Las VOogie Bash

     You ever just sit and think about opera? Like, damn. I wanna do that. That's something I miss from quarantine. Opera singers took to their balconies to serenade their communities. God, my heart. Surreal. ANYWAY.

HAPPY OCTOBER! Get settled, cuz dis a longie.

Reporting to you live from my desk! What an October it's been! Annnd we're... 10 days in. :D
A lot has happened. And now I'm in a state of hopefully doing less. If my ego allows it. Bed rest has been, and continues to be, this weird kinda nice kinda ugh thing I've been in and out of.

Halloween season means frivolity and fun and spooky things!
So I dragged these two to the Disney parks for just those reasons.

Because yes.
I'm pretty sure at this point, Mr. Chicken has been Disney'd out since 5 years ago, but you know what? That shirt I got him is too cute to not wear it during Halloween Time in Disney, so. And Lifa hadn't stayed at the Grand Californian Hotel before, so. Hyuck it, why not.

We were going specifically for the event. I finally managed to snag us some Oogie Boogie Bash tickets this year. And we were going to ENJOY IT, thoroughly. Idc if it's the middle of the work week.

We arrived around 11. The hotel peeps took the car and luggage and handled everything uwu. Was much nicer than I expected. Our room wasn't ready yet, so we just kinda wandered and looked around for yums.
The Grand Californian Hotel never disappoints during seasonal events. They decorate everything so nicely! It's already got a cozy aura inside that makes it feel even more magical during the seasons.

We ended up having lunch at the Craftsman. First time here! 

They were even serving some Halloween themed drinks!!
So cyooot! I love, love this!

Mr. Chicken was at peace, and Lifa was so enchanted.

An afternoon lunch by the pool in the parks over some yummy cocktails, during the Halloween season? 

Look, when I was having meltdowns throughout my Mortuary Science education and another student consoled me by telling me "It gets worse, so be selfish. Take those days off and go do things with your friends.", I took that to heart.

My peace of mind cannot be fuuuucked wiiiith.
And if you'll let me protect you

with food and experiences
I will fiercely advocate for your peace of mind, too.

But you have to also be okay with being indulgent and feel like you're deserving of rewarding yourself for no reason- which I understand isn't easy to do! Just remember, it's a real life buff that works great with the buffs you get from your loved ones. IT'S MAGIC.

We had several hours to burn, and our room still wasn't ready. It's been a minute, but we figured we could try Trader Sam's. They're always busy when we've gone (evening time), but figured since it was the middle of the week and early afternoon, lets try!

And we got in!

The hostess gave us a heads up that we'd only be able to have our table for an hour. That was fine. (We were there longer than an hour, lol.)

Halloween things!!!

I didn't get the food stuff, but perhaps this week if we're able to get in I'll try the loco moco. Sounds yummyyy.

We'd never been inside before! 

The times we've been, our seating would end up being outside. This was totally fine, it was cute and scenic. Being inside had cute little environmental novelties. There'd been an explosion of auditory and visual stimulation when certain drinks would be ordered. Pretty endearing!

Our server was a pistol! So funny and enthusiastic. She also kept telling me how cute I was and gave me a free Dole Whip T_T

Look at these bros, omg.
They ordered the Kraken Bowl, lol. And got tiki mugs with the crazy drinks.

That piranha mug was crazy, lol. Imma drink cereal milk out of it. :D

We took some funny pictures

Behold, my 8 chins and I attempting to devour Mr. Chicken.

Since it was a Halloween event, he went as super lowkey, earless Oswald. And I was inspired (lazily) by none other than the ethereally beautiful Roz.

She is me.
I am her.

I actually got a little pointy grey hat and red cardigan to wear for this, but in the end went with comfort and less colors, lol. Mustard was already a lot to handle for me, believe it or not.

I got a notification that our room was ready, so tiki mugs in hand, we headed back to the hotel. Look at that slug lamp- it was meant to be.

So pretttyyyy!

So excite!

Ahhhh :D

When we went in, the monitor had a personalized welcome on it for us. Was a cute little touch.

