jetsons, meet the jetsons.

no, my last name is not really jetson. yes, it would be really cool if it was. so let's just pretend.

first, there is me, mel. i am a twenty-three year old speech pathology grad student. i drink a lot of coffee, i watch 'pushing daisies' and 'gilmore girls' on dvd constantly, and i'm usually the weirdo singing and dancing to the radio on the freeway. also, i tend to make funny faces when pictures of me are being taken and i really, really love disneyland (annual passholder three years running). my mom is my best friend and my sister is super bomb.

hubby works. he decided to forgo college when he got offered a spot at his dream company. literally, he has wanted to work where he works since he was eight. he tests video games for a living and couldn't be happier. except that business is booming and he works almost seventy hours a week (the money is good, and God knows we need it, but i do miss him).

hubby and i were high school sweethearts. we met playing husband and wife in our sophomore production of 'you can't take it with you.'

we've been married since january 2008. he proposed to me by placing a ring on my finger while i was sleeping so i 'couldn't say 'no'.' i thought that was cute.

since we've been married, we added two lil' ones to our family- lulu and harley.

the first picture we took of lulu-oct '08

first picture of harley -july '10

both of our babies are from the orange county animal shelter, and they are the happiest kittens we've ever seen. they keep me very entertained when hubby works or if im studying too much.

it's been a pleasure to meet you. that's our little family, and i absolutely couldn't be happier with it or the people (and kittens) in it.

study day.

big test on tuesday. i'll be spending the day studying, listening to this, and giving myself permission to dance along every hour or two. enjoy!

b's get degrees.

any other grad students out there feel like they are sinking all the time? like no matter how many hours you study/research/write/plan you are never caught up?


me too. and then this past weekend, i didn't do any school work. i redecorated my room, went thrift store shopping, visited with my mom and played with the hubby. it felt really good while i was doing it, but sunday night i had immediate 'hang-out remorse.' i had a midterm, a quiz, and three clinic (speech pathology) lesson plans to finish for this week.

and i did really poorly on my quiz and was really hard on myself. then, it hit me. 


i am in absolutely no danger of failing this course in anyway. a three-point-oh average keeps me in good standing with my university, and i have so many a's on my transcript i could get c's from here on out and pretty much be fine. so why was i upset? because with this quiz grade, it will be a bit harder for me to get an a.


so, to summarize:
-i now have a great, redesigned room that i love to spend time in.
-i had a great halloween weekend with the person, and kittens, that i love most in the world.
-i found a great new blouse at the thrift store for only five bucks.
-i slept more this weekend than i have in months.
-i saw my mom, had a nice dinner (and a nice lunch).
-and i spent three days feeling completely relaxed and blissful in my life (i even had time to paint my nails and straighten my hair!).


and if i get all of that in exchange for the possibility of a b, i'd say it's well worth it. 

-unless at my first job interview they ask me directly 'what letter grade did you receive in each of your courses.' 
then i'm screwed.

ode to the thrift store.

i love the thrift store. for numerous reasons.
1. i love that nobody else will be wearing what i'm wearing
2. being a speech-pathology grad student, i have to look professional but the LAST thing i need in my life is a closet full of slacks and button-downs. cheap dresses and skirts give me lots of cute options.
3.i love that i could be wearing something really old with a great history.
4. they color code EVERYTHING
5. helping people by putting money into a charitable organization.
6. the prices. duh.
7. did i mention the color coding?
8-12. these gems...

steve madden. ten bucks.

love how flowy it is.

how cute are those buttons?

my first thrifted dress.

close up on the tulle/print.

 what's are some of your favorite finds?

chocolate that is hot.

this weekend, hubby and i trekked to best buy 'cause he needed a new keyboard (which was something he wanted for a while and was a bit happy when his finally broke). after we left best buy, i spotted my own mothership, starbucks, across the parking lot and asked hubby if we could stop for hot chocolate. at which point, this happened:

'chocolate that is hot, chocolate that is hot'- yes, he was singing it to the tune of 'drop it like it's hot' which i'm ninety-nine point nine nine percent sure he's never actually heard before. also, there was a dance.

then he ran out of words and made 'hot chocolate making sounds' to the melody.

thanks, hubby, for the much needed chuckle and for reminding me why i love you. and for the chocolate that is hot. it was yum.

(love the colors/effects possible with my film camera :)

making halloween.

living in southern california, i'm blessed with beautiful weather ninety percent of the time. the sad thing about this, though, is that it's not unusual for the weather to stay in the seventies and eighties through halloween.

this means it never 'feels' like halloween unless we make it feel that way. in 'the nightmare before christmas' the characters sing a song about creating christmas in halloween-town. i feel like i should sing 'making autumn' every year. i think this year, we made it pretty darn good.

my 'jack skellington' and hubby's 'zerg'. yes, he is that nerdy ;)

halloween dinner. stuffed 'jack-o-lantern' bell peppers. yum!

happy halloween!

off to get cupcakes and watch our final viewing of 'nightmare before christmas' for the year!

nesting.

lately, well ever since my decision to embrace my life and the place i'm at, i've had an overwhelming desire to redecorate our apartment. before, it had been functional, but not really 'home.' hubs and i always talk about 'when we buy a house, our room will look like.....' etc.

but this apartment is where we live now. our lives are happening here. and so, it should feel like our home.

first up was the living room. i can't find any before pictures, but suffice to say, it was boring. couch against one wall, tv against another, computers in the corner. no pictures, no rugs, no throw pillows, no nothing.

now, we've added lots of color, rearranged the furniture, and upgraded the desk area. no, this isn't like an hgtv makeover, but it shows how much of a change about 60 bucks worth of ikea knick-knacks can do. and it makes me much happier to call this place home.

then came the bedroom. again, it was clean and organized but it was boring. always had sheets and bedding that i had gotten on sale, never anything i loved. and i had a bunch of design ideas that i hadn't wanted to 'waste' on an apartment. but when my mom came to visit for my birthday, she inspired me to use those ideas up.

before (or halfway through the process when i thought to take a 'before' picture)

hubby is sooo good at helping me stage my pictures

and after- the whole thing cost about 50 bucks (excluding the bedding) which i think was well worth it.

the first time we've had curtains, a night-stand, or a wedding picture hung in 3 years

my desk alcove (love the ties my mom used)

these are right along the side of the bed. i'm still adding pictures but i thought it was a sweet, earthquake safe way of displaying pics

my mom has called this process of mine 'nesting' which weirded me out 'cause that term is usually reserved for those expecting a baby. but i guess in a way, i am preparing to welcome a new life- mine.

anyone else feeling a little like 'nesting' lately?