TONE IT UP #BIKINISERIES2014

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You guys I've been a slob since the beginning of the year. Yes, I was studying for my state board exam and had very little time. But instead of getting back on track after the exam (its been over  a month!) I continued all my bad habits. I've been trying to run and workout more, but have had a lack of motivation. Therefore I haven't been very consistent at all. In addition, I've been eating so. much. junk. food. I'm pretty disgusted with myself. I'm sure I gained a few pounds, but I don't own a scale so I can't confirm that. Still, I want to be more healthy. I've been feeling gross lately.

So I decided to participate in the Tone It Up Bikini Series 2014! I'm sure you have heard of Tone It Up and trainers Karena And Katrina. I tried participating in the bikini series last year, and just got too side tracked with work. This year, I am committed. I've been complaining about how I want a nice toned body and I'm tired of being a weakling. I'm at a time in my life where I am ready to make the change. This will finally be the summer of the beach babe :) I encourage anyone to join me in this journey.

Of course I have already made some changes this week that I am hoping to keep up for the remainder of the series. So far these changes have been really simple-- No fast food, less mocha frapps from starbucks, and protein bars 2x a day. I've also been drinking a lot more water and making sure that I go to bed earlier. My body already feels so much better. Today, I had so much energy at work and was giggling like a child because I felt so bubbly. I felt so good.

I'm excited for the transformation and the journey

WEEKEND RECAP

I'm so exhausted after driving so much this past week. I went from Riverside to Ventura for easter weekend and then a roundtrip between Riverside and San Diego twice this past week.  I spent the weekend in San Diego again as I had a job interview on Friday. I think the interview went well, and I will be praying on it but will not get my hopes up as I know that many people are interviewing for the same position. I spent the rest of my day Friday at Claire de Lune Coffee Lounge, where I enjoyed some yummy coffee and worked on job apps. I am happy to say that even though my career field is limited there seems to be a handful of positions opening up in the SD recently. This is making me incredibly optismistic. The more opportunities the better my chances.

In the evening I headed downtown with a friend to Encore Champagne Bar to celebrate me passing my board exam. Let me just tell you how excited I am that there is a champagne bar in San Diego. Yes, I like wine but I am definitely more of a champagne girl. Its a new place that a friend suggested I try. When we arrived we sat at the bar since we didn't make reservations. Its definitely swanky and a little pricey, but we didn't spend too much money because we happened to go during happy hour. Its definitely somewhere I would go to celebrate a special occasion, but not a place I would frequent on the regular. If I end up getting a new job, then I will most likely end up celebrating there again. The rest of the evening was crazy! We were planning on going home after dinner but ended up doing a bar crawl. We ended up going to a total of 5 places before calling it a night. Surprisingly, I didn't have a hangover the next day even though my bank account was hurting. But you only pass your state board exam once, right?

I know I sound like a broken record, but I am looking forward to the day that I get to move back to San Diego. I'm itching for my old lifestyle and being surrounded by friends, fun, and beauty. I know it all is dependent on my getting a job which is why applying for jobs is my main focus and will continue to be my main focus until I get an actual job offer.

ACCOMPLISHED

Well ladies (and gentlemen), I passed my state board exam and I'm officially a REGISTERED Environmental Health Specialist in the state of California!!! Words cannot express how happy and relieved I feel. But let me just start off by saying that hard work does pay off. After completing hundreds of training hours, getting 5-6 hours of sleep a night, and then spending all weekend in the library studying I finally completed my biggest goal of the year! There were definitely moments of exhaustion and stress (I have the acne scars to show for it). There were even moments where I felt like giving up, especially since I was going through some other things in my life at the same time. Thank God for amazing friends and family for supporting me and encouraging me in many of ways. I truly could not have done it without them.  I'm so excited to receive my registration card and get a nice pay raise. But that is not the only good news I received this week.....

