Selfish Years

So, I have always been told that these are my selfish years. The years of my life where I should live it up and be selfish. Worry about myself. Do things for me. Look out for my best interests. Be concerned with my well being and do what makes me happy. They are called the 'selfish years' because one day there will be no time for selfishness. My life will revolve around other people. It won't be about just me anymore. It will be about my husband, and my kids, and all the responsibilities that come with. And for a while, I followed and agreed with this philosophy of the so-called 'selfish years'. But, I have recently changed my mind. I feel like being in this 'selfish' state of mind is depressing. There is only so much joy I can take from doing things that only benefit me. I like helping others. And I want to help in any way I can. I used to do more community service. I used to be more involved. Now, I feel like a complete degenerate that has so much to give, but has been to 'selfish' to do so. I think this is the time to give. Because according to this theory, I won't have much time to give later. So, my new thing is that I want to volunteer. I want to do something good. Because although I will hopefully be helping others, I know I will be the one who will benefit the most from the experience.

And to end on a scrappy note. Just a few LO's I did this weekend. Loving the "Uncle Sam" reference on the second page. Classic! Thanks for peeking! Adios people!

Oh my goodness!

I actually scrapped. It has been over a month since I even looked at my stack of paper heaven that lives on my table. Man oh man did it feel good to create. My girl Maggs came over and we watched the Last Kiss, which I have to admit that I really enjoyed. I loved the realness of the movie. The fight scenes were so so real, just how it tends to happen in real life. I kept thinking to myself, "Man, women are Craaaazzzyyy!!" And it's true. Girls do dumb things, especially when they are mad. But, dudes are assholes (for the most part). So it evens out. Ok, I need to stop being Dr. Phil and get back to my point. So, I was secretely hoping that Maggs would fall to the dark side when she saw all my scrap goodies sprawled out all over my house, but sadly enough, she didn't. Anywho, when she left, I finished what I had started, and Matty and Louie kept me company. My boys are so good to me. So, I made a page about my resolutions. Yes, I know I am way tardy, but I'm Bolivia. Tardy is my first, middle, and last name. Ok, so without further ado, here is the blurry representation of my page. Peanut Praise is highly appreciated! Happy Friday my little chickens.

Bad Blogger!

I know, I know. I totally suck. So much going on. Not enough time to blog. Well, that is a lie. There is always enough time. I have just chosen not to. Mostly because I hate posting without a picture. Or a scrappy. Or some kind of pizzazz! And I hate being boring like that. Anyways, here is a status on what has or has not been going on.

I've been somewhat annoyed at life lately. Ever since I got home from Bolivia I have had NO TIME for anything. No Natalie Time. And Nat-Time is crucial to my happiness. I have not scrapped in over a month, which probably means i have lost my creative mojo. I have entered the "hate" stage on my feelings towards my job. It used to be "strongly disike, with a hint of whatever." Now it has quickly progressed into the "My brain is dying a slow death by having to be here every effing morning." I am sick of pretending to work, when in reality, I'm surfing TwoPeas and online shopping for about 7.5 of the 8 hours I am here. Also, I have been a fat slob all of 2007. So much for resolutions. I have yet to go to the gym, and I have been eating out like its my fat ass job to be some fast food critic. I am disgusted with myself. My belated birthday dinner got cancelled due to snow last Sunday. But at least I got to stay home all day and watch football and eat choclate cake and french fries....in true fat girl fashion. Hmm, what else. My bestest friend at work got fired, or as we are calling it, "Got Resigned." I am seriously in depression mode without her. She was the person who made the day bearable. And now, I'm flying solo. I am one sad, pathetic, financial analyst.

In good news, I am taking a class downtown. You see, I have known for quite some time now that I have been getting progresively dumber. But then the other day, when Matt was dictating an address to me, and I spelled Suite as Sweet, I knew it was time to go back to school. Also, Vail was amazing. Great conditions, great company. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday. And my sister is coming home this weekend and that is super. But what is even more super is that we might go out and ride one day. Suite! And Michelle gave me the best present ever - a gift card to TwoPeas. She totally made my day.

