...back to Shoemint. I had wonderful expectations for Shoemint. They look amazing on the website and by gosh...a monthly subscription to shoes, why not?

So far I'm less than impressed with my first purchase. Upon opening the box of what I expected to be the "perfect black pump," I viewed what was nothing more than a semi-cheap (yet still cute) pair of shoes. After 8 hours of wear around my office I found them almost unbearable to wear. I also found them to scuff easily. They were also a smidge too big and therefore I almost it several times walking up and down the stairs...ok just walking in general. This I cannot necessarily blame on the shoes since I have walking problems in general.

I may however be able to salvage my first purchase with a pair of Dr. Scholls insoles. Those things can work wonders. Overall though, I think I'll maybe give Shoemint another month (OK I already accidentally got charged for another month) and then I'll be canceling my membership. Sorry Rachel, your beauty can't save you here.

Our dog...the poo eater.

Our dog eats poo. We don't know what to do about it. Some call it recycling. Saving the environment they say. Others laugh at it. I personally am grossed out by it. But what do you do? We've scolded him. Fed him pills that make it taste bad. Attempted to snatch it up before he can snag it...but alas, nothing works. Simply put...our dog is a poo eater. Gross.

Puppies are like babies...

Over the weekend we attended my friend Katie's co-ed baby shower. It sounds like a horrible time but it was actually a lot of fun. I'm pretty sure it was because it was a halloween themed party that really didn't have much to do with babies other than the fact that there were a few presents involved and a few new moms. Which brings me to the subject of this post...Puppies are like babies.

Some of the moms were talking about starting a "Mommy blog." When I asked what they planned to talk about I was told "Mommy things." I asked for an example and my friend Amelia gave me the "Chevy's" story. While at Chevy's Amelia and her husband Steven took their son to dinner. To make a long story short, their son pooped his pants and it leaked from his diaper to the floor. They were horrified and as discretely as possible left Chevy's after cleaning up his mess. I won't give any more details as I don't want to steal content from their future blog, but it was in this moment when I realized that puppies are like babies. You see a few weeks ago I experienced a similar story with my friend Grace and my puppy Jackson.

Grace and I recently went to lunch in Santana Row. We took Jackson as I am trying to "socialize" him (my personal excuse to bring my dog everywhere). Jackson was such a good boy and sat right underneath our table while we ate lunch. After finishing our meal we decided be good citizens and stimulate the economy. We showed Jackson several spots outside where he could "potty" but he didn't go so we figured it was safe to shop. We were wrong. We were in Sur La Table browsing for a present for Grace's sisters birthday and there it went. Jackson popped a squat and wizzed underneath a store display. We cleaned it up to the best of our ability and quickly snuck out of the store.

And hence we learned that puppies, will explode unpredictably at the most inopportune time...and so will babies.

It's been a year!

Two weekends ago Justin and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary. We spent the day in Half Moon Bay with our good friends Matt and Jenna and couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day. Two weeks into year two and I'll just say this...I have a really good feeling about year two. I love our life that we are building and I'm so thankful for Justin every day. xoxo.

Weekend bloopers!

This weekend was filled with loads of fun, wine, friends, family and a few bloopers. We spent the weekend with my parents as well as their newest puppy. Justin and I puppy sat last night. Justin had to work today and therefore I was left with 3 dogs this afternoon...by myself. Well this perhaps wasn't the best plan but we made it through the day. A few bloopers that I encountered today:

1. 3 dogs are hard to walk.
2. 2 puppies have a LOT of energy.
3. 2 puppies like the chew on leashes. This makes for a bad walk. Especially when one dog likes to attack other random dogs and the lease is no longer attached.
4. Puppies aren't potty trained. Steam cleaning when there are 2 untrained puppies is a bad idea.
5. Puppies like to bark at every person that walks by the window. Due to the steam cleaning, windows needed to be open all afternoon. Did I mention we live in a complex across the street from a college and school just started? Again...puppies and steam cleaning don't mix. Nap fail.

Lessons learned:

1. Family is wonderful.
2. Family time is wonderful.
3. Family dogs, though adorable, are not always wonderful when you have no family to share them with.

And we're back online...1 year later

After a year long hiatus from blogging, it's time to get back online. In the last year Justin and I have have looked danger in the eye and faced it head on. We've fought lions, tigers and bears...on my! In all seriousness we have had an amazing whirlwind of a year. In short, here are a few of the highlights.

1. We got MARRIED and had the best wedding ever (of course I am biased but I have had many people support my claim).
2. We've taken 2 official vacations and many Tahoe trips. Our honeymoon was spent in St. Lucia and we recently returned from Kauai. We also had one of the best winters ever.
3. Justin changed careers. No details online since the blog is work free.
4. We became unofficial aunties/uncles to many of our friends babies (though there are some that we still need to meet).
5. We have a new addition to our household. Meet Jackson (I'll blog lots about him I'm sure). Jackson is a mini aussie shepherd. His brother Dexter lives with our friend Steph and we look forward to the day they are reunited. He's full of energy (but still not as much energy as Bella).
6. My brother moved to Chile...which means we haven't seen him in a while. Luckily we are going to see him in Mexico next month!
7. My parents celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary. Congrats mom and dad.
8. Our friends Adam and Amy moved up to Washington. I'm already looking at flights to visit them.
9. Bella is still Bella...our amazing little puppy.
10. We still love each other and are one week from our one year anniversary.

