dear diary

I was at my parent's house last night, digging through the closet in my former bedroom looking for some old CD's (OK, I was looking for my Hanson CD, but more on that later), when I found three boxes labelled with "Alyssa's Room." It turns out, these three boxes were from the house previous to the one that my parents currently live in. We moved houses after my freshman year in high school and little did I know that these boxes were basically time capsules from my elementary and middle school years. 

Inside, there were some old photos and notes from friends, but the highlights were definitely a two page handwritten letter to a member of *NSYNC and some pages of a diary I kept between the ages of 7-8. The letter to *NSYNC will be under tight security until I am dead and gone because the embarrassment is actually too much for me to bear. But I thought I would share some of the things that apparently were important enough for me to document as a child.

Now I am going to put on a play. Nobody knows what part they want to be. The hard part is Karyl can't read and she wants to be in the play. How are we going to teach her how to read? She better know how to read before the play. - 12/26/94, Age 7

I was eating dinner. Then Karyl (my sister) gurgled. Then I asked for seconds on milk. My mom said No because she knew I was going to gurgle. We laughed so hard when I was going to drink my milk. So I threw up my milk. Now I am up in a timeout. - 12/26/94, Age 7

Today I don't know what to do. Today is the most boring day in my life. I don't know if it will get better. I hope it gets better. Also Karyl blames everything on me. Please make this a better day. - 12/27/94, Age 7

Right now I'm not doing so good this morning. This is why: My shoe is not cooperating, my hair is not cooperating. And that's about it. - 6/1/95, Age 8

Dear Diary, this morning is not going good. First of all we had to clean up my whole toy room and I tell ya it was a mess. The worst part is we have to clean up the other half of the toy room tomorrow since we only did one half this morning. And Karyl is going to be a pain today! I know it! - 8/3/95, Age 8

I literally was crying as I read these because I was laughing so hard. I also wrote some entries about getting into fights with friends and feeling left out because a boy wasn't paying attention to me! Apparently I wasn't always the biggest fan of my sister, my hair problems started earlier than I thought, and at eight I was already acting like a moody teenager. I was such a weird, dramatic kid and I wouldn't have it any other way because these diary entries make for some very entertaining reading material! 

ps - my sister is not as bad as my 8-year-old self makes her sound...well, not any more :) 



a blast from the past -- it's a beautiful thing

a bride's guide to wedding dress shopping

Serena Grace Photography

You’re engaged! Congratulations! Now it’s time to answer the all-important question: What will you wear down the aisle? Many brides do not realize that wedding dress shopping can be one of the most stressful parts of planning for the big day. There is tremendous pressure on a bride-to-be to pick the perfect dress and that pressure can cause a lot of unnecessary stress. Skip the drama and follow these Do’s and Don’ts for how to shop for your wedding dress and keep your sanity.

Do: Have some idea of what your ideal dress would look like before you go shopping.

Just because you’ve never stepped into a bridal boutique before doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have some basic guidelines for what you want in a wedding dress. Bridal magazines are a newly engaged gal’s Bible. You should arrive to the bridal store prepared with two or three pictures of your top looks so that your bridal consultant will have an idea of your style. With so many choices, it is helpful to have a starting point so you are not just trying on dresses at random.

Don’t: Be too narrow-minded.

Knowing what you want is a good thing, but being too set in your ways might cause some conflict. That dress you are in love with may look great on the model, but on you it might look like a fashion disaster. Looks can be deceiving and you’ll never know if a dress is truly “The One” until you try it on. Be open to some alternatives that you might not have thought of originally. You might be surprised to find that the dress you swore you would never wear is actually your dream dress in disguise.

Do: Bring people with you whose opinion you trust.

Selecting the dress you will get married in is a huge decision and you might need support from your family and closest gal-pals. Invite people that you know will give you an honest opinion without letting their own preferences get in the way. Ask your group for advice when you are having trouble deciding whether a dress is right for you. But don’t let anyone bully you into making a decision; set the expectation that people are there to support you, not boss you around! Whether you are with two people or twelve people, wedding dress shopping is a special occasion, and it’s even more special with the ones you love by your side!

Don’t: Completely abandon your budget.

It’s important to remember that everything in your wedding (including your dream dress) has a price tag. It’s really painful to try on a stunning gown that you absolutely love and then realize that it’s way out of your price range. Save yourself the heartache and don’t try on dresses you know you can’t afford. If you are obsessed with a dress that is super expensive, don’t go with your first impulse to charge it to your credit card. Take some time to think about it and look hard at your budget; maybe you can cut back on some other expenses to make more room for the dress. If you can’t make it work, try on similar and more affordable gowns to see if you can find something equally as stunning that won’t break your bank account. Your dress doesn’t have to be a financial burden to be beautiful.

Do: Be patient.

It is a very real possibility that you may not find the dress of your dreams after your first time dress shopping. You may need to try on five, ten, fifteen dresses before you find “The One.” And that’s OK! Feelings of hopelessness might start to creep in after you’ve tried on seventeen dresses and you still haven’t felt that special something you are waiting for. Don’t despair if the whole process takes a little longer than you anticipated. Try not to get overwhelmed and, most importantly, try to have fun! The right dress is out there and when you find it, all of the searching will be completely worth it.

Do you have any other tip or tricks that helped you when wedding dress shopping? Share your bridal secrets in the comments! 

finding the perfect wedding dress -- it's a beautiful thing

fabulous & free - the getty museum

I'm one of those people that loves museums. Every piece of artwork, every sculpture, every artifact is a window into the past; a way for us to remain connected to people who lived hundreds of years before us. Because of this, I think of museums as having a magical quality to them. 


For our sixth month wedding anniversary, my husband took me on a day trip to the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center in Los Angeles (which is different from the Getty Villa in Malibu). The weather was amazing and the grounds of the Getty are as stunning as the artwork inside. My husband and I visited the Getty when we first started dating, but we went at night and so we couldn't appreciate just how beautiful the gardens around the museum are. This time, we barely spent any time indoors! We spent most of the afternoon walking around and taking pictures of our surroundings. 

Admission to the Getty is free of charge, which is incredible considering the amount of artwork they have and how gorgeous the scenery is. Parking, however, is $15 so go in one car with a group of friends or your significant other (seriously, this is such a romantic date spot!). If you visit on Saturdays after 5 pm, the parking is only $10. But plan ahead of time because the museum is closed on Mondays. 


My husband and I had the most amazing time. It was the perfect way to celebrate six months together. Enjoy some of our pictures from the Getty and start thinking about planning your next trip there! 

the getty museum -- it's a beautiful thing

published!

I wrote my blog post, "case of the Ex," as a result of a fight that I had with my husband. It is my most popular post to date, with more views in one day than most of my posts will probably have ever. I thought I'd see if anyone else liked it. And someone did! 

I submitted an edited version of my blog to the kind folks at Yahoo! Voices and they ended up publishing it on Friday! I've never had anything published before, so I'm pretty excited!

Click here to check out my article, "5 Reasons Why You Should Unfriend Your Ex on Facebook" and click here to view my profile on the Yahoo Contributor Network. 

Thanks to everyone who takes time to read my blog! 




getting published -- it's a beautiful thing