Tuesday Updates - 1/27/09

Flowers from Curtis :-)

As much as I hate to see time fly, I'm happy that this month is almost over. It's been really busy, really tough, and the whole time I was waiting for grades (we'll get to that later).

The first big announcement is that I'm going to Portland this weekend!! I had the opportunity to attend the Western Region Black Law Students Association (BLSA) Convention. Anyway I'm leaving on Friday, attending events on Friday night and all day Sunday, and then I'll see my cousin (and bridesmaid) Molly for a few hours before I fly back. I'm very excited about the opportunity to attend a BLSA event and the chance to get out of town for a few days (it's been so long since I've really traveled). Anyway, I'll have pictures next week :-).

Weekend: My dad and I went to Stanford Leading Matters at the LA Convention Center all day Saturday. It was a really great experience that I recommend to anyone who is affiliated with Stanford. They're having one in SF later this year and in Orange County either next year or in 2011. There were two paneled sessions with current faculty and we got to choose which ones to go to. My dad and I went to one on the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution and one on foreign policy in the new administration. Pretty soon all the talks should be on iTunes and I plan to give CD's of some of them to a few professors. After the talks there was a reception and dinner. They showed some incredible multimedia programs on giant wide screens, and had sets that resembled the Stanford quad. I got a picture of the quad and of one of the desserts offered.


Overall, it was a great experience that I'd definitely recommend.

Law School: Law School is BUSY, but I think I've finally hit my stride in terms of energy and motivation. I had a really hard time getting into the groove this time around. I don't know whether it was because I was worried about grades, or because I was probably still sick, but I was extremely tired and had a lot of trouble sleeping. And whenever I don't sleep...I start going a little nutty.

I finally got all my grades and the good news is that I'm happy with my performance this semester. I'm still in the job application process but no where near the end of it. I had a mock interview with a local attorney earlier tonight that was a great - she gave me some very useful advice. My classes are getting more interesting. One new thing this semester is that I'm working in a study group with three other women in my section. We are meeting weekly to go over class material. So far it's been a really effective use of study time, and it doesn't hurt that we all enjoy each other's company.

Wedding: nothing new on the wedding front, other than that I made a few insignificant changes to the website.

Other: 2 big things that I'm missing this week because of school are the Stanford vs. USC and the Stanford vs. UCLA basketball games, both in LA. I'm extremely bummed, and it's likely that I won't even be able to watch the games on TV, so please cheer on my behalf if you do watch (or, in the alternative, cheer against Kal, who is also playing both USC and UCLA this weekend).

And I've joined Twitter. My ID is ceh2011 if you want to follow me :-)

Have a good week.

Why I love Trader Joe's

I realize this is a silly post, but after Trader Joe's put me in such a good mood this afternoon after a tough day, I couldn't help but reflect...

1. The prices are unmatched. Really, being able to buy snacks for 1.99 each, is life-changing.
2. The food is good.
3. The emphasis on organic, natural food is great. I'm trying to eat more all-natural/organic because a bridal magazine told me to, and at Trader Joe's most of their foods are one or both.
4. The employees are friendly.
5. It's down the street from my house

I probably bought more than I should have today because I broke the rule of not going to the store hungry. But at least I got more for my money there and now I'm feeling much better since I ate :-)

Monday Updates - 1/19/09

Happy MLK Day! I hope you have the day off. I woke up at 10:45 and will be watching CNN inauguration coverage all day. 

Weekend: Friday was pretty low key, I drove down to Mission Viejo for the weekend. Saturday Curtis and I went to California Adventure and Disneyland in the evening. It was my first time on the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, which was much scarier than I thought it would be! On Sunday I relaxed with my family and watched the Eagles lose their chance at the Superbowl (sigh...). And then I headed back up to LA to chill out before class starts again. 

Wedding: I also got a lot of wedding stuff done. I tried on a pair of shoes with my dress that I think I'm going to keep! I scheduled my food tasting and my dress fitting. And, a few weeks ago I took pictures of my reception location and I realized that I hadn't posted them yet. Here they are: 

I hope the weather is as good as it was over Christmas! 

This week I'll be watching the inauguration in my Constitutional Law class at school. I'll probably DVR the entire thing from home too since I have class tomorrow until 2:45. It's exciting that we will have a new President tomorrow, one that so many people are excited and *hopeful* about.

Have a good week :-) 

Happy Anniversary!

Curtis and I started dating in January 2003, about 6 years ago. We didn't have a typical "first date" so we decided several years ago to adopt Jan. 15 as our anniversary of dating. I feel so fortunate to have such a wonderful man in my life, I'm so excited to be his wife :-). Happy Anniversary Curtis!

Tuesday Updates - 1/13/09

Sorry for the late Updates, it was tough getting back into the school routine yesterday.

Weekend:
I had a very fun weekend. On Saturday Curtis, me, Curtis' dad, and Nick went to a tux shop to order tuxes for the wedding party and VIP's. I was very happy with what Curtis picked, I think he and the guys are going to look great. After that my dad and I drove down to Oceanside (78 degree weather, convertible top down, :-) for my Grandpa's 79th birthday party. My aunt has two new pets!

Drago:
and Jose!

My dad and I had fun playing with the new pets, I have always liked pet snakes (not that I want one) and the bearded dragon was awesome.

On Sunday I watched The Dutchess while packing up to go home. If you like period dramas, this is a good one. Predictable yet intriguing plot, with an interesting ending. Then on Sunday I headed back up to Los Angeles and back to the whirlwind that is law school.

