Birthday Buddy

happy birthday, lola boo!

you have brought us such joy and endless laughter this past year. we love you and feel so grateful that you took our little family from two to three.

enjoy your birthday cannoli and thanks for being such a good sport – the hat was all my idea! guilty as charged.

 

An Offer

after months of interviews, frequent trips to the ucla campus, phone calls with the recruiter and what felt like eons waiting on bated breath…i got the job.

i will officially join their external affairs department as the associate director of development – physical sciences division on august 23.

i can’t wait!

Still Grateful

i started this blog exactly 365 days ago and i've been making daily entries every day since.

wow.

it's certainly been a labor of love and one that i will continue (in a less consistent form) in the coming year. for now, why not continue my tradition of listing all i'm thankful for on my birthday...

breakfast in bed
lola's puppy breath
coffee
massages
mucho
hot tubs
new pjs
a glass of wine with my mama
hugs
health
lunch with my two favorite ladies - sis and mom
guac
great genes
so many cards, calls, texts and messages
smooches
a sexy date
5:00 am text from my pop
sunshine
a beating heart, running legs, eyes that see, fully belly, strong will and enduring passion

Mom = BFF

i ran into an old friend today and i was terribly disappointed to learn that since i saw her last, her mom had passed away unexpectedly. i could feel her heart breaking as we spoke and next thing i knew, tears were running down my face as well.

my one positive take away from this occasion? that it's is so refreshing to learn that the women i know love their moms as much as i do. considering what a thankless job it is to be a "mom" it's nice to see how many women refer to their moms as their "best friends."

Memories in the Making Judging

we have a fabulous art program called "memories in the making." all of the pieces are created by individuals with dementia or alzheimer's and many of them are incredibly beautiful. they include stories about what the artist was thinking or feeling as they painted and many end up being memories they thought they had lost until they saw them appear suddenly on their paper.

every year we pour through hundreds of submissions to select the handful that will be part of that year's collection. the staff gets two days to judge the artwork and often times they're my favorite days of the year.

anything for a reminder of why we do what we do and who we're serving when we come to work each day.

Well, Hello There!

you know those moments in movies where two friends are sitting in a restaurant on their lunch break and in walks random friend from high school and surprises them out of the blue?

well, that happened to me today.

a guy i haven't seen in years suddenly appeared at our table. i was stuck in that awkward position of wondering whether to get up and hug him or not - i went with the hug - followed by the 30 second brief on the past 10 years of our lives. just when it got really uncomfortable he announced that he was late and should be getting back to work. we exchanged business cards and made a poor attempt at promising to grab lunch one of these days and he was off.

while not an altogether pleasant experience it was a nice reminder of the fact that i'm officially that 30-something character in movies. believe it or not, sometimes i actually forget and try really hard to relate to the 25-year-old recent graduate instead.

I Love LA

every season we attend at least one cubs/dodgers game and tonight was our first of the summer. it was such a nice evening –

first, my dodgers won.

second, i absolutely love 5:00 games.

third,there’s no place in la like dodger stadium

and finally, i can’t imagine a better way to spend a sunday than sitting between my parents and mike with a dodger dog in one hand and a bud light in the other.

It’s a Boy!

add another little dude to the football team!

my girlfriend just found out the sex of their baby and sure enough, it’s a boy! we’ve been adding quite a few little men to our lives lately and i just can’t get enough of them.

A Dash of Passion Goes a Long Way

it’s only when i meet someone who is so incredibly passionate about their work that i realize how many people aren’t. for most, a job is just that…a job. a way to pay the bills, a place they have to go everyday, an annoyance more than anything. that’s why it’s so exciting to sit across from someone who takes pride in their work and feels honored to be a part of something bigger than themselves.

now, that’s a person that i want to work with and a place i want to call home.

Roll the Dice

i really enjoy the anticipation of going into a meeting with a sponsor or donor i’ve never met and not knowing what to expect. will they be chatty, quiet, rude, passionate, dull, sleazy or likeable? today, i got lucky…i got a chatty, passionate and likeable person greeting me and what i thought would be a half hour visit turned into nearly two.

i love making those connections!

Women Power!

it’s startling to realize how far women have come in just 50 short years. back in the day we weren’t just second class citizens, we fell lower on the food chain than children. and it’s absolutely ridiculous but so incredible to see women in action today.

we own companies, run for political office, raise families and lead by example. all while getting dinner on the table every night as well. pretty cool if you ask me!

Bye Bye Termites

the termite guy paid us a visit today. there’s nothing like watching someone inject poison into the ground below your home to realize that you really do rule the roost.

typically, i’m not a big fan of killing living creatures but little buggies that look like maggots and feast on my home – they gotta go!

Crunch Crunch

lola got in big trouble today for eating something she shouldn't have...like expensive prescription eyeglasses. yet, when she looked up at me with her big, puppy dog eyes and flashed her crooked underbite, i couldn't help but forgive her.

does this mean i'm getting ready for parenthood? that is what it's all about, right? forgiving the munchkins for being, well...kids?

Happy Birthday, America

i feel so grateful to call you home!

Dashes and Pinches

relationships are constantly evolving and i love those days when you have a breakthrough. tonight we realized that by adding a dash of this and removing a pinch of that together, we make the most delightful recipe.

damn, that palm reader was right on...mike really is my soul mate!

Mad Men

we're not big tv watchers but we love discovering a new show. after saying goodbye to lost a few months back, we had a gaping hole in our lineup just waiting to be filled. i'd heard great things about "mad men" and although mike was skeptical, we gave it a whirl.

two episodes in and we're hooked!

I (dis) Like you So Much!

people continue to surprise me and i suppose they always will.

i had the pleasure of spending some personal time with a co-worker who typically annoys the bejeezus out of me and low and behold, i really like her. take away anything to do with our actual careers and she's quite pleasant to be around. now, the trick is remembering these feelings when i see her in the office tomorrow.

hmm...that'll be interesting.