Working 9-5

I never thought this statement would be coming out of my mouth but, "I'm so excited to be going back to work." The past week and a half has been such an answer to my prayers because I'm going back to Morgan Stanley.

I originally didn't want to start working until September but things just fell into place. I contacted MS and they contacted me back saying there was space for me, if I wanted it. Heck yeah I want it. I met with them the next day and things were final, I had my job back. Well, not my job I had with them last summer but pretty much the same thing but better. They are going to treat me like a floater, where I will have my hand in many different parts of the company. (This excites me because it won't be the same job everyday.)

Plus, the best thing about working in downtown San Francisco is being about 1 and 1/2 blocks away from Romulo (at PwC). Our buildings are super close and my building at 101 California is literally on top of the BART station so not too far to walk. Romulo and I haven't decided if he will be taking his Harley to work and me taking BART. It's probably going to work that way but we've talked about going together on BART (not the motorcycle people).

Any way, I just wanted to share the joy. I'm so happy to be working at a place I know. I know the work, I love the people, and just knowing I'm doing something besides sitting on the couch watching tv. (Not that that is a bad thing. I just need some variety right now.)

My building is the tall glass one. I love how you can see US Bank in the reflection of the glass.

Missing Brazil

Today I am really missing Brazil and the people. I was looking through old pictures and came across pictures of our last visit to Brazil. And I couldn't believe it has been 2 years; summer of 2006. Not only do I miss Brazil I miss my family that is there. I miss the warm smiles, loving hugs, and my mother-in-law's food. She is an excellent cook and I love watching her cook.
Even though I am still far from speaking the language, we find other ways of communicating to each other. Lots of hand motions, small simple words back and forth with pointing, and smiles. But the cool thing is all of Romulo's siblings know English so I'm not that much in the dark.

Last summer, Romulo's parents did come to the States for his sister's wedding which was a blast. It was so much fun having them stay with us and we had many laughs. Good memories.

Weekend Updates

Not only did Romulo and I speak in church today (topic Following the words of the Prophets and Testimony) but I finally got a calling. I am super excited to get this calling and its going to be a new area for me to serve in since I've never had a calling in this department of the church. I was called to be the CTR 5 primary teacher. I sat in sharing time and got a good look at what I'm up against. 5 of the most adorable children I have ever seen. I think this is going to be the best class ever. I'm sure over the next couple of months I will have some exciting stories to tell. More to come on this topic I'm sure.

So, yesterday we went into the city to help celebrate a friends birthday. We joined Laura and Brandon at the Lowe's movie theater and saw the new Batman movie in the IMAX theater. It was REALLY DARK and the Joker was pretty much the main character...at least I thought. And Batman didn't show that many awesome gadgets that he usually has...but over all I give it a 2 1/2 thumbs up...out of a 5 that is. Why that rating you might ask? Well if I had to chose I would chose movies that were happy, love sappy, and makes you feel good inside all the time. I get so much anxiety inside that its not fun for me to go to the movies. I know I'm weird but I've always been like that and I've tried really hard...trust me. And my poor husband who is so loving has had to deal with this issue of mine ever since we got married because he LOVES movies and can see anything because of this love. But I made it through it and was actually okay with what I had just seen by the time I went to bed. I forgot all about it.

Well, I'm sure something exciting is going to happen in this up coming week so I will return with some more exciting posts.

Surprise Picnic

Romulo is the sweetest guy alive. He planned a breakfast picnic at a nearby park for me this morning. We went to Boone Acres Park down the street from us and ate fresh baked bagels with yummy homemade cream cheese, blueberries, cantaloupe, and cherries.
It was so nice to sit in the shade/sun at a park with my husband and enjoy our Saturday morning. When we were eating we both saw the most beautiful butterfly flying around and it seemed like the butterfly was giving us a show because he was flying so close to us. We are so blessed to be living in an area that has the most beautiful weather, nature, and feels like home.
Thank you Romulo for this wonderful memory.
P.S. If you can't read what's on Romulo's shirt take a closer look. I laughed when he showed me what he got.
("I love it when my wife says go for a ride". But from far you only see "I love my wife".)

