Another Day...

Hey all. It's been more than a while since my last post. I am happy to report that my puppy is now potty trained. YAY! It was a process that I thought would never end. She's gotten a lot bigger now. I took her through a puppy training class at Petsmart and that was not really worth it. So, I wasn't really into the thought of spending more money on something that ends up not being very beneficial for me. 


Anyway, life has been busy. We had friends and family come out and visit over the last couple months and it was nice having them out here. I've been working like crazy and apparently it's paying off because they really like me at work. I was offered a really high position but it's not going to come into play for a while and honestly, I don't know if I'll still be in Colorado by then but it's still nice to be the only one considered for this position. I'd tell you but, they told me not to tell. I doubt anyone from work reads my blog but, you never know. With work and trying to balance the house chores and trying to squeeze in a workout session it gets pretty tiring and it's just busy. hah. 


It's a Saturday morning and I actually get to relax a bit. I should be cleaning up the house, trust me it needs it, but I just wanted some time to catch my breath. Colorado life has been going great. The husband and I are more than happy. I'm really bad at calling my family back home. He's really good at it and it just makes me hope that my family doesn't think I don't love them or anything. I'm thankful to be working and happy to have the few friends that I have out here but, it definitely isn't like being close to your family and your old friends. 


Every night before bed I just kind of lay there with the TV on and miss having friends. I miss having someone to talk to about life. I miss the encouragement and advice sessions. I miss hearing about someone else's life and just laughing. Laughing about silly things that only we could ever understand. 
Lucinda and I have been friends since freshman year of high school. We've done basically everything together. Sometime before moving out here our friendship just changed. She got different friends and I felt left out. She always tried to include me but it wasn't the same. I felt like she took their opinions and thoughts over mine. She only wanted to hang out with my on her down time. She got a boyfriend, her family came back into the picture and I just didn't feel as important to her. I tried telling her but not hard enough I guess. And I'm sure she felt like she was out of my life because I just stopped trying. I didn't see the point anymore. I miss her though. I miss the kind of friendship we had. I miss talking to her and laughing and just hanging out. I feel like even if we try to patch things up now it wouldn't be the same. Missing her just seems a bit more magnified now that I'm out here with no one. Again, I have a few friends but they don't know my like she did. 
Cynthia is a friend I have had for... forever. We met at church when I was so young... we always got mistaken for sisters and we still do. We go such long periods without seeing each other but when we do meet up it's like nothing has changed. Before I left California she made such an effort to hang out as often as possible. I thought we got pretty well connected again. I moved out here and it's been hard. I love her and she loves me and we try to talk as often as we can but, it still sucks. 


I dunno. I know that I feel lonely. I have my husband and my puppy. Cali really brightens up my day instantly but, you still want a friend around. And my husband is amazing and really is everything I could need but especially when he deploys and I'm out here alone. Then what? :[


Eh, what are you gonna do. It's just another day in the life of an Army wife. 
I'm going to go get my nails done with a friend. I'm excited. With work, my hands really look like poop. 


Till next time all...


Marissa

Puppy Training Woes

So, I recently got a puppy with my husband. I have yet to find a job so she's been keeping me busy. I have got to say that... it's a lot of work training a puppy. 
I've never had a puppy of my own and I knew it was going to take a lot of patience but apparently I didn't know how much. I think I'm a pretty patient person but, when she was a few weeks into the house she would pee like 3 times a day in the house. I would get so frustrated. I was on the verge of tears sometimes when my husband came home. He would ask what was wrong and I'd just want to give up, I wasn't getting through to her... 

