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.

what makes your day?!?!

It's the little, small special personal things that can turn just any average routine day into a day with a magnificent highlight worth sharing.

Past, present and potential highlights
#1 the first fresh homegrown perfectly ripe peach of the year
#2 multiple green lights in a row
#3 listening to someone elses IPOD for a day
#4 pressing snooze more than once
#5 getting a shout out in someone elses blog
#6 a new snapple...diet lime green tea!
#7 realizing you finally perfected the round brush
#8 a lady bug landing your hand while driving down the road with your window down
#9 fresh flowers
#10 a long distance phone call (ok most of mine are..but you know what i mean)
#11 air conditioning
#12 an unexpected America's Next Top Model marathon
#13 laughing with a stranger
#14 purchasing the new issue of In Style
#15 skinny jeans...but not on me! simply seeing other girls wear them successfully. it amazes me.
#16 the sonic marque
#19 fro yo
#20 a billboard with "I pooted" on it!
#21 finding a random spot on the road to steal wi-fi

so yeah. i love the little things in life! do you?!?!?!
if not i really think you should!

AHHH!!

ok so we all have those random things that just REALLY creep us out.

like for some it's.. lets say clowns (which really aren't that scary yet I know some of you refuse to go to the circus for fear of an encounter.) But it's cool, because others out there are extremely scared of lizards, Sugar Ray, balloons, the dark, touching the door knob in public restrooms, the man with knobby knees in texas chainsaw massacre..

i get it...we all have those certain things.

but for me personally and most of you know.. i have a fear of foods in mass quantities. mainly condiments or things mixed mixed together in large pots..eww gross just imagining it freaks me out even now... and the smell..ahh!

i know it sounds silly but it really creeps me out (i think it all began the day i busted a bottle of ketchup) and today my fear escaladed...

i'm working right..minding my own business simply trying to pull a report for one of my grocery stores. well the next thing i know someone pointed me in the direction of the store manager and then out of nowhere I find myself surrounded by countless dead animals hanging from the ceiling.. i didn't think i was going to be able to control myself...

yeah i'm in the butcher room. raw meat EVERYWHERE!!...this is meat that I eat! and it was dangling from the ceiling. i even had to walk through a little bit of blood on the floor. i thought i was going to see my breakfast come up...

i have a hard enough time watching my deli turkey being shaved off from the hunk of meat at the grocery store.

today was a little traumatic...

i think the moral of the story is... stay away from the crazy fears..because facing it not worth it!

possibly a piece of heaven

BEST WEEK EVER

i just hate that it has to be over, but oh my gosh was it so much fun! Thought yall might like a couple extra photos to relive the glorious week. it was perfect! Fishing with the fam, yummy home cooked meals, setting foot in every place i lived in Auburn, the 5 of us in the same state..in the same spot at the same time. wathcing Chris meet people from every past phase of my life, hanna and ryan get hitched at the picture perfect outside farm wedding, dance partys 3 nights in a row..and of course Chick-fli-a, Panera bagels, and Melllow Mushroom pizza.

short summary. but basically it was fantastic! It was so GREAT to see everyone! I miss those beautiful faces!

Come visit as soon as possilbe. Open invitation!

It's finally time

we will reunite very very soon!!

i mean look at us we just belong together!!

And our Hanna is getting MARRIED!!!

let's make the week a long one!

and wait there's more

guess who you get to meet?!?!?!

there's only one problem....

i'm so excited i can't really sleep....

sing karoke...check

so on the life list, i get to put a check mark next to SING KAROKE

and not once but twice for that matter

we rocked the house with Who's Bed have Your Boots Been Under and Hit Me With Your Best Shot. if you cant tell, we had a good time..and the crowd loved us. i will be back to Rita's!

the mcmuffin vs. the cinnamon crunch bagel

VS.






somedays i wonder...

will we become those old people that ritually meet at McDonald's every morning and throughly enjoy a McMuffin and a cup of coffee.