I got not one, but TWO job interviews this week for positions in San Diego! Going to keep my fingers crossed in hopes that I can land a job. The sooner I can move back to San Diego, the happier this girl will be. I've learned so much since I've been here, and have received a lot of great work experience. But San Diego feels like home to me and I miss everything little thing about it. Please pray for me and send me good vibes this week.

THURSDAY MOTIVATION

(Via weheartit)

Happy Thursday!

I've been overwhelmed with happiness and good news that I hope to share soon.

In the mean time this upcoming weekend (and next week) are going to be crazy busy for me.

I probably won't have any large/detailed posts until the 25th, but I will still be making posts.

Now go make this Thursday your best, you are only a few hours away from Friday ;)

WEEKEND RECAP

Happy Monday! This past weekend I went down to SD and had a blast. I feel so lonely up in Riverside, so every time I see friends in San Diego I am the happiest little lady in the world. I feel like I really packed in as much fun as possible, along with some relaxation in between. Friday I finally got my hair done and then in the evening headed to the padres game with some friends. The funny thing is, I don't even like baseball that much, or understand all the rules for that matter. But there is something about going to baseball games that is so fun. I guess its truly the ambience.  And baseball just always make me think of summer, and summer always makes me happy. I'm looking forward to attending many more games this summer. After the game we intended on staying out, but only made it to Analog Bar before having to return home.....fail!

This weekend I also made yummy chicken enchiladas, black beans, and spanish rice for friends. Its such a process, but its the one meal I actually love making. I'm happy that everyone enjoyed it. I also did some shopping and got a highlighter and beauty blender for myself at sephora. I am still relatively new to make-up and just started wearing foundation about six months ago. I have to give this highlighting and contouring thing a go, but I know it's going to take some practice. I will definitely be providing a review on the beauty blender and highlighter once I get some time to try it out.

Sunday I had brunch with some girlfriends of mine at West Coast Tavern in North Park. I've been there before at night for the bar, and also a NYE dinner one year. But I've never been there for brunch. Let me start off by saying, I had no idea what I was missing out on! It was kind of funny because the whole weekend I had been drooling over this brownie pancake recipe I came across on Pinterest. Well, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that West Coast Tavern serves Red Velvet Pancakes! Talk about heaven in your mouth, it was so delicious I cannot even explain it. I will be back to try some again. I paired that with a peach bellini (I'm a champs kinda girl) and it was just an awesome awesome brunch.  I was so busy eating and enjoying life that I didn't take any pictures. The next time I brunch at WCT I will definitely take pictures to capture all the goodness.

And now its the beginning of another week. Here are somethings I am looking forward to this week:

& Working overtime this weekend ($$$)
& Going to Ventura this weekend to visit my college roomie
& Easter
& Possibly finding out my exam results (if not this week, then definitely next week!)

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

(Mt. Rubidoux in Riverside)

It was no secret that prior to a few weeks ago, my stress level was at an all time high. On top of working 10 hour days, having new job responsibilities, and having to complete training hours, I also had to study for the biggest exam of my life. I was getting about 5 hours of sleep and surviving by drinking multiple cups of coffee throughout the day. Since I barely had time to sleep, I obviously didn't have time to do much of what I wanted. That included running and hiking. I haven't always been a runner, but over the last two years or so I've started running on a consistent basis and got in the best shape of my life. Running truly is some amazing (cheap) therapy. Now that I am a free woman again and I actually have the time and energy to work-out, I am dedicating myself to running again. It has already been a tough and painful (i.e. shin splints) journey with starting up again. But I am really excited to see how much I can accomplish.

I've been looking into races during the summer. I'd love to complete both a 10k and a half marathon before the end of summer 2014, and I'd actually like to set some personal records for myself. In the past I have trained for races, but it was always about completing the races rather than finishing under a certain time. I will definitely be updating more about my running journey as I start getting in shape again and training for races this summer.