View from the BAY

Yesterday I was watching a show called VIEW FROM THE BAY, which is based on you guessed it SAN FRANCISCO, EAST BAY, etc. It's almost like a local GMA or TODAY show. Well, they always do a segment of local attractions: dining, bakeries, and entertainments.

And they were spot lighting BERKELEY, CA area. Every restaurant they went to sounded delicious but it was the bakery that got me, LOVE AT FIRST BITE. They pride themselves on "old fashion baked goods from scratch". And their specialty is RED VELVET CUPCAKES.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE red velvet anything. Whenever its my birthday I ask for red velvet cakes instead of chocolate or vanilla. Maybe it has to do with red being my favorite color but trust me the second you taste the rich, sweet cake with cream cheese frosting you will die. The top layer of our wedding cake was red velvet...we didn't wait for the first year anniversary to cut into that. We actually ate it with my family the next day after our wedding...LOL.

SO, I need to convince Romulo on taking me there so I can be in heaven.
Picture of our wedding cake...I can taste it now!

Right from a Movie Scene

"Friends don't let friends ride public transportation!" I love that line from the movie Material Girls and today I should have taken that advise because I had an AWESOME experience on BART! For those of you that don't know what BART is, its BayAreaRapidTransit or in other words a train that runs on electricity.

I had to go into the city, SF, today to meet with Morgan Stanley for a job opportunity. (I know I know I can hear you all gasping on why I would want to work when I'm having the time of my life staying at home with no real responsibilities, but let me tell you there is only so much cleaning, cooking, and watching TV until you get bored out of your mind.) I told myself that I wanted to get a job around September and yeah so September isn't here but its close enough. Back to my story.

I had to be in the city at 8am so I knew I had to be at the Castro Valley BART station at 7:10am to make it into SF at 7:47am and have plenty of time to spare. Right!!! Things were going smoothly riding on BART, even though I had to stand the whole time, until we made it to the last stop on the East Bay side, West Oakland Station. After that stop you go in the tunnel that takes you under the Bay (water, lots of water) and it connects to SF. And the stop I wanted was the 1st stop in SF, Embarcadero.

Our train made the stop at West Oakland picked the people up and thought we were on our way until we were feet away from the tunnel and the train stopped. It did these jerking movements back and forth for like 5 minutes until the driver came on the loud speaker and told us that the train had transmission problems and we were returning to West Oakland and we would have to get on another train and the whole BART system would be delayed 15 minutes....Great!

Just GREAT, at that moment the time was 7:50 way behind schedule and I'm suppose to meet with Morgan Stanley for a job...AWESOME! Good thing I already knew them and it wouldn't be my first impression to them. I called them and informed them and they were okay with it since it wasn't MY FAULT!!!!

The great thing about standing the whole time on the train was being close to the door and when we got back to West Oakland stop I ran out of that train so fast I should have qualified for the Olympics. Okay maybe not that fast but I was one of the lucky ones to run down the stairs across the hall and back up the stairs (to the opposite side) and make it on the first WORKING train.

I got my work out today for sure! So we finally made it into the city at 8:10 am just a few minutes late...right! And the best thing about Morgan Stanley is the location from BART because MS is on the corner of one of the streets that leads down to BART so I was only 10 minutes late. (Building of MS is at 101 California the building that had a shooting about 10 years ago give or take.)

It was an adventure for sure because could you imagine our train dying on us in the middle of the dark nasty tunnel...OMG! I don't even want to think of that scenario. A tunnel that goes under the water that is dark and cold and who knows what else is in there...nasty!

Too bad I don't have any pictures from this experience but that was the last thing on my mind when I was stuck in that situation...I'm alive!

FYI, I got the job with Morgan Stanley!!! LOL, I'm excited.

