NEW YORK....

"these streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you, hear it for NEW YORK!"
-alicia keys-

yup...just got back a few days ago and i wanna go back! i never thought i would have enjoyed myself in the big apple as much as i did this weekend. i'm not gonna lie...i'm not that big of a city girl. i like my country side and big open spaces. crowded cities annoy me. BUT...its always been a dream of mine to go to new york city...mostly because of everything that i've seen on tv and in movies. everything just looks so exciting!!! so i've always told myself that i will go there someday....and it has finally happened!!!

so thursday night two of my long time girlfriends (who happen to both be married with kids...props to their husbands for letting them go) and i started our journey. since we all have flight benefits we had always talked about going on a girls trip for some time now...so we were excited that it actually worked out this time.

here are some of the highlights of our quick trip:

*getting help from all the friendly people of NYC who could tell we weren't from there from the "i'm totally lost" look on our face"
*getting yelled at by the subway conductor for walking too slow....lol*
*walking in the rain...which really wasn't that bad because it was surprisingly warm*
*meeting lia (our hostess with the mostess) and baby nohea (the cutest lil chubba lubba ever)*
*feeling artsy and learning some history at the met*
*chicken and rice*
*getting yelled at by the chicken and rice guy for taking too long to order....even when we were the ONLY ones there*
*yummy red velvet cupcake from magnolia bakery*
*rockefeller center*
*manhattan temple*
*times square*
*the red stairs....so amazing*
*john's pizza...where the bruschetta was waaaaaaay good*
*MAMMA MIA*
*cruisin it back to brooklyn to take lia back to her hotel*
*talking story with the cab driver back to OUR hotel*
*being informed that the pepsi cola sign along the manhattan bridge...is not a warehouse...just a sign...lol (inside joke)*
*finally getting some much needed rest*
*waking up late, but still making time to tame the bush...lol*
*catching the PATH to hoboken, nj which was surprisingly fast and easy*
*carlo's bake shop...where i discovered the lobster tail pastry doesn't have ANY lobster in it*
*walking around the outside of the world trade center memorial*
*battery park*
*staten island ferry*
*statue of liberty*
*talking story for days on the way back to times square, only to discover we passed it by 7 stops*
*eating dinner at bubba gumps at times square where the waiters "yelled" happy birthday for savani*
*enjoying the stop and go cab ride to the airport*
*walking 5 miles to our gate...ok maybe not that long but dang it was far*
*making it back to slc safe and sound*

the met

rockefeller center

times square and broadway

chicken and rice and carlo's bake shop pastries

home of the cake boss

now that i'm home...i can't wait to go back! there's so much more i wanna do....so maybe in april???

i'm so ready....

....TO GET OUT OF UTAH!!!!!!

i have one more hour of work left. still gotta pack. and then i'm off to see...
and I.CAN'T.WAIT.

bridal shower extravaganza!!!!

so in a previous post I mentioned how two of my besties will be getting hitched in a few months. well as is tradition, i had the pleasure of hosting a shower for the bride. one problem...she lives in cali, and i live in utah. solution....fly her here!!!

bunzie boarding her flight in long beach. next stop salt lake city!

the theme of this bridal shower extravaganza was based off of the movie/book "eat, pray, love." it just so happens to be one of the brides favorite movies, and she always talked about how she wanted to go on a trip similar to that of the author's. so what better way than to create our own little version of it for her?! first stop...ITALY...via utah. lol. yup...we jump started the tri-state event with an italian based shower complete with italian cuisine...spaghetti with meatballs....hahahaha...(hey...i had to feed a lot of people so this was the easiest way to go). along with salad and garlic bread (thanks to my big sis), and a chocolate fountain for dessert! the decor was simple with red and white checkered table cloths and a simple glass vase with dried pasta for the centerpieces.

some of the decor...soooooo simple

but i think the highlight of the night...aside from the bride to be...were the games! i had asked one of my fellow music boxers, raija, to plan a few games for the occasion. raija was ana's actual roommate in the music box, and they have a special connection, so she went ALL out with her games!!! i mean...ALL.OUT! with a full on intro for both too! it was so much fun! the best part was one of the games she planned was the traditional toilet paper wedding dress competition...but raija added a little flava to it. she straight busted out the project runway wedding dress competition!!! it was ridiculous!!! everyone had their own little kits to see who could come up with the best wedding dress...best wedding accessories (accessible on bluefly.com..and yes she really said that)...and best honeymoon outfit! i wish i had videotaped her introduction because she was just on point with the terminology and everything! it was great! i never had so much fun making a toilet paper dress! lol

our project runway contestants...lol

not only did she outdo herself with the games, but with the prizes as well! one of my faves was the homemade biscotti. not only was it delicious...but the packaging was the cutest ever!