Initally, I felt sorry for these people (like dont you have something better to do) but then i noticed they just hang out all morning long and appear extremely content and happy.

I now think this is a beautiful picture...however I'm not a big fan of McDonald's.

Maybe as our genertaion gets gray we will just migrate to the Panera's or Sonoma Valley Bagels of the world and spend endless hours every morning there instead!

Yes I like that!

do you know "The Turtles"?

ok so the evening went like this....

the guys were cooking a delicious Southern home cooked meal for the girls. pork chops, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, and green beans. It took me back to dinner in Alabama right...good friends, good food, good fun. what more could you ask for right?!?!

Then we hear a knock on the door and what seemed like a normal evening became bizarre, hystericanl and maybe even monumental?? well maybe monumental isn't the word.

Well then as we finishing up our meal and about to put in a movie...we hear a knock and the door.. it was our sweet neighbor. we automatically thought our music was too loud and she was going to politely ask us to turn it down a notch.. but instead she proceeds to tell us that she has a friend in town who wants to play the guitar for us. Chris politely says sure we would love to hear his stuff, however we are all secretly hoping he will just play one song and peace out, but what musician actually does that.

Well I'm sitting there listening and this man who is rambling about all sorts of stories about amps bursting, loosing picks, etc. I knew we were going to be stuck in the situation for a LONG time.

Then he proceeds to tell us that he was a member of "The Turtles," which sadly meant nothing to me, but then started to play the song "Happy Together" and I was like oh yeah I know that song.

Then he tells us that he wrote and oddly enough I still am not fascinated...but basically just wanted to burst out into the laughter the entire night at the amusement of this old man jammin (and he was into it) in Chris's apartment. But apparently this man is some what of a big deal...

a lil piece of my heart

so for the most part i like to keep my posts lighthearted, silly, random, everyday type stuff...not to deep or thought provoking. no real reason it's just my style.

but lately

I been having these little moments..in other words the sappy sentimental dianne keeps coming out. we all know her...but she just doesnt normally come out in the the blog.

but i feel it's only fair to let my readers in on these little moments.

but i just want to say that
change is good and it is what i needed. i'm not saying everyone needs to move across the country but some do.
the Lord continues to make it very clear to me that this is where I am supposed to be.
it can be a hard thing to grasp. but very comforting.
i miss many things from the past and i hate not being part of many things in the present.
but certain situations or a brief moment in time give me peace in knowing that the Lord brought me to California for multiple reasons.
i have been so blessed by trusting Him in daring to take this adventure.
however i'm not all that positive i fully realized exactly what I was doing in taking this step, but that's probably a good thing.

this month I have lived here for 6 months...crazy i know!

ok thats enough. but i want people to know that outstide the gum selling, trips to the city, and odd obbessions, that life is good and more importantly God is good!

also, clear your calendars. I will be coming to the sweet south from May 5 - May 14! i hope to get to spend some quality time with everyone this visit!

no way are we old

so somedays I feel like a grown-up...

you know..i own furniture..i have a job...i sometimes clean on Saturdays.. strange events like that make me feel all grown up...which some days I like and other days its like..OH MY GOSH I'm getting old

UNTIL.....the random spontaneous adventures re-enter my life.. then I can proudly look say "I still got it"...and maybe even better...being a grown up doesn't exaclty mean that all that fun random stuff disappears...thank GOD!

the point...it freakin snowed in California this weak...i'm not gonna lie..i was pissed...i'm thinking where is beautiful sunny California I'm dying to pride myself in..but oh no we got snow..

so chris, teneele (my austrailian friend who's never seen snow and had made it her life long dream to find snow) and I hoped in the car at 11 PM on thursday after a fantastic epidsode of the OC. and drove north until we hit a surprising beautiful winterwonderland in CALIFORNIA.

Turned out to be a pretty amazing late night adventure in the freezing cold snow!!!

and praise the Lord Teneele has now made a snow ball.

