Sometimes I'm lucky.

Like the time my brother Shane and I won $1000 at our work summer party two weeks ago for doing this little ditty.

http://youtu.be/6MxIIhNgeRo

And then last week at my work's health fair, I won this.  A $189 value!

And tomorrow I'll be flying to this place (for work & some play) ...

Oh, and this place.

The not so lucky part? I won't get to see this guy for two whole weeks :(   I'll miss you, honey!

Overall, I'm a pretty lucky girl!

Introduction of my Dave...

I didn’t even realize I had not done a formal introduction of my Dave. Thanks to Malea for making me aware of it! Here’s a little history first of how we met.

Dave and I met a few years ago of all places in our single’s ward. Crazy, eh? I heard him speak in church one Sunday, and as he was introducing himself he said that he was a Math teacher at UVU. For those of you that know my history with Math, you will undoubtedly understand why I decided to write him off – even though he was a nice looking guy who appeared to be very normal. How could I possibly get along with a Math teacher, right? Well, within a few months I began going to get-togethers, and he was usually there. A friend of mine was interested in him, so I just kept my distance anyway. I mean, how could we possibly have anything in common?

A while later, we happened to find ourselves on the same cruise to Mexico. It was an LDS Singles cruise. I’ll tell you this; I wasn’t all excited to be there – since I had been recently disenchanted by a short relationship. Dating someone new was the absolute last thing on my mind. While on the cruise we spent a lot of time with Dave on the boat and on shore excursions. I thought he was a nice guy. He was always kind and considerate of everyone. I didn’t think much more than that, but I did take notice that he looked at me a little more than others. However, I wasn’t going to even let myself play that scenario out in my mind. Oh, one thing I did forget to mention – I noticed that he had a very nice build, which never hurts!

We all had a great time on the cruise, and upon returning home, I began to realize that I missed not seeing Dave. It was so nice having him around. He was such a calming presence (and still is).

Without boring you with the little details, Dave asked me out about a month later, and the rest, well, it’s history. We’ve been dating for 15 months now, and things are great!

Dave is originally from California. He moved to UT the same year my family moved from Hawaii. He is the 3^rd of 5 kids. He got his under grad at BYU, then his masters at the University of Houston. He is a full-time Math teacher at UVU. He’s a very active guy. He loves the sun and continually shames me with his tan skin. He is handsome, kind, good-natured, intelligent, funny, sensitive, logical, and he gets along with pretty much everyone he meets fabulously. What I love about Dave the most is that I can just be myself with him. On any given night, you can find us watching the O’Reilly Factor and eating Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff or a good steak. We’re fairly easy going.

Yep, I love this man.

You may leave this introduction asking, “When are you getting married?”

I only have this to say…

Someday :)

You’ll find it all here!

B-day

It was this man's b-day on Friday. I sure do love him and am so thankful for him in my life.

Happy Birthday, Dave!

New Beginnings

I am thankful for opportunities that present themselves when I least expect it. Tomorrow is a new beginning for me. A new job. I have had a wonderful time with all those I have been blessed to know at my previous employer, but at this time in my life this change is something I need to pursue. I am thankful for the guidance of a loving Heavenly Father that has helped me to recognize new paths in my life. I'm a blessed little lady.

Oh, and I love Dave. And wouldn't you know it - he loves me too :)

Life without an iPhone

I have had an iPhone for work the past 10 months or so, and with it my life has been full of lovely information. I LOVE having information at my finger tips! There is an app for every possible thing I would possibly need or want. A few examples, I lost about 15 lbs. in the past few months with the help of an app. True story. Mapquest helped me to get to and from just about everywhere on each work trip, and just around town. Whirly Word kept me entertained in long lines, email - at my fingertips! Social media, check!
It has only been 2 and a half days, and I feel lost without my iPhone. No, I didn't lose it. A job change is the reason for the loss of my dear phone (job change was my choice :)). Anyhow, I now shudder every time I look at my pathetic mobile device. It is more up to date than most, but I can hardly abide to even write a text from it. It just simply isn't my dear iPhone.
I'm hoping my new job will have something comparable. I hope, I hope. Otherwise, I may actually have to buy one myself! Argh!

Sometimes

Sometimes we need to hear the absolute perfection that is Brian Stokes Mitchell's voice, and sometimes we need the inspiration to reach that unreachable star.

His favorite shirt

My dear Dave is conservative with clothing. ULTRA conservative (bless his heart). He probably spends $100 in a year on clothing, and that's pushing it. I don't mind this trait at all, except for when he wears his favorite tattered and worn long-sleeved shirt. The white dots are holes. Oh, and check out the holes in the elbows and the frayed neck-line. Bless this boy. I sure love him, though.

One year.

Exactly one year ago today my Dave took me out on our first date. I am so lucky to have such a kind, good, and patient man in my life - oh, and really handsome. I am truly blessed. Love you, babe.