Then one day she woke up, after a very annoying night for us (my husband and me), and she just listened. Now, I've been recording "The Dog Whisperer" on the DVR and I was watching an episode a night to gain some tips and I learned a few things but not everything. But, I'm telling you... one night after a few weeks, she was better. She's learning a few tricks that I'm trying to teach her every day and we've been going on longer walks lately so, I just hope she ends up being the best puppy people will meet.  
She's just a sweetheart. Her color is blue and she's got so much personality. You scold her after you find her making a puddle on the carpet and it breaks my heart to see her run away and hide under the couch. It doesn't take much but, she freaks out when she finds out she did something you don't approve of. Sometimes she makes me so annoyed when she wake up from a long nap and has energy to burn so you try to ignore her (Ceaser [the dog whisperer] says that you're suppose to ignore the excited behaviour) and then she looks at you. She'll literally stop, sit, and look up at you. Then she'll cock her head to one side as if to say, "why are you ignoring me?" UGH! It just melts my heart. She's too sweet and I cannot handle it. 

She's on the very edge of being fully potty trained. It is the longest process for us. And it sucks cuz I'm home all day so there's no reason for her to not get it. I'll take her out so many times. I'll take her out and 10 minutes later she'll have an accident. And she'll know she's done wrong cuz she'll look up at me with these eyes. I'll ask her what she's doing and she'll bow her head like "I did a bad thing..." OMG! She kills me sometimes. 
And she's weird with strangers. Sometimes she'll be all happy to see them and other times she'll growl and bark. It drives me insane when she gets all growly toward a kid. I dunno, I just feel like she's a little bipolar towards people. She thinks she's so tough. I think she really likes guys in uniform though. It might remind her of my husband. I dunno, she's a silly girl. 
She sleeps all day. She eats bugs and wood chips. She use to chew on her dog tag, till we made it so she couldn't anymore (above picture, I thought it was cute at first). She chews on anything that's wood in the house except for the dinning room table. 
Ew, the trash stinks... I have to take that out.

Sorry, I just got side-tracked. lol. She likes to bite and she licks the fur off her front two legs and it drives me insane. She loves to chew and chase an ice cube around the house. She kind of acts like a cat, she likes the bell noise. She loves to chew anything plastic that she can fit in her mouth. The amount she eats has like tripled in amount over the last few weeks. And she's growing!! I don't like it. 
In this pic we were playing a card game. She didn't like being left out so Dustin let her be on his team. :] She's just so cute. I probably take a picture of her every day. I am so in love with our puppy. She's my little girl and I couldn't have asked for a sweeter little girl. Honestly, she's pretty good practice for a baby. She tries my patience more than I can take some times... but I love her. 
I guess I've ranted on long enough about the puppy. She's just so sweet and I really like having her home with me and taking care of her. Oh! I've got a job interview tomorrow. I'm kind of excited. Wish me luck!! If I get this job we will be way better off. We can actually start saving and paying off debt. And I can take Cali to puppy training classes!! That would be so fun. To learn from a pro what I'm doing wrong. :]
Okay. Before I go I just want to share one more photo! I love when she sleeps on me. She doesn't really like to sleep alone so she snuggles up next to me when I'm sitting on the floor and when I'm on the couch and I let her up she sleep on top of me. I love to hold her like a baby and have her lay on her back... She's just so cute!!

HAHA! I have make up on in this picture. I look pretty. Hasn't really been reality during the last few days since I started working out and never feel like putting on makeup. HAHA. But isn't she cute?! We're a perfect fit I think. :]
Ok guys, until next time. I have to clean up and make a quick run to the store. 
Peace & love,
Marissa 

Better Shape Up

So, the apartment complex has a gym. I've been looking forward to coming to Colorado to be with my husband yes, but to have a free gym so I can get some cardio done was definitely a perk I was excited about. I've been here for a little more than a month and have been trying to get into a workout routine for weeks. Every Monday I tell myself I'm going to start and I never did. 

I knew the ball was coming up and I wanted to be in shape when I had that dress on but, it didn't happen. I had a lot of fun at the ball. It was nice to dress up and look nice with my husband. I met a lot of people and a few couples I can see making friends with. We took a lot of pictures and just enjoyed being out with each other as a married couple. 

Ugh, I was frustrated getting ready for the night. I tried to apply false lashes on myself and... just wanted to cry in frustration. I bought Urban Decay lashes special for the night. I've never tried to apply them before which was definitely a mistake on my part but I saw plenty of videos so I thought I would be fine. Let me tell you... I was so upset. I still have glue on my eyelashes today almost an exact week later, and I've showered everyday!! But, we looked good. Doesn't my husband look handsome?? He's so snazzy in that bow tie. 