Law School:
This semester I'm taking Constitutional Law, Property, Criminal Law, Legal Profession, and the usual Legal Research and Writing. So far I like all of my professors, and I even got called on in my Conlaw class and did fine. So I'm hopeful that this semester will be as good, if not better than the last.

I got my first grade from last semester yesterday, in Civil Procedure, and I was very excited about it. I'm very grateful and am now anxiously waiting for my 4 other grades.

Movies:
My ambitious winter break movie list was just too ambitious for me. It's amazing how easily time gets filled up, and how an illness can derail many of your plans. But I did manage to see 2 movies on the list:

Australia - the more I think about this movie, the more I love it. I just think it was so genuine and sentimental, and the scenery is gorgeous. I've always liked Baz Luhrmann movies (Moulin Rouge!, Romeo & Juliet...) and this was no exception. Plus, it's a really good story with many different and overlapping themes. Overall, it is definitely a movie I want to see again and eventually own.

Frost/Nixon - The thing that comes to mind when I think of this movie is how good the acting was. I think Frank Langella had an uncanny ability to embody Nixon's perspective. It was compelling and exciting, which is quite something for a predictable plot, not unlike what I've heard from people who've seen Valkrie. Overall I wasn't as awestruck as I was when I saw Australia, but I still enjoyed and appreciated this movie.

That's all for now. Have a good week!

Wedding Updates

As you can see from the counter, it's less than 5 months away! I've been able to get a handful of things taken care of in terms of wedding planning. Yesterday Curtis and I met with the pastor who is conducting the wedding ceremony, which was really fun. Curtis and I left the meeting feeling very excited to be becoming a family. Today my mom and I met with the florist who had several really good and cost-effective ideas for the reception.

After that my mom and I went shopping. We went to Nordstrom to get a pair of shoes under consideration (Kate Spade "Lovely" in pink)! We're also expecting another pair to get here on Monday and we'll decide whether either shoe will work. I also got my bridal shower dress from The Limited! We saw it in a window a few days ago and since we had more time today I went in, tried it on, and got it! So I'm happy to know exactly what I'm wearing for the shower, besides that I need an outfit for the rehearsal dinner, but I have time and a few dresses in my closet that are possible options.

Considering how fast last semester went, before we know it the school year will be over and I'll be married with pictures to share!

Monday Updates - 1/5/2009

First Monday Updates of 2009! I'm very proud that I've been blogging now for over a year. I hope you've enjoyed my posts.

Health:
This is the fourth day of this cold I have. It's been really frustrating because these last few days were my chance to go shopping, organize my apartment, do a lot of working out, and gear up for school to start again, and you know how it is when you're sick, you don't want to do anything. So hopefully I'm on the tail end of the illness.

School:
1 more week until the madness starts again, and thus far I don't know what books I need, nor what my grades from last semester are. However, I NEED to start working on finding a job for this summer. I'm not happy about it, just because there is enough hanging over my head during the first year, but it's not going to go away.

Wedding:
We had a planning meeting last night that was very productive. Now I have this long list of things that need to get done in the next week. I'm hoping to schedule all my appointments either during this month or over spring break. I can't believe that we have less than 5 months to go - we're so excited.

Weekend:
I didn't do much because I was sick, but I did go to a shooting range with Curtis and his dad! It was the first time I had ever fired a gun, and at first I was really nervous, especially since it was really crowded at the range that day (one of the employees said that it had been busy ever since Obama was elected - how silly is that?). Anyway, it was a fun experience and something that I've always wanted to try. I spent the rest of the weekend in front of my parents' TV watching NFL wild card games and college basketball.

That's all for today, have a good week!

NYE: Disneyland!

Curtis and I spent new years at Disneyland. The last time we were there was when we got engaged, so it was fun to be back, and we purchased Deluxe Annual Passes so that we can go there more this year, since we now live so close.

Curtis was very tired in the morning...

...but he felt a little better once he got his hat :-)

I always love when they transform the Haunted Mansion into Nightmare Before Christmas for the holidays.

Waiting in line for Star Tours

I finally picked out my hat!

"It's a Small World" Holiday

Overall our day at Disneyland was great. The only problem was that the Buzz Lightyear astro blasters broke down just before our fastpasses would have allowed us to ride, so we missed that. We didn't bother riding rides in the evening so we could rest up for the New Years festivities, but since we have passes now we'll be back soon.

As far as the New Years stuff goes, we had a lot more fun the last time we went. Last time, we were in the Small World area and the DJ was playing some really fun dance music. This time we went in front of the castle, hoping for something different, but it turned out just to be a 3 hour advertisement of the Disney Channel and of Disneyland! They played a ton of HSM, Hanna Montana, and Jonas Brothers, and every half hour they had to remind us that this year we get into Disneyland for free on our birthday.

And then, right before midnight, they brought out the Disneyland ambassadors to talk about the Year of a Million Dreams and whatever they're doing for this year, so it totally killed the mood just before midnight. We know we will never do that again. We might try California Adventure eventually because at least this year it looked like they had good parties, we just didn't know how many people were going to be over there.

But, it was still Disneyland and we had a great time. Happy New Year!

Day in LA

Since Christmas, I've been mostly hanging out with my family. On Tuesday we went to LA to see USC and the Grove. It was fun to show the fam the Grove all decorated for the holidays.

My aunt and uncle came to visit for the week after Christmas. It was really fun to spend time hanging out with them, and show them where I live and go to school.

The obligatory picture with Tommy Trojan at USC - don't tell Curtis ;-)