raija's prizes for the winners. soooo cute

afterwards...it was my turn to buss out a few more games. for those of you who know me...i like to plan ahead...but there are times when i tend to do everything at the very last minute. this was one of those occasions. i've thrown many a bridal shower before, and have attended many as well...but i couldn't, for the life of me remember any of the games we played! so i called my trusty bff maria...and she refreshed my memory and MORE with these little treasures.

the first game i had everyone play involved a golf club and toilet paper. lets call it toilet paper on a stick. i had 4 teams of 2 partner up, and one person had to stand on one end of the room with the golf club between their legs (handle sticking out) while the other person waited on the other side with 4 rolls of toilet paper. that person had to walk across the room with a roll of toilet paper between their legs to their partner, and transfer the roll onto the golf club without using their hands. it was HILARIOUS!!! pictured below are our winners in action...eileen and crystal. man...eileen was booking it back and forth with those toilet paper rolls!

eileen working it with that toilet paper! hahaha

next we played a hot dog game. i had strung a thread through the ends of hot dogs and had everyone tie it around their waist so the hot dogs would hang between their legs. hahahaha. then i put a plate of tacks on the ground and everyone had one minute to get as many tacks as they could on the hot dog without using their hands. they could still adjust the string...and that was the hint to winning the game. the methods used to get those tacks were crazy funny!!! there were tacks flying everywhere!!! hahahaha. in the end...crystal came out victorious...AGAIN! she was the smart one who used the string as opposed to using her body. lol. i wish i got more pictures of everyone trying...but here's one of some of the contestants before the game started.

eileen and lindsay getting ready to play

the last game was a fun one. i had two gift cards wrapped up in tissue paper and a lot of tape. each group was given a dice/die?? and every person took turns rolling. who ever rolled a one could start unwrapping the card. the catch was everyone else could keep rolling until somebody else rolled a one. once they did, they could take the card away and have a chance at unwrapping it. whoever unwrapped the card was the winner. at first it seemed a little slow, but as each layer of tape came off, the volume got louder and louder. with people yelling "ONE" every time a one was rolled. lol. in the end, the two players who joined the game at the last minute came out victorious...hahaha.

molly and shelby...last to join in and end up winning

the shower was a huge success. what was supposed to be a small and simple event, turned into an evening full of good people, good food, and good good fun! congratulations ana!!! march is just around the corner!!!

some of the music box ladies with honorary musicboxer malia...lol

time to git'er done 2012!

i know we're already 2 weeks into it....but i'm a little excited for this new year! BIG things will be happening...and i mean HUGE! aside from many random trips currently in the planning stage...we have a few celebrations coming up. first one will be next month when my little twinkies turn ONE!!!! yup its finally that time of the year! it seems like it was yesterday when we would be camping out at the hospital after these two little monkeys arrived. and now they're crawling everywhere, getting into everything, and just being loved by everyone. what's even more exciting is that we're having a big party to celebrate and everyone's coming up for it!!! RAYJAH status!!!! i can't wait.

then...the following month will be the wedding of the year! hahaha. two of my besties are getting married.....to each other!!! hahaha. yup...i'll have to share this lovely love story in a later post, but i'm so excited for this union. since both the bride and groom are close friends of mine...(practically family), my whole family here in utah will be flying/driving out to california for this blessed event! since i'm in the wedding line, i've been getting into the "i'm in a wedding line so i need to get skinny" mode. i started adjusting my diet (kind of) so that i eat less, and i try to work out more. and i'm proud to say i lost about 12 lbs in about a month. the holidays kinda got me sidetracked, but i've been going to the gym at least 2-3 times a week...and i'm hoping that helps.

after the wedding i get a few months break (hopefully i can squeeze an international trip in april), and then its graduation season...where my oldest nephew will be graduating!!! omg i feel so old just writing that! with his graduation at the end of the month, it just brings us that much closer to his graduation party the following month...which will hopefully be in hawai`i if all goes as planned. if the party doesn't go through...then we're taking a family trip on a cruise!!!!