Again, a great night and a fun time with my husband. We danced together... we've never gotten to share that. We never got our prom dance and we never had our wedding dance. It was nice. A night I'll remember definitely. <3

But anyway, I've been working out. It's been a little difficult to get the drive I need to actually go downstairs and start getting my heart going. It's tough, I am not going to lie. I started with the elliptical. I decided 20 minutes was fair on a constant level of 7. OMG! I thought I was going to die! 5 minutes in, I could not believe I had 15 more to go. It was hard, I was breathing super hard and just tried to keep my posture and my speed the same level throughout. When it was done, I could not have been happier. I wanted to pass out but didn't! I showered and made dinner lol. Like a true housewife. Yesterday I went on the bike for 30 minutes. It worked out my legs like crazy and a little rough on my knee (i had a bad knee...) but, I'm feeling better. Today I'll go back on the elliptical for the same 20 minutes. I'm hoping to do this pattern 6 days out of the week. Sunday is the Lord's day, so I get to rest too. :]

Next Monday I'll start Jillian's 30 Day Shred on top of my cardio. I probably won't up my cardio but will just add more resistance training and all that. I want the long lean legs of a runner and I just want to be tone and beautiful. haha. I've been sweating like crazy these past two days and I only expect the same today. I'm excited to see changes in my body. 

Here's week one. 

My shorts are a little tight... so it give me really apparent muffin top but, it's all I had that was clean to work out in. I feel wide and you can't really tell but under my arms, in my armpit areas there is just extra skin and fat... it makes me really uncomfortable. I love wearing tank tops but, not this summer unless I change my body now. 

Again, from a different angle. 

My arms are just flabby and not tone at all and it really grosses me out. I'm growing a belly and I just don't like seeing it in the mirror. Laying in bed next to my husband at night... I don't see what I want to see lying there next to a good looking man like my husband. haha. He deserves the best and so do I. I want my body to look a certain way and I have the power to change it so I will. 


So this is me. I don't think I'm over weight and every one thinks I'm crazy for thinking I need to lose weight but, I don't have an image disorder. I know what I'm able to achieve. I can have the body I want by eating healthy and working out. But me sitting on the couch watching the dog whisperer and eating snacks and whatever isn't helping my body. I'm not one of those naturally skinny people, I'm normal and it takes work to change my body. 

This is it. Here's to a better more healthier me. You guys will know the process. :] If one day this blog can help someone get into shape and just live a more healthier life, great! 

Whelp, until next time guys.

Peace & love,

Marissa 

Busy Week.

Ugh, it's all ready Wednesday? I really can't believe it. This week has been busy. Monday was my one year wedding anniversary with my husband... YAY! We exchanged small "paper" gifts and we got all spiffied up and went out to eat. Yesterday we replaced the battery in my car. That was just the most... interesting adventure - haha. Today I took the puppy to the vet, so it's been a long day for her - she got her shots. Then later today I'm getting my toes done with a friend for... the military ball, which is tomorrow. 

I am not ready. I woke up early today to take the puppy out and tried to get a little more rest but when I was laying back in bed after my husband tucked me in, I realized the ball was tomorrow and I was not ready. I've had the dress and shoes but I have no accessories or a hair style in mind. GAH! Why does time always slip through my fingers? haha. 

So I laid in bed on pinterest (totally had to check how that was spelt) trying to find some ideas. Then when that failed I tried youtube. Found some tips but not really a tutorial I can really use. My hair is at an awkward length and I honestly don't think people understand what I mean when I say "short hair". It's at an awkward phase and I'm really having a love-hate relationship with it. I'm growing it out so I just have to deal with it but ARGH! I just wish it would be long all ready. Any way, I woke up this morning trying different styles and I kind of just made one up with a low side bun and my bangs twisted and pinned to the side. I dunno, I guess we'll see how it turns out. 

