don't you just love rainy days

everything just completely went my way today! from start to finish it was an awesome day.
first of all, as i already said, i woke up to the pitter patter of rain on the roof and to my delight the rain continued all through the day. it wasn't just light sprinkles either...it was an adequate amount to fill even my expectations and i love rain!
as i stopped at a stop sign, on my way to school, i looked over to my right and see a little girl, maybe about 5 or 6 in full rain attire. i mean rain boots, jacket, hat, umbrella...the whole shebang (it was pretty cute, i must say). she was just happily singing and dancing in the rain, in her front yard, as her mother stood in the doorway and watched her. it put a smile on my face to just see that. i like to watch people sometimes. not in a weird creepy way, but just in a curious way. i think it's fun to observe.
school was good today, for the most, part as well. alicia and i got all our pictures put on our tennis page in yearbook, so i must say i was happy about that...not to mention that it looks pretty good if i do say so myself.
i also managed to get myself out of a tardy today, not that i couldn't have afforded one, but it's still cool. at lunch julie and i were talking to ms. admiraal in her room and completely blocked out the bell. four minutes later i go "we need to get to class!" we steeped out of her room when the tardy bell rang and we both had our classes in hall C. so, since we were already late we didn't rush the lovely walk through the rain. (by the way i had a sub for history) i walk into history and the sub goes "are you danielle?"
"yes"
"i assume you have a good excuse for coming in late..."
"uh, well, no...i was just talking to ms. admiraal, but it wasn't about anything necessary or specific."
"oh well, good enough for me"
i was seriously shocked. i never get lucky like that and i was completely honest too. sweet!
well, sixth period arrives (study hall) and, being friday, all hope of concentration was lost. so, kristen and i spent the period trying to perfect the art of making paper snowflakes, until i had to go to a grad check that is. i hate grad checks...they are just awkward, but not the worst thing so i can't complain. i just don't really know what to think of mrs. garcia. she just says some things that are plain weird. for example: i'm wearing my tennis sweatshirt and she goes "tennis, your coach is ms. admiraal right?"
"yep"
"oh, don't you just love her"
"yeah, she's great"
"oh, me too...i hold her very dear to my heart"
umm...she's not a kitten or something...how do you respond to something like that? i didn't know what to say. it got even stranger though while we were talking about my 'future'.
"so you want to be a teacher?"
"yes" i replied
"do you know what grade you want to teach?"
"probably either elementary or high school, but not middle"
"oh, i don't blame you, but you need to keep one thing in mind about elementary...elementary kids smell"
i had to seriously try so hard not to burst out laughing.
"oh, yes" she keeps going "i remember when i would go pick my kids up from school when they were young and had been playing on the playground. they always smelled bad...like wet dog or something. at least by high school most of you guys shower."
she has a way with connecting people to animals. it was the most random thing! so funny.
after school i swung by my aunt's house to pick up some things for the wilderness challenge trip next weekend and then after hung out with julie. we went to dinner at 4:30...yeah we're dorks, but we didn't know what else to do and we were hungry. we decided on olive garden because of their yummy bread sticks. so, at olive garden they use those beepy things. you know, the ones that buzz when your table is ready (i don't know what they're called). so we walk up to the desk thing and put our name in and party of two. as we turned around i'm just being weird and stroke julie's arm and say "for two" in a gay sounding voice. meanwhile the guy working there is trying to hand me the beepy buzzy thing. he gave us the strangest look...so funny and embarrassing. oh dear!

what a good day! and what a long post...sorry.

we'll enjoy the weekend everybody! :)

what a great way to wake up!

this morning i woke up to the sound of rain! awesome! i really hope it continues throughout the day.

hummm....nothing much to say here at the moment. i have to go to school in like an hour...ick, but at least it is friday! it's going to be a busy weekend complete with the belmont shore chritmas parade, which i have to be in again since my step dad is on city council. fun fun. haha! no, it actually isn't too bad and apparently my cousin (justin) is joining us on the float/fire truck we are ridding on, so that should be interesting...


well i have to go hurry and review for a chemistry quiz. and no, i am not procrastinating...i didn't have time last night because of the mass amount of other stuff i have due today, but i'ts all good...i'm still smiling!

have a good day everyone!

background change

hummm...i thought it was time for a change. what do you guys think?

it's very green...kinda reminds me of chirstmas! :)
yay not my blog is festive!

i was messing around with the colors, but well see if it stays...

tis the season...

i'ts attack of the giant nutcrackers! umm...tell me that a life size nutcracker holding an ax isn't scary.

