Birthday Weekend

its friday! yay! also, its exactly one month since my birthday, so i decided to share photos from my birthday weekend trip. last month i went to Disneyland for my birthday weekend. it was so much fun! i took my nephew with me, which was 10 times better. my favorite people in the world are my nieces and nephew! i was bummed that my oldest niece could not come with but was still stoked that my nephew was able to go. as for my youngest niece, well shes only one so i couldnt bring her. haha. overall the trip was a blast! my nephew and i had such a great time.. the car ride and all! the only downfall was me driving the entire time. i was completely exhausted. haha. next time i will at least have another adult with me so we can switch off.

we left on a friday, around 5pm or so. we decided to make a trip to San Luis Obispo where my cousin lives and crash there for the night. ive never been to SLO and i completely fell in love with it! my cousin took us to a BBQ joint and it was really delicious. im still craving that corn bread pie thingy. i really dont remember what it was called exactly. but it was good! haha. My cousin then took my nephew and i on a tour at the auto shop he works at.

one of the first things we did when we arrived was get a Dole Whip. well... actually the first thing i did. haha. we went to go ride Indiana Jones, which was actually closed at the time :( the one ride my nephew and i could not stop talking about on our way there.. was closed. not to mention that the last time my nephew was at Disneyland, he was too short to ride it. it was a huge bummer. anyways, back to the Dole Whip. Walking back to Tomorrowland, i seen that there was no line to get a Dole Whip.. so i took it as a sign and got my very first float! man, it was amazing. Another thing that i HAD to do, was get a photo with Captain America. SUCCEEDED! Hes not the real Cap but good enough!

for lunch, i told my nephew he could choose anything on the park map. he chose the Village Haus in Fantasyland. Great choice! My favorite Disney character is Pinocchio (and Roger Rabbit. hehe) so i was super excited about eating there. The food was delicious. my nephew got pizza and i got a burger. neither one of us complained, we were satisfied! We got to ride a bunch of rides but not much of the big ones. i think for me, i was looking forward mostly to Indiana and i was just so bummed about it. We rode a lot of the rides in Fantasyland (which i never really get to do when i go with my friends), Haunted Mansion, Buzz Lightyear and i think we rode Star Tours twice. haha. Cant remember much else but we both had a great time!

for dinner we shared a turkey leg while we watched the Fireworks. it was grand!! not only was it such an awesome birthday present to myself, i loved seeing my nephews face and his excitement throughout the entire day! so worth it! i must also mention that Its A Small World finally opened. Every time i went to Disneyland the ride was always closed. i didnt realized how much i loved the ride. i was so happy and stunned by the designs in the ride. even my 9 year old nephew (who is such a boy) loved the ride. haha. we couldnt stop talking about it.

the next morning we made our way back home. but of course, we had to stop at SLO one last time. We had lunch this time with my cousin at Splash Cafe (i kinda prefer the one in Pismo better, shhhh) but it was still good! haha. he gave us a little tour around downtown and i finally got to see the gum wall. i thought id be more excited about it when i saw it but i was more disgusted. haha. i didnt even walk through it. >.< haha. i also finally got my Peets coffee (vanilla cappuccino with a bit of whip cream and sprinkle of cinnamon - its such a dream!). the entire trip i was only able to get Starbucks (its every where and its much harder to find a Peets) but when youre like me and have been drinking only Peets coffee for over a year straight, Starbucks doesnt even compare =/ i couldnt even finish my drink. i hate being picky. haha. but its coffee!

So, that was my birthday trip! i want to go back so bad but im not sure when that will be.
hoping 24/hr weekend! but we'll see! I was feeling a bit down about my birthday (im really dreading getting older) but it turned out to be one of the best! After that weekend, i had a birthday dinner two days after. i couldnt believe how many of my friends showed up! 30+! im still shocked about it. haha. our table was completely full at the Old Spaghetti Factory :)
After dinner, a few of us went out for drinks while we watched the SF Giants play. they won, by the way!
We stayed until it was midnight (my actual birthday) and they sang and we drank!
it was the best!!!

oh and by the way, if you were curious, im 27.
*tear*


--
Rosa De Los Reyes

first of october

Happy first of October! The day that which rent falls under and oh, the day that my mother was born. Happy birthday to my mom. Anyone who (really) knows me and my life, knows that my mom and I have never really got along too well. Till now we are just not as close as other mother-daughter relationships. Though, it has progressed. and even though it isn't the relationship id hope for (for so long), its definitely better than not having a relationship with her at all. So today I wished her a happy birthday and I thanked God for her.

