Summer '12 California Trip

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A few weeks ago, the boyfriend and I hopped on the plane en route to Orange County, California. Joe had been to California once before, but I told him that trip didn't count since it was for work and he was only in LA area for 24 hours. 
Not only did my parents want to see me (at least) once during my summer vacation from classes, but they wanted to meet Joe, and I was craving a break from the Texas weather. What better way to beat the heat than to leave the kitchen--am I right?!
Now, how do you show someone ALL of your hometown in just three days? Especially when your hometown is in the beautiful state of California? I decided it was time to get my tourist gear on and show Joe the landmark sites and attractions that make my home-state a great place to visit. From Newport Beach to the Huntington Beach disc golf course, from Old Towne Orange to Main St. in Huntington Beach, from Disneyland to UC Irvine area, I gave my man the glorious, drawn out tour of California, making sure he saw everything from the beautiful beaches to the hole-in-the-wall diners and bars.

Pictured: Myself in front of the Newport Beach shore line. We went to the beautiful shores of Newport Beach so Joe could get the full effect of California Beach scenery. Isn't this panoramic feature cool?! Joe downloaded the PhotoSynth app on his iPhone to be able to capture beautiful panoramic scenes while we were on vacation.

Pictured: Joe and myself at Taco Mesa in Costa Mesa. I made sure to show Joe the difference between Tex-Mex and Surf-n-Turf (California) Mex. We enjoyed some beach-style Mexican seafood at Taco Mesa with complimenting Sangria.

Pictured: Joe posing with Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse. What So-Cal vacation would be complete without a trip to Disneyland? Because I worked at the Disneyland Resort for a few years, I had been gifted several complimentary tickets seasonally to use with family and friends. I took advantage of these tickets and shared "The Happiest Place on Earth" with Joe for a full day. We're talkin' 10 AM to 11 PM with no stops in between!

Pictured: Joe and myself in front of the Hollywood Blvd. mural in California Adventure. I made sure to take advantage of every photo-op available, like this surprisingly realistic mural in California Adventure.

Pictured: the World of Color lake in California Adventure. I thought California Adventure was the perfect "sample" to show Joe different highlights of my hometown state. Just look at the mix of sunlight, lake, and palm trees pictured!

Pictured: Joe and myself in front of the brand new Cars Land. Cars Land was merely an idea when I moved to Texas last year. I had heard the rumors and seen the walls being blocked off for where they considered putting the new attractions, but I never got to see the final product in all its glory. It was great to experience a Disney "first" with Joe.

Pictured: myself in front of the Cars Land scenery. Doesn't it look like I'm actually on the side of the Grand Canyon or some place of the sort?! Loved the realistic details in Cars Land. 

Pictured: The outside building of the Hollywood Tower of Terror ride. This is by far one of my FAVORITE rides in Disneyland as a whole. I was so happy when I saw they wait was a mere 7 minutes for this one! I grabbed Joe's hand and dragged him through the spooky hotel, and giggled as he screamed on all the drops! Hee hee.

Pictured: Minnie Mouse on Main St. in Disneyland. After we were done enjoying all that California Adventure had to offer, we headed across to the world-famous Disneyland and began to take on all the popular rides at the resort.

Pictured: Joe and I on the Space Mountain ride. It was near the end of the day; Joe and I were exhausted. We had gone on over 15 rides, saw several parades and shows, watched the fireworks, and walked around for hours. But I couldn't let him leave the park without riding on my absolute FAVORITE ride in Disneyland--Space Mountain. He was a little hesitant to go wait in the 15-minute line, but once we sat front row for the last roller coaster of the day, he enjoyed every moment of the ride, and thanked me after for making him go on it :-) 

Pictured: Joe and myself in our California shirts. What summer trip would be complete without a souvenir? At the end of our Disneyland trip, during our walk back to the car through Downtown Disney, I stopped and picked up this shirts as a conclusion to our trip. I figured they were convenient and something we'd actually wear and recall our fun trip with each time we use them :-)

So that, in total, was our fun California trip. Joe concurred that he got to see most of California, and that he had a wonderful time. My family loved meeting him, and it was great to be back on my stomping grounds... even for just a few short days.
How many of you went on fun trips this summer? Maybe even vacationed in a different town than your own? Link those posts up, I would love to see! :-)

My Sunday Snaps post: week 3

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This post had been put on the back burner, because the boyfriend (Joe) and I traveled to California EARLY Friday morning and have been on the go for the last few days. I am EXHAUSTED, but I think I was a perfect tour guide for the mister in my hometown :-) My "Sunday Snaps" post consists of a little sneak peek of our weekend together (a full post will come later on when I'm done vacationing!) Enjoy, and don't forget to go here and link up for this week's Sunday Snaps link party!

Joe and I enjoyed a round of disc-golf with my Dad in Huntington Beach this weekend. It was great to be able to play an outdoor sport without worrying about the Texas heat or those pesky mosquitos! 

"The Big Mouse" would be the reason for our energetic demise yesterday. Joe and I spent the WHOLE day at Disneyland, going on every ride we possibly could and seeing every show available. Needless to say, we were SO tired last night and are SO sore this morning!