Guilt Free Dessert

yes everyone knows that YOGURT is life's guilt free dessert. quite possibly why i am such a huge fan and of course the delicious yummy taste (maybe i should go into the yogurt business over the gum business?!?!) I am constantly keeping my eyes open for TCBY replacements.

Let's just say I have succeeded.

I have always had the dream of becoming a regular somewhere...where you walk in and everyone knows your name...how your dog is and where you do your dry cleaning... that sense of love as you enter the doors. what a beautiful feeling.

Well i have found quite possible the most adorable, friendly and coolest yogurt shop in Santa Rosa where I will definitely be a regular face.

It is a mom and pop shop with so many flavors that you are overwhelmed. I knew it was love at first sight when they offered a “toffee nut" flavored yogurt (for those who don’t know a toffee nut latte is my drink at starbucks!) I was overjoyed right..but it got even better as i began to befriend the owners... turns out they are dedicating a wall in the store to a "Hall of Fame", so naturally i have made it my mission to make the hall of fame....

what do you do to make it on the "Hall of Fame?"

Buy one of their super cool t-shirts and take pictures in other states wearing the t-shirt...and then you get to post your picture on the wall of YOGURT FARMS!!! How much fun is that?!?!

the first lucky state was Illinois!!

Making Faces

Another new obession...Make-up!! It really is amazing the difference make-up can do to a girl. I have been trying to convince someone..anyone to take makeup classes with me so i can know which colors look best for my skin...how to have smokey eyes...when does colored eyeshadow work and when does it not. etc.. etc..

However make-up classes seem to actually be for those who want to do it professionally...not exaclty what I had in mind..so instead...Chris introduced me to the book "Making Faces" by Kevyn Aucoin. I am a huge fan...maybe this will include me in Rachels bookclub... It has a step by step approach to achieve any look you choose. So now it takes me EVEN LONGER to get ready..but it's so much fun!

this is me imitating the face in the book....the look was titled "Model"
the crazy part is i look surprising like the picture, but i feel real silly.

martha & cecil

ok..so much has happened since I last blogged...so let's recap

#1 Marhta and Cecil made it to Cali. What a joy it was to have the folks come out and visit!! Lets justs say that my aprartment was vacuumed, cloroxed, and tightied more in one week than it has EVER been. parents are amazing. they got to tour wine country, the beautiful coast, San Francisco, and most importantly had lots of quality time with their daughter!! Gosh I love my parents. And they finally got to meet Chris! We all had so much fun!

What's a trip to wine coutry without drinking some wine....people live by reds....but no shame in loving the white...right mom!
This is my mom eating the largested plate of nachos she has ever ordered. I wish you could have seen her face as the waitor placed the mound of chips and cheese in front of her! I think she may have calucutated the number of calories in each bite, we were very proud to watch her indulge into the yummy feast!San Francisco is never a let down. Eating dungeness crabs on the Warf was definitely a highlight of the week. not mention the sourdough bread bowl filled with clam chowder...can you tell we like to eat!

I know I pride myself in being a fantastic tourist...but Teneele..my new friend from Austraila is going to give me some competitoin. She came with us to the city! It was a blast. Do the silver men look familiar to anyone?!??!

current discoveries

i think its time for a list

#1 ok so..how come no one has introduced me to Dashboard Confessional.. They are awesome!!! I know they have been around forever but oh my gosh...i cannot get enough of Screaming Infidelities, The Brilliant Dance, and many more. Who has been holding out on me.

"The Places You Have Come..." is a great album

#2 Does anyone care what their sign is?? Because people LOVE their sign here. One day we asked a girl to tell us a little bit about herself...the first thing she was.. "I'm a cancer" It took me a second to realize that she didn't actually have cancer but that her sign was cancer. I thought a little odd until I read mine. I used to snicker and do still think it is pretty funny. but read yours..mine strangely describes me....hmm...interesting.