Parkside view, yay!

We could see the pier and ferris wheel from our room. ^_^

They put on the PlayStation State of Play stream, lol.
The Midnight Walk got my attention. Surprise. I don't remember anything else.

Also, a few days prior, I had woken up with a mildly stuffy right nostril. The fan was running and the windows were open, and I went to bed with drenching wet hair. Meh.
Over the weekend prior to this, a coworker had gone home early because they felt sick.
This will turn into a side quest later on.

I had a stuffy nose and congestion that was coming on, but everything felt like a mild cold. Perhaps it was the bug from that coworker. I didn't think to much on it, rationalizing that I had just gotten my flu and covid booster shots after all. Hmm.

The time was drawing near. I had gone downstairs to the entrance to check if I could get all of our event tickets as they were on my account, but I could only get mine. So I went back up and we all got ready to head down.

SO EXCITING!!!

The first ride they went on was the river rapids ride, lol. I waited outside and got this shot of the Hat Box Ghost wandering around!

Been wanting to try the Ursula drink from Schmoozies. It's taro! Wasn't bad! I liked that it wasn't disgustingly sweet aside from the cotton candy and the sugar coated outside the cup. It was messy and the black food dye would melt on my hands, but it was fun and refreshing for a hot, late afternoon.

There was like, no wait time for the Guardians ride, so they headed over there and I rolled myself over to an area to sit and enjoy my drink when an Ursula and Ariel sat a few feet away from me. It looked like a mother and daughter thing, they looked great lol. As we were leaving, I complimented their costumes and said Ursula's hair was delicious. The Ursula got into character as a modern lady who felt so ashamed of getting her hair in my drink. It was hilarious. The daughter played along. She even was like my hair is falling out omg DO YOU WANT ME TO VENMO YOU. They were both so deadpan, I loved it so much, Mr. Chicken and I were just laughing.

We got some more snackies and drinks. This was the aftermath after an afternoon of booze and being shaken up AND stirred by the Guardians ride, lmao. The Guardians ride was doing an alternate version for the event, and while it was more brief, it apparently jerked riders around more aggressively and abruptly LOL. Mr. Chicken took the most damage, poor thing. 

As it got darker, we wandered to see what the event was about. There were areas where characters would be out for photo ops, and trick of treat stations all over the place!!

We saw the Sanderson Sisters and had to get in on that. The wait wasn't that bad, and they were so so so cute! Clarabelle was the sweetest and blew me so many smoochies lol. 

I love Clarabelle, we have a thing.

She blessed me the day I took my National Board Exams. I went to the parks to study because the testing center was like 10 mins from there, and on my way out, she was by the gate and I said hyuck it, Imma get a picture I need the magic. 

And she's just a dame. She's old school. 
Yes, I know it's a different cast member every time. Yes, I know Santa isn't real. But y'know what? I still let myself feel the magic. So PPPPPPPPPPBBBFFTTT. CLARABELLE IS MY GIRL.

Lookit this smug mfer. Looked pretty cool in person!

There were areas the the Villains took the stage and you'd walk by them to interact and take photos. Was fun. Hades in RL was just as spicy and witty as he is on screen!

Ahhh, my favorite is Carthay Circle Square at night.

7 years ago, same time frame, we took photos in that spot and atmosphere.

And now I'm third wheeling, lolz.

Ladies, respect your mans' homies. He may be your man, but the homie is a different and powerful bond. Respect it. I'd never dare to (unfathomable, actually) come in between these two. This that rare, precious brotherhood. It's fantastic that they have one another.
I'm just lucky to call Lifa my friend, too waaaahhh. :')

JUDGE DOOM

Man, what a creepy performance. This guy was too good. I hated/loved it. We missed it, but when he first comes out, he'll play out the scene where he puts the Shoe toon in the dip, and it's screaming T_T

There are clips of it out there in the etherweb. It's horrifying.

