Musings

Brian has been begging me to update my blog, but there honestly isn't a whole lot to report. Still no job for me, though I've had seven interviews now. I'm hoping that that is a good sign and something will come up soon, otherwise we have to pray that we can make it through the summer up here until Brian gets a TA ship. Of course, I might go back to being a nanny. Who knows.

Here's a little bit of what we have been up to:

Earth Day in Santa Barbara. I thought it was lots of fun and very cool but Brian was a little put off by the hairy feminist women walking around. There was also a man dressed entirely in plastic bags. He looked like a Yeti. That was funny though. Here I am under the spider; no, I was not afraid.


Our friends took us out for Brian's birthday which was fun. Then they turned it into a engagement celebration for us haha. We had a good time.







Brian is having some problems with his exams...again. I won't go into too many details but the hope of being finished on June 10 is looking less likely than before. None of this is his fault, just circumstances that we cannot control. Here's to hoping all things turn out for the best.


Wedding planning is coming along at a slow but steady pace. It's frustrating because everything seems to take a week or two...people just do not return calls or emails anymore I guess. Still, progress is coming. These are what I hope our flowers will look like, or close to it.

Brian and I are very excited about getting married. We hope a condo/house and babies aren't too far along after that. We both want a large family and are looking forward to the challenge. Speaking of which, I came across this very interesting article the other day which I would like to share!

http://www.faithandfamilylive.com/blog/big_families_are_the_new_green1/

Enjoy the read, and God Bless!

Home Sweet Home

Well, Brian and I have been pretty busy these past couple weeks just trying to get everything in order with the apartment. It finally feels about 95% complete! We just want to hang a few more photos or posters up on the wall and that should be it.

Believe it or not I have actually enjoyed cleaning and coming home to a nice apartment that shines and sparkles and smells like clean laundry and febreeze. I assume I will like it even more when I finally get a job...which hasn't been going so well. I've had three interviews in 2 weeks, but no calls back. Hopefully I will keep getting interviews though. Otherwise I have to go back to being a nanny. And for the right family that would be fine, but those seem hard to find.

Today is Brian's birthday. He is playing the Halo 3 ODST game I got him in the other room. We are just stuffed from dinner. He requested filet mignon, garlic green beans, and scalloped potatoes. For dessert we had (reduced fat) cinnamon rolls.

So far living in Santa Barbara has been great. It is so beautiful up here and the weather is very mild, which I like. It doesn't get as hot up here as it does back in L.A. or the OC. The only bad thing so far, is with the increased amount of trees, grass, and plants here, my allergies are killing me. I'm actually sick right now. Not sure if it is from the allergies or if I caught a cold, but it definitely stinks. The last thing I wanna give Brian for his birthday is a cold!

I wish I had some pictures to show you...I've been really bad about taking photos lately. I used to take pictures of all the meals I cooked and send them to my mom and dad so they could see my cooking progress. Now I guess cooking has become so normal to me that I no longer take pictures haha. Maybe if I feel better tomorrow I can get out and take some pictures.

This weekend in Santa Barbara is Founding Day, the Wine Festival, and Earth Weekend. So, if I feel up to it, we should have plenty to do!

Happy Easter!

Jesus has risen! It is a joyous day that I hope, between eating lots of food and hunting for eggs, every one remembers.

We had a beautiful celebration at Our Lady of Refuge, where will be married, then had brunch with Brian's family. We just finished our Easter egg hunt, which we all play in the backyard, even the adults, because Brian's mom hides money in some of the eggs. So it's fun for everyone!

Around 5 we will begin packing my car with the remaining things we need for Santa Barbara. We bought a microwave, two bar stools, a laundry hamper, and who knows what else. When we get to my house we will have dinner with my family, and then load up whatever I need to take up (my clothes mostly).

I hope everyone is having an excellent Easter and enjoying family and friends and lots of love!

Final Week

Today is my final week at work. It's bittersweet showing the new tutor how things are done and watching the kids interact with her, but ultimately it is for the best. I need to be with my future husband and get a full time job so I can use my college degree. I will miss the kids very much, but I know how adaptable they are and I don't think they will have a problem with someone else.

I have an interview tomorrow, so tonight I will be driving up to Santa Barbara and then heading to the interview at 9am. Then Brian and I will be driving home together in my car, I will drop him off at home, and then I will go to work. Needless to say, I'm going to be exhausted.

I had dinner with Jenn last night at BJ's, and that was so much fun. I'm sad to be moving now because I think she's a really great friend and I wish we could spend more time together. But I also know Brian and I will be coming down at least once a month so hopefully everything will work out for the best. I'm going to miss her!

This past weekend we got a lot of stuff done at the apartment again, hanging up pictures and trying to make it look more homely. You can see the album here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/110765024091697507770

Brian and I also created a wedding website, which you can find here:

http://www.ewedding.com/sites/ernstwedding

We are very excited about our upcoming wedding, and still have so much to do. It really is a never ending process but after we meet with a DJ this weekend things should feel better. This whole week is going to be a mix of many emotions for me: nervous, anxious, excited, sad, exhausted...but I'm excited for Easter and look forward to a new time in my life!

Happy Anniversary(s) and Moving Day

Where has the time gone!? Every time I turn around I swear another year goes by. Today is my one year blogging anniversary! My oh my! I have had lots of fun cataloging our adventures and hope to continue as my fiance and I get married (six months!) and start our family in a few years.

Earlier, you know, when it was still the 18th, Brian and I celebrated 4 years of dating. It is kind of bittersweet to realize this will be our last day celebrating our anniversary on the 18th of March, but exciting because we our getting married and our new anniversary will be September 18, exactly six months later. We kept it pretty low key this year...reason to come...and decided to eat some leftovers at home and then go out for Pinkberry. We exchanged some pretty simple but exciting presents (he got a ps3 game, while I got some DVDs and a book) as well as sweet cards. I think we're settling in haha.

So, the reason for the low key anniversary? We're moving today!

Surprise!

We are moving into our new apartment in Santa Barbara this weekend, which Brian will stay at permanently, while I finish up my two weeks at work. We are very excited to start our lives together and create a (little) home for ourselves. It will be difficult being away from friends and family, but ultimately it is the best decision for Brian in order for him to finish his PhD. So, Brian is going up tomorrow afternoon, and I will come up tomorrow night with my car packed to the brim! Grandma's chair, and my Dad's Grandma's coffee table. Plus whatever else I can fit.

It's going to be a busy weekend, but I think it will be an exciting one too. Here's to new adventures!