A Looooong time coming

I finished. I finished something that has been quite the undertaking for me the last 17 years. Blood, sweat, and tears went into finishing my educational journey. Journey is an understatement. I knew there was a light at the end of the tunnel - since I had seen friends and family finish. I just didn't know that it existed for me. Being an educated woman was always my goal. I just never knew how many things could get in the way of it becoming a reality. I kept going, and I kept thinking that one day I'd really finish.

A week ago today it ended.

I, Erincita, became a graduate of Utah Valley University. After 200 + credits, I really did it.

This chapter in my life is now over :)

What's next?

Six days without (it's a long one...)

About 9 years ago I began a journey to health-nutdom. At the time I was a college student, working full time with no benefits. I was getting what has been common amongst my mom and sisters... gall stones. I wouldn't be able to pay for surgery without insurance, so instead I thought I'd put it off a while and just not eat the things that were aggravating the symptoms. In a joint effort to lose weight, I began a life eating Vegan-ish. No meat, no dairy, no sugar, and no white flour. The pounds fell off me, of course, which gave me the drive to keep going and keep eating restrictively. I lost A LOT of weight and felt GREAT about myself. I had been in sizes I hadn't worn since jr. high! The 'high' lasted for a few years, and then I became slowly dissatisfied. This was always my worry when losing weight. Even though I had lost about 50 pounds and looked great, I began to see the little imperfections instead - the vain ones. I was almost as unhappy skinny as I was 50 lbs. larger. Unreal, isn't it? It makes no sense! I also began to feel the restrictions of my food intake more acutely. I got mad when at a restaurant with friends and I couldn't eat what they were eating, or when I went to a family dinner and there was nothing that I could eat. The thing is, I was putting these restrictions on myself and I could take them off at any time. My worry was I would get headaches from the sugar, and stomach aches from meat I had not had in my body for so long. Well, one day, feeling rebellious and ready for a change, I caught a whiff of a pot roast, and oh boy, I never looked back! Everything came back into my diet, some things slowly, but eventually I consumed it all like never before!
There is a sort of animal-like ravishing that happens to me every now and then. I am not one of those that can eat just a couple of m&m's or one bite of a candy bar. The taste of it, the crunch, it all hits me and I consume things in minutes. I have no concept of eating things in moderation. I have tried, believe me.
Needless to say, the weight all came back slowly, but surely. I was back at my old weight within about two years. All of that hard work only brought me back to where I was before. Was I happier? You bet I was! I wasn't living by restrictions anymore. I ate whatever I wanted to when I wanted to. BUT, like the high from losing weight and looking great, it too wore off and I began to feel unhappy about the way I looked. It was no longer freedom that I felt for being able to eat anything anytime, but rather feeling a slave to the habit.
We all know the diets that are out there; the things that help us lose a little here and a little there. Enough to appease us, right? I have fallen into those more than a few times. I lose weight for a little while, then I gain it. Which then puts me on the prowl for yet another diet that might work. It is a never-ending cycle for most of us women.

This brings me to the title of my blog entry. First, some wee background. My dear brother Sean and wonderful Bri are getting married mid-May. They have been engaged since December. And since their engagement, I have had it in mind that I was going to have a major body over-haul. I figured I could lose 5-7 lbs. every month and would be just where I wanted to be by the time the wedding came around. Friends, I am two pounds over where I started. Depressing? Yes!
Last week at church I happened to mention this to my good friend Marcole. Telling her that I only had a few weeks left to lose any weight at all, she very easily mentioned getting off of sugar and white flour. I thought that might be something I could do - at least for a few weeks. That night before I went to bed, I downed some of the last of the Easter candy I had stashed away. It was 11 pm, but I bid a quick farewell to those Reeses Peanut Butter Cups and began getting ready for bed. Just as I was about to lay my wee head down, I began seeing the spots. THE SPOTS. I have been seeing these spots since I was in 8th grade. It was the beginning of a migraine headache. I get them frequently, so it's really nothing new. How odd that it would come right after I downed the Reeses, right? I tried not thinking much about it and thought I'd just be able to sleep off the headache. Monday morning came and the migraine was more painful than ever. Curse the Reese's! (my first thought) I then began to spy a link to the migraines I have been having for years. Could my sweet tooth cravings and indulgences be causing all of these headaches? That morning I began my day without sugar and white flour (as an experiment mostly), and have been six days without it. Am I losing weight? I have no idea. I don't want to go near the scale for a few more days anyway. Have I had any more migraines or any kind of headache for that matter? Not a one! If for nothing else than to have relief from these migraines, I am going to stay this way. Caffeine is another thing I've been avoiding. The results from my 'experiment' are the following:

No headaches
Better sleep at night (I usually toss and turn)
More energy throughout the day
Better mood!