He was too good lol, so unsettling. I forget what we said to him as reached him wait- I SAID PLEASE DON'T KILL HIM (pointing to the shoe) AND HE JUST GRINNED AT ME AND WATCHED US WALK AWAY. THAT'S WHAT IT WAS. Sorry, lol. Yeah. Woof. God. Remember how the little shoe would screech in agony?!?! IT'S HORRIBLE. HE PLAYS THAT SCENE OUT. Disney got no chill sometimes, lol.

There was also this beautiful light show at the Redwook Creek walk-through. Sooo beautiful!

I can't imagine the planning that went into this. Plus all the design and behind the scenes stuff to make it feel like it did. Really pretty and takes you to another place.

That magic!

Oh my god,
SID WAS THERE, TOO.

His casting was perfect, lol. He was basically an insult comic and behaved exactly like an annoying, bratty, snarky adolescent mean boy. It was impressive, lol.

His toys were out on display!!! SO COOL.
ALSO, I have a Disneybound outfit planned for that doll btw, lmao. It's... yeah. But it works. It's awful, and I'm gonna nag Mr. Chicken to Disneybound Sid because it's easy and effortless, but one of these days, you're gonna see it and be like wow, gross.

WE SAW THE QUEEN HERSELF

The magnificent, marvelous, Mad Madame Mim!

I love her, she's beautiful.

She disagrees, apparently lol. When we walked by her I told her, "you're beautiful!" and she goes lol, "NO I'M NOT" and POUTS, AND SULKS AND TURNS AROUND TO CROSS HER ARMS LOL. Perhaps she only accepts the compliment when she turns herself to deliberately be beautiful, lovely, and fair. With a silvery voice, and long purple hair.

LA LA LA LAAAA

The event went on until 11. We were tired, as we had wandered basically all day but had a great time. The hotel room beckoned us for a good nights sleep.

The music and lights stayed on througout the night. It was okay though. It brought a sort of comfort as we dozed off.

The next morning, we woke up well rested and took comfort in the unplanned, whatevs, chill vibes for the day.

I woke up more congested, but faring pretty well. Dumb stuffy nose!

We got breakfast at Smokejumper's to try the Villainous Burger. It was yummy!

Lifa spotted a Hidden Mikey behind us! And we stopped by Clarabelle's to get the very essential Guiness ice cream float, lol.

They got matching bags omg.

Marching band was both fun and irritatingly loud.

So, Haunted Mansion is the biggest attraction during the Halloween and Holiday seasons in Disneyland. Lifa's never seen it transformed. We wanted to at least check it out before calling it a day. 

Unfortunately, walk ups weren't happening. At least not for that day. There was a literal virtual queue to get into in order to go on the attraction. Unheard of. We queued in through my app around 11:25ish AM, thinking it'd be fine. We were assigned a group number; 149. When it was our turn, the app would notify us to come get in line. It was at like, group 64 at the time.

Lifa, ever the optimist thought it wouldn't be long. We could grab some snacks and head over to the Haunted Mansion til we're called. Mr. Chicken I think knew, but didn't say anything. I had a feeling this was going to be another learning experience, so I encouraged finding food and something to do in the mean time because it was gonna be a while.

Off to Galaxy's Edge!

Mr. Chicken had gotten that Magic Wrist Band thing that activates extra stuff around the parks. There was some Bounty Hunter quest thing guests can unlock with the band, so we did that. Was pretty cool. You're literally sent on a bounty to find locations around Galaxy's Edge to reveal stuff and bring it back to the terminal. You don't really get anything back, but the novelty is great and adds some extra flavor to enjoy. :D

As the day progressed and got hotter, I felt more and more fatigued. Perhaps the beloved incubating parasite in my viscera, or perhaps something foreign that my body was fighting. Or both. But it began to actively suck.

I forget what all of this was, but the green thing and the little meat pie things were really, really good. Popcorn, not so much. Blue milk is always a winner. This was in the bazaar at one of the little shops. I would get both again. 

After a while, I had to sit down. Our group number still was a ways away, around the 120s I think. So I picked a low curb under some shade with less foot traffic and squat/sat there.