TRAVEL: MEXICO CITY 2014

(Me atop Chapultepec Castle)

Its been a week since I've been back from Mexico City, and I am already missing it so very much. What a huge and absolutely beautiful city. I'm not going to lie, I had gotten a few puzzled looks when I told people I was heading to Mexico City (instead of Cabo, Ensenada, Cancun, Mazatlan, etc). But I was kind of over doing the typical beach-side vacation, and it's been a while since I've conquered a big city and experienced some culture.  In addition, Mexico city has gotten a pretty bad rep in the past for it being pretty dangerous. In all fairness, people say bad things about Tijuana too! I've been to TJ multiple times and have been just fine. Its the media people! But use your common sense as you would in the USA and don't go into any sketchy areas. During our stay we felt completely safe (there are police officers everywhere! You literally can't take 20 steps without seeing an officer on the street), and everyone was friendly and helpful. If I could describe DF (Distrito Federal) it would be the city of parks, monuments, bookstores, and bikes.  A city after my own heart of course!

We were there for only 3 days and tried to cram in so much. I think you need at least 5 days to really do Mexico city. Its just so vast and there is so much to do. I literally felt like we were running (oh yea, because they drive crazy and I had to dodge some cars to save my life) from neighborhood to neighborhood. I wish I could re-cap on a day to day basis, but we did so much that I honestly don't remember everything that we did. I was exhausted the day we returned back to the USA. But here are some pictures from the trip and some of the beautiful sights we saw.

 Palacio De Bella Artes

Metropolitana Catedral

Colonia Condesa

Angel de la reforma

Overall it was an excellent trip, and it fueled me to do two things: 1. Travel more 2. Learn more spanish. I'm a decent spanish speaker, but I definitely do not speak enough to take on DF alone. Thank God my travel partner speaks fluent spanish. This city is not the same as the tourist beach areas where everyone speaks english. I'm always been a lover of all things Spanish, and now I want to look into learning more spanish and taking some classes in the summer. I have to speak some spanish for my job, but it's been about 7 years since I've taken a formal class. It would be really cool to be as close to fluent as possible, especially since I live in southern california and all. Of course I want to travel more, who doesn't? I can finally pick up on traveling some more now that I have more time and money. One thing is for sure; I will definitely visit Mexico City again, and next time I will be speaking all spanish!

FRESH START

(via weheartit)

There is truly nothing like a fresh start. This blog is my fresh start. As I forge deeper and deeper into my 20s, I find myself being tested and pulled in every direction.

I am a planner. For as long as I could remember I have enjoyed making lists and setting goals. I was the type of kid that if you asked me what I wanted to do with my life, I gave you an impressive answer. I like having a dream, breaking down how I am going to reach it, and enjoying each and every accomplishment along the way. But now at the age of 24, I find that I am no longer a planner like I used to be. Making plans just doesn't happen anymore, because lets be honest...it doesn't work. In your 20s, life really happens. You can plan for something all you want, and life throws a curveball at you. Because prior to entering your 20s everything is kind of mapped out for you and your life, and you have a pretty general idea of what you will be doing the following year. But post-college your life is literally the twilight zone. What will happen? No one knows.

It took me a while to get used to this concept, but now I try to embrace it. I went from graduating college, being incredibly broke, living in a city I loved, staying busy, surrounded by friends and activities, in a loving relationship to moving to a city I hated, making good money, having a great job title, not having any friends nearby, and being dumped by the person I thought I was going to marry. Although I am very very blessed to have such an amazing job as a recent graduate in this economy, there are so many things I miss from my old life. I am constantly wishing to have my old life back.

So this is my journey. For once in my life I feel completely alone, and have no idea where I will end up or what I will be doing. I am no longer planning, just doing and seeing what will happen as a result of my actions. Sometimes I wish I could just fast forward through this time and to the point when I am in a steady job, living in a big city surrounded by great friends, in a loving relationship, where things are comfortable and I am happy. But those times will come. This is my journey now, and I am learning to embrace each and every part of it.