12 Days!

Well folks, the final countdown has begun.  Officially 12 days until the big day.  Until now, I had no idea how much planning goes into a wedding but in the end, it’s always worth it.  Let’s hope the same goes for ours.  It’s now crunch time and all the details are coming together...I think. 

Girly Perfection with a Spice of Sassy

This last weekend was my weekend of girly bachelorette celebration and I couldn't have asked for anything more.  Not only was there an evening of mellow fun with a dash too much of champagne, there was also an evening of wild fun with my favorite gal pals.  I'm so thankful for all of my wonderful friends who were able to pull of the best party that I could have ever asked for...and more.  To summarize Saturday's events, the evening went a little like this:
1.  Party by the pool.
2.  Party at Jen's house.
3.  Party with boy-girls.
-Limo
4.  Party with firemen and tables.
- Limo
5.  Party with bottle service.
- Limo
6.  Pizza...what pizza?

Another Friday Bites the Dust

And it's Friday, yet again.  Even though this was a short work week it sure seemed long.  Somehow 4 days seemed like 7.  Perhaps it's because the week started with Tuesday instead of ending early on a Thursday as short weeks normally do.  Either way, I'm very excited for this Friday to merge into Saturday and then Sunday.  Two marvelous days off of work with our last weekend at home for a while.  We plan to enjoy them with very few plans and perhaps a glorious day researching new clothing that we both "need" for our honeymoon.  Cheers for the weekend!

My Legs Hurt

Justin and I decided to join a program called Crossfit as our pre-wedding workout routine.  It was recommended to me by a friend who looked fabulous on her wedding day, so we figured that it can't hurt.  Well...that assumption was oh so wrong.  After one workout, we are both HURTING.  I cannot even describe what hurts specifically because the entire lower half of my body aches.  If this doesn't get us into shape, I don't know what will.  Tonight is workout number two and I'm not sure how I'll survive but alas, after putting in our credit card info, we are committed.

And They're Off

Well folks, it's official, it's really happening.  The invitations are in the mail with hopefully enough postage to reach their destination.  After many hours of stuffing and sealing, with a glass or two of vino for inspiration, we managed to complete them in one night.  My fingers are currently filled with multiple paper cuts and if I never have to seal another envelope, I'll be alright.  The bad news... we forgot a return stamp on someones invitation.  The good news...we only missed one stamp.  Hopefully it wasn't yours. 

Fiance Trickery

Saturday Justin and I will be going to Napa.  He believes we are going to have lunch and visit a few of our favorite wineries and perhaps discover some new ones.  In reality, we are going to visit my very good friend Lauren at the hair salon.  Yes, we will also be visiting a fancy lunching spot and also consuming some vino, but the main goal is to introduce Lauren to Justin.  Lauren you see, was my roommate in college.  We now talk once in a blue moon but still are able to pick up right where we left off.  She's one of the most honest, hilarious people that I know and so of course, I want her to meet "the one" and Justin just HAS to meet her.  Trouble is, Lauren is so busy, that the only way that I am able to get some of her time, is to schedule a hair appointment with her at her salon.After I get Justin hopped up on vino and delish food I will casually take him to the salon for an hour of catchup girl time and fiance introductions.  I'm quite pleased with this plan.  I only hope Lauren knows that I don't really need a haircut.

Oh Subaru...why must you hurt our bank account?

This weekend Justin and I went to the Subaru dealership to get some information about our upcoming October purchase.  We intended to buy an Outback to give the Jeep a rest for a while.  This trip resulted in us looking at every single car that Subaru now offers (for better or worse) as well as test driving two different types of cars.  The first...an Outback.  Twas a nice smooth ride, lots of space (I'm not sure why the two smallest people needs so much space...but that's another post), plenty of cargo room and lots of luxury upgrades.  Then, out of the corner of my eye, I spied the WRX and just had to take a peak and boy did I like what I saw.  So...naturally, I just had to drive it and it was a mighty nice fun ride.  Definitely more aesthetically pleasing, but the upgrades and luxury additions are minimal at best.  On top of that, they are willing to give us a deal...decisions, decisions.  Sacrifice luxury for the power and speed?  I'm just not sure.

Pool, Tanning, Girls...limits?