To put it lightly, physiology during pregnancy, despite my ego, is unforgiving and will check you hard.

The lordosis is real-  no longer just a distrubing pose in cosplay or what the office aliens had in Men in Black. Ligaments stretch and ache. Weight distribution wrecks your center of gravity, forcing the pelvis and its neighboring structures to overcompensate. This is the way. 

So, we sat there and kinda people watched for a while until it was hungry time again. In that time, Kylo Ren and his clone friends were making their rounds, and walked towards us.

He stopped and looked to me. It was coming. This is where I melt with shyness, immediately turned bright red and covered my face as he scolded me and accused me of being a spy. 

He just kept going. I couldn't make eye contact with him until I thought he was done. Then he turned around again and accused me of being a pirate. 

See, I can't. The kid in me believes it's all real, lmao.

The number in the queue was getting closer and closer to ours. We were in the early 140s now. We got up and made our way towards New Orleans Square, with some time to spare for a quick sammich.

Finally our group number was called and we got in line. I was anticipating waiting for another hour +, just because that's what I'm used to. Thank goodness the courtyard had been mostly blocked off and it was a straight shot to the entrance.

Surprising no one, there were people doing the walk of shame back towards the exit, or camping outside the gates in the line as everyone who actually got called walked past them. I don't understand the mentality of trying to sneak in. It's obviously regulated.
We saw a younger couple walk past us towards the entrance gate, giggling. I wanted to ask them what they were thinking. Like, how their logic made sense in any plane of reality. Then there were these two aunties standing off to the side, in line, waiting (I'm assuming) for their turn so they could walk in. But... there were people in line to get in already. So they'd have to go to the back of the line anyway. Unless they thought that cutting was just... acceptable? I don't know. I can't wrap my head around it. I don't know what else to call it other than stupidity? Or entitlement? Both? 

Anyway, you show up and show the cast member your notification to get in with your party, and they grant you access, or if you're stupid/entitled, you get told to exit and wait your turn.

Anywho, going on the ride put me in the spirit. Autumn and spooky season is here, followed by cozy warm friend and family times, and it feels fantastic.

She looks so dreamy here.

I get it, girl.
Not a dreamer, but I am a romantic and it really is the best time of the year!

Ah, Oogie...

Thank you Mr. Ken Page. Rest peacefully, sir.

It took 6 hours to get on that ride, but we did it. By the time we were done, I was struggling. The guys were also almost on empty. I usually drive us to the parks because Mr. Chicken hates traffic (he drives a manual), but he took over for me and I knocked out. Good times! Definitely took a lot out of us, but we were bloated and satisfied with our little escape.


The next day, I had work. Woke up even more congested and now cough-y. Hm. Then, when I took a bite out of a breakfast madeline, I noticed that I couldn't taste it... Or smell anything. Was is the congestion? I could taste and smell fine yesterday. Odd.

I should test...

Fuck.
Even the line was telling me I got it twisted.
I've had it before, but it wasn't like this.

I let work know and they said to stay home until fever symtomps calm down.

The worst part about this was that I LOVE food. It's my happy place, anywhere I go. The flavors, the scents, the layers, the presentation, the texture, the color. Sigh.

But things made sense now. Not only was I compromised physiologically with incubation, but I was also sick and probably was running a fever. It was bed rest for me. Mr. Chicken brought me soup and mangos - which I couldn't taste. But felt good going down my throat. 

God, this was absolutely wasted on me. Utterly wasted. I know what they taste like, and my brain would trip out seeing it, sensing it all in my mouth, but not registering flavor. Weirdest thing ever. I hate it. That was the bad news. And I felt like absolute crap, but yanno. Comes with it.

The good news...

Was that I could drink straight up boiled ginger water, and eat ginger chunks in the tea, and not taste any of it. And so I did. That first day was bed rest watching Bones on Hulu and feeling sorry for myself for not catching this sooner. I had trusted the flu and covid vaccines too much, thinking whatever bug I'd gotten was a try hard that had no chance against my latest driver updates. I was so wrong. 
Granted, I believe COVID would've hit me much harder, because it was pretty bad following this. But it wasn't anything like how I experienced it in 2020 lockdown. I thought I was going to die. This... this was like a really bad cold at first with some fever symptoms. I was lucky that phlegm was mild with no signs of infection. From what I could tell, and was 90% concentrated in my sinuses.