I seriously considered making a tutorial video myself. Psh, if 12 year olds can do it, so can I right?? lol. I dunno. With me not working and not having a lot to do around the house I could totally just spend some time trying. But I don't really have the right tips and I do it all wrong I'm sure... but I'm seriously thinking about it. Probably sometime after the ball. I gave this blogging thing a try and now that I'm not doing much I find myself on it more... so maybe I'll give the world of youtube tutorials a try. I'm not looking to get famous or reach a certain amount of views, I just need something to pass time with and if I can help someone who was like me out with a makeup tip or a hair tip, that's definitely a plus. I just might try it. 

Look out world, Marissa is taking over! haha. 

Well, I better start on cleaning up and cooking something for the husband for dinner. Maybe I'll be lazy and make him have left overs. :]

Oh!! I just remembered! The Lucky One is coming out on Friday and you know my husband has to take me to see it. Um, excuse me... Zach Efron, YES PLEASE! I'll take two helpings of that man. He's so hot and I've literally been waiting for this movie for two years. I found out he was going to be in it and anything Nicholas Sparks is amazing. But I went out and bought the book a while back and read it and of course loved it. I'm super excited for this movie. It's going to be so amazing and so hot!! WOO!! 

Okay, I need to calm down before I start cleaning... haha. 

Until next time.

Peace & love, 

Marissa <3

It's a Girl!!

I feel like so much has happened since I've last posted and that's so sad. Hopefully I can do a quick catch up. I am in Colorado with the hubbs and I love it. It's so nice having our own place and just being able to live our lives together. I've been trying to get a good grasp on this housewife thing. I think I manage but, I honestly don't understand how everything gets so dirty again the next day haha (and we don't even have kids yet!!). I feel like all I do is cook and clean and the rest of the day is wasted away on the couch. I really do hate that feeling. I've been applying to jobs like a mad woman! I'm not really picky and I'm not trying to hustle a lot of hours like I was in California, I just need something to get me out of the house every now and then. I'm sure the right job is out there, I'm just waiting for the door to open.
Enough about that, I have big news!! Dustin and I agreed that we would be having no children while he is in the military which is actually a bummer to a lot of people I know but we always talked about how a puppy could hold us off. Well, I actually get here (to Colorado) and Dustin just wasn't as thrilled. He wants one but he knows it's a lot of work and all that but I kept bugging, more than I normally would. So, a week went by and we went to the humane society to see if we'd find a puppy we'd want to adopt. We didn't find many "puppies" there but plenty of older doggies. I kind of wanted a puppy of our very own that I raised from the beginning and all that. 
So we went to the puppy store. Just to look! We go in and there were so many cute puppies there, from wall to wall of tails wagging and cute little scuffles between the puppies... then I saw her. I saw this little white puppy and she was an American Eskimo (people say it's the puppy Bolt was based off of, and I believe it) and she was adorable. Dustin asked a worker if we could play with it in the room and she got it all set up and...

It was love at first sight. <3

(yes, never mind me not wearing a drop of makeup)

Dustin asked if I wanted her and I didn't want to say yes. She was expensive and I always said I wouldn't get a puppy from a puppy store but... he said if I wanted her I could have her. So, she came home with us that day. And our family of two became three that day. She's a hassle. I found out quick that I suck at training dogs. I've been watching the dog whisperer like crazy but, I know I'm not the pack leader I'm suppose to be haha. She's a good puppy. She's learning pretty quick and all that, the only thing that I can literally rip my hair out about is potty training. She is just not getting it. She'll go outside and all that but she never tells us when she has to go. If I'm not watching her she'll pee somewhere. She bites and chews on everything, and I literally mean EVERYthing. I'll sit with her outside enjoying the warm weather on our porch and she'll start licking the concrete and then start to bite it... and you can hear the grinding of the teeth on the cement. It's awful. I mean, that's what I signed up for when I said I wanted a puppy but sometimes I really feel like God is just trying my patience. 

