oh. herrow, update on life. (:

so this should be a long post... hopefully.. unless i get sick of typing and leave the rest for another day. which is also quite possible because I've been procrastinating even writing this far for the past week-

so lets start off with a shout out for Mothers Day. (:

so here's a little bit about my mama. i love her lots.

besides giving her the mother of the year award, i'd like to give her the most beautiful person award. for really... she is just that.

(This picture is my favorite)

quite often she is mistaken for my sister..

Which is justified- because she's just an all around awesome mom. Its so much fun being able to just hang out with her, and even get pedicures some days. Its also really fun to bug her and try to get on her nerves. because when she snaps back with that wit of hers... it can be quite entertaining.. because she is very weird herself.

anyways... this is a shout out to you mom! love you! happy mothers day (:

Now.. on to other business.

I've been asked a lot a lot of times by many people for an update on my little sis Shaily. and to be truly honest about it... i don't know very much! When we went up to Idaho to visit, she had been discharged from the hospital and she had a hospital bed in the living room of the house. She had an "External Fixator" through her hips/ pelvis area... so they were rod type looking things that came out through three areas. She had a few bruises on her body and had a bunch of scars from where the needles poked and prodded her all the time. I think she told me she had stitches/ stables on her side that had already been removed and something else on her back. Makes you realize how the simple little things we do every day are taken for granted very easily. Just getting up to go to the bathroom was a huge chore. She needed help moving her legs off the bed, they needed to be kept in a straight line... and then she would use a walker to stand and turn 90 degrees into a wheelchair... go to the bathroom and repeat that.. stand, turn.. sit. While we were there she was happy and gorgeous as always. (: She would be up in her chair for a few hours of the day, but would want to lay down a lot when she got dizzy, sick, or started hurting too bad... they keep finding new sprains/ pains as the days went on which was expected because of the shock her body was still going through. She got a new iPad that keeps her busy, and had a whoollllllle bunch of flowers given by tons of people. (:

So thats all I know from a first hand account from visiting idaho about a month ago.. This last week was a month since the accident.. and she got the external fixator removed from her hips/ pelvis. And the doctor gave it to her to keep ;) My dad said that they found a few broken ribs and possible nerve damage to her legs, but they really wont know for sure till she can start walking on her own in about 3 months. She will probably be able to be up on crutches within 6 weeks... hopefully *fingers crossed* Me and sterling really want her to come out to visit us in Cali this summer (: SOOO there is the update and you all know about as much as I do! I've Tango'd with her once (video chat over the iPad)... but haven't since the hospital... texting every little bit... (WHENEVER SHE FREAKIN TEXTS BACK, that is) haha jk. we wuv her.

NOWWW i'm going to update on CALI life. Everyone knows we're here, yes... and i posted about SAN FRAN... yes.. but i have been asked to update on daily life and what we do out here and what summer life consists of. wait no longer... dear people... for the time has come for this update. (as uneventful as it will probably be... because of the lack there-of of new pictures)

So... we love it here. I do ESPESCIALLY. because for ONE... it is really hot here, and for TWO... school is all over. I swear.. that one weekend of moving out of our apartment, packing everything, cleaning everything top to bottom for check out... putting everything we wont need for 4 months into storage (which was hard to decide on everything)... then having 2 outfits for 3 days in a duffle bag, and sleeping at my mom's house saturday- sunday night... studying and taking my finals.. and THENNN driving the drive to CA.. not being able to get into our apartment for another day, so referring back to the duffel back i talked about earlier... yes. i was hating it. i didn't think i'd survive that 4 days.. So when I tell you that its good to be here... believe me. its good to be here.

Our cat is especially loving it, because she has 1: discovered screen doors- which she loves to climb daily. 2: found that she loves eating mosquito eater bugs... and waits for the moment one finds its way inside to play with it for a while then chow down. 3: there are many many many ducks and geese and little baby ones too all over our apartment complex all the time.. and she likes them. i think. 4: has become an outdoor kitty at heart ever since we took her on a walk through the park. And can i just add here... that she doesn't walk like she should on her harness/ leash. she more... sits, rolls, lays, and chases bugs.. but when it comes time for us to go a certain direction... she will lay on her back, upside down- chewing on her collar while we pull her along the sidewalk.

5: ever since we took her outside on that first walk (refer to picture above)... though it may look like she was hating life... she now tries to escape every time we open the front door of our apartment and if she see's us walking to the patio door... she bolts out. *That was the MAIN reason I wanted a 2nd floor!... though a time or two she has looked reallllly tempted to jump down after ducks or birds.

We took her out another time because we thought it would help her not be such an escape kitty. So... we took her on another walk through the apartments--- A little intimidated by the massive geese who hiss at any passer-by... she did make friends with a few birds in the trees. Yes... she followed them to the very top and stayed as long as her heart desired. Actually I sent sterling up in the tree to get her after about a half hour of her sitting in the highest branches just swaying her tail back and forth chattering with her feathered friends. We love watching her in the window chattering for hours on end at all the new animals. --Yes.. TO-DO. We're not in Kansas anymore. -- She's a Cali girl.