:)

a few pictures from katie's first trip to disneyland

here are a couple pictures from disneyland...nothing too interesting.


katie playing the piano

haha! you all know i just had to post that! :) katie didn't like the ride too much...she was kinda scared, which is understandable.

the merry-go-round was much more her speed. she especially liked it because she remembered the merry-go-round in her favorite move...mary poppins!

sorry for my lack of update

my internet has been out of commission these last few days...so annoying! but, i'm back! :) aren't you all just so glad!

anyway, this week off has been awesome! i didn't do too much except take advantage of some much needed down time.

also, katie turned 2 today!!!! crazy! we celebrated with the family yesterday and then the four of us took her to disneyland this afternoon. i'll just put up some pictures...i'll do disneyland ones later.

sister picture, how nice. i like how katie is eating bacon...random

hiding in the balloons! :)

i got katie a little bowling set and was trying to show her how to do it, but she prefers just running into the pins to knock them down...hey, whatever works! :)

so many things to be thankful for...

awesome friends and family, freedom to believe and share my faith, a house to live in, food to eat...you know all the things that at first come to mind. as much as i am so grateful to God for those major things in my life that he has blessed me with i think it is also easy to overlook some of the more simple things that we couldn't live without. i mean, each day of life contains something to be thankful for. when i think about so many people all over the world who are just thankful to be alive each day and some of us just worry about stupid little things like getting somewhere on time or passing that test you really need an A on (not that, that isn't important...on the contrary i believe education is very important, just not as important as some other things). but, when it all comes down to it and you take the time to look back on a day and remember all the dumb things you said or did, instead why not look back and think about all the little things that happened in your day that made you smile...getting a hug from a friend or a smile from a stranger, being with people you love and love you, participating in a hobby you like, finishing off a turkey dinner with a delicious slice of pumpkin pie, or maybe just a walk outside in the cool night air where you can look around you and know that there is a God who loves you so incredibly much. that is something to be so thankful for.

thanks to each and every person in my life...i don't know what i would do without any of you. love you all!
hope your thanksgivings were good ones! :)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

sorry mr. turkey...not going to happen.

mmmm...i'm thoroughly looking forward to pie and all the other sorts of delectable thanksgiving food!

eat lots and have an awesome day! :)

its been a year already!

one year ago today i started my blog! wow how time flies. in some ways i look back and think "last thanksgiving seems so long ago". so much has changed and happened in just one year. i mean, obviously katie has changed a lot, as little kids do. but, i think i have gone through many changes in a year. i can't really explain it, but i think i just seem different than i did a year ago. i don't know...i'm just rambling. in other ways though it feels like time is going by way to fast. before i know it, it will be next thanksgiving and i don't even want to think about all the crazy stuff that will be happening then! oh well, i won't then. i'll just enjoy the "now" and worry about the future later...does that make sense? :)

hope everyone is enjoying their time off!

it's so nice to just relax...

i did get to do a lot of relaxing today, but i also had an eye doctor appointment because i'm seriously blind! actually no, i'm not, i am just slightly nearsighted. so, today i went to see what they would say i needed. apparently i'm fine except i need glasses for seeing in class and stuff, but other than that i don't need to wear them...sweet! :) i have never worn glasses or contacts and honestly i didn't want to have to wear glasses all the time. if i did have to wear them all the time i probably would have wanted contacts, but lucky for me i don't! they also dilated my eyes while i was there, which made everything fuzzy.
i also took a trip down memory lane today to toy's are us to get something for katie. i can't believe she will be 2 years old on sunday! crazy how time flys!
speaking of shopping...did i tell you all about my amazing find the other day? i went down to 2nd street to look for a birthday present for my friend, but got sidetracked. :) i had been needing a new pair of jeans. i just wanted a really comfortable pair, since my other favorite pair was looking a little worn. i walked into gap and tried on a couple different pairs and then i found some i really really liked. they fit perfectly...didn't need hemming or anything. i look at the price tag. $60.00! not horrible for jeans, but still out of my budget. i turn over the tag and see that they had been marked down to $23.00! how awesome is that! but, just wait...it gets even better. i go to buy them and look in my wallet and lo and behold i have a gap gift card for $25.00!!! my total (with tax) came to $25.97. so basically i got a pair of really comfortable jeans for 97 cents and some one's money! (i can't remember who gave me the gift card, but thanks!) i was pretty excited! :) 'cause i know you all care so much. haha!