But we're a family of three now and I just love it. Dustin plays with her a lot and we really do love her. She does the cutest things and you can't be mad at her for long. She's a sweetheart and it's not her fault I don't know how to train her properly all the time. I need the dog whisperer to come in and do some people training haha. When Dustin and I talk about her and why she's doing things she shouldn't be and how we should fix it I always say, "well, Ceaser says we should..." and bless his heart he always listens. 

She's growing too. I have to take her to the vet quite often for check ups and shots and in one week exactly she gained a pound haha. I really don't know how fast dogs grow and all that and I don't know how long to expect her to stay the size she is but a pound a week seems much. I have to wait two weeks till her next check up so we'll see how much she weighs then. 

Oh! I didn't mention what we named her. I wanted Simba but Dustin was set that that was a boy's name so, we both mutually agreed on... Cali. <3 And she'll always be my little cali girl. 
One more big thing that happened since I've been in Colorado... my dad had surgery. He had a really bad fall a couple weeks before I left and I wanted him to go to the doctors then but he said he was fine. But last weekend he started to complain of really bad headaches and decided to get checked out. They did a CAT scan and found some leakage in his head. The very next day he had brain surgery. He was scared and I felt so bad that I couldn't be there with him and the family. The church and all our friends though have been amazing to him. He had so many visits from loved ones he was humbled by all the love and prayers every day he was in the hospital. I am happy to say that my dad got to go home on Monday and he was in the best mood. He said he feels like God has given him a second chance. I don't know why this happened but I don't doubt that every step of the way was leaded and planned out long ago by God Himself and it's always according to His plan. 

Well, that's all of it. I'm going to take a shower and clean up the house and make my husband dinner. He has a special request seeing how he has a PT test tomorrow. So I'm going to be making something that I've never made before so wish me luck. :]

Peace & love guys,

Marissa

The New Life.

Well, I made it! Today is my second day living in Colorado. The husband is at work today so it's just me and my boxes for now. We got in early in the morning yesterday and just had a relaxing kind of day. He was kind enough to not make me cook last night so we ate out. It was hard leaving the family to become a grown up. When we left my house for the last time my brother and my mom stood there waving us off and singing "don na na na, don na na na. Hey hey hey... goodbye" I laughed at first (old family song) but as we pulled out of the driveway I burst into tears. I was leaving my family, for good. It would never be just the four of us again. It's a memory I will never forget and honestly, it's the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I'm getting all emotional about it now just writing about it. I said bye to my dad later that night and the next day I had to say good bye to my mother in law. It was hard and sad but I tried to keep my composure for the last two good byes. I think pulling out of the driveway hit me hardest cuz it was the clear picture of what was happening. It was what I was leaving and what was going to be left... the three of them. So, I took it pretty hard and everyone was thinking I was having second thoughts but that wasn't it at all. I'm just going to miss them and I need to have my time to be sad about it.
But since I've gotten to Colorado with the husband, things couldn't be better. I love it out here. The air is clean, it's not too cold yet but the town just has so much going on. Dustin has been everything I could ever want and need during this time and it's a big transition. It hasn't quite sunk in yet all the way but with time and once I'm fully settled I know we'll hit our stride. I've just been unpacking and applying for jobs- a grueling process that I really don't enjoy at all. 
Tonight the husband and I are going out to dinner, at a Texas Roadhouse. I love Texas Roadhouse! And it is something we don't have in California. But after our dinner Dustin is also taking me to see the Hunger Games at midnight and I couldn't be more excited!! I read the books and loved them! I got really into all of them and finished them as quick as I could. At the end, looking back I thought the main character, the hero Katniss, was really annoying. Her thoughts were just dumb and her thought process was never on the track they needed to be. I still loved the books, they were a fun read (reminded me a lot of the pendragon series and the territory of Quillian, so it wasn't exactly unique) and I enjoyed it. But the movie!! It's going to be amazing!! Stanley Tucci is in it (who I just love) along with Woodey Harrison, and Thor's little brother!! lol. It's just going to be amazing! And I won't have to hear Katniss's thoughts, so it's going to be that much more amazing!
Anyway, just wanted to give you all an update. Things are going great! I'm homesick (missing my friends and family) but I'm sure it won't be as strong with time. My father in law said, two weeks. In two weeks I will finally fully consider this home. Well, I miss you all! I'm missing that California sun but I'll be back home soon enough. <3