Enough about the cat, you say... ok.

Life out here has been super fun and exciting trying to get into the swing of things, and getting back into the summer routine. Which.. YES.. i will tell you about.

So. IN A NUTSHELL. Sterling works for a Home Alarm Systems company called Pinnacle Security. He and our dearest friend Brett are managing the Stockton, California office together with reps that are under them selling as well. There are 5 married couples and 6 including a technician and his wife. Currently there are 3 single guys with more coming out each week.

Sterling works Monday through Friday meetings/ correlation noon-1pm then out knocking 1pm- ...till as long as it takes.. Usually they knock till a half hour past dark.. but sometimes there will be someone in a home longer, so the boys won't get home till 11 or later some nights (especially the days that they drive an hour+ to an area) On Saturday's they have their meetings at 9am and are gone till the same times. Sunday's are their only days off through the WHOLE summer long. We go to a ward at 9am that is about a half mile away (amazing, right??) and do whatever for the rest of the day!!

LEt me just add here... I like our ward.. I do. its just that I knew *confirmed* for the first time that we weren't in utah anymore, when we went to church on our first Sunday.. which was Fast and Testimony meeting.. and a lady stood up and spoke of how sad she was that her cousin was shot and killed that one day and how grateful she was "that that guy didn't shoot her down after he had shot so many people dead to the ground.." that ... realllllllly had mine and sterling's eyes WIDE open... and as I looked around... not many people seemed too phased about it. like it was a weekly occurring event here in Stockton, CA.

Usually the guys prefer to relax at its finest on Sunday's by laying out at the pool and doing nothing all day. Which is completely understandable... their job is not easy by no means... and we are super proud of our hubbies. (:

My days out here have been pretty busy so far.. but not busy in the School/work sense of the word. Since Mornings are the only time I have with Sterling, I usually wake up with him and we make breakfast, then go to the Gym across the street (our apartment gym is terrible). We have been stretching out a 7-day pass as long as we can... and then we will probably get a 7 day pass to 24 hour fitness down the street.. then we'll decide on one. We come home and do whatever, hang out, pool, run errands together, go on a walk... etc. Sterling will leave to his meetings around 11:45 and I will pack him a lunch to take and eat on the road. Thats all he will get to eat (besides a power-bar he keeps in his pocket) until he gets home late at night. And I have a dinner waiting for when he gets home.*together* "AWWWWW" (: i know i know.. i do what I can. lol. Its hard getting into the swing of things and eating on such a weird schedule.

During the day.. me and a couple of the other wives.. sometimes more.. hang out together. Some days (most days so far) we will go to the pool for an hour or so and since i'm the only one without kids out here.. we don't stay long because... its hard to just lay out and relax when one wants to crawl and stick her face in the water, and the other is a tad bit hungry, or just plain mad (:

We carpool to Costco/ Walmart or wherever we need to go for the weeks groceries or whatever after that (usually only one or 2 days of the week).

There is a Mall and a billion billion stores 2.0 miles away exactly, and we have an awesome walking trail that takes us right there. So we have done that a few times with the strollers and walked around for a bit and head home. It takes us about 40 minutes to walk there and 40 back... so by the time we are done its usually a 3 hour trip of walking.. SO awesome and actually really fun. (:

We are looking for a public library to start going to, because I (for one) want to read a bunch of books this summer. . . hopefully i do that.

One night a week, we try to have a group dinner. Where we will all make one big dinner at someone's apartment for all the guys, and eat and play games after... (Catch phrase was last week:)) Its hard to do that more than once a week because when the guys are done for the day.. they are usually pooped. We are going to get a FAmily Night started on Sunday nights (not on monday for the reasons above.)

This weekend should be really fun! Sterling has a few things planned for my birthday (which we will be celebrating on Sunday because he is going to work on Monday). Might have a little pool party fun, or go out to din-din Saturday night. Who knows... but its the big 2-1... gotta be EPIC, right???

Yesterday, we bought a new car!!! Sterling was NOT fond of putting a million miles onto our Murano which... by the way... quite loves to just slurp up the gas at 19 MPG... and at 4.50 a gallon, driving an hour away to area, and driving EVERY DAY... it was not a happy deal.

So.. we bought a car that (as my mother put it) likes to "sip" gas. (:

A beautiful Brand new BLACK 2012 Honda Civic! woooot woooottt.. applause please. (: I really do love it though. I cant wait till i'll get a chance to drive it this fall!!! It will definitely save us money in the long run with the summers and Sterling putting 500 thousand miles on the car a year. (exaggeration, a bit?)

THERE YOU GO, dear people.

that is an update.. and i have to go wake up the snoring prince to go to the gym with me.

xoxo