Obviously exercise helps with these things as well. Dave and I try to exercise at least a few times a week together. I think I may also add yoga to my regimen. Yoga always makes me so relaxed.

I don't know if there is any great point to my lengthy blog here, but I've just had a lot of thoughts about this lately. Ultimately my goal is not to have to 'diet', but to feel good about myself at any stage of my life and any weight, and to eat things that are good for me and make me feel better physically and emotionally. As women we put way too much pressure on ourselves to look 'this' way or 'that'. We even talk about each other negatively when we don't look 'that' way. Why is that? Terribly ridiculous. We do it to ourselves, and we do it to each other. Let's not, eh? Today I'm going to embrace the love handles, the jiggles, and the cellulite! Today I am going to love my body in any way, shape or form.

The end.

Busy, busy me!

Holy moly, it seems like work never stops! I'm an Event Planner for a direct marketing company in Lehi and I enjoy it - especially the distributors I get to meet from all over the world. They are fabulous people! Being the only planner for this company that has an event EVERY month, I get really swamped. I enjoy tending to all of the little details, but man, it can make a girl tired. I just came back from doing an event at the Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville. The event was fabulous! Everyone was excited and left with a greater desire to get out there and achieve their goals, which is exactly what we like to hear. I left with a greater desire for a little time off! Luckily I was able to tack on a stop-over in Charlotte for a few days to visit Caiti, Kurt & the boys. My Dave booked a flight and met me there. It was so nice to see him after the stress of those days in Nashville! He's such a calming presence in my life. I appreciate him so much!
Two of my favorite trips total relaxation are being at Caiti's and being in Hawaii. Caiti is another calming presence in my life. It's so nice to know that I don't have to do ANYTHING when I'm visiting her. I can sit and chill with the nephews (they are growing up so fast!), do a little shopping, take a wee drive, and sleep as long as I want. Seriously, it is heaven to me. This time it was fun to watch Dave playing anything from football to bey-blades with Gavin & Ryan. It was also adorable to watch 7 year old Ryan trying to be as cuddly with Dave as I was. He loves "Uncle" Dave.
Since Caiti's internet card didn't work so well on my computer, I was forced to do as little work as possible. Totally fine with me.
Being back at work for 3 days I'm already ready to go back to Charlotte. Work is good, but vacation is so very nice.
The cute ones below...


Liam at 5 months. He is a happy baby boy!

Gavin, Ryan, Auntie & Dave. Doing what we do best.

Day of the Irish

It's a big day in the Curran household. We like today. We like green. We like corned beef and cabbage. We like our ancestry. We are proud little suckers of our Irish background. We may not celebrate it like they do in my favored country of Ireland, but creating traditions and celebrating our heritage here in the U.S. is what it's all about.

We wear green, yes. Ireland is a fantastically green place. Rolling hills as far as the eye can see.
Such a fantastic place!
We eat Lucky Charms. Thank you to General Mills for creating such a delightful treat. Growing up we always knew we'd at least get one bowl of sugar cereal on this blessed day. Sometimes we ate porridge with green food coloring (not totally the favorite, but the green definitely changed it up). Sometimes mom came to our class in elementary school pretending to be a leprechaun, and she showed how saying the magic words, "come on Leprechaun" would change the porridge to a green color. All kids were in mutual awe.
We sometimes talk in an Irish accent. It's just for kicks and giggles. Quinn is probably better at it than the rest of us.
We talk up our names and how Irish they are, and just how Irish we are. We're glad mom and dad gave us names we could brag about.
We watch our favorite movies on this day. As kids it was "Darby O'Gill and the Little People". Shannon is still afraid of the Banshee. These days I watch "The Quiet Man" with more frequency. It's a delightful little movie. John Wayne & Maureen O'Hara are a perfect pair.

When visiting Ireland, these are the foods I like eating:




I know we have these in the U.S., but believe me when I say that the chocolate there is 100 times better!


Oh butter, delicious butter! Black bread and butter is super tasty. This girl is a fan of Kerry Gold.


I'm pretty much a fan of breakfast in general, but Irish breakfasts take the cake! The only thing missing in this picture is white pudding. It's a type of sausage mixed with oatmeal, onions and spices. If you're really brave, try the black pudding. It has pig's blood in it. I've had it many times and liked it, actually.

Oh how I miss my Ireland! My cousin Brigid will be married in Dublin and I hope, hope I can go. To end my little post here, enjoy a wee bit of "The Quiet Man".

Go here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5BjMTVnNuE&feature=related

20 is the magic number

This chica is making some goals, and 20 is the goal (at least for the next two months).
My brother Sean and his Bri are getting married May 20th, and I'd like to look a little thinner in those pictures. So I, Erincita, am going to let the world know this (or whoever the heck even reads my wee blog). I am tired of doing this half-way. I am ready to LOSE IT!

On your mark, get set, GOAL!!

My Valentine...

He.is.fabulous.

Ode to Groundhog Day