I'll take it.

But then... we had a Vegas trip to leave for that Saturday. It was Thursday. What do?

Welp. Mr. Chicken tested negative. And we have a room to ourselves for the week. Everyone else has their own suite. I told Mr. Chicken he could go on his own and I could stay home, but in the end we decided I'd go and just stay in the room the whole time. 

I gave Lifa a heads up but he didn't care, so I masked up for all eternity and we were off. 

We were excited. Plans were already made with the others, but I was completely fine with isolating in the hotel room and really looking forward to just... potatoing. All things considered, my body not only needed isolation, but rest as well.

WELP.

We couldn't have two consecutive good times without something to balance it out, could we? Nope. The fuel pump called it quits. Nothing we could do. Bright side though was that the tow truck was on its way, and Sister Chicken lives there. The hiccup we had sucked, but we still somehow had luck on our side.

We were given a lift to Sister Chicken's where she and her fiance hosted us. It was good to see them again and to just have them there. Super comforting. She lended us her car (see? lucky) and we'd be back for another tow to the dealership the next morning.

Lifa headed to his hotel room to greet the others, we headed to ours. I was so ready.

It was quaint and perfect.

The bathtub being next to the bed was like the cherry on top. I could just cook myself alive there while watching Halloween show marathons on cable television.

So cute. Perfect. This is all I want.

Since we hadn't really eaten much (skipped on sushi lunch stop), we walked over to New York to grab some quick bites. I couldn't taste anything but it was still satisfying, lol.

Hung out there a little bit then went back up to our room.

DAY 2 | VEGAS

We woke up early and made our way back to Sister Chicken and Mr. Sister Chicken's abode. 

MSC lovingly made us breakfast before heading out to the dealership and dropping off the car. Then it was lonch tieeeem.

TIME TO JUDGE MEEEEE :D

Because that's what we do, we judge. It's fine. I judged the people in Disneyland that tried to sneak into Haunted Mansion prior to their queue.

Oh noooo, sushi. That's like, forbidden during pregnancy! Yes and no. I've been avoiding fish with high mercury altogether. As sad as this makes me, I understand the effects that mercury can have on development. So, RIP. Salmon however is a fantastic resource. And I'll have it raw so long as the source is trusted.

Sushi consumption hasn't given me any issues ever (so far), so there isn't any fear on my end of how my body will react or digest it. It's the mercury content that I'm more wary of.

I can also have molluscs; scallops, clams, octopus, mussels, etc. But I'll stick only to scallops and octopus. I don't trust how raw clams are handled. And that's pretty much it.

Could I taste it? Not really. It broke my heart. But this cool thing was happening in my brain where... because I know what salmon and scallop taste like, my brain was trying to fill in the blank of those taste receptors. Like my memory of those flavors were trying to activate, and the texture aided in that. It was kinda trippy. I didn't taste it, but just seeing it and chewing it activated the memory part of my brain to imagine the flavor automatically. Kinda cool.

After lunch we headed back to the hotel. Mr. Chicken headed down to meet up with the others while I got comfortable in bed and potato'd the entire rest of the day.

It was awesome. By 10pm, I was getting hungry again, so I masked up and went downstairs to grab some din din from Eataly, then came back to the room to eat. There were barely any people out getting food, it was perfect.

Feeling like crap, looking like a swollen bug larva with a wig, but also enjoying my isolation in the quiet. I'll take it :D

Our first night there we also found a cricket!

I told Mr. Chicken it was a lucky cricket. We ran into some negative stuff, but now we're there. This buddy is a good sign. We were careful to not harm it. Cricket stayed with us for 2 nights before I started to worry about it being able to eat. So I captured it and we released it in some foilage by the pool. We'd been lucky with the help and support we've gotten so far, it was only right to help this little friend, too.