*phew* just writing all this stuff down is making me tired. and that's only HALF the year!!! later this year my 2 nephews are getting baptized...and then the biggest event of all....I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!!


























SIKE!!! hahahahahahahahahaha!!!!! but the year is still young...so you never know. happy 2012 ya'll!!!

slacker...

ok...i have been a total slacker when it comes to blogging. but it has just been a CRAZY CRAZY holiday season. well...kind of but not really. lol. lets just say i've been finding a whole lotta new things to occupy my time. here are some of my latest addictions/time wasters:

ipad

santa came early this year with a brand spankin' new ipad!!! i've been wanting one for a while to make my trips home that much more enjoyable. or ANY trip for that matter. so i've been downloading new apps...playing different games and just exploring the many features of my new toy! i LOVE it!!!

las vegas

i started watching this show from the first season (for FREE thanks to tv links), and it has been monopolizing my time..especially within the past few weeks. it helps to make time go by a lot quicker while i'm working overnight (its been SUPER slow lately..i LOVE it!).

pinterest

pinterest. this is probably the root of all my other "distractions." after trying to avoid it for quite some time, i randomly perused the site one day and that's when i got hooked! ugh...i would spend hours just viewing random pages and looking at different DIY projects. they make it all look so easy! u know its bad when you're browsing the site dead tired, but then you see something you want to try out, so you would jump out of bed just to make it! ugh.

sewing

since pinterest opened me up to a whole new world of craftiness, i started to test out my sewing skills. i took a beginners sewing class a few years ago, but never got to finish...i can't remember why. so with the easy to follow tutorials on pinterest i thought i'd take a shot at sewing some christmas gifts. here are some of the finished products.

rasta bags i made for my niece and her cousins

notebook and colored pencil holder for my other nieces

my family seemed to be impressed with my new found hobby that they got me my very own sewing machine for christmas!!! the basement will be my new "craft room" so as soon as i get a big enough table for my sewing station...its ON!!!

crocheting

another hobby picked up via pinterest. and this has yielded the most finished products. i don't know why..but i just can't seem to stop! it comes in handy when i'm working overnight because it keeps my hands busy between calls. and it keeps me awake too! so that helps. here are some of my latest finished projects.

my poor niece and nephew. they're my models for all the new crochet patterns i see. they have like 3 beanies already. hahaha. i've had a few requests, so i'm trying to finish those up so i can start sewing already! i haven't even opened up my new machine yet.

family

this year our family spent the holidays together here in utah. since my oldest brother back home got hired with delta, his kids were super excited to have their very first white christmas...and my brother was just excited to be able to spend the holidays with the rest of us. poor guy always seems to be the one missing out. so one by one they all started trickling in. first my mom and sister...then my niece and nephew...and then my brother and his other daughter. his wife who's expecting originally couldn't fly...but as soon as she got clearance she came up after christmas to spend a week with us too.


road trip

a few months ago my cousin had called to let me know that she and her family would be sealed for all time and eternity. since she only lives down in st. george i knew we HAD to be there. this is my ride or die chick...we been through so much together in our youth (we'll save that for another blog). and to see her become the beautiful woman, wife and mother that she is...the feeling is beyond description. since mahea was here (and she has no flight benefits) we decided to drive down for the festivities. one of my friends tagged along as well since she just got out of school. when we got to her house it was like we picked up where we left off. it was so good catching up with her and some other old childhood friends who were there. luv my hau'ula roots.

us with the suliafu's

holiday festivities

having the family here for the holidays was probably the highlight of the season. having to WORK on said holidays...PRETTY.MUCH.SUCKED!!! yup...i had to work christmas eve, christmas day, new year's eve AND new year's day! our family always does a big christmas eve dinner every year, and we usually have everybody open their gifts at midnight. well, this year, since my sister and i both had to work that night the kids were lucky enough to open their gifts at 9pm! hahaha. (everyone always asks..."what about santa?"...ummm our kids pretty much knew he was fake by the time they were 3...so sorry bout it santa). since we moved to utah, we started a new family tradition of going tubing at soldier hollow on christmas day. but since christmas day fell on a sunday, we went on monday instead. every year we go...we always have at least one casualty. this year...we had 4. lol. but the trophy goes to aaron who flew off his tube (head first) and jumped back on in time to enjoy the last 40 ft. hahaha!

at soldier hollow. luv this place...especially luv getting pulled up the hill. hahaha

aaron and his battlescar

so...as you can see...with everything going on...when do i have time to blog?