My New Sunglasses

I love my new Chanel (style 5076) sunglasses. I got them today at the mall. I couldn't make up my mind on what to do with my Bonus Money that I got from Zions, the reason we stayed in Utah until the end of May. And I had talked to my mom and sister, Ellen, about the options; a new watch (a new ESQ since mine is 6+ years old or a Michele), sunglasses (Chanel), or a purse (anyone would do!). And here I was 2 weeks after receiving the money and still not a penny spent because I wanted everything but not enough money to buy all three. My amazingly thoughtful mother surprised me the other day by putting money in my account to buy the sunglasses I wanted and then have all of my money to do whatever else I wanted.

So check the sunglasses out...I love them!

Campaignin' Joke

I took this video off because it was too heavy and the downloading process for our blog page was taking too long...But if you want to see it and others go to their website: JIBJAB.

I thought it was funny at least...Thanks.

Emma's 21... What?

Our family wouldn't be the same without Miss Emma Naomi Johns. Emma is so adorable and has a fun personality. She will try anything and isn't easily forgotten. She has a strong will and determination about her. She was born into our family on July 21 1987 and I can't believe the baby of the family is 21...Wait I thought I was still 21...right!

Romulo and I had the awesome opportunity to have her live with us this past year when we were still in Utah. She came out in January and stayed with us until the end of April. It was fun to see her experience Wymount and we had many laughs about life. I could see her grow up in front of my eyes and see that life by herself is fun and exciting. There are times that I miss having her around and secretly wish she will move here to CA so I can once again have her...but I know she is in the right place at this time in her life and want her to keep moving forward.

Emma keep doing what you're doing and you will get everything your heart desires.

Happy Birthday Emma, I love you! - Lydia

P.S. Don't we look alike? (If you say yes, don't tell her because she still isn't convinced that we look alike...hehe)

No News Update

So nothing has really happened this weekend but I feel like I need to post since its been a while. Romulo gave his motorcycle its first wash...forgot to take pictures...while he was washing, waxing, babying it I sat beside him and asked a million questions about the bike...What's that, what does it do, why is it there, will that burn me if I touch it...I think by the time he was done with his bike he was saying in his head...OH be quiet woman...hehe...It was fun and experiences like this warms me up to the thought that maybe I will ride with him...Some day!

He teased me about me never sitting on a motorcycle before...right me on a bike remember I'm no HOG MAMA...Well he convinced me to sit on it and let me tell you that bike is heavy...Heavy...I guess you can say I'm warming up to that thing...but I don't know...

Back to this weekend, on Sunday Romulo received a church calling; 16-17 year olds Sunday School teacher...Me, I don't have a calling yet...Oh well, soon...He is so excited about his new calling and let me tell you he is an amazing teacher...Someone who brings the Book of Mormon and Bible stories to life...Even though he is my husband I could listen to him speak about the gospel 24-7. So those teenagers are lucky to have someone who loves the gospel so much as their teacher.

Tomorrow will bring more adventures I'm sure but besides that CA is beautiful and the weather is amazing...for example today when we were heading to church (meetings start at 12:30pm) the temp was a cool 67 degrees....love it.................

Get Ready!

Are you a SHLUMPADINKA?

So yesterday I was watching OPRAH, which I kinda watch but I'm not one of her followers, and she had the funniest show and was telling us what a SHLUMPADINKA was and how we can't always rely on pj bottoms as a wardrobe! OMG, it made me cry it was so funny.

She basically said if you are wearing pj's out in public to do errands or consider your husband's sweatpants to be a staple or if you stay in your pj bottoms all day and wear them again the next day then YOU ARE A SHLUMPADINKA! (OMG, I think we all can confess that some time in our life we have done this. I know I have and whenever I come home its my comfy sweatpants or sweatpant capris.)

So during the show she had a fashion designer, Lloyd, take 6 normal everyday stay at home moms and show them how easy it is to wear stylish, comfortable clothing out in public and not their pj's. Lloyd took them to your everyday stores too: Kohl's (I love that store), JCPenney (man they have improved over the years), Gap, Old Navy, and Sears. Let me tell you those woman were rocking hot and they were all shapes and sizes. And the best part was for every person he created an entire outfit for about $100 or so. That's not too bad to look good!