Peace & love, 
Marissa <3

It's Official

It is official. I'm leaving. My husband flies in tomorrow morning, we have a really busy week while he's home, and then it's off to Colorado to start the next chapter of my life. It's the biggest change I will have to adjust to. I can't really think about being away from my family and my close friends because it just makes me cry...
I don't know what it's going to be like waking up and not have my brother jump on my bed or me go jump on his. I'll wake up and have to make breakfast as oppose to waking up in the morning to my mom yelling at me to come down cuz breakfast is ready. I'll prolly will never hear my dad's slippers slide against the wood floors just to open my bedroom door and quietly try to wake me again. It's going to be a different life completely and it kind of just snuck up on me. I know I've been waiting for the day for the past year but, now that it's here it's a little too surreal. 
I've been getting really close with my sister-in-law, April and my mother-in-law, Susie and it's going to be just as difficult saying good bye to them as well. Susie has just been so nice to me and has just treated me like one of the family. She got me into riding horses and I'm pretty bummed that I finally get into it and now I won't have a horse to ride. April is just like having a little sister. I've never had a sister, it was always just me and my brother. And don't get me wrong, I love my brother to peices but it's a little different having a sister and I kind of get to see what that's like with April.
Then with my friends, Cynthia and me have been hanging out a lot more. It's been great, just trying to gain a lot of time that we lost throughout the years. Lucinda and I are kind of awkward right now but, it's going to be weird to not have her around either. It's just going to be so rough. It'll just be my husband and me. I'm excited to start a new life and for us to walk through this door with my husband but I'm not going to lie, it's a little scary. I'm going to have to find a new church, new friends, somehow become better at making phonecalls to the family...

Anyway, the move is totally inaffect and I've been packing the last few days. I finished last night with the help of a sister the Lord provided for me, Cynthia. She was just the biggest help. I'm sure the three days of packing could have been done in one... but that's no fun. haha. It's way more fun to laugh and talk and play Draw Something back to back so the other can't see... and last night we blew bubbles with our gum. We found a left over bubblegum candycane from Christmas and it wasn't expired so Cyndy suggested we "crack that bad boy open". lol. So we did and we didn't just taste it we split it and it was like the amount of 10 packs of gum each. lol. My mouth was so full. It hurt my checks to chew that much gum. Then we started blowing bubbles and it was hilariously fun. :]

I got a good sized one after a few attempts. It was so funny. Everytime I hangout with this woman my cheeks end up hurting from all the smiles and laughter.
I couldn't make the bubble any bigger cuz I ran out of air in my lungs. lol 

Cyndy had a few attempts and it took a little while but she did it like I knew she would. She got a massive one. I wish you could have been there to hear the laughter and the sounds we were making trying to keep the bubbles inflated. I love this girl and last night was a night I will remember forever. I'm going to miss her so much.

Well, I'm sitting in my room with not much in it. I've got my bed, an empty desk, an empty bookshelf, an empty media stand, an empty closet and that's it. lol It looks a little eerie in here. Cyndy walked away last night and I just kept looking around... I dunno, it looks a little weird in here. It's a little scary seeing the room so empty and impersonal.

 

Well, I've got to stop thinking about leaving and start thinking about arriving and starting. :] I'm going to Colorado to start my life together with my very best friend and the love of my life. I really am excited and I know that those I am leaving behind are just wishing the best for me. And we are hopefully planning on coming back to Cali in a couple short years, Lord willing. So here's to my new life and the start of something amazing.

The husband comes in tomorrow and we're going to have a great week. It's been almost a whole year since he's been home so we're going to have a lot of visiting to do. OMGoodness, my brother turns 21 this weekend too... Big things are happening this week. It's going to be crazy! :]

Till next time, from Colorado I'm sure. ;]

Peace & love,

Marissa