October is going to be an exciting month. For me at least :) in just two more days The Vampire Diaries season 5 will be premiering along with the spin-off The Originals. I cant even tell you how excited I am. Im about to scream in my little office cubicle right now, haha. Also, I will be attending Danny Elfman's concert on October 29th! its a little bit ways away, but still! haha. Not to mention, its the month of Halloween! which means Hocus Pocus on the telly, decorating my room & cubicle, DIY-ing my costume and taking my nieces and nephew trick-or-treating (such a plus for me!).

Speaking of costume, what are you all going to be for Halloween? My first choice is Shaun from Shaun of the Dead but im not entirely sure everyone in my office will know who I am haha. So that's still up in the air. I been also thinking of DIY-ing a black bird costume. I found the idea in Martha Stewarts new Halloween magazine. She had done one of a greenish-bluish parrot and I thought it would be real cool to do the same but an all black bird. It seems fun to do for when I go trick-or-treating with the kids. Another possibility is to be Olive Oyl (again). haha. But id rather DIY it instead of buying the actual costume. Not sure where the costume I bought years ago went =/!

have a lovely Tuesday!

friday fun facts

here are some fun facts about me. happy Friday :)

(incase you wanted to know: orange cardigan/scalloped ring/bicycle tank top - all from Forever 21)

- Daria was one of my favorites to draw when i was little! I would wait for it to come on just so I can draw all the characters.

- Besides teaching myself how to draw, im a self taught painter (which is why I don't have any professional techniques haha). I loved drawing so much that I decided to try watercolor, then I wanted to explore the world of painting. I didn't start painting till I was 15 or 16 years old.

- my parents didn't really care too much about what I watched when I was little, so I got to watch Beavis and Butthead a lot :)

- my childhood crush? it wasn't Jonathan Taylor Thomas or Devon Sawa. It was Kevin Zegers & Elijah Wood (I still dig them both).

- I watched Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in theaters FIVE times. #nerdtothefullest

- The Incredibles is my favorite Pixar film. I'll always have the memory of my dad taking my brother and i to watch it in theaters and my dad had this embarrassing smoker cough and then he eventually fell asleep. haha.

- I went to the Vampire Diaries Convention in San Francisco last year. best day ever. I got to see Paul Wesley (Stefan), Ian Somerhalder (Damon) & Steven McQueen (Jeremy) on the panel. My friend and I also got a photo op with Steven! :)

-  Jay Leno waved at me. On my last trip to Hollywood, my friends and I decided to drive around Beverly Hills and look at all the fancy houses. When we were stopped at a stop sign, a man in an old school car was on the other side - stopped as well. My friend was driving and I was in the passengers seat. as we pass by she says "hey look its Jay Leno, wave." i thought she was joking and it was just a man that looked like him. But i waved anyway. when i was waving he gave a nod, smiled and waved back.. and our faces were in shock! we screamed! and all i was thinking at that moment was *omg, it really was him and he waved back*. haha.

- i spend a lot of time at Peets Coffee and Tea. Im there 7 days a week on my lunch break. Im obsessed with their Ice Vanilla Latte & sugar cookies.

- I loved Posh Spice. When i was younger i sent her a letter and attached a small plush toy to the envelope (i glued the tag to it). Later my mom handed me back the plush toy (it obviously wasn't aloud to travel with the letter) and i remember feeling sad that it never got sent to her. I wonder if she ever got my letter though, probably not. haha.

- i am the aunt to this adorable boy. my nephew Jonovan turns 9 today! happy birthday to him :)

Saturday Birthdays

Saturday was my nieces 1st Birthday! I cant believe it! Shes officially one years old. ugh! haha. I had a fun/exhausting Saturday. Not only was it her birthday but it was also her baptism. On top of that, it was also my CnC Pastors birthday as well! Pretty much a full day but totally fun!

For my CnC Pastors birthday, his wife planned a surprise dinner for him at Benihanas! I hadent been there in forever. haha. It was a lot of fun and he was definitely surprised!