It's these moments where I'm ashamed to say I used to be able to go on the Disney rides anytime I pleased while being a cast member... HOW does the newbie end up beating me on the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters' game?!

I have literally JUST gotten home after dropping Joe off at the airport, and am finally decompressing from the busy-but-fun past few days. Not pictured yet are the shots from the line-dancing bar I dragged him to on Friday to meet my friends, a day at the beach where we wrote our names in the sand, fun times on main street in Huntington Beach, and lunch/dinners with my family members at various locations. All in all, I think he had the ultimate California experience, complete with a souvenir shirt I bought him at the end :-) Hope y'all had great weekends, as well! Can't wait to see those pictures on this week's Sunday Snaps Link Up!

Happy Anniversary to ME!

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Hey y’all! I guest blogged today over at A Beautiful Day with Jules, and loved the content of my guest post so much that I thought I'd share it with y'all here today! :-)

I moved to Texas from California a year ago this week, and I thought it was only fitting that I create a blog post to commemorate my first anniversary here in the ‘ole hot state (since as I’ve mentioned in SEVERAL previous posts, I always like to celebrate the ‘little’ things)!

On August 6^th, 2011, I packed my bags and headed over to this glorious state. I had NO idea what I was in for, but managed to keep an excited smile planted on my face as I transferred my poor body from a cool 70 degrees to 100+ degrees in a matter of two days.

Since living here in Texas, I have learned and picked up so many things/habits I didn’t know in California. One of which is the oh-so-famous “y’all”! I am SO guilty of this one! It’s just so convenient. Why the conjoined word phrase hasn’t mozied its way on down to CA is beyond me!

I REALLY learned what football is all about here—especially college football! I could not believe how much fun it was getting to attend my university’s first game of the year… even if we didn’t win (anyone who knows about UNT knows we don’t have the best track record when it comes to winning football games).

I’ve learned about love and I’ve learned about heartache. I’ve learned the true meaning of friendship and how crazy but oh-so-fun it can be to live with 3 random girls. I’m still constantly learning things here in Texas (like how much mosquitoes love my sweet blood), but I’m so proud and so happy to call it my home for the time being. J So cheers to my first anniversary here in Texas, and cheers to the blogging community for enduring my mini-celebration! ;-)

It's been a great ride here at City Girl Gone Country. I'm still amazed when my DIY posts like my T-shirt to Tank Tutorial gets countless views each day (you like me, you really like me!). I can't wait to see what comes next, and look forward to sharing more crafty things in the future with y'all!

Link Up: The Nail Files

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Hey y'all! Today I'm linking up with Tara at Fabulous But Evil for Today's post/link-up: The Nail Files!






A week ago I asked to rummage through my dear friend Elisha's nail polish before we went out on the town. While rummaging through her polish box, I came across a hot pink color that caught my eye. When I picked up the bottle, I was surprised to see the words "crackle overcoat." I knew I had to try it out!

I picked a mint color as the base coat...

From Blah-b to Fab: DIY Thrifty Gift

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Thrifty Gift: Riddles and Rhymes

No one likes showing up to a birthday party without a gift. But at times there are reasons beyond your control for not being able to have one. Perhaps you couldn't find the coveted jewelry they wanted, completely forgot about the party until day of and didn't find anything gift-able, or, worse yet, didn't have the money to get anything. But what if you could make a sentimental, heartfelt, and enjoyable gift for just under $10?

Sweet Summer Time '12

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Well, I had been preparing a Mid-Spring Round Up with a plethora of photographs, but my college career decided that studying and grades were more important. How dare she (and yes, my career is of female gender).


Enough excuses silliness aside; allow me to catch you up on my life--bullet point style. Why? Because bullet points are funner for you to read and lazier easier for me to write.

A Dose of Reality

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So, the truth as to why I haven't updated this blog since NYE is a mixture of several things. This includes writer's block, being busy with New Year's events, and even celebrating my 21st birthday (which was a blast, pictures to come soon!). However, the main reason as to why I haven't blogged is because I was working on a draft that talked about the downsides to California, but the reality is that California is awesome, it is just different, much like any other state.

Home is a heartfelt word. It means more than a lease, than a house and property, than a bed to sleep on. It is where your heart belongs, where your soul is at rest and you are sincerely at peace.

New Year, New Perspectives

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As 2011 comes to an end, I love to go back through my photos and take a mental "snapshot" of the year.

My friend from Hawaii posted a good quote recently about pictures, saying that,"You never see the hard times in a photograph, but that's what gets you from one happy snapshot to the next."

Sure life has it's ups and downs, but being that New Year's Eve is fast approaching, a little rosy retrospection never hurt anyone! Let's take a little snapshot review of my past year:

School life

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Hello family and friends!

Since schedules are truly chaotic these days, I thought it would be best to create a website that was easy enough to navigate for everyone to read in order to see how things are going on my end!

Texas is great! And by great I mean unbearably hot! Now, I enjoyed the weather when I first got here. Every time I'd step outside I felt as if I was stepping into a sauna, and I absolutely loved it! However, we got rain just 30 minutes south of my town, and the humidity definitely took its toll during my first day on campus!