.mt walker.

i'm not sure what it is, or why it always turns out this way, but it seems that the fiance and i always have horrible luck with weather when we decide to go hiking! it could be beautiful all week, with a pretty promising forecast but it is almost always the opposite when we wake up in the morning. i'd have to say its kind of ironic!

last year we did quite a few hikes, but this year we haven't had much time between planning the wedding and johnny working so many hours at work. well this last sunday we decided it was time to get our first hike of the summer in - for once we didn't have any appointments or prior engagements. we were so excited! so we went to bed saturday night with huge plans of getting up early and heading out to the olympic peninsula. fast forward to sunday, early am... we wake up, smile at each other, look out the window and are so disappointed!! it was foggy and overcast outside! go figure!

well, we decided to give it a try anyway... weather.com said the clouds were supposed to burn off. of course when we got close to quilcene it was still too cold, so we decide to keep driving and check out port angeles with the thought that we could do the hurricane ridge hike. we get to port angeles and the weather is still horrible! so we pull out our map and decide that we were all the way out there, we might as well do a mini road trip through the olympic peninsula!! :) and me, being the huge dork that i am, suggest that since we're so close that we should visit forks! haha.

washington is interesting in the fact that you can be in a rain cloud or thick fog, drive a few miles and be in patches of sun - we have one of the strangest (and unpredictable) weather patterns in the US (fun fact)! so as we were driving down the highway, we ended up climbing into a nice patch of sun by lake crescent. it was one of the most beautiful lakes that i have seen - crystal clear water, surrounded by mountains. it was gorgeous. but alas, we kept driving and hit more fog, clouds and icky weather - which meant that we must be getting closer to forks!

we drove through the town of forks to the chamber of commerce and checked out the (of course) twilight memorabilia and their super cool loggers memorial! it was fun! we didn't stay long and decided to start heading back. after making it through the 'san juan scenic byway' (which by-the-way wasn't so scenic in the fog) we ended up hitting more sunshine! all the clouds started burning off and the sun was shining all around. we crossed the hood's canal bridge and decided that we were going to go for it! off to quilcene to hike mt. walker!

the hike was great - although it might have been a little steep for our first hike of the summer - especially since i was already sore from working out the day before. but - 2 miles in and after a 2000 ft climb, we reached the top and it was beautiful! i always love reaching the top because you're tired, mentally exhausted, and then you see what you climbed to and everything you were feeling just goes away.

all in all it was a great - but long - day. i'm so happy we got to share that day together, it was awesome just getting out there, being spontaneous and getting our hike in! i love my man - he is so good to me!

that's all folks! :)

xoxo,

sc

.the year in review (2009).

2009 has been over for some time, so i'm a little late doing this but i thought this could be fun to look back on. better late then never, right? we'll see! :)


1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
jumped. i am terribly scared of certain types of heights - i.e. cliffs that are slippery and high, with water below but the chance of hurting yourself terribly when you jump. lol. i jumped off a cliff at one of our most popular lakes around the tacoma/puyallup area... it took everything i had to do it!

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
i honestly do not think i made any last year! this year (2010) is going to be amazing though - already on the right track to keeping up on them!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
almost! she went into labor on january 3rd - we were all expecting her to go into labor around mid december!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
not this year...

5. What countries did you visit?
mexico

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
no debt! (well no credit card debt)... i have been working on it for almost a year  - just a few more (about 6 months) months to go! student loans are a whooole different story. sigh.

7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
march 18 - our first vacation together (mexico!), memorial day weekend (sasquatch music festival), labor day weekend (dave matthews band concert), SEPTEMBER 19 (our one year anniversary/johnny proposed!)

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
to be honest, i'm unsure... it was a pretty uneventful year as far as 'achievements'.

9. What was your biggest failure?
i wouldn't say i 'failed' at anything either, but i definitely didn't apply to graduate school like i had hoped i would. there is always 2010 or 2011... 2010 is pretty packed!

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
for once - no! i was pretty healthy overall this year. only one really bad cold...other then that healthy!

11. What was the best thing you bought?
i think what is more important here is what i didn't buy! working toward paying off credit has been much more important. other then christmas gifts, i didn't really buy much and that is certainly an accomplishment for me!!!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
hmmm...

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
everyone i know is pretty respectful in their dress - thankfully!

14. Where did most of your money go?
u-g-h. credit cards! truck payment, groceries! lol.. it is soo much fun becoming an adult in the real world.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
getting married!!! :)

16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
as sad as it is... "party in the usa". lol! somewhat of an inside joke between my girls and i!! :)

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
happier! thinner! ...richer, definitely richer...both monetarily an non-monetarily. life is goood.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
reading. taking pictures. being organized!

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
facebooking - that thing is way too time consuming, its sad!, stressing - life will figure its self out, no need to stress.

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
christmas eve with the santie fam, christmas day with my madre, sis, et al., day after christmas with dad, aunts, grandparents, et al. :) three days of christmas - busy!!
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
fell more in love! we fell in love in 2008... but 2009 only made it better!

22. What was your favorite TV program?
we don't have cable (our choice) but i loooove the biggest loser! i usually catch it on hulu. i also love gossip girls. lol, my two guilty pleasures!

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
i don't like the word 'hate'... i don't think there is anyone that i dislike right now...
24. What was the best book you read?
the twilight series... all i have to say is omg! too good! (i can't believe i read them! haha)

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
hmmm...

26. What did you want and get?
to be engaged! can't wait to get married!! :)

27. What did you want and not get?
a million dollars... but hey, i wasn't fully expecting it... ;)

28. What was your favorite film of this year?
avatar!!! amazing in imax 3d!

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
dinner with the family - my mom surprised me with having my best friend and niece show up... it was so perfect. i turned 23 - and then we flew to mexico two days later!! :)

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
all in all it was a pretty good year... i just feel like i didn't make any advancements as far as career/education, etc. which is driving me crazy. i feel as though i went to college for nothing... my bachelors degree is pointless at this stage in my life. :'(

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
very me - a little drab because i couldn't go shopping (paying off debt - ugh) but definitely me. classic, nothing fancy... timeless. love it!

32. What kept you sane?
my love! johnny is amazing. :)

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
 i always have and always will love...britney spears! haha... i'm not really into celebrities though...

34. What political issue stirred you the most?
health care... could turn out to be a scary situation. we will see what 2010 has in store.

35. Who did you miss?
my brother - i really pray he gets his life back in order... :(

36. Who was the best new person you met?
amanda! she is such a sweet person.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
patience is a virtue - really - you need to learn to enjoy each stage, moment, etc. in life... you will never get that moment back! why try and rush through everything? what will you have to show for it when you look back at your life?

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"its my life, and its now or never... i ain't going to live forever, i just want to live while i'm aliiiive" oh bon jovi!

.good morning world.

morning!

there isn't much to talk about this morning, just another day of work, working out and stuff to do around the house. however, i am so blessed and grateful to have another day here with my family, friends and most importantly, my love!

yesterday morning there was a beautiful sunrise and i wanted to share it this morning. there is nothing quite like waking up to mt. rainier right out your window every morning. :)

god is good.
have a wonderful day!
(...you know to all my faithful blog followers... ugh, i keep telling myself that one day someone will read this blog, right?)

ciao!