His dinner had a "mustache" theme. haha. we had to draw mustaches on our fingers and take pictures! my best friend also made a mustache cake, that I forgot to take a picture of. *sad faced*. haha.
Hope you all had a great weekend! :)

Elayna Rose

my baby niece, Elayna, turns 1 tomorrow so it seems rather appropriate to dedicate this post to her. Shes having a mermaid themed party and I have been working pretty hard getting some things done the past couple days (fyi: im exhausted) but ill do anything for this baby girl! Im amazed on how much shes grown. Have you ever stopped and really analyzed a baby? haha, that sounds a little weird but my niece has been learning how to walk since last week (shes pretty much walking now). I would watch her get up on her own (with the help of a couch) and just walk while holding on. It amazes me how we don't even "make" them walk or "tell" them to walk, they just do it! I love that shes so eager to walk.. like shes made a goal for herself to accomplish it. haha. Shes also all over the place.. I mean, she wants to touch and eat everything so I guess that explains why shes to eager to always get up. haha. Its a bitter-sweet feeling to see her grow. I want her to stay a baby but at the same time I want to watch her grow and to be able to take her places and have her remember them. haha. Like Disneyland!

Happy 13th Birthday to my niece

 My niece turned 13 today! oh my word. I cant believe it, shes so grown! Time flies so quick and it really makes you think to savor all the time you have with your loved ones. For her birthday dinner she decided to go to Spaghetti Factory. I swear the only time i go to the Old Spaghetti Factory is for my nieces or nephews birthday. haha. Seems to be the popular choice for them. I think my favorite part about that restaurant is the ice cream at the end (insert smiley face with heart eyes emoji)! I always get Spumoni! mmmmm. We had a great dinner! i gave her a card with a little coupon saying "this coupon entitles you to: a trip to yogurtland and a movie (your choice)" haha she liked it :) hopefully i will get to take her soon :)

my official birthday

 my official birthday was the 16th and i finally turned 26. Its a little weird, but itll probably feel like nothing after a couple days haha. I got to work and found a note on my desk from my cousin (yeah, we work at the same company).

 I tried to get my "free" birthday starbucks from my Gold Card but apparently i had already used it! haha. uh well!

 I got a ton of wonderful text messages, including this from one of my friends! Kinda like the best gift ever. haha. anyone who knows me, knows how much i love Captain America AND Chris Evans. hehe.

 After work, i went straight home. My mom had made spaghetti and my sister got me one of my favorite cakes - guava! :)

SOOOOOOO GOOOOOD!

a celebration for others..

I share my birthday with Peter Billingsley (who is famous for being Ralph from a Christmas Story), Charlie Chaplin and the beautiful Selena Perez!

Not only will i be celebrating me today, but them as well! Happy Birthday to them! :)

I'll send you a postcard from Paradise Falls..

 My UP/Disneybound birthday party was a success! I apologize for some of the low quality pics.. i actually BARELY had my phone on me the whole day yesterday, so SOME photos are from other people. As you can see above and my previous post', i was Carl Fredricksen from UP. Everyone loved my outfit BUT i loved everyone else' outfits more! Im so happy that basically everyone dressed up for my party.. they all look adorable!

 The photo is missing a BUNCH of my friends, since they left a bit early. But here is the group that came and joined me in my birthday celebration.
Left to Right: Cruella, Pooh Bear (whos hidden, haha), Ariel, Belle, Ariel (again, shes hidden), Prince Eric, Tarzan, Jane, Donald Duck, Carl Fredricksen, Perdy, Boo, Dory, Jesse, Smee, Snow White, Esmeralda & Aladdin with Mickey Ears haha.

 My amazing UP cake made by my best friend, Felicia. It was a chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling. SO GOOD!

I didnt get to take a bunch of pictures of my decor, but heres one of them that i took. I used a jar to hold my straws in and taped on "Paradise Falls", so fitting for an UP party :)

My beautiful baby niece as Cinderella! :)

one of my gifts was this Marzipan from Sweden! It was pretty good!

Ariel and Jesse (well, her "evil twin" haha)

Belle and Pooh Bear.

Rapunzel and Cruella with the props i made! 

Well as i type this i am enjoying my last night of being 25. Tomorrow is my official birthday and i am a bit sad and happy at the same time. Not really that happy about turning 26, only because there are certain things i wanted to accomplished a lot by this age. But i am happy, because there are other things i have accomplished i guess. haha. its just bowl of emotions! 

Tomorrow ill be working (i shouldve gotten the day off) and for dinner my mom is making Spaghetti. Should be a relaxing night!