One thing that stuck out from the show for me was what Oprah said. She said something along the lines as: When you look better, you feel better. And that you tend to get more done when you are looking and feeling better. Amen.

I can testify to that, when I take time to put make up on, do my hair, and have a put together outfit on I can concur the world. So to Oprah, I wasn't a SLUMPADINKA today. I put myself together and boy did I get a ton done!

I love shows like this that kick reality back into place. I mean I don't go out of the house with my pj bottoms on but sometimes I do go out with my sweatpants on...and no they do not have holes in them and they are pretty stylish I might add! But still no more sweatpants out in public. I promise!

So promise today that you will try not to be a SLUMPADINKA! HAHAHA

Funny Email

I got this funny email today from a friend...it made be laugh and wanted to share!

Ways to Maintain A Healthy Level of Insanity

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and Point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It 'In.'

5 Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.

6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write ' For Sexual Favors'

7.. Finish All Your sentences with 'In Accordance With The Prophecy'

8 Don't use any punctuation

9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.

10. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is 'To Go.'

12. Sing Along At The Opera.

13. Go To A Poetry Recital And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme?

14.. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play tropical Sounds All Day.

15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In The Mood.

16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.

17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream 'I Won!, I Won!'

18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling
'Run For Your Lives, They're Loose!!'

19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner. 'Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go.'

20. And The Final Way To Keep A Healthy Level Of Insanity.. .....

Send This E-mail To Someone To Make Them Smile. Its Called ...... therapy

San Francisco Zoo

Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My! Yes, we saw lions, tigers, bears, giraffes, gorillas, chimps, and so much more! My friend Vanessa grew up in San Leandro and her family still lives there so she is in town visiting them for a while. She invited me to come along to the Zoo with her mom and her almost 2 year old son; Isaac.

He was adorable pointing at animals and making noises and trying to say there names. He got really good at peacock. So while Romulo worked on his birthday I went to the zoo and enjoyed the wild. Enjoy some pictures of the animals there...and I must say this zoo is very kid friendly and has a lot for them to do like FAMILY FARM where kids and animals roam together. The animals are more farm animals, the kids just loved it.

Thanks V for inviting me!

29 years and 12 months

July 14th is a great day in history for the French: Citizens of Paris stormed Bastille and freed prisoners. But in my "perfect little world" my husband was born in the year of 1978, long after Bastille Day. And so I write to celebrate his day and let him know that he is still young, even though he might be turning 30, and he has a lot to look forward too.
He has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. I don't express to him as much as I should how loving, kind, strong, smart, handsome, beautiful, forgiving, and warm he is to me. He has given so much of himself for me and I see the hard work he has put into our lives thus far and I am so thankful for him.
Romulo in the military...look how young and handsome he looked! Romulo in Park City, UT (2004)

Romulo at Luray Caverns, Va.


Romulo in Brazil...close to the Amazon! Look closer at this picture and you will see something in the water...oh yes! Te amo, meu amor!

Stand for Truth and Righteousness

A few weeks ago in church our Bishop read a letter that was written by the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints addressing some of the proposed changes in the California Constitution, particularly same sex marriage. Below is the letter that they read to us:


On a personal note, I think its been really cool having this letter given to us because every Sunday's topic has been revolved around it. We started with the Family Proclamation and had the two blocks of Sunday School and Relief Society/Elders Quorum talking just on that document. We are constantly refreshing our testimonies on why its so important to have a woman and a man in a marriage. Our Heavenly Father loves us and wants us to be happy.

Look There

So every time Romulo and I are out driving he always notices where other motorcycles are parked at or where they are going. Like for instance if a group of motorcycles are parked in front of a restaurant he will say "Oh I bet that is a great place to eat!" Right, just because MOTORCYCLES are parked there?