SO, that is it it for now. I have to go back to pretending to work. Happy Hump Day!

Toro Toro

Toro Toro. A story through pictures.
It begins with 5 hours of off-roading...

And a few pit stops along the way...
And a road block about half-way through.
And so we had to take an even more scenic, and more dangerous route.And here are Erika and Danny stuck on the other side of the river.
And the river was high, so we sent Diego to test out the waters.
But we finally made it. So Erika and I rejoiced!
And I decided to climb a tree. And I looked like a boy while doing so.
And we climbed some mountain and I took a picture of my cousins.
And we had to cross more rivers to get to El Vergel. And I met this boy along the way. A boy who had to walk 35km to get to his pueblo. Crazy!And then we got stuck in the mud and the boys had to act manly to get us out.And then Erika learned how to shoot a gun, for fun, not self-defense.And then our trip was over, but not before taking some awesome family pictures.

That, my friends, was my trip to Toro Toro in a nutshell. Now I have to get some work done. Because I've been a total slacker this week. And I leave for the airport at 2. So I don't have much time. But, a little birdie (the weatherman) told me that it's snowing in Vail. Today, tomorrow, and so on. This is music to my ears. It's going to be a good birthday! Be back Tuesday. Much love.

Back from BA

Just arrived back to Bolivia from Buenos Aires.
I´m currently in the Santa Cruz airport.
Waiting for my connecting flight back to Cochabamba.
Already missing the good looking men.
And the delicious empanadas.
I have much to tell about BA.
It´s such an awesome city.
It has a very European feel to it.
And it has great shopping.
I got like 5 pairs of shoes.
And a beautiful leather handbag.
Oh, you have to see it to appreciate it.
I will post pics later.

Ok, so in brief, a BA Fact Sheet.
AKA. Things I learned/noticed in BA.

Women dress super cute, but wear mostly flat shoes.
Traffic lights turn yellow before turning green-love this idea.
Mosquitos come in so many different shapes and sizes, and colors.
Women´s undies are a cross between thong and bikini. Does not look comfortable.
VPL (Visible Panty Lines) are acceptable.
Bra´s are not required, but breast implants are a must.
Calle Florida and Av. 9 de Julio remind me so much of Madrid.
The leather is the best in the world. So soft you could sleep in it.
Women don`t like SPF b/c most of them look like prunes by age 55.
All fat people are tourists.
The meat empanadas are delish!
All male dogs have saggy balls. Go figure.
There is a cafe in every corner.
Croissants are called media lunas.
Most men have long, if not shaggy, hair. And they are sexy.
The dulce de leche ice cream is to die for.
And last but not least,
The cubanitos from Freddo are so darn tasty.
I am missing them already.

Ok, Happy New Years everyone!!
Off to catch my flight.
Then home to shave my legs,
Throw on my dress,
And paint the town Merlot.
In Bolivia we party ALL night
and ALL morning on New Years...
So wish me luck.
It´s going to be a looonnng night!!!

The Big C is over.

So Christmas is over.
It´s ok cause lately I haven´t been a big fan.
And it never really feels like Christmas when I´m here.
I mean, first of all its summer here.
So that´s wierd.
But what I do like about Christmas here
is that we give out food to all the poor children.
It´s such a joy being able to do that.
The look on their faces is so sweet.
They are so cute.
They are so thankful.
They are so poor yet so happy.
I love being able to be part of that.
We gave out food to over 1,500 kids.
Loving that feeling.
Wish I could do things like this more often.

Tomorrow I leave for Buenos Aires.
So very pumped about that.
Always love going to new places.

And all I have left to say is that I miss youMatty.
I keep thinking about how much fun you´d be having here.
I miss you terribly. I´ll be home soon.

Greetings!!

Yo Yo Yo!!
I am here in the sweet city of Cochabamba, Boliva.
Where the weather is hot,
And the food is to die for.
So here is an update of the events thus far.