anyway...that's all for now! :)

our adventure to santa barbara

so, now that i am fully rested again, i shall give you all a better account of yesterday. julie and i decided to go with ms. admiraal, brittany and alicia out to the CIF individuals tournament. what great supportive people julie and i are! :) well, since we were making the effort of getting up early to get to school by 5:45am (carpinteria track status right there!), we decided we had to do this thing right and go full out. check out our sweet t-shirts. mine said "let's go alicia" on the front and "go brittany on the back" and julie's was the opposite (brittany on the front, alicia on the back) in case you couldn't tell.

lovely shot of my backside...don't ya think?

yeah, we also made signs.

great picture! :)

all the rest of these....just don't ask.

uh, peace!

i think this picture accurately captures my emotion of the moment...haha! guess i didn't get the peace memo

ummm this whole picture is just awkward from top to uh, bottom...if you catch my drift. just tell me why i look like i'm going insane in all of these pictures. :)

i have no clue what brittany and julie are doing, but alicia looks like she is going to kiss me.

oh, look! a normal one and coach is in it. how cute are we? :)

so, brittany and alica both lost first round, but the girls they played were really good. but, twas a fun day! we got to enjoy a lovely morning drive along the beautiful santa barbara coast, which all of us slept through! oh well, i got to see it on the way back so it was all good!

so, now tennis season is officially over minus banquet. fun stuff! :)

no school this week!!!! ah! nine whole days off...feels so good! :)

i've been up for almost 19 hours and i'm dead!

i think i will have to inform you all on the details of my journeys today later in order to type something that makes sense. haha!
anyway i'll give you a brief overview.
i woke up at 4:30 this morning and drove to school. why you ask? to be the supportive teammate that i am...julie and i decided to go and support brittany and alicia in CIF today, which was all the way out in santa barbara! oh, dear fun times...i'll post about it tomorrow though

good night! :)

LA zoo and china town

last weekend we had a little family outing and took kaite to the LA zoo. it was quite an experience with my family. on the way home we stopped in china town for dinner hence the pictures of a random chinese restaurant and me with a strange little hat on.

however these of my sister and i, i have no explanation for other than the fact that we are crazy...
giraffes! my favorite animal we saw! they are cute! better than the komodo dragons anyway...those things are just plain creepy.
katie thoroughly enjoyed the frozen lemonade...in fact, i think that may have been her favorite part!

yay for cool hats! i forget what these things are called...oh, well. right after my mom took this picture some lady went over, put on the hat and had her husband take a picture of her...ooo i'm a trend setter now! ha ha! :)

katie sitting in a frog ride. i think the little rides of china town may have been her favorite part, second to the frozen lemonade, of course.
ya, don't ask what betsy is doing, 'cause i have no clue...at least katie and i look normal. oh, and this is one of her better pictures, so that is sayin' something...haha! just kidding. humm...it's a good thing she doesn't read my blog :)
cool chinese restaurant we ate at...i like the name "hop louie". ooo that's fun to say! :)

hope you all had wonderful days! half way through the week!

my driving adventure of the day

so, i'm on my way home from school coming down los coyotes diagonal. i'm just going along minding my own business (at the correct speed limit of 40mph) and this lady is right on my butt! oh, well, whatever. she can pass me if she wanted...i just turned on some music and ignored her. i get to bellflower and am in the left turn lane with three or four cars in front of me and this annoying tail-gating lady right behind me. the light changes to green and she immediately starts laying on the horn and shaking her fist at me. uh...i'm pretty sure i have a car like right in front of my and can't move any faster! the light just changed. i turn into the middle lane and with two other lanes to choose from she still is right behind me, again on my tail. okay, so, if i'm not moving fast enough for you, why are you still behind me?
coming up to the light at spring i brake just a little earlier than i needed to, but not hard...i wanted to see if she would change lanes and leave me alone. no such luck. she again begins honking her horn, yelling, and flipping me off. what the heck? did i do anything to her? no! i can somewhat understand her road rage if i cut her off or something, but i didn't. i didn't to anything to her at all. if she doesn't like the speed i'm driving then she can just go around me. well, i decide to ignore her again and change lanes. she changes lanes. i change lanes again and she follows still right on my butt!!! so annoying! she finally stooped following me when i turned on to anaheim (into my neighborhood)...good thing because i would not have gone home if she had persisted. what a freak!
that lady needs to go take a happy pill or something...honestly.

well, that was my big adventure of the day! :)

winter formal

in the chaos of tennis season being over i completely forgot to mention on here that i ended up going to formal. it was on friday. i was really apprehensive about going for the longest time, but i did have a blast! a big group of us met at kristen barca's house to take pictures and from there we all went to dinner on second street at the la craperie...yummy! :) after we all piled back into the cars and headed to the marriott.