Well, today he wanted to ride his motorcycle but we needed to go to the mall and well we both couldn't go to the mall with the bike having only one seat. So I drove our car and he drove his motorcycle. And every time we got to a stop light he would pull up beside me and I would roll down my window and we would chat a little until the light would turn green. So the funny part of this story is we were at a light and he pointed to a parking lot full of bikes and he said "Hey, that must be a great shop or restaurant because there are so many bikes?"

Right when he said that we both looked at the sign and started to laugh. The place he pointed out was the restaurant, HOOTERS! That's right, the restaurant that serves Hot Wings! Wink Wink!

Oh and the best thing is Romulo just found out what Hooters was last summer because at the Fisherman's Wharf in SF has a billboard of the restaurant. And I joked with Romulo that if anyone ever took him there I would kill him. Not really, just joking. He looked at me clueless and was like "Oh okay." And I knew that look meant he had no idea what this place was all about, so I had to inform him. He just laughed.

And here he is laughing again today because he had no idea what that place was when he saw all of those motorcycles...OH I love my Brazilian Husband!!!!!

Happy B-day Ellen

Carrie "Ellen" Johns made her mark in history today by coming into this beautiful world! She is such a character and a wonderful addition to our clan. I wouldn't know what to do without her. I mean she is one person who will tell you how it is. She tells you how real life is and what she thinks and I admire that in her. She is also one of those people who goes after what she wants in life. She has a will about her that sets her apart from others. Little fun info about her:

-She is the 5th of 6th children. The 4th of 5 girls.

-She graduated from Virginia Tech last May 2007 and never paid one cent for her education because of her smarts. (Please visit WE REMEMBER)

-She loves being an aunt.

-What she has material wise she has gotten on her own. For instant: she has Jimmy Choo shoes, a Louis Vuitton bag, decorated her own two bedroom apartment fully furnished during college, bought herself a Mercedes after she graduated, continues to buy Tiffany jewelry, and the list goes on.

-She is continuing her education while working. She either wants to be a lawyer, which we all heard ever since she was little, or a teacher.

-MOST of all: SHE LOVES HER FAMILY!

Pictures of my lil' sis: HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELLE, I love you!

"Born to be Wild"

Okay so some of you might think I am a softy for my husband, and it might be true, but ever since we got together we have always discussed having a MOTORCYCLE or not. At first it was "No way, are you crazy. No no no!" Then it was "WHEN you finish school we can discuss this issue then." As Romulo was getting closer to finishing his schooling at BYU it turned to "You need to get a job first, then we can discuss it." After last summer when Romulo got the internship with PwC and at the end of it received an offer for a full time job it went to "We will need to see how the monthly budget rolls out (since SF area isn't the cheapest area to live in) AND you need to get at least a $1.0 million dollar insurance policy on yourself before I even think about you getting a motorcycle." That's not being soft, its being smart!

So here we are July 2008 and Romulo ISN'T crazy, at least at this moment he isn't, he's finished BYU, we've discussed this topic a million times, he has a great job, our monthly budget is a sound one, and he has taken care of the life insurance policy - a better one than we had agreed on...so you guessed it...let the pictures tell the rest of this story!

Harley-Davidson Sportster XL 883

As we drove home, I drove behind him the whole time because I was so nervous. And I don't recommend you taking pictures while driving. That made me even more nervous.
We got Romulo's Harley-Davidson at the McGuire Harley-Davidson dealership in Walnut Creek, CA. They were amazing and gave us a great deal. So can you imagine me on a Harley...NO! Me either ladies! Hehehe. It's probably going to take Romulo another 4 years to get me on that thing. I'm open to it but we will have to start with short trips and have me all geared up. The saleswoman at the accessory shop was awesome because she walked me through every type of piece of equipment I would need if and when I would want to ride. She told me that the most important thing about being the passenger is being prepared and having the right gear. I must say that the helmets for girls are really cute! So I think if I ever was to ride Romulo's bike I wouldn't be your typical HOG mama! OH man, its a different world! But I must say standing in that shop you seriously see all different types of people!

So, what do you think am I a softy or what?