Our flight from DC to Miami was cancelled due to fog.
Erika and I stood in line for over 4 hours at Reagan.
We ended up going via Tampa, then to Miami.
Missed our flight in Miami and had to get put on a flight that left at 2AM
We didn´t even board the plane until 4AM.
But, didn´t take off until 6:30AM. Sucked.
Almost missed our flight from Santa Cruz to Cochabamba.
34 hours later, we arrived in Cochabamba. Yes, I said 34.
To top it off, our luggage, all TEN suitcases, did not arrive.
They finally arrived YESTERDAY, 5 days later.
But I still went out Saturday, after buying clothes in la Cancha.
I looked so hot! Oh, did I say hot, I meant hideous!
I wore my glasses out. Yeah, not cool.
Especially in a city where everyone dresses to impress.
But it didn´t matter. We drank and danced until the sun came up.
I don´t even remember what time I got home.
I just attempted to drink my ugliness away.

Anyways, Sunday we went to a parillada.
Which means I ate lots of yumminess.
Yesterday we went to have sushi. Yum.
Today Erika and I got pedicures
and our got our hair did....
For a total of $10 for both of us.
Sweet, huh!
Gotta love the cheap cost of labor here.
Tomorrow we leave for Toro Toro.
Which translates to Bull Bull.
Will be gone for 4 days.
Later friends.

Just In Case

Ok, so as I'm sure you've heard.
I leave for BOLIVIA today!!
Woot Woot!
So freaking exciting!
But tell me why I'm at work right now?
Desperately trying to type a report before my flight.
Pathetic! And quite depressing.
So I'm not going to talk about it anymore.
Anyways, I will be bringing my D80.
And I hope to take lots and lots of pictures.
And post them as I go.
But as we all know, Bolivia is a less developed country.
And sometimes (ok all the time) their interenet is verrrry slllooooowww!
So I will try my hardest but I can't make any promises.
So just in case I don't post until January....
Everyone have a fabulous holiday and a sloppy drunk New Years!
I'm sure goig to miss 2006. It was a good year.
Much love.

It's About Time!

It's about time that I post some scrappies.
I have been working so hard to get LOs done in time for the trip.
Working so hard that I never post them.
Not here. Not TwoPeas. No posts.
What can I say? I've been lazy.
Ok. I'm rambling.
Anyways, so far I have 20 or so LOs complete.
Not bad for such short notice, right?!?!
Some of them are better than others.
Some days I was more inspired than others.
And some days I just didn't care what it looked like.
(Although that is never 100% true - I always care)
Like the one with all the leftover scraps.
That one was one where I just wanted to do whatever.
And it turned out alright. Super simple.
Here is sneak peak of my parent's album.
Beginning with the cover. To Russia We Go....

Some of the scans are so shitty. I am too lazy to scan them and paste and copy them together. Yuck. As if I have time for that. My favorite is the one of my daddy riding the bike in Moscow. How cute is that one?!?!? He looks like a little kid having the time of his life. Ok. Muuuust got to bed. I am up waaayyyy tooooo late. Leave some comments on the scrappies to make my day!

Food.

Ok so maybe I'm a little late on putting up my Turkey Day pictures. But, better late than never right? My dad made the most delicious turkey this year. Best one ever! So proud of him. Erika and I were in charge of the sweet potato mashed potatoes. I have to say we did an excellent job. Especially with the "design." And it definitely got eaten...to the point of no return. We were sad there weren't any leftovers. But what can we say? We are excellent chefs.

Ok, more food dedications. The other day, I made Tortilla Espanola for dinner and it came out PERFECT. Like seriously, perfect. Just call me Rachel Ray. I was shocked at its perfection. Keeping the tortilla together when you flip it is so hard for me and this time I flipped it right. So pumped about that. I just had to take pictures. But I was hungry that I ate some first. Ha.

And here is the yummy (uncooked) pizza that my Fatty Matty made for dinner the other night. We take turns making dinner. He gets Mon, Wed, Fri. And I get Tue & Thur (because he's in class). And during the weekend, we just do whatever. Take turns. Eat out. Whatever. But he's a killer cook. So happy to have him and his yummy eats.

Oh and I got a haircut today. Went to a new girl that Maggi recommended. I can't seem to find a good hair dresser in the MD/DC/VA area. So freaking annoying. Maybe I'm just too picky. Will post pictures tomorrow. Adios!!