im engaged!

yes!

Chris proposed christmas morning! it couldn't have been more perfect!

i'm so ecstatic! i think i may never stop smiling!

check out the highlights and the new site

http://chrisanddianne.blogspot.com/

list time....

i think a list could be necessary...why?
because i have not blogged in forever and i think yall miss a good random list.
so how about a list of random things that have changed since last time i blogged.

i like it...
what has happened since October 7.

#1 oh well i turned 24, except for some reason i still think im 23. i dont know why but i keep saying im 23 when i have to refer to my age.

#2 i realized i had mysteriously given my right arm a serious work out.. then i realized a post birthday money shopping spree left my right arm SORE from carrying shopping bags....hmm very embarrassing.

#3 Chris and I hit the 1 yr mark. crazy fun and true! love him!

#4 oh i moved a while back. right north of santa rosa. i have two amazing roommates. laura and her brother travis. at first i was real scared to live with a boy but turns out they can do really nice things like out of no-where wash your car or take out the trash. they're great!

#5 i made 3 dishes of strawberry pretzel salad for some new lovely British friends in CA and it was not fully appreciated. in fact as punishment i had to eat veg-e-mite. if you dont know what it is. i dare you to try it.

#6 i got bored with my hair and got decided highlights would fix the boredom. at first freaked out and thought i turned into a blonde. now i'm in love with them.

#7 at Thanksgiving i realized how much i miss eating casseroles on a daily basis.

#8 chocolate dipped altoids may be the death of me. i can eat an entire tin in one sitting. i know they dont sound amazing..but they are!

#9 sitting on santa's lap can definitley increases your chances of getting everything you want for christmas...at any age.

#10 oh one day i found a panera about 2 hrs away and thought i struck gold. i hung out there for about 3 hrs (the wi-fi!) and then bought 13 bagels and 2 tubs of cream cheese. i ate the last one today!

does this look familiar to anyone???

isn't this place beautiful?!?! i just love BIG SUR! We took a weekend camping trip to the coast a couple weekends ago! And the best part! Chris just bought a jeep wrangler, so we got to ride down HWY 1 with in the jeep with the top down.

Julia Phiefier state park!

the crew! i like to call this spot paradise!

the little stick looking figure on top to the rock is chris!
i just knew i was going to loose chris to the pacific.
he survived!

something possessed the boys to grow mustaches
and wear trucker hats all weekend.
not their best look!

best surprise ever!

my reaction...contant sceaming. acutally it was this high pitched sream i did not know my vocal cords would allow to come out of my mouth. thats all i could seem to do (and squeeze billie so tight i'm schocked neither of us passed out) when I walked into my den and Billie was nonchallantly sitting on my couch in California. yes i was so estastic, thrilled to pieces, overjoyed that permanent bliss is still written all over my face! And what could be even better...Travis was flying in the next day! And its not like I ever forgot but these 2 are without a doubt one of the best and funniest couples in the entire world. it was too perfect getting to spend a Labor Day weekend with Billie and TravisChris and Mike threw an amazing house warming party with an asian twist. lets just say billie and I can now add making sushi to our resume.
the tour of northern cali began with the trip to the gigantic redwoods.
travis was very excited to see that lovely body of water behind the boys head...the Pacific Ocean...this was his first time enjoying the beautiful hwy 1.
billie always has been shy around new people. especially mike. poor travis. he didnt know what hit him.before i knew it. travis, mike and billie are froliking through the vinyards (travis's dream) and billie has shoved the grapes in her purse as a souvenier. i was very proud! there has got to be great potential for banana republic catalog cover in this pic or at least on of the pics that comes in the frame at a bed bath and beyond.

business trips

ok so i wont really bore you with the details of my business trips b.c bastically they consist of reorgangizing and re-taging every single box of candy in a grocery store.. and as exciting as that is...i'll spare you.

normally, i dread working out of territry doing store resets, but that was until i was sent to Fairfield, CA.

why you may wonder???

Fairfield is the home of the Jelly Belly Factory! Yes the actual birthplace of the fascinating jelly belly's. and for those of you who are unaware of my fasciantion of how they can make a tiny little bean taste exactly like butter popcorn or buttered toast(new flavor); i gave speech on the process of making jelly bellys my freshman year...in college! And now i have actually seen the process with my own eyes! I loved it!

And of course i managed to eat so many that i got a tummy ache..

there is one tiny embarrassing detail. 90% of the factory was filled with children, strollers, mommies, baby backpacks..etc. so single 23 yr old girls were few and far between. this seemed to confuse some of the little ones on the tour with me. they repeatedly asked me where my children were?? I actually started to feel a little silly at that moment for being there alone. I tryed to explain to them that you can still love jelly bellys at any age. ...but for some reason they just didnt seem to understand.

and i got to endulge into another love of mine and that is CHICK FL A. I havent gotten to eat there since my trip to AL in may. I'm almost positive i walked into the store like i owned the place and orded the number one combo with so much pride. i left with a party tray of nuggets and 2 galloons of sweet tea!

life is good!

summer fun

love summer fun!


sonoma county fair. big fan. will go back. won a gold fish. flushed "jaws" the next day.



saw RENT at san fran theater. love going to plays. maybe a new hobby. if that can be one. i reccommend it!




no one should ever feel left out!
sweet sarah now has a baby boy!



no explaintation needed....


come visit me! carol, mckenzi and karlie did!!! you cant really tell but we are in the funkiest part the city..haight-ashbury...my favorite shopping district! however i am now on shopping restriction.

also. slumber parties still rock. my apartment was sort of like a hostile for a couple days. i loved it!

the 4th

so when you think wine country, sonoma county, northern califoria...

what is the first thing that comes to your mind?

my guess is vinyards, fancy wineries ,outragious living expenses, hippies, rich snobby retirees, a vacation...i dont know stuff like that..

however don't be fooled. this weekend my 4th of July experinence proved to me that there is a little redneck/white trash in everytown.

The hyped festival for the 4th of July was the Pillow Fighting Championship!

This was odd to me, but i was excited. I invisioned a ton of people running around hitting each other with their own pillows. Quite similar to pillow fights at church camp. But oh no i was wrong.

Instead this is what i find.

A variety of "colorful" people trying their best to balance on a pipe over a pit of mud while swatting at the opponent with a pillow. and watching these people get knocked into the mud was amazing! we acutally stayed until they crowned the winner. and it gets better...

there was a womens round too. dont miss the combat boots.

not a traditional 4th of July but it could become one..

dont worry we had a cookout and shot fireworks afterwards.