Sunday, February 24, 2008

if you ever want my daddy to talk your ears off, ask him about 401(k)s. that man knows that stuff like the cookie monster knows cookies.

he provided a bunch of information and some quotes for an article in this month's issue of forbes. you can check it out here.

and seriously, if you ever want to talk to him about how to save, how much to save, what funds are the best...you should give him a call. cause he loooooves talking about saving. :)

Friday, February 22, 2008

I'm a girl and by me that's only great
I am proud that my silhouette is curvy
that I walk with a sweet and girlish gait
With my hips kind of swivelly and swervey

I adore being dressed in something frilly
When my date comes to get me at my place
Out I go with my Joe or John or Billy
Like a filly who is ready for the race
(i enjoy being a girl, peggy lee)

those who know me know that i'm not a big chocolate fan. i do enjoy a chocolate treat once in a blue moon, but i usually pass up any opportunity to eat chocolate. i'm not a real girl, i know. james bought me a really yummy basket from pretzables.com for valentine's day and i have been trying to eat just one item per day so i'm not the biggest piggy ever!! you have to check out their website because my description would do these beautiful pieces of art no justice!!! oh, and their chocolate covered oreos are TO DIE FOR.

and in other sweets news, sprinkles cupcakes will be opening up a store in palo alto this summer!! no more trips to disneyland for delish cuppicakes!! woohoo!!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

But don't you change one hair for me
Not if you care for me
Stay little Valentine stay
Each day is Valentine's day (my funny valentine, frank sinatra)

happy valentine's day!!

i know i've blogged about valentine's day before, but i always think it's a good idea to look at the history behind a holiday to really understand what it is you're celebrating. i can't stand it when i hear guys say that valentine's day was created by hallmark, and that it's a lame holiday. they also say that they should be able to show their love on any day. these are usually (i said USUALLY) the same guys who don't do a thoughtful thing for their woman during the year...so i don't really understand when aaaaaall that lovin occurs.

like i said before, i think it's a good idea to look at where valentine's day originated, and make it your own thing. i'm in love with the legend that valentine was performing secret marriages, jailed, and wrote secret love letters. i go nuts for a romantic story!!

anyway, make valentine's day what you want, i just hope you're able to share it with the one you love.

xoxoxo!! <3

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.
We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot,
Drink up me 'earties, yo ho.

i've just had a wonderful time down at disneyland earlier this week with james!! i'm really happy that the company ski trip now includes airline tickets down to la, a ticket to disneyland, park open from 7pm-1am for employees only, some free meals, and a hotel room!! i can't even begin to imagine all the work that it took to organize this, but it was a blast!!

we decided to drive down, so we could enjoy sprinkles cupcakes on the way back....muhahahahaha!! :) driving down, james actually had to swerve a few times to avoid tumbleweeds, which made me crack up quite a bit. i think i've seen them before, but they were ALL over 5 on the way down. once we got there, we checked in, and headed over to downtown disney for some dinner at the espn zone. if you're ever in downtown disney and hungry, DO NOT eat here. the food is overpriced (which i expected), but it's totally nasty and bland. and, they charge more for drinks here than at bars in the city. totally lame. i'm not even sure of the whole point of downtown disney, actually. lots of random stores like illuminations, sephora, and some anne geddes shop. it's like a small mall, but there's no exciting shopping. maybe i'm spoiled by malls in the bay area.

anyway, james' hotel roommate, and tons of other people didn't end up going on this trip, which really surprised me. it sounded like almost everyone's roommate ended up not coming, which meant everyone had their own room to themselves. which sounds like an incredible waste of money and time for those who organized the trip. i know there were SEVERAL hotels for everyone to stay at, and if the organizers could have saved half of their resources....but i digress.

february is really the month to go to disneyland if you hate crowds!! i don't think we ever waited more than 15 minutes on a ride!! the weather was beautiful when we were there, and it was only chilly during the evening.

since there were so few people at the park, we ended up getting a table for 8 at the restaurant at the blue bayou (inside of the pirates of the caribbean). we actually walked in and got a table in about 2 minutes. which i hear you usually need to book your reservation a day or two in advance. hahahahahah!! it's sort of over-priced, but the service is wonderful, and it's really a romantic setting when you're inside. my meal was excellent, and it was a nice place to relax and not have screaming kiddies run around.

from 7pm-1am, disneyland and california adventure were only closed for common folk!! actually, since the park was so empty, it was just families that left, and employees took over!! there really was no wait for any of the rides, and you could basically stay in the same seat once the ride was over for most of them. dinner was free, and there were tons of stations set up for free ice cream, snacks, fruit, etc. also, we got to see a really cool fireworks show after dinner was served!!

disneyland had all the free food, and california adventure had the giant party/booze. there were djs, a band, TONS OF BOOZE with long lines, and a run on vodka near the end. we ended up doing tons of rides at disneyland, and then coming over for the party. there were gaming sections, pool tables, but not nearly enough dancing. i guess that's what happens when 70% of the company are dudes, and most are self-proclaimed super geeks.

it was a total blast, and i loved how you felt like a kid, and that the park was open just for you. AND that this isn't just the one company party...but one of several. totally spoiled!!

on the way back, we stopped off at sprinkles for some cuppicakes!!! my only sadness was that there's a cool chocolate cupcake with marshmellow frosting coming out in a few days, and i totally missed it!! other than that, it was a great trip, and a fun mini-vacation!!