#3 I'm like 99% positive I saw my first famous rock band as I was leaving a convenient store in Healdsburg, CA on Monday, November January 27
..i think someone as famous of Green Day. But since my pop culture knowledge sucks...i cannot place the faces to save my life. However if you see a star sighting in the next PEOPLE magazine of a rock band in northern California...I was like 5 feet from them.. description...4 guys rockstar clothes and spikey hair..one with a flavor saver and a round face. one really skinny with black spikey hair and cool jeans.....

#4 Roshambo: the actual title for the game Rock, Paper, Scissor....who knew?? However it's also the name of a really cool winery out here and we joined. I'm part of a wine club!

#5 I just purchased the highlight of my life! Season One of the OC! A Seth Cohen Marathon here I come! I'm afraid I may be attached to my couch for a while.

#6 i think every girl could secretly wish they were a Charlie's Angel...i know i do!

dinnertime.com

ok so you've probably ask yourself quite frequently, "What exactly does Dianne eat for dinner out there in California?" I know you've racked your brain wondering what my diet consists. And since you are so concerned I have decided to provide you with a list of meals I will be cooking and consuming over the next month in my home.

Red Snapper Vera Cruz
Thai Peanut Chicken with Coconut Sauce
Chicken Cacciatore
Savory Garlic Steak
Moroccan Chicken
Citrus Glazed Pork

ok.. so really the thought probably has never crossed your mind. In fact, there is a good chance you could care less what I eat and it’s cool because I can't say I think about what you eat either (unless its El Ray, Chick-fl-a or a cinnamon crunch bagel with hazelnut cream cheese from Panera)

But the point is: dinnertime.com

Quite possibly the coolest solution to have a delicious, fresh home cooked meal every night without having come up with it and cook it. And it's so much fun. You get to go to this place where they have separate stations set up to prepare each meal with all the ingredients right in front of you. You make the yummy meal, then put it in Ziploc or aluminum, then freeze it until you want to eat it. The other night Chris and I made all these meals in 1 hour and it only cost $130 for 12 meals. It’s a great deal and the food is really tasty!

My advice to you is to check out the website then open a franchise where you live, because this is a great idea. Cheaper than eating out, no hunting through the cabinet to find something to throw together, no hassle to cook, and fun to make with someone (and you get to wear an apron!!)

and the February menu looks really good!

Back to Reality

Back to life...back to reality...

the past 3 weeks have been nothing but excessive fun however back to the routine of everyday life. sometimes i would swear that I hate routines but at this moment I'm actually quite satisfied to back into my normal life.

To recap the past 3 weeks is definitly worth it.

I returned to the sweet south for the shortest visit of my life, but it was bittersweet. Praise the Lord for hugs, laughs, good chats and reminising! Christmas came and went but it was great to see everyone for brief moments.

Week 2 of fun!

Hanna came to visit!! Maybe my favorite week in Cali so far! It was a blast even in the big flood! Wine tasting, shopping, eating 2 rounds of In & Out in one sitting, and just doing nothing!

Not to mention New Years! So I used to look at New Years as the the let down holiday. There is all this hype built up and then the ball drops you eat pork chops, black eyed peas and turnip greens and its a new year..wahoo. However never before have I spent New Years with thousands of people in downtown San Francisco. Bascially we partied like rockstars at the Hyatt Hotel. Not only did we arrive strutting down the red carpet but we danced to En Vogue and the best 80's cover band ever,Tainted Love, until we couldn't party any longer. Needless to say I reccommend going all out for the new year!

Week 3 of fun was spent in West Palm Beach Florida, Chris's home town. Definitly a town worth going to! We got to ride around in a mustang convertible in sunny Florida..how I miss the hot sun! I got to see Chris's world in Florida. It was so fun meeting his family, friends and fulfilling a lifelong dream of going back to Disney world. I wanted to wear the Mickey ears all day but was advised against the great idea!


Most importantly I have a new phone number, so program my new digits into your cell
707 758 8448