Chill, I haven't had alcohol. But I'm learning to appreciate mocktails. This restaraunt was overpriced but it was cute lol. Thankfully there weren't many people and we were kinda cornered away. Could I taste it? I could smell the citrus in his drink and mine kind of, and pick up faint layers of the cheese, but not taste. Each meal was a visual stimulation and nutrient intake, nothing more.

We grabbed some extra goodies to take back to the room.

Several days left in our trip and I needed to boil in that tub, cutely.

We heard about this beverage. Apparently, for being a zero alcohol beer, it's one of the better alternatives out currently. I haven't tried any non-alcoholic beers before, so I've no gauge to measure by. But connisserus have been impressed enough. So Mr. Chicken decided to give it a go. I would've, but... lol.

Comparing it to a Guiness, he gave it 7/10. That's a pretty high score. He said it doesn't have that full body we're used to from a Guiness, but he can appreciate what they're trying to do with it. The flavor was much ligther, and it doesn't leave you feeling full. It looks just like a Guiness, the creamy head is there, it's just the light flavor profile to it that sets it apart. "Watery." You can tell it's not a Guiness, but you can't hate it.

When my taste is back completely I wanna try a little. I miss the smell of Guiness lol. Stouts are my favorite. So smooth, thick, rich, creamy, chocolatey, coffee-y. Slightly sweet. Mmm. Sigh, lol.

I required a slushie and a visually stimulating anything.

That day, we stayed in and watched Hallloween movies until late.

By this point, we'd gotten an estimate on the repairs for the car. Biiiig saaaaad, lol. But that's life. So. Keep going. We have cute drinks, a cute Kuromi cookie, cute bath bomb, in a cute hotel room, and we have each other.

No but seriously, look at this bath bomb.

The glitter in it matched my ring.

The next morning Ace Ventura and I spent much of the morning together.

The car was done and ready for pick up.

Gonna be honest. I'm feeling myself in my slug body lol. I know many women like, hate it but I'm really digging it. I've never felt more sensual, attractive and just, like, into myself. I think preggo body is cute.

The only thing that sucks is like, the uncomfortable and painful structural shifts. The edema is just funny. The weight gain, yeah it's not flattering, but my body is doing something cool. I drowned my clavicles, got the fat arms, shoulders, swollen legs and fingers, and 6 chins... can't hate it!

:D

Right now, there's pain incorporated into almost everything I do. I try to keep how painful this all is to myself because there's literally nothing that can be done about any of it. Nothing. That's just how it's been and is gonna be. I guess it's just nice to express it here. 

I've been told a few times now that I wear this all well or that I don't complain. 

I want to complain, but it's not gonna change anything. Instead I'm treating myself to cute stuff and I'm gonna be nice to myself. 

Mr. Chicken brought me another slushie from the Hello Kitty Cafe truck and food from Ri Ra's while he was with the guys.

We went over to Sister Chicken's and hung out there for a while, then picked up the car and came back to the hotel for dinner.

Mmmm, bread pudding!

The next day marked our last overnight stay in Vegoose.

We got breakfast before Mr. Chicken left to meet up with the guys again.

I had leftovers and waddled back up to the room to enjoy my boiling session and cable tv.

I cooked in that tub for like 3 hours lmao, it was amazing. And then I met up with them all at this place called the Library that Sister Chicken suggested to us.

I hadn't seen anyone besides Mr. Chicken all week because I didn't want to risk of getting anyone sick. Mr. Chicken and Lifa initially avoided everyone too, but some of the others missed them too much, lol. Thankfully, Mr. Chicken remained immune and to my knowledge, no one got sick. I was happy isolating in the room, but it was nice to see them at least this once before concluding our trip.

The place was super pretty inside. I was breathless. Overpriced, but pretty. Which... typically, yeah. Goes hand in hand. I only got a drink and dessert.

Aww!

The smolder bros, lol

The dessert was pretty, but just okay. Nothing crazy. Would I go again? Not really, but I'd recommend going at least once to just experience the atmosphere. It's impressive. Takes your breath away.