here are some pictures for you! happy now, rebekah? :) no, i'm just kidding...i was planning on posting about it, but just hadn't yet.


hannah and i...aren't we just so cute? well, hannah is anyway...i look half asleep. :)

me and laney
julie and i requested dirty pop by nsync and did the dance moves to it while people stared at us like we were freaks, but we are so...

group shot with some lady's head...oh, well

me and laurahigh jumpers unite! how does it always turn out to be matt and the girls? :)

twas a fun night! i actually had more fun than i thought i would.

tis all for now!

all good things must come to an end

i'm sorry to say that the tennis team met their downfall today against Savanna, who won 8-10. we were so close...if only we had, had jane with us, but what can ya do? 8-10 is still a great score to go out on, but i'm not feeling that great. better than i was earlier though. i'm not upset over losing, just that our season is over...it has been a fun time! we have all come together and bonded really well and i was able to get to know some people better who i wouldn't have necessarily talked to before. just being part of a team and getting that opportunity has been a blessing both this season and last season too.

we still have our team banquet coming up, so that will be fun! well, i'll definitely continue playing until next season and it'll go by fast. i mean look at the bright side...i still have track to look forward to in the spring (sarcasm) :)

well, a big thanks to ms. admiraal and everyone on the team for an awesome season! you guys are great! :)

we're still going strong

much has happened since my last update. yesterday i went on my first wilderness challenge field trip to a climbing place! well, any day of missing class is good, but yesterday was absolutely a blast. i had no clue what to do at first, but jane helped me out and then all was good. the only downside was that my arms are so sore! normally i don't mind being sore...i actually kinda like it (it makes me feel like i've accomplished something, i guess) but being sore when you play tennis isn't the best thing.

which brings me to my second order of business...tennis! as many of you know, we had first round of CIF today against monte clair. well, the VCHS tennis girls pulled through on top with a win of 11-7! super excited! today was a great playing day. laney and i won our first 6-3, lost our second 4-6 against the #1'sand won our third 6-4. the second match was pretty cool though. why you ask. well, i return a serve and snap! two of my string broke. pretty sweet! we finished out the point and i turn to laney and go "uh, i have a problem...wait one second" i spotted ms. admiraal and yell "coach i need a racquet...my strings broke!" so, i ended up using ms. admiraal's racquet for the rest of the time.

well, we have 2nd round saturday, so wish us luck on that!

hope all your weeks were as good as mine!

is november weather actually here?

today we finally started getting some colder weather. to say that this will last, i don't know, but it was weird. i can't ever remember a time when i was that cold after tennis practice. track practice, many times, but tennis...it was a first. my hands were so cold i couldn't catch the ball. yes, catch the ball, not hit. we decided to try playing without rackets...umm didn't work out to well. it was pretty fun, but we all must have looked retarded. good stuff!

a good thing about this week is that it's a short one! thursday is a half day and friday no school due to parent teacher conferences! first round of CIF is also on thursday, so i'm also excited for that. but, unfortunately these next few days will be jam packed. i have a yearbook deadline on wed. and i'm not done with my page! yikes! oh, well it will all work out.

well, not much to say here.

hope everyone is well!

snoopy is the best!

sorry for my lack of posting. last week was crazy with tennis matches, me being sick and homework. but, today i finally got to just take a break and relax. i slept in till 10:00, which is a VERY rare thing for me. sleeping in for me is normally like 8:30 at latest, but i guess i needed it. i am feeling much better!

today was pretty enjoyable. i cleaned out my car and washed it; it was really dirty (just the outside). so now i have a nice shiny car! yay! something else that excited me is that it has been two weeks since i last filled up my gas tank and i still had a quarter of a tank today when i filled it up! that is pretty good gas mileage right there for driving out to school as many times as i had. awesome! i also got to spend some time with katie today. i took her to the park, where we played on all the stuff! uh, did i say we? i meant her. :) no, we had fun except i think i'm just going to wear a sign that says "i'm her sister" because of all the questioning looks i get from some mothers with their kids. but, whatever; no big deal.

oh, and november 1st has passed and we all know what that means for my family! christmas decorations (seriously i think there is a point where one can be too festive). that's right everyone today we started putting up christmas decoreations...crazy i tell ya! :)

cristina showed these to me and i had to post some...i love them! they crack me up!

this last one has to be one of my favorites. so funny!