Happy Birthday to ME!!!

It's my birthday!! Yayy!!!!!

Will share later about my day :)

I will race!

Once again, I'm participating in the Susan G. Komen LA Race for the Cure. This national nonprofit with chapters all over the U.S. work towards educating and providing funds for breast cancer research.

Yes, I realize that I will be 28 weeks pregnant during this event, but I assure you that I can do this (I have been exercising and jogging with my doctors okay, 3-4 days a week throughout my entire pregnancy). I have participated in this 5K for the past 5 years. As I did last year, I run/walk (maybe more of a waddle) in memory of my sister-in-law, Tricia Borba Vasquez, who was taken from us by this awful cancer.

As part of the event, I've created my own Personal Donation Page and since my birthday is coming up soon, what a great birthday gift!! Your support would be the best gift you could ever give me and this is for an important cause.

Did you know?

• Ten to fifteen percent of breast cancers are not detected by mammography?
• Men are also at risk for developing breast cancer?
• Having no children or a first child after age 30 are among some of the risks?

I knew Octo-mom

I was looking in Star Magazine (I know not the most intellectual magazine out there but it is one of my guilty pleasures) and it showed pictures of the Octo-mom from when she was in Jr. high school. She went to my Jr. high school and high school for a little while. I knew her!! She went by a different name then for some reason, but I definitely remembered her. I did not know her well, but she was in my class and I do remember her being a little different and quiet. I believe that she was in the band and that she played the flute, but I might be wrong about that. It was over 20 year ago.

From our 7th grade yearbook:



From freshman high school yearbook:



What a small world. I definitely have opinions about her actions and I really feel for her children. I think that she was very selfish in the decision she made to have additional children, when she could barely take care of the 6 children she already had. It is one thing to have children when you do not have the financial means for whatever reason. But it is another thing to get artificially inseminated (with 8 embryos no less!) when you are barely able to fully support the children you already have.

I just think of these children and the kind of life that they are going to have. These children had no choice in the matter and their lives will not be easy, at least not at this time. I think of all the women who want to desperately have 1 child and for whatever reason are unable to do so. I think how irresponsible this doctor was to do this. I don't know the whole story or what her thought process was like and I haven't followed this story to much. But, it just seems that she wasn't really thinking of her older children or the babies that she had, she was more interested in what she wanted and herself. It just seems like a sad situation.

Free pancakes at IHOP!

National Pancake Day at IHOP is tomorrow! Go to your local IHOP between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. for a FREE short stack (three pancakes). All they ask is that you make a donation to the Children's Miracle Network, a great cause!!

Free Subway gift card

Hey fellow Californians, you can go here to get a free $2 gift card to Subway. Limit one gift card per California household.

After the storm

I always love the day after a good rain. The skies are clear and in the mountains are dusted with snow. It is absolutely beautiful after a storm. Mother nature is just amazing.

Happy Valentine's Day

I am not big on Valentine's Day. It is more of a Hallmark holiday than anything else.

We are celebrating our Valentine's Day buy spending it with some good friends and yummy food. We are having a Valentine's Gourmet Club tonight with wine and appetizers. I will post pictures soon on my food blog, Rumbly Tumbly Treats. I am trying a new recipe so we will see how it turns out.

Happy Birthday to my Mama Bear

Today is my mommy's birthday!! She is so beautiful and you would never guess that she is about to become a grandma!

I know she never gets to read my blog, since she doesn't have the internet and is not really into technology. Nevertheless, it is a special day and she should be acknowledged!!

Love you Mommy!!!

Brrr...

It's cold. It is in the 50's today in Southern California. Brr, that is very cold!!! I just do not like the cold at all. Just last week, the weather was absolutely beautiful and it was around 70 degrees. While I realize that 50 degrees is not very cold in the grand scheme of things, it is very cold for this So. Cal. girl. I am such a wimp when it comes to cold.

I love warm, sunny days. That is one of the main reasons, I will most likely always be a So. Cal. girl. I am not generally one to complain about 100 degree weather, but I will complain when it goes below 60 degrees. I hope it warms up soon, even though I know our forecast calls for rain later this week. Boo! I can't wait for spring!

Free Breakfast Today!

Wow, Life has been busy...

Well, actually there really isn't anything too interesting going on in my life except for work and family. But work has been keeping me very busy. The next few months are going to be pretty crazy at work and I am just trying to keep up with all. As you might remember, I started a new position in November and working in two departments through the end of June (well, actually until I go on maternity leave). It is a lot of work working two positions that should really be 2 full-time positions (Right now I am splitting my time between the two so it is supposed to be two half-time positions). I am surviving, just barely.

What is most difficult, is that I want to excel in both positions. Since I will be leaving my old position at the end of the fiscal year, I want to leave on a positive note. Especially, since I will still continue to interact and collaborate with this boss on campus. My boss has been so supportive of me and I want to continue to provide her with quality work during this transition time.

With my new position, I still feel like I have to prove myself. Sometimes, I feel like I have to prove myself a little more in my newer position simply because I am pregnant and informed them of my pregnancy just after starting this new position. I realize that they should not look at my performance differently, but I worry that I am scrutinized a little differently. My newer boss is a man and I have never had a male boss until now. He is also a father; he is very supportive of me and he is a family-friendly boss. Yet, never having a male boss, I worry that I must work a little harder to show him that he did not make a bad decision in hiring me.

I also don't want to appear like I am slacking off on either job because I will be going on maternity leave and I want my newer boss to feel confident that I will return (because I will). So trying to balance these two positions is a challenge and taking up a lot of my time. Then add a personal life and family to all that and that is enough to keep anyone busy. I do count myself very fortunate that in this time of economic crisis that I have a job and it is a job(s) that I enjoy. I am not complaining, I am just a little tired. I guess the pregnancy may also contribute to that exhaustion a little.