When we finished, Sister Chicken and Mr. Sister Chicken were waiting for us in the lobby area! They led us to this rooftop bar loung place with lots of food and drinks. Good, cuz I was hungry.

It was pretty nice. Huge rooftop patio dining situation with a DJ (if you're into that- I am not) and an attractively decorated bar on the opposite end. I liked the openness and the way the lights shined at night.

We got a loooot of food. And of course they had to get their huge thing of blondie.

These two helped us out so much. We're fam but still, I can't imagine what fresh hell we would've been in had they not been there. Lucky crickets, the two of them!

See, he hops. Cricket! I should just call him Mr. Cricket.
It was a fantastic last night to conclude our trip there. Things were okay.
I could barely taste or smell anything, but that was the least of our worries, and everything was okay.

GGs. 

Who goes to Vegas to stay in the room the entire time? Me. I do. It healed me. 10/10.

I was feeling a little better and went back to work the day after. Some of the girls in my department put on the sweetest baby shower for the Mung Bean.

I was so touched. And I gotta talk about how incredible these women are.

There are so many mommas and just strong, encouraging women that I get to work with who were so open to guiding me and giving me advise and just... being happy for me. They shared their experiences with so much support. And as the days got harder and harder, they'd jump right in without hesitation. The guys too! One of the guys in particular would call me out when I'd try to adjust a casket or something while no one was looking, lol. My ego would get checked almost daily, which made me feel grateful for these folks every day.

So, a bunch of them got a potluck going and a baby shower with so many beautiful contributions and gifts for our family. It was bigger than anything I could've expected. And as much as I wanna document everything here, an announcement about the Mung Bean was never in the plans.

To be quite honest we'd decided that whoever wasn't in our lives directly didn't need to know about it. And the sentiment is still there. I'm just kinda over hiding myself in photos.

There's Mung Bean

But to stress how incredible my colleagues are, they even organized a gender reveal party at work, and it was so fun and cute, lol. And everything they've given us... we're floored. It's gonna absolutely stick with me forever and I'm already excited to find the next momma who's gonna need stuff. Mr. Chicken's colleagues too!! SO SWEET. I just. 

See? COVID. Car broke down + ouch repair expenses. 
Supportive family, friends, and colleagues.
Always a balance. Graciously accept the downs and move forward towards the ups.

Aaaaand, I recently got to see one of my batssss

Cyoooootieeee. Our catch ups are fun, lol. 

We were there for like 2 and half hours just talking about everything. Imma drag her to my work. Just wait. Mark my words. I'll fight for her. She's a gem with a big heart and she'd fit right in with my team. 

We then went to Home Goods. It was fine. We wandered and unfortunately I found some stuff...

I just need to eat out of pumpkin shaped kitchenware, okay. My smell and taste is still gradually returning, and I need the visuals now. Food can't just look like it tastes good anymore, it has to look good and CUTE. It's therapy. My brain is trying really hard to get this all repaired.

You must understand.

I could be under the bed, crying, wrapped in a blanket. Instead... like the strong, sensual, useless slug that I am, I had butternut squash pumpkin shaped pasta with pumpkin, squash and tomato meat sauce in my ceramic pumpkin dish with my apple brown sugar latte in my pumpkin mug. Alright?

I almost made myself an iced pumpkin spiced latte, but it felt a little much. Just a little.


Earlier this year I wrote about enjoying Lunar New Year in Disney California Adventure. We got caligraphy notes written for each of us. 

Mine said Blessing.

And so here we are.

I don't know what the future will bring. Could be awesome, could utterly suck. But we got this far.

It's officially October 12, 2024 now.
We've been married for 2 years, today. ^_^
Riiight before midterms :)

This post has gone on long enough and the edema ghost is back to reposess my limbs. I'm gonna celebrate our blessings and drink to our misfortunes. Happy weekend. Get yourself a cute little thing. I went to Daiso today and got myself stickers, lol.

Good night and good night!