Today I learned that our complex has begun to enforce a rule where each resident can only bring one guest to the pool.  This disturbs me.  One of my favorite summer activities is to sit at my melrose place pool and pretend I'm somewhere in the Caribbean.  Second to that activity, I like to live in the present and invite the girls over for Sunday vino by the pool.  After all, who doesn't enjoy a crisp Sauv by the pool discussing the latest US weekly and our upcoming party plans (as of late, it's my bachelorette party...for another post).  I can no longer invite 2 girls over to the pool to enjoy such happenings and I am limited to one, unless Justin joins.  Now, as much as I love my fiance, I'm pretty sure that he has NO interest in the latest diet trends and/or what wines we have all tried lately.  Once again, the college kids have put an end to my immature fun.  Damn them for partying harder than we do.

4 Months 2 Weeks

It seems that my good friend is getting married in exactly 4 months from today and he and his lovely fiance graciously reminded me on Facebook today.  That means that our wedding is exactly 4 months and 2 weeks away.  Holy cow.  Time sure does fly.  I suppose this means that I surely should be getting my act together and organizing a rehearsal dinner.  The jury is still out on where to have it and what to do.  We are still in the process of getting a list of names together, much less close booking a place.  I mean, in truth, I just remembered the other day that I’ll be needing to order a cake (or cupcakes in our case).  I’m told it’s a tradition and I do love cake but I just forgot about that.  Perhaps my mind has been on the 160 pair of flip flops that I just tied together with tiny ribbons saying “Justin & Lynne September 18, 2010.”  I’m sure those ribbons will be cherished forever by the attendees of the wedding and that no one will dare to leave them behind.

Wedding Flubs

Every night I go to bed and I think, "One of these days I'm going to start my wedding workout and diet plan" and every morning I wake up and think, "This morning I should really get out of bed and do P90X to start my day out right."  To date, I have managed to not begin the so called wedding workout and/or wedding diet.  Perhaps by writing it down, I will be inspired to begin.  Doubtful, but every bit of inspiration helps.  


My most recent inspiration for fitness has been the quest for a honeymoon.  Who wants to show up to a honeymoon looks soft and pasty.  Certainly not me.  Originally we thought, "Oh we will do our honeymoon later," but our fear now is that we won't actually go on a honeymoon and we will just fall back into the routine of things.  Mega FAIL potential.  So alas, I have been on a quest for a honeymoon and I haven't yet found something suitable.  Call me pretentious, but I feel that luxury is the only way to go.  That being said, it's even more reason for both Justin and myself to tone up.  We still have a few months to go before the allotted 90 day window to "our best shape ever" as the infomercial describes, but I feel it might be best for us to start sooner rather than later.  

A Whole New World...Texas

Justin and I went to Texas this weekend and we got our fill of fun for the next century.  We never would have guessed the shannanigans that ensue in south Texas and it’s probably good that we didn’t.  Let me tell you, boys in Texas are FUN and that’s all that I can really say to describe them.  

The weekend began with boating adventures on the “beautiful” channels of the Gulf of Mexico.  Not nearly as beautiful as I had imagined.  Apparently in Texas, you can drive on the beach and that pollutes the water.   Eeeww.  After boating we went out for some good old fashioned Texas burgers.  I’m pretty sure that I’ve never eaten something that had such artery clogging potential in my life...only in Texas.  We finished the evening by washing the burgers down with many many drinks.  

There must be something magical about Texas because we woke up in the morning feeling bright and chipper and ready to see the air show.  The planes were amazing and the show was unreal.  To date, it was the best airshow that I’ve ever been to.  Granted, I’ve only been to two. 

Overall Texas was filled with good friends both old and new, lots of sun and a bit of liver damage.  Cheers to that!

Playing Wife

The past few weeks I've been playing wife like a champ.  Coming home to cook, clean and take care of the pup has been my M.O.  Playing wife has been quite fun, however I'm beginning to wonder how long I'm supposed to keep up the charade.  What Justin fails to realize is that I am in fact, not a very good cook and sometimes I come home to find that the pup doesn't seem to have been fed that morning.  When is the time to pull the wool away from his eyes to let him know that I actually am quite irresponsible?  Is this whole getting married thing all about keeping up appearances?

Justin also seems to think that in addition to playing wife, I also play comedian.  I am not entirely sure why he thinks I'm so hilarious, however I'm not complaining.  Previously, the only person besides myself to think that I had any sense of humor was my mom (and she has to say that...thanks Mom!)  Perhaps he has also pulled the wool over my eyes and has allowed me to think that I am indeed the most hilarious person of the household.

Burritos y Horchata

Yesterday Justin and I sat reflecting at a local Santa Cruz taqueria on an amazing afternoon where we took our engagement photos.  Not only did we have an amazing day, but we also experienced a world record in holding "the longest kiss ever."  While at the taco shop I ordered my typical, burrito y "orch-attta" throwing in my best spanglish accent.  No matter how hard I try, I cannot seem to get the pronunciation of that word correct.  I'm always corrected by the spanish speaker by the counter repeats in his perfect spanish accent "OK so one burrrrrito y horchata."  Dang, he beat me again.


On another note, the horchata did live up to it's delicious name.  Mmmmm...creamy full of fat and sugar delicious drink